Berlin strategic offensive(Berlin operation, Capture of Berlin)– offensive operation Soviet troops during Great Patriotic War which ended with the capture of Berlin and victory in the war.

The military operation was carried out in Europe from April 16 to May 9, 1945, during which the territories captured by the Germans were liberated and Berlin was taken under control. Berlin operation became the last in Great Patriotic War And World War II.

Included Berlin operation The following smaller operations were carried out:

• Stettin-Rostock;
• Seelovsko-Berlinskaya;
• Cottbus-Potsdam;
• Stremberg-Torgauskaya;
• Brandenburg-Ratenow.

The goal of the operation was to capture Berlin, which would allow Soviet troops to open the way to join the Allies on the Elbe River and thus prevent Hitler from delaying Second World War for a longer period.

Progress of the Berlin operation

In November 1944, the General Staff of the Soviet Forces began planning an offensive operation on the approaches to the German capital. During the operation it was supposed to defeat the German Army Group “A” and finally liberate the occupied territories of Poland.

At the end of the same month, the German army launched a counteroffensive in the Ardennes and was able to push back the Allied forces, thereby putting them almost on the brink of defeat. To continue the war, the Allies needed the support of the USSR - for this, the leadership of the United States and Great Britain turned to the Soviet Union with a request to send their troops and conduct offensive operations in order to distract Hitler and give the Allies the opportunity to recover.

The Soviet command agreed, and the USSR army launched an offensive, but the operation began almost a week earlier, which resulted in insufficient preparation and, as a result, large losses.

By mid-February, Soviet troops were able to cross the Oder, the last obstacle on the way to Berlin. There were a little more than seventy kilometers left to the capital of Germany. From that moment on, the fighting took on a more protracted and fierce character - Germany did not want to give up and tried with all its might to contain Soviet offensive, however, it was quite difficult to stop the Red Army.

At the same time, on the territory East Prussia Preparations began for the assault on the Koenigsberg fortress, which was extremely well fortified and seemed almost impregnable. For the assault, the Soviet troops carried out thorough artillery preparation, which ultimately bore fruit - the fortress was taken unusually quickly.

In April 1945 Soviet army began preparations for the long-awaited assault on Berlin. The leadership of the USSR was of the opinion that in order to achieve the success of the entire operation, it was necessary to urgently carry out the assault, without delaying it, since prolonging the war itself could lead to the fact that the Germans could open another front in the West and conclude a separate peace. In addition, the leadership of the USSR did not want to give Berlin to the Allied forces.

Berlin offensive operation prepared very carefully. Huge reserves of military weapons were transferred to the outskirts of the city. military equipment and ammunition, the forces of three fronts were pulled together. The operation was commanded by Marshals G.K. Zhukov, K.K. Rokossovsky and I.S. Konev. In total, more than 3 million people took part in the battle on both sides.

Storm of Berlin

Berlin operation characterized by the most a large indicator density of artillery shells in the history of all world wars. The defense of Berlin was thought out to the smallest detail, and breaking through the system of fortifications and tricks was not so easy; by the way, the loss of armored vehicles amounted to 1,800 units. That is why the command decided to bring up all nearby artillery to suppress the city’s defenses. The result was a truly hellish fire that literally wiped out the enemy's front line of defense.

The assault on the city began on April 16 at 3 am. Under the light of searchlights, one and a half hundred tanks and infantry attacked the German defensive positions. The fierce battle was fought for four days, after which the forces of three Soviet fronts and troops Polish army managed to encircle the city. On the same day, Soviet troops met with the Allies on the Elbe. As a result of four days of fighting, several hundred thousand people were captured and dozens of armored vehicles were destroyed.

However, despite the offensive, Hitler had no intention of surrendering Berlin; he insisted that the city must be held at all costs. Hitler refused to surrender even after Soviet troops approached the city; he threw all available human resources, including children and the elderly, onto the battlefield.

On April 21, the Soviet army was able to reach the outskirts of Berlin and start street battles there - German soldiers fought to the last, following Hitler's order not to surrender.

On April 30, the Soviet flag was hoisted on the building - the war ended, Germany was defeated.

Results of the Berlin operation

Berlin operation put an end to the Great Patriotic War and the Second World War. As a result of the rapid advance of Soviet troops, Germany was forced to surrender, all chances of opening a second front and concluding peace with the Allies were severed. Hitler, having learned about the defeat of his army and the entire fascist regime, committed suicide. More awards were awarded for the storming of Berlin than for other military operations of World War II. 180 units were awarded honorary “Berlin” distinctions, which in terms of personnel is 1 million 100 thousand people.

How did this most important thing go? historical event. What preceded it, what were the plans and alignment of forces of the warring parties. How the operation of the Soviet troops to capture Berlin developed, the chronology of events, the storming of the Reichstag with the hoisting of the Victory Banner and the significance of the historical battle.

The capture of Berlin and the fall of the Third Reich

By mid-spring 1945, the main events were unfolding across a large part of Germany. By this time, Poland, Hungary, almost all of Czechoslovakia, Eastern Pomerania and Silesia had been liberated. Red Army troops liberated the capital of Austria, Vienna. The defeat of large enemy groups in East Prussia, Courland, and the Zemland Peninsula was completed. Most of the Baltic Sea coast remained with our army. Finland, Bulgaria, Romania and Italy were withdrawn from the war.

In the south, the Yugoslav army, together with Soviet troops, cleared most of Serbia and its capital Belgrade from the Nazis. From the west, the Allies crossed the Rhine and the operation to defeat the Ruhr group was coming to an end.

The German economy was experiencing enormous difficulties. The raw materials areas of previously occupied countries were lost. The decline in industry continued. Military production fell by more than 60 percent in six months. In addition, the Wehrmacht experienced difficulties with mobilization resources. Sixteen-year-old boys were already subject to conscription. However, Berlin still remained not only the political capital of fascism, but also a major economic center. In addition, Hitler concentrated his main forces with enormous combat potential in the Berlin direction.

That's why the defeat of the Berlin group German troops and the capture of the capital of the Third Reich was so important.The Battle of Berlin and its fall was supposed to end the Great Patriotic War and become a natural outcome of the Second World War of 1939-1945.

Berlin offensive operation

All participants in the anti-Hitler coalition were interested in the speedy completion of hostilities. Fundamental questions, namely: who will take Berlin, the division of spheres of influence in Europe, the post-war structure of Germany and others were resolved in Crimea at a conference in Yalta.

The enemy understood that the war was strategically lost, but in the current situation he tried to extract tactical benefits. His main task was to prolong the war in order to find ways to enter into separate negotiations with the Western allies of the USSR in order to obtain more favorable terms of surrender.

There is also an opinion that Hitler had hope for the so-called retaliation weapon, which was at the stage of final development and was supposed to change the balance of power. That is why the Wehrmacht needed time, and losses did not play any role here. Therefore, Hitler concentrated 214 divisions on the Soviet-German front, and only 60 on the American-British front.

Preparation of an offensive operation, position and tasks of the parties. Balance of forces and means

On the German side, the defense of the Berlin direction was entrusted to army groups "Center" and "Vistula". The construction of layered defense was carried out from the beginning of 1945. The main part of it was the Oder-Neissen line and the Berlin defensive region.

The first was a deep defense of three stripes up to forty kilometers wide, with powerful strongholds, engineering barriers and areas prepared for flooding.

In the Berlin defensive area, three so-called defensive rings were equipped. The first, or external, was prepared at a distance of twenty-five to forty kilometers from the center of the capital. It included strongholds and points of resistance in settlements, defense lines along rivers and canals. The second main, or internal, up to eight kilometers deep, ran along the outskirts of Berlin. All lines and positions were tied into a single fire system. The third city circuit coincided with the ring railway. The command of the Nazi troops divided Berlin itself into nine sectors. The streets leading to the city center were barricaded, the first floors of buildings were turned into long-term firing points and structures, trenches and caponiers were dug for guns and tanks. All positions were connected by communication passages. For covert maneuvers, it was planned to actively use the metro as rolling roads.

The operation of the Soviet troops to capture Berlin began to be developed during the winter offensive.

Plan for the "Battle of Berlin"

The command’s plan was to break through the Oder-Neissen line with coordinated strikes from three fronts, then, developing the offensive, reach Berlin, encircle the enemy group, cut it into several parts and destroy it. Subsequently, no later than 15 days from the start of the operation, reach the Elbe to join the Allied forces. To do this, the Headquarters decided to involve the 1st and 2nd Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts.

Due to the fact that the Soviet-German front narrowed, the Nazis in the Berlin direction managed to achieve an incredible density of troops. In some areas it reached 1 division per 3 kilometers of front line. The army groups “Center” and “Vistula” included 48 infantry, 6 tank, 9 motorized divisions, 37 separate infantry regiments, 98 separate infantry battalions. The Nazis also had approximately two thousand aircraft, including 120 jets. In addition, about two hundred battalions, the so-called Volkssturm, were formed in the Berlin garrison, their total number exceeded two hundred thousand people.

The three Soviet fronts outnumbered the enemy and had the 21st combined arms army, 4 tank and 3 air forces, in addition, 10 separate tank and mechanized and 4 cavalry corps. It was also planned to involve the Baltic Fleet, the Dnieper Military Flotilla, long-range aviation and part of the country's air defense forces. In addition, Polish formations took part in the operation - they included 2 armies, a tank and aviation corps, 2 artillery divisions, and a mortar brigade.

