Who was appointed supreme commander of the Soviet troops. What happened to the last commander in chief of the Russian army, Nikolai Dukhonin. Supreme commanders of the "whites"
On August 8, by a joint resolution of the GKO (State Defense Committee) and the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was appointed Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union. At the same time, the headquarters of the Supreme Command was transformed into the headquarters of the Supreme High Command. With details - Andrey Svetenko at.
At first glance, it is rather strange that the post, with which Stalin's status is associated during the Great Patriotic War, appeared only 1.5 months after the start of the war. By that time, Stalin, while retaining the post of General Secretary of the Party, Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the government, was already the chairman of the State Defense Committee and the head of the headquarters of the High Command. In fact, this was not a multiplication of the positions of the leader, but, on the contrary, bringing everything and everyone to a common denominator, to the concentration of all mechanisms for managing the front and rear in one hand. In addition, as we see, not immediately, but the historical tradition that existed both in Russia and abroad prevailed, according to which in the state, and not only for the period of wartime, the position of a military leader is created, which, by definition, is occupied by the leader of the country.
Meanwhile, the situation at the front continued to deteriorate. Near Leningrad, the enemy, with the forces of the 41st Motorized Corps, began to advance in the Krasnogvardeisky direction, that is, towards Gatchina, a suburb of the northern capital.
In the central sector of the front, as part of the third phase of the Smolensk battle, the 2nd Panzer Group of the Germans launched an offensive against Gomel and Starodub. The troops of the Red Army, holding the Central Front, could not hold their positions and began to withdraw in a south and southeast direction.
And just in this southern direction, defensive battles were going on for Kyiv, which the enemy sought to capture using the flanks. So, on August 8, units of the 1st Panzer Group of the Wehrmacht reached the outskirts of the city of Krivoy Rog and the Kremenchug region, thereby creating a threat of a large-scale encirclement of a large group of Red Army forces located on the right-bank Ukraine.
And, finally, on the southernmost flank, having broken the resistance of our 6th and 12th armies, the German troops reached the lower reaches of the Dnieper, which entailed the forced withdrawal of all units of the Red Army to the left bank of the Southern Bug River. At the same time, the interaction between our Primorsky and 9th armies was disrupted. The first began a retreat to Odessa, and the second - to Nikolaev, while the enemy managed to cut the highway connecting the two cities mentioned.
In the reports of the Soviet Information Bureau on that day, in addition to reports on the state of affairs at the front, eyewitness accounts of the so-called Lviv pogrom were made public for the first time. Atrocities and atrocities committed against the Jewish population of the city. These data were provided by a group of residents of Lviv, who managed to get to the mainland with the assistance of partisans and units of the Red Army who fought in the encirclement, and make public the first news at that time about the mass atrocities perpetrated by the occupiers on the territory of the Soviet Union.
Marshals of the Great Patriotic War
Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich
19.11 (1.12). 1896-18.06.1974great commander,
Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of Defense of the USSR
Born in the village of Strelkovka near Kaluga in a peasant family. Furrier. In the army since 1915. Participated in the First World War, junior non-commissioned officer in the cavalry. In battles he was seriously shell-shocked and was awarded 2 St. George's crosses.
