22nd of June. An ordinary Sunday day. More than 200 million citizens are planning how to spend their day off: going on a visit, taking their children to the zoo, some are in a hurry to go to football, others are on a date. Soon they will become heroes and victims of war, killed and wounded, soldiers and refugees, blockade survivors and concentration camp prisoners, partisans, prisoners of war, orphans, and disabled people. Winners and veterans of the Great Patriotic War. But none of them knows about it yet.
In 1941 The Soviet Union stood quite firmly on its feet - industrialization and collectivization bore fruit, industry developed - out of ten tractors produced in the world, four were Soviet-made. The Dnieper Hydroelectric Station and Magnitka have been built, the army is being re-equipped - the famous T-34 tank, Yak-1, MIG-3 fighters, Il-2 attack aircraft, Pe-2 bomber have already entered service with the Red Army. The situation in the world is turbulent, but the Soviet people are confident that “our armor is strong and our tanks are fast.” In addition, two years ago, after three-hour negotiations in Moscow, the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Molotov and the German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop signed a non-aggression pact for a period of 10 years.
After the abnormally cold winter of 1940–1941. A rather warm summer has arrived in Moscow. There are amusement rides in Gorky Park, and football matches are held at the Dynamo Stadium. The Mosfilm film studio is preparing the main premiere for the summer of 1941 - they have just completed editing of the lyrical comedy "Hearts of Four", which will be released only in 1945. Starring the favorite of Joseph Stalin and all Soviet moviegoers, actress Valentina Serova.
June, 1941 Astrakhan. Near the village of Lineiny
1941 Astrakhan. On the Caspian Sea
July 1, 1940. Scene from the film “My Love” directed by Vladimir Korsh-Sablin. In the center is actress Lidiya Smirnova as Shurochka
April, 1941 A peasant welcomes the first Soviet tractor
July 12, 1940 Residents of Uzbekistan work on the construction of a section of the Great Fergana Canal
August 9, 1940 Belorussian SSR. Collective farmers of the village of Tonezh, Turov district, Polesie region, on a walk after a hard day
May 05, 1941 Kliment Voroshilov, Mikhail Kalinin, Anastas Mikoyan, Andrei Andreev, Alexander Shcherbakov, Georgy Malenkov, Semyon Timoshenko, Georgy Zhukov, Andrei Eremenko, Semyon Budyonny, Nikolai Bulganin, Lazar Kaganovich and others at the presidium of the ceremonial meeting dedicated to the graduation commanders who graduated from military academies. Joseph Stalin speaking
June 1, 1940 Civil defense classes in the village of Dikanka. Ukraine, Poltava region
In the spring and summer of 1941, Soviet military exercises began to be held increasingly on the western borders of the USSR. War is already in full swing in Europe. Rumors reach the Soviet leadership that Germany could attack at any moment. But such messages are often ignored, since the non-aggression pact was only recently signed.
August 20, 1940 Villagers talk with tank crews during military exercises
"Higher, higher and higher
We strive for the flight of our birds,
And every propeller breathes
Peace of our borders."
Soviet song, better known as "March of the Aviators"
June 1, 1941. Under the wing of the TB-3 aircraft, an I-16 fighter is suspended, under the wing of which is a high-explosive bomb weighing 250 kg
September 28, 1939 People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop shake hands after signing the joint Soviet-German Treaty “On Friendship and Borders”
Field Marshal W. Keitel, Colonel General W. von Brauchitsch, A. Hitler, Colonel General F. Halder (from left to right in the foreground) near the table with a map during a meeting of the General Staff. In 1940, Adolf Hitler signed Prime Directive 21, codenamed Barbarossa.
On June 17, 1941, V. N. Merkulov sent an intelligence message received by the NKGB of the USSR from Berlin to I. V. Stalin and V. M. Molotov:
“A source working at the headquarters of the German air force reports:
1. All German military measures to prepare an armed uprising against the USSR are completely completed, and a strike can be expected at any time.
2. In the circles of the aviation headquarters, the TASS message of June 6 was perceived very ironically. They emphasize that this statement cannot have any significance...”
There is a resolution (regarding point 2): “To Comrade Merkulov. You can send your “source” from the headquarters of the German aviation to the fucking mother. This is not a “source”, but a disinformer. I. Stalin"
July 1, 1940 Marshal Semyon Timoshenko (right), Army General Georgy Zhukov (left) and Army General Kirill Meretskov (2nd left) during exercises in the 99th Infantry Division of the Kyiv Special Military District
June 21, 21:00
At the Sokal commandant's office, a German soldier, Corporal Alfred Liskoff, was detained after swimming across the Bug River.
From the testimony of the head of the 90th border detachment, Major Bychkovsky:“Due to the fact that the translators in the detachment are weak, I called a German language teacher from the city ... and Liskof again repeated the same thing, that is, that the Germans were preparing to attack the USSR at dawn on June 22, 1941 ... Without finishing the interrogation of the soldier, I heard in the direction Ustilug (first commandant's office) heavy artillery fire. I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory, which was immediately confirmed by the interrogated soldier. I immediately started calling the commandant by phone, but the connection was broken.”
21:30
In Moscow, a conversation took place between the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov and the German Ambassador Schulenburg. Molotov protested in connection with numerous violations of the USSR border by German planes. Schulenburg avoided answering.
From the memoirs of Corporal Hans Teuchler:“At 10 p.m. we were lined up and the Fuhrer’s order was read out. Finally they told us straight out why we were here. Not at all for a rush to Persia to punish the British with the permission of the Russians. And not in order to lull the vigilance of the British, and then quickly transfer troops to the English Channel and land in England. No. We, soldiers of the Great Reich, are facing a war with the Soviet Union itself. But there is no force that could restrain the movement of our armies. For the Russians this will be a real war, for us it will be just Victory. We will pray for her."
