#Ученичество

| #Ученичество. 2026. Вып. 1 | #Apprenticeship. 2026. Issue 1 29 ground floor, there were the offices of the Bureau, men's and women's Russian gymnasiums, Russian associations, the church of the Most Holy Mother of God, a library, a theater, and a ballet school. Russians also gathered at the Russian Legation building, where there was a free kitchen run by the Russian Red Cross, lodging for émigrés, and a soldiers' club. The Russian orphanage building housed forty orphans, a social welfare department, and a sports club. Charitable organizations also played a role in wartime life by providing material assistance to Russian people. Russian émigrés participated in collecting winter aid for people in need, while Russian women organized charity events. In the courtyard of the Russian House, they grew beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, and other crops to provide food and maintain a basic standard of living. Some Russians also opened craft workshops to endure the war years and provide for themselves. Like other citizens, they were subjected to compulsory labor in 1943. Certainly, the life of Russian émigrés during World War II was not easy, but through additional activities and mutual assistance they managed to preserve themselves as a cohesive community, which was wholeheartedly supported by the Russian Orthodox Church. II.1. Schooling of Russian Children during World War II During the interwar period, the Russian émigré community in Serbia established a unique educational system in order to ensure their survival and preserve their identity. Prior to World War II, several Russian elementary schools operated in various parts of Serbia, as well as gymnasiums in cities like Belgrade, Novi Sad, Kikinda, and Zemun . 4 In addition, there were also special types of education offered by girls' institutions and Russian military schools, including cadet corps. The education at the Cadet Corps in Bela Crkva and girls' institutions in Novi Bečej and Bela Crkva lasted for eight years and provided students aged ten to twenty-one with a high level of education in addition to strict discipline and traditional values. As previously mentioned, the number of Russian emigrants in Belgrade and Vojvodina varied: some went to work in Germany, while others came to Belgrade as a city offering better economic opportunities. Russian families came with their children, who attended Russian elementary and secondary schools according to their age. During the war, the education system for Russian children faced restrictions: elementary schools were located in Belgrade, Bor, Zemun, Novi Sad, Pančevo, and Petrograd; the Russian- Serbian male and female gymnasiums in Belgrade; the girls' institute in Bela Crkva, which closed in October 1941; and the cadet corps in Bela Crkva that operated from January 1942 until the summer of 1944 . 5 The number of children signed up for these schools can be found in the records of the School Board of the Bureau for the Protection of the Interests of Russian Emigrants. According to these records, more than 1,000 students from elementary and secondary schools in Belgrade and Vojvodina are enrolled in school. 6 In the years leading up to World War II, more than 900 students and over 100 teachers were engaged in education as part of the state education system. 7 Number of Teachers and Pupils before World War II School Teachers Pupils Russian-Serbian Male Gymnasium, Belgrade 23 206 Russian-Serbian Female Gymnasium, Belgrade 25 218 4 Dimić L. The Russian Émigré Community in the Cultural Life of Civil Yugoslavia // Istorija 20. veka. 1990. № 1-2. P. 21. 5 Timofeev A. Unstoppable Russian… P. 217. 6 Timofeyev A., Živanović M., Mandić S. The Russian Émigré … P. 72. 7 Timofeev A. Unstoppable Russian … P. 218.