From August 1918 in the Red Army. During the Civil War, he fought against the Ural Cossacks near Tsaritsyn, fought with the troops of Denikin and Wrangel, took part in the suppression of the Antonov uprising in the Tambov region, was wounded, and awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After the Civil War, he commanded a regiment, brigade, division, and corps. In the summer of 1939, he conducted a successful encirclement operation and defeated the grouping of Japanese troops by Gen. Kamatsubara on the Khalkhin Gol River. G.K. Zhukov received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of the Red Banner of the MPR.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he was a member of the Headquarters, Deputy Supreme Commander, commanded the fronts (pseudonyms: Konstantinov, Yuryev, Zharov). He was the first during the war to be awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (01/18/1943). Under the command of G.K. Zhukov, the troops of the Leningrad Front, together with the Baltic Fleet, stopped the offensive of Field Marshal F.V. von Leeb's Army Group North against Leningrad in September 1941. Under his command, the troops of the Western Front defeated the troops of Field Marshal F. von Bock's Army Group Center near Moscow and dispelled the myth of the invincibility of the Nazi army. Then Zhukov coordinated the actions of the fronts near Stalingrad (Operation Uranus - 1942), in Operation Iskra during the breakthrough of the Leningrad blockade (1943), in the Battle of Kursk (summer 1943), where Hitler's plan was thwarted " Citadel "and the troops of Field Marshals Kluge and Manstein were defeated. The name of Marshal Zhukov is also associated with victories near Korsun-Shevchenkovsky, the liberation of the Right-Bank Ukraine; operation "Bagration" (in Belarus), where the "Line Vaterland" was broken through and the army group "Center" of field marshals E. von Busch and V. von Model was defeated. At the final stage of the war, the 1st Belorussian Front, led by Marshal Zhukov, took Warsaw (01/17/1945), defeated Army Group A of General von Harpe and Field Marshal F. Scherner with a cutting blow in the Vistula-Oder operation and victoriously ended the war with a grandiose Berlin operation. Together with the soldiers, the marshal signed on the scorched wall of the Reichstag, over the broken dome of which the banner of Victory fluttered. On May 8, 1945, in Karlshorst (Berlin), the commander accepted the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany from Hitler's Field Marshal W. von Keitel. General D. Eisenhower presented G.K. Zhukov with the highest military order of the United States "Legion of Honor" of the degree of commander in chief (06/05/1945). Later, in Berlin, at the Brandenburg Gate, British Field Marshal Montgomery laid on him a large Cross of the Knights of the Order of the Bath, 1st class with a star and a crimson ribbon. On June 24, 1945, Marshal Zhukov hosted the triumphal Victory Parade in Moscow.
In 1955-1957. "Marshal of Victory" was the Minister of Defense of the USSR.
American military historian Martin Cayden says: “Zhukov was the commander of commanders in the conduct of war by the mass armies of the twentieth century. He inflicted more casualties on the Germans than any other military leader. He was a "miracle marshal". Before us is a military genius.
He wrote memoirs "Memories and Reflections".
Marshal G.K. Zhukov had:
- 4 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (08/29/1939, 07/29/1944, 06/1/1945, 12/1/1956),
- 6 orders of Lenin,
- 2 orders of "Victory" (including No. 1 - 04/11/1944, 03/30/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Suvorov 1st degree (including No. 1), a total of 14 orders and 16 medals;
- honorary weapon - a personalized sword with the golden Emblem of the USSR (1968);
- Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1969); order of the Tuvan Republic;
- 17 foreign orders and 10 medals, etc.
In 1995, a monument was erected to Zhukov on Manezhnaya Square in Moscow.
Vasilevsky Alexander Mikhailovich
18(30).09.1895-5.12.1977 Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR
Born in the village of Novaya Golchikha near Kineshma on the Volga. The son of a priest. He studied at the Kostroma Theological Seminary. In 1915 he completed courses at the Alexander Military School and, with the rank of ensign, was sent to the front of the First World War (1914-1918). Head-captain of the tsarist army. Having joined the Red Army during the Civil War of 1918-1920, he commanded a company, battalion, regiment. In 1937 he graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff. Since 1940, he served in the General Staff, where he was caught by the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945). In June 1942, he became chief of the General Staff, replacing Marshal B. M. Shaposhnikov in this post due to illness. Of the 34 months of his tenure as Chief of the General Staff, AM Vasilevsky spent 22 directly at the front (pseudonyms: Mikhailov, Alexandrov, Vladimirov). He was wounded and shell-shocked. In a year and a half of the war, he rose from Major General to Marshal of the Soviet Union (02/19/1943) and, together with Mr. K. Zhukov, became the first holder of the Order of Victory. Under his leadership, the largest operations of the Soviet Armed Forces were developed. A. M. Vasilevsky coordinated the actions of the fronts: in the Battle of Stalingrad (Operations Uranus, Little Saturn), near Kursk (Operation Commander Rumyantsev), during the liberation of Donbass (Operation Don ”), in the Crimea and during the capture of Sevastopol, in battles in the Right-Bank Ukraine; in the Belarusian operation "Bagration".