June 22, 00:30
Directive No. 1 was sent to the districts, containing an order to secretly occupy firing points on the border, not to succumb to provocations and to put troops on combat readiness.
From the memoirs of German General Heinz Guderian:“On the fateful day of June 22 at 2:10 a.m. I went to the group’s command post...
At 3:15 a.m. our artillery preparation began.
At 3 hours 40 minutes - the first raid of our dive bombers.
At 4:15 a.m. the crossing of the Bug began.”
03:07
The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Oktyabrsky, called the Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army Georgy Zhukov and reported that a large number of unknown aircraft were approaching from the sea; the fleet is in full combat readiness. The admiral suggested meeting them with naval air defense fire. He was given the instruction: “Go ahead and report to your people’s commissar.”
03:30
The Chief of Staff of the Western District, Major General Vladimir Klimovskikh, reported on a German air raid on the cities of Belarus. Three minutes later, the chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reported on an air raid on Ukrainian cities. At 03:40, the commander of the Baltic district, General Kuznetsov, announced a raid on Kaunas and other cities.
From the memoirs of I. I. Geibo, deputy regiment commander of the 46th IAP, Western Military District:“...I felt a chill in my chest. In front of me are four twin-engine bombers with black crosses on the wings. I even bit my lip. But these are “Junkers”! German Ju-88 bombers! What to do?.. Another thought arose: “Today is Sunday, and the Germans don’t have training flights on Sundays.” So it's war? Yes, war!
03:40
People's Commissar of Defense Timoshenko asks Zhukov to report to Stalin about the start of hostilities. Stalin responded by ordering all Politburo members to gather in the Kremlin. At this time, Brest, Grodno, Lida, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovich, Bobruisk, Volkovysk, Kyiv, Zhitomir, Sevastopol, Riga, Vindava, Libava, Siauliai, Kaunas, Vilnius and many other cities were bombed.
From the memoirs of Alevtina Kotik, born in 1925. (Lithuania):“I woke up from hitting my head on the bed - the ground was shaking from falling bombs. I ran to my parents. Dad said: “The war has begun. We need to get out of here!” We didn’t know who the war started with, we didn’t think about it, it was just very scary. Dad was a military man, and therefore he was able to call a car for us, which took us to the train station. They only took clothes with them. All furniture and household utensils remained. First we traveled on a freight train. I remember how my mother covered my brother and me with her body, then we boarded a passenger train. We learned that there was a war with Germany around 12 noon from people we met. Near the city of Siauliai we saw a large number of wounded, stretchers, and doctors.”
At the same time, the Bialystok-Minsk battle began, as a result of which the main forces of the Soviet Western Front were surrounded and defeated. German troops captured a significant part of Belarus and advanced to a depth of over 300 km. On the part of the Soviet Union in the Bialystok and Minsk “cauldrons”, 11 rifle, 2 cavalry, 6 tank and 4 motorized divisions were destroyed, 3 corps commanders and 2 division commanders were killed, 2 corps commanders and 6 division commanders, another 1 corps commander and 2 commanders were captured divisions went missing.
04:10
The Western and Baltic special districts reported the start of hostilities by German troops on land.
04:12
German bombers appeared over Sevastopol. The enemy raid was repulsed, and an attempt to strike the ships was thwarted, but residential buildings and warehouses in the city were damaged.
From the memoirs of Sevastopol resident Anatoly Marsanov:“I was only five years old then... The only thing that remains in my memory: on the night of June 22, parachutes appeared in the sky. It became light, I remember, the whole city was illuminated, everyone was running, so joyful... They shouted: “Parachuters! Paratroopers!”... They don’t know that these are mines. And they gasped - one in the bay, the other below us on the street, so many people were killed!”
04:15
The defense of the Brest Fortress began. With their first attack, at 04:55, the Germans occupied almost half of the fortress.
From the memoirs of the defender of the Brest Fortress Pyotr Kotelnikov, born in 1929:“In the morning we were awakened by a strong blow. It broke through the roof. I was stunned. I saw the wounded and killed and realized: this is no longer a training exercise, but a war. Most of the soldiers in our barracks died in the first seconds. I followed the adults and rushed to arms, but they didn’t give me a rifle. Then I, along with one of the Red Army soldiers, rushed to put out the fire in the clothing warehouse. Then he and the soldiers moved to the basements of the barracks of the neighboring 333rd Infantry Regiment... We helped the wounded, carried them ammunition, food, water. Through the western wing they made their way to the river at night to get water, and returned back.”
05:00
Moscow time, Reich Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop summoned Soviet diplomats to his office. When they arrived, he informed them about the beginning of the war. The last thing he said to the ambassadors was: “Tell Moscow that I was against the attack.” After this, the telephones in the embassy did not work, and the building itself was surrounded by SS detachments.
5:30
Schulenburg officially informed Molotov about the start of the war between Germany and the USSR, reading a note: “Bolshevik Moscow is ready to strike in the back of National Socialist Germany, which is fighting for existence. The German government cannot remain indifferent to the serious threat on its eastern border. Therefore, the Fuhrer gave the order to the German armed forces to ward off this threat by all means and means..."
From Molotov's memoirs:“The advisor to the German ambassador, Hilger, shed tears when he handed over the note.”
From Hilger's memoirs:“He gave vent to his indignation by declaring that Germany had attacked a country with which it had a non-aggression pact. This has no precedent in history. The reason given by the German side is an empty pretext... Molotov concluded his angry speech with the words: “We have not given any grounds for this.”
07:15
Directive No. 2 was issued, ordering USSR troops to destroy enemy forces in areas where the border was violated, destroy enemy aircraft, and also “bomb Koenigsberg and Memel” (modern Kaliningrad and Klaipeda). The USSR Air Force was allowed to enter “the depth of German territory up to 100–150 km.” At the same time, the first counterattack of Soviet troops took place near the Lithuanian town of Alytus.
