Soldier's life during the Great Patriotic War. Weapons of USSR soldiers during the Great Patriotic War. Soviet soldiers of WWII
Everyone is familiar with the popular print image of the Soviet “soldier-liberator.” In view Soviet people The Red Army soldiers of the Great Patriotic War are emaciated people in dirty overcoats who run in a crowd to attack after tanks, or tired elderly men smoking hand-rolled cigarettes on the parapet of a trench. After all, it was precisely such footage that was mainly captured by military newsreels. At the end of the 1980s, film directors and post-Soviet historians put the “victim of repression” on a cart, handed him a “three-line gun” without cartridges, sending him towards the armored hordes of fascists - under the supervision of barrage detachments.Now I propose to look at what actually happened. We can responsibly declare that our weapons were in no way inferior to foreign ones, while being more suitable to local conditions of use. For example, a three-line rifle had larger clearances and tolerances than foreign ones, but this “flaw” was a forced feature - the weapon’s lubricant, which thickened in the cold, did not remove the weapon from combat.
So, review.
Nagan- a revolver developed by the Belgian gunsmiths brothers Emil (1830-1902) and Leon (1833-1900) Nagan, which was in service and produced in a number of countries in the late 19th - mid-20th centuries.
TK(Tula, Korovina) - the first Soviet serial self-loading pistol. In 1925, the Dynamo sports society ordered the Tula Arms Plant to develop compact pistol chambered for 6.35×15 mm Browning for sporting and civilian needs.
Work on creating the pistol took place at the Tula design bureau arms factory. In the fall of 1926, gunsmith designer S.A. Korovin completed the development of a pistol, which was named the TK pistol (Tula Korovin).
At the end of 1926, TOZ began producing a pistol, next year the pistol was approved for use, having received official name“Tula pistol, Korovin, model 1926.”
TK pistols entered service with the NKVD of the USSR, middle and senior command staff of the Red Army, civil servants and party workers.
TC was also used as a gift or award weapons(for example, there are known cases of Stakhanovites being awarded it). Between the autumn of 1926 and 1935, several tens of thousands of Korovins were produced. In the period after the Great Patriotic War TK pistols were kept in savings banks for some time as a backup weapon for employees and cash collectors.
Pistol arr. 1933 TT(Tula, Tokarev) - the first army self-loading pistol of the USSR, developed in 1930 by Soviet designer Fedor Vasilyevich Tokarev. The TT pistol was developed for the 1929 competition for a new army pistol, announced with the aim of replacing the revolver and several models of revolvers and pistols foreign production, which were in service with the Red Army by the mid-1920s. The German 7.63×25 mm Mauser cartridge was adopted as a standard cartridge, which was purchased in significant quantities for the Mauser S-96 pistols in service.
Mosin rifle. 7.62 mm (3-line) rifle model 1891 (Mosin rifle, three-line) - a repeating rifle adopted by the Russian Imperial Army in 1891.
It was actively used in the period from 1891 to the end of the Great Patriotic War, and was modernized many times during this period.
The name three-ruler comes from the caliber of the rifle barrel, which is equal to three Russian lines (the old measure of length was equal to one tenth of an inch, or 2.54 mm - respectively, three lines are equal to 7.62 mm).
Based on the 1891 model rifle and its modifications, a number of sporting and hunting weapons, both rifled and smoothbore.
Simonov automatic rifle. The 7.62 mm automatic rifle of the Simonov system, model 1936, ABC-36 is a Soviet automatic rifle developed by gunsmith Sergei Simonov.
Initially developed as a self-loading rifle, but during improvements an automatic fire mode was added for use in emergency situation. The first automatic rifle developed in the USSR and put into service.
Tokarev self-loading rifle. 7.62-mm self-loading rifles of the Tokarev system of the 1938 and 1940 models (SVT-38, SVT-40), as well as the Tokarev automatic rifle of the 1940 model - a modification of the Soviet self-loading rifle developed by F.V. Tokarev.
SVT-38 was developed as a replacement automatic rifle Simonov and on February 26, 1939 adopted by the Red Army. First SVT arr. 1938 was released on July 16, 1939. On October 1, 1939, gross production began at the Tula, and from 1940 - at the Izhevsk arms plant.
Simonov self-loading carbine. 7.62 mm self-loading carbine Simonov (also known abroad as SKS-45) is a Soviet self-loading carbine designed by Sergei Simonov, adopted for service in 1949.
The first copies began to arrive in active units at the beginning of 1945 - this was the only case of the use of the 7.62x39 mm cartridge in World War II
Tokarev submachine gun, or original name-light Tokarev carbine - created in 1927 experimental sample automatic weapons under modified revolver cartridge Nagana, the first submachine gun developed in the USSR. It was not adopted for service; it was produced in a small experimental batch and was used to a limited extent in the Great Patriotic War.
P Degtyarev submachine gun. 7.62 mm submachine guns of the 1934, 1934/38 and 1940 models of the Degtyarev system - various modifications a submachine gun developed by Soviet gunsmith Vasily Degtyarev in the early 1930s. The first submachine gun adopted by the Red Army.
The Degtyarev submachine gun was a fairly typical representative of the first generation of this type of weapon. Used in the Finnish campaign of 1939-40, as well as in initial stage Great Patriotic War.
Shpagin submachine gun. 7.62 mm submachine gun model 1941 of the Shpagin system (PPSh) - Soviet submachine gun, developed in 1940 by designer G.S. Shpagin and adopted by the Red Army on December 21, 1940. The PPSh was the main submachine gun of the Soviet armed forces in the Great Patriotic War.
After the end of the war, in the early 1950s, the PPSh was removed from service with the Soviet Army and gradually replaced by the Kalashnikov assault rifle; for a little longer it remained in service with rear and auxiliary units and units internal troops And railway troops. It was in service with paramilitary security units at least until the mid-1980s.
Also in post-war period PPSh was supplied in significant quantities to countries friendly to the USSR, long time was in service with the armies of various states, was used by irregular forces and was used in military operations throughout the twentieth century. armed conflicts Worldwide.