After the death of General I. D. Chernyakhovsky, he commanded the 3rd Belorussian Front in the East Prussian operation, which ended in the famous "star" assault on Koenigsberg.
On the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet commander A. M. Vasilevsky smashed Hitler's field marshals and generals F. von Bock, G. Guderian, F. Paulus, E. Manstein, E. Kleist, Eneke, E. von Busch, V. von Model, F. Scherner, von Weichs and others.
In June 1945, the marshal was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Forces in the Far East (pseudonym Vasiliev). For the quick defeat of the Kwantung Army of the Japanese, General O. Yamada in Manchuria, the commander received a second Gold Star. After the war, from 1946 - Chief of the General Staff; in 1949-1953 - Minister of the Armed Forces of the USSR.
A. M. Vasilevsky is the author of the memoirs “The Work of All Life”.
Marshal A. M. Vasilevsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 09/08/1945),
- 8 orders of Lenin,
- 2 orders of "Victory" (including No. 2 - 01/10/1944, 04/19/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 2 orders of the Red Banner,
- Order of Suvorov 1st degree,
- order of the Red Star,
- Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" 3rd degree,
- a total of 16 orders and 14 medals;
- honorary nominal weapon - a checker with the golden Emblem of the USSR (1968),
- 28 foreign awards (including 18 foreign orders).
Konev Ivan Stepanovich
December 16(28), 1897—June 27, 1973 Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the Vologda region in the village of Lodeino in a peasant family. In 1916 he was drafted into the army. At the end of the training team, junior non-commissioned officer art. division sent to the South-Western Front. Having joined the Red Army in 1918, he participated in battles against the troops of Admiral Kolchak, Ataman Semenov, and the Japanese. Commissioner of the armored train "Grozny", then brigades, divisions. In 1921 he participated in the storming of Kronstadt. Graduated from the Academy. Frunze (1934), commanded a regiment, division, corps, 2nd Separate Red Banner Far Eastern Army (1938-1940).
During the Great Patriotic War, he commanded the army, fronts (pseudonyms: Stepin, Kievsky). Participated in the battles near Smolensk and Kalinin (1941), in the battle near Moscow (1941-1942). During the Battle of Kursk, together with the troops of General N.F. Vatutin, he defeated the enemy at the Belgorod-Kharkov bridgehead - the bastion of Germany in Ukraine. On August 5, 1943, Konev's troops took the city of Belgorod, in honor of which Moscow gave its first salute, and on August 24, Kharkov was taken. This was followed by a breakthrough of the "Eastern Wall" on the Dnieper.
In 1944, near Korsun-Shevchenkovsky, the Germans arranged a “New (small) Stalingrad” - 10 divisions and 1 brigade of General V. Stemmeran, who fell on the battlefield, were surrounded and destroyed. I. S. Konev was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (02/20/1944), and on March 26, 1944, the troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front were the first to reach the state border. In July-August, they defeated Field Marshal E. von Manstein's Northern Ukraine Army Group in the Lvov-Sandomierz operation. The name of Marshal Konev, nicknamed the "general forward", is associated with brilliant victories at the final stage of the war - in the Vistula-Oder, Berlin and Prague operations. During the Berlin operation, his troops reached the river. Elbe at Torgau and met with the American troops of General O. Bradley (04/25/1945). On May 9, the defeat of Field Marshal Scherner near Prague was completed. The highest orders of the "White Lion" of the 1st class and the "Czechoslovak Military Cross of 1939" were an award to the marshal for the liberation of the Czech capital. Moscow saluted the troops of I. S. Konev 57 times.
In the post-war period, the marshal was Commander-in-Chief of the Ground Forces (1946-1950; 1955-1956), the first Commander-in-Chief of the Joint Armed Forces of the States Parties to the Warsaw Pact (1956-1960).
Marshal I. S. Konev - twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1970), Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1971). The bronze bust was installed at home in the village of Lodeyno.
He wrote memoirs: "Forty-fifth" and "Notes of the front commander."