09:00
At 7:00 Berlin time, Reich Minister of Public Education and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels read on the radio Adolf Hitler’s appeal to the German people in connection with the outbreak of war against the Soviet Union: “...Today I have decided again to put the fate and future of the German Reich and our people in our hands soldier. May the Lord help us in this struggle!”
09:30
The Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Mikhail Kalinin, signed a number of decrees, including the decree on the introduction of martial law, on the formation of the Headquarters of the High Command, on military tribunals and on general mobilization, which was subject to all those liable for military service from 1905 to 1918.
10:00
German bombers raided Kyiv and its suburbs. A railway station, the Bolshevik plant, an aircraft plant, power plants, military airfields, and residential buildings were bombed. According to official data, 25 people died as a result of the bombing; according to unofficial data, there were many more casualties. However, peaceful life continued in the capital of Ukraine for several more days. Only the opening of the stadium, scheduled for June 22, was canceled; on that day, the football match Dynamo (Kyiv) - CSKA was supposed to take place here.
12:15
Molotov gave a speech on the radio about the beginning of the war, where he for the first time called it patriotic. Also in this speech, for the first time, the phrase that became the main slogan of the war was heard: “Our cause is just. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours".
From Molotov's address:“This unheard-of attack on our country is a treachery unparalleled in the history of civilized peoples... This war was imposed on us not by the German people, not by the German workers, peasants and intelligentsia, whose suffering we well understand, but by a clique of bloodthirsty fascist rulers of Germany who enslaved the French and Czechs , Poles, Serbs, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Greece and other peoples... This is not the first time our people have to deal with an attacking arrogant enemy. At one time, our people responded to Napoleon’s campaign in Russia with a Patriotic War and Napoleon was defeated and came to his collapse. The same will happen to the arrogant Hitler, who announced a new campaign against our country. The Red Army and all our people will once again wage a victorious patriotic war for the Motherland, for honor, for freedom.”
Workers of Leningrad listen to a message about the attack of Nazi Germany on the Soviet Union
From the memoirs of Dmitry Savelyev, Novokuznetsk: “We gathered at the poles with loudspeakers. We listened carefully to Molotov’s speech. Many felt a certain sense of wariness. After this, the streets began to empty, and after a while food disappeared from the stores. They weren’t bought up - the supply was just reduced... People were not afraid, but rather focused, doing everything the government told them.”
After some time, the text of Molotov’s speech was repeated by the famous announcer Yuri Levitan. Thanks to his soulful voice and the fact that Levitan read the front-line reports of the Soviet Information Bureau throughout the war, there is an opinion that he was the first to read the message about the beginning of the war on the radio. Even Marshals Zhukov and Rokossovsky thought so, as they wrote about in their memoirs.
Moscow. Announcer Yuri Levitan during filming in the studio
From the memoirs of speaker Yuri Levitan:“When we, the announcers, were called to the radio early in the morning, the calls had already begun to ring out. They call from Minsk: “Enemy planes are over the city,” they call from Kaunas: “The city is burning, why don’t you broadcast anything on the radio?”, “Enemy planes are over Kiev.” A woman’s crying, excitement - “is it really war”?.. And then I remember - I turned on the microphone. In all cases, I remember that I was worried only internally, only internally worried. But here, when I said the word “Moscow speaks,” I feel that I can’t speak further - there’s a lump stuck in my throat. They are already knocking from the control room - “Why are you silent? Continue!” He clenched his fists and continued: “Citizens and women of the Soviet Union...”
Stalin addressed the Soviet people only on July 3, 12 days after the start of the war. Historians are still arguing why he remained silent for so long. Here is how Vyacheslav Molotov explained this fact:“Why me and not Stalin? He didn't want to go first. There needs to be a clearer picture, what tone and what approach... He said that he would wait a few days and speak when the situation on the fronts became clearer.”
And here is what Marshal Zhukov wrote about this:"AND. V. Stalin was a strong-willed man and, as they say, “not one of the cowardly dozen.” I saw him confused only once. It was at dawn on June 22, 1941, when Nazi Germany attacked our country. During the first day, he could not truly pull himself together and firmly direct events. The shock produced on J.V. Stalin by the enemy’s attack was so strong that the sound of his voice even lowered, and his orders for organizing armed struggle did not always correspond to the prevailing situation.”
From Stalin's radio speech on July 3, 1941:“The war with Nazi Germany cannot be considered an ordinary war... Our war for the freedom of our Fatherland will merge with the struggle of the peoples of Europe and America for their independence, for democratic freedoms.”
12:30
At the same time, German troops entered Grodno. A few minutes later, the bombing of Minsk, Kyiv, Sevastopol and other cities began again.
From the memoirs of Ninel Karpova, born in 1931. (Kharovsk, Vologda region):“We listened to the message about the beginning of the war from the loudspeaker at the House of Defense. There were a lot of people crowding there. I wasn’t upset, on the contrary, I was proud: my father will defend the Motherland... In general, people were not afraid. Yes, the women, of course, were upset and cried. But there was no panic. Everyone was confident that we would quickly defeat the Germans. The men said: “Yes, the Germans will flee from us!”
Recruitment centers have opened at military registration and enlistment offices. In Moscow, Leningrad and other cities there were queues.
From the memoirs of Dina Belykh, born in 1936. (Kushva, Sverdlovsk region):“All the men were immediately called up, including my dad. Dad hugged mom, they both cried, kissed... I remember how I grabbed him by the tarpaulin boots and shouted: “Dad, don’t leave! They will kill you there, they will kill you!” When he got on the train, my mother took me in her arms, we were both sobbing, she whispered through her tears: “Wave to dad...” What the hell, I was sobbing so much, I couldn’t move my hand. We never saw him, our breadwinner, again.”
Calculations and experience of the mobilization carried out showed that in order to transfer the army and navy to wartime, it was necessary to call up 4.9 million people. However, when mobilization was announced, conscripts of 14 ages were called up, the total number of which was about 10 million people, that is, almost 5.1 million people more than what was required.