Sudaev's submachine gun. 7.62 mm submachine guns of the 1942 and 1943 models of the Sudaev system (PPS) are variants of the submachine gun developed by the Soviet designer Alexei Sudaev in 1942. Used Soviet troops during the Great Patriotic War.
The PPS is often considered the best submachine gun of World War II.
P machine gun "Maxim" model 1910. Machine gun "Maxim" model 1910 - with tank machine gun, a variant of the British Maxim machine gun, widely used by Russian and Soviet armies during the First World War and the Second World War. The Maxim machine gun was used to destroy open group targets and enemy fire weapons at a distance of up to 1000 m.
Anti-aircraft variant
- 7.62 mm quad machine gun "Maxim" on anti-aircraft installation U-431
- 7.62-mm coaxial machine gun "Maxim" on the U-432 anti-aircraft gun
P machine gun Maxim-Tokarev- Soviet light machine gun designed by F.V. Tokarev, created in 1924 based on the Maxim machine gun.
DP(Degtyarev Infantry) - a light machine gun developed by V. A. Degtyarev. First ten serial machine guns The DPs were manufactured at the Kovrov plant on November 12, 1927, then a batch of 100 machine guns was sent for military testing, as a result of which on December 21, 1927, the machine gun was adopted by the Red Army. DP became one of the first samples small arms created in the USSR. The machine gun was widely used as the main fire support weapon for infantry at the platoon-company level until the end of the Great Patriotic War.
DT(Degtyarev tank) - a tank machine gun developed by V. A. Degtyarev in 1929. Entered service with the Red Army in 1929 under the designation “7.62-mm tank machine gun of the Degtyarev system mod. 1929" (DT-29)
DS-39(7.62 mm Degtyarev heavy machine gun, model 1939).
SG-43. The 7.62 mm Goryunov machine gun (SG-43) is a Soviet heavy machine gun. It was developed by gunsmith P. M. Goryunov with the participation of M. M. Goryunov and V. E. Voronkov at the Kovrov Mechanical Plant. Entered service on May 15, 1943. The SG-43 began to enter service with the troops in the second half of 1943.
DShK And DShKM- large-caliber heavy machine guns chambered for 12.7×108 mm. The result of modernization of the large-caliber heavy machine gun DK (Degtyarev Large-caliber). The DShK was adopted by the Red Army in 1938 under the designation “12.7 mm Degtyarev-Shpagin heavy machine gun model 1938”
In 1946, under the designation DShKM(Degtyarev, Shpagin, large-caliber modernized) machine gun was adopted by the Soviet Army.
PTRD. Anti-tank single-shot rifle mod. 1941 Degtyarev system, adopted for service on August 29, 1941. It was intended to combat medium and light tanks and armored vehicles at distances of up to 500 m. The gun could also fire at pillboxes/bunkers and firing points covered by armor at distances up to 800 m and at aircraft at distances up to 500 m.
PTRS. Anti-tank self-loading gun arr. 1941 Simonov system) is a Soviet self-loading anti-tank rifle, adopted for service on August 29, 1941. It was intended to combat medium and light tanks and armored vehicles at distances of up to 500 m. The gun could also fire at pillboxes/bunkers and firing points covered by armor at distances up to 800 m and at aircraft at distances up to 500 m. During the war some of the guns were captured and used by the Germans. The guns were named Panzerbüchse 784 (R) or PzB 784 (R).
Dyakonov grenade launcher. The Dyakonov system rifle grenade launcher is designed to use fragmentation grenades to destroy living, mostly hidden, targets that are inaccessible to flat fire weapons.
Widely used in pre-war conflicts, during the Soviet-Finnish War and at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War. According to the staff of the rifle regiment in 1939, each rifle squad was armed with rifle grenade launcher Dyakonov systems. In documents of that time it was called hand mortar for throwing rifle grenades.
125-mm ampoule gun model 1941- the only ampoule gun model mass-produced in the USSR. Widely used since with varying success by the Red Army at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War, it was often made in semi-handicraft conditions.
The projectile most often used was a glass or tin ball filled with flammable liquid"KS", but the range of ammunition included mines, smoke bombs and even homemade "propaganda shells". Using idle rifle cartridge A 12-gauge projectile was fired at 250-500 meters, thereby being effective means against some fortifications and many types of armored vehicles, including tanks. However, difficulties in use and maintenance led to the ampoule gun being withdrawn from service in 1942.
ROKS-3(Klyuev-Sergeev Backpack Flamethrower) - Soviet infantry backpack flamethrower from the Great Patriotic War. The first model of the ROKS-1 backpack flamethrower was developed in the USSR in the early 1930s. At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the rifle regiments of the Red Army had flamethrower teams consisting of two sections, armed with 20 ROKS-2 backpack flamethrowers. Based on the experience of using these flamethrowers at the beginning of 1942, the designer of the Chemical Engineering Research Institute M.P. Sergeev and designer of military plant No. 846 V.N. Klyuev developed a more advanced backpack flamethrower ROKS-3, which was in service individual mouth and battalions of backpack flamethrowers of the Red Army throughout the war.
Bottles with a flammable mixture ("Molotov cocktail").
At the beginning of the war State Committee The defense decided to use combustible bottles in the fight against tanks. Already on July 7, 1941, the State Defense Committee adopted a special resolution “On anti-tank incendiary grenades (bottles)”, which obliged the People’s Commissariat of the Food Industry to organize, from July 10, 1941, the equipment of liter glass bottles fire mixture according to the recipe of Research Institute 6 of the People's Commissariat of Ammunition. And the head of the Military Chemical Defense Directorate of the Red Army (later the Main Military Chemical Directorate) was ordered to begin “supplying military units with hand incendiary grenades” from July 14.
Dozens of distilleries and beer factories throughout the USSR quickly turned into military enterprises. Moreover, the “Molotov Cocktail” (named after the then deputy of I.V. Stalin for the State Committee for Defense) was prepared directly on the old factory lines, where just yesterday they bottled citre, port wines and fizzy “Abrau-Durso”. From the first batches of such bottles, they often did not even have time to remove the “peaceful” alcohol labels. In addition to the liter bottles specified in the legendary Molotov decree, the “cocktail” was also made in beer and wine-cognac containers with a volume of 0.5 and 0.7 liters.