Marshal I.S. Konev had:
- two Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 06/1/1945),
- 7 orders of Lenin,
- order of the October Revolution,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- order of the Red Star,
- a total of 17 orders and 10 medals;
- honorary nominal weapon - a sword with the Golden Emblem of the USSR (1968),
- 24 foreign awards (including 13 foreign orders).
Govorov Leonid Alexandrovich
10(22).02.1897-19.03.1955 Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Butyrki near Vyatka in the family of a peasant who later became an employee in the city of Yelabuga. A student of the Petrograd Polytechnic Institute L. Govorov in 1916 became a cadet of the Konstantinovsky Artillery School. Combat activity began in 1918 as an officer of the White Army of Admiral Kolchak.
In 1919, he volunteered for the Red Army, participated in battles on the Eastern and Southern fronts, commanded an artillery division, was wounded twice - near Kakhovka and Perekop.
In 1933 he graduated from the Military Academy. Frunze, and then the Academy of the General Staff (1938). Participated in the war with Finland in 1939-1940.
In the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), artillery general L. A. Govorov became commander of the 5th Army, which defended the approaches to Moscow in the central direction. In the spring of 1942, on the instructions of I.V. Stalin, he went to the besieged Leningrad, where he soon led the front (pseudonyms: Leonidov, Leonov, Gavrilov). On January 18, 1943, the troops of Generals Govorov and Meretskov broke through the blockade of Leningrad (Operation Iskra), delivering a counterattack near Shlisselburg. A year later, they struck a new blow, crushing the "Northern Wall" of the Germans, completely lifting the blockade of Leningrad. The German troops of Field Marshal von Küchler suffered huge losses. In June 1944, the troops of the Leningrad Front carried out the Vyborg operation, broke through the "Mannerheim Line" and took the city of Vyborg. L. A. Govorov became the Marshal of the Soviet Union (06/18/1944). In the fall of 1944, Govorov's troops liberated Estonia by breaking into the Panther enemy defenses.
While remaining commander of the Leningrad Front, the marshal was at the same time the representative of the Stavka in the Baltic states. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In May 1945, the German Army Group "Kurland" surrendered to the troops of the front.
Moscow saluted 14 times to the troops of commander L. A. Govorov. In the post-war period, the marshal became the first Commander-in-Chief of the country's air defense.
Marshal L. A. Govorov had:
- Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union (27.01.1945), 5 Orders of Lenin,
- Order "Victory" (05/31/1945),
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- Order of the Red Star - a total of 13 orders and 7 medals,
- Tuvan "Order of the Republic",
- 3 foreign orders.
Rokossovsky Konstantin Konstantinovich
December 9(21), 1896—August 3, 1968 Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Marshal of Poland
Born in Velikie Luki in the family of a railway engineer, Pole Xavier Jozef Rokossovsky, who soon moved to live in Warsaw. Service began in 1914 in the Russian army. Participated in the First World War. He fought in a dragoon regiment, was a non-commissioned officer, twice wounded in battle, awarded the St. George Cross and 2 medals. Red Guard (1917). During the Civil War, he was again wounded 2 times, fought on the Eastern Front against the troops of Admiral Kolchak and in Transbaikalia against Baron Ungern; commanded a squadron, division, cavalry regiment; awarded 2 orders of the Red Banner. In 1929 he fought against the Chinese at Jalaynor (conflict on the CER). In 1937-1940. was imprisoned, being the victim of slander.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he commanded a mechanized corps, army, fronts (Pseudonyms: Kostin, Dontsov, Rumyantsev). He distinguished himself in the battle of Smolensk (1941). Hero of the Battle of Moscow (09/30/1941-01/08/1942). He was seriously wounded near Sukhinichi. During the Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943), the Don Front of Rokossovsky, together with other fronts, surrounded 22 enemy divisions with a total number of 330 thousand people (Operation Uranus). At the beginning of 1943, the Don Front liquidated the encircled group of Germans (Operation "Ring"). Field Marshal F. Paulus was taken prisoner (3-day mourning was declared in Germany). In the Battle of Kursk (1943), Rokossovsky's Central Front defeated the German troops of General Model (Operation Kutuzov) near Orel, in honor of which Moscow gave its first salute (08/05/1943). In the grandiose Belorussian operation (1944), Rokossovsky’s 1st Belorussian Front defeated Field Marshal von Bush’s Army Group Center and, together with the troops of General I. D. Chernyakhovsky, surrounded up to 30 dredge divisions in the Minsk Cauldron (Operation Bagration) . June 29, 1944 Rokossovsky was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. The highest military orders "Virtuti Military" and the cross of "Grunwald" 1st class became the award to the marshal for the liberation of Poland.
