January 27 marks the Day of Military Glory of Russia - the day of the complete lifting of the blockade of Leningrad. It lasted 872 days (from September 8, 1941 to January 27, 1944) and claimed over a million human lives, became the bloodiest blockade in the history of mankind: over 641 thousand inhabitants died from starvation and shelling. During all the days the city lived and fought, in unimaginably difficult conditions. Its inhabitants gave their last strength in the name of Victory, in the name of preserving the city.
The main announcer of Lenradio M. Melaned - "The order to end the blockade"
Leningrad-Novgorod operation - "Stalin's first blow"
In January 1943, the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts carried out Operation Iskra during Operation Iskra. A railway line was laid in a narrow section near Lake Ladoga, trains with food, ammunition and fuel went to the city. However, it was not possible to completely remove the blockade from Leningrad.
The main offensive strategic operations of 1944 were called "Stalin's Ten Strikes"
The first of these was a strike in the Leningrad region - the Leningrad-Novgorod operation.
The general plan of the offensive operation was to deliver simultaneous strikes on the flanks of the 18th german army in the area of Peterhof - Strelna (Krasnoselsko-Ropsha operation) and in the Novgorod region (Novgorod-Luga operation). Then it was planned, advancing in the Kingisepp and Luga directions, to surround the main forces of the 18th Army and develop an offensive against Narva, Pskov and Idritsa. The main goal of the upcoming offensive was the complete liberation of Leningrad from the blockade.. In addition, it was planned to liberate the Leningrad region from German occupation and create the prerequisites for a further successful offensive into the Baltic states.
The position of the fascists
For two and a half years, the German troops strengthened very thoroughly. The Nazis created a powerful and well-equipped defense in terms of engineering. The line of defense consisted of a system of strong nodes of resistance and strongholds that had fire links. Particularly powerful defense was in the Pulkovo Heights and north of Novgorod. There were not only machine-gun emplacements, but also reinforced concrete pillboxes, anti-tank ditches and gouges. In addition, the marshland helped the defending side. Soviet troops had to overcome many rivers, streams, lakes and swamps. There were few dirt roads here, the railways were destroyed. The thaw made the operation even more difficult.
And now the numbers. According to Soviet data, the entire German 18th Army consisted of 168,000 soldiers and officers, about 4,500 guns and mortars, 200 tanks and self-propelled guns. Air support for the entire Army Group North was carried out by the 1st Air Fleet with 200 aircraft. According to other sources, the 1st Air Fleet consisted of 370 aircraft, of which 103 were based near Leningrad.
According to German sources, on October 14, 1943, the entire Army Group North (including formations located in northern Finland) consisted of 601,000 people, 146 tanks, 2,398 guns and mortars.
In any case, the Soviet troops had a significant superiority over the Germans. In the direction of the main attack, the troops of the Leningrad Front outnumbered the enemy in manpower by more than 2.7 times, in artillery - by 3.6 times, in tanks - by 6 times.
The blockade of Leningrad was of great strategic importance for Berlin. It made it possible to pin down significant forces of the Red Army and the Baltic Fleet, close the approaches to the Baltic states and its ports and naval bases, maintain the freedom of action of the German Navy in the Baltic and ensure sea communications with Finland and Sweden. In addition, Adolf Hitler believed that the Red Army did not have enough strength to simultaneously continue the offensive in the south and strike in the north. And the commander of the 18th Army, Lindemann, assured the Fuhrer that his troops would repel the enemy's attack. Therefore, the Army Group "North" received an order to maintain positions in the Leningrad region at any cost.
"January Thunder" or Operation "Neva-2"
January 14
The artillery of the 42nd and 67th armies was continuously shelling enemy positions in the areas of Pulkovo heights and Mga in order to disorient the enemy and not let him know where and when the next blow would be struck.
January 15
After a 110-minute artillery preparation, in which 2,300 guns and mortars took part, formations of three rifle corps of the 42nd Army went on the offensive on the 17-kilometer section of the Ligovo-Redkoye-Kuzmino front. Formations of the 30th Guards Rifle Corps (45th, 63rd, 64th Rifle Divisions), advancing directly behind the artillery rampart, advanced 4.5 kilometers forward with minimal losses by the end of the first day of the offensive. The attacks of the 109th (72nd, 109th, 125th rifle divisions) and the 110th (56th, 85th, 86th rifle divisions) rifle corps, advancing on the right and left, were less successful.
January 16-17
In the following days, formations of the 2nd shock and 42nd armies slowly but stubbornly moved towards Ropsha and Krasnoye Selo towards each other. German troops put up fierce resistance and, at every opportunity, made desperate counterattacks.
Only by the end of the third day, units of the 2nd Shock Army managed to advance up to 10 kilometers and complete the breakthrough of the enemy’s main defensive line at the front up to 23 kilometers. This allowed I. I. Fedyuninsky on the morning of January 17 to form a mobile group (152nd tank brigade, as well as several rifle and artillery units), which was tasked with rapidly developing the offensive, capturing and holding Ropsha.
Even more stubborn battles unfolded in the offensive zone of the 42nd Army. A large number of anti-tank ditches and minefields, as well as effective enemy artillery fire, caused heavy losses in the tank units of the army, which could not properly support the offensive of rifle formations. Despite this, the Soviet infantry continued to stubbornly move forward. So, on January 16, units of the 30th Guards Rifle Corps, moving forward another 3-4 kilometers, reached the Krasnoe Selo-Pushkin highway. On the same day, units of the 109th Rifle Corps took a strong enemy defense center Finnish Koyrovo, and units of the 110th Corps took Aleksandrovka. 
On the morning of January 17, the commander of the 42nd Army brought into battle the 291st Rifle Division and a mobile group (1st Leningrad Red Banner, 220th Tank Brigades, as well as two self-propelled artillery regiments) with the task of supporting the offensive of the 30th Guards Rifle Corps , take possession of Krasnoye Selo, Dudergof and Voronya Gora.
By the end of January 17, the troops of the 2nd shock and 42nd armies were separated by only 18 kilometers. The German troops, who by this time had thrown into battle not only all tactical reserves in the area, but also the 61st Infantry Division, which constituted the operational reserve, were under the threat of complete encirclement.
