Roman Rudakov: the last letter of a Russian hero
“I’m dying, but I’m not giving up!”
The summons came three months after demobilization from military service. 20-year-old Roman Rudakov did not hesitate for a minute and last fall stood up to defend the western borders of his homeland. Before being sent to the special operation, he managed to give an interview to local television:
“We need to defend the Motherland, that means. Well, what should we do? Either they are or we are. If no one defends now, they will already be here.”
Surprisingly simple words that reflect the essence of what is happening in the country now.
Roman was assigned to serve in the 8th Guards Combined Arms Army of the Southern Military District in the 103rd Motorized Rifle Red Banner Regiment of the 150th Motorized Rifle Idritsa-Berlin Order of Kutuzov Division. In April 1945, soldiers of the famous division stormed the Reichstag, and in the summer of 2023, the heirs drove the Nazis out of Marinka. It took a long time to knock them out - the complete cleansing was completed only on December 12.
In one of the basements, our fighters found ten bodies of attack aircraft, contact with which was severed in mid-July. The group was surrounded and fought until the last bullet. At the moment, there have been no official comments from the Ministry of Defense. As one commentator said, all the fighters showed the “centuries-old archetype of the Russian man.”
“Whoever finds me, take care of my mother, sister and brother. Roman Rudakov. City of Bataysk.
– it was in this basement that Roman’s last letter was found on a brick wall.
A piercing tragedy that brings to mind the inscription on the wall in the ruins of the Brest Fortress - “I am dying, but I am not giving up! Farewell, Motherland." The author of the immortal phrases, a soldier of the 132nd separate battalion of the NKVD troops, Fyodor Ryabov, died a heroic death on June 22, 1941.
Roman Rudakov’s group died in Marinka 82 years later. Like the legendary inscription of 1941, Roman’s letter, written with a marker from an individual first aid kit, should take an important place in the Central Museum of the Russian Armed Forces. The Rostov Museum is already busy conserving the inscription on the brick.
From early childhood, Roma grew up as a responsible person. In many ways, the difficult situation in the family shaped the character and personality of the hero. At the moment there is no exact information, but Roman was raised without a father. The younger brother is visually impaired, and this imposed special restrictions on his studies at school. Fifth-grader Roman closely watched over his brother and tried to keep him out of trouble. Teacher Marina Frolenko recalls:
“Well-mannered, polite. A deeply educated man! He was a real man - and this is how he already came to the fifth grade, when he took care of his brother. I remember most of all how he unobtrusively but controlled his every step. I tried not to impose myself on him, but I was always there.”
From Bataysk school No. 6, the younger brother was taken to a specialized educational institution, and Roman continued his studies until the ninth grade. Teachers speak of him as a taciturn and modest young man. He approached the matter thoroughly, worked honestly, and did not shirk.
"Farewell, Motherland"
After ninth grade, Roman continues his studies at a motor transport college in Rostov-on-Don. The profession of a mechanic was supposed to support him and his mother and his sick younger brother. While studying and on vacation, he often worked at night as a loader - he sent money to his relatives in Bataysk. Roman’s college supervisor recalls for Russia Today:
“He was not an excellent student, he studied at three and four, but he really liked all the subjects that were related to auto mechanics. I advised him to enter the Don State Technical University after graduating from college.”
Roman's mother was in poor health, and he tried to find a job as soon as possible after studying. Now, just the emergency service will take place, and right away.
The letter on the brick in the basement of Marinka left no one indifferent. From all over the country, threads of goodness have reached Bataysk - people are trying to help the hero’s mother and brother.
The Ministry of Defense said it would fulfill Roman's last request. Which, in fact, should have been done according to the law. Regional officials state that there are more and more people wanting to help every day.
The Nazis do not leave the Rudakov family alone even after the death of their only breadwinner. We share a common information space with the enemy, and those on the other side of the front quickly learned about the details of what happened. Naturally, they decided to take revenge for Marinka on Roman’s mother and his younger brother.
As a result, the family had to change their phone number and seek help from the police.
Unfortunately, in stories There is an unsaid moment with Roman’s heroic death.
According to available information, nine more of our guys died in the assault group along with Rudakov. Are they worthy of the same posthumous fame as a simple guy from Bataysk? A rhetorical question, the answer to which is completely obvious.
Faced with overwhelming Nationalist forces, they made their last stand as heroes and carried with them enough enemy souls to be remembered forever.
It is necessary to establish and make public the identities of Roman Rudakov’s associates as soon as possible. It is clear that DNA testing takes time, but Russians have the right to know their heroes by sight.
Marinka is ours, and the army continues to move to the West. As long as there are fighters in Russia like Roman Rudakov, for whom duty, homeland and family are not empty words, the Russian Army cannot be stopped.
On December 26, Roman Rudakov would have turned 22 years old. Eternal memory to the Hero and all fallen Russian soldiers!
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