At the final stage of the war, the 2nd Belorussian Front of Rokossovsky participated in the East Prussian, Pomeranian and Berlin operations. Moscow saluted the troops of commander Rokossovsky 63 times. On June 24, 1945, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, holder of the Order of Victory, Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky commanded the Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow. In 1949-1956, K.K. Rokossovsky was the Minister of National Defense of the Polish People's Republic. He was awarded the title Marshal of Poland (1949). Returning to the Soviet Union, he became the chief inspector of the USSR Ministry of Defense.
Wrote memoirs "Soldier's Duty".
Marshal K.K. Rokossovsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (07/29/1944, 06/1/1945),
- 7 orders of Lenin,
- Order "Victory" (03/30/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 6 Orders of the Red Banner,
- Order of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- a total of 17 orders and 11 medals;
- honorary weapon - a checker with the golden Emblem of the USSR (1968),
- 13 foreign awards (including 9 foreign orders)
Malinovsky Rodion Yakovlevich
11(23).11.1898-31.03.1967 Marshal of the Soviet Union,
Minister of Defense of the USSR
Born in Odessa, grew up without a father. In 1914, he volunteered for the front of the 1st World War, where he was seriously wounded and awarded the St. George Cross of the 4th degree (1915). In February 1916 he was sent to France as part of the Russian Expeditionary Force. There he was again wounded and received a French military cross. Returning to his homeland, he voluntarily joined the Red Army (1919), fought against the Whites in Siberia. In 1930 he graduated from the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. In 1937-1938, he volunteered to fight in Spain (under the pseudonym "Malino") on the side of the republican government, for which he received the Order of the Red Banner.
In the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he commanded a corps, an army, a front (pseudonyms: Yakovlev, Rodionov, Morozov). Distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad. Malinovsky's army, in cooperation with other armies, stopped and then defeated Field Marshal E. von Manstein's Army Group Don, which was trying to release the Paulus group surrounded by Stalingrad. The troops of General Malinovsky liberated Rostov and Donbass (1943), participated in the cleansing of the Right-Bank Ukraine from the enemy; having defeated the troops of E. von Kleist, they took Odessa on April 10, 1944; together with the troops of General Tolbukhin, they defeated the southern wing of the enemy front, surrounding 22 German divisions and the 3rd Romanian army in the Iasi-Kishinev operation (20-29.08.1944). During the fighting, Malinovsky was slightly wounded; On September 10, 1944, he was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. The troops of the 2nd Ukrainian Front of Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky liberated Romania, Hungary, Austria, and Czechoslovakia. On August 13, 1944, they entered Bucharest, took Budapest by storm (02/13/1945), liberated Prague (05/09/1945). Marshal was awarded the Order of Victory.
Since July 1945, Malinovsky commanded the Trans-Baikal Front (pseudonym Zakharov), which dealt the main blow to the Japanese Kwantung Army in Manchuria (08.1945). The troops of the front reached Port Arthur. Marshal received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
49 times Moscow saluted the troops of the commander Malinovsky.
On October 15, 1957, Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky was appointed Minister of Defense of the USSR. He remained in this position until the end of his life.
Marshal's Peru owns the books "Soldiers of Russia", "Angry whirlwinds of Spain"; under his leadership, "Iasi-Chisinau "Cannes"", "Budapest - Vienna - Prague", "Final" and other works were written.
Marshal R. Ya. Malinovsky had:
- 2 Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (09/08/1945, 11/22/1958),
- 5 orders of Lenin,
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- a total of 12 orders and 9 medals;
- as well as 24 foreign awards (including 15 orders of foreign states). In 1964 he was awarded the title People's Hero of Yugoslavia.