The commander of Army Group North was forced to request permission from A. Hitler to withdraw units of the 26th Army Corps of the 18th Army from the Mginsky ledge in order to free up several divisions to strengthen the defense southwest of Leningrad. Having not received an unambiguous answer, G. Kühler decided to transfer a number of formations (21st, 11th, 225th infantry divisions and other units) to the Krasnoye Selo area, but this measure did not help to change the situation. Soon the German troops began a hasty retreat to the south from the areas of Strelna, Volodarsky and Gorelovo.
January 18
Soviet troops achieved a final turning point in the battle in their favor
On the offensive sector of the 2nd shock army, the 122nd rifle corps, with the support of tank units, after a fierce battle, took Ropsha and, together with the 108th rifle corps brought into battle from the second echelon of the army and a mobile group, continued the offensive to the east.
On the same day, the rifle units of the 42nd Army launched an assault on Krasnoye Selo and Voronya Gora; tank subunits continued their offensive towards units of the 2nd shock army. Fierce fighting for these key strongholds continued for several days.
January 19
In the morning, with a simultaneous blow from both sides, units of the 63rd Guards Rifle Division stormed Voronya Gora, and units of the 64th Guards and 291st rifle divisions liberated Krasnoye Selo.
The German command, taking advantage of the fact that there was no solid front line yet, withdrew most of the troops from the encirclement area.
January 20th
The remnants of the Peterhof-Strelna group of the enemy were destroyed. The Germans, retreating, abandoned heavy weapons and siege equipment, which had accumulated for years near Leningrad.
Soviet troops captured 265 guns, including 85 heavy ones. The Germans were pushed back from the second Soviet capital by 25 km.
The defeat of the Peterhof-Strelna grouping and the successes of the Volkhov Front, which also went on the offensive on January 14, created favorable conditions for the continuation of the offensive of the troops of the Leningrad Front. Maslennikov's army was ordered to strike in the direction of Krasnogvardeysk, Pushkin and Tosno in order to reach the rear of the forces of Army Group North, which held positions in the area of Ulyanovka, Mga and Tosno. In the future, the 42nd Army was to defeat the 26th and 28th German Army Corps and, in cooperation with the forces of the 67th Army of Sviridov and the right wing of the VF, establish control over the October Railway and completely remove the encirclement from Leningrad. The forces of the Fedyuninsky army received the task of bypassing Krasnogvardeisk from the south-western direction, contributing to the offensive of the 42nd army.
January 21
Parts of the 67th Army of the LF and the 8th Army of the VF, having discovered the retreat of the forces of the Mgin group of the enemy, went on the offensive. On the same day, Soviet troops liberated Mga. The Kirov railway was recaptured from the Germans. However, they could not develop the offensive. The Nazis took up positions at the intermediate defensive line "Autostrada" along the October Railway and put up stubborn resistance.
The retreat of the Germans from Mga forced the command of the Leningrad Front to adjust their plans. Now the main task of the 2nd shock and 42nd armies was the attack on Krasnogvardeisk, and then on Kingisepp and Narva. The 67th Army was to occupy the October Railway and support the advance on Krasnogvardeisk.
For several days there were stubborn battles on the line of the October railway, for Krasnogvardeysk, Pushkin and Slutsk. The Germans tried to keep Krasnogvardeysk at any cost. The commander of Army Group North deployed several formations to the area. Hitler refused to allow the withdrawal of troops from the line of the October railway, from Pushkin and Slutsk.
January 24-30
Pushkin and Sluts were released. On January 25, a decisive assault on Krasnogvardeysk began. Fierce fighting went on for almost a day. On January 26, Krasnogvardeysk was cleared of the Nazis. The solid defense front of the 18th German Army was broken through, the German divisions retreated. By January 30, the 2nd shock army reached the Luga River. On the night of February 1, Kingisepp was taken by storm. The Germans, unable to hold their position on the Luga, retreated to the line on the Narva River. Formations of the 42nd Army, developing the offensive in a southwestern direction, also reached the Luga and occupied a bridgehead in the Bolshoy Sabsk area. The troops of the 67th Army under the command of Sviridov, overcoming the strong resistance of the enemy, liberated Vyritskaya on January 27, and by January 30 recaptured Siversky.
Thus, in part of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts, in cooperation with the Baltic Fleet, they broke through the powerful defenses of the enemy and inflicted a heavy defeat on the 18th German army. Soviet soldiers finally released Leningrad, advanced 70-100 km.
On January 21, the front commander turned to Stalin:
In connection with the complete liberation of the city of Leningrad from the enemy blockade and from enemy artillery shelling, we ask you to allow:
1. Issue and publish on this occasion an order to the troops of the front.
2. In honor of the victory won, fireworks in Leningrad on January 27 this year at 20.00 hours with twenty-four artillery salvos from three hundred and twenty-four guns. 
Stalin granted the request of the command of the Leningrad Front and on January 27 a salute was fired in Leningrad to mark the final liberation of the city from the blockade, which lasted 872 days. The order to the victorious troops of the Leningrad Front, contrary to the established order, was signed by L. A. Govorov, and not by Stalin. Such a privilege was not awarded to any of the commanders of the fronts during the Great Patriotic War. And on January 27, the order of the Military Council of the Leningrad Front was read on the radio, which said about the complete liberation of Leningrad from the blockade.
Leningraders rejoiced: the terrible blockade that claimed thousands of lives was a thing of the past.
Operation results
By the end of January 1944, the troops of the Leningrad Front, in cooperation with the troops of the Volkhov Front, inflicted a heavy defeat on the 18th German Army, advanced 70-100 kilometers, liberated a number of settlements (including Krasnoe Selo, Ropsha, Krasnogvardeisk, Pushkin, Slutsk ) and created the prerequisites for a further offensive. Although the Leningrad-Novgorod operation continued, the main task of the entire strategic offensive was completed - Leningrad was completely liberated from the blockade.
Briefly about the lifting of the blockade of Leningrad
The Soviet troops were faced with the task of defeating the German Army Group North (16 A and 18 A), completely lifting the blockade of Leningrad and liberating the Leningrad Region from the fascist invaders. As a result of the operation, Soviet troops inflicted a heavy defeat on the Nazi German Army Group North and pushed it back 220-280 km, destroying 3 and defeating 23 enemy divisions. Leningrad was completely delivered from the siege, the Leningrad region and part of the Kalinin region were almost completely liberated, the liberation of the Estonian SSR was laid.