Two types of incendiary bottles were adopted by the Red Army: with self-igniting liquid KS (a mixture of phosphorus and sulfur) and with flammable mixtures No. 1 and No. 3, which are a mixture of aviation gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, thickened with oils or a special hardening powder OP- 2, developed in 1939 under the leadership of A.P. Ionov, - in fact, it was the prototype of modern napalm. The abbreviation “KS” is deciphered in different ways: “Koshkin mixture” - after the name of the inventor N.V. Koshkin, and “Old Cognac”, and “Kachugin-Maltovnik” - after the name of other inventors of liquid grenades.
A bottle with self-igniting liquid KS, falling on a solid body, broke, the liquid spilled and burned with a bright flame for up to 3 minutes, developing a temperature of up to 1000°C. At the same time, being sticky, it stuck to the armor or covered inspection slits, glass, and observation devices, blinded the crew with smoke, smoking them out of the tank and burning everything inside the tank. A drop of burning liquid falling on the body caused severe, difficult to heal burns.
Combustible mixtures No. 1 and No. 3 burned for up to 60 seconds with temperatures up to 800 ° C and emitting a lot of black smoke. Gasoline bottles were used as a cheaper option, and incendiary Thin glass ampoules-tubes with CS liquid served, which were attached to the bottle using apothecary rubber bands. Sometimes ampoules were placed inside bottles before throwing.
Used bulletproof vest PZ-ZIF-20(protective shell, Frunze Plant). It is also CH-38 Cuirass type (CH-1, steel breastplate). It can be called the first mass-produced Soviet body armor, although it was called a steel breastplate, which does not change its purpose.
The body armor provided protection against German submachine guns and pistols. The body armor also provided protection against fragments of grenades and mines. Bulletproof vests were recommended to be worn by assault groups, signalmen (during the laying and repair of cables) and when performing other operations at the discretion of the commander.
Information often comes across that the PZ-ZIF-20 is not the SP-38 (SN-1) body armor, which is incorrect, since the PZ-ZIF-20 was created according to documentation from 1938, and industrial production was established in 1943. The second point is that appearance are 100% similar. Among the military search teams it is called “Volkhovsky”, “Leningradsky”, “five-sectional”.
Photos of reconstruction:
Steel bibs CH-42
Soviet assault engineer-sapper guards brigade wearing SN-42 steel breastplates and DP-27 machine guns. 1st ShISBr. 1st Belorussian Front, summer 1944
ROG-43 hand grenade
The ROG-43 (index 57-G-722) remote-action fragmentation hand grenade is designed to destroy enemy personnel in offensive and defensive battle. New grenade was developed in the first half of the Great Patriotic War at the plant named after. Kalinin and had the factory designation RGK-42. After being put into service in 1943, the grenade received the designation ROG-43.
RDG hand smoke grenade.
RDG device
Smoke grenades were used to provide screens measuring 8 - 10 m and were used mainly to “blind” the enemy located in shelters, to create local screens to camouflage crews leaving armored vehicles, as well as to simulate the burning of armored vehicles. Under favorable conditions, one RDG grenade created an invisible cloud 25 - 30 m long.
Burning grenades did not sink in water, so they could be used when crossing water barriers. The grenade could smoke from 1 to 1.5 minutes, producing, depending on the composition of the smoke mixture, thick gray-black or white smoke.
RPG-6 grenade.
The RPG-6 exploded instantly upon impact with a hard barrier, destroyed armor, hit the crew of an armored target, its weapons and equipment, and could also ignite fuel and explode ammunition. Military trials The RPG-6 grenade took place in September 1943. The captured Ferdinand assault gun, which had frontal armor of up to 200 mm and side armor of up to 85 mm, was used as a target. Tests showed that the RPG-6 grenade, when the head part hit the target, could penetrate armor up to 120 mm.
Manual anti-tank grenade arr. 1943 RPG-43
RPG-41 impact hand anti-tank grenade, model 1941
RPG-41 was intended to combat armored vehicles and light tanks, having armor up to 20 - 25 mm thick, and could also be used to combat bunkers and field-type shelters. The RPG-41 could also be used to destroy medium and heavy tanks when hit vulnerabilities vehicles (roof, tracks, chassis and etc.)
Chemical grenade model 1917
According to the “Temporary Rifle Regulations of the Red Army. Part 1. Small arms. Rifle and hand grenades”, published by the head of the People's Commissariat of Military Commissariat and the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR in 1927, the hand chemical grenade mod. 1917 from the reserve stockpiled during the First World War.
VKG-40 grenade
In the 1920s-1930s, the Red Army was armed with the muzzle-loading “Dyakonov grenade launcher,” created at the end of the First World War and subsequently modernized.
The grenade launcher consisted of a mortar, a bipod and a quadrant sight and was used to destroy manpower with a fragmentation grenade. The mortar barrel had a caliber of 41 mm, three screw grooves, and was rigidly attached to a cup that was screwed onto the neck, which was put on the rifle barrel, fixed on the front sight with a cutout.
RG-42 hand grenade
RG-42 model 1942 with UZRG fuse. After being put into service, the grenade was given the index RG-42 (hand grenade of 1942). The new UZRG fuse used in the grenade has become the same for both the RG-42 and the F-1.
The RG-42 grenade was used both offensively and defensively. In appearance, it resembled an RGD-33 grenade, only without a handle. RG-42 with a UZRG fuse belonged to the type of fragmentation offensive grenades remote action. It was intended to defeat enemy personnel.
Rifle anti-tank grenade VPGS-41
VPGS-41 when used
A characteristic distinguishing feature of ramrod grenades was the presence of a “tail” (ramrod), inserted into the bore of the rifle and serving as a stabilizer. The grenade was fired with a blank cartridge.
Soviet hand grenade mod. 1914/30 with protective cover
Soviet hand grenade mod. 1914/30 refers to double-type anti-personnel fragmentation hand grenades. This means that it is designed to destroy enemy personnel with hull fragments when it explodes. Remote action means that the grenade will explode after a certain period of time, regardless of other conditions, after the soldier releases it from his hands.
