The beginning of the Great Patriotic War. Archival photos of the first days and weeks of the Great Patriotic War (25 photos)

This day will remain in the memory of our people not as an ordinary day of summer, but as the day of the beginning of the most terrible and bloody war in the history of the country and in world history.
Real photos of June 1941.

3. Defense Hero Brest Fortress commander of the 44th Infantry Regiment of the 42nd Infantry Division, Major Pyotr Mikhailovich Gavrilov (1900 - 1979).

P.M. Gavrilov from June 22 to July 23, 1941 led the defense of the Eastern Fort of the Brest Fortress. He managed to rally around him all the surviving fighters and commanders of various units and subunits, close the most vulnerable places for the enemy to break through. Until June 30, the fort's garrison offered organized resistance, steadfastly repelling countless enemy attacks and preventing it from breaking into the fort. After the enemy used high-powered air bombs and destroyed part of the fort's buildings, the Germans managed to break into the fort and capture most of its defenders.

From the beginning of July, Major Gavrilov, with the surviving soldiers, switched to the tactics of sudden sorties and attacks on the enemy. On July 23, 1941, he was seriously wounded by a shell explosion in the casemate and was captured in an unconscious state. He spent the war years in the Nazi concentration camps of Hammelburg and Revensburg, having experienced all the horrors of captivity. Released by Soviet troops in May 1945 in the Mauthausen concentration camp. Passed a special check and was reinstated in military rank. But at the same time, he was expelled from the party due to the loss of his party card and being in captivity, which played a negative role in his future fate. Since the autumn of 1945 - the head of the Soviet camp for Japanese prisoners of war in Siberia on construction railway Abakan-Taishet. In June 1946 he was transferred to the reserve.

In 1955, he finally found a wife and son, with whom he parted under the bombs in the first hour of the war. In 1956, a book by S.S. Smirnov "Brest Fortress", based on factual material. This event had a favorable effect on the fate of Gavrilov. He was reinstated in the party and he was presented to the country's highest award.

On January 30, 1957, for the exemplary performance of military duty during the defense of the Brest Fortress in 1941 and the courage and heroism shown at the same time, Gavrilov Pyotr Mikhailovich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

5. The city of Molotovsk at the hour of the declaration of war. Location: Molotovsk. Shooting time: 06/22/1941.

View of the Belomorsky Prospekt of Molotovsk (now Severodvinsk, Arkhangelsk Region) at the time of the declaration of war. In the distance, a crowd of people can be seen in front of the city's House of Soviets, where the first volunteers were enrolled. The photo was taken from house number 17 of Belomorsky Prospekt.

On Sunday morning, June 22, 1941, a Komsomol-youth cross was held in Molotovsk. At noon, V. Molotov made a speech in which he officially announced the treacherous German attack. The performance was repeated several times. Some time later, Decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR were issued, announcing the mobilization of those liable for military service born in 1905-1918 in the Arkhangelsk military district and introducing martial law in the Arkhangelsk region. By evening, a mobilization point was deployed in Molotovsk. During the first three days of its work, in addition to those liable for military service, 318 volunteers arrived.

The city was founded just five years before the start of the war, but its contribution to the overall Victory was significant. Over 14 thousand Molotovites went to the front, over 3.5 thousand died on the battlefields. The 296th reserve ski regiment, the 13th separate ski brigade, and the 169th cadet rifle brigade were formed in the city. Port operated in Molotovsk strategic purpose to receive Lend-Lease convoys. In the city, 741 thousand rubles were collected for the Arkhangelsk Collective Farmer tank column, 150 thousand rubles for the Molotov Rabochiy air squadron, 3350 thousand rubles for two cash and clothing lotteries, a loan was implemented for 17 thousand rubles, by February 1942 1740 thousand rubles were collected in cash and 2,600,000 bonds to the defense fund. By October 1, 1941, 9920 things were received from Molotovites to be sent to the front, sending gifts to the soldiers of the Red Army was massive. The city has three evacuation hospitals of the Karelian Front (No. 2522, 4870 and 4871). In the winter of 1942, a part of the staff of the Leningrad theater named after Lenin Komsomol, in total, more than 300 evacuees were accepted. Throughout the war, Molotov Plant No. 402 built large project 122A submarine hunters, completed the construction of M and C type submarines, repaired Soviet and foreign ships, fired 122,262 armor-piercing shells, 44,375 high-explosive bombs, 2,027 sets of sea trawls .

Source: Severodvinsk City Museum of Local Lore.

9. Senior nurse of the surgical department of the hospital of the Brest Fortress Praskovya Leontyevna Tkacheva with the wives and children of the commanders of the Red Army, surrounded by German soldiers. Shooting time: 06/25-26/1941.

11. Soviet amphibious tanks T-38, broken in the Brest Fortress. Location: Brest, Belarus, USSR. Shooting time: June-July 1941

On the front is a captive vehicle manufactured in 1937 with an armored hull and a turret manufactured by the Ordzhonikidze Podolsk plant. In the background is another T-38 tank. Tanks are located on the territory of the citadel next to the White Palace. The military equipment of the 75th separate reconnaissance battalion of the 6th rifle division of the 28th rifle corps of the 4th army of the Western Front was also located there, the armored vehicle fleet of which was located on the shore at the fork of the Mukhavets River.

12. German firing points in the Brest Fortress. Shooting time: 06/22/1941

After the failure of the sudden capture of the Brest Fortress, the Germans had to dig in. The photo was taken on the North or South Island.

14. Enrollment of volunteers in the Red Army in the Oktyabrsky district military registration and enlistment office in Moscow. Duty officer of the Oktyabrsky district military registration and enlistment office P.N. Gromov reads the statement of the volunteer M.M. Grigoriev.

Location of shooting: Moscow. Shooting time: 06/23/1941.

16. Soviet light tank BT-7, destroyed on June 23, 1941 during the battle in the Alytus area. Location: Lithuania, USSR. Shooting time: June-July 1941.

Vehicle from the 5th Panzer Division of the 3rd Mechanized Corps of the 11th Army of the North-Western Front. In the background, lined german tank Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. E from the 7th Panzer Division of the 39th Motorized Corps of the 3rd Panzer Group of General Hoth.

19. Flight commander of the 145th Fighter Aviation Regiment Senior Lieutenant Viktor Petrovich Mironov (1918-1943) at the I-16 fighter.

V.P. Mironov in the Red Army since 1937. After graduating from the Borisoglebsky VAUL in 1939, he was sent to the 145th IAP. Member of the Soviet-Finnish war.

Member of the Great Patriotic War from the first days.
By September 1941, the flight commander of the 145th IAP, senior lieutenant Mironov, made 127 sorties, personally shot down 5 enemy aircraft in 25 air battles. Bombing and assault strikes caused great damage to enemy manpower and equipment.
On June 6, 1942 he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Since November 1942 - as part of the 609th IAP, commander of the 2nd AE. Until February 1943, he made 356 sorties, shot down 10 enemy aircraft personally and 15 in a group.

20. Soldiers and commanders of the Red Army inspect the captured German tank Flammpanzer II. Shooting time: July-August 1941.

Soldiers and commanders of the Red Army inspect the captured Flammpanzer II flamethrower tank in the Western direction. On the fender is the installation of smoke grenade launchers. By June 22, 1941, the 100th and 101st flamethrower tank battalions of the Wehrmacht were equipped with Flammpanzer II flamethrower tanks.

22. Hero of the Soviet Union Senior Lieutenant Mikhail Petrovich Galkin (02/12/1917 - 07/21/1942).

Born at the mine Kochkar of the Chelyabinsk region, in a working class family. He graduated from the workers' faculty, worked as a locksmith. Since 1936 in the ranks of the Red Army. In 1937 he graduated from the Voroshilovgrad Military Aviation Pilot School. Member of the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939 - 1940. Made 82 sorties. In May 1940 he was awarded the Order of the Red Star.

Since 1941, Lieutenant M.P. Galkin has been in the army. He fought on the Southern, Southwestern and Volkhov fronts. Until August 1941, he served in the 4th IAP, flying I-153 and I-16. In early August 1941, on the Crimean Isthmus, he was seriously wounded in one of the air battles. By August 1941, the commander of the 4th Fighter Aviation Regiment (20th Mixed Aviation Division, 9th Army, Southern Front), Lieutenant M.P. Galkin, made 58 sorties, conducted 18 air battles, shot down 5 enemy aircraft.

From February to July 1942 he fought in the 283rd IAP, where he flew the Yak-7. In January 1942 he was sent to Novosibirsk for instructor work. On March 27, 1942, for courage and military prowess shown in battles with enemies, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. From June 1942 he fought on the Volkhov Front in the 283rd IAP, where he flew the Yak-7. Won a few more victories.

On July 21, 1942, he died in an air battle in the Kirishi area. He was buried in a mass grave in the urban-type settlement of Budogoshch, Kirishsky District, Leningrad Region.
Awarded with orders: Lenin, Red Banner, Red Star. A street and a secondary school in the city of Plast, Chelyabinsk Region, are named after him. In the city of Plast, on the Alley of Heroes and the urban-type settlement of Budogoshch, a bust was erected.

23. Soviet heavy tank KV-2 from the 6th tank regiment of the 3rd tank division of the 1st mechanized corps of the North-Western Front, shot down on July 5, 1941 in the battle for the city of Ostrov. Location: Pskov region. Shooting time: June-August 1941.