At the beginning of the operation, Soviet troops had an advantage over the Germans:

• in personnel by 2.5 times;
• in guns and mortars 4 times;
• in tanks and self-propelled artillery units by 4.1 times;
• in airplanes 2.3 times.

Start of operation

The offensive was about to begin April 16. In front of him, in the offensive zone of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts, one rifle battalion from each tried to open fire weapons on the front line of the enemy’s defense.

IN 5.00 On the appointed date, artillery preparation began. After that 1 1st Belorussian Front under the command of Marshal Zhukov went on the offensive, delivering three blows: one main and two auxiliary. The main one is in the direction of Berlin through the Seelow Heights and the city of Seelow, auxiliary ones are to the north and south of the capital of Germany. The enemy stubbornly resisted, and it was not possible to take the heights from a swoop. After a series of outflanking maneuvers, it was only towards the end of the day that our army finally took the city of Seelow.

On the first and second days of the operation, fighting took place in the first line of defense of the German fascists. Only on April 17 was it finally possible to make a hole in the second lane. The German command tried to stop the offensive by bringing available reserves into the battle, but were unsuccessful. The battles continued on April 18 and 19. The pace of progress remained very slow. The Nazis were not going to give up; their defenses were filled with a large number of anti-tank weapons. Dense artillery fire, constrained maneuver due to difficult terrain - all this influenced the actions of our troops. Nevertheless, on April 19, at the end of the day, they broke through the third and final line of defense of this line. As a result, in the first four days the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front advanced 30 kilometers.

The offensive of the 1st Ukrainian Front under the command of Marshal Konev was more successful. During the first 24 hours, the troops crossed the Neisse River, broke through the first line of defense and penetrated to a depth of 13 kilometers. The next day, throwing the main forces of the front into battle, they broke through the second line and advanced 20 kilometers. The enemy retreated across the Spree River. The Wehrmacht, preventing a deep bypass of the entire Berlin group, transferred the reserves of the Center group to this area. Despite this, our troops crossed the Spree River on April 18 and broke the front line of the defense of the third zone. At the end of the third day, in the direction of the main attack, the 1st Ukrainian Front advanced to a depth of 30 kilometers. In the process of further movement, by the second half of April, our units and formations cut off Army Group Vistula from the Center. Large enemy forces were semi-encircled.

The troops of the 2nd Belorussian Front, commanded by Marshal Rokossovsky, According to the plan, the attack was supposed to take place on April 20, but in order to facilitate the task, the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front began to cross the Oder on the 18th. By their actions they drew part of the enemy’s forces and reserves onto themselves. Preparations for the main phase of the operation were completed.

Storm of Berlin

All 3 Soviet fronts before April 20 basically completed the task of breaking through the Oder-Neissen line and destroying Nazi troops in the suburbs of Berlin. It was time to move on to the assault on the German capital itself.

Start of the battle

On April 20, troops of the 1st Belorussian Front began shelling the outskirts of Berlin with long-range artillery, and 21 broke through the first bypass line. From April 22, fighting took place directly in the city. The distance between the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front advancing from the northeast and the 1st Ukrainian Front from the south decreased. The preconditions were created for the complete encirclement of the German capital, and the opportunity also arose to cut off from the city and encircle a large group of the enemy’s 9th Infantry Army, numbering up to two hundred thousand people, with the task of preventing its breakthrough to Berlin or retreat to the west. This plan was put into effect on April 23 and 24.

To avoid encirclement, the Wehrmacht command decided to withdraw all troops from the western front and throw them into the relief blockade of the capital and the encircled 9th Army. On April 26, part of the forces of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Belorussian Fronts took up defensive positions. It was necessary to prevent a breakthrough from both inside and outside.

The battles to destroy the encircled group continued until May 1. In some areas, fascist German troops managed to break through the defense ring and go westward, but these attempts were stopped in time. Only small groups were able to break through and surrender to the Americans. In total, in this sector, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Belorussian Fronts managed to capture about 120 thousand soldiers and officers, a large number of tanks and field guns.

On April 25, Soviet troops met with American troops on the Elbe. Through well-organized defense and access to the Elbe, units of the 1st Ukrainian Front created a very successful bridgehead. It became important for the subsequent attack on Prague.

Climax of the Battle of Berlin

Meanwhile in Berlin fighting reached its apogee. Assault troops and groups advanced deeper into the city. They consistently moved from building to building, from block to block, from area to area, destroying pockets of resistance, disrupting the control of the defenders. In the city, the use of tanks was limited.

However, tanks played an important role in the Battle of Berlin. Seasoned in tank battles on Kursk Bulge, during the liberation of Belarus and Ukraine, the tankers were not intimidated by Berlin. But they were used only in close cooperation with infantry. Single attempts, as a rule, led to losses. Artillery units also encountered certain application features. Some of them were assigned to assault groups for direct fire and destructive shooting.

Storming of the Reichstag. Banner over the Reichstag

On April 27, battles for the city center began, which were not interrupted day or night. The Berlin garrison did not stop fighting. On April 28, it flared up again near the Reichstag. It was organized by the troops of the 3rd Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front. But our soldiers were able to get close to the building only on April 30.

The assault groups were given red flags, one of which, belonging to the 150th Rifle Division of the 3rd Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front, later became the Victory Banner. It was erected on May 1 on the pediment of the building by soldiers of the rifle regiment of the Idritsa division M.A. Egorov and M.V Kantaria. It was a symbol of the capture of the main fascist stronghold.

Victory Standard Bearers

While preparations for the Victory Parade in June 1945 were in full swing, the question did not even arise about who to appoint as the Victory standard bearers. It was Egorov and Kantaria who were tasked with acting as assistants to the flag bearer and carrying the Victory Banner across the main square of the country.

Unfortunately, the plans were not allowed to come true. The front-line soldiers who defeated the fascists were unable to cope with combat science. In addition, battle wounds were still making themselves felt. Despite everything, they trained very hard, sparing neither effort nor time.

Marshal G.K. Zhukov, who hosted that famous parade, looked at the rehearsal of carrying the banner and came to the conclusion that it would be too difficult for the heroes of the Battle of Berlin. Therefore, he ordered the removal of the Banner to be canceled and the parade to be held without this symbolic part.

But 20 years later, two heroes still carried the Victory Banner across Red Square. This happened at the 1965 Victory Parade.

Capture of Berlin

The capture of Berlin did not end with the storming of the Reichstag. By May 30, the German troops defending the city were cut into four parts. Their management was completely disrupted. The Germans were on the brink of disaster. That same day, the Fuhrer took his own life. On May 1, the Chief of the Wehrmacht General Staff, General Krebe, entered into negotiations with the Soviet command and proposed a temporary cessation of hostilities. Zhukov put forward the only demand - unconditional surrender. It was rejected and the assault resumed.

In the dead of night on May 2, the commander of the defense of the German capital, General Weidling, surrendered, and our radio stations began to receive a message from the Nazis asking for a ceasefire. By 15.00 the resistance had completely ceased. Historical assault ended.

The Battle of Berlin ended, but the offensive operation continued. The 1st Ukrainian Front began a regrouping, the purpose of which was to attack Prague and liberate Czechoslovakia. At the same time, by May 7, the 1st Belorussian reached a broad front towards the Elbe. The 2nd Belorussian reached the shores of the Baltic Sea, and also entered into interaction with the 2nd British Army positioned on the Elbe. Subsequently, he began the liberation of the Danish islands in the Baltic Sea.

Results of the assault on Berlin and the entire Berlin operation

The active phase of the Berlin operation lasted just over two weeks. Its results are as follows:

• a large group of Nazis was defeated, the Wehrmacht command practically lost control of the remaining troops;
• the bulk of Germany's top leadership was captured, as well as almost 380 thousand soldiers and officers;
• gained experience in using different types of troops in urban battles;
• made an invaluable contribution to Soviet military art;
• According to various estimates, it was the Berlin operation that dissuaded the leadership of the United States and Britain from starting a war against the USSR.

On the night of May 9, Field Marshal Keitel signed an act in Potsdam that meant the complete and unconditional surrender of Germany. So May 9 became the Day Great Victory. A conference was soon held there, at which the fate of post-war Germany was decided and the map of Europe was finally redrawn. There were still a few months left before the end of the Second World War of 1939-1945.

All heroes of the battle were noted by the leadership of the USSR. More than six hundred people were awarded the title of Hero Soviet Union.

In addition, in order to recognize special services to the Fatherland, a medal was developed "For the capture of Berlin." Interesting fact– the fighting in the German capital was still ongoing, but in Moscow they had already presented a sketch of the future medal. The Soviet leadership wanted Russian soldiers to know that wherever they fought for the glory of their Motherland, their heroes would find their rewards.

More than a million people were awarded. In addition to our soldiers, soldiers of the Polish army who particularly distinguished themselves in battle also received medals. There are a total of seven such awards, established for victories in cities outside the borders of the USSR.

Berlin in 1945 was the largest city of the Reich and its center. Here were the headquarters of the commander-in-chief, the Reich Chancellery, the headquarters of most armies and many other administrative buildings. By spring, Berlin was home to more than 3 million residents and about 300 thousand deported civilians from the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition.