Double type - means that the grenade can be used as an offensive one, i.e. grenade fragments have a small mass and fly at a distance shorter than the possible throwing range; or as a defensive one, i.e. fragments fly to a distance exceeding the throwing range.
The double action of the grenade is achieved by putting a so-called “shirt” on the grenade - a cover made of thick metal, which provides fragments during an explosion greater mass flying over a greater distance.
RGD-33 hand grenade
An explosive charge is placed inside the case - up to 140 grams of TNT. A steel tape with a square notch is placed between the explosive charge and the body to produce fragments during an explosion, rolled into three or four layers.
The grenade was equipped with a defensive case, which was used only when throwing a grenade from a trench or shelter. In other cases, the protective cover was removed.
And of course, F-1 grenade
Initially, the F-1 grenade used a fuse designed by F.V. Koveshnikov, which was much more reliable and easier to use than the French fuse. The deceleration time of Koveshnikov's fuse was 3.5-4.5 seconds.
In 1941, designers E.M. Viceni and A.A. Poednyakov developed and put into service to replace Koveshnikov's fuse a new, safer and simpler in design fuse for the F-1 hand grenade.
In 1942, the new fuse became common for the F-1 and RG-42 hand grenades; it was called UZRG - “unified fuse for hand grenades.”
* * *
After the above, it cannot be said that only rusty three-ruler rifles without cartridges were in service.
About chemical weapon during the Second World War, a separate and special conversation...
Fifty great feats of Soviet soldiers, worthy of memory and admiration...
1) Only 30 minutes were allocated by the Wehrmacht command to suppress the resistance of the border guards. However, the 13th outpost under the command of A. Lopatin fought for more than 10 days and the Brest Fortress for more than a month.
2) At 4:25 a.m. on June 22, 1941, pilot Senior Lieutenant I. Ivanov carried out an air ram. This was the first feat during the war; awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
3) The first counterattack was carried out by border guards and units of the Red Army on June 23. They liberated the city of Przemysl, and two groups of border guards broke into Zasanje (Polish territory occupied by Germany), where they destroyed the headquarters German division and the Gestapo, released many prisoners.
4) During hard battles with enemy tanks and assault guns, the gunner of the 76 mm gun of the 636th anti-tank artillery regiment, Alexander Serov, destroyed 18 tanks and assault guns fascists. The relatives received two funerals, but the brave warrior remained alive. Recently, the veteran was awarded the title of Hero of Russia.
5) On the night of August 8, 1941, a group of Baltic Fleet bombers under the command of Colonel E. Preobrazhensky carried out the first air raid on Berlin. Such raids continued until September 4th.
6) Tank ace Lieutenant Dmitry Lavrinenko from the 4th Tank Brigade is rightfully considered number one. During three months of fighting in September-November 1941, he destroyed 52 enemy tanks in 28 battles. Unfortunately, the brave tankman died in November 1941 near Moscow.
7) The most unique record of the Great Patriotic War was set by the crew of senior lieutenant Zinovy Kolobanov on the KV tank from the 1st Tank Division. In 3 hours of battle in the area of the Voyskovitsy state farm (Leningrad region), he destroyed 22 enemy tanks.
8) In the battle for Zhitomir in the area of the Nizhnekumsky farm on December 31, 1943, the crew of junior lieutenant Ivan Golub (13th Guards. tank brigade 4th Guards tank corps.) destroyed 5 "tigers", 2 "panthers", 5 guns of hundreds of fascists.
9) The crew of an anti-tank gun consisting of senior sergeant R. Sinyavsky and corporal A. Mukozobov (542nd rifle regiment 161st infantry division) in battles near Minsk from June 22 to 26 destroyed 17 enemy tanks and assault guns. For this feat, the soldiers were awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
10) Crew of the gun of the 197th Guards. regiment of the 92nd Guards rifle division (152 mm howitzer) consisting of the brothers of the Guard Senior Sergeant Dmitry Lukanin and the Guard Sergeant Yakov Lukanin from October 1943 until the end of the war, destroyed 37 tanks and armored personnel carriers and more than 600 enemy soldiers and officers. For the battle near the village of Kaluzhino, Dnepropetrovsk region, the fighters were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Now their 152-mm howitzer gun is installed in the Military Historical Museum of Artillery, engineering troops and signal troops.
(Saint Petersburg). 11) The commander of the 37 mm gun crew of the 93rd separate anti-aircraft gunner is rightfully considered the most effective anti-aircraft ace artillery battalion
Sergeant Peter Petrov. In June-September 1942, his crew destroyed 20 enemy aircraft. The crew under the command of a senior sergeant (632nd anti-aircraft artillery regiment) destroyed 18 enemy aircraft.
12) In two years, the calculation of a 37 mm gun of the 75th Guards. army anti-aircraft artillery regiment under the command of Guards.
Petty Officer Nikolai Botsman destroyed 15 enemy aircraft. The latter were shot down in the sky over Berlin. 13) Gunner of the 1st Baltic Front Klavdiya Barkhotkina hit 12 enemy air targets. 14) The most effective of the Soviet boat crews was Lieutenant Commander Alexander Shabalin (Northern Fleet), he led the destruction of 32 enemy warships and transports (as a boat, flight and detachment commander
torpedo boats
16) At the height of the battles on the Kursk Bulge on July 7, 1943, machine gunner of the 1019th regiment, senior sergeant Yakov Studennikov, alone (the rest of his crew died) fought for two days. Having been wounded, he managed to repel 10 Nazi attacks and destroyed more than 300 Nazis. For his accomplished feat, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
17) About the feat of the soldiers of the 316th SD. (divisional commander, Major General I. Panfilov) at the well-known Dubosekovo crossing on November 16, 1941, 28 tank destroyers met the attack of 50 tanks, of which 18 were destroyed. Hundreds of enemy soldiers met their end at Dubosekovo. But few people know about the feat of the soldiers of the 1378th regiment of the 87th division. On December 17, 1942, in the area of the village of Verkhne-Kumskoye, soldiers of the company of senior lieutenant Nikolai Naumov with two crews anti-tank rifles
During the defense of a height of 1372 m, they repelled 3 attacks by enemy tanks and infantry. The next day there were several more attacks. All 24 soldiers died defending the heights, but the enemy lost 18 tanks and hundreds of infantrymen.
