Women ' s Battalion Women ' s Battalions were all - female combat units formed after the February Revolution by the Russian Provisional Government in a last - ditch effort to inspire the mass of war - weary soldiers to continue fighting in World War I . In the spring of 1917 , male shock units and battalions of death were created from pools of enthusiastic volunteers to lead the way in battle . Already some women had successfully petitioned to join regular military units , and now a number began pressing the new Provisional Government to create special women ' s battalions . These women , along with a number of high - ranking members of the Russian government and military administration , believed that female soldiers would have significant propaganda value and that their example would revitalize the weary , demoralized men of the Russian army . Simultaneously , they hoped the presence of women would shame hesitant male soldiers into resuming their combat duties . Fifteen formations were created in 1917 , including the 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death , a separate unit called the 1st Petrograd Women ' s Battalion formed a few weeks later in Petrograd , the 2nd Moscow Women ' s Battalion of Death created in Moscow , and the 3rd Kuban Women ' s Shock Battalion organized in Ekaterinodar . Four communications detachments were created in Moscow and Petrograd . Seven additional communications units were created in Kiev and Saratov , again employing privately organized women ' s units already existing in those cities . Additional unsanctioned battalions sprang in cities across Russia . An all - female naval unit was created in Oranienbaum , the 1st Women ' s Naval Detachment , as part of the Naval Infantry Training Detachment . American reporter Bessie Beatty estimated the total number of women serving in these gender - segregated units at 5 , 000 in the fall of 1917 , but only the 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death and the Perm Battalion were deployed to the front . Although some who had served in these units went on to fight on both sides of the Russian Civil War , women ' s battalions were never part of the White Army , Green Army , or Black Army , the other Russian political groups fighting the Bolsheviks . 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death . In May 1917 , Maria Bochkareva , a peasant woman who had served in the Russian army since November 1914 and had risen to the rank of non - commissioned officer , petitioned the government to establish a battalion of female soldiers under her command . At the end of May , the Minister of War of the Russian Provisional Government , Alexander Kerensky , authorized the formation of the 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death in Petrograd . This first all - female combat unit initially attracted over 2 , 000 enlistees between the ages of eighteen and forty , but Bochkareva ' s strict discipline and refusal to allow the formation of soldiers ' committees soon drove out all but about 300 volunteers . Called into action against the Germans during the Kerensky Offensive , they were assigned to the 525th Kiuruk - Darinski Regiment and occupied a trench near Smorgon . Ordered to go over the top , the soldiers of the war weary men ' s battalions hesitated . The women , however , decided to go with or without them . Eventually they pushed past three trenches into German territory , where soldiers discovered a stash of vodka , which the women tried to break before they could be drunk . In his report , the commander of the regiment praised the women ' s battalion ' s initiative and courage . However , relief units never arrived and they were eventually forced to retreat , losing all the ground gained in the offensive . The 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death , commanded by Bochkareva , was still at the front after the revolution , but disbanded shortly after as a result of increasing hostility from male troops who wanted an end to the war and resented female volunteers for prolonging it . 1st Petrograd Women ' s Battalion . The creation of the first all - female combat unit under Bochkareva inspired a number of other women in Russia to appeal to the government for inclusion in the armed forces . The Ministry of War was flooded with letters and petitions from individuals and groups of women seeking to serve their nation at the front . In June Kerensky approved the organization of an additional women ' s combat unit in Petrograd , the 1st Petrograd Women ' s Battalion with a complement of between 1 , 100 and 1 , 400 women and two communications detachments of 100 women volunteers each . Their training regimen included not only parade drill , riflery , and night maneuvers , but also reading classes for the illiterate . On October 25 , 1917 , the battalion was called to the Palace Square for a review before being sent to the front . After the parade , the battalion was instead ordered to defend the Provisional Government at the Winter Palace . The commander refused . Instead a subdivision of 2nd company , 137 soldiers , were dispatched to guard some nearby fuel trucks , but soon found themselves defending the palace alongside units of Cossacks and cadets . These were overwhelmed by the numerically superior pro - Bolshevik forces and ultimately surrendered . Rumors of mass rape circulated in the city after their capture , though interviews of the women found only three cases of rape but many instances of verbal abuse , physical violence , and threats of sexual violence . The wife of the British ambassador to Russia requested that British military attaché in Petrograd , General Alfred Knox , intervene to secure their release , which was accomplished on October 26 . Those who did not disband returned to the battalion ' s encampment outside of the city and were rearmed . 2nd Moscow Women ' s Battalion of Death . The 2nd Moscow Women ' s Battalion of Death , as well as two separate communications detachments were created in Moscow in June , 1917 . The battalion numbered at least 1 , 000 women by the end of the summer . By the end of the fall , facing a lack of support from the government , the leadership of the battalion decided to disband . Five hundred women requested assignment to the front instead , and were issued transfers without the knowledge of the General Staff . 3rd Kuban Women ' s Shock Battalion . Authorization from the government for the formation of women ' s military units provided impetus for private women ' s organizations to form their own quasi - military units , which appeared in numerous cities around Russia . In an attempt to satisfy popular demand and to bring these units under its control the Ministry of War expanded the number of women ' s military formations . A fourth combat battalion was formed in Ekaterinodar , the 3rd Kuban Women ' s Shock Battalion , created from a pre - existing grass - roots unit . This battalion suffered from organizational and supply issues and never saw combat . Fate of the women ' s battalions . These extensions failed to end the impromptu organization of quasi - military units of women volunteers , and the government found it impossible to control such formations . Even the official women ' s units proved difficult . There was no consensus among the military administration as to the potential value of female soldiers , and this , coupled with the severe shortages from which the nation was then suffering , meant that the army made only a half - hearted commitment to the project . Thus , the women ' s units received inadequate attention and assistance from the military administration . Many among the Russian military authorities were waiting to see how the women fared in battle and whether they would have a positive effect on male soldiers . Although the women performed well in combat and suffered few casualties their example was not enough to inspire the mass of war - weary soldiers to continue fighting . After the 1st Russian Women ' s Battalion of Death failed to have the intended effect of revitalizing the war - weary elements of the Russian army the military authorities began to question the value of the women ' s units . In particular , the government found it difficult to justify the allocation of badly needed resources to such an unreliable project . By August 1917 , there was a growing inclination in the military establishment to discontinue the organization of women for combat purposes . Facing withdrawal of official support the 2nd Moscow Women ' s Battalion of Death began to disintegrate in September . Just prior to disbanding , however , about 500 volunteers were sent to the front at their own request but without the knowledge or permission of the military authorities . Faced with the decision of what to do with their women ' s units , the military at first decided to shift them into auxiliary roles away from the front , such as guarding railroads , but this faced opposition from men in those positions who would in turn be sent to the front . Instead , on 30 November 1917 , the new Bolshevik government ordered the official dissolution of any remaining women ' s military formations . However , members of the 1st Petrograd and 3rd Kuban women ' s battalions lingered in their camps until early 1918 . Some women who had served in these units went on to fight on both sides of the Russian Civil War .