Tolbukhin Fedor Ivanovich
4(16).6.1894-10.17.1949 Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Androniki near Yaroslavl in a peasant family. Worked as an accountant in Petrograd. In 1914 he was an ordinary motorcyclist. Becoming an officer, he participated in battles with the Austro-German troops, was awarded the crosses of Anna and Stanislav.
In the Red Army since 1918; fought on the fronts of the Civil War against the troops of General N. N. Yudenich, Poles and Finns. He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
In the post-war period, Tolbukhin worked in staff positions. In 1934 he graduated from the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. In 1940 he became a general.
During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945) he was chief of staff of the front, commanded the army, the front. He distinguished himself in the Battle of Stalingrad, commanding the 57th Army. In the spring of 1943, Tolbukhin became the commander of the Southern, and from October - the 4th Ukrainian Front, from May 1944 until the end of the war - the 3rd Ukrainian Front. The troops of General Tolbukhin defeated the enemy on Miussa and Molochnaya, liberated Taganrog and Donbass. In the spring of 1944 they invaded the Crimea and on May 9 they took Sevastopol by storm. In August 1944, together with the troops of R. Ya. Malinovsky, they defeated the army group "Southern Ukraine" of the city of Frizner in the Iasi-Kishinev operation. On September 12, 1944, F.I. Tolbukhin was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
Tolbukhin's troops liberated Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary and Austria. Moscow saluted Tolbukhin's troops 34 times. At the Victory Parade on June 24, 1945, the marshal led the column of the 3rd Ukrainian Front.
The health of the marshal, undermined by wars, began to fail, and in 1949 F.I. Tolbukhin died at the age of 56. Three days of mourning was declared in Bulgaria; the city of Dobrich was renamed to the city of Tolbukhin.
In 1965, Marshal F.I. Tolbukhin was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
People's Hero of Yugoslavia (1944) and "Hero of the People's Republic of Bulgaria" (1979).
Marshal F.I. Tolbukhin had:
- 2 orders of Lenin,
- Order "Victory" (04/26/1945),
- 3 Orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- order of the Red Star,
- a total of 10 orders and 9 medals;
- as well as 10 foreign awards (including 5 foreign orders).
Meretskov Kirill Afanasyevich
May 26 (June 7), 1897—December 30, 1968 Marshal of the Soviet Union
Born in the village of Nazaryevo near Zaraysk, Moscow Region, in a peasant family. Prior to serving in the army, he worked as a mechanic. In the Red Army since 1918. During the Civil War he fought on the Eastern and Southern fronts. Participated in battles in the ranks of the 1st Cavalry against the Poles of Pilsudski. He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
In 1921 he graduated from the Military Academy of the Red Army. In 1936-1937, under the pseudonym "Petrovich", he fought in Spain (he was awarded the Orders of Lenin and the Red Banner). During the Soviet-Finnish War (December 1939 - March 1940) he commanded the army that broke through the "Manerheim Line" and took Vyborg, for which he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union (1940).
During the Great Patriotic War, he commanded the troops of the northern directions (pseudonyms: Afanasiev, Kirillov); was the representative of the Headquarters on the North-Western Front. He commanded the army, the front. In 1941, Meretskov inflicted the first serious defeat in the war on the troops of Field Marshal Leeb near Tikhvin. On January 18, 1943, the troops of Generals Govorov and Meretskov, inflicting a counterattack near Shlisselburg (Operation Iskra), broke through the blockade of Leningrad. On January 20, Novgorod was taken. In February 1944 he became commander of the Karelian Front. In June 1944, Meretskov and Govorov defeated Marshal K. Mannerheim in Karelia. In October 1944, Meretskov's troops defeated the enemy in the Arctic near Pechenga (Petsamo). On October 26, 1944, K. A. Meretskov received the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union, and from the Norwegian King Haakon VII, the Grand Cross of St. Olaf.