January 27 - day of military glory
The Days of Military Glory of Russia (Days of Glory of Russian Weapons) are the memorable days of Russia in commemoration of the victories of the Russian troops, which played a decisive role in the history of Russia. One of these days is the "Day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade." The list of these days was established in February 1995 by the law "On the days of military glory and anniversaries Russia” (today there are 17 days of military glory).
The original name of the Day of Military Glory is the Day of lifting the blockade of the city of Leningrad (1944). However, in 2013 it was decided to correct this name, since at the end of January 1944 the Soviet troops, who had previously released several sections in the Leningrad direction, lifted the blockade completely.
The importance of lifting the blockade
Photo - echo of the blockade
1 of 16
Poems
September 8, the usual day of the week. G. Stanislavskaya
(September 8, 1941, the blockade of Leningrad began)
September 8, the usual day of the week,
The beginning of autumn, beautiful and bright,
September breeze and doves flew
And the forest beckoned people with gifts,
And silence, and freshness of breath.
The usual early morning...
So it was before or after,
But this year, trouble knocked on the house.
In that 41st memorable year
Beauty was bound with an iron hoop,
Ruthless, destructive grasp,
Who turned the life of Leningraders into hell, -
BLOCKADE. We, the living, do not understand
What did the child feel, fading away,
Carrying a dead mother on a sled
And biting lips from impotence ...
Sirens sound, metronome sound
The memory of the children of the blockade worries,
They fell without an account of hellish torments,
Labor for the front without front speeches,+
They fell out, but people did not give up,
The city did not give up, adults and children!
Their memory, living, bow
And tell me - let them remember! - to our children.
Dedicated to all the blockade survivors of the city of Leningrad ... S.V. Titov
Thin fingers, transparent fingers,
Cloudy lens of the pupil.
The night danced snowy waltzes,
The candle flickered dimly.
Stars fell like shells
Burning through the world.
You survived this blockade
You and your ghostly guest.
Stale cracker - in half,
flask of cold water,
Piles of ruins, cold and ice.
How to survive until Wednesday?
The stop is two kilometers away;
The streets are full of corpses
Dead faces, streaks of wind,
The echo of war...
The city thawed, consecrated in the spring,
You warmed up a little.
Branches spread old maples,
And the bridges creaked.
Dust is on the dresser, there are shadows in the room.
Where is your ghostly guest?
Maybe he left? Or maybe a vision
You happened to meet...
Video
At what cost was the victory in the Great Patriotic War given to our veterans? How does today's generation "remember" its history? Why would our children give Leningrad to the enemy if they were in the place of our veteran heroes?
This film draws parallels between the two eras − Soviet period and modern. Veterans talk about the severity of wartime. Meanwhile, modern children, meanwhile, are sitting in a history lesson and do not even try to imagine how hard it was for our people in the Great Patriotic War. What can change their attitude to the history of their homeland? Veterans of the Great Patriotic War, as well as figures of culture, science and politics will try to answer this and many other questions in the film.
Documentary film "History Lesson". 2010
Film by K. Nabutov "Siege of Leningrad". Part 1
The authors of the film balanced the dry language of numbers and documents with human stories, because everyone who survived these terrible months has his own blockade. Ordinary Leningraders, who became prisoners of a hungry city, tell their stories.
In the film, there was a place for a look “from the other side”. German veterans - some ask for forgiveness from Leningraders, but there are those who are still confident in their then rightness ...
In accordance with federal law dated March 13, 1995 "On the days of military glory (victory days) of Russia" and was previously called the Day of lifting the blockade of the city of Leningrad (1944). In November 2013, the name of the day of military glory was changed to "Day of the complete liberation by the Soviet troops of the city of Leningrad from the blockade of its Nazi troops (1944)".
At the numerous requests of the inhabitants of the city, primarily the blockade, the name of the day of military glory was again corrected, it became known as "The day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade (1944)". The new name of this day most accurately reflects not only the role of Soviet troops in the liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade, but also the merit of the inhabitants of besieged Leningrad in protecting the city.
The heroic defense of Leningrad became a symbol of the courage of the Soviet people. At the cost of incredible hardships, heroism and self-sacrifice, the soldiers and residents of Leningrad defended the city. Hundreds of thousands of those who fought were awarded government awards, 486 received the title of Hero Soviet Union, of which eight people twice.
On December 22, 1942, the medal "For the Defense of Leningrad" was established, which was awarded to about 1.5 million people.
On January 26, 1945, the city of Leningrad itself was awarded the Order of Lenin. Since May 1, 1945, Leningrad has been a hero city, and on May 8, 1965, the city was awarded the Gold Star medal.
The memorial ensembles of the Piskarevsky cemetery and the Seraphim cemetery are dedicated to the memory of the victims of the blockade and the fallen participants in the defense of Leningrad, and the Green Belt of Glory was created around the city along the former blockade ring of the front.
(Additional
Photos from open sources
January 27 marks the Day of Military Glory of Russia - the day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade in 1944.
The blockade of Leningrad is one of the most tragic pages of the Great Patriotic War. It was conducted by German troops from September 8, 1941 and was completed on January 27, 1944. The capture of the city by the German command attached important strategic and political significance. For almost 900 days, communication with Leningrad was maintained only through Lake Ladoga and by air. The enemy conducted continuous bombing and artillery shelling of the city, made numerous attempts to capture it. During the siege of Leningrad, more than 641,000 people died from starvation and shelling, according to other sources, at least one million people.
Soviet troops repeatedly tried to break through the blockade ring, but partially achieved this only in January 1943. It was a strategic offensive operation of the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts in cooperation with the Baltic Fleet and the Ladoga military flotilla. The goal was to restore land communications that connected the city with the country. The offensive was on the Shlisselburg-Sinyavinsky ledge between the city of Mga and Lake Ladoga. The Germans turned this "patch" into a powerful field fortified area, on which they concentrated up to five fully equipped divisions and four divisions in the operational reserve. For a breakthrough in this direction Soviet command created two powerful strike groups, which broke through the enemy defenses with counter strikes and formed a corridor 8-11 kilometers wide along the shore of Lake Ladoga, restoring the land connection between Leningrad and the country. The further offensive of the Soviet troops to the south did not develop, but the breakthrough of the blockade became a turning point in the battle for Leningrad.
The final defeat of the Nazi troops near Leningrad and the complete lifting of the blockade of the city occurred later, during the Leningrad-Novgorod operation from January 14 to March 1, 1944. It was conducted by the troops of the Leningrad, Volkhov and 2nd Baltic Fronts together with the Baltic Fleet. With strikes on the flanks of the German 18th Army near Leningrad and Novgorod, Soviet troops defeated its main forces. Then, during the offensive, they defeated the 16th Army and liberated Novgorod, Pushkin, Krasnogvardeisk, Tosno. The October railway, which connected Moscow with Leningrad, was cleared of the Nazis.
On January 27, 1944, the blockade of Leningrad, which lasted 872 days, was finally broken. On this day, artillery salutes and fireworks were given in the city - the only exception during the Great Patriotic War: other salutes were made in Moscow. Tens of thousands of city residents took to the streets, squares, embankments of the Neva. Fireworks started at 20:00. There were 24 volleys of 324 artillery pieces, which were accompanied by fireworks and illumination by anti-aircraft searchlights.
And the army group "North", which kept the city in a blockade, suffered a difficult situation and was driven back from Leningrad by 220-280 kilometers. Three divisions were completely destroyed, 23 defeated. Soviet troops reached the borders of Latvia and Estonia.
The defense of Leningrad was of great military-strategic, political and moral importance. The Hitlerite command lost the possibility of effective maneuver with strategic reserves, the transfer of troops to other directions. If the city on the Neva had fallen in 1941, then the German troops would have joined with the Finns. And the main part of the German army group "North" could turn around in a southerly direction to strike at the central regions of the USSR. In this case, Moscow could not resist, and the war could go according to a different scenario. In the monstrous meat grinder of the Sinyavino operation, the Leningraders, with their feat and unprecedented stamina, saved not only themselves. Having fettered the German forces, they provided invaluable assistance to Stalingrad and the entire country, inspired the army, aroused deep respect and gratitude from the states of the anti-Hitler coalition.
Warriors and residents of Leningrad defended the city. Hundreds of thousands of those who fought for him received government awards, 486 received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, eight of them twice.
On December 22, 1942, the medal "For the Defense of Leningrad" was established, which was awarded to about 1.5 million people. It remains in people's memory as one of the most honorary awards of the Great Patriotic War.
On January 26, 1945, the city itself was awarded the Order of Lenin. On May 1, 1945, Leningrad became a hero city, and on May 8, 1965, it was awarded the Gold Star medal.
The memorial ensembles of the Piskarevsky and Serafimsky cemeteries are dedicated to the memory of the victims of the blockade and the fallen participants in the defense of Leningrad, and the Green Belt of Glory was created around the city along the former blockade ring of the front.
As for our city, today 96 residents of besieged Leningrad and 15 participants in its defense live in Ulyanovsk. On the Day of Military Glory, they will be congratulated at home by representatives of the administrations of municipalities and Councils of Veterans. Thematic book and photo exhibitions will be held in each district, cool watch, mourning rulers. The meetings will be held with the invitation of veterans, servicemen, "children of war".
The beginning of the blockade
Shortly after the start of the Great Patriotic War, Leningrad found itself in the grip of enemy fronts. From the southwest, the German Army Group North (Commander Field Marshal W. Leeb) approached him; from the north-west, the Finnish army set its sights on the city (commander Marshal K. Mannerheim). According to the Barbarossa plan, the capture of Leningrad was to precede the capture of Moscow. Hitler believed that the fall of the northern capital of the USSR would give not only a military gain - the Russians would lose the city, which is the cradle of the revolution and has a special symbolic meaning for the Soviet state. The battle for Leningrad, the longest in the war, lasted from July 10, 1941 to August 9, 1944.
In July-August 1941, the German divisions were suspended in the battles on the Luga line, but on September 8 the enemy went to Shlisselburg and Leningrad, which had a population of about 3 million people before the war, was surrounded. Approximately 300 thousand more refugees who arrived in the city from the Baltic states and neighboring regions at the beginning of the war must be added to the number of those who found themselves in the blockade. From that day on, communication with Leningrad became possible only via Lake Ladoga and by air. Almost daily, Leningraders experienced the horror of artillery shelling or bombing. As a result of fires, residential buildings were destroyed, people and food supplies were killed, incl. Badaevsky warehouses.
In early September 1941, he recalled General of the Army G.K. Zhukov and told him: "You will have to fly to Leningrad and take command of the front and the Baltic Fleet from Voroshilov." The arrival of Zhukov and the measures taken by him strengthened the defense of the city, but it was not possible to break through the blockade.
The plans of the Nazis in relation to Leningrad
The blockade organized by the Nazis was aimed precisely at the extinction and destruction of Leningrad. On September 22, 1941, a special directive noted: “The Fuhrer has decided to wipe the city of Leningrad off the face of the earth. It is supposed to surround the city with a tight ring and, by shelling from artillery of all calibers and continuous bombing from the air, raze it to the ground ... In this war, waged for the right to exist, we are not interested in preserving at least part of the population. On October 7, Hitler gave another order - not to accept refugees from Leningrad and push them back to enemy territory. Therefore, any speculation - including those circulated today in the media - that the city could have been saved if it had been surrendered to the mercy of the Germans should be attributed either to the category of ignorance or a deliberate distortion of historical truth.
The situation in the besieged city with food
Before the war, the metropolis of Leningrad was supplied with what is called "from the wheels", the city did not have large food supplies. Therefore, the blockade threatened with a terrible tragedy - hunger. As early as September 2, we had to strengthen the food savings regime. From November 20, 1941, the lowest norms for issuing bread on cards were established: workers and engineers - 250 g, employees, dependents and children - 125 g. Soldiers of the first line units and sailors - 500 g. A mass death of the population began. In December, 53 thousand people died, in January 1942 - about 100 thousand, in February - more than 100 thousand. The preserved pages of the diary of little Tanya Savicheva do not leave anyone indifferent: “Grandmother died on January 25th. ... “Uncle Alyosha on May 10 ... Mom on May 13 at 7.30 in the morning ... Everyone died. Only Tanya remained. Today, in the works of historians, the figures of the dead Leningraders vary from 800 thousand to 1.5 million people. Recently, data on 1.2 million people have been appearing more and more often. Grief has come to every family. During the battle for Leningrad, more people died than England and the United States lost during the entire war.
"The road of life"
Salvation for the besieged was the "Road of Life" - a route laid on the ice of Lake Ladoga, along which food and ammunition were delivered to the city from November 21 and evacuated on the way back civilian population. During the period of the "Road of Life" - until March 1943 - over the ice (and in the summer on various ships) 1615 thousand tons of various cargoes were delivered to the city. At the same time, more than 1.3 million Leningraders and wounded soldiers were evacuated from the city on the Neva. A pipeline was laid to transport oil products along the bottom of Lake Ladoga.
The feat of Leningrad
However, the city did not give up. Its residents and leadership then did everything possible to live and continue to fight. Despite the fact that the city was in the most severe conditions of the blockade, its industry continued to supply the troops of the Leningrad Front with the necessary weapons and equipment. Exhausted by hunger and seriously ill workers performed urgent tasks, repaired ships, tanks and artillery. Employees of the All-Union Institute of Plant Growing have preserved the most valuable collection of grain crops. In the winter of 1941, 28 employees of the institute died of starvation, but not a single box of grain was touched.
Leningrad inflicted tangible blows on the enemy and did not allow the Germans and Finns to act with impunity. In April 1942, Soviet anti-aircraft gunners and aviation thwarted the operation of the German command "Aisshtoss" - an attempt to destroy the ships of the Baltic Fleet standing on the Neva from the air. Opposition to enemy artillery was constantly improved. The Leningrad Military Council organized a counter-battery fight, as a result of which the intensity of shelling of the city significantly decreased. In 1943, the number of artillery shells that fell on Leningrad decreased by about 7 times.
The unparalleled self-sacrifice of ordinary Leningraders helped them not only to defend their beloved city. It showed the whole world where the limit of the possibilities of fascist Germany and its allies lies.
Actions of the leadership of the city on the Neva
Although in Leningrad (as in other regions of the USSR during the war) there were some scoundrels among the authorities, the party and military leadership of Leningrad basically remained at the height of the situation. It behaved adequately to the tragic situation and did not "fatten" at all, as some modern researchers claim. In November 1941, the secretary of the city party committee, Zhdanov, established a rigidly fixed cut-down rate of food consumption for himself and all members of the military council of the Leningrad Front. Moreover, the leadership of the city on the Neva did everything to prevent the consequences of a severe famine. By decision of the Leningrad authorities, additional meals were organized for exhausted people in specially hospitals and canteens. In Leningrad, 85 orphanages were organized, which took tens of thousands of children left without parents. In January 1942, a medical hospital for scientists and creative workers began to operate at the Astoria Hotel. Since March 1942, the Lensoviet allowed residents to set up personal gardens in courtyards and parks. The land for dill, parsley, vegetables was plowed up even at St. Isaac's Cathedral.
Attempts to break the blockade
With all the mistakes, miscalculations, voluntaristic decisions, the Soviet command took maximum measures to break through the blockade of Leningrad as soon as possible. Four attempts were made to break the enemy ring. The first - in September 1941; the second - in October 1941; the third - at the beginning of 1942, during the general counter-offensive, which only partially achieved its goals; the fourth - in August-September 1942. The blockade of Leningrad was not broken then, but the Soviet victims in offensive operations of this period were not in vain. In the summer-autumn of 1942, the enemy failed to transfer any large reserves from near Leningrad to the southern flank of the Eastern Front. Moreover, Hitler sent for the capture of the city the administration and troops of the 11th Army of Manstein, which otherwise could be used in the Caucasus and near Stalingrad. The Sinyavino operation of 1942 of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts outstripped the German attack. Manstein's divisions intended for the offensive were forced to immediately engage in defensive battles against the attacking Soviet units.
"Nevsky Piglet"
The hardest battles in 1941-1942. took place on the "Nevsky Piglet" - a narrow strip of land on the left bank of the Neva, 2-4 km wide along the front and only 500-800 meters deep. This bridgehead, which the Soviet command intended to use to break through the blockade, was held by the Red Army for about 400 days. A tiny plot of land was at one time almost the only hope for saving the city and became one of the symbols of the heroism of the Soviet soldiers who defended Leningrad. The battles for the Nevsky Piglet claimed, according to some sources, the lives of 50,000 Soviet soldiers.
Operation Spark
And only in January 1943, when the main forces of the Wehrmacht were drawn to Stalingrad, the blockade was partially broken. The course of the deblocking operation of the Soviet fronts (Operation Iskra) was led by G. Zhukov. On a narrow lane south coast Lake Ladoga, 8-11 km wide, managed to restore land communication with the country. Over the next 17 days, a railway and a highway were laid along this corridor. January 1943 was a turning point in the Battle of Leningrad.
The final lifting of the blockade of Leningrad
The position of Leningrad improved significantly, but the immediate threat to the city continued to exist. In order to finally eliminate the blockade, it was necessary to push the enemy beyond Leningrad region. The idea of such an operation was developed by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command at the end of 1943 by the forces of the Leningrad (General L. Govorov), Volkhov (General K. Meretskov) and the 2nd Baltic (General M. Popov) fronts in cooperation with the Baltic Fleet, Ladoga and Onega flotillas the Leningrad-Novgorod operation was carried out. Soviet troops went on the offensive on January 14, 1944, and already on January 20 Novgorod was liberated. On January 21, the enemy began to withdraw from the Mga-Tosno area, from the section of the Leningrad-Moscow railway line that he had cut.
On January 27, in commemoration of the final lifting of the blockade of Leningrad, which lasted 872 days, a festive fireworks thundered. Army Group North suffered a heavy defeat. As a result of the Leningrad-Novgorod Soviet troops reached the borders of Latvia and Estonia.
The value of the defense of Leningrad
The defense of Leningrad was of great military-strategic, political and moral importance. The Hitlerite command lost the possibility of the most effective maneuver of strategic reserves, the transfer of troops to other directions. If the city on the Neva had fallen in 1941, then the German troops would have joined with the Finns, and most of the troops of the German Army Group North could have been deployed in a southerly direction and hit the central regions of the USSR. In this case, Moscow could not resist, and the whole war could go according to a completely different scenario. In the deadly meat grinder of the Sinyavino operation in 1942, Leningraders saved not only themselves with their feat and indestructible stamina. Having fettered the German forces, they provided invaluable assistance to Stalingrad, the whole country!
The feat of the defenders of Leningrad, who defended their city in the most difficult conditions, inspired the entire army and the country, earned deep respect and gratitude from the states of the anti-Hitler coalition.