Vehicle produced in June 1941, serial number B-4754. The surviving write-off certificates for the KV-2 tank No. 4754 stated the following: “The tank was hit - the caterpillar was killed, which fell off. The projectile pierced the side armor of the transmission and damaged the control rods and side clutches, the movement of the tank was impossible. Since the wrecked and burning tanks clogged the roadway of the bridge, the withdrawal was impossible due to the wrecked control of the tank and the caterpillars that fell down, and the tank was not able to turn around. The battalion commander gave the order to get out of the tank, while he himself remained in the vehicle to disable the tank. The further fate of Captain Rusanov is still not known, the rest of the crew returned to the unit. The battlefield was immediately occupied by the enemy and the evacuation of the remaining vehicle from the battlefield became impossible.

Tank crew: vehicle commander Captain Rusanov, driver Zhivoglyadov, gun commander Osipov, radio operator Volchkov, loader Khantsevich.

24. The commander of the 1st squadron of the 6th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force Mikhail Vasilievich Avdeev (09/15/1913 - 06/22/1979) next to his Yak-1 fighter. Shooting time: 1942.

From June 1941 he took part in the battles of the Great Patriotic War. He fought throughout the war in the 8th Fighter Aviation Regiment, which in April 1942 was renamed the 6th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. At first he was deputy squadron commander, from January 1942 he became squadron commander, and from April 1943 to November 1944 he commanded a regiment. By June 1942, Mikhail Avdeev made more than three hundred sorties, shot down 9 enemy aircraft in 63 air battles, and also inflicted significant damage on enemy troops with assault strikes.

By Decree No. 858 of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 14, 1942, for the exemplary performance of the combat missions of the command on the front of the struggle against the Nazi invaders and the courage and heroism of the guards shown, Captain Avdeev Mikhail Vasilievich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the medal " Golden Star".

25. An abandoned Soviet tracked tractor STZ-5-NATI blown up in the forest. Behind the tractor is an abandoned heavy tank KV-2, issued in May - June 1941 from one of the tank divisions of the 7th mechanized corps of the Western Front.

Location: Belarus, USSR
Shooting time: summer 1941.

26. Squadron commander of the 788th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment Captain Nikolai Aleksandrovich Kozlov (1917 - 2005).

In June-September 1941 N.A. Kozlov is the deputy commander of an air squadron of the 162nd Fighter Aviation Regiment. He fought on the Western (June 1941) and Bryansk (August-September 1941) fronts. Participated in defensive battles in Belarus and in the Bryansk direction. On September 24, 1941, a German Yu-88 bomber was shot down by a ramming attack from his MiG-3 fighter. During the ramming, he was seriously wounded in the left leg, landed by parachute. Until December 1941, he was treated in a hospital in the city of Ulyanovsk.

In February-July 1942 - deputy commander of an air squadron of the 439th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment, in July-September 1942 - commander of an air squadron of the 788th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment. Fought as part of the Stalingrad Air Defense Region (April-September 1942). He provided air cover for military facilities in the cities of Stalingrad (now Volgograd), participated in the Battle of Stalingrad. On May 25, 1942, near the city of Morozovsk (Rostov Region), he made a second ramming, shooting down a German Yu-88 bomber. He made an emergency landing on his MiG-3 fighter and was slightly injured. He spent several days in a hospital in Stalingrad.

In October 1942 - September 1943 - commander of an air squadron of the 910th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment. He fought as part of the Voronezh-Borisoglebsk (October 1942 - June 1943) and Voronezh (June-July 1943) air defense regions, the Western Front of Air Defense (July-September 1943). Provided air cover for railway junctions in the Voronezh region, participated in the Battle of Kursk.

For courage and heroism shown in battles with the Nazi invaders, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of February 14, 1943, Captain Nikolai Aleksandrovich Kozlov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

From August 1943 - commander of the 907th Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment. He fought in the Western (August 1943 - April 1944) and Northern (April-October 1944) air defense fronts. He carried out air cover for front-line communications during the battle for the Dnieper, the liberation of the Right-Bank Ukraine, the Korsun-Shevchenko, Belorussian and Berlin operations.

In total, during the war he made 520 sorties on I-16, MiG-3, Yak-1, Yak-7B and La-5 fighters, in 127 air battles shot down 19 personally and as part of a group of 3 enemy aircraft.

27. Soviet tanks KV-2 and T-34, stuck while crossing the Maidansky stream. Location: Lviv region, Ukraine. Shooting time: 06/25/1941.

A heavy tank KV-2 and a medium tank T-34 model 1940 with an L-11 cannon from, presumably, the 16th tank regiment of the 8th tank division of the 4th mechanized corps of the Red Army, stuck and then knocked out on June 23, 1941 during time to overcome the creek Maidan. Tanks were fighting near the village of Stary Maidan, Radekhovsky district, Lviv region of Ukraine.

28. German soldiers are considering a Soviet KV-2 tank stuck in the Maidansky stream. Location: Lviv region, Ukraine. Shooting time: 23-29.06.1941

Heavy tank KV-2 from, presumably, the 16th Tank Regiment of the 8th Tank Division of the 4th Mechanized Corps of the Red Army, stuck and then shot down on June 23, 1941 while crossing the Maidansky stream. Tanks were fighting near the village of Stary Maidan, Radekhovsky district, Lviv region of Ukraine. It can be seen that the car was under fire from anti-tank artillery.

29. Flight commander of the 2nd Guards Aviation Regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet, Senior Lieutenant Vladimir Pavlovich Pokrovsky (1918 - 1998).

V.P. Pokrovsky participated in the Great Patriotic War from June 1941, first as part of the 72nd mixed, from October 1941 - as part of the 78th fighter regiment of the Northern Fleet, and then again the 72nd mixed (then 2nd guards mixed) air regiment. On December 26, 1942, while protecting an allied convoy, he shot down a German fighter, but he himself was shot down. He jumped out by parachute and was rescued from the waters of the Kola Bay by Allied sailors. By May 1943 V.P. Pokrovsky made 350 sorties, conducted 60 air battles, personally shot down 13 aircraft and 6 enemy aircraft in the group.

For the exemplary performance of command assignments on the front of the fight against the German invaders and the courage and heroism shown at the same time, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of July 24, 1943, Captain Pokrovsky Vladimir Pavlovich was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

Since the summer of 1943 - the commander of a training squadron at the courses for commanders of the Air Force of the Navy.

30. A German soldier poses on a T-34 tank knocked out on a road near Dubno

Tank T-34 tank with a cannon L-11 issued in October 1940. Serial number 682-35. The tank belonged to the 12th Panzer Division of the 8th Mechanized Corps of the 26th Army of the Southwestern Front. Shot down in the Dubno area, possibly the southeastern entrance to Dubno. According to the inscription on the starboard side, the tank was hit by soldiers of the 111th Infantry Division and the Hermann Goering Regiment. Presumably, the tank was hit on June 29, 1941.

31. Soviet T-34 tank, shot down on the road near Dubno.

Soviet medium tank T-34 with an L-11 cannon, produced in October 1940, shot down near the road near the southeastern entrance to Dubno. The serial number of the tank is 682-35. The vehicle belonged to the 12th Panzer Division of the 8th Mechanized Corps of the 26th Army of the Southwestern Front. According to the autograph on the starboard side, the tank was shot down by soldiers of the 111th Infantry Division and the Hermann Goering Regiment. The tank may have been hit on 29 June 1941. In the background, on the right in the picture, a wrecked T-26 tank is visible. From this angle, another wrecked T-26 tank is visible. The same car from a different angle with the dead tanker.

32. A Soviet T-34 tank knocked out on the road and killed Soviet tanker

A Soviet T-34 tank knocked out on the road and a dead Soviet tanker next to it. Tank T-34 tank with a cannon L-11 issued in October 1940. Serial number 682-35. The tank belonged to the 12th Panzer Division of the 8th Mechanized Corps of the 26th Army of the Southwestern Front. Shot down in the Dubno area, possibly the southeastern entrance to Dubno. According to the autograph on the starboard side, shot down by soldiers of the 111th Infantry Division and the Hermann Goering Regiment. The tank may have been hit on 29 June 1941. In the middle of the road lies the driver's hatch.

33. Hero of the Soviet Union, pilot of the 3rd squadron of the 158th air defense fighter regiment, junior lieutenant Mikhail Petrovich Zhukov (1917-1943) poses for a photograph at his I-16 fighter.

M.P. Zhukov has been in the regiment since October 1940. He made his first sortie on June 22, 1941. On June 29, 1941, in his third sortie, he destroyed a Junkers Yu-88 bomber with a ramming attack.

He fought in the skies of Leningrad, escorted transport aircraft, covered the ports on Lake Ladoga, the Volkhov hydroelectric power station. Was injured. At the end of 1941 he mastered the P-40E fighter.

January 12, 1943 M.P. Zhukov (by that time a senior lieutenant, flight commander of the 158th IAP) died in an air battle near the village of Moscow Dubrovka. In total, he made 286 sorties, conducted 66 air combat, shot down 9 enemy aircraft personally and 5 - in the group.

34. Leningraders on October 25th Avenue (now Nevsky Prospekt) at the boarded-up showcase of the Eliseevsky Store ( official name"Gastronom number 1" Central ").

On the boards are placed "Windows TASS", which first appeared in Leningrad in the windows of the grocery store on June 24, 1941.

35. Hero of the Soviet Union Captain Alexei Nikolaevich Katrich (1917 - 2004).

A.N. Katrich graduated from the Chuguev Military Aviation Pilot School in 1938. He served in the Air Force as a pilot of a fighter aviation regiment (in the Moscow Military District). Member of the Great Patriotic War: in June 1941 - June 1942 - pilot, deputy commander and commander of an air squadron of the 27th Fighter Aviation Regiment (Moscow Air Defense Zone). Participated in the defense of Moscow, the defense of the city and rear communications of the Western Front from enemy bomber raids. On August 11, 1941, in an air battle, a Dornier Do-215 reconnaissance aircraft of the enemy was shot down by a ram at an altitude of 9,000 meters, after which it landed safely at its airfield.