18) In the battle of Stalingrad on September 1, 1943, machine gunner Sergeant Khanpasha Nuradilov destroyed 920 fascists.
19) In the Battle of Stalingrad, in one battle on December 21, 1942, Marine I. Kaplunov knocked out 9 enemy tanks. He knocked out 5 and, being seriously wounded, disabled 4 more tanks. 20) On days Battle of Kursk
July 6, 1943 Guard pilot Lieutenant A. Horovets took part in battle with 20 enemy aircraft, and shot down 9 of them.
21) The crew of the submarine under the command of P. Grishchenko sunk 19 enemy ships, moreover, in the initial period of the war. 22) Pilot Northern Fleet
B. Safonov from June 1941 to May 1942 shot down 30 enemy aircraft and became the first twice Hero of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War.
23) During the defense of Leningrad, sniper F. Dyachenko destroyed 425 Nazis.
24) The first Decree on conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union during the war was adopted by the Presidium of the USSR Armed Forces on July 8, 1941. It was awarded to pilots M. Zhukov, S. Zdorovets, P. Kharitonov for air ramming in the sky of Leningrad.
25) The famous pilot I. Kozhedub received the third Gold Star - at the age of 25, artilleryman A. Shilin received the second Gold Star - at the age of 20.
27) The heroes of the Soviet Union were pilots brothers Boris and Dmitry Glinka (Dmitry later became a twice Hero), tankers Evsei and Matvey Vainruba, partisans Evgeniy and Gennady Ignatov, pilots Tamara and Vladimir Konstantinov, Zoya and Alexander Kosmodemyansky, brothers pilots Sergei and Alexander Kurzenkov, brothers Alexander and Pyotr Lizyukov, twin brothers Dmitry and Yakov Lukanin, brothers Nikolai and Mikhail Panichkin.
28) More than 300 Soviet soldiers covered the enemy's embrasures with their bodies, about 500 aviators used an air ram in battle, over 300 crews sent downed planes to concentrations of enemy troops.
29) During the war, more than 6,200 operated behind enemy lines partisan detachments and underground groups, in which there were over 1,000,000 people's avengers.
30) During the war years, 5,300,000 orders and 7,580,000 medals were awarded.
31) B active army There were about 600,000 women, more than 150,000 of them were awarded orders and medals, 86 were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
32) 10,900 times regiments and divisions were awarded the Order of the USSR, 29 units and formations have 5 or more awards.
33) During the Great Patriotic War, 41,000 people were awarded the Order of Lenin, of which 36,000 were awarded for military exploits. More than 200 military units and formations were awarded the Order of Lenin.
34) More than 300,000 people were awarded the Order of the Red Banner during the war.
35) For exploits during the Great Patriotic War, more than 2,860,000 awards were made with the Order of the Red Star.
36) The Order of Suvorov 1st degree was first awarded to G. Zhukov, the Order of Suvorov 2nd degree No. 1 was awarded to Major General tank troops V. Badanov.
37) The Order of Kutuzov, 1st degree No. 1, was awarded to Lieutenant General N. Galanin, the Order of Bohdan Khmelnitsky, 1st degree No. 1, was awarded to General A. Danilo.
38) During the war years, 340 were awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st degree, 2nd degree - 2100, 3rd degree - 300, Order of Ushakov 1st degree - 30, 2nd degree - 180, Order of Kutuzov 1st degree - 570, 2nd degree - 2570, 3rd degree - 2200, Order of Nakhimov 1st degree - 70, 2nd degree - 350, Order of Bohdan Khmelnitsky 1st degree - 200, 2nd degree - 1450 , 3rd degree - 5400, Order of Alexander Nevsky - 40,000.
39) The Order of the Great Patriotic War, 1st degree No. 1, was awarded to the family of the deceased senior political instructor V. Konyukhov.
40) The Order of the Great War, 2nd degree, was awarded to the parents of the deceased senior lieutenant P. Razhkin.
41) N. Petrov received six Orders of the Red Banner during the Great Patriotic War.
The feat of N. Yanenkov and D. Panchuk was awarded with four Orders of the Patriotic War. Six Orders of the Red Star awarded the merits of I. Panchenko.
42) The Order of Glory, 1st degree No. 1, was received by Sergeant Major N. Zalyotov.
43) 2,577 people became full holders of the Order of Glory. After the soldiers, 8 full holders of the Order of Glory became Heroes of Socialist Labor.
44) During the war years, about 980,000 people were awarded the Order of Glory, 3rd degree, and more than 46,000 people, 2nd and 1st degrees.
45) Only 4 people - Heroes of the Soviet Union - are full holders of the Order of Glory. These are guard artillerymen senior sergeants A. Aleshin and N. Kuznetsov, infantryman foreman P. Dubina, pilot senior lieutenant I. Drachenko, who lived in Kyiv in the last years of his life. 46) During the Great Patriotic War, more than 4,000,000 people were awarded the medal "For Courage", "For" - 3 320 000.
military merits
47) The military feat of intelligence officer V. Breev was awarded with six medals “For Courage”.
48) The youngest of those awarded the medal “For Military Merit” is six-year-old Seryozha Aleshkov.
49) The medal “Partisan of the Great Patriotic War”, 1st degree, was awarded to more than 56,000 people, 2nd degree - about 71,000 people.
50) 185,000 people were awarded orders and medals for their feats behind enemy lines.
***
Law and duty No. 5, 2011
- Heroes of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945): Fifty facts: the exploits of Soviet soldiers during the Great Patriotic War
- - Law and duty 5 myths about the beginning of the war from military historian Alexei Isaev
- - Thomas Pobeda or Pobeda: how we fought
- - Sergey Fedosov - The Red Army through the eyes of the Wehrmacht: confrontation of spirit Eurasian Union
- Youth Otto Skorzeny: "Why didn't we take Moscow?"