The first day of mobilization into the Red Army. Volunteers at the Oktyabrsky military registration and enlistment office
The conscription of such a mass of people was not caused by military necessity and introduced disorganization into the national economy and anxiety among the masses. Without realizing this, Marshal of the Soviet Union G.I. Kulik proposed to the government to additionally call up older people (born 1895 - 1904), the total number of which was 6.8 million people.
13:15
To capture the Brest Fortress, the Germans brought into action new forces of the 133rd Infantry Regiment on the Southern and Western Islands, but this “brought no changes in the situation.” The Brest Fortress continued to hold its defense. Fritz Schlieper's 45th Infantry Division was sent to this section of the front. It was decided that the Brest Fortress would be taken only by infantry - without tanks. No more than eight hours were allotted to capture the fortress.
From a report to the headquarters of the 45th Infantry Division by Fritz Schlieper:“The Russians are resisting fiercely, especially behind our attacking companies. In the Citadel, the enemy organized a defense with infantry units supported by 35–40 tanks and armored vehicles. The fire of Russian snipers led to heavy losses among officers and non-commissioned officers."
14:30
Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano told the Soviet Ambassador in Rome Gorelkin that Italy declared war on the USSR “from the moment German troops entered Soviet territory.”
From Ciano's diaries:“He perceives my message with rather great indifference, but this is in his character. The message is very short, without unnecessary words. The conversation lasted two minutes.”
15:00
The pilots of the German bombers reported that they had nothing left to bomb; all airfields, barracks and concentrations of armored vehicles had been destroyed.
From the memoirs of Air Marshal, Hero of the Soviet Union G.V. Zimina:“On June 22, 1941, large groups of fascist bombers attacked 66 of our airfields, where the main aviation forces of the western border districts were based. First of all, the airfields on which aviation regiments armed with aircraft of new designs were based were subjected to air strikes... As a result of attacks on airfields and in fierce air battles, the enemy managed to destroy up to 1,200 aircraft, including 800 at the airfields.”
16:30
Stalin left the Kremlin for the Near Dacha. Even members of the Politburo are not allowed to see the leader until the end of the day.
From the memoirs of Politburo member Nikita Khrushchev:
“Beria said the following: when the war began, members of the Politburo gathered at Stalin’s place. I don’t know if it was everyone or just a certain group that most often gathered at Stalin’s. Stalin was morally completely depressed and made the following statement: “The war has begun, it is developing catastrophically. Lenin left us a proletarian Soviet state, and we screwed it up.” That's literally how I put it.
“I,” he said, “resign from leadership,” and left. He left, got into the car and drove to a nearby dacha.”
Some historians, citing the recollections of other participants in the events, claim that this conversation took place a day later. But the fact that in the first days of the war Stalin was confused and did not know how to act is confirmed by many witnesses.
18:30
The commander of the 4th Army, Ludwig Kübler, gives the order to “withdraw his own forces” from the Brest Fortress. This is one of the first orders for the retreat of German troops.
19:00
The commander of Army Group Center, General Fedor von Bock, gives the order to stop the executions of Soviet prisoners of war. After that, they were kept in fields hastily fenced with barbed wire. This is how the first prisoner of war camps appeared.
From the notes of SS Brigadeführer G. Keppler, commander of the Der Fuhrer regiment from the SS division Das Reich:“Rich trophies and a large number of prisoners were in the hands of our regiment, among whom there were many civilians, even women and girls, the Russians forced them to defend themselves with weapons in their hands, and they fought bravely together with the Red Army.”
23:00
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill makes a radio address in which he stated that England “will provide Russia and the Russian people with all the help it can.”
Speech by Winston Churchill on BBC radio:“Over the past 25 years, no one has been a more consistent opponent of communism than me. I won't take back a single word I said about him. But all this pales in comparison to the spectacle now unfolding. The past with its crimes, follies and tragedies disappears... I see Russian soldiers standing on the threshold of their native land, guarding the fields that their fathers have cultivated since time immemorial... I see how the vile Nazi war machine is approaching all this.”
23:50
The Main Military Council of the Red Army sent out Directive No. 3, ordering counterattacks on enemy groups on June 23.
Text: Information center of the Kommersant Publishing House, Tatyana Mishanina, Artem Galustyan
Video: Dmitry Shelkovnikov, Alexey Koshel
Photo: TASS, RIA Novosti, Ogonyok, Dmitry Kuchev
Design, programming and layout: Anton Zhukov, Alexey Shabrov
Kim Voronin
Commissioning Editor: Artem Galustyan
22 JUNE 1941 YEAR - THE BEGINNING OF THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR
On June 22, 1941, at 4 a.m., without declaring war, Nazi Germany and its allies attacked the Soviet Union. The beginning of the Great Patriotic War did not just happen on a Sunday. It was the church holiday of All Saints who shone in the Russian land.
Units of the Red Army were attacked by German troops along the entire border. Riga, Vindava, Libau, Siauliai, Kaunas, Vilnius, Grodno, Lida, Volkovysk, Brest, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovichi, Bobruisk, Zhitomir, Kiev, Sevastopol and many other cities, railway junctions, airfields, naval bases of the USSR were bombed , artillery shelling was carried out on border fortifications and areas of deployment of Soviet troops near the border from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathians. The Great Patriotic War began.
At that time, no one knew that it would go down in human history as the bloodiest. No one guessed that the Soviet people would have to go through inhuman tests, pass through and win. To rid the world of fascism, showing everyone that the spirit of a Red Army soldier cannot be broken by the invaders. No one could have imagined that the names of the hero cities would become known to the whole world, that Stalingrad would become a symbol of the steadfastness of our people, Leningrad - a symbol of courage, Brest - a symbol of courage. That, along with male warriors, old men, women and children will heroically defend the earth from the fascist plague.