For courage and heroism shown in battles, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of October 28, 1941, Lieutenant Aleksey Nikolaevich Katrich was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

In June 1942 - October 1943 Katrich was the commander of an air squadron of the 12th Guards Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment. Fought as part of the Moscow and Western air defense fronts. Participated in the defense of Moscow and the rear communications of the Western Front from enemy bomber raids. In total, during the war he made 258 sorties on MiG-3, Yak-1 and Yak-9 fighters, in 27 air battles he personally shot down 5 and as part of a group of 9 enemy aircraft (M.Yu. Bykov in his studies indicates 5 personal and 7 group victories). In November 1943 - January 1946 - navigator of the 12th Guards Air Defense Fighter Aviation Regiment, until 1944 he was on combat duty in the air defense system of the city of Moscow.
Captain-Lieutenant Gurin commanded the destroyer "Gremyashchiy" on sea voyages to escort and guard convoys, raid operations on ports and enemy communications. Under his command, the destroyer completed 21 combat missions in 1941 and more than 30 in 1942. The crew of the destroyer carried out 6 artillery fires at the enemy troops on the coast, 4 minefields, participated in escorting 26 convoys, sank the German submarine U-585 (March 30, 1942, the Kildin Island area), together with a group of Soviet and British ships repulsed the attack of a group of German destroyers on the convoy guarded by them (one enemy destroyer was sunk in this battle), shot down 6 German aircraft.

In October 1942 A.I. Gurin was appointed commander of the 2nd division of the destroyer brigade of the Northern Fleet. From September 1944 to October 1945 he commanded the 1st division of the destroyers of the Northern Fleet squadron. During the Petsamo-Kirkines operation, he personally led the division in carrying out combat missions for artillery support of two amphibious assault forces and during the offensive of the forces of the Karelian Front along the coast of the Barents Sea. Captain 1st rank (09/01/1944).

Destroyer division under the command of Captain 1st Rank Gurin A.I. escorted allied convoys, performed tasks to support the positions of our troops, fired at bases and searched for enemy ships and convoys. By May 1945 A.I. Gurin made over 100 different combat exits to the sea, passed 79,370 nautical miles.

The title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal to Captain 1st Rank Gurin Anton Iosifovich was awarded by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of July 8, 1945.

38. A group of Red Army soldiers who died on June 29-30, 1941 during a battle with units of the German 29th Infantry Division near the village of Ozernitsa, north of the Zelva-Slonim highway. Location: Slonimsky district, Belarus, USSR. Shooting time: 29-30.06.1941.

A destroyed T-34 tank from the 6th mechanized corps is visible in the background. In this battle, the headquarters of the 6th mechanized corps was ambushed.

39. Sergeant Gavriil Ivanovich Zalozny (born in 1901, right) at the Maxim machine gun. Shooting time: 1941.

Gavriil Ivanovich Zalozny was drafted into the Red Army on June 26, 1941. Fought on the Western and Southwestern fronts. September 23, 1941 was shell-shocked and taken prisoner. Released in February 1944 and enrolled in the 230th reserve regiment, since July 1944 - commander of the Maxim machine gun crew of the 12th shock assault rifle battalion of the 1st shock assault rifle regiment of the 53rd Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front . Then he served in the 310th Guards Rifle Regiment.

40. Sanitary instructor of the 369th separate battalion of the marine corps chief foreman E.I. Mikhailov near Kerch

Sanitary instructor of the 369th separate battalion of the marine corps of the Danube military flotilla chief foreman Ekaterina Illarionovna Mikhailova (Dyomina) (b. 1925).

In the Red Army since June 1941 (added two years to her 15 years). In the battles near Gzhatsk, she was seriously wounded in the leg. She was treated in hospitals in the Urals and in Baku. After recovering from January 1942, she served on the military hospital ship Krasnaya Moskva, which ferried the wounded from Stalingrad to Krasnovodsk. There she was awarded the rank of chief foreman, for exemplary service she was awarded the badge "Excellent Worker of the Navy". Among the volunteers, she was enrolled as a sanitary instructor in the 369th separate battalion of the Marine Corps. The battalion was part of the Azov and then the Danube military flotillas. With this battalion, which later received the honorary name "Kerch Red Banner", Mikhailova fought through the waters and shores of the Caucasus and Crimea, the Azov and Black Seas, the Dniester and the Danube, with a liberation mission - through the land of Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and Austria. Together with the soldiers of the battalion, she entered the battle, repulsed enemy counterattacks, carried the wounded from the battlefield, and provided them with first aid. She was wounded three times.

On August 22, 1944, when crossing the Dniester estuary as part of the landing force, Chief Petty Officer E.I. Mikhailova was one of the first to reach the shore, rendered first aid to seventeen seriously wounded sailors, suppressed the fire of a heavy machine gun, threw grenades at the bunker and destroyed more than ten Nazis. December 4, 1944 E.I. Mikhailova, in a landing operation to capture the port of Prahovo and the fortress of Ilok (Yugoslavia), being wounded, continued to provide medical assistance to the soldiers and, saving their lives, exterminated 5 enemy soldiers from a machine gun. After recovery, she returned to duty. As part of the 369th Marine Battalion, she fought for the Imperial Bridge in the Austrian capital of Vienna. Here she celebrated the Victory on May 9, 1945.

E.I. Mikhailova is the only woman who served in the intelligence of the Marine Corps. She was awarded the Order of Lenin, two Orders of the Red Banner, Orders of the Patriotic War of the 1st and 2nd degrees, medals, including the Medal for Courage and the Florence Nightingale Medal.

To the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, chief foreman E.I. Mikhailova was presented in August and December 1944, but the award did not take place.
By decree of the President of the USSR of May 5, 1990, Demina (Mikhailova) Ekaterina Illarionovna was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal (No. 11608).

On June 22, 1941, exactly 70 years ago, the pre-dawn silence was suddenly broken by explosions of roaring shells. Thus the war began. Then no one knew that it would go down in the history of mankind as the most bloody. No one guessed that the Soviet people would have to go through inhuman trials, go through and win. Rid the world of fascism, showing everyone that the spirit of a Red Army soldier cannot be broken by the invaders. No one could have imagined that the names of the hero cities would become known to the whole world, that Stalingrad would become a symbol of the resilience of our people, Leningrad - a symbol of courage, Brest - a symbol of courage. That, on a par with male warriors, old men, women and children will heroically defend the earth from the fascist plague.
1418 days and nights of war.
Over 26 million human lives...

These photographs have one thing in common: they were taken in the first hours and days of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
German soldiers cross the state border of the USSR.
Shooting time: 06/22/1941

Soviet border guards on patrol. The photograph is interesting because it was taken for a newspaper at one of the outposts on the western border of the USSR on June 20, 1941, that is, two days before the war.

Shooting time: 06/20/1941

The first day of the war in Przemysl (today - the Polish city of Przemysl) and the first dead invaders on Soviet soil (soldiers of the 101st light infantry division). The city was occupied by German troops on June 22, but the next morning it was liberated by the Red Army and border guards and held until June 27.

Shooting time: 06/22/1941

June 22, 1941 near the bridge over the San River near the city of Yaroslav. At that time, the San River was the border between German-occupied Poland and the USSR.
Shooting time: 06/22/1941

The first Soviet prisoners of war, under the supervision of German soldiers, head west along the bridge over the San River near the city of Yaroslav.

Shooting time: 06/22/1941/p>

After the failure of the sudden capture of the Brest Fortress, the Germans had to dig in. The photo was taken on the North or South Island.

Shooting time: 06/22/1941

Battle of the German strike units in the Brest area.

Shooting time: June 1941

A column of Soviet prisoners crossed the San River along the sapper bridge. Among the prisoners, there are noticeable not only the military, but also people in civilian clothes: the Germans detained and captured all men of military age so that they could not be recruited into the enemy army. District of the city of Yaroslav, June 1941.

Shooting time: June 1941

Sapper bridge over the San River near the city of Yaroslav, on which German troops are transported.

Shooting time: June 1941

German soldiers are photographed on a Soviet T-34-76 tank, model 1940, abandoned in Lvov.
Location: Lviv, Ukraine, USSR
Shooting time: 30.06. 1941

German soldiers inspect a T-34-76 tank, model 1940, stuck in a field and abandoned.
Shooting time: June 1941

Captured Soviet female soldiers in Nevel (now the Nevelsky district of the Pskov region).
Shooting time: 07/26/1941

German infantry passes by broken Soviet vehicles.

Shooting time: June 1941

The Germans are inspecting Soviet T-34-76 tanks stuck in a water meadow. Floodplain of the Drut River, near Tolochin, Vitebsk region.

Shooting time: July 1941

Start of the German Junkers Yu-87 dive bombers from a field airfield in the USSR.

Shooting time: summer 1941

Red Army soldiers surrender to the soldiers of the SS troops.

Shooting time: June 1941

Destroyed by Soviet artillery, the German light tank Pz.Kpfw. II Ausf. C.

German soldiers next to a burning Soviet village.
Shooting time: June 1941

German soldier during the battle in the Brest Fortress.

Shooting time: June-July 1941

A rally at the Leningrad plant named after Kirov about the beginning of the war.

Shooting time: June 1941
Location: Leningrad

Residents of Leningrad at the window of LenTASS "Latest News" (Socialist street, house 14 - "Pravda" printing house).

