Tetyana Yosypivna Markus (''also trans.'' as Tatiana, uk, Тетяна Йосипівна Маркус; 21 September 1921 – 29 January 1943) was a member of the anti-Nazi underground in

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

Biography

Markus was born in the

Shtetl A shtetl or shtetel (; yi, שטעטל, translit=shtetl (singular); שטעטלעך, romanized: ''shtetlekh'' (plural)) is a Yiddish term for the small towns with predominantly Ashkenazi Jewish populations which existed in Eastern Europe before ...

Romny Romny ( uk, Ромни́, ) is a city in northern Ukraine, Ukrainian Sumy Oblast. It is located on the Romen (river), Romen River. Romny serves as the administrative centre of Romny Raion. It is administratively incorporated as a City of region ...

to a large

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family. A few years after her birth, her family moved to Kiev. Markus graduated from the 9th form of school No. 44. In 1938, she worked as a secretary of the personnel department of the passenger service of the South-Western Railways. In the summer of 1940, she was sent to Kishinev, where she worked in a tramway trolleybus park. After the seizure of Kishinev by the Romanians, Markus returned to

, which was occupied by Germany in 1941. Since then, she began actively participating in underground activities. She repeatedly took part in sabotage acts against the Nazis, in particular, throwing a grenade at a line of marching soldiers disguised as a bouquet of

asters ''Aster'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Its circumscription has been narrowed, and it now encompasses around 170 species, all but one of which are restricted to Eurasia; many species formerly in ''Aster'' are ...

. With fake documents, Markus was registered in a private house under the name of Marcousisse: a legend was invented that she was the daughter of a Georgian prince executed by the

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

. Under this name, she was hired to work in an officer dining room. There, she successfully continued the sabotage activity: pouring poison into SS officer's food. Several officers died, and Markus left without suspicion. In addition, she personally shot a valuable

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

informant, and transmitted underground information about traitors who worked with the

. Many officers of the German army were attracted by her beauty and attempted to pursue her. One was a high-ranking official from

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, who was shot dead by Markus at his apartment after coming to fight partisans and underground fighters. During her tenure, she killed dozens of German soldiers and officers. Once, she shot a Nazi officer and left a note: ''All of you, fascist reptiles are waiting for the same fate. Tetyana Markosidze.'' The leadership of the Soviet underground decided to withdraw Markus from the city to the partisans, but failed to do so. On 22 August 1942, she was captured by the Gestapo while attempting to cross the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...

. She was tortured by the

for five months, but she did not betray anyone. On 29 January 1943, Markus was shot.

Legacy

* A memorial plaque was dedicated to Markus at the Kiev school No. 44. It was destroyed in the spring of 2016. * She received the title of

Hero of Ukraine Hero of Ukraine (HOU; uk, Герой України, ''Heroi Ukrainy'') is the highest national title that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the President of Ukraine. The title was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma and as ...

with the Golden Star on 21 September 2006 – ''for personal courage and heroic self-sacrifice, invincibility of spirit in the fight against fascist invaders in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945''. * On 1 December 2009, a monument to Markus was opened in

Babi Yar Babi Yar (russian: Ба́бий Яр) or Babyn Yar ( uk, Бабин Яр) is a ravine in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and a site of massacres carried out by Nazi Germany's forces during its campaign against the Soviet Union in World War II. The fi ...

. * In September 2011, a postage stamp dedicated to her was issued.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Markus, Tatiana 1921 births 1943 deaths People from Romny People from Romensky Uyezd Ukrainian Jews who died in the Holocaust Soviet Jews Recipients of the title of Hero of Ukraine Jewish resistance members during the Holocaust Female resistance members of World War II Ukrainian torture victims People executed by Nazi Germany by firearm Recipients of the Order of Gold Star (Ukraine) Jewish women activists Ukrainian women in World War II