The entire top of Nazi Germany remained here: Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels, Goering and others.

Preparing the operation

The Soviet leadership planned to take the city at the end of the Berlin offensive. This task was assigned to the troops of the 1st Ukrainian and Belorussian fronts. At the end of April, the advanced units met, the city was besieged.
The USSR allies refused to participate in the operation. Berlin in 1945 represented an extremely important strategic goal. In addition, the fall of the city would invariably lead to a victory in propaganda terms. The Americans developed a plan for the assault back in 1944. After consolidating the troops in Normandy, it was planned to make a rush north to the Ruhr and begin an attack on the city. But in September the Americans suffered huge losses in Holland and abandoned the operation.
Soviet troops on both fronts had more than 2 million manpower and about 6 thousand tanks. Of course, all of them could not participate in the assault. 460 thousand people were concentrated for the strike, and Polish formations also took part.

City defense

The defense of Berlin in 1945 was prepared very carefully. The garrison numbered over 200 thousand people. It is quite difficult to give an exact figure, since the civilian population was actively involved in the defense of the Nazi capital. The city was surrounded by several lines of defense. Every building was turned into a fortress. Barricades were built on the streets. Almost the entire population was obliged to take part in the construction of engineering structures. Concrete bunkers were hastily installed on the approaches to the city.

Berlin 1945 defended best troops Reich, including the SS. The so-called Volkssturm was also created - militia units recruited from civilians. They were actively armed with Faust cartridges. This is a single-shot anti-tank gun that fires cumulative projectiles. Machine gun crews were located in buildings and simply on city streets.

Offensive

Berlin in 1945 had already been under regular bombing for several months. In 1944, raids by the British and Americans became more frequent. Before this, in 1941, on the personal orders of Stalin, a number of secret operations were carried out by Soviet aviation, as a result of which a number of bombs were dropped on the city.
On April 25, massive artillery preparation began. Soviet aviation ruthlessly suppressed firing points. Howitzers, mortars, and MLRS hit Berlin with direct fire. On April 26, the fiercest fighting of the entire war began in the city. For the Red Army, the density of the city's buildings was a huge problem. It was extremely difficult to advance due to the abundance of barricades and dense fire.
Large losses in armored vehicles were caused by many Volkssturm anti-tank groups. To take one city block, it was first treated with artillery.

The fire stopped only when the infantry approached German positions. Then the tanks destroyed the stone buildings blocking the path, and the Red Army moved on.

Liberation of Berlin (1945)

Marshal Zhukov ordered to use the experience of the Stalingrad battles. In a similar situation, Soviet troops successfully used small mobile groups. Several armored vehicles, a group of sappers, mortarmen and artillerymen were attached to the infantry. Also, sometimes flamethrowers were included in such a unit. They were needed to destroy the enemy hidden in underground communications.
The rapid advance of Soviet troops led to the encirclement of the Reichstag area within 3 days after the start of active fighting. 5 thousand Nazis concentrated in a small area in the city center. A ditch was dug around the building, making a tank breakthrough impossible. All available artillery fired at the building. On April 30, shells breached the Reichstag. At 14:25 a red flag was raised over the buildings.

The photograph that captured this moment would later become one of

The Fall of Berlin (1945)

After the capture of the Reichstag, the Germans began to flee en masse. Chief of the General Staff Krebs requested a ceasefire. Zhukov conveyed the proposal of the German side personally to Stalin. The commander-in-chief demanded only the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. The Germans rejected such an ultimatum. Immediately after this, heavy fire fell on Berlin. The fighting continued for several more days, as a result of which the Nazis were finally defeated and ended in Europe. in Berlin in 1945 showed the whole world the power of the liberating Red Army and the Soviet people. The capture of the Nazi lair has forever remained one of the most important moments in the history of mankind.

Modern Russia exists thanks to the unifying role of history, from which we draw inspiration in order to move forward, developing and building a powerful state, relying on science, economics, culture, and faith. Over the twentieth century, peoples united by historical destiny have come a long way: from an agrarian society, through industrialization to space flights and the launch of the first orbital station. It was impossible to do without casualties if we recognized the threat to the existence of 70% of the population along this path...

This text is about those whose fate fell to storm Berlin. This is not an attempt to look at the operation through the eyes of its participants, nor is it a compilation of memories. This is a story about military events, the intensity and density of which can help both to imagine the nature of the war as a whole, and to understand the cost of all the achievements of the 20th century and modern times.

We paid this price with the loss of enormous human potential. From April 16 to May 8, 1945 alone, the Red Army, together with the 1st and 2nd armies of the Polish Army, lost more than 300 thousand people. However, many veterans admit that they would prefer to lay down their heads in battle, because the dead did not survive the horrors and labors that befell the survivors. It is symbolic that the capture of the Reichstag and victory over Germany overshadows the end of World War II, when the Red Army, fulfilling its obligations to its allies, defeated the Kwantung Army, predetermining the development of the Asia-Pacific region for the long-term historical perspective.

Understanding the cost is more important than repeating it.

April 16, 1945 - the beginning of the Berlin offensive operation. In the first days of the military campaign, the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts played a decisive role for the Soviet troops. From April 16 to 19, the main task was the assault on the Seelow Heights. Having captured them, the Red Army gained strategic superiority over the enemy and could fire at almost the entire city.

Artillery preparation began before dawn - at 3 a.m. Berlin time. The 1st Belorussian Front turned on 143 powerful searchlights, which caused the enemy to panic: the German Infrarot-Scheinwerfer night vision system was disabled. But after two hours the balance of power changed: the enemy troops regrouped and quite successfully counterattacked the Red Army.

Marshal Konev, a direct participant in the events, criticized Marshal Zhukov in 1957 for erroneously determining the direction of the main attack and conducting artillery barrage on an empty bridgehead, which led to a German counter-offensive. In the memoirs, artillery gunner R.V. Kabo, who served in parts of the 1st Ukrainian Front, describes a similar situation. The success of the Red Army on the first day of the operation looked unconvincing - the Germans desperately resisted.

Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Stepanovich Konev (1897-1973) and American general Omar Bradley (1893-1981)

By 1945, the Red Army had colossal human resources, because the 1st and 2nd Guards Tank Armies were connected. The Germans desperately defended the Seelow Heights.

Vasily Nikolaevich Gordov

If the Red Army takes them, then the feasibility of resistance will dissolve even in the Fuhrer’s brain, clouded by psychotropic drugs. The offensive of the 1st Ukrainian Front was more successful: on April 16, bridges were built across the Neisse River*, the troops advanced 13 km.

Both soldiers and commanders were overwhelmed with euphoria from the feeling that the end of the war was near. Not realizing the scale of German despair, the commander of the 3rd Guards Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Vasily Nikolayevich Gordov, gives the order to the troops to attack the suburbs of Berlin on the very first day (after the war he will be arrested on charges of terrorism and executed in 1950).

*Neisse is a river flowing through the territory of three countries - the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany, a left-bank tributary of the Oder River. The Alte Oder river is located nearby.

“Are you confident that you will take the Seelow line tomorrow?” – Joseph Stalin asked Zhukov with irritation on the evening of April 16th. “Tomorrow, April 17, by the end of the day the defense at the Seelow line will be broken through,” the marshal reassured the commander-in-chief. The party leadership repeatedly intervened in the affairs of the military. Berlin had to be taken by the first of May, but history always makes its own adjustments and puts everything in its place.

On the second day of the Berlin offensive operation, the 5th Shock Army and the 2nd Guards Tank Army of the 1st Belorussian Front reached the Alte-Oder River along the entire offensive front. The installation of crossings for tanks and artillery took place under enemy artillery fire and was completed only by the evening of April 17.

At the same time, the 3rd and 4th tank armies of the 1st Ukrainian Front already in the morning completed the task of crossing the river. Neisse in areas determined by the offensive plan. By mid-day, the tank armies of Soviet military leaders P.S. were heading west. Rybalko and D.D. Lelyushenko. By the end of the day they reached the Spree River and began crossing it*. The total depth of the enemy defense through which the Red Army soldiers passed reached 90 km. The approaches to Berlin are blocked by a system of canals of the Oder, Neisse, Daimy, and Spree rivers. The city's population was mobilized to build firing lines. Inside the city there were 9 defensive sectors and 3 bypasses**. The German command intended to use the locks to flood a vast area, significantly impeding the advance of troops.

*Forcing is the overcoming by troops of any natural obstacle

**Bypass - Circular line of fortifications

At 20:30 a letter arrived from front headquarters:

“If we allow slowness in the development of the Berlin operation, the troops will be exhausted and will use up all their material reserves without taking Berlin.”

In part, the Headquarters unnecessarily hurried the participants in the operation: the German defense had already given a breach, and artillery strikes were methodically destroying pockets of resistance.

The result of the second day of the offensive was a breakthrough of the German defense lines in the zone of the 5th Shock Army. A direction was outlined in which a breakthrough was soon made in the defense of the 9th Army on the approaches to Berlin.

On the third day of the operation, the 5th Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front had to overcome forests and several lakes (Lettinsee, Kesselsee, Stafsee, Birkensee). During the day, the troops advanced 4 km and reached the western branch of the main defense line. However, the emerging breakthrough in this direction was eliminated by units of the German Nordland division* and the 18th Panzergrenadier Division, which caused the offensive to stop.

*The Norland division, formed in 1943, included the Finnish and Norwegian legions, as well as the SS Volunteer Corps Denmark

The troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front were eager to help their comrades: on April 18 and 19, its tank armies quickly advanced on Berlin - they covered 35-50 km per day, which corresponded to the pace of the German offensive in 1941. By smashing enemy units, the Red Army pinned down prompt transfer of troops to the main direction of attack.

At 21.00 on April 18, a new task appeared - to make a breakthrough on the Meglin - Batslov front and launch an attack on Pretzel and Bernau. The German defense at Wriezen failed.

During the day, troops of the 1st Belorussian Front attempted to break through German defenses in positions blocking the path to Berlin. To protect the territories, the Nazis used their last reserves in battle, thereby preventing a breakthrough of the front. In the rear, retreating Germans and SS saboteurs distributed leaflets “Wehrwolf” (Werewolf), which called for the creation of sabotage groups from the local population for the war in the Russian rear.

Stalin believed that no losses should deter the attack: “Your offensive on Berlin is developing unacceptably slowly. If the operation continues like this, the offensive may fizzle out.” The quest for a show of force in front of the Allies occurred without the knowledge that the world was on the eve of the atomic age, when the courage of soldiers and the wisdom of generals would fade into the background, making way for the power of the splitting of the atom.

On the fourth day of the Berlin operation, Zhukov decided to seriously change the offensive plan. Early in the morning of April 19, a directive came from front headquarters to the troops, radically changing the directions and demarcation lines for the armies of the right wing of the front. The 47th, 3rd and 5th shock armies were supposed to turn to the southwest and attack directly on the capital. The task was formulated in these words: “to break into and capture Berlin on the shoulders of the enemy.” The goal was also to capture the Reichstag.

On April 19, a victory was won over the enemy in the Pretzeler Forst forest area. The persecution of the Nazis began. At the same time, the troops of the 61st Army on the right wing of the 1st Belorussian Front continued fighting to expand the bridgehead on the western bank of the Oder.

The most significant result of the fighting on April 19 was the success of the 1st Guards Tank and 8th Guards Armies of the 1st Belorussian Front. They managed to break through the defenses in the Muncheberg area. But the armies on the right wing of the front were unable to advance deeply due to serious enemy resistance.

On April 19, the Red Army damaged and destroyed 129 German tanks, and 140 enemy aircraft were shot down. April 18 and 19 became key days for the capture of the Seelow Heights, since it was then that they managed to open fire directly on the central areas of the city, proclaimed the capital of the “Thousand Year Reich.”

The breakthrough of the “Wotan position”* allowed the Red Army to increase the pace of its attack on the city. In addition, on April 20 the Berlin regiment was defeated. One of the current objectives was to capture the city of Bernau, and by midnight on the fifth day of the offensive it was taken.

*Defensive line of German troops

On April 20, a powerful artillery strike was launched on Berlin. An unusual fireworks display for Hitler's birthday*, isn't it?

By the end of April 20, the main strike group of the 1st Ukrainian Front was deeply wedged into the enemy’s position and completely cut off the German Army Group Vistula from the Army Group Center, the unification of which the Soviet troops tried to avoid. The German command could not tolerate such a balance of forces - the approaches to Berlin began to quickly strengthen.

On the morning of the same day, the main part of the formations of the 2nd Belorussian Front also went on the offensive. The crossing of the Oder took place under the cover of artillery fire and smoke screens. On April 20, the assistance of the Army Corps of Engineers was greater than ever. By the evening of April 20, an enemy bridgehead* 6 kilometers wide and 1.5 kilometers deep was captured.

*Bridgehead - a section of terrain on which a military operation is unfolding.

On April 21, Soviet soldiers burst into the capital from the east, and fighting began on the outskirts of Berlin. The troops of generals P.A. were the first to attack. Firsova and D.S. Zherebina. Corporal A.I. Muravyov installed the first Soviet banner during the operation in the German capital. In the evening of the same day, the advanced units of the 3rd Guards Tank Army of P. S. Rybalko (1st Ukrainian Front) approached the city from the south.

If in the first four days the advance of the Red Army was extremely slow, then on April 20 and 21 everything was different - the formations covered tens of kilometers per day. All military operations in the zone of the 1st Belorussian Front on April 21 went according to plan.

The units included in the 2nd Belorussian Front were engaged in expanding bridgeheads on the western bank of the Oder. The division, which in the future was to storm the Reichstag building, captured the Berlin suburb of Karow on April 21.

On April 22, a meeting of the top military leadership was held at Hitler’s headquarters*, at which it was decided to remove the army of Walter Wenck, one of the youngest generals German army- from the Western Front and directing it to join the army of Theodor Busse. Field Marshal Keitel, an experienced military leader, arrived at the headquarters of Walter Wenki's army. This step had to be taken because by the end of the 7th day of the Red Army’s offensive, troops of the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts had successfully encircled the enemy in the southeast and west of Berlin.

*Common name command posts of Wehrmacht Commander-in-Chief Adolf Hitler during World War II.

On the morning of April 22, the village of Khenov, located near the capital, in which Red Army units were already located, was counterattacked by infantry and tanks. By 18:00 the counterattack was repulsed, and as a result, several Panthers were shot down at once.

Commander S.I. Bogdanov ordered the 9th Guards Tank Corps to carry out the following task: “Push through with all your might in a western direction and capture Hennigsdorf by the end of 21.4.45*. After reaching the Hennigsdorf area and taking possession of the crossings across the Hohenzollern Canal, leaving cover to the north, the main forces turn sharply to the south and capture Spandau**.” Following the order, the 9th Guards Tank Corps circled Berlin and by 8:00 on April 22 found itself on the eastern bank of the Hohenzollern Canal. On its opposite side was Hennigsdorf, the goal of this stage of the offensive. By 19:00 the canal was crossed by motorized infantry***, and construction of the crossing began.

*Or Hennigsdorf depending on the translation.

**Administrative district of Berlin. There is also a prison of the same name.

***Motorized infantry is a branch of the ground forces in which, in addition to the main motorized rifle units, there are tank, missile, artillery, anti-aircraft missile, and also special units and parts.

On April 23, the Germans delivered a second strong counterattack to the 1st Ukrainian Front (the first came on April 20). As a result, one of the armies of the Polish Army was damaged, and there was a threat that the Nazis would find themselves in the rear of the front.

On April 23, the 1st Ukrainian Front had to cross the Teltow Canal, which was a large ditch with high concrete banks. The northern bank of the Teltow Canal was very well prepared for defense: there were reinforced concrete pillboxes, self-propelled guns, and trenches were dug. Houses with thick walls, a meter thick, rose above the canal. The muzzles of artillery guns protruded from the walls. The command, remembering the first days of the operation, ordered preparations for crossing the canal before the offensive, so all day on April 23, the 3rd Guards Tank Army of the Ukrainian Front worked out the details of the assault.

At the same time, Red Army units were stationed in the area of ​​Cottbus, a large settlement in eastern Germany. On the night of April 23, the enemy crossed the Spree and began an attack on the city. Another defensive battle began.

In the second half of the night from April 23 to April 24, the commander of the 294th Infantry Division G.F. Korolenko, finding himself surrounded, decided to break out of Weissenberg (part of the Bautzen-Weissenberg battle, which began on April 21). In the combat log of the Verkhmat it is written: “Weisenberg is again liberated from the enemy. Numerous trophies were captured." On this day in German captivity Eight dozen people were hit - the enemy was triumphant. The total losses of the 294th Division were 1,358 people, 215 wounded, 105 killed and 1,038 missing (in fact, a significant proportion of the missing Red Army soldiers died).

On the night of April 23-24, one of our tank brigades was transferred to the southern outskirts of the city of Bautzen. However, at 17.00 a group of 7 Panthers and 9 armored personnel carriers reached the rear of the Soviet troops. The Red Army began to retreat to the center of Bautzen under the threat of encirclement.

The 6th Guards Mechanized Corps of the 4th Guards Tank Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front crossed the Havel River and linked up with units of the 328th Division of the 47th Army of the 1st Belorussian Front, thereby closing the encirclement ring around Berlin.

By the end of April 25, the Berlin garrison defended an area of ​​about 327 km². The total length of the front of Soviet troops in Berlin was about 100 km.

The Berlin group, according to the Soviet command, numbered about 200 thousand soldiers and officers, 3 thousand guns and 250 tanks, including the Volkssturm - civil uprising. The city's defense was carefully thought out and well prepared. it was based on a system of strong fire, strong points and resistance centers. Nine defense sectors were created in Berlin - eight around the circumference and one in the center. The closer to the city center, the denser the defense became. Massive stone buildings with thick walls gave it particular strength. The windows and doors of many buildings were sealed and turned into embrasures for firing. In total, the city had up to 400 reinforced concrete long-term structures - multi-story bunkers (up to 6 floors) and pillboxes equipped with guns (including anti-aircraft) and machine guns. The streets were blocked by powerful barricades up to four meters thick. The defenders had a large number of faustpatrons, which in the context of street battles turned out to be a formidable anti-tank weapon. Of no small importance in the German defense system were underground structures, including the metro, which were widely used by the enemy for covert maneuver of troops, as well as for sheltering them from artillery and bomb attacks.

A network of radar observation posts was deployed around the city. Berlin had strong air defenses, which were provided by the 1st Anti-Aircraft Division. Its main forces were located on three huge concrete structures - the Zoobunker in Tiergarten, Humboldthain and Friedrichshain. The division was armed with 128-, 88- and 20-mm anti-aircraft guns.

The center of Berlin, cut by canals with the Spree River, was especially strongly fortified, which actually became one huge fortress. Having superiority in men and equipment, the Red Army could not fully exploit its advantages in urban areas. First of all, this concerned aviation. The ramming force of any offensive - tanks, once on narrow city streets, became an excellent target. Therefore in street fighting The 8th Guards Army of General V.I. Chuikov used the experience of assault groups proven in the Battle of Stalingrad: a rifle platoon or company was assigned 2-3 tanks, a self-propelled gun, a sapper unit, signalmen and artillery. The actions of assault troops, as a rule, were preceded by a short but powerful artillery preparation.

Capture of the Reichstag

By the evening of April 28, units of the 3rd Shock Army of the 1st Belorussian Front reached the Reichstag area. That same night, a landing party consisting of cadets from the Rostock Naval School was dropped by parachute to support the Reichstag garrison. This was the last significant operation of the Luftwaffe in the skies over Berlin.

The tanks of the 23rd Tank Brigade, the 85th Tank Regiment and the 88th Heavy Tank Regiment provided great assistance during the assault. So, for example, in the morning several tanks of the 88th Guards Heavy Tank Regiment, having crossed the Spree along the surviving Moltke Bridge, took up firing positions on the Kronprinzenufer embankment. At 13:00 the tanks opened direct fire on the Reichstag, participating in the general artillery preparation that preceded the assault. At 18:30, the tanks supported the second assault on the Reichstag with their fire, and only with the start of fighting inside the building did they stop shelling.

On April 30, 1945, at 21:45, units of the 150th Infantry Division under the command of Major General V.M. Shatilov and the 171st Infantry Division under the command of Colonel A.I. Negoda captured the first floor of the Reichstag building.

Having lost the upper floors, the Nazis took refuge in the basement and continued to resist. They hoped to break out of encirclement by cutting off those in the Reichstag Soviet soldiers from the main forces.

Negotiations between Chuikov and Krebs

Late in the evening of April 30, the German side requested a ceasefire for negotiations. The Chief of the General Staff of the German Ground Forces, General Krebs, arrived at the headquarters of General Chuikov's 8th Guards Army, reporting Hitler's suicide and reading out his will. Krebs conveyed to Chuikov the proposal of the new German government to conclude a truce. The message was immediately transmitted to Zhukov, who himself called Moscow. Stalin confirmed his categorical demand for unconditional surrender. At 18:00 on May 1, the new German government rejected the demand for unconditional surrender, and Soviet troops resumed their assault on the city with renewed vigor. A massive attack was carried out on the areas of Berlin still in enemy hands using all available artillery.

End of fighting and surrender

At one o'clock in the morning on May 2, the radio stations of the 1st Belorussian Front received a message in Russian: “We ask you to cease fire. We are sending envoys to the Potsdam Bridge.” Arrived at the appointed place German officer on behalf of the commander of the defense of Berlin, General Weidling, announced the readiness of the Berlin garrison to stop resistance. At 6 a.m. on May 2, Artillery General Weidling, accompanied by three German generals, crossed the front line and surrendered. An hour later, while at the headquarters of the 8th Guards Army, he wrote a surrender order, which was duplicated and, with the help of loudspeaker installations and radio, delivered to enemy units defending in the center of Berlin. As this order was communicated to the defenders, resistance in the city ceased. By the end of the day, the troops of the 8th Guards Army cleared the central part of the city from the enemy.

Some units that did not want to surrender tried to break through to the west, but for the most part were destroyed or scattered. The main direction of the breakthrough was the western Berlin suburb of Spandau, where two bridges across the Havel River remained intact. They were defended by members of the Hitler Youth, who were able to sit on the bridges until the surrender on May 2. The breakthrough began on the night of May 2. Parts of the Berlin garrison and civilian refugees, frightened by Goebbels’s propaganda about the atrocities of the Red Army, entered the breakthrough because they did not want to surrender. One of the groups under the command of the commander of the 1st (Berlin) Anti-Aircraft Division, Major General Otto Sydow, was able to infiltrate Spandau through the metro tunnels from the Zoo area. In the area of ​​the exhibition hall on the Mazurenallee, it linked up with German units retreating from Kurfürstendamm. The units of the Red Army and the Polish Army stationed in this area did not engage in battle with the retreating Nazi units, apparently due to the exhaustion of the troops in previous battles. The systematic destruction of the retreating units began in the area of ​​the bridges over the Havel and continued throughout the flight towards the Elbe.

On May 2 at 10 o'clock in the morning everything suddenly became quiet, the fire stopped. And everyone realized that something had happened. We saw white sheets that had been “thrown away” in the Reichstag, the Chancellery building and the Royal Opera House and cellars that had not yet been taken. Entire columns fell from there. A column passed ahead of us, where there were generals, colonels, then soldiers behind them. We walked for probably three hours.

Alexander Bessarab, participant Battle of Berlin and the capture of the Reichstag

The last remnants of German units were destroyed or captured by May 7. Units managed to break into the area of ​​crossings across the Elbe, which until May 7 held units of the 12th Army of General Wenck, and join German units and refugees who managed to cross into the zone of occupation of the American army.

Some of the surviving SS units defending the Reich Chancellery, led by SS Brigadeführer Wilhelm Mohnke, attempted to break through to the north on the night of May 2, but were destroyed or captured on the afternoon of May 2. Mohnke himself fell into Soviet captivity, from which he was released as an unpardoned war criminal in 1955.

Results of the operation

Soviet troops defeated the Berlin group of enemy troops and stormed the capital of Germany, Berlin. Developing a further offensive, they reached the Elbe River, where they linked up with American and British troops. With the fall of Berlin and the loss of vital areas, Germany lost the opportunity for organized resistance and soon capitulated. With the completion of the Berlin operation, favorable conditions were created for encircling and destroying the last large enemy groups on the territory of Austria and Czechoslovakia.

German losses armed forces those killed and wounded are not known for certain. Of approximately 2 million Berliners, about 125,000 died. The city was heavily damaged by bombing even before the arrival of Soviet troops. The bombing continued during the battles near Berlin - the last American bombing on April 20 (Adolph Hitler's birthday) led to food problems. The destruction intensified as a result of Soviet artillery attacks.

Three Guards heavy armored vehicles took part in the battles in Berlin. tank brigades IS-2, 88th Separate Guards Heavy tank regiment and at least nine guards heavy self-propelled artillery self-propelled artillery regiments, including:

• 1st Belorussian Front
  • 7th Guards Ttbr - 69th Army
  • 11th Guards Ttbr - 5th Shock Army
  • 67 Guards Ttbr - 5th Shock Army
  • 334 Guards tsap - 47th Army
  • 351 Guards tsap - 3rd shock army, front-line subordination
  • 88th Guards TTP - 3rd Shock Army
  • 396 Guards tsap - 5th shock army
  • 394 Guards tsap - 8th Guards Army
  • , 399 Guards. tsap - 1st Guards Tank Army
  • 347 Guards tsap - 2nd Guards Tank Army
• 1st Ukrainian Front
  • , 384 Guards tsap - 3rd Guards Tank Army

Tank losses

According to the TsAMO of the Russian Federation, the 2nd Guards Tank Army under the command of Colonel General S.I. Bogdanov, during street fighting in Berlin from April 22 to May 2, 1945, irretrievably lost 52 T-34s, 31 M4A2 Shermans, 4 IS- 2, 4 ISU-122, 5 SU-100, 2 SU-85, 6 SU-76, which amounted to 16% of the total number of combat vehicles before the start of the Berlin operation. It should be taken into account that the tank crews of the 2nd Army operated without sufficient rifle cover and, according to combat reports, in some cases the tank crews were combing houses. The 3rd Guards Tank Army under the command of General P. S. Rybalko, during the battles in Berlin from April 23 to May 2, 1945, irretrievably lost 99 tanks and 15 self-propelled guns, which amounted to 23% of the combat vehicles available at the beginning of the Berlin operation. The 4th Guards Tank Army under the command of General D. D. Lelyushenko found itself involved in street battles on the outskirts of Berlin from April 23 to May 2, 1945, only partially and irrevocably lost 46 combat vehicles. At the same time, a significant part of the armored vehicles were lost after being hit by Faust cartridges.

On the eve of the Berlin operation, the 2nd Guards Tank Army tested various anti-cumulative screens, both solid and made of steel rod. In all cases, they ended in the destruction of the screen and burning through the armor. As A.V. Isaev notes:

Mass installation of screens on tanks and self-propelled guns advancing on Berlin would be a waste of time and effort. Shielding the tanks would only worsen the conditions for tank landings to land on them. ... The tanks were not shielded not because inert thinking got in the way or because there were no decisions from the command. Shielding was not widely used in the last battles of the war due to its experimentally proven insignificant effectiveness.

Criticism of the operation

From a military point of view, there was no need to storm Berlin... It was enough to encircle the city, and it would have surrendered in a week or two. Germany would inevitably capitulate. And during the assault, on the very eve of victory, in street battles, we killed at least a hundred thousand soldiers. And what kind of people they were - golden, how much they had all gone through, and everyone thought: tomorrow I will see my wife and children...

Situation of the civilian population

A significant part of Berlin, even before the assault, was destroyed as a result of British-American air raids, from which the population hid in basements and bomb shelters. There were not enough bomb shelters and therefore they were constantly overcrowded. In Berlin by that time, in addition to the three million local population (consisting mainly of women, old people and children), there were up to three hundred thousand foreign workers, including “ostarbeiters”, most of whom were forcibly taken to Germany. Entry into bomb shelters and basements was prohibited for them.

Although the war had long been lost for Germany, Hitler ordered resistance to the last. Thousands of teenagers and old men were conscripted into the Volkssturm. From the beginning of March, on the orders of Reichskommissar Goebbels, responsible for the defense of Berlin, tens of thousands of civilians, mostly women, were sent to dig anti-tank ditches around the German capital. Civilians who violated government orders, even in last days war was threatened with execution.

There is no exact information about the number of civilian casualties. Various sources indicate different number persons who died directly during the Battle of Berlin. Even decades after the war construction work previously unknown mass graves are found.

After the capture of Berlin, the civilian population faced the threat of starvation, but the Soviet command organized the distribution of rations to civilians, which saved many Berliners from starvation.

Reflection in art

The storming of Berlin is the central theme or background of the characters in the following films:

• "Storm of Berlin", 1945, dir. Yu. Raizman, documentary (USSR)
• "The Fall of Berlin", 1949, dir. M. Chiaureli (USSR)
• Episode 5 (“The Last Assault”, 1971) of the film epic “Liberation” by Yu. Ozerov (USSR)
• Der Untergang (in Russian box office - “The Bunker” or “The Fall”), 2004 (Germany-Russia)

see also

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Notes

Literature

• VII. The Red Army in Germany: Avengers or Liberators // Russian Archive: Great Patriotic War: T. 15 (4-5). Battle of Berlin (Red Army in defeated Germany). - M.: Terra, 1995. - 616 p.
• Igor Zheltov, Ivan Pavlov, Mikhail Pavlov, Alexander Sergeev."Tankmaster" - special issue, 2002.
• Zharkoy F.M.. - Ed. 4th, revised and additional - St. Petersburg. : МВАА, 2012. - 200 p. - ISBN 978-5-98709-303-0.
• William Shearer.
• Toland J. The last hundred days of the Reich / Trans. from English O. N. Osipova. - Smolensk: Rusich, 2001. - 528 p. - (World at War).
• Beevor E. Fall of Berlin. 1945 = Beevor A. Berlin. The Downfall 1945. - L.: Viking, 2002. - 528 p. / Per. from English Yu. F. Mikhailova. - M.: ACT; Transitbook, 2004. - 622 p. - (Military History Library). - 5000 copies.
• George Patton. .
• Isaev A.V.. - M.: Yauza, Eksmo, 2007. - 720 p. - (War and us). - 10,000 copies. - ISBN 978–5–699–20927–9.

Links

• // AiF, 2015

Battles September company Polish army in the West Polish Army in the USSR Guerrilla battles Action "Storm" Additionally

An excerpt characterizing the Storming of Berlin

– But do you know how it all ended? Have you heard about the duel?
- Yes, you went through that too.
“The one thing I thank God for is that I didn’t kill this man,” said Pierre.
- From what? - said Prince Andrei. – It’s even very good to kill an angry dog.
- No, killing a person is not good, it’s unfair...
- Why is it unfair? - repeated Prince Andrei; what is just and unjust is not given to people to judge. People have always been mistaken and will continue to be mistaken, and in nothing more than in what they consider just and unjust.
“It is unfair that there is evil for another person,” said Pierre, feeling with pleasure that for the first time since his arrival, Prince Andrei became animated and began to speak and wanted to express everything that made him what he was now.
– Who told you what evil is for another person? - he asked.
- Evil? Evil? - said Pierre, - we all know what evil is for ourselves.
“Yes, we know, but the evil that I know for myself, I cannot do to another person,” Prince Andrei said more and more animatedly, apparently wanting to express his A New Look on things. He spoke French. Je ne connais l dans la vie que deux maux bien reels: c"est le remord et la maladie. II n"est de bien que l"absence de ces maux. [I know in life only two real misfortunes: remorse and illness. And the only good is the absence of these evils.] To live for yourself, avoiding only these two evils: that is all my wisdom now.
– What about love for one’s neighbor, and self-sacrifice? - Pierre spoke. - No, I cannot agree with you! To live only in such a way as not to do evil, so as not to repent? this is not enough. I lived like this, I lived for myself and ruined my life. And only now, when I live, at least try (Pierre corrected himself out of modesty) to live for others, only now I understand all the happiness of life. No, I don’t agree with you, and you don’t mean what you say.
Prince Andrei silently looked at Pierre and smiled mockingly.
“You’ll see your sister, Princess Marya.” You’ll get along with her,” he said. “Maybe you’re right for yourself,” he continued, after a short silence; - but everyone lives in their own way: you lived for yourself and you say that by doing this you almost ruined your life, and you only knew happiness when you began to live for others. But I experienced the opposite. I lived for fame. (After all, what is glory? the same love for others, the desire to do something for them, the desire for their praise.) So I lived for others, and not almost, but completely ruined my life. And since then I have become calmer, as I live only for myself.
- How can you live for yourself? – Pierre asked heatedly. - And the son, and the sister, and the father?
“Yes, it’s still the same me, it’s not others,” said Prince Andrei, but others, neighbors, le prochain, as you and Princess Mary call it, are the main source of error and evil. Le prochain [Neighbor] are those, your Kyiv men, to whom you want to do good.
And he looked at Pierre with a mockingly defiant gaze. He apparently called Pierre.
“You’re kidding,” Pierre said more and more animatedly. What kind of error and evil can there be in the fact that I wanted (very little and poorly fulfilled), but wanted to do good, and at least did something? What evil can it be that unfortunate people, our men, people just like us, growing up and dying without any other concept of God and truth, like ritual and meaningless prayer, will be taught in the comforting beliefs of a future life, retribution, reward, consolation? What evil and delusion is it that people die from illness without help, when it is so easy to help them financially, and I will give them a doctor, and a hospital, and a shelter for the old man? And isn’t it a tangible, undoubted blessing that a man, a woman and a child have no rest day and night, and I will give them rest and leisure?...” said Pierre, hurrying and lisping. “And I did it, at least poorly, at least a little, but I did something for this, and not only will you not dissuade me that what I did was good, but you will also not disbelieve me, so that you yourself do not think so.” “And most importantly,” Pierre continued, “I know this, and I know it correctly, that the pleasure of doing this good is the only true happiness in life.
“Yes, if you put the question like that, then that’s a different matter,” said Prince Andrei. - I build a house, plant a garden, and you are a hospital. Both can serve as a pastime. And what is fair, what is good - leave it to the one who knows everything, and not to us, to judge. “Well, you want to argue,” he added, “come on.” “They left the table and sat on the porch, which served as a balcony.
“Well, let’s argue,” said Prince Andrei. “You say schools,” he continued, bending his finger, “teachings and so on, that is, you want to take him out of his animal state and give him moral needs,” he said, pointing to the man who took off his hat and walked past them. , but it seems to me that the only possible happiness is animal happiness, and you want to deprive it of it. I envy him, and you want to make him me, but without giving him my means. Another thing you say is to make his job easier. But in my opinion, physical labor is the same necessity for him, the same condition of his existence, as mental labor is for me and for you. You can't help but think. I go to bed at 3 o’clock, thoughts come to me, and I can’t sleep, I toss and turn, I don’t sleep until the morning because I’m thinking and I can’t help but think, just as he can’t help but plow and mow; otherwise he will go to the tavern, or he will become ill. Just as I cannot bear his terrible physical labor and die in a week, so he cannot bear my physical idleness, he will get fat and die. Third, what else did you say? – Prince Andrei bent his third finger.
- Oh, yes, hospitals, medicines. He has a stroke, he dies, and you bled him, cured him. He will be a cripple for 10 years, it will be a burden for everyone. It is much calmer and easier for him to die. Others will be born, and there are so many of them. If you were sorry that your extra worker was missing - the way I look at him, otherwise you want to treat him out of love for him. But he doesn't need that. And besides, what kind of imagination is there that medicine has ever cured anyone! Kill like that! - he said, frowning angrily and turning away from Pierre. Prince Andrei expressed his thoughts so clearly and distinctly that it was clear that he had thought about this more than once, and he spoke willingly and quickly, like a man who had not spoken for a long time. His gaze became more animated the more hopeless his judgments were.
- Oh, this is terrible, terrible! - said Pierre. “I just don’t understand how you can live with such thoughts.” The same moments came over me, it happened recently, in Moscow and on the road, but then I sink to such a degree that I don’t live, everything is disgusting to me... the main thing is me. Then I don’t eat, I don’t wash... well, what about you?...
“Why not wash your face, it’s not clean,” said Prince Andrei; – on the contrary, we must try to make our life as pleasant as possible. I live and it’s not my fault, so I need to live until death somehow better, without interfering with anyone.
– But what motivates you to live with such thoughts? You will sit motionless, doing nothing...
– Life doesn’t leave you alone anyway. I would be glad to do nothing, but, on the one hand, the nobility here awarded me the honor of being elected leader: I got away with violence. They could not understand that I did not have what was needed, that I did not have that well-known good-natured and concerned vulgarity that was needed for this. Then there was this house that had to be built in order to have our own corner where we could be calm. Now the militia.
– Why don’t you serve in the army?
- After Austerlitz! - Prince Andrey said gloomily. - No; I humbly thank you, I promised myself that I would not serve in the active Russian army. And I wouldn’t, if Bonaparte had stood here, near Smolensk, threatening the Bald Mountains, and then I wouldn’t have served in the Russian army. Well, that’s what I told you,” Prince Andrei continued, calming down. - Now the militia, father is the commander-in-chief of the 3rd district, and the only way for me to get rid of service is to be with him.
- So you are serving?
- I serve. – He was silent for a moment.
- So why do you serve?
- But why? My father is one of the most remarkable people of his century. But he is getting old, and he is not only cruel, but he is too active. He is terrible for his habit of unlimited power, and now this power given by the Sovereign to the commander-in-chief over the militia. If I had been two hours late two weeks ago, he would have hanged the protocol officer in Yukhnov,” said Prince Andrei with a smile; - this is how I serve because no one except me has influence on my father, and in some places I will save him from an act from which he would suffer later.
- Oh, well, you see!
“Yes, mais ce n"est pas comme vous l"entendez, [but this is not the way you understand it],” continued Prince Andrei. “I did not and do not wish the slightest good to this bastard protocol officer who stole some boots from the militia; I would even be very pleased to see him hanged, but I feel sorry for my father, that is, again for myself.
Prince Andrei became more and more animated. His eyes sparkled feverishly as he tried to prove to Pierre that his actions never contained a desire for good to his neighbor.
“Well, you want to free the peasants,” he continued. - This is very good; but not for you (you, I think, did not detect anyone and did not send them to Siberia), and even less for the peasants. If they are beaten, flogged, sent to Siberia, then I think that it is no worse for them. In Siberia he leads the same bestial life, and the scars on his body will heal, and he is as happy as he was before. And this is needed for those people who are perishing morally, making repentance for themselves, suppressing this repentance and becoming rude because they have the opportunity to execute right or wrong. This is who I feel sorry for, and for whom I would like to free the peasants. You may not have seen it, but I saw how good people, brought up in these traditions of unlimited power, over the years, when they become more irritable, become cruel, rude, they know it, cannot resist and become more and more unhappy. “Prince Andrei said this with such enthusiasm that Pierre involuntarily thought that these thoughts were suggested to Andrei by his father. He didn't answer him.
- So this is who I feel sorry for - human dignity, peace of conscience, purity, and not their backs and foreheads, which, no matter how much you cut, no matter how much you shave, will still remain the same backs and foreheads.
“No, no, and a thousand times no, I will never agree with you,” said Pierre.

In the evening, Prince Andrei and Pierre got into a carriage and drove to Bald Mountains. Prince Andrei, glancing at Pierre, occasionally broke the silence with speeches that proved that he was in a good mood.
He told him, pointing to the fields, about his economic improvements.
Pierre was gloomily silent, answering in monosyllables, and seemed lost in his thoughts.
Pierre thought that Prince Andrei was unhappy, that he was mistaken, that he did not know the true light, and that Pierre should come to his aid, enlighten him and lift him up. But as soon as Pierre figured out how and what he would say, he had a presentiment that Prince Andrei with one word, one argument would destroy everything in his teaching, and he was afraid to start, afraid to expose his beloved shrine to the possibility of ridicule.
“No, why do you think,” Pierre suddenly began, lowering his head and taking on the appearance of a butting bull, why do you think so? You shouldn't think like that.
- What am I thinking about? – Prince Andrei asked in surprise.
– About life, about the purpose of a person. It can't be. I thought the same thing and it saved me, you know what? Freemasonry No, don't smile. Freemasonry is not a religious, not a ritual sect, as I thought, but Freemasonry is the best, the only expression of the best, eternal sides of humanity. - And he began to explain Freemasonry to Prince Andrey, as he understood it.
He said that Freemasonry is the teaching of Christianity, freed from state and religious shackles; teachings of equality, brotherhood and love.
– Only our holy brotherhood has real meaning in life; “everything else is a dream,” said Pierre. “You understand, my friend, that outside of this union everything is full of lies and untruths, and I agree with you that an intelligent and kind person has no choice but to live out his life, like you, trying only not to interfere with others.” But assimilate our basic beliefs, join our brotherhood, give yourself to us, let us guide you, and now you will feel, as I did, part of this huge, invisible chain, the beginning of which is hidden in the heavens,” said Pierre.
Prince Andrey, silently, looking ahead, listened to Pierre's speech. Several times, unable to hear from the noise of the stroller, he repeated the unheard words from Pierre. By the special sparkle that lit up in the eyes of Prince Andrei, and by his silence, Pierre saw that his words were not in vain, that Prince Andrei would not interrupt him and would not laugh at his words.
They arrived at a flooded river, which they had to cross by ferry. While the carriage and horses were being installed, they went to the ferry.
Prince Andrei, leaning on the railing, silently looked along the flood glittering from the setting sun.
- Well, what do you think about this? - asked Pierre, - why are you silent?
- What I think? I listened to you. “It’s all true,” said Prince Andrei. “But you say: join our brotherhood, and we will show you the purpose of life and the purpose of man, and the laws that govern the world.” Who are we, people? Why do you know everything? Why am I the only one who doesn’t see what you see? You see the kingdom of goodness and truth on earth, but I don’t see it.
Pierre interrupted him. – Do you believe in a future life? - he asked.
- To the future life? – Prince Andrei repeated, but Pierre did not give him time to answer and took this repetition as a denial, especially since he knew Prince Andrei’s previous atheistic beliefs.
– You say that you cannot see the kingdom of goodness and truth on earth. And I have not seen him and he cannot be seen if we look at our life as the end of everything. On earth, precisely on this earth (Pierre pointed in the field), there is no truth - everything is lies and evil; but in the world, in the whole world, there is a kingdom of truth, and we are now children of the earth, and forever children of the whole world. Don't I feel in my soul that I am part of this huge, harmonious whole. Don’t I feel that I am in this huge countless number of beings in which the Divinity is manifested - the highest power, as you like - that I constitute one link, one step from lower beings to higher ones. If I see, clearly see this staircase that leads from a plant to a person, then why should I assume that this staircase breaks with me, and does not lead further and further. I feel that not only can I not disappear, just as nothing disappears in the world, but that I will always be and always have been. I feel that besides me there are spirits living above me and that there is truth in this world.
“Yes, this is Herder’s teaching,” said Prince Andrei, “but that, my soul, is not what convinces me, but life and death, that’s what convinces me.” What is convincing is that you see a being dear to you, who is connected with you, before whom you were guilty and hoped to justify yourself (Prince Andrei’s voice trembled and turned away) and suddenly this being suffers, is tormented and ceases to be... Why? It cannot be that there is no answer! And I believe that he is... That’s what convinces, that’s what convinced me,” said Prince Andrei.
“Well, yes, well,” said Pierre, “isn’t that what I’m saying!”
- No. I’m only saying that it’s not arguments that convince you of the need for a future life, but when you walk in life hand in hand with a person, and suddenly this person disappears out there into nowhere, and you yourself stop in front of this abyss and look into it. And, I looked...
- Well then! Do you know what is there and that there is someone? There is a future life there. Someone is God.
Prince Andrei did not answer. The carriage and horses had long been taken to the other side and had already been laid down, and the sun had already disappeared halfway, and the evening frost covered the puddles near the ferry with stars, and Pierre and Andrey, to the surprise of the footmen, coachmen and carriers, were still standing on the ferry and talking.
– If there is God and there is a future life, then there is truth, there is virtue; and man's highest happiness consists in striving to achieve them. We must live, we must love, we must believe, said Pierre, that we do not live now only on this piece of land, but have lived and will live forever there in everything (he pointed to the sky). Prince Andrey stood with his elbows on the railing of the ferry and, listening to Pierre, without taking his eyes off, looked at the red reflection of the sun on the blue flood. Pierre fell silent. It was completely silent. The ferry had landed long ago, and only the waves of the current hit the bottom of the ferry with a faint sound. It seemed to Prince Andrei that this rinsing of the waves was saying to Pierre’s words: “true, believe it.”
Prince Andrei sighed and with a radiant, childish, tender gaze looked into Pierre’s flushed, enthusiastic, but increasingly timid face in front of his superior friend.
- Yes, if only it were so! - he said. “However, let’s go sit down,” added Prince Andrei, and as he got off the ferry, he looked at the sky that Pierre pointed out to him, and for the first time, after Austerlitz, he saw that high, eternal sky that he had seen lying on the Field of Austerlitz, and something that had long fallen asleep, something that was best in him, suddenly woke up joyfully and youthfully in his soul. This feeling disappeared as soon as Prince Andrei returned to the usual conditions of life, but he knew that this feeling, which he did not know how to develop, lived in him. The meeting with Pierre was for Prince Andrei an era that began, although in appearance the same, but in inner world his new life.

It was already dark when Prince Andrei and Pierre arrived at the main entrance of the Lysogorsk house. While they were approaching, Prince Andrey with a smile drew Pierre's attention to the commotion that had occurred at the back porch. A bent old woman with a knapsack on her back and a short man in a black robe with long hair, seeing the carriage driving in, rushed to run back through the gate. Two women ran out after them, and all four, looking back at the stroller, ran into the back porch in fear.
“These are the Machines of God,” said Prince Andrei. “They took us for their father.” And this is the only thing in which she does not obey him: he orders these wanderers to be driven away, and she accepts them.
- What are God's people? asked Pierre.
Prince Andrei did not have time to answer him. The servants came out to meet him, and he asked about where the old prince was and whether they were expecting him soon.
Old Prince was still in the city, and they were waiting for him every minute.
Prince Andrei led Pierre to his half, which was always waiting for him in perfect order in his father’s house, and he himself went to the nursery.
“Let’s go to my sister,” said Prince Andrei, returning to Pierre; - I haven’t seen her yet, she is now hiding and sitting with her God’s people. Serves her right, she will be embarrassed, and you will see God's people. C "est curieux, ma parole. [This is interesting, honestly.]
– Qu"est ce que c"est que [What are] God's people? - asked Pierre
- But you'll see.
Princess Marya was really embarrassed and turned red in spots when they came to her. In her cozy room with lamps in front of icon cases, on the sofa, at the samovar, sat next to her a young boy with a long nose and long hair, and in a monastic robe.
On a chair nearby sat a wrinkled, thin old woman with a meek expression on her childish face.
“Andre, pourquoi ne pas m"avoir prevenu? [Andrei, why didn’t you warn me?],” she said with meek reproach, standing in front of her wanderers, like a hen in front of her chickens.
– Charmee de vous voir. Je suis tres contente de vous voir, [Very glad to see you. “I’m so pleased that I see you,” she said to Pierre, while he kissed her hand. She knew him as a child, and now his friendship with Andrei, his misfortune with his wife, and most importantly, his kind, simple face endeared her to him. She looked at him with her beautiful, radiant eyes and seemed to say: “I love you very much, but please don’t laugh at mine.” After exchanging the first phrases of greeting, they sat down.
“Oh, and Ivanushka is here,” said Prince Andrei, pointing with a smile at the young wanderer.
– Andre! - Princess Marya said pleadingly.
“Il faut que vous sachiez que c"est une femme, [Know that this is a woman," Andrei said to Pierre.
– Andre, au nom de Dieu! [Andrey, for God’s sake!] – repeated Princess Marya.
It was clear that Prince Andrei’s mocking attitude towards the wanderers and Princess Mary’s useless intercession on their behalf were familiar, established relationships between them.
“Mais, ma bonne amie,” said Prince Andrei, “vous devriez au contraire m"etre reconaissante de ce que j"explique a Pierre votre intimate avec ce jeune homme... [But, my friend, you should be grateful to me that I explain to Pierre your closeness to this young man.]
- Vraiment? [Really?] - Pierre said curiously and seriously (for which Princess Marya was especially grateful to him) peering through his glasses into the face of Ivanushka, who, realizing that they were talking about him, looked at everyone with cunning eyes.
Princess Marya was completely in vain to be embarrassed for her own people. They were not at all timid. The old woman, with her eyes downcast but looking sideways at those who entered, had turned the cup upside down onto a saucer and placed a bitten piece of sugar next to it, sat calmly and motionless in her chair, waiting to be offered more tea. Ivanushka, drinking from a saucer, looked at the young people from under his brows with sly, feminine eyes.
– Where, in Kyiv, were you? – Prince Andrey asked the old woman.
“It was, father,” the old woman answered loquaciously, “on Christmas itself, I was honored with the saints to communicate the holy, heavenly secrets.” And now from Kolyazin, father, great grace has opened...
- Well, Ivanushka is with you?
“I’m going on my own, breadwinner,” Ivanushka said, trying to speak in a deep voice. - Only in Yukhnov did Pelageyushka and I get along...
Pelagia interrupted her comrade; She obviously wanted to tell what she saw.
- In Kolyazin, father, great grace was revealed.
- Well, are the relics new? - asked Prince Andrei.
“That’s enough, Andrey,” said Princess Marya. - Don’t tell me, Pelageyushka.
“No...what are you saying, mother, why not tell me?” I love him. He is kind, favored by God, he, a benefactor, gave me rubles, I remember. How I was in Kyiv and the holy fool Kiryusha told me - a truly man of God, he walks barefoot winter and summer. Why are you walking, he says, not in your place, go to Kolyazin, there is a miraculous icon, the Mother of the Most Holy Theotokos has been revealed. From those words I said goodbye to the saints and went...
Everyone was silent, one wanderer spoke in a measured voice, drawing in air.
“My father, the people came and said to me: great grace has been revealed, the Mother of the Most Holy Theotokos is dripping myrrh from her cheek...
“Okay, okay, you’ll tell me later,” said Princess Marya, blushing.
“Let me ask her,” said Pierre. -Have you seen it yourself? - he asked.
- Why, father, you yourself have been honored. There is such a radiance on the face, like heavenly light, and from my mother’s cheek it keeps dripping and dripping...
“But this is a deception,” said Pierre naively, who listened attentively to the wanderer.
- Oh, father, what are you saying! - Pelageyushka said with horror, turning to Princess Marya for protection.
“They are deceiving the people,” he repeated.
- Lord Jesus Christ! – the wanderer said, crossing herself. - Oh, don't tell me, father. So one anaral did not believe it, he said: “the monks are deceiving,” and as he said, he became blind. And he dreamed that Mother of Pechersk came to him and said: “Trust me, I will heal you.” So he began to ask: take me and take me to her. I’m telling you the real truth, I saw it myself. They brought him blind straight to her, he came up, fell, and said: “Heal! “I will give you,” he says, “what the king gave you.” I saw it myself, father, the star was embedded in it. Well, I have received my sight! It's a sin to say that. “God will punish,” she instructively addressed Pierre.
- How did the star end up in the image? asked Pierre.
- Did you make your mother a general? - said Prince Andrei, smiling.
Pelagia suddenly turned pale and clasped her hands.
- Father, father, it’s a sin for you, you have a son! - she spoke, suddenly turning from pallor to bright color.
- Father, what did you say? God forgive you. - She crossed herself. - Lord, forgive him. Mother, what is this?...” she turned to Princess Marya. She stood up and, almost crying, began to pack her purse. She was obviously both scared and ashamed that she had enjoyed benefits in a house where they could say this, and it was a pity that she now had to be deprived of the benefits of this house.
- Well, what kind of hunting do you want? - said Princess Marya. -Why did you come to me?...
“No, I’m joking, Pelageyushka,” said Pierre. - Princesse, ma parole, je n"ai pas voulu l"offenser, [Princess, I'm right, I didn't want to offend her,] I just did that. Don’t think I was joking,” he said, smiling timidly and wanting to make amends. - After all, it’s me, and he was only joking.
Pelageyushka stopped incredulously, but Pierre's face showed such sincerity of repentance, and Prince Andrei looked so meekly first at Pelageyushka, then at Pierre, that she gradually calmed down.

The wanderer calmed down and, brought back into conversation, talked for a long time about Father Amphilochius, who was such a saint of life that his hand smelled like palm, and about how the monks she knew on her last journey to Kiev gave her the keys to the caves, and how she, taking crackers with her, spent two days in the caves with the saints. “I’ll pray to one, read, go to another. I’ll take a pine tree, I’ll go and take a kiss again; and such silence, mother, such grace that you don’t even want to go out into the light of God.”
Pierre listened to her carefully and seriously. Prince Andrei left the room. And after him, leaving God’s people to finish their tea, Princess Marya led Pierre into the living room.
“You are very kind,” she told him.
- Oh, I really didn’t think of offending her, I understand and highly value these feelings!
Princess Marya silently looked at him and smiled tenderly. “After all, I have known you for a long time and love you like a brother,” she said. – How did you find Andrey? - she asked hastily, not giving him time to say anything in response to her kind words. - He worries me very much. His health is better in winter, but last spring the wound opened, and the doctor said that he should go for treatment. And morally I am very afraid for him. He is not the type of character we women are to suffer and cry out our grief. He carries it inside himself. Today he is cheerful and lively; but it was your arrival that had such an effect on him: he is rarely like this. If only you could persuade him to go abroad! He needs activity, and this smooth, quiet life is ruining him. Others don't notice, but I see.
At 10 o'clock the waiters rushed to the porch, hearing the bells of the old prince's carriage approaching. Prince Andrei and Pierre also went out onto the porch.
- Who is this? - asked the old prince, getting out of the carriage and guessing Pierre.
– AI is very happy! “kiss,” he said, having learned who the unfamiliar young man was.
The old prince was in good spirits and treated Pierre kindly.
Before dinner, Prince Andrei, returning back to his father’s office, found the old prince in a heated argument with Pierre.
Pierre argued that the time would come when there would be no more war. The old prince, teasing but not angry, challenged him.