Shooting time: July 1941
Location: Leningrad

Aerial photograph of the Smolensk-1 airfield taken by German air reconnaissance. An airfield with hangars and runways is marked in the upper left of the image. Other strategic objects are also marked in the image: barracks (bottom left, marked "B"), large bridges, anti-aircraft artillery batteries (vertical line with a circle).

Shooting time: 06/23/1941
Location: Smolensk

Red Army soldiers examine a wrecked German tank Pz 35 (t) (LT vz.35) of Czech production from the 6th Panzer Division of the Wehrmacht. Neighborhood of the city of Raseiniai (Lithuanian SSR).

Shooting time: June 1941

Soviet refugees walk past an abandoned BT-7A tank.

Shooting time: June 1941

German soldiers examine a burning Soviet tank T-34-76 of the 1940 model.

Shooting time: June-August 1941

The Germans on the march at the beginning of the invasion of the USSR.

Shooting time: June 1941

Soviet field airfield, captured by the Germans. One can see an I-16 fighter shot down or dismantled on the ground, a Po-2 biplane and another I-16 in the background. A picture from a passing German car. Smolensk region, summer 1941.

Shooting time: July 1941

Artillerymen of the 29th motorized division of the Wehrmacht from an ambush shot Soviet tanks into the side from a 50-mm PaK 38 cannon. The closest, on the left, is a T-34 tank. Belarus, 1941.

Shooting time: summer 1941

German soldiers ride along the street along the destroyed houses on the outskirts of Smolensk.

Shooting time: July 1941
Location: Smolensk

At the captured airfield of Minsk, German soldiers are examining an SB bomber (or its training version of the CSS, since the nose of the aircraft is visible, which differs from the glazed nose of the SB). Early July 1941.

I-15 and I-153 Chaika fighters are visible behind.

Soviet 203-mm howitzer B-4 (model 1931), captured by the Germans. The barrel of the gun, which was transported separately, is missing. 1941, presumably Belarus. German photo.

Shooting time: 1941

The city of Demidov, Smolensk region in the early days of the occupation. July 1941.

Shooting time: July 1941

Destroyed Soviet tank T-26. On the tower, under the hatch cover, a burnt tanker is visible.

Shooting time: summer 1941

Surrendering Soviet soldiers go to the rear of the Germans. Summer 1941. The picture was apparently taken from the back of a truck in a German convoy on the road.

Shooting time: summer 1941

A lot of broken Soviet aircraft: I-153 Chaika fighters (to the left). In the background is a U-2 and a twin-engine SB bomber. The airfield of Minsk, captured by German troops (in the foreground - a German soldier). Early July 1941.

Shooting time: July 1941

A lot of broken Soviet Chaika I-153 fighters. Minsk airport. Early July 1941.

Shooting time: July 1941

German collection point for Soviet captured equipment and weapons. On the left are Soviet 45 mm anti-tank guns, then a large number of Maxim machine guns and DP-27 light machine guns, on the right - 82 mm mortars. Summer 1941.

Shooting time: summer 1941

Dead Soviet soldiers at the captured trenches. This is probably the very beginning of the war, the summer of 1941: the soldier in the foreground is wearing a pre-war SSH-36 helmet, later such helmets were extremely rare in the Red Army and mainly in the Far East. It can also be seen that a belt has been removed from him - apparently, the work of the German soldiers who captured these positions.

Shooting time: summer 1941

A German soldier is knocking at the house of local residents. City of Yartsevo, Smolensk region, early July 1941.

Shooting time: July 1941

The Germans inspect the wrecked Soviet light tanks. In the foreground - BT-7, on the far left - BT-5 (characteristic cabin of the tank driver), in the center of the road - T-26. Smolensk region, summer 1941

Shooting time: summer 1941

Soviet artillery wagon with a gun. A shell or air bomb exploded right in front of the horses. Neighborhood of the city of Yartsevo, Smolensk region. August 1941.

Shooting time: summer 1941

Grave of a Soviet soldier. The inscription on the tablet in German reads: "Here rests an unknown Russian soldier." Perhaps the fallen soldier was buried by his own, so at the bottom of the tablet you can make out the word "Here ..." in Russian. For some reason, the Germans made the inscription in their own language. German photo, location - presumably Smolensk region, August 1941.

Shooting time: summer 1941

German armored personnel carrier, German soldiers on it and local residents in Belarus.

Shooting time: June 1941

Ukrainians welcome the Germans in Western Ukraine.

Shooting time: summer 1941

The advancing units of the Wehrmacht in Belarus. The picture was taken from a car window. June 1941

Shooting time: June 1941

German soldiers in captured Soviet positions. A Soviet 45mm cannon is visible in the foreground, a Soviet T-34 tank of the 1940 model is visible further on.

Shooting time: 1941

German soldiers are approaching the freshly knocked out Soviet BT-2 tanks.

Shooting time: June-July 1941

Smoke break crews tractor tractors "Stalinets". The photo is dated in the summer of 41

Shooting time: summer 1941

Soviet female volunteers are sent to the front. Summer 1941.

Shooting time: 1941

Soviet girl-rank-and-file among prisoners of war.

Shooting time: summer 1941

The machine-gun crew of the German rangers fires from the MG-34 machine gun. Summer 1941, Army Group North. In the background, the calculation covers the StuG III self-propelled guns.

Shooting time: summer 1941

The German column passes the village in the Smolensk region.

Shooting time: July 1941

June 21, 1941, 13:00. German troops receive the code signal "Dortmund", confirming that the invasion will begin the next day.

21:00. Fighters of the 90th border detachment The Sokal commandant's office detained a German soldier who crossed the border river Bug by swimming. The defector was sent to the headquarters of the detachment in the city of Vladimir-Volynsky.

23:00. German minelayers, who were in Finnish ports, began to mine the way out of the Gulf of Finland. At the same time, Finnish submarines began laying mines off the coast of Estonia.

June 22, 1941, 0:30. The defector was taken to Vladimir-Volynsky. During interrogation, the soldier named himself Alfred Liskov, servicemen of the 221st regiment of the 15th infantry division of the Wehrmacht. He reported that at dawn on June 22 the German army would go on the offensive along the entire length of the Soviet-German border. The information has been passed on to the higher command.

At the same time, the transfer of directive No. 1 of the People's Commissariat of Defense for parts of the western military districts begins from Moscow. “During June 22-23, 1941, a sudden attack by the Germans on the fronts of the LVO, PribOVO, ZAPOVO, KOVO, OdVO is possible. The attack may begin with provocative actions,” the directive said. “The task of our troops is not to succumb to any provocative actions that could cause major complications.”

Parts were ordered to be brought to combat readiness, covertly occupy the firing points of fortified areas on the state border, disperse aviation over field airfields.

It is not possible to bring the directive to the military units before the start of hostilities, as a result of which the measures indicated in it are not carried out.

Mobilization. Columns of fighters are moving to the front. Photo: RIA Novosti

“I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory”

1:00. The commandants of the sections of the 90th border detachment report to the head of the detachment, Major Bychkovsky: "nothing suspicious was noticed on the adjacent side, everything is calm."

3:05 . A group of 14 German Ju-88 bombers drops 28 magnetic mines near the Kronstadt raid.

3:07. The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Vice Admiral Oktyabrsky, reports to the Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov: “The VNOS [airborne surveillance, warning and communications] system of the fleet reports on the approach from the sea of ​​a large number of unknown aircraft; The fleet is on full alert.

3:10. The UNKGB in the Lvov region transmits by telephone to the NKGB of the Ukrainian SSR the information obtained during the interrogation of the defector Alfred Liskov.

3:30. Chief of Staff of the Western District General Klimovsky reports on enemy air raids on the cities of Belarus: Brest, Grodno, Lida, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovichi and others.

3:33. The chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reports on air raids on the cities of Ukraine, including Kyiv.

3:40. Commander of the Baltic Military District General Kuznetsov reports on enemy air raids on Riga, Siauliai, Vilnius, Kaunas and other cities.

"Enemy raid repulsed. An attempt to strike our ships has been thwarted."

3:42. Chief of the General Staff Zhukov calls Stalin and announces the start of hostilities by Germany. Stalin orders Tymoshenko and Zhukov to arrive at the Kremlin, where an emergency meeting of the Politburo is being convened.

3:45. The 1st frontier post of the 86th Augustow border detachment was attacked by an enemy reconnaissance and sabotage group. Outpost personnel under command Alexandra Sivacheva, having joined the battle, destroys the attackers.

4:05. The outposts of the 86th August Frontier Detachment, including the 1st Frontier Post of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev, are subjected to heavy artillery fire, after which the German offensive begins. The border guards, deprived of communication with the command, engage in battle with superior enemy forces.

4:10. Western and Baltic special military districts report the start of hostilities German troops in land areas.

4:15. The Nazis open massive artillery fire on the Brest Fortress. As a result, warehouses were destroyed, communications were disrupted, and there were a large number of dead and wounded.

4:25. The 45th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht begins an attack on the Brest Fortress.

The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Residents of the capital on June 22, 1941 during the announcement on the radio of a government message about the perfidious attack of fascist Germany on Soviet Union. Photo: RIA Novosti

"Defending not individual countries, but ensuring the security of Europe"

4:30. A meeting of members of the Politburo begins in the Kremlin. Stalin expresses doubt that what happened is the beginning of the war and does not exclude the version of a German provocation. People's Commissar of Defense Timoshenko and Zhukov insist: this is war.

4:55. In the Brest Fortress, the Nazis manage to capture almost half of the territory. Further progress was stopped by a sudden counterattack by the Red Army.

