Lecture: Alexandra Pulvermacher: The Fate of Female Soviet Prisoners of War in Occupied Soviet Union, 1941-44, 28.04.2025, virtual space

The international research network on „Military, War, and Gender/Diversity“ (MKGD): MKGD Online Research Colloquium (Web)

Time: Mo., 28.04.2025, 4:00-6:00 pm (CET)
Venue: virtual space (Web)

The monthly colloquium of the research network „Military, War, and Gender/Diversity“ (known by its German acronym MKGD) continues in this summer semester. The recently enlarged team of organizers is very much looking forward to welcoming you online starting in late April! (Web)

Alexandra Pulvermacher (Univ. of Klagenfurt): The Fate of Female Soviet Prisoners of War in Occupied Soviet Union, 1941-44 (Abstract, PDF)

The Wehrmacht’s style of warfare in Western Europe was very different from its conduct in the Soviet Union, where it openly flouted international law. This disregard led to extreme violence, much of it directed at captured Red Army soldiers. During the Second World War, more than 800,000 women served in the Red Army in roles such as medics, interpreters, couriers, secretaries, machinists, logisticians and snipers. Alongside the prevailing enemy stereotype of Judeo-Bolshevism, the German occupiers also promoted the image of the ‘Russian gunwoman’ to characterise female soldiers. This presentation examines the experiences of Soviet female prisoners of war and offers a comparative analysis with those of their male counterparts.

Moderation: Christa Hämmerle (Univ. of Vienna)

Alexandra Pulvermacher is a researcher at the Univ. of Klagenfurt, working on the project “Life and Death of Soviet Prisoners of War in Occupied Ukraine, 1941-44”. She completed her PhD in March 2023, focusing on a comparative study of Soviet and German repression of the Polish resistance in occupied Poland.

Full programme of the colloquium (Web)