1418 days and nights of war.
Over 26 million human lives...
These photographs have one thing in common: they were taken in the first hours and days of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
On the eve of the war
Soviet border guards on patrol. The photograph is interesting because it was taken for a newspaper at one of the outposts on the western border of the USSR on June 20, 1941, that is, two days before the war.
German air raid
The first to bear the blow were the border guards and the soldiers of the covering units. They not only defended themselves, but also launched counterattacks. For a whole month, the garrison of the Brest Fortress fought in the German rear. Even after the enemy managed to capture the fortress, some of its defenders continued to resist. The last of them was captured by the Germans in the summer of 1942.
The photo was taken on June 24, 1941.
During the first 8 hours of the war, Soviet aviation lost 1,200 aircraft, of which about 900 were lost on the ground (66 airfields were bombed). The Western Special Military District suffered the greatest losses - 738 aircraft (528 on the ground). Having learned about such losses, the head of the district air force, Major General Kopets I.I. shot himself.
On the morning of June 22, Moscow radio broadcast the usual Sunday programs and peaceful music. Soviet citizens learned about the beginning of the war only at noon, when Vyacheslav Molotov spoke on the radio. He reported: “Today, at 4 o’clock in the morning, without presenting any claims to the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country.”
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Poster from 1941
On the same day, a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was published on the mobilization of those liable for military service born in 1905-1918 in the territory of all military districts. Hundreds of thousands of men and women received summonses, appeared at military registration and enlistment offices, and then were sent in trains to the front.
The mobilization capabilities of the Soviet system, multiplied during the Great Patriotic War by the patriotism and sacrifice of the people, played an important role in organizing resistance to the enemy, especially at the initial stage of the war. The call “Everything for the front, everything for victory!” was accepted by all the people. Hundreds of thousands of Soviet citizens voluntarily joined the active army. In just a week since the start of the war, over 5 million people were mobilized.
The line between peace and war was invisible, and people did not immediately accept the change in reality. It seemed to many that this was just some kind of masquerade, a misunderstanding and that everything would soon be resolved.
The fascist troops met stubborn resistance in battles near Minsk, Smolensk, Vladimir-Volynsky, Przemysl, Lutsk, Dubno, Rivne, Mogilev, etc.And yet, in the first three weeks of the war, the Red Army troops abandoned Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, a significant part of Ukraine and Moldova. Six days after the start of the war, Minsk fell. The German army advanced in various directions from 350 to 600 km. The Red Army lost almost 800 thousand people.
The turning point in the perception of the war by residents of the Soviet Union was, of course, August 14. It was then that the whole country suddenly learned that The Germans occupied Smolensk . It really was a bolt from the blue. While the battles were going on “somewhere there, in the west,” and the reports flashed cities, the location of which many could hardly imagine, it seemed that the war was still far away. Smolensk is not just the name of a city, this word meant a lot. Firstly, it is already more than 400 km from the border, and secondly, it is only 360 km to Moscow. And thirdly, unlike all those Vilno, Grodno and Molodechno, Smolensk is an ancient purely Russian city.
The stubborn resistance of the Red Army in the summer of 1941 thwarted Hitler's plans. The Nazis failed to quickly take either Moscow or Leningrad, and in September the long defense of Leningrad began. In the Arctic, Soviet troops, in cooperation with the Northern Fleet, defended Murmansk and the main fleet base - Polyarny. Although in Ukraine in October - November the enemy captured the Donbass, captured Rostov, and broke into the Crimea, yet here, too, his troops were fettered by the defense of Sevastopol. Formations of Army Group South were unable to reach the rear of the Soviet troops remaining in the lower reaches of the Don through the Kerch Strait.
Minsk 1941. Execution of Soviet prisoners of war
September 30th within Operation Typhoon the Germans started general attack on Moscow . Its beginning was unfavorable for the Soviet troops. Bryansk and Vyazma fell. On October 10, G.K. was appointed commander of the Western Front. Zhukov. On October 19, Moscow was declared under siege. In bloody battles, the Red Army still managed to stop the enemy. Having strengthened Army Group Center, the German command resumed its attack on Moscow in mid-November. Overcoming the resistance of the Western, Kalinin and right wing of the Southwestern fronts, enemy strike groups bypassed the city from the north and south and by the end of the month reached the Moscow-Volga canal (25-30 km from the capital) and approached Kashira. At this point the German offensive fizzled out. The bloodless Army Group Center was forced to go on the defensive, which was also facilitated by the successful offensive operations of Soviet troops near Tikhvin (November 10 - December 30) and Rostov (November 17 - December 2). On December 6, the Red Army counteroffensive began. , as a result of which the enemy was thrown back 100 - 250 km from Moscow. Kaluga, Kalinin (Tver), Maloyaroslavets and others were liberated.
Guarding the Moscow sky. Autumn 1941
The victory near Moscow had enormous strategic, moral and political significance, since it was the first since the beginning of the war. The immediate threat to Moscow was eliminated.
Although, as a result of the summer-autumn campaign, our army retreated 850 - 1200 km inland, and the most important economic regions fell into the hands of the aggressor, the “blitzkrieg” plans were still thwarted. The Nazi leadership faced the inevitable prospect of a protracted war. The victory near Moscow also changed the balance of power in the international arena. The Soviet Union began to be looked upon as the decisive factor in the Second World War. Japan was forced to refrain from attacking the USSR.
In winter, units of the Red Army carried out offensives on other fronts. However, it was not possible to consolidate the success, primarily due to the dispersal of forces and resources along a front of enormous length.
During the offensive of German troops in May 1942, the Crimean Front was destroyed in 10 days on the Kerch Peninsula. On May 15 we had to leave Kerch, and July 4, 1942 after stubborn defense Sevastopol fell. The enemy completely captured Crimea. In July - August, Rostov, Stavropol and Novorossiysk were captured. Stubborn fighting took place in the central part of the Caucasus ridge.
Hundreds of thousands of our compatriots ended up in more than 14 thousand concentration camps, prisons, and ghettos scattered throughout Europe. The scale of the tragedy is evidenced by dispassionate figures: in Russia alone, the fascist occupiers shot, strangled in gas chambers, burned, and hanged 1.7 million. people (including 600 thousand children). In total, about 5 million Soviet citizens died in concentration camps.
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But, despite stubborn battles, the Nazis failed to solve their main task - to break into the Transcaucasus to seize the oil reserves of Baku. At the end of September, the offensive of fascist troops in the Caucasus was stopped.
To contain the enemy onslaught in the eastern direction, the Stalingrad Front was created under the command of Marshal S.K. Tymoshenko. On July 17, 1942, the enemy under the command of General von Paulus struck a powerful blow on the Stalingrad front. In August, the Nazis broke through to the Volga in stubborn battles. From the beginning of September 1942, the heroic defense of Stalingrad began. The battles were fought literally for every inch of land, for every house. Both sides suffered colossal losses. By mid-November, the Nazis were forced to stop the offensive. The heroic resistance of the Soviet troops made it possible to create favorable conditions for their launching a counteroffensive at Stalingrad and thereby mark the beginning of a radical change in the course of the war.
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By November 1942, almost 40% of the population was under German occupation. The regions captured by the Germans were subject to military and civil administration. In Germany, a special ministry for the affairs of the occupied regions was even created, headed by A. Rosenberg. Political supervision was carried out by the SS and police services. Locally, the occupiers formed the so-called self-government - city and district councils, and the positions of elders were introduced in villages. People who were dissatisfied with Soviet power were invited to cooperate. All residents of the occupied territories, regardless of age, were required to work. In addition to participating in the construction of roads and defensive structures, they were forced to clear minefields. The civilian population, mainly young people, were also sent to forced labor in Germany, where they were called “Ostarbeiter” and were used as cheap labor. In total, 6 million people were kidnapped during the war years. More than 6.5 million people were killed from famine and epidemics in the occupied territory; more than 11 million Soviet citizens were shot in camps and at their places of residence.
November 19, 1942 Soviet troops moved to counter-offensive at Stalingrad (Operation Uranus). The forces of the Red Army surrounded 22 divisions and 160 separate units of the Wehrmacht (about 330 thousand people). Hitler's command formed Army Group Don, consisting of 30 divisions, and tried to break through the encirclement. However, this attempt was unsuccessful. In December, our troops, having defeated this group, launched an attack on Rostov (Operation Saturn). By the beginning of February 1943, our troops eliminated a group of fascist troops that found themselves in a ring. 91 thousand people were captured, led by the commander of the 6th German Army, General Field Marshal von Paulus. Behind 6.5 months of the Battle of Stalingrad (July 17, 1942 - February 2, 1943) Germany and its allies lost up to 1.5 million people, as well as a huge amount of equipment. The military power of Nazi Germany was significantly undermined.
The defeat at Stalingrad caused a deep political crisis in Germany. It declared three days of mourning. The morale of the German soldiers fell, defeatist sentiments gripped wide sections of the population, who believed the Fuhrer less and less.
The victory of the Soviet troops at Stalingrad marked the beginning of a radical change in the course of the Second World War. The strategic initiative finally passed into the hands of the Soviet Armed Forces.
In January - February 1943, the Red Army launched an offensive on all fronts. In the Caucasus direction, Soviet troops advanced 500 - 600 km by the summer of 1943. In January 1943, the blockade of Leningrad was broken.
The Wehrmacht command planned summer 1943 conduct a major strategic offensive operation in the Kursk salient area (Operation Citadel) , defeat the Soviet troops here, and then strike in the rear of the Southwestern Front (Operation Panther) and subsequently, building on the success, again create a threat to Moscow. For this purpose, up to 50 divisions were concentrated in the Kursk Bulge area, including 19 tank and motorized divisions, and other units - a total of over 900 thousand people. This group was opposed by the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts, which had 1.3 million people. During the Battle of Kursk, the largest tank battle of World War II took place.
On July 5, 1943, a massive offensive of Soviet troops began. Within 5 - 7 days, our troops, stubbornly defending, stopped the enemy, who had penetrated 10 - 35 km behind the front line, and launched a counter-offensive. It has begun July 12 in the Prokhorovka area , Where The largest oncoming tank battle in the history of war took place (with the participation of up to 1,200 tanks on both sides). In August 1943, our troops captured Orel and Belgorod. In honor of this victory, a salute of 12 artillery salvoes was fired for the first time in Moscow. Continuing the offensive, our troops inflicted a crushing defeat on the Nazis.
In September, Left Bank Ukraine and Donbass were liberated. On November 6, formations of the 1st Ukrainian Front entered Kyiv.
Having thrown the enemy back 200 - 300 km from Moscow, Soviet troops began to liberate Belarus. From that moment on, our command maintained the strategic initiative until the end of the war. From November 1942 to December 1943, the Soviet Army advanced westward by 500 - 1300 km, liberating about 50% of the enemy-occupied territory. 218 enemy divisions were defeated. During this period, partisan formations, in whose ranks up to 250 thousand people fought, caused great damage to the enemy.
The significant successes of the Soviet troops in 1943 intensified diplomatic and military-political cooperation between the USSR, the USA and Great Britain. On November 28 - December 1, 1943, the Tehran Conference of the “Big Three” took place with the participation of I. Stalin (USSR), W. Churchill (Great Britain) and F. Roosevelt (USA). The leaders of the leading powers of the anti-Hitler coalition determined the timing of the opening of a second front in Europe (the landing operation Overlord was scheduled for May 1944).
Tehran Conference of the “Big Three” with the participation of I. Stalin (USSR), W. Churchill (Great Britain) and F. Roosevelt (USA).
In the spring of 1944, Crimea was cleared of the enemy.
In these favorable conditions, the Western Allies, after two years of preparation, opened a second front in Europe in northern France. June 6, 1944 the combined Anglo-American forces (General D. Eisenhower), numbering over 2.8 million people, up to 11 thousand combat aircraft, over 12 thousand combat and 41 thousand transport ships, crossed the English Channel and Pas de Calais, began the largest war in years airborne Normandy Operation (Overlord) and entered Paris in August.
Continuing to develop the strategic initiative, in the summer of 1944, Soviet troops launched a powerful offensive in Karelia (June 10 - August 9), Belarus (June 23 - August 29), Western Ukraine (July 13 - August 29) and Moldova (June 20 - 29). August).
During Belarusian operation (code name "Bagration") Army Group Center was defeated, Soviet troops liberated Belarus, Latvia, part of Lithuania, eastern Poland and reached the border with East Prussia.
The victories of Soviet troops in the southern direction in the fall of 1944 helped the Bulgarian, Hungarian, Yugoslav and Czechoslovak peoples in their liberation from fascism.
As a result of military operations in 1944, the state border of the USSR, treacherously violated by Germany in June 1941, was restored along the entire length from the Barents Sea to the Black Sea. The Nazis were expelled from Romania, Bulgaria, and most areas of Poland and Hungary. In these countries, pro-German regimes were overthrown and patriotic forces came to power. The Soviet Army entered the territory of Czechoslovakia.
While the bloc of fascist states was falling apart, the anti-Hitler coalition was strengthening, as evidenced by the success of the Crimean (Yalta) conference of the leaders of the USSR, the United States and Great Britain (from February 4 to 11, 1945).
But still The Soviet Union played a decisive role in defeating the enemy at the final stage. Thanks to the titanic efforts of the entire people, the technical equipment and armament of the army and navy of the USSR reached its highest level by the beginning of 1945. In January - early April 1945, as a result of a powerful strategic offensive on the entire Soviet-German front with forces on ten fronts, the Soviet Army decisively defeated the main enemy forces. During the East Prussian, Vistula-Oder, West Carpathian and completion of the Budapest operations, Soviet troops created the conditions for further attacks in Pomerania and Silesia, and then for an attack on Berlin. Almost all of Poland and Czechoslovakia, as well as the entire territory of Hungary, were liberated.
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The capture of the capital of the Third Reich and the final defeat of fascism was carried out during Berlin operation (April 16 - May 8, 1945).
April 30 in the bunker of the Reich Chancellery Hitler committed suicide .
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On the morning of May 1, over the Reichstag by sergeants M.A. Egorov and M.V. Kantaria was hoisted the Red Banner as a symbol of the Victory of the Soviet people. On May 2, Soviet troops completely captured the city. Attempts by the new German government, which was headed by Grand Admiral K. Dönitz on May 1, 1945 after the suicide of A. Hitler, to achieve a separate peace with the USA and Great Britain failed.
May 9, 1945 at 0:43 a.m. In the Berlin suburb of Karlshorst, the Act of Unconditional Surrender of the Armed Forces of Nazi Germany was signed. On behalf of the Soviet side, this historical document was signed by the war hero, Marshal G.K. Zhukov, from Germany - Field Marshal Keitel. On the same day, the remnants of the last large enemy group on the territory of Czechoslovakia in the Prague region were defeated. City Liberation Day - May 9 became Victory Day of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. The news of the Victory spread throughout the world with lightning speed. The Soviet people, who suffered the greatest losses, greeted it with popular rejoicing. Truly, it was a great holiday “with tears in our eyes.”
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In Moscow, on Victory Day, a festive fireworks display of a thousand guns was fired.
Great Patriotic War 1941-1945
Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK
We offer a selection of archival photographs taken during the first weeks of the Great Patriotic War. Pictures not only from the territory of the USSR, but also from other countries, reflecting the features of that moment.
June 21, 1941, Hermann Goering reads the order to attack the USSR to the generals of the Third Reich. The next day, Joseph Goebbels, the German Minister of Public Education and Propaganda, made a corresponding statement on the radio.
June 23, 1941, Moscow, a column of Red Army soldiers goes to the front. Mobilization began on June 23 and by July 1, 5.3 million people had joined the Red Army.
June 22, 1941, the first bombing of USSR cities. The bombing began at 4 o'clock in the morning. The first bombs fell on military airfields in Riga, Minsk, Smolensk, Odessa, Kyiv and Sevastopol.
June 22, 1941, the Germans cross the Bug River in Belarus. The crossing began on the night of June 22. The most fierce fighting took place in the area of the city of Brest.
Hitler's half-nephew William Patrick volunteers to go to war with the Canadian Army, June 29, 1941
June 22, 1941, Ribbentrop announces the start of war at a press conference in Berlin.
Chemical Protection Service, Moscow.
Moscow Gorky Street, citizens read "TASS Window" with weekly satirical and propaganda posters.
June 22, 1941, Muscovites listen to Vyacheslav Molotov's radio announcement about the start of the war. Molotov ended his speech with the words known to everyone: “Our cause is just. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours!"
A heavy Soviet KV-1 tank destroyed in Belarus.
Moscow, volunteers sign up for the front. On the first day of the war alone in Moscow and the Moscow region, more than 300,000 volunteers expressed a desire to go to the front.
Late June 1941, a German soldier in a field in Belarus. The defensive operation on the territory of the BSSR claimed the lives of 418,000 Soviet citizens.
June 1941, a Luftwaffe pilot shaving.
June 26, 1941, German soldiers pass by a damaged Soviet armored vehicle. The number of horses in the German army at the time of the attack on the Soviet Union was 700,000.
June 3, 1941, Kyiv, Grushki district, consequences of the bombing. The city was regularly bombed due to military airfields located nearby and within the city limits.
Soviet refugees.
On June 26, 1941, the Germans drive the villagers out of their homes.
Residents of Lithuania meet Germans. Some of the local population mistakenly considered the Germans to be their liberators.
July 1, 1941, Riga, captured citizens and German soldiers.
June 27, 1941, outside London, King George VI and his wife Elizabeth visit the Canadian regiment. About 1 million Canadian soldiers took part in World War II.
On June 26, 1941, an RAF Spitfire returned from a combat mission.
June 27, 1941, London, schoolchildren at a civil defense lesson.
June 30, 1941, Italy Benito Mussolini and Nazi youth leader Arthur Axma at a gymnastics parade. Until 1943, the Italian army took part in hostilities in Greece, France and North Africa.
June 30, 1941, Libya, commander of German troops in North Africa Erwin Rommel.
June 23, 1941, Maneuvers in Spain. Spain officially remained neutral in World War II, however, volunteers from the so-called “Blue Division” fought on the eastern front on the side of the Germans.
Residents of Moscow listen to V. Molotov's speech on the radio about the German attack on the Soviet Union. Author's title: “The first day of the war.”
June 22, 1941 near the bridge over the San River near the city of Yaroslav. At that time, the San River was the border between
German-occupied Poland and the USSR.
Muscovites listen on the radio to a statement by the Soviet government about the treacherous attack of Nazi Germany on the Soviet Union. A very famous photograph of the first day of the war.
First week of the war. Soldiers from the German 101st Infantry Division escort captured Red Army commanders across a bridge over the San River in the border town of Przemysl (now Przemysl, Poland).
In the right foreground is an SS officer.
The city was taken by the Germans on the afternoon of June 22, but was liberated by Soviet troops the next morning. 99th Infantry Division under General N.I. Dementyeva, acting together with border guards and battalions of the Przemysl fortified area, knocked out units of the German 101st Infantry Division from the city three times. The city was held until June 27, when it was finally occupied.
German soldiers next to the Soviet light tank BT-7, destroyed (knocked out and burned) on June 23, 1941 in the Alytus area. Vehicle from the 5th Tank Division of the 3rd Mechanized Corps of the 11th Army of the North-Western Front
Captured Soviet tankers from the 2nd Tank Division of the 3rd Mechanized Corps of the North-Western Front near their KV-1 tank. At the end of June 1941, near the city of Raseiniai, together with another KV-1 of the same unit, he fought for a fork in the road. After losing the ability to fire, he was surrounded by German soldiers; the surviving crew members were taken prisoner after the Germans managed to tear off the driver's hatch cover with a crowbar.
A Soviet 122-mm howitzer, model 1910/30, captured by the Wehrmacht at the intersection of Volodarsky and Proletarskaya streets in the Belarusian city of Slutsk.
On June 26, 1941, two unknown Red Army soldiers fired at the superior forces of the Nazis. The Red Army soldiers used this howitzer to knock out 2 armored personnel carriers and destroy up to 50 enemy soldiers. In an unequal battle, both soldiers died. They were buried by local residents in the park near the House of Culture.
German soldiers cross the state border of the USSR.
A Soviet medium tank T-34 of the 1940 model with an L-11 cannon with serial number 563-74 from the 15th tank regiment of the 8th tank division of the 4th mechanized corps of the Southwestern Front, knocked out and burned in the Magerov area, was crushed during battle of the German 50-mm anti-tank gun Pak-38.
On June 25, 1941, this vehicle as part of the regiment took part in a battle with the 97th Light Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht near the village of Magerov (22 km east of the city of Nemirov). Also in the battle, the crew of this tank destroyed the Infanterischlepper UE 630(f) tractor - a captured French multi-purpose transporter Renault UE.
Tank T-34 tank with L-11 cannon, manufactured in October 1940. Serial number 682-35. The tank belonged to the 12th Tank Division of the 8th Mechanized Corps of the 26th Army of the Southwestern Front. Shot down in the Dubno area, possibly the south-eastern entrance to Dubno. According to the inscription on the right side, the tank was hit by soldiers of the 111th Infantry Division and the Hermann Goering regiment. Presumably a tank
was shot down on June 29, 1941.
The destroyer of the Baltic Fleet "Lenin", blown up in Libau (Liepaja) during the retreat. The ship was being repaired at the Tosmare shipyard in Liepaja. On the night of June 25, 1941, the ship was blown up near the pier, since the ship had no power and could not leave the port. "Lenin" - a destroyer of the "Lieutenant Ilyin" type - the second series of ships that belonged to the "Novik" type destroyers, until December 31, 1922 - "Captain Izylmetyev".
A German column drives past a Soviet KV-2 heavy tank, blown up by its own crew on June 27, 1941, during the withdrawal of the 41st Tank Division from Kovel.
The vehicle was produced in May - June 1941 and was part of the 41st Tank Division of the 22nd Mechanized Corps of the Southwestern Front.
Damaged light cruiser of project 26 bis "Maxim Gorky". The ship was damaged on the night of June 22-23, 1941, when it hit a mine northwest of the Tahkuna lighthouse (the lighthouse is located on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa) at coordinates 59º 20 N. and 22º 00 E. As a result of the explosion, the bow end of the ship's hull was torn off up to the 55th frame. The ship independently reached first Tallinn, then Kronstadt, and on June 28, 1941, the Veleshchinsky dry dock stood up to restore the bow.
German soldiers examine a Soviet KV-2 tank from the advance detachment of the 10th Tank Division of the 15th Mechanized Corps, which got stuck and then knocked out on June 23, 1941 while crossing the Solodivka River. The tank fought in the area of the village of Romanowka, attacking along the Radzekhov-Stoyanov highway in the Lviv region.
In the period from June 22 to June 29, 1941, units of the 10th and 37th tank divisions of the 15th mechanized corps fought to defend the city of Radzekhov (now Radekhov).