5:00. German Ambassador to the USSR Count von Schulenburg presents the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Molotov“Note from the German Foreign Ministry to the Soviet Government”, which states: “The German government cannot be indifferent to a serious threat on the eastern border, therefore the Führer ordered the German armed forces to remove this threat by all means.” An hour after the actual start of hostilities, Germany de jure declares war on the Soviet Union.

7:00. Reich Minister for Foreign Ribbentrop begins a press conference at which he announces the start of hostilities against the USSR: "The German army invaded the territory of Bolshevik Russia!"

“The city is on fire, why aren’t you broadcasting anything on the radio?”

7:15. Stalin approves the directive on repulsing the attack of Nazi Germany: "The troops will attack the enemy forces with all their strength and means and destroy them in areas where they have violated the Soviet border." The transfer of "Directive No. 2" due to the violation by saboteurs of the communication lines in western districts. Moscow does not have a clear picture of what is happening in the war zone.

9:30. It was decided that at noon Molotov, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, would address the Soviet people in connection with the outbreak of war.

10:00. From the memories of the announcer Yuri Levitan: “They call from Minsk: “Enemy planes are over the city”, they call from Kaunas: “The city is on fire, why are you not transmitting anything on the radio?”, “Enemy planes are over Kyiv.” Women's crying, excitement: “Is it really a war? ..” However, no official messages are transmitted until 12:00 Moscow time on June 22.

11:00. The Baltic, Western and Kyiv special military districts were transformed into the Northwestern, Western and Southwestern fronts.

“The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours"

12:00. People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Vyacheslav Molotov read out an appeal to the citizens of the Soviet Union: "Today at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed from our cities - Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others - more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from Romanian and Finnish territory ... Now that the attack on the Soviet Union has already taken place, the Soviet government has given an order to our troops to repel the piratical attack and drive the German troops from the territory of our homeland ... The government calls on you, citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union, to rally their ranks still more closely around our glorious Bolshevik Party, around our Soviet government, around our great leader Comrade Stalin.

Our cause is right. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours" .

12:30. Advanced German units break into the Belarusian city of Grodno.

13:00. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issues a decree "On the mobilization of those liable for military service ..."
“On the basis of Article 49 of paragraph “o” of the Constitution of the USSR, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR announces mobilization on the territory of the military districts - Leningrad, Special Baltic, Western Special, Kyiv Special, Odessa, Kharkov, Oryol, Moscow, Arkhangelsk, Ural, Siberian, Volga, North - Caucasian and Transcaucasian.

13:30. The Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov, flies to Kyiv as a representative of the newly created Headquarters of the High Command on the Southwestern Front.

Photo: RIA Novosti

14:00. The Brest Fortress is completely surrounded by German troops. Soviet units blockaded in the citadel continue to offer fierce resistance.

14:05. Foreign Minister of Italy Galeazzo Ciano declares: “In view of the current situation, due to the fact that Germany has declared war on the USSR, Italy, as an ally of Germany and as a member of the Tripartite Pact, also declares war on the Soviet Union from the moment the German troops enter Soviet territory.”

14:10. The 1st frontier post of Alexander Sivachev has been fighting for more than 10 hours. The border guards, who had only small arms and grenades, destroyed up to 60 Nazis and burned three tanks. The wounded head of the outpost continued to command the battle.

15:00. From the notes of Field Marshal Commander of Army Group Center bokeh background: “The question of whether the Russians are carrying out a planned withdrawal is still open. There is now ample evidence both for and against this.

Of the 485 frontier posts attacked, none retreated without an order.

16:00. After a 12-hour battle, the Nazis occupy the positions of the 1st frontier post. This became possible only after all the border guards who defended it died. The head of the outpost, Alexander Sivachev, was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class.

The feat of the outpost of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev became one of the hundreds accomplished by the border guards in the first hours and days of the war. The state border of the USSR from the Barents to the Black Sea on June 22, 1941 was guarded by 666 border outposts, 485 of them were attacked on the very first day of the war. None of the 485 outposts attacked on June 22 withdrew without orders.

The Nazi command took 20 minutes to break the resistance of the border guards. 257 Soviet frontier posts held the defense from several hours to one day. More than one day - 20, more than two days - 16, more than three days - 20, more than four and five days - 43, from seven to nine days - 4, more than eleven days - 51, more than twelve days - 55, more than 15 days - 51 outposts. Up to two months, 45 outposts fought.

The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. The working people of Leningrad listen to the message about the attack of fascist Germany on the Soviet Union. Photo: RIA Novosti

Of the 19,600 border guards who met the Nazis on June 22 in the direction of the main attack of Army Group Center, more than 16,000 died in the first days of the war.

17:00. Hitler's units manage to occupy the southwestern part of the Brest Fortress, the northeast remained under control Soviet troops. Stubborn battles for the fortress will continue for another week.

"The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox for the defense of the sacred borders of our Motherland"

18:00. The Patriarchal Locum Tenens, Metropolitan Sergius of Moscow and Kolomna, addresses the faithful with a message: “Fascist robbers have attacked our homeland. Trampling all sorts of treaties and promises, they suddenly fell upon us, and now the blood of peaceful citizens is already irrigating our native land ... Our Orthodox Church has always shared the fate of the people. Together with him, she carried trials, and consoled herself with his successes. She will not leave her people even now… The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox to defend the sacred borders of our Motherland.”

20:00. Directive No. 3 of the People's Commissariat of Defense was approved, ordering the Soviet troops to go on the counteroffensive with the task of defeating the Nazi troops on the territory of the USSR with further advancement into enemy territory. The directive prescribed by the end of June 24 to capture the Polish city of Lublin.

Great Patriotic War 1941-1945. June 22, 1941 Nurses assist the first wounded after the Nazi air raid near Chisinau. Photo: RIA Novosti

"We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can"

21:00. Summary of the High Command of the Red Army for June 22: “At dawn on June 22, 1941, the regular troops of the German army attacked our border units on the front from the Baltic to the Black Sea and were held back by them during the first half of the day. In the afternoon, the German troops met with the advanced units of the field troops of the Red Army. After fierce fighting, the enemy was repulsed with heavy losses. Only in the Grodno and Krystynopol directions did the enemy manage to achieve minor tactical successes and take the towns of Kalvaria, Stojanow and Tsekhanovets (the first two at 15 km and the last at 10 km from the border).

Enemy aircraft attacked a number of our airfields and settlements, but everywhere met a decisive rebuff from our fighters and anti-aircraft artillery, which inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. We shot down 65 enemy planes."

23:00. Message from the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the British people in connection with the German attack on the USSR: “At 4 o’clock this morning, Hitler attacked Russia. All his usual formalities of treachery were observed with scrupulous precision ... suddenly, without a declaration of war, even without an ultimatum, German bombs fell from the sky on Russian cities, German troops violated Russian borders, and in an hour later ambassador Germany, which just the day before generously lavished its assurances of friendship and almost an alliance on the Russians, paid a visit to the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs and declared that Russia and Germany were in a state of war ...

The past, with its crimes, follies and tragedies, recedes. I see Russian soldiers standing on the border of their native land and guarding the fields that their fathers have plowed since time immemorial. I see how they guard their homes; their mothers and wives pray—oh, yes, because at such a time everyone prays for the preservation of their loved ones, for the return of the breadwinner, patron, their protectors ...

We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can. We must call on all our friends and allies in all parts of the world to follow a similar course and pursue it as steadfastly and steadily as we will, to the very end.

June 22 has come to an end. Ahead were another 1417 days of the most terrible war in the history of mankind.

The first 4 hours of the Great Patriotic War.

For the first time, the events of the first day of the war are told directly at the sites of the main hostilities. There is a lot of new, unknown to the viewer information in the film. For example, about the fact that the first Soviet city was recaptured from the Germans on June 23, 1941! About the fierce battles in the Vladimir-Volynsky region, about the feat of the garrisons of the Soviet fortified areas, about the fact that the Soviet Air Force was not destroyed, as the almost official myth says, as well as about other little-known pages war.

The beginning of the Great Patriotic War

Get up, great country,
Stand up for the death fight
With dark fascist power,
With the damned horde!

On the fifth day of the war, the whole country sang this song to the verses of Lebedev-Kumach and the music of Alexandrov.

And the war began at dawn on June 22, 1941. Fascist Germany treacherously, without declaring war, attacked the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Its aircraft delivered massive strikes against airfields, railway junctions, naval bases, quarterings for military units and many cities to a depth of 250-300 km from the border.

Here it is necessary to remember that the Soviet Union in 1941 was going to celebrate the 24th anniversary of the Great October Revolution.

During these 24 years, our country has achieved a lot. Automobile plants were built in Moscow, Gorky, Yaroslavl. Tractor factories appeared in Leningrad, Stalingrad, Kharkov, Chelyabinsk. All of them could make tanks. Our aviation set world records for flight range. The Soviet state could resist any other state, but it was difficult for us to fight all of Europe.

Nazi Germany and its satellites concentrated large contingents of troops against the Soviet Union - 190 divisions (including 19 tank and 14 motorized) and a large number of military equipment: about 4300 tanks and assault guns, 47.2 thousand guns and mortars, 4980 combat aircraft and over 190 warships. And all this power was thrown at our country. From the ice of the Arctic to the Black Sea, the war scorched the fire of conflagrations, destroyed cities and burned villages, and civilians died.

According to the Barbarossa plan, Germany wanted to defeat the Soviet Union in six weeks. At the same time, the main forces of the Red Army were supposed to be destroyed, preventing them from retreating into the depths of the country. But the plans of the fascist command from the very beginning of the war were thwarted by the courage and heroism of our army and the whole people.

First strike

The frontier troops and divisions located near the border were the first to receive the enemy's blow. We had more than 500 frontier outposts along the western border. The Nazi command allotted no more than 30 minutes for the destruction of the outpost. But the outposts fought for days and weeks, and the Brest Fortress, located on the border at the confluence of the Mukhavets River with the Bug River, fought with enemies for more than a month. All this time, the defenders of the Brest Fortress fettered an entire Nazi division. Most of the defenders of the fortress fell in battle, some made their way to the partisans, some of the seriously wounded, exhausted, were captured. The defense of the Brest Fortress is a vivid example of patriotism and mass heroism of Soviet soldiers. Representatives of 30 nations and nationalities of the Soviet Union fought among the defenders of the Brest Fortress.

But, despite the heroic resistance, the covering troops could not detain the enemy in the border zone. In order to save forces, the Soviet troops were forced to retreat to new lines.

The fascist German troops in a short time advanced 400-450 km in the northwest direction, 450-600 km in the west, 300-350 km in the southwest, captured the territory of Lithuania, Latvia, part of Estonia, a significant part of Ukraine, almost all of Belarus, Moldova, invaded the western regions of the Russian Federation, reached the distant approaches to Leningrad, threatened Smolensk and Kyiv. Mortal danger hung over the Soviet Union.

Based on the prevailing situation, the Soviet command at the end of June decided to switch to strategic defense on the entire Soviet-German front. The troops of the first strategic echelon were given the task of preparing a system of echeloned defensive lines and lines in the directions of the main attacks of the enemy, relying on which, by stubborn and active opposition, to undermine the offensive power of the enemy, stop him and buy time to prepare a counteroffensive.

The feat of the army and the people

The perfidious attack of Nazi Germany caused anger and indignation Soviet people. In a single impulse, he rose to the defense of his homeland. At rallies that swept across the country, the Soviet people stigmatized the fascist barbarians and swore to severely punish the invaders who broke in. Military registration and enlistment offices were stormed by thousands of young men and women, men and women - communists, Komsomol members and non-party people. They demanded immediate dispatch to the front, filed an application with a request to be sent behind enemy lines, to partisan detachments.

The misfortune that befell the Fatherland rallied the whole people as never before. The whole people, the whole vast country rose up to fight to the death for a holy and just cause. Every day that passed both at the front and in the rear was measured by the answer to the question: What did you do for the front, for victory? The efforts of the whole people - soldiers, workers, collective farmers, intellectuals - were subordinated to one goal - to defend the Motherland from the fascist barbarians. And for this he spared neither his strength nor his life.

The word patriotism acquired a special meaning and meaning. It did not require any translations or explanations. Love for the Motherland knocked in the heart of everyone Soviet man: whether he stood for the fifth day in the workshop at the machine tool or went to ram an enemy aircraft, whether he gave his personal savings to the defense fund or blood for wounded soldiers.

Already in the first days and weeks of the war, thousands of feats and boundless self-sacrifice of the bravest Soviet soldiers were inscribed in its annals. At that time, the names of most of these courageous people who fought to the last bullet, to the last drop of blood, were not yet known.

The results of these days and weeks, the most difficult for the Soviet people and their soldiers, already testified to the first failures in the implementation of Hitler's plans for a "blitzkrieg".

The enemy failed to destroy the main forces Soviet army in frontier battles, as he expected. The resistance of our troops grew every day. And in the deep rear, reserves for the front were being prepared at an accelerated pace. It was incredibly difficult to form, arm and train new regiments, divisions of the Soviet Army, but every day an increasingly powerful stream of fresh reserves went to the front. He significantly exceeded the reserves of the enemy, coming to the front to make up for the losses he had suffered.

Hundreds of industrial enterprises were at that time on wheels - they were relocated from threatened areas to the deep rear of the country. It took time to install the equipment and put it into operation in new places. The most active part of the working class and specialists of operating enterprises left for the ranks of the Soviet Army. Only a small part of skilled workers and specialists remained at the enterprises, without which it was impossible to start mass production of military products. Those leaving for the front were replaced by hundreds of thousands of women and teenagers.

But even these difficulties were overcome in the shortest possible time. The release of weapons, military equipment, ammunition and various equipment for the defenders of the Motherland increased every day.

Mass labor heroism was also shown by the workers of socialist agriculture. Collective farms and state farms transferred a huge number of tractors and motor vehicles to equip the reserves of troops. There are even fewer men left in this sector of the economy than in industry and transport. And in the countryside, women and teenagers became the decisive force. It was they who had to harvest the vast sown areas. Remove mostly by hand. In front-line areas, harvesting was often carried out under enemy fire. And, nevertheless, with the help of hundreds of thousands of citizens, students and schoolchildren, agricultural workers also coped with the most important task for the front and the whole country - they laid in the state bins such an amount of food without which the war would have been successful.

In its entire course, the war showed that the courage and heroism of the Soviet people turned out to be an invincible force that managed to prevent the gravest crime against humanity.

THE BEGINNING OF THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR

The eve of the war. In the spring of 1941, the approach of war was felt by everyone. Soviet intelligence reported almost daily to Stalin about Hitler's plans. For example, Richard Sorge (a Soviet intelligence officer in Japan) reported not only the transfer of German troops, but also the timing of the German attack. However, Stalin did not believe these reports, as he was sure that Hitler would not start a war with the USSR as long as England resisted. He believed that a clash with Germany could not occur until the summer of 1942. Therefore, Stalin sought to use the remaining time to prepare for war with maximum benefit. On May 5, 1941, he assumed the powers of the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars. He did not rule out the possibility of delivering a preventive strike against Germany.

There was a concentration of a huge number of troops on the border with Germany. At the same time, it was impossible to give the Germans a reason to accuse them of violating the non-aggression pact. Therefore, despite the obvious preparation of Germany for aggression against the USSR, Stalin only on the night of June 22 gave the order to bring the troops of the border districts into combat readiness. This directive came to the troops already when German aircraft bombed Soviet cities.

The beginning of the war. At dawn on June 22, 1941, the German army attacked Soviet soil with all its might. Thousands opened fire artillery pieces. Aviation attacked airfields, military garrisons, communication centers, command posts of the Red Army, the largest industrial facilities in Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic states. The Great Patriotic War of the Soviet people began, which lasted 1418 days and nights.

The country's leadership did not immediately understand what exactly happened. Still fearing provocations from the Germans, Stalin, even in the conditions of the outbreak of war, did not want to believe in what had happened. In the new directive, he ordered the troops to "defeat the enemy", but "not to cross the state border" with Germany.

At noon on the first day of the war, V. M. Molotov, First Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR, addressed the people. Calling on the Soviet people to give a decisive rebuff to the enemy, he expressed confidence that the country would defend its freedom and independence. Molotov ended his speech with the words that became the program setting for all the years of the war: "Our cause is just. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours."

On the same day, a general mobilization of those liable for military service was announced, martial law was introduced in the western regions of the country, and the Northern, Northwestern, Western, Southwestern, and Southern fronts were formed. To guide them, on June 23, the Headquarters of the High Command (later - Headquarters Supreme High Command), which included I. V. Stalin, V. M. Molotov, S. K. Timoshenko, S. M. Budyonny, K. E. Voroshilov, B. M. Shaposhnikov and G. K. Zhukov. I. V. Stalin was appointed Supreme Commander-in-Chief.

The war required the rejection of a number of democratic forms of government, provided for by the 1936 Constitution.

On June 30, all power was concentrated in the hands of the State Defense Committee (GKO), whose chairman was Stalin. At the same time, the activities of the constitutional authorities continued.

Forces and plans of the parties. June 22 at deadly fight the two largest military forces at that time clashed. Germany and Italy, Finland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, which acted on its side, had 190 divisions against 170 Soviet ones. The number of opposing troops on both sides was approximately equal and totaled about 6 million people. Approximately equal on both sides was the number of guns and mortars (48 thousand from Germany and the allies, 47 thousand from the USSR). In terms of the number of tanks (9.2 thousand) and aircraft (8.5 thousand), the USSR surpassed Germany and its allies (4.3 thousand and 5 thousand, respectively).

Taking into account the experience of military operations in Europe, the Barbarossa plan provided for a "blitzkrieg" war against the USSR in three main directions - against Leningrad (Army Group North), Moscow ("Center") and Kyiv ("South"). In a short time, with the help of mainly tank strikes, it was supposed to defeat the main forces of the Red Army and reach the Arkhangelsk-Volga-Astrakhan line.

The basis of the tactics of the Red Army before the war was the concept of conducting military operations "with little blood, on foreign territory." However, the attack of the Nazi armies forced to reconsider these plans.

The failures of the Red Army in the summer - autumn of 1941. The suddenness and power of the German strike were so great that within three weeks Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, a significant part of Ukraine, Moldova and Estonia were occupied. The enemy advanced 350-600 km deep into the Soviet land. In a short time, the Red Army lost more than 100 divisions (three-fifths of all troops in the western border districts). More than 20,000 guns and mortars, 3,500 aircraft were destroyed or captured by the enemy (of which 1,200 were destroyed right on the airfields on the first day of the war), 6,000 tanks, and more than half of the logistics depots. The main forces of the troops of the Western Front were surrounded. In fact, in the first weeks of the war, all the forces of the "first echelon" of the Red Army were defeated. It seemed that a military catastrophe in the USSR was inevitable.

However, an "easy walk" for the Germans (which the Nazi generals, intoxicated by victories in Western Europe) Did not work out. In the first weeks of the war, the enemy lost up to 100 thousand people alone (this exceeded all the losses of the Nazi army in previous wars), 40% of tanks, almost 1 thousand aircraft. Nevertheless, the German army continued to maintain a decisive superiority of forces.

Battle for Moscow. The stubborn resistance of the Red Army near Smolensk, Leningrad, Kyiv, Odessa, and in other sectors of the front did not allow the Germans to carry out plans to capture Moscow by early autumn. Only after the encirclement of large forces (665 thousand people) of the Southwestern Front and the capture of Kyiv by the enemy did the Germans begin preparations for the capture of the Soviet capital. This operation was called "Typhoon". To implement it, the German command ensured a significant superiority in manpower (3-3.5 times) and equipment in the directions of the main attacks: tanks - 5-6 times, artillery - 4-5 times. The dominance of German aviation remained overwhelming.

On September 30, 1941, the Nazis began a general offensive against Moscow. They managed not only to break through the defenses of the stubbornly resisting Soviet troops, but also to surround four armies to the west of Vyazma and two to the south of Bryansk. In these "cauldrons" 663 thousand people were taken prisoner. However, the encircled Soviet troops continued to pin down up to 20 enemy divisions. For Moscow, a critical situation has developed. The fighting was already going on 80-100 km from the capital. To stop the advance of the Germans, the Mozhaisk line of defense was hastily strengthened, reserve troops were pulled up. G.K. Zhukov, who was appointed commander of the Western Front, was urgently recalled from Leningrad.

Despite all these measures, by mid-October the enemy came close to the capital. The Kremlin towers were perfectly visible through German binoculars. By decision of the State Defense Committee, the evacuation of government agencies, the diplomatic corps, large industrial enterprises, and the population from Moscow began. In the event of a breakthrough by the Nazis, all the most important objects of the city had to be destroyed. On October 20, a state of siege was introduced in Moscow.

In the first days of November, the German offensive was stopped by the colossal exertion of forces, the unparalleled courage and heroism of the defenders of the capital. On November 7, as before, a military parade took place on Red Square, the participants of which immediately left for the front line.

However, in mid-November, the Nazi offensive resumed with renewed vigor. Only the stubborn resistance of the Soviet soldiers again saved the capital. The 316th Rifle Division under the command of General I.V. Panfilov distinguished itself, repulsing several tank attacks on the most difficult first day of the German offensive. The feat of a group of Panfilovites led by political instructor V. G. Klochkov, who for a long time detained more than 30 enemy tanks, became legendary. The words of Klochkov, addressed to the soldiers, spread all over the country: "Russia is great, but there is nowhere to retreat: behind is Moscow!"

By the end of November, the troops of the Western Front received significant reinforcements from eastern regions countries, which made it possible on December 5-6, 1941 to launch a counteroffensive of Soviet troops near Moscow. In the very first days of the Moscow battle, the cities of Kalinin, Solnechnogorsk, Klin, and Istra were liberated. In total, during the winter offensive, Soviet troops defeated 38 German divisions. The enemy was pushed back from Moscow by 100-250 km. This was the first major defeat of the German troops during the entire Second World War.

The victory near Moscow had a huge military and political significance. She dispelled the myth of the invincibility of the Nazi army and the hopes of the Nazis for a "blitzkrieg". Japan and Turkey finally refused to enter the war on the side of Germany. The process of creating the Anti-Hitler coalition was accelerated.

THE GERMAN OFFENSIVE OF 1942

The situation at the front in the spring of 1942. Side plans. The victory near Moscow gave rise to the illusions of the Soviet leadership regarding the possibility of a quick defeat of the German troops and the end of the war. In January 1942, Stalin set the Red Army the task of going over to the general offensive. This task has been repeated in other documents.

The only one who opposed the simultaneous offensive of the Soviet troops in all three main strategic directions was G.K. Zhukov. He rightly believed that there were no prepared reserves for this. However, under pressure from Stalin, the Headquarters nevertheless decided to attack. The dissipation of already modest resources (by this time the Red Army had lost up to 6 million people killed, wounded, captured) was bound to lead to failure.

Stalin believed that in the spring - summer of 1942 the Germans would launch a new offensive against Moscow, and ordered that significant reserve forces be concentrated in the western direction. Hitler, on the contrary, considered the strategic goal of the upcoming campaign a large-scale attack on southwest direction with the aim of breaking through the defenses of the Red Army and capturing the lower Volga and the Caucasus. In order to hide their true intentions, the Germans developed a special plan to misinform the Soviet military command and political leadership, codenamed "Kremlin". Their plan was largely successful. All this had grave consequences for the situation on the Soviet-German front in 1942.

German offensive in the summer of 1942. Beginning of the Battle of Stalingrad. By the spring of 1942, the superiority of forces still remained on the side of the German troops. Before launching a general offensive in the southeastern direction, the Germans decided to completely capture the Crimea, where the defenders of Sevastopol and the Kerch Peninsula continued to offer heroic resistance to the enemy. The May offensive of the Nazis ended in tragedy: in ten days the troops of the Crimean Front were defeated. The losses of the Red Army here amounted to 176 thousand people, 347 tanks, 3476 guns and mortars, 400 aircraft. On July 4, Soviet troops were forced to leave the city of Russian glory Sevastopol.

In May, Soviet troops went on the offensive in the Kharkov region, but suffered a severe defeat. The troops of the two armies were surrounded and destroyed. Our losses amounted to 230 thousand people, more than 5 thousand guns and mortars, 755 tanks. The strategic initiative was again firmly captured by the German command.

At the end of June, German troops rushed to the southeast: they occupied the Donbass and reached the Don. There was a direct threat to Stalingrad. On July 24, Rostov-on-Don, the gates of the Caucasus, fell. Only now did Stalin understand the true purpose of the German summer offensive. But it was too late to change anything. Fearing the rapid loss of the entire Soviet South, on July 28, 1942, Stalin issued Order No. 227, in which, under the threat of execution, he forbade the troops to leave the front line without instructions from the higher command. This order went down in the history of the war under the name "Not a step back!"

In early September, in Stalingrad, destroyed to the ground, street fighting. But the stubbornness and courage of the Soviet defenders of the city on the Volga seemed to do the impossible - by mid-November, the offensive capabilities of the Germans had completely dried up. By this time, in the battles for Stalingrad, they had lost almost 700 thousand killed and wounded, over 1 thousand tanks and over 1.4 thousand aircraft. The Germans not only failed to occupy the city, but went on the defensive.

occupation regime. By the autumn of 1942, German troops managed to capture most of the European territory of the USSR. A strict occupation regime was established in the cities and villages they occupied. The main goals of Germany in the war against the USSR were the destruction of the Soviet state, the transformation of the Soviet Union into an agrarian and raw material appendage and a source of cheap labor for the "Third Reich".

In the occupied territories, the former governing bodies were liquidated. All power belonged to the military command of the German army. In the summer of 1941, special courts were introduced, which were given the right to pass death sentences for disobedience to the invaders. Death camps were created for prisoners of war and those Soviet people who sabotaged the decisions of the German authorities. Everywhere the occupiers staged demonstrative executions of party and Soviet activists, members of the underground.

All citizens of the occupied territories aged 18 to 45 were affected by labor mobilization. They had to work 14-16 hours a day. Hundreds of thousands of Soviet people were sent for forced labor in Germany.

The "Ost" plan, developed by the Nazis even before the war, contained a program for the "development" of Eastern Europe. According to this plan, it was supposed to destroy 30 million Russians, and turn the rest into slaves and resettle in Siberia. During the years of the war in the occupied territories of the USSR, the Nazis killed about 11 million people (including about 7 million civilians and about 4 million prisoners of war).

Partisan and underground movement. The threat of physical violence did not stop the Soviet people in the fight against the enemy, not only at the front, but also in the rear. The Soviet underground movement arose already in the first weeks of the war. In places subjected to occupation, party organs operated illegally.

During the war years, more than 6 thousand partisan detachments were formed, in which more than 1 million people fought. Representatives of most of the peoples of the USSR, as well as citizens of other countries, acted in their ranks. Soviet partisans destroyed, wounded and captured more than 1 million enemy soldiers and officers, representatives of the occupation administration, disabled more than 4 thousand tanks and armored vehicles, 65 thousand vehicles and 1100 aircraft. They destroyed and damaged 1,600 railway bridges and derailed over 20,000 railway trains. To coordinate the actions of the partisans in 1942, the Central Headquarters of the partisan movement was created, headed by P.K. Ponomarenko.

The underground heroes acted not only against the enemy troops, but also carried out the death sentences of the Nazi executioners. The legendary scout N. I. Kuznetsov destroyed the chief judge of Ukraine Funk, the vice-governor of Galicia Bauer, kidnapped the commander of the German punitive forces in Ukraine, General Ilgen. The general commissioner of Belarus to Cuba was blown up by the underground worker E. Mazanik right in bed in his own residence.

During the war years, the state awarded more than 184 thousand partisans and underground fighters with orders and medals. 249 of them were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The legendary commanders of partisan formations S. A. Kovpak and A. F. Fedorov presented themselves for this award twice.

Formation of the Anti-Hitler coalition. From the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War, Great Britain and the United States declared support for the Soviet Union. British Prime Minister W. Churchill, speaking on the radio on June 22, 1941, declared: “The danger to Russia is our danger and the danger of the United States, just as the cause of every Russian fighting for his land and home is the cause of free people and free peoples in every part of the world.

In July 1941, an agreement was signed between the USSR and Great Britain on joint actions in the war against Hitler, and in early August, the US government announced economic and military-technical assistance to the Soviet Union "in the struggle against armed aggression." In September 1941, the first conference of representatives of the three powers was held in Moscow, at which issues of expanding military-technical assistance from Great Britain and the United States to the Soviet Union were discussed. After the US entered the war against Japan and Germany (December 1941), their military cooperation with the USSR expanded even more.

On January 1, 1942, in Washington, representatives of 26 states signed a declaration in which they pledged to use all their resources to fight a common enemy and not conclude a separate peace. Signed in May 1942, an agreement on the union of the USSR and Great Britain and in June - an agreement with the United States on mutual assistance finally formalized the military alliance of the three countries.

Results of the first period of the war. The first period of the Great Patriotic War, which lasted from June 22, 1941 to November 18, 1942 (until the Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive near Stalingrad), was of great historical significance. The Soviet Union withstood a military strike of such force that no other country could withstand at that time.

The courage and heroism of the Soviet people frustrated Hitler's plans for a "blitzkrieg". Despite heavy defeats during the first year of the struggle against Germany and its allies, the Red Army showed its high fighting qualities. By the summer of 1942, the transition of the country's economy to a war footing was basically completed, which laid the main prerequisite for a radical change in the course of the war. At this stage, the Anti-Hitler coalition took shape, which possessed huge military, economic and human resources.

What you need to know about this topic:

Socio-economic and political development of Russia at the beginning of the 20th century. Nicholas II.

Domestic politics tsarism. Nicholas II. Strengthening repression. "Police socialism".

Russo-Japanese War. Reasons, course, results.

Revolution of 1905 - 1907 The nature, driving forces and features of the Russian revolution of 1905-1907. stages of the revolution. The reasons for the defeat and the significance of the revolution.

Elections to the State Duma. I State Duma. The agrarian question in the Duma. Dispersal of the Duma. II State Duma. Coup d'état June 3, 1907

Third June political system. Electoral law June 3, 1907 III State Duma. The alignment of political forces in the Duma. Duma activity. government terror. The decline of the labor movement in 1907-1910

Stolypin agrarian reform.

IV State Duma. Party composition and Duma factions. Duma activity.

The political crisis in Russia on the eve of the war. The labor movement in the summer of 1914 Crisis of the top.

International position Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.

Beginning of the First World War. Origin and nature of war. Russia's entry into the war. Attitude towards the war of parties and classes.

The course of hostilities. Strategic forces and plans of the parties. Results of the war. The role of the Eastern Front in the First World War.

The Russian economy during the First World War.

Workers' and peasants' movement in 1915-1916. Revolutionary movement in the army and navy. Growing anti-war sentiment. Formation of the bourgeois opposition.

Russian culture of the 19th - early 20th centuries.

Aggravation of socio-political contradictions in the country in January-February 1917. The beginning, prerequisites and nature of the revolution. Uprising in Petrograd. Formation of the Petrograd Soviet. Provisional Committee of the State Duma. Order N I. Formation of the Provisional Government. Abdication of Nicholas II. Causes of dual power and its essence. February coup in Moscow, at the front, in the provinces.

From February to October. The policy of the Provisional Government regarding war and peace, on agrarian, national, labor issues. Relations between the Provisional Government and the Soviets. The arrival of V.I. Lenin in Petrograd.

Political parties(Kadets, Social Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, Bolsheviks): political programs, influence among the masses.

Crises of the Provisional Government. An attempted military coup in the country. Growth of revolutionary sentiment among the masses. Bolshevization of the capital Soviets.

Preparation and conduct of an armed uprising in Petrograd.

II All-Russian Congress of Soviets. Decisions about power, peace, land. Formation of public authorities and management. Composition of the first Soviet government.

The victory of the armed uprising in Moscow. Government agreement with the Left SRs. Elections in constituent Assembly, its convocation and dissolution.

The first socio-economic transformations in the field of industry, agriculture, finance, labor and women's issues. Church and State.

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, its terms and significance.

Economic tasks of the Soviet government in the spring of 1918. Aggravation of the food issue. The introduction of food dictatorship. Working squads. Comedy.

The revolt of the left SRs and the collapse of the two-party system in Russia.

First Soviet Constitution.

Reasons for intervention and civil war. The course of hostilities. Human and material losses of the period of the civil war and military intervention.

The internal policy of the Soviet leadership during the war. "War Communism". GOELRO plan.

The policy of the new government in relation to culture.

Foreign policy. Treaties with border countries. Participation of Russia in the Genoa, Hague, Moscow and Lausanne conferences. Diplomatic recognition of the USSR by the main capitalist countries.

Domestic policy. Socio-economic and political crisis of the early 20s. Famine of 1921-1922 Transition to new economic policy. The essence of the NEP. NEP in the field of agriculture, trade, industry. financial reform. Economic recovery. Crises during the NEP and its curtailment.

Projects for the creation of the USSR. I Congress of Soviets of the USSR. The first government and the Constitution of the USSR.

Illness and death of V.I. Lenin. Intraparty struggle. The beginning of the formation of Stalin's regime of power.

Industrialization and collectivization. Development and implementation of the first five-year plans. Socialist competition - purpose, forms, leaders.

Formation and strengthening state system economic management.

The course towards complete collectivization. Dispossession.

Results of industrialization and collectivization.

Political, national-state development in the 30s. Intraparty struggle. Political repression. Formation of the nomenklatura as a layer of managers. Stalinist regime and the constitution of the USSR in 1936

Soviet culture in the 20-30s.

Foreign policy of the second half of the 20s - mid-30s.

Domestic policy. The growth of military production. Extraordinary measures in the field of labor legislation. Measures to solve the grain problem. Armed forces. Growth of the Red Army. military reform. Repressions against the command personnel of the Red Army and the Red Army.

Foreign policy. Non-aggression pact and treaty of friendship and borders between the USSR and Germany. The entry of Western Ukraine and Western Belarus into the USSR. Soviet-Finnish war. The inclusion of the Baltic republics and other territories in the USSR.

Periodization of the Great Patriotic War. The initial stage of the war. Turning the country into a military camp. Military defeats 1941-1942 and their reasons. Major military events Capitulation of Nazi Germany. Participation of the USSR in the war with Japan.

Soviet rear during the war.

Deportation of peoples.

Partisan struggle.

Human and material losses during the war.

Creation of the anti-Hitler coalition. Declaration of the United Nations. The problem of the second front. Conferences of the "Big Three". Problems of post-war peace settlement and all-round cooperation. USSR and UN.

Beginning of the Cold War. The contribution of the USSR to the creation of the "socialist camp". CMEA formation.

Domestic policy of the USSR in the mid-1940s - early 1950s. Restoration of the national economy.

Socio-political life. Politics in the field of science and culture. Continued repression. "Leningrad business". Campaign against cosmopolitanism. "Doctors' Case".

Socio-economic development of Soviet society in the mid-50s - the first half of the 60s.

Socio-political development: XX Congress of the CPSU and the condemnation of Stalin's personality cult. Rehabilitation of victims of repressions and deportations. Intra-party struggle in the second half of the 1950s.

Foreign policy: the creation of the ATS. The entry of Soviet troops into Hungary. Exacerbation of Soviet-Chinese relations. The split of the "socialist camp". Soviet-American Relations and the Caribbean Crisis. USSR and third world countries. Reducing the strength of the armed forces of the USSR. Moscow Treaty of Limitation nuclear testing.

USSR in the mid-60s - the first half of the 80s.

Socio-economic development: economic reform 1965

Growing difficulties economic development. Decline in the rate of socio-economic growth.

USSR Constitution 1977

Socio-political life of the USSR in the 1970s - early 1980s.

Foreign Policy: Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Consolidation of post-war borders in Europe. Moscow treaty with Germany. Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). Soviet-American treaties of the 70s. Soviet-Chinese relations. The entry of Soviet troops into Czechoslovakia and Afghanistan. Exacerbation of international tension and the USSR. Strengthening of the Soviet-American confrontation in the early 80s.

USSR in 1985-1991

Domestic policy: an attempt to accelerate the socio-economic development of the country. An attempt to reform the political system of Soviet society. Congresses of People's Deputies. Election of the President of the USSR. Multi-party system. Exacerbation of the political crisis.

Exacerbation of the national question. Attempts to reform the national-state structure of the USSR. Declaration on State Sovereignty of the RSFSR. "Novogarevsky process". The collapse of the USSR.

Foreign policy: Soviet-American relations and the problem of disarmament. Treaties with leading capitalist countries. The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. Changing relations with the countries of the socialist community. Disintegration of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance and the Warsaw Pact.

Russian Federation in 1992-2000

Domestic policy: "Shock therapy" in the economy: price liberalization, stages of privatization of commercial and industrial enterprises. Fall in production. Increased social tension. Growth and slowdown in financial inflation. The aggravation of the struggle between the executive and legislative branches. The dissolution of the Supreme Soviet and the Congress of People's Deputies. October events of 1993. Abolition of local bodies of Soviet power. Elections to the Federal Assembly. The Constitution of the Russian Federation of 1993 Formation of the presidential republic. Aggravation and overcoming of national conflicts in the North Caucasus.

Parliamentary elections 1995 Presidential elections 1996 Power and opposition. An attempt to return to the course of liberal reforms (spring 1997) and its failure. Financial crisis August 1998: causes, economic and political consequences. "Second Chechen War". 1999 parliamentary elections and early presidential elections 2000. Foreign Policy: Russia in the CIS. The participation of Russian troops in the "hot spots" of the near abroad: Moldova, Georgia, Tajikistan. Russia's relations with foreign countries. The withdrawal of Russian troops from Europe and neighboring countries. Russian-American agreements. Russia and NATO. Russia and the Council of Europe. Yugoslav crises (1999-2000) and Russia's position.

• Danilov A.A., Kosulina L.G. History of the state and peoples of Russia. XX century.