- - Oles Buzina In the first air battle - don't touch anything
- . How aircraft gunners were trained and how they fought - Maxim Krupinov Saboteurs from a rural school
- - Vladimir Tikhomirov An Ossetian shepherd killed 108 Germans in one battle at the age of 23
- - Cont Mad warrior Jack Churchill
- Wikipedia The topics of the history of the Great Patriotic War are multifaceted. Long years the war was described from the point of view of political leadership, the state of the fronts in relation to “manpower” and equipment. Role during the war it was illuminated as part of a giant mechanism. Particular attention was paid to the ability of the Soviet soldier to carry out the order of the commander at any cost, and the readiness to die for the Motherland. The established image of war was questioned during the Khrushchev “thaw”. It was then that the memoirs of war participants, notes of war correspondents, front-line letters, diaries began to be published - sources that are least susceptible to influence. They raised “difficult topics” and revealed “blank spots”. The theme of man in war came to the fore. Since this topic is vast and diverse, it is not possible to cover it in one article.
Based on front-line letters, memoirs, diary entries, as well as unpublished sources, the authors will still try to highlight some of the problems of front-line life during the Patriotic War of 1941-1945. How the soldier lived at the front, in what conditions he fought, how he was dressed, what he ate, what he did in the short breaks between battles - all these questions are important, it is the solution of these everyday problems victory over the enemy was largely ensured. At the initial stage of the war, soldiers wore a tunic with a fold-down collar, with special pads at the elbows. Usually these covers were made of tarpaulin. The gymnast was worn with pants that had the same canvas linings around the knees. On the feet there are boots and windings. It was they who were the main grief of the soldiers, especially the infantry, since it was this branch of the army that served in them. They were uncomfortable, flimsy and heavy. This type of shoe was driven by cost savings. After the publication of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939, the USSR army increased to 5.5 million people in two years. It was impossible to put boots on everyone.
They saved on leather, boots were made from the same tarpaulin 2. Until 1943, an indispensable attribute of an infantryman was a roll over the left shoulder. This is an overcoat that was rolled up for mobility and put on so that the soldier did not experience any discomfort when shooting. In other cases, the roll-up caused a lot of trouble. If in the summer during the transition the infantry attacked German aviation, then because of the slope the soldiers were visible on the ground. Because of it, it was impossible to quickly escape to a field or shelter. And in the trench they simply threw it under their feet - it would have been impossible to turn around with it. The soldiers of the Red Army had three types of uniforms: everyday, guard and weekend, each of which had two options - summer and winter. Between 1935 and 1941, numerous minor changes were made to the clothing of the Red Army soldiers.
The field uniform of the 1935 model was made from fabric of various shades of khaki color. The main distinguishing element was the tunic, which in its cut, the same for soldiers and soldiers, resembled a Russian peasant shirt. There were also summer and winter gymnasts. Summer uniforms were made from cotton fabric more than light color, and the winter one - from woolen fabric, which was more saturated, dark color. The officers wore a wide leather belt with a brass buckle decorated with a five-pointed star. The soldiers wore a simpler belt with an open buckle. IN field conditions soldiers and officers could wear two types of gymnasts: everyday and weekend. The weekend tunic was often called a French jacket. The second main element of the uniform was trousers, also called breeches. Soldiers' trousers had diamond-shaped reinforcing stripes on the knees. For footwear, officers wore high leather boots, and soldiers wore boots with windings or tarpaulin boots. In winter, military personnel wore an overcoat made of brownish-gray cloth. Soldiers' and officers' overcoats, identical in cut, nevertheless differed in quality. The Red Army used several types of hats. Most units wore budenovki, which had a winter and summer version. However, at the end of the 30s, summer Budenovka
was everywhere replaced by the cap. Officers wore caps in the summer. In units stationed in Central Asia and in the Far East, wide-brimmed Panama hats were worn instead of caps. In 1936, a new type of helmet began to be supplied to the Red Army. In 1940, noticeable changes were made to the design of the helmet. Officers everywhere wore caps; the cap was an attribute of officer power. Tankers wore a special helmet made of leather or canvas. In summer we used more easy option helmet, and in winter they wore a fur-lined helmet. The equipment of Soviet soldiers was strict and simple. A canvas duffel bag, model 1938, was common. However, not everyone had real duffel bags, so after the war began, many soldiers threw away gas masks and used gas mask bags as duffel bags. According to the regulations, every soldier armed with a rifle was required to have two leather cartridge bags. The bag could store four clips for a Mosin rifle - 20 rounds. Cartridge bags were worn on the waist belt, one on each side.
The officers used a small bag, which was made of either leather or canvas. There were several types of these bags, some of them were worn over the shoulder, some were hung from the waist belt. On top of the bag was a small tablet. Some officers carried large leather tablets that were hung from the waist belt under their left arm. In 1943, the Red Army adopted a new uniform, radically different from that used until then. The system of insignia has also changed. The new tunic was very similar to the one used in the tsarist army and had a stand-up collar fastened with two buttons. The main distinguishing feature of the new uniform was the shoulder straps. There were two types of shoulder straps: field and everyday. Field shoulder straps were made of khaki-colored fabric. On the shoulder straps near the button they wore a small gold or silver badge indicating the branch of the military. Officers wore a cap with a black leather chinstrap. The color of the band on the cap depended on the type of troops. In winter, generals and colonels of the Red Army had to wear hats, and the rest of the officers received ordinary earflaps. The rank of sergeants and foremen was determined by the number and width of the stripes on their shoulder straps.
The edging of the shoulder straps had the colors of the branch of the military. Among the small arms in the first years of the war, the legendary “three-line rifle”, the three-line Mosin rifle of the 1891 model, enjoyed great respect and love among the soldiers. Many soldiers gave them names and considered the rifle a real comrade in arms that never failed in difficult battle conditions. But, for example, the SVT-40 rifle was not liked because of its capriciousness and strong recoil. Interesting information about the life and everyday life of soldiers contain such sources of information as memoirs, front-line diaries and letters, which are least susceptible to ideological influence. For example, it was traditionally believed that soldiers lived in dugouts and pillboxes. This is not entirely true, most of the soldiers were located in trenches, trenches or simply in the nearest forest without regretting it at all. It was always very cold in pillboxes; at that time there were no systems yet autonomous heating and autonomous gas supply, which we now use, for example, to heat a dacha, and therefore the soldiers preferred to spend the night in the trenches, throwing branches at the bottom and stretching a raincoat on top.
