The offensive of the fascist troops on Leningrad, the capture of which German command gave important strategic and political significance began on July 10, 1941. In August, heavy fighting was already on the outskirts of the city. August 30 German troops cut railways that connected Leningrad with the country. On September 8, 1941, the Nazi troops captured Shlisselburg and cut off Leningrad from the whole country from the land. An almost 900-day blockade of the city began, communication with which was maintained only through Lake Ladoga and by air.

Having failed in attempts to break through the defense Soviet troops inside the blockade ring, the Germans decided to starve the city out. According to all the calculations of the German command, Leningrad was to be wiped off the face of the earth, and the population of the city to die of hunger and cold. In an effort to implement this plan, the enemy carried out barbaric bombardments and artillery shelling of Leningrad: on September 8, the day the blockade began, the first massive bombardment of the city took place. About 200 fires broke out, one of them destroyed the Badaev food warehouses. In September-October, enemy aircraft made several raids a day. The purpose of the enemy was not only to interfere with the activities of important enterprises, but also to create panic among the population. To do this, during the hours of the beginning and end of the working day, especially intensive shelling was carried out. In total, during the blockade period, about 150 thousand shells were fired at the city and over 107 thousand incendiary and high-explosive bombs were dropped. Many died during shelling and bombing, many buildings were destroyed.

Autumn-winter 1941-1942 - the most terrible time blockade. Early winter brought with it cold - heating, hot water was not, and Leningraders began to burn furniture, books, dismantled wooden buildings for firewood. The transport stopped. Thousands of people died from malnutrition and cold. But Leningraders continued to work - administrative offices, printing houses, polyclinics, kindergartens, theaters, a public library worked, scientists continued to work. 13-14-year-old teenagers worked, replacing their fathers who had gone to the front.

The struggle for Leningrad was fierce. A plan was developed that provided for measures to strengthen the defense of Leningrad, including anti-aircraft and anti-artillery. More than 4,100 pillboxes and bunkers were built on the territory of the city, 22,000 firing points were equipped in buildings, over 35 kilometers of barricades and anti-tank obstacles were installed on the streets. Three hundred thousand Leningraders participated in the detachments of the local air defense of the city. Day and night they kept their watch at enterprises, in the courtyards of houses, on roofs.

In the difficult conditions of the blockade, the working people of the city gave the front weapons, equipment, uniforms, and ammunition. 10 divisions were formed from the population of the city militia, 7 of which became personnel.
(Military Encyclopedia. Chairman of the Main Editorial Commission S.B. Ivanov. Military Publishing. Moscow. In 8 volumes -2004. ISBN 5 - 203 01875 - 8)

In autumn, on Lake Ladoga, due to storms, the movement of ships was complicated, but tugboats with barges made their way around the ice fields until December 1941, some food was delivered by aircraft. Hard ice on Ladoga was not established for a long time, the norms for issuing bread were again reduced.

On November 22, the movement of vehicles along the ice road began. This highway was called "Road of Life". In January 1942, traffic on the winter road was already constant. The Germans bombed and shelled the road, but they failed to stop the movement.

In winter, the evacuation of the population began. The first to take out were women, children, the sick, the elderly. In total, about a million people were evacuated. In the spring of 1942, when it became a little easier, the people of Leningrad began to clean up the city. Bread rations have increased.

In the summer of 1942, a pipeline was laid along the bottom of Lake Ladoga to supply Leningrad with fuel, and in the fall, an energy cable.

Soviet troops repeatedly tried to break through the blockade ring, but achieved this only in January 1943. South of Lake Ladoga, a corridor 8-11 kilometers wide was formed. A 33-kilometer-long railway was built along the southern coast of Ladoga in 18 days and a crossing across the Neva was built. In February 1943, trains with food, raw materials, and ammunition went along it to Leningrad.

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.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources

Leningrad blockade- one of the most tragic and important episodes of the Great Patriotic War. The blockade began on September 8, 1941, its breakthrough was carried out on January 18, 1943, and the date of the complete lifting of the blockade was January 27, 1944. The exit of German troops to Leningrad

The capture of Leningrad was an important part of the Barbarossa plan developed by the Nazi command. Hitler believed that such a takeover would bring both military and political benefits. First, Germany would gain control over the Baltic coast, as well as the ability to destroy the Baltic Fleet and the troops defending the city. Secondly, Hitler believed that the capture of Leningrad would demoralize the Soviet command and population.

From the very beginning of the blockade, the Nazi command assumed the complete destruction of the city, not seeing any benefit for themselves in the existence of Leningrad and its inhabitants. On the part of the Soviet command, the option of surrendering the city was not considered.

Even before the blockade began, attempts were made to evacuate the urban population. Initially, children were evacuated (many of them were sent to Leningrad region and as the fighting developed, they were returned back). Subsequently, people were taken out of the city along the ice road through Lake Ladoga and with the help of aircraft.