In the spring of 1945, the “cunning Yaroslavets” (as Stalin called him) under the name of “General Maksimov” was sent to the Far East. In August-September 1945, his troops participated in the defeat of the Kwantung Army, breaking into Manchuria from Primorye and liberating areas of China and Korea.
Moscow saluted the troops of the commander Meretskov 10 times.
Marshal K. A. Meretskov had:
- Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union (03/21/1940), 7 Orders of Lenin,
- Order "Victory" (09/08/1945),
- order of the October Revolution,
- 4 orders of the Red Banner,
- 2 orders of Suvorov 1st degree,
- Order of Kutuzov 1st degree,
- 10 medals;
- honorary weapons - a sword with the Golden Emblem of the USSR, as well as 4 higher foreign orders and 3 medals.
"The key to Moscow has been taken!"
After the first unsuccessful attempts to repulse the Napoleonic troops that invaded Russia on June 12, 1812, Mikhail Kutuzov was immediately talked about as the only person capable of taking the post of commander in chief. But Alexander I did not like Kutuzov. Only after the election of the commander as the head of the Moscow and St. Petersburg militias and the urgent advice of those close to rely on an experienced military leader did Emperor Alexander yield. Meanwhile, the French troops were already near Smolensk. Appointed commander-in-chief, on the way to the army, Kutuzov repeated: "If only I find Smolensk in our hands, then the enemy will not be in Moscow". Behind Torzhok, he learned that Smolensk had been surrendered. "The key to Moscow has been taken!" Kutuzov exclaimed in despair. The abandonment of Moscow by Russian troops was predetermined.
“We will not defeat Napoleon. We'll deceive him."
The appointment of Kutuzov to replace the foreigner Barclay de Tolly as commander-in-chief of the retreating Russian army was supposed to cause a patriotic upsurge in the troops and people. But the field marshal himself, having lost the battle of Austerlitz in 1805, was not in the mood for an open and decisive battle against Napoleon. According to the recollections of eyewitnesses, he put it this way about the methods by which he would act against the French: “We will not defeat Napoleon. We will deceive him."
Already on August 17, Kutuzov arrived in the army as commander in chief. The troops greeted him with general jubilation, hoping that the end of military failures had come. Officers and soldiers joked: "Kutuzov has come to beat the French!" At the review, in order to raise the spirit of his army, the commander-in-chief exclaimed: “With such good fellows - and retreat?”. But these words were only an expression of Kutuzov's gratitude for the love of the soldiers. The commander again gave the order to retreat - the great superiority of the French forces forced this. The retreat of the Russians lasted more than two months and stopped only at Moscow ...
"This day will remain an eternal monument to the courage and excellent bravery of Russian soldiers"
The surrender of Moscow was inevitable, but it seemed politically and morally impossible to surrender the ancient Russian capital without a fight. Kutuzov decides to give a general battle to Napoleon. The first and only in this war. The Battle of Borodino on August 26, 1812 was one of the bloodiest in the 19th century. On the Borodino field in one day of the battle, 46 thousand Russian soldiers and officers were killed, the French lost about 50 thousand people. Despite the losses, our troops won a moral victory over the enemy, which turned the tide of the war.
“This day will remain an eternal monument to the courage and excellent courage of the Russian soldiers, where all the infantry, cavalry and artillery fought desperately. Everyone's desire was to die on the spot and not yield to the enemy. The French army did not overcome the firmness of the spirit of the Russian soldier, who sacrificed his life with vigor for his fatherland, ”- this is how Mikhail Kutuzov reported to Emperor Alexander I about the Battle of Borodino. For the battle of Borodino on August 30, 1812, Kutuzov was promoted by the Russian emperor to field marshal general.
"In order to save Russia, we must burn Moscow"
After the Battle of Borodino, the balance of power did not shift in favor of the Russian army. Kutuzov spoke in one of his letters about a difficult choice: “The question has not yet been resolved: should I lose the army or lose Moscow?” In Fili, it was decided to surrender the ancient capital to the enemy. And although rumor stubbornly ascribes the words: "To save Russia, we must burn Moscow" Kutuzov, the commander did not give the order to burn the city after the retreat.
However, the fire of Moscow, which began on September 2, