Timurovtsy: young volunteers of the great war

In 1940, after the publication of A.P. Gaidar’s novel, «Timur and his team», a movement of Timurovtsy, young volunteers, arose in the USSR. It was quite unusual phenomenon for that time because the work of these commands was based on independence and initiative of the guys themselves, their activities had a strong social-useful focus. The article substantiates the relevance of volunteering in modern Russia, discusses some aspects of origin and development of the Timurovsky movement, and also analyzes the main perspectives of the young volunteers’ activity in the years of the Great Patriotic War in the USSR and the Republic of Buryatia The article can be interesting for historians, educators, professionals in the field of social sciences, as well as for anyone who is interested in the history of our country.