Marshal Zhukov played a decisive role in the defense of Leningrad. It was he who, as commander of the Leningrad Front, managed to stop the German offensive on the Pulkovo Heights and prevent the enemy from entering the city.

food problem

After that, the tactics of conducting battles by the German troops changed. Their main goal was the destruction of the city, and he was subjected to new attacks. In an effort to cause fires in Leningrad, the Germans subjected it to massive bombardments. Thus, they managed to destroy the large Badaev warehouses, where significant food supplies were stored. This made the prospect of famine real.

On September 8, 1941, land communication between Leningrad and the rest of the country was completely interrupted. The free sale of food was banned, and the norms for issuing products decreased. The real famine in the city began by November. The most difficult period of the Leningrad blockade was the winter of 1941-1942.

During this period, the lowest norms for the issuance of bread were introduced (250 g - workers, 125 g - employees, dependents and children under 12 years old). To the problem of hunger was added cold, turning off the heating, stopping all transport in the city. The winter was cold, and there were almost no thaws. The main means of heating were wood-burning stoves, they went to the ice-holes on the Neva for water. Gradually, death from starvation became massive. The sudden death of passers-by on the streets has become commonplace. Special funeral services picked up about a hundred corpses daily from the streets. Dystrophy became the main Leningrad disease. People fell from weakness and exhaustion. On the streets of the besieged, there was a sign: one who fell once did not get up again. Movement along the streets was extremely difficult, since the transport did not work, and all the streets were covered with snow. The death toll rose to thousands a day. The corpses lay for a long time on the streets and in apartments - there was almost no one to clean them up. The situation was aggravated by constant shelling and air raids.

In besieged Leningrad

During 1942, many attempts were made to break the blockade, but none of them were successful. The only means of communication between Leningrad and the mainland was the ice road along Lake Ladoga - the "Road of Life".

The situation in the city improved in the spring and summer of 1942 as the cold weather receded. The number of street deaths has decreased, vegetable gardens have been arranged in squares, boulevards and squares. Gradually, the norms for issuing bread increased. The first tram was launched, effective measures were taken to prevent epidemics in the city.

As the food situation in the city improved, shelling intensified, and the number of bombings increased. Information about the raids for the population throughout the blockade was carried by the Leningrad radio network. The famous Leningrad metronome was broadcast through it. Its fast rhythm meant an air alert, slow - the end. Subsequently, the metronome became a monument to the resistance of Leningraders.

Cultural life continued in the besieged, starving Leningrad. With the exception of a few of the most difficult months, schools continued to operate, theatrical life continued. Dmitri Shostakovich's symphony, dedicated to Leningrad, was first played in the city during the siege and was broadcast by the Leningrad radio. The radio itself had great value in support of the spirit of Leningraders.

People at that time fought not only for survival, but also for the preservation of other values. Museum collections, architectural monuments, collections of the largest libraries, the precious collection of seeds of the Institute of Plant Growing were saved by Leningraders during the blockade.

Breaking the blockade

In January 1943, the Iskra operation of the Soviet troops was crowned with success. During it, on January 18, 1943, the blockade ring was broken and a permanent connection between Leningrad and the mainland was established. The final lifting of the blockade was carried out on January 27, 1944.

The Soviet fleet played a significant role during the blockade. He participated in the suppression of enemy artillery, the defense of the "Road of Life", his personnel brigades were involved in land battles.

According to Nuremberg Trials, during the blockade, 632 thousand people died, most of them died of starvation. Most of the dead Leningraders were buried at the Piskarevsky Memorial Cemetery, where a monument to the blockade was erected. Another blockade memorial is the Moscow Victory Park: during the war years there was a brick factory there, in the ovens of which the bodies of the dead were cremated.

In 1965, for the courage and heroism of its defenders, Leningrad was one of the first to be awarded the title of Hero City.

Special blockade awards were established - the medal "For the Defense of Leningrad" and the badge "Inhabitant of the besieged Leningrad".

The text was prepared by Maria Shustrova

Literature:
Granin D., Adamovich A. blockade book. St. Petersburg, 1994.
Matyushina O. K. Song about life. M., 1978.
Hass G. German occupation policy in the Leningrad region (1941-1944) No. 6, 2003

The desire to capture Leningrad simply pursued the entire German command. In the article we will tell about the event itself, and about how many days the blockade of Leningrad lasted. It was planned, with the help of several armies, united under the command of Field Marshal Wilhelm von Leeb and under the general name "North", to push back Soviet troops from the Baltic states and proceed to capture Leningrad. After the success of this operation, the German invaders would have received enormous opportunities to suddenly break into the rear of the Soviet army and leave Moscow without protection.

Leningrad blockade. the date

The capture of Leningrad by the Germans would automatically deprive the USSR of the Baltic Fleet, and this would worsen the strategic situation several times over. There was no opportunity to create a new front to protect Moscow in this situation, because all the forces had already been used. Soviet troops would not be able to psychologically accept the capture of the city by the enemy, and the answer to the question: "How many days did the blockade of Leningrad last?" would be completely different. But it happened the way it happened.

On July 10, 1941, the Germans attacked Leningrad, the superiority of their troops was obvious. The invaders, in addition to 32 infantry divisions, had 3 tank, 3 motorized divisions and huge aviation support. In this battle, the German soldiers were opposed by the northern and northwestern front, where there were many less people(total 31 divisions and 2 brigades). At the same time, the defenders did not have enough tanks, weapons, or grenades, and there were generally 10 times fewer aircraft than the attackers.

Siege of Leningrad: history the first attacks of the German army

With a lot of effort, the Nazis pushed the Soviet troops back to the Baltic states and launched an attack on Leningrad in two directions. Finnish troops were moving through Karelia, and German planes were concentrated near the city itself. Soviet soldiers held back the advance of the enemy with all their might and even stopped the Finnish army near the Karelian Isthmus.

The German army "North" went on the offensive in two directions: Lush and Novgorod-Chudov. The main shock division changed tactics and moved towards Leningrad. Also, German aircraft headed for the city, which significantly exceeded the Soviet one. However, despite the fact that the USSR aviation was inferior to the enemy in many respects, it missed air space there are only a few fascist planes over Leningrad. In August, German troops broke through to Shimsk, but the soldiers of the Red Army stopped the enemy near Staraya Russa. This slowed down the movement of the Nazis a little and even created a threat to their environment.

Changing the direction of impact

The Nazi command changed direction and sent two motorized divisions under Staraya Russa with the support of bombers. In August, the cities of Novgorod and Chudovo were captured and the railway lines were blocked. The command of the German troops decided to unite their army near it with the Finnish one, which was advancing in this direction. Already at the end of August, enemy troops blocked all roads leading to Leningrad, and on September 8, the city was taken by the enemy into a blockade. Communication with the outside world was possible only by air or water. Thus, the Nazis "surrounded" Leningrad, began shelling the city and civilians. Regular air bombardments took place.
Not finding common language with Stalin on the issue of the defense of the capital, on September 12 he was sent to Leningrad and began active operations to protect the city. But by October 10, due to the difficult military situation, he had to go there, and Major General Fedyuninsky was appointed commander instead of him.

Hitler transferred additional divisions from other areas in order to a short time completely capture Leningrad and destroy all Soviet troops. The struggle for the city lasted 871 days. Despite the fact that the enemy offensive was suspended, the locals were on the verge of life and death. Food stocks were getting smaller every day, and the shelling and air raids did not stop.

The road of life

From the first day of the blockade, only along one strategic route - the Road of Life - it was possible to leave the besieged city. It passed through Lake Ladonezh, it was through it that women and children could escape from Leningrad. Food, medicine and ammunition also came to the city along this road. But there was still not enough food, the shops were empty, and a large number of people in order to get their rations on coupons. The "Road of Life" was narrow and was constantly under the gun of the Nazis, but there was no other way out of the city.

Hunger

Soon frosts began, and ships with provisions could not reach Leningrad. A terrible famine began in the city. Engineers and workers at factories were given 300 grams of bread, and ordinary Leningraders - only 150 grams each. But now the quality of bread has deteriorated significantly - it was a rubber mixture from the remnants of stale bread and other inedible impurities. The pack was also cut. And when the frosts reached minus forty, Leningrad during the blockade was left without water and without electricity. But the factories for the production of weapons and ammunition worked non-stop even in such a difficult time for the city.

The Germans were sure that the city would not last long in such terrible conditions, its capture was expected any day. The blockade of Leningrad, the start date of which, according to the Nazis, should have been the date of the capture of the city, unpleasantly surprised the command. People did not lose heart and supported each other and their defenders as best they could. They were not going to give up positions to the enemy. The siege dragged on, the fighting spirit of the invaders gradually subsided. It was not possible to capture the city, and the situation became more complicated every day by the actions of the partisans. Army Group North was ordered to entrench itself in place, and in the summer, when reinforcements arrived, to take decisive action.

First attempts to liberate the city

In 1942, the Soviet troops tried several times to liberate the city, but they failed to break through the blockade of Leningrad. Although all attempts ended in failure, the offensive nevertheless weakened the enemy's position and provided an opportunity to try to remove the blockade again. Voroshilov and Zhukov were engaged in this process. On January 12, 1944, the troops of the Soviet Army, with the support of the Baltic Fleet, launched an offensive. Heavy fighting forced the enemy to use all their forces. Powerful blows on all flanks forced Hitler's army to begin a retreat, and in June the enemy was driven back 300 km from Leningrad. Leningrad was a triumph and a turning point in the war.

Blockade duration

History did not know such a cruel and prolonged military siege of a settlement as in Leningrad. How many anxious nights the inhabitants of the besieged city had to endure, how many days... The blockade of Leningrad lasted 871 days. People have endured so much pain and suffering that would be enough for the whole world until the end of time! The blockade of Leningrad is a truly bloody and dark years for everyone. It was broken through thanks to the dedication and courage of the Soviet soldiers, who were ready to sacrifice their lives for the sake of their Motherland. After so many years, many historians and ordinary people were interested in only one thing: was it possible to avoid such a cruel fate? Probably not. Hitler simply dreamed of the day when he could take over the Baltic Fleet and block the road to Murmansk and Arkhangelsk, from where reinforcements for the Soviet army arrived. Was it possible to design this situation in advance and prepare for it in the slightest degree? "The blockade of Leningrad is a story of heroism and blood" - this is how this terrible period could be characterized. But let's look at the reasons why the tragedy unfolded.

Prerequisites for blockade and causes of famine

In 1941, in early September, the city of Shlisselburg was captured by the Nazis. Thus, Leningrad was surrounded. Initially Soviet people they did not believe that the situation would lead to such deplorable consequences, but nevertheless, panic seized the Leningraders. Shop counters were empty, all the money was taken from the savings banks literally in a matter of hours, the bulk of the population was preparing for a long siege of the city. Some citizens even managed to leave the settlement before the fascists began massacres, bombing and executions of innocent people. But after the brutal siege began, it became impossible to get out of the city. Some historians argue that the terrible famine during the blockade days arose due to the fact that even at the beginning of the blockade, everything burned down, and with them food supplies designed for the entire city.

However, after studying all the documents on this topic, which, by the way, were classified until recently, it became clear that there were no “deposits” of food in these warehouses from the very beginning. During the difficult war years, the creation of a strategic reserve for 3 million inhabitants of Leningrad was simply an impossible task. Local residents ate imported food, and they were enough for no more than a week. Therefore, the following strict measures were taken: food cards were introduced, all letters were strictly monitored, schools were closed. If in any of the messages any attachment was noticed or the text contained a decadent mood, it was destroyed.

Life and death within the boundaries of a beloved city

Blockade of Leningrad - years about which scientists are still arguing. After all, looking through the surviving letters and records of people who survived this terrible time, and trying to answer the question "how many days the blockade of Leningrad lasted", historians revealed the whole terrible picture of what was happening. Immediately hunger, poverty and death hit the inhabitants. Money and gold depreciated completely. The evacuation was planned at the beginning of the autumn of 1941, but only by January of the following year it became possible to withdraw most of the inhabitants from this terrible place. Near the bread stalls, where people received rations on cards, simply unimaginable queues lined up. In this frosty time, not only hunger and invaders killed people. Record-breaking lingered on the thermometer for a long time low temperature. She caused the freeze water pipes and rapid use of all available fuel in the city. The population was left in the cold without water, light and heat. Huge problem for people became hordes of hungry rats. They ate all the stocks of food and were carriers of terrible diseases. Due to all these reasons, weakened and exhausted by hunger and disease, people died right on the streets, they did not even have time to bury them.

The life of people in the blockade

Despite the gravity of the situation, local residents did their best to support the life of the city. In addition, Leningraders also helped the Soviet Army. Despite the terrible living conditions, the factories did not stop their work for a moment and almost all produced military products.

People supported each other, tried not to drop the culture of the city in the dirt, restored the work of theaters and museums. Everyone wanted to prove to the invaders that nothing could shake their faith in a brighter future. Most a prime example love for your hometown and life was shown by the history of the creation of the "Leningrad Symphony" by D. Shostakovich. The composer began work on it back in the besieged Leningrad, and finished in the evacuation. After completion, it was transferred to the city, and the local symphony orchestra played the symphony for all Leningraders. During the concert, Soviet artillery did not allow a single enemy aircraft to break through to the city, so that the bombing would not disrupt the long-awaited premiere. The local radio did not stop working, which gave the locals a breath of fresh information and extended the will to live.

Children are heroes. Ensemble of A. E. Obrant

The most painful topic at all times was the topic of saving suffering children. The beginning of the blockade of Leningrad hit everyone, and the smallest in the first place. Childhood spent in the city left a serious imprint on all Leningrad children. All of them matured earlier than their peers, as the Nazis brutally stole their childhood and carefree time from them. Kids, along with adults, tried to bring Victory Day closer. There are those among them who were not afraid to give their lives for the approach of a joyful day. They remain heroes in many hearts. An example is the history of the children's dance ensemble of A. E. Obrant. During the first blockade winter, most of the children were evacuated, but despite this, there were still a lot of them in the city. Even before the start of the war, the Song and Dance Ensemble was founded in the Palace of Pioneers. And in war time the teachers who remained in Leningrad looked for their former students and resumed the work of ensembles and circles. So did the choreographer Obrant. From the children who remained in the city, he created a dance ensemble. In these terrible and hungry days, the children did not give themselves time to relax, and the ensemble gradually got back on its feet. And this despite the fact that before the start of rehearsals, many guys had to be saved from exhaustion (they simply could not bear even the slightest load).

After some time, the team has already begun to give concerts. In the spring of 1942, the guys began to tour, they tried very hard to raise the morale of the soldiers. The fighters looked at these courageous children and could not restrain their emotions. For all the time that the blockade of the city lasted, the children traveled around all the garrisons with concerts and gave more than 3 thousand concerts. There were times when performances were interrupted by bombing and air raids. The guys were not even afraid to go to the front line to cheer up and support their defenders, although they danced without music so as not to attract the attention of the Germans. After the city was liberated from the invaders, all the guys in the ensemble were awarded medals "For the Defense of Leningrad".

Long awaited breakthrough!

The turning point in favor of the Soviet troops occurred in 1943, and the soldiers were preparing to liberate Leningrad from the German invaders. On January 14, 1944, the defenders began the final stage of the liberation of the city. A crushing blow was dealt to the enemy and all land roads connecting Leningrad with others were opened. settlements countries. The blockade of Leningrad was broken on January 27, 1944 by the soldiers of the Volkhov and Leningrad fronts. The Germans began to gradually retreat, and soon the blockade was completely lifted.

This is a tragic page in the history of Russia, sprinkled with the blood of two million people. memory of dead heroes passed down from generation to generation and lives in the hearts of people to this day. How many days the siege of Leningrad lasted, and the courage shown by people, delights even Western historians.

Blockade price

January 27, 1944 at 8 pm in the liberated from the blockade of Leningrad took off into the air holiday fireworks. The selfless Leningraders held out for 872 days in the difficult conditions of the siege, but now everything is left behind. The heroism of these ordinary people still amazes historians, the defense of the city is still being studied by researchers. And there is a reason! The siege of Leningrad lasted almost 900 days and claimed many lives... It's hard to say exactly how many.

Despite the fact that more than 70 years have passed since 1944, historians cannot voice the exact number of victims of this bloody event. Below are some data taken from the documents.

Thus, the official figure of those killed in the blockade is 632,253 people. People died for several reasons, but mostly from bombing, cold and hunger. Leningraders had a hard time in the cold winter of 1941/1942, in addition, constant interruptions in food, electricity and water completely exhausted the population. The blockade of the city of Leningrad tested people not only morally, but also physically. Residents received a meager ration of bread, which was barely enough (and sometimes not enough at all) so as not to starve to death.

Historians conduct their research on the documents of the regional and city committees of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks that have been preserved since the war. Such information is available to the employees of the registry office, who recorded the number of dead people. Once these papers were secret, but after the collapse of the USSR, the archives were declassified, and many documents became available to almost everyone.

The number of deaths mentioned above is very different from reality. The liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade was given ordinary people at the cost of many lives, blood and suffering. Some sources speak of 300 thousand dead, while others note 1.5 million. Only civilians who did not have time to evacuate from the city were taken here. The dead soldiers from the units of the Leningrad Front and the Baltic Fleet are included in the list of "Defenders of the City".

The Soviet government did not disclose the true number of the dead. After the blockade of Leningrad was lifted, all data on the dead were classified, and every year the named figure changed with enviable constancy. At the same time, it was claimed that about 7 million people died on our side in the war between the USSR and the Nazis. Now they are voicing the figure of 26.6 million ...

Naturally, the number of deaths in Leningrad was not particularly distorted, but, nevertheless, it was revised several times. In the end, they settled on the mark of 2 million people. The year of lifting the blockade was both the happiest and the saddest for people. Only now came the realization of how many people died from hunger and cold. And how many more gave their lives for liberation...

Discussions about the number of dead will continue for a long time. New data and new estimates appear, the exact number of victims of the Leningrad tragedy, it seems, will never be known. Nevertheless, the words "war", "blockade", "Leningrad" evoked and will evoke in future generations a sense of pride in people and a feeling of incredible pain. This is something to be proud of. The year is the year of the triumph of the human spirit and the forces of good over darkness and chaos.

The wars of 1941-1945 lack dramatic, tragic pages. One of the worst was the blockade of Leningrad. In short, this is the story of a real genocide of the townspeople, which lasted almost until the very end of the war. Let's recap how it all happened.

The attack on the "city of Lenin"

The attack on Leningrad began immediately, in 1941. The grouping of German-Finnish troops was successfully moving forward, breaking the resistance of the Soviet units. Despite the desperate, fierce resistance of the defenders of the city, by August of the same year, all the railways that connected the city with the country were cut, as a result of which the main part of the supply was disrupted.

So when did the blockade of Leningrad begin? Briefly list the events that preceded this, you can long. But the official date is September 8, 1941. Despite the fiercest battles on the outskirts of the city, the Nazis could not take it “with a swoop”. And therefore, on September 13, artillery shelling of Leningrad began, which actually continued throughout the war.

The Germans had a simple order regarding the city: wipe it off the face of the earth. All defenders were to be destroyed. According to other sources, Hitler simply feared that during a massive assault, the losses of German troops would be unreasonably high, and therefore ordered the blockade to begin.

In general, the essence of the blockade of Leningrad was to ensure that "the city itself fell into the hands, like a ripened fruit."

Population Information

It must be remembered that at that time there were at least 2.5 million inhabitants in the blockaded city. Among them were about 400 thousand children. Almost immediately, food problems began. Constant stress and fear from bombing and shelling, lack of medicines and food soon led to the fact that the townspeople began to die.

It was estimated that during the entire blockade, at least a hundred thousand bombs and about 150 thousand shells were dropped on the heads of the inhabitants of the city. All this led to both mass deaths of civilians and catastrophic destruction of the most valuable architectural and historical heritage.

The first year turned out to be the most difficult: German artillery managed to bomb food warehouses, as a result of which the city was almost completely deprived of food supplies. However, there is also an opposite opinion.

The fact is that by 1941 the number of residents (registered and visitors) totaled about three million people. The bombed Badaev warehouses simply could not physically accommodate such a quantity of products. Many modern historians quite convincingly prove that there was no strategic reserve at that time. So even if the warehouses had not suffered from the actions of German artillery, this delayed the onset of famine by a week at best.

In addition, just a few years ago, some documents from the archives of the NKVD concerning the pre-war survey of the strategic reserves of the city were declassified. The information in them paints an extremely disappointing picture: “Butter is covered with a layer of mold, stocks of flour, peas and other cereals are affected by ticks, the floors of storage facilities are covered with a layer of dust and rodent droppings.”

Disappointing conclusions

From September 10 to 11, the responsible authorities made a complete re-account of all food available in the city. By September 12, a full report was published, according to which the city had: grain and ready-made flour for about 35 days, stocks of cereals and pasta were enough for a month, meat stocks could be stretched for the same period.

Oils remained exactly for 45 days, but sugar and ready-made confectionery products were in store for two months at once. There were practically no potatoes and vegetables. In order to somehow stretch the stocks of flour, 12% of ground malt, oatmeal and soy flour were added to it. Subsequently, cakes, bran, sawdust and ground bark of trees began to be put there.

How was the food problem solved?

From the very first days of September food cards were introduced in the city. All canteens and restaurants were immediately closed. Livestock available at local agricultural enterprises was immediately slaughtered and handed over to procurement centers. All feed of grain origin was brought to flour mills and ground into flour, which was subsequently used to make bread.

Citizens who were in hospitals during the blockade were cut out rations for this period from coupons. The same procedure applied to children who were in orphanages and institutions of preschool education. Virtually all schools have canceled classes. For children, the breakthrough of the blockade of Leningrad was marked not so much by the opportunity to finally eat, but by the long-awaited start of classes.

In general, these cards cost the lives of thousands of people, as the cases of theft and even murder committed in order to obtain them increased dramatically in the city. In Leningrad in those years, there were frequent cases of raids and armed robberies of bakeries and even food warehouses.

With persons who were convicted of something like this, they did not stand on ceremony, shooting on the spot. There were no courts. This was explained by the fact that each stolen card cost someone a life. These documents were not restored (with rare exceptions), and therefore the theft doomed people to certain death.

The mood of the inhabitants

In the early days of the war, few believed in the possibility of a complete blockade, but many began to prepare for such a turn of events. In the very first days of the German offensive that began, everything more or less valuable was swept off the shelves of stores, people removed all their savings from the Savings Bank. Even jewelry stores were empty.

However, the famine that began sharply crossed out the efforts of many people: money and jewelry immediately depreciated. Food cards (which were obtained exclusively by robbery) and food became the only currency. Kittens and puppies were one of the most popular goods in city markets.

Documents of the NKVD testify that the blockade of Leningrad that had begun (the photo of which is in the article) gradually began to inspire anxiety in people. Quite a few letters were confiscated, in which the townspeople reported on the plight of Leningrad. They wrote that not even cabbage leaves were left in the fields; in the city it was already impossible to get old flour dust, from which wallpaper paste was previously made.

By the way, in the most difficult winter of 1941, there were practically no apartments left in the city, the walls of which would be covered with wallpaper: hungry people simply cut them off and ate, since they had no other food.