In 1942, the Soviet government established the medal "For the Defense of Leningrad", which was awarded to about 1.5 million defenders of the city. This medal remains in the memory of the people today as one of the most honorary awards of the Great Patriotic War.
DOCUMENTATION:
I. Nazi plans for the future of Leningrad
1. Already on the third day of the war against the Soviet Union, Germany informed the leadership of Finland about its plans to destroy Leningrad. G. Goering told the Finnish envoy in Berlin that the Finns would also receive "Petersburg, which, after all, like Moscow, is better to destroy."
2. According to a note made by M. Bormann at a meeting on July 16, 1941, "The Finns claim the area around Leningrad, the Fuhrer would like to raze Leningrad to the ground, and then transfer it to the Finns."
3. On September 22, 1941, Hitler's directive stated: “The Fuhrer has decided to wipe the city of Leningrad off the face of the earth. After defeat Soviet Russia the continued existence of this largest settlement is of no interest. It is supposed to surround the city with a tight ring and, by shelling from artillery of all calibers and continuous bombing from the air, raze it to the ground. If, due to the situation that has developed in the city, requests for surrender are made, they will be rejected, since the problems associated with the stay of the population in the city and its food supply cannot and should not be solved by us. In this war being waged for the right to exist, we are not interested in saving at least part of the population.
4. Directive of the German Naval Staff September 29, 1941: “The Fuhrer decided to wipe the city of Petersburg from the face of the earth. After the defeat of Soviet Russia, there is no interest in the continued existence of this settlement. Finland also declared its disinterest in the further existence of the city directly at the new border.
5. As early as September 11, 1941, Finnish President Risto Ryti told the German envoy in Helsinki: “If St. Petersburg no longer exists as Big City, then the Neva would be the best border on the Karelian Isthmus ... Leningrad must be liquidated as a large city.
6. From the testimony of A. Jodl at the Nuremberg trials: During the siege of Leningrad, Field Marshal von Leeb, commander of Army Group North, told the OKW that the streams of civilian refugees from Leningrad were seeking refuge in the German trenches and that he did not have the opportunity to feed and care for them about them. The Führer immediately gave the order (October 7, 1941) not to accept refugees and push them back into enemy territory
II. The myth of the "fatty" leadership of Leningrad
There was information in the media that in besieged Leningrad A.A. Zhdanov allegedly gorged himself on delicacies, which usually featured peaches or bush cakes. the question of a photograph with “rum women” baked in the besieged city in December 1941 is also being discussed. Diaries of former party workers in Leningrad are also cited, which say that party workers lived almost like in paradise.
In fact: the picture with the "rum women" was taken by the journalist A. Mikhailov. He was a well-known photojournalist for TASS. It is obvious that Mikhailov, indeed, received an official order in order to calm Soviet people living on big land. In the same context, the appearance in the Soviet press in 1942 of information about the State Prize to the director of the Moscow factory of sparkling wines A.M. Frolov-Bagreev, as a developer of technology for the mass production of sparkling wines "Soviet Champagne"; holding skiing competitions and football competitions in the besieged city, etc. Such articles, reports, photographs had one main purpose - to show the population that not everything is so bad, that even under the most severe conditions of a blockade or siege, we can make confectionery and champagne! We will celebrate the victory with our champagne, hold competitions! We hold on and we will win!
Facts about party leaders in Leningrad:
1. As one of the two on-duty waitresses of the Military Council of the Front, A. A. Strakhova, recalled, in the second decade of November 1941, Zhdanov called her and set a rigidly fixed cut-down rate of food consumption for all members of the military council (commander M. S. Khozin, himself, A .A. Kuznetsov, T.F. Shtykov, N.V. Solovyov): "Now it will be like this ...". "... A bit of buckwheat porridge, sour cabbage soup, which Uncle Kolya (his personal chef) cooked for him, is the height of any pleasure! ..".
2. The operator of the central communications center located in Smolny, M. Kh. Neishtadt: “To be honest, I didn’t see any banquets ... Nobody treated the soldiers, and we weren’t offended ... But I don’t remember any excesses there. Zhdanov, when he came, first of all checked the consumption of products. Accounting was the strictest. Therefore, all this talk about "holidays of the stomach" is more speculation than the truth. Zhdanov was the first secretary of the regional committee and city committee of the party, who carried out all the political leadership. I remember him as a person who was quite scrupulous in everything related to material issues.
3. When characterizing the nutrition of the party leadership of Leningrad, certain overexposures are often allowed. We are talking, for example, about the often quoted diary of Ribkovsky, where he describes his stay in the party sanatorium in the spring of 1942, describing the food as very good. It should be remembered that in that source we are talking about March 1942, i.e. period after the launch of the railway line from Voibokalo to Kabona, which is characterized by the end of the food crisis and the return of nutrition to acceptable standards. "Supermortality" at that time took place only because of the consequences of hunger, to combat which the most emaciated Leningraders were sent to special medical institutions (hospitals) created by decision of the City Committee of the Party and the Military Council of the Leningrad Front at many enterprises, factories, clinics in winter 1941/1942.
Ribkovsky, before getting a job in the city committee in December, was unemployed and received the smallest “dependent” ration, as a result he was severely malnourished, so on March 2, 1942 he was sent for seven days to a medical institution for severely malnourished people. The food in this hospital corresponded to the hospital or sanatorium standards in force at that time.
Ribkovsky also honestly writes in his diary:
“Comrades say that the district hospitals are in no way inferior to the city committee hospital, and that some enterprises have such hospitals that our hospital pales in front of.”
4. By decision of the bureau of the city committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks and the Leningrad City Executive Committee, additional medical nutrition was organized at higher rates not only in special hospitals, but also in 105 city canteens. The hospitals functioned from January 1 to May 1, 1942 and served 60 thousand people. Canteens were also organized outside the enterprises. From April 25 to July 1, 1942, 234 thousand people used them. In January 1942, a hospital for scientists and creative workers began to operate at the Astoria Hotel. In the dining room of the House of Scientists in winter months fed from 200 to 300 people.
FACTS FROM THE LIFE OF THE BEACHED CITY
More people died during the battle for Leningrad than England and the United States lost during the entire war
The attitude of the authorities towards religion has changed. During the blockade, three churches were opened in the city: the Prince Vladimir Cathedral, the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior and St. Nicholas Cathedral. In 1942, Easter was very early (March 22, old style). On this day, in the Leningrad churches, under the roar of shell explosions and broken glass, Easter matins were held.
Metropolitan Alexy (Simansky) emphasized in his Easter message that April 5, 1942 marked the 700th anniversary of the Battle on the Ice, in which he defeated the German army.
In the city, despite the blockade, continued cultural and intellectual life. In March, "Silva" was given by the Musical Comedy of Leningrad. In the summer of 1942, some educational establishments, theaters and cinemas; there were even several jazz concerts.
During the first concert after the break on August 9, 1942 at the Philharmonic, the orchestra of the Leningrad Radio Committee under Karl Eliasberg performed for the first time the famous Leningrad Heroic Symphony by Dmitry Shostakovich, which became the musical symbol of the blockade.
During the blockade, no major epidemics occurred, despite the fact that hygiene in the city was, of course, far below normal levels due to the almost complete lack of running water, sewerage and heating. Of course, the severe winter of 1941-1942 helped to prevent epidemics. At the same time, researchers also point to effective preventive measures taken by the authorities and the medical service.
In December 1941, 53 thousand people died in Leningrad, in January 1942 - more than 100 thousand, in February - more than 100 thousand, in March 1942 - about 100,000 people, in May - 50,000 people , in July - 25,000 people, in September - 7,000 people. (Before the war, the usual death rate in the city was about 3000 people per month).
Enormous damage was done to historical buildings and monuments of Leningrad. It could have been even larger if very effective measures had not been taken to disguise them. The most valuable monuments, for example, the monument and the monument to Lenin at the Finland Station, were hidden under sandbags and plywood shields.
By order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of May 1, 1945, Leningrad, along with Stalingrad, Sevastopol and Odessa, was named a hero city for the heroism and courage shown by the inhabitants of the city during the blockade. For mass heroism and courage in defending the Motherland in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, shown by the defenders of besieged Leningrad, according to the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on May 8, 1965, the city was awarded the highest degree of distinction - the title of Hero City.
Every year on January 27, our country celebrates the Day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade (1944). This is the Day of Military Glory of Russia, which was established in accordance with the Federal Law "On the days of military glory (victory days) of Russia" dated March 13, 1995. On January 27, 1944, the heroic defense of the city on the Neva ended, which lasted for 872 days. The German troops never managed to enter the city, break the resistance and the spirit of its defenders.
The battle for Leningrad became one of the most important battles of the Second World War and the longest during the Great Patriotic War. She became a symbol of courage and dedication of the defenders of the city. Neither terrible hunger, nor cold, nor constant shelling and bombardment could break the will of the defenders and residents of the besieged city. Despite the terrible hardships and trials that befell these people, the people of Leningrad survived and saved their city from the invaders. The unprecedented feat of the inhabitants and defenders of the city has forever remained in the Russian symbol of courage, stamina, greatness of spirit and love for our Motherland.
The stubborn defense of the defenders of Leningrad fettered large forces German army, as well as almost all the forces of the Finnish army. This undoubtedly contributed to the victories of the Red Army in other sectors of the Soviet-German front. At the same time, even while under blockade, the enterprises of Leningrad did not stop the production of military products, which were used not only in the defense of the city itself, but were also exported to the "mainland", where they were also used against the invaders.
From the first days of the Great Patriotic War, one of the strategic directions according to the plans of the Nazi command was Leningrad. Leningrad was included in the list of the most important objects of the Soviet Union that needed to be captured. The attack on the city was carried out by a separate group of armies "North". The tasks of the army group were to capture the Baltic states, ports and bases of the Soviet fleet in the Baltic and Leningrad.
Already on July 10, 1941, German troops launched an offensive against Leningrad, the capture of which the Nazis attached great strategic and political importance. On July 12, the advanced units of the Germans reached the Luga defensive line, where their offensive was delayed by Soviet troops for several weeks. Heavy tanks KV-1 and KV-2, which arrived at the front directly from the Kirov Plant, actively entered the battle here. Hitler's troops failed to take the city on the move. Hitler was dissatisfied with the developing situation, he personally made a trip to Army Group North in order to prepare a plan to capture the city by September 1941.
The Germans were able to resume the attack on Leningrad only after the regrouping of troops on August 8, 1941 from the bridgehead captured at Bolshoi Sabsk. A few days later, the Luga defensive line was broken through. On August 15, German troops entered Novgorod, and on August 20 they captured Chudovo. At the end of August, fighting was already going on near the approaches to the city. On August 30, the Germans captured the village and station of Mga, thereby cutting off the railway communication between Leningrad and the country. On September 8, the Nazi troops captured the city of Shlisselburg (Petrokrepost), taking control of the source of the Neva and completely blocking Leningrad from land. From that day began the blockade of the city, which lasted 872 days. On September 8, 1941, all rail, road and river communications were severed. Communication with the besieged city could only be maintained by air and waters of Lake Ladoga.
As early as September 4, the city was shelled for the first time, German batteries fired from the occupied city of Tosno. On September 8, on the first day of the blockade, the first massive German bomber raid on the city was made. About 200 fires broke out in the city, one of which destroyed the large Badaev food warehouses, which only worsened the position of the defenders and the population of Leningrad. In September-October 1941, German aircraft made several raids on the city a day. The purpose of the bombing was not only to interfere with the work of the city's enterprises, but also to sow panic among the population.
The conviction of the Soviet leadership and people that the enemy would not be able to capture Leningrad held back the pace of the evacuation. More than 2.5 million civilians, including about 400 thousand children, turned out to be in the city blocked by German and Finnish troops. There were no food supplies to feed so many people in the city. Therefore, almost immediately after the encirclement of the city, it was necessary to seriously save food, reducing food consumption rates and actively developing the use of various food surrogates. AT different time blockade bread consisted of 20-50% cellulose. Since the beginning of the introduction of the rationing system in the city, the norms for issuing food to the population of the city have decreased many times. Already in October 1941, the inhabitants of Leningrad felt a clear shortage of food, and in December a real famine began in the city.
The Germans were well aware of the plight of the defenders of the city, that women, children and the elderly were dying of starvation in Leningrad. But that was precisely their blockade plan. Unable to enter the city with fighting, breaking the resistance of its defenders, they decided to starve the city and destroy it with intense artillery shelling and bombardment. The Germans made the main bet on exhaustion, which was supposed to break the spirit of the Leningraders.
In November-December 1941, a worker in Leningrad could receive only 250 grams of bread a day, and employees, children and the elderly - only 125 grams of bread, the famous "one hundred and twenty-five blockade grams with fire and blood in half" (line from the "Leningrad Poem" Olga Bergholz). When on December 25 the grain ration was first increased by 100 grams for workers and 75 grams for other categories of residents, exhausted, emaciated people experienced at least some joy in this hell. This insignificant change in the norms for issuing bread breathed into the Leningraders, albeit very weak, but hope for the best.
It was the autumn and winter of 1941-1942 that were the most terrible time in the history of the siege of Leningrad. Early winter brought a lot of problems and turned out to be very cold. The heating system did not work in the city, there was no hot water To keep warm, the inhabitants burned books, furniture, dismantled wooden buildings for firewood. Almost all urban transport stopped. Thousands of people died from malnutrition and cold. In January 1942, 107,477 people died in the city, including 5,636 children under the age of one. Despite the terrible trials that fell to their lot, and in addition to hunger, Leningraders that winter suffered from very severe frosts ( average monthly temperature January 1942 was 10 degrees below the long-term average), they continued to work. Administrative institutions, polyclinics, kindergartens, printing houses, public libraries, theaters worked in the city, Leningrad scientists continued their work. The famous Kirov Plant also worked, although the front line passed from it at a distance of only four kilometers. He did not stop his work for a single day during the blockade. 13-14-year-old teenagers also worked in the city, who got up to the machines to replace their fathers who had gone to the front.
In the autumn on Ladoga, due to storms, navigation was seriously complicated, but tugboats with barges still made their way into the city bypassing the ice fields until December 1941. Some volumes of food could be delivered to the city by plane. Hard ice on Lake Ladoga was not established for a long time. Only on November 22, the movement of cars on a specially built ice road began. This important highway for the whole city was called the "Road of Life". In January 1942, the movement of cars along this road was constant, while the Germans fired and bombed the road, but they could not stop the movement. At the same time in the winter, along the "Road of Life" from the city, the evacuation of the population began. The first to leave Leningrad were women, children, the sick and the elderly. In total, about one million people were evacuated from the city.
As the American political philosopher Michael Walzer later noted: “More civilians died in besieged Leningrad than in the hell of Hamburg, Dresden, Tokyo, Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined.” During the years of the blockade, according to various estimates, from 600 thousand to 1.5 million civilians died. The number of 632 thousand people appeared at the Nuremberg trials. Only 3% of them died from artillery shelling and bombing, 97% became victims of hunger. Most of the Leningrad residents who died during the siege are buried at the Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery. The area of the cemetery is 26 hectares. Victims of the blockade lie in a long row of graves; approximately 500,000 Leningraders were buried in this cemetery alone.
The Soviet troops managed to break the blockade of Leningrad only in January 1943. This happened on January 18, when the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts met south of Lake Ladoga, breaking through a corridor 8-11 kilometers wide. In just 18 days, a 36-kilometer railway was built along the shore of the lake. Trains again went along it to the besieged city. From February to December 1943, 3104 trains passed through this road to the city. The corridor pierced by land improved the position of the defenders and residents of the besieged city, but there was still a year left before the blockade was completely lifted.
By the beginning of 1944, the German troops created a defense in depth around the city with numerous wood-and-earth and reinforced concrete defensive structures, covered with barbed wire and minefields. In order to completely liberate the city on the Neva from the blockade, the Soviet command concentrated a large group of troops, organizing an offensive by the forces of the Leningrad, Volkhov, Baltic fronts, they were supported by the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, whose naval artillery and sailors seriously helped the defenders of the city throughout the blockade.
On January 14, 1944, the troops of the Leningrad, Volkhov and 2nd Baltic fronts launched the Leningrad-Novgorod strategic offensive operation, the main goal of which was to defeat Army Group North, liberate the territory of the Leningrad Region and completely remove the blockade from the city. The first blow to the enemy on the morning of January 14 was delivered by units of the 2nd shock army. On January 15, the 42nd Army went on the offensive from the Pulkovo area. Overcoming the stubborn resistance of the Nazis - 3rd tank corps The SS and the 50th Army Corps, the Red Army drove the enemy out of the occupied defensive lines and by January 20 near Ropsha surrounded and destroyed the remnants of the Peterhof-Strelna group of Germans. About a thousand soldiers and officers of the enemy were taken prisoner, more than 250 artillery pieces were captured.
By January 20, the troops of the Volkhov Front liberated Novgorod from the enemy and began to oust the German units from the Mga region. The 2nd Baltic Front managed to capture the Nasva station and captured a section of the Novosokolniki - Dno road, which was the main communications line of the 16th Wehrmacht Army.
On January 21, the troops of the Leningrad Front launched an offensive, the main target of the strike was Krasnogvardeysk. On January 24-26, Soviet troops liberated Pushkin from the Nazis, recaptured the October Railway. The liberation of Krasnogvardeisk on the morning of January 26, 1944 led to the collapse of the continuous line of defense of the Nazi troops. By the end of January, the troops of the Leningrad Front, in close cooperation with the troops of the Volkhov Front, inflicted a heavy defeat on the 18th Wehrmacht Army, advancing 70-100 kilometers. A number of important settlements, including Krasnoe Selo, Ropsha, Pushkin, Krasnogvardeysk, Slutsk. Good prerequisites have been created for further offensive operations. But most importantly, the blockade of Leningrad was completely lifted.
As early as January 21, 1944, A. A. Zhdanov and L. A. Govorov, who no longer doubted the success of the further Soviet offensive, personally addressed Stalin with a request, in connection with the complete liberation of the city from the blockade and from enemy shelling, to allow the issuance and publication of the order troops of the front, as well as in honor of the victory won in Leningrad on January 27, a salute with 24 artillery salvos from 324 guns. On the evening of January 27, almost the entire population of the city took to the streets and jubilantly watched the artillery salute, which heralded a very important historical event in the history of our country.
The motherland appreciated the feat of the defenders of Leningrad. More than 350 thousand soldiers and officers of the Leningrad Front were presented for various orders and medals. 226 defenders of the city became Heroes of the Soviet Union. The medal "For the Defense of Leningrad" was awarded to about 1.5 million people. For steadfastness, courage and unprecedented heroism during the days of the blockade, the city was awarded the Order of Lenin on January 20, 1945, and on May 8, 1965 received the honorary title "Hero City of Leningrad".
Based on materials from open sources
