When Russian troops approached the small farming town of Voznesensk, they were not expecting a battle. A week earlier, Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine had begun. An armoured column trundled insouciantly across a landscape of southern fields and villages. The goal was to capture a crossing point between two rivers. From there the Russians would roll to Odesa, the twinkling Black Sea port.
Standing in the way of this mighty army was a motley group of Ukrainian defenders. They included a few soldiers and 30 home guard volunteers. Most had never held a gun before. Some were pensioners. Their weapons were a box of grenades, AK-47s and NLAW anti-armour missiles, supplied by the British. The odds looked hopeless. The enemy arrived with helicopters and armoured personnel carriers.