Labor feat of Leningraders

Despite the enormity of the situation, courageous people continued to work. And to work for the good of the country, releasing a lot of weapons. They even managed to repair tanks, make cannons and submachine guns literally from "grass material". All weapons received in such difficult conditions were immediately used for fighting on the outskirts of the unconquered city.

But the situation with food and medicine became more complicated day by day. It soon became obvious that only Lake Ladoga could save the inhabitants. How is it connected with the blockade of Leningrad? In short, this is the famous Road of Life, which was opened on November 22, 1941. As soon as a layer of ice formed on the lake, which theoretically could withstand the cars loaded with products, their crossing began.

The beginning of the famine

Hunger was approaching inexorably. As early as November 20, 1941, the grain allowance was only 250 grams per day for workers. As for dependents, women, children and the elderly, they were supposed to be half as much. First, the workers, who saw the condition of their relatives and friends, brought their rations home and shared with them. But soon this practice was put to an end: people were ordered to eat their portion of bread directly at the enterprise, under supervision.

This is how the blockade of Leningrad went. The photos show how exhausted the people who were in the city at that time were. For every death from an enemy shell, there were a hundred people who died of terrible hunger.

At the same time, it must be understood that “bread” in this case was understood as a small piece of sticky mass, in which there was much more bran, sawdust and other fillers than the flour itself. Accordingly, the nutritional value of such food was close to zero.

When the blockade of Leningrad was broken, people who received fresh bread for the first time in 900 days often fainted from happiness.

On top of all the problems, the city water supply system completely failed, as a result of which the townspeople had to carry water from the Neva. In addition, the winter of 1941 itself turned out to be extremely severe, so that doctors simply could not cope with the influx of frostbitten, cold people, whose immunity was unable to resist infections.

Consequences of the first winter

By the beginning of winter, the grain ration had almost doubled. Alas, this fact was explained not by the breaking of the blockade and not by the restoration of normal supplies: by that time, half of all dependents had already died. Documents of the NKVD testify to the fact that the famine took absolutely incredible forms. Cases of cannibalism began, and many researchers believe that no more than a third of them were officially recorded.

Children were especially bad at that time. Many of them were forced to stay alone for a long time in empty, cold apartments. If their parents died of starvation at work or if they died during constant shelling, the children spent 10-15 days in complete solitude. More often than not, they also died. Thus, the children of the blockade of Leningrad endured a lot on their fragile shoulders.

Front-line soldiers recall that it was Leningraders who always stood out among the crowd of seven-eight-year-old teenagers in the evacuation: they had creepy, tired, and too adult eyes.

By the middle of the winter of 1941, there were no cats and dogs left on the streets of Leningrad, there were practically no even crows and rats. Animals have learned that it is better to stay away from hungry people. All the trees in the city squares lost most of their bark and young branches: they were collected, ground and added to flour, just to slightly increase its volume.

The blockade of Leningrad lasted less than a year at that time, but during the autumn cleaning, 13 thousand corpses were found on the streets of the city.

The road of life

The real “pulse” of the besieged city was the Road of Life. In the summer it was waterway along the waters of Lake Ladoga, and in winter this role was played by its frozen surface. The first barges with food passed through the lake already on September 12th. Navigation continued until the thickness of the ice made it impossible for ships to pass.

Each flight of sailors was a feat, as German planes did not stop hunting even for a minute. I had to go on flights every day, in all weather conditions. As we have already said, the cargo was first sent over the ice on November 22. It was a horse carriage. After just a couple of days, when the thickness of the ice became more or less sufficient, the trucks also set off.

No more than two or three bags of food were put on each car, since the ice was still too unreliable and cars constantly sank. Deadly flights continued until the spring. Barges took over the “watch”. The end of this deadly carousel was put only by the liberation of Leningrad from the blockade.

Road number 101, as this road was then called, made it possible not only to maintain at least the minimum food ration, but also to take many thousands of people out of the blockaded city. The Germans constantly tried to interrupt the message, not sparing for this shells and fuel for aircraft.

Fortunately, they did not succeed, and today the Road of Life monument stands on the shores of Lake Ladoga, as well as the Museum of the Siege of Leningrad, which contains many documentary evidence of those terrible days.

In many respects, the success with the organization of the crossing was due to the fact that the Soviet command quickly attracted fighter aircraft to defend the lake. In winter, anti-aircraft batteries were mounted directly on the ice. It should be noted that the measures taken gave very positive results: for example, on January 16, more than 2,500 tons of food were delivered to the city, although only 2,000 tons were planned to be delivered.

The Beginning of Freedom

So when did the long-awaited lifting of the blockade of Leningrad take place? As soon as the first major defeat was inflicted near Kursk, the country's leadership began to think about how to free the imprisoned city.

The actual lifting of the blockade of Leningrad began on January 14, 1944. The task of the troops was to break through the German defense in its thinnest place to restore the land communication of the city with the rest of the country. By January 27, fierce battles began, in which the Soviet units gradually gained the upper hand. It was the year of lifting the blockade of Leningrad.