The food for the soldiers was simple: “Soup soup and porridge is our food” - this proverb accurately characterizes the rations of soldiers’ kettles in the first months of the war and, of course, best friend soldier's biscuit, favorite treat especially in field conditions, for example on a combat march. It is also impossible to imagine a soldier’s life during short periods of rest without the music of songs and books that gave birth to good mood and lifting spirits. But still the most important role The psychology of the Russian soldier, who was able to cope with any everyday difficulties, overcome fear, survive and win, played a role in the victory over fascism. During the war, the treatment of patients consisted of the use of various ointments; the Demyanovich method was also widespread, according to which naked patients rubbed a hyposulfite solution and then hydrochloric acid into the body - from top to bottom.
In this case, pressure is felt on the skin, similar to rubbing with wet sand. After treatment, the patient may feel itching for another 3-5 days, as a reaction to killed mites. At the same time, many war fighters managed to get sick from these diseases dozens of times. In general, washing in the bathhouse and undergoing sanitary treatment, both the “old men” and the reinforcements arriving at the unit, took place mainly while in the second echelon, that is, without directly participating in the battles. Moreover, washing in the bathhouse was most often timed to coincide with spring and autumn. In the summer, soldiers had the opportunity to swim in rivers, streams, and collect rainwater. In winter, it was not always possible not only to find a ready-made bathhouse built local population, but also to build it ourselves - temporary. When one of the Smershev heroes famous novel Bogomolov’s “Moment of Truth (In August 1944)” pours out just prepared stew before an unexpected move to another place - this is a typical case of front-line life. Redeployments of units were sometimes so frequent that not only military fortifications, but also domestic premises were often abandoned soon after their construction. The Germans washed in the bathhouse in the morning, the Magyars in the afternoon, and ours in the evening. Soldier's life can be divided into several categories related to where this or that part was located. The greatest hardships befell the people on the front line; there was no usual washing, shaving, breakfast, lunch or dinner.
There is a common cliche: they say, war is war, and lunch is on schedule. In fact, there was no such routine, much less any menu. It must be said that then a decision was made to prevent the enemy from seizing the collective farm livestock. They tried to get him out, and where possible they handed him over military units. The situation near Moscow in the winter of 1941-1942 was completely different, when there were forty-degree frosts. There was no talk of any dinner then. The soldiers then advanced, then retreated, regrouped forces, and as such trench warfare there was none, which means it was impossible to even somehow arrange life. Usually once a day the foreman brought a thermos with gruel, which was simply called “food.” If this happened in the evening, then there was dinner, and in the afternoon, which happened extremely rarely, lunch. They cooked what they had enough food for, somewhere nearby, so that the enemy could not see the kitchen smoke. And they measured each soldier a ladle into a pot. A loaf of bread was cut with a two-handed saw, because in the cold it turned into ice. The soldiers hid their “rations” under their overcoats to keep them warm at least a little. Each soldier at that time had a spoon behind the top of his boot, as we called it, an “entrenching tool,” an aluminum stamping.
She not only played a role cutlery, but also was a kind of " business card" The explanation for this is this: there was a belief that if you carry a soldier’s medallion in your trouser pocket-piston: a small black plastic pencil case, which should contain a note with data (last name, first name, patronymic, year of birth, where you were called up from), then you will definitely be killed. Therefore, most fighters simply did not fill out this sheet, and some even threw away the medallion itself. But they scratched out all their data on a spoon. And therefore, even now, when search engines find the remains of soldiers who died during the Great Patriotic War, their names are determined precisely from the spoons. During the offensive, they were given dry rations of crackers or biscuits, canned food, but they really appeared in the diet when the Americans announced their entry into the war and began to provide Soviet Union help.
The dream of any soldier, by the way, was fragrant overseas sausages in jars. Alcohol was only available at the front line. How did this happen? The foreman arrived with a can, and in it was some kind of cloudy liquid of a light coffee color. A pot was poured onto the compartment, and then each was measured with the cap of a 76-mm projectile: it was unscrewed before firing, releasing the fuse. Whether it was 100 or 50 grams and what strength, no one knew. He drank, “bit” his sleeve, that’s all the “drunkenness.” In addition, from the rear of the front, this alcohol-containing liquid reached the front line through many, as they now say, intermediaries, so both its volume and “degrees” decreased. Movies often show that military unit is located in a village where living conditions are more or less human: you can wash yourself, even go to the bathhouse, sleep on a bed... But this could only happen in relation to headquarters located at some distance from the front line.
But at the very front, the conditions were completely different and extremely harsh. The Soviet brigades formed in Siberia had good equipment: felt boots, regular and flannel foot wraps, thin and warm underwear, cotton trousers, as well as cotton pants, a tunic, a quilted padded jacket, an overcoat, a balaclava, a winter hat and mittens made of dog fur. A person can endure even the most extreme conditions. Soldiers slept, most often, in the forest: you cut spruce branches, make a bed out of them, cover yourself with these paws on top, and lie down for the night. Of course, frostbite also occurred. In our army, they were taken to the rear only when there was almost nothing left of the unit except its number, banner and a handful of fighters. Then the formations and units were sent for reorganization. And the Germans, Americans and British used the principle of rotation: units and subunits were not always on the front line, they were replaced by fresh troops. Moreover, soldiers were given leave to travel home.
In the Red Army, out of the entire 5 million-strong army, only a few received leave for special merits. There was a problem of lice, especially in the warm season. But the sanitary services in the troops worked quite effectively. There were special “vosheka” cars with closed van bodies. Uniforms were loaded there and treated with hot air. But this was done in the rear. And on the front line, the soldiers lit a fire so as not to violate the rules of camouflage, took off their underwear and brought it closer to the fire. The lice just crackled and burned! I would like to note that even in such harsh conditions Due to the unsettled conditions of life in the troops, there was no typhus, which is usually carried by lice. Interesting Facts: 1) A special place was occupied by the consumption of alcohol by personnel. Almost immediately after the start of the war, alcohol was officially legalized at the highest level state level and is included in the daily supply of personnel.
Soldiers considered vodka not only as a means of psychological relief, but also as an indispensable medicine in the Russian frosts. It was impossible without her, especially in winter; bombings, artillery shelling, tank attacks They had such an effect on the psyche that only vodka was the only way to escape. 2) Letters from home meant a lot to the soldiers at the front. Not all soldiers received them, and then, listening to the reading of letters sent to their comrades, everyone felt it as their own. In response, they wrote mainly about the conditions of front-line life, leisure, simple soldier entertainment, friends and commanders. 3) There were moments of rest at the front. A guitar or accordion sounded. But the real holiday was the arrival of amateur artists. And there was no more grateful spectator than the soldier, who, perhaps in a few hours, was about to go to his death. It was difficult for a person in war, it was difficult to watch a dead comrade fall nearby, it was difficult to dig graves in hundreds. But our people lived and survived in this war. The unpretentiousness of the Soviet soldier and his heroism made victory closer every day.
Literature.
1. Abdulin M.G. 160 pages from a soldier's diary. – M.: Young Guard, 1985.
2. The Great Patriotic War 1941-1945: encyclopedia. – M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1985.
3. Gribachev N.M. When you become a soldier... / N.M. Gribachev. – M.: DOSAAF USSR, 1967.
4. Lebedintsev A.Z., Mukhin Yu.I. Fathers-commanders. – M.: Yauza, EKSMO, 2004. – 225 p.
5. Lipatov P. Uniforms of the Red Army and the Wehrmacht. – M.: Publishing House“Technology for Youth”, 1995.
6. Sinitsyn A.M. Nationwide assistance to the front / A.M. Sinitsyn. – M.: Voenizdat, 1985. – 319 p.
7. Khrenov M.M., Konovalov I.F., Dementyuk N.V., Terovkin M.A. Military clothing Armed Forces USSR and Russia (1917-1990s). – M.: Voenizdat, 1999.
Today, anyone has the opportunity to find information about relatives and loved ones who died or disappeared during the Great Patriotic War. Many websites have been created to study documents containing personal data of military personnel during the war. "RG" presents an overview of the most useful of them. Therefore, do not despair if you were unable to find any information about your relatives in the bank of undelivered awards." Russian newspaper" - the search can be continued on other Internet resources.
Database
www.rkka.ru - a directory of military abbreviations (as well as regulations, manuals, directives, orders and personal documents of wartime).
Libraries
oldgazette.ru - old newspapers (including the war period).
www.rkka.ru - description of military operations of the Second World War, post-war analysis of the events of the Second World War, military memoirs.
Military cards
www.rkka.ru - military topographic maps with the combat situation (by war periods and operations)
Search Engine Sites
www.rf-poisk.ru - official website of the Russian Search Movement
Archives
www.archives.ru - Federal Archive Agency (Rosarkhiv)
www.rusarchives.ru - industry portal "Archives of Russia"
archive.mil.ru - Central archive of the Ministry of Defense.
rgvarchive.ru - Russian State Military Archive (RGVA). The archive stores documents about the military operations of the Red Army units in 1937-1939. near Lake Khasan, on the Khalkhin Gol River, in Soviet-Finnish war 1939-1940 Here are also documents of the border and internal troops of the Cheka-OGPU-NKVD-MVD of the USSR since 1918; documents of the Main Directorate for Prisoners of War and Internees of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs and institutions of its system (GUPVI Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR) for the period 1939-1960; personal documents of Soviet military leaders; documents of foreign origin (trophy). You can also find on the archive website
The giant crater may contain the remains of several hundred Red Army soldiers who heroically tried to break through the blockade ring in the winter of 1943. The work is being carried out extremely carefully, because any detail can help identify the fighter and find his relatives, who still carefully preserve the memory of their loved ones.
A mass grave from the Great Patriotic War has been discovered in the vicinity of St. Petersburg. At least 300 Red Army soldiers are buried in one giant crater. Military personnel from the Western Military District joined the excavations. The grave was not marked anywhere, overgrown with forest for 75 years, it was discovered by accident.
Apparently, the burial was sanitary - the dead Red Army soldiers were taken into a large crater by German soldiers, clearing their trenches and battlefields in the winter of 1943. Now we have managed to remove one and a half meters of earth, and lift about a hundred remains of soldiers and determine the names of 12 soldiers. But the work continues; at what depth and how many more soldiers this grave stores, no one can say now.
The last letter from my brother came in February 1943. Maria Alexandrovna, the eldest among the children, remembers how happy her mother was: everything was fine with her son, alive and well. And a month later there was a funeral: he died near Leningrad. The grave is unknown. She and her sister are already grandmothers themselves, but everyone doesn’t believe it, what if it’s a mistake, what if he’s alive.
They found him. Their Valya. Among the remains of the same soldiers who were considered missing. Average age, like Valentin Khudanin, 20 years old. This is the largest mass grave found in recent years. Nothing was known about him. The search engines came across it by accident. Apparently, the Germans collected the dead Red Army soldiers on the battlefield and threw them into a large crater.
The mass grave is located half a kilometer from these ruins - German line defense, artillery fortified area. It was he who was stormed by the Red Army in February 1943, trying to lift the blockade of Leningrad.
This was the most powerful line of German defense, it was considered impregnable: trenches in several rows, then - anti-tank bumps, machine gun nests and concrete pillboxes.
In February 1943, during the breaking of the blockade, the offensive and here - near Krasny Bor. To reach even the first trenches in an attack was considered a miracle. Our soldiers, with their bare hands and sapper shovels, knocked the enemy out of his fortifications. But the offensive stalled. Apparently, then the Nazis began to expand the huge grave with directed explosions and brought new dead into it.
The work is carried out by touch - the only tools are brushes and scrapers. It is necessary not only to sort out the bones - not to miss a single little thing that could indicate the name of the soldier.
Jobs with search engines for months. But we need to do it before the fall. Rain and snow can flood the remains and destroy valuable artifacts. Literally before our eyes, soldiers find a real treasure.
The paper is rolled up in a revolver sleeve, it is immediately packaged and sent to the laboratory. If there is a medallion inside, another Red Army soldier will be identified. Or maybe it's a letter. Last letter to family, loved ones, children. And it will finally reach the recipient, so that they know and remember.