The Nazis were forced to start a retreat. Soon the defense was broken through in a section about 14 kilometers long. Along this path, columns of trucks with food immediately went into the city.

So how long did the blockade of Leningrad last? Officially, it is believed that it lasted 900 days, but the exact duration is 871 days. However, this fact does not in the least detract from the determination and incredible courage of its defenders.

Liberation Day

Today is the day of lifting the blockade of Leningrad - this is January 27th. This date is not a holiday. Rather, it is a constant reminder of the horrifying events that the inhabitants of the city were forced to go through. In fairness, it should be said that the real day of lifting the blockade of Leningrad is January 18, since the corridor we were talking about was broken through on that very day.

That blockade claimed more than two million lives, and mostly women, children and the elderly died there. As long as the memory of those events is alive, nothing like this should be repeated in the world!

Here is the entire blockade of Leningrad briefly. Of course, that terrible time can be described quickly enough, only the blockade survivors who were able to survive it remember those horrific events every day.

January 27 at Russian Federation the Day of military glory of Russia is celebrated - the Day of lifting the blockade of the city of Leningrad. The date is marked on the basis of the federal law "On the days of military glory and memorable dates in Russia" dated March 13, 1995.

The offensive of the Nazi troops on Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), the capture of which the German command attached great strategic and political importance, began on July 10, 1941.

In August, heavy fighting was already on the outskirts of the city. On August 30, German troops cut the railroads connecting Leningrad with the country. On September 8, the Nazis managed to block the city from land. According to Hitler's plan, Leningrad was to be wiped off the face of the earth. Having failed in their attempts to break through the defenses of the Soviet troops inside the blockade ring, the Germans decided to starve the city out. According to all the calculations of the German command, the population of Leningrad had to die of hunger and cold.

September 8, the day the blockade began, the first massive bombardment of Leningrad took place. About 200 fires broke out, one of them destroyed the Badaev food warehouses.

In September-October, enemy aircraft made several raids a day. The purpose of the enemy was not only to interfere with the activities of important enterprises, but also to create panic among the population. Especially intense shelling was carried out at the beginning and end of the working day. Many died during shelling and bombing, many buildings were destroyed.

The conviction that the enemy would not succeed in capturing Leningrad held back the pace of evacuation. More than two and a half million inhabitants, including 400,000 children, turned out to be in the besieged city. There were few food supplies, so food surrogates had to be used. Since the beginning of the introduction of the rationing system, the norms for issuing food to the population of Leningrad have been repeatedly reduced.

Autumn-winter 1941-1942 - the worst time of the blockade. Early winter brought cold with it - there was no heating, there was no hot water, and Leningraders began to burn furniture, books, and dismantled wooden buildings for firewood. The transport stopped. Thousands of people died from malnutrition and cold. But Leningraders continued to work - administrative offices, printing houses, polyclinics, kindergartens, theaters, a public library worked, scientists continued to work. 13-14-year-old teenagers worked, replacing their fathers who had gone to the front.

In the autumn on Ladoga, due to storms, the movement of ships was complicated, but tugboats with barges made their way around the ice fields until December 1941, some food was delivered by aircraft. Hard ice on Ladoga was not established for a long time, the norms for issuing bread were again reduced.

On November 22, the movement of vehicles along the ice road began. This highway was called the "Road of Life". In January 1942, traffic on the winter road was already constant. The Germans bombed and shelled the road, but they failed to stop the movement.

By January 27, 1944, the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts broke the defenses of the 18th German army, defeated its main forces and advanced 60 km in depth. Seeing a real threat of encirclement, the Germans retreated. Krasnoye Selo, Pushkin, Pavlovsk were liberated from the enemy. January 27 was the day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the blockade. On this day, fireworks were given in Leningrad.

The blockade of Leningrad lasted 900 days and became the bloodiest blockade in the history of mankind. Historical meaning the defense of Leningrad is enormous. Soviet soldiers, having stopped the enemy hordes near Leningrad, turned it into a powerful bastion of the entire Soviet-German front in the northwest. By holding down significant forces of the fascist troops for 900 days, Leningrad thereby provided significant assistance to the development of operations on all other sectors of the vast front. In the victories near Moscow and Stalingrad, near Kursk and on the Dnieper - a significant share of the defenders of Leningrad.

The motherland highly appreciated the feat of the defenders of the city. Over 350 thousand soldiers, officers and generals of the Leningrad Front were awarded orders and medals, 226 of them were awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. The medal "For the Defense of Leningrad" was awarded to about 1.5 million people.

For courage, steadfastness and unprecedented heroism in the days of hard struggle against fascist german invaders the city of Leningrad on January 20, 1945 was awarded the order Lenin, and on May 8, 1965 received honorary title"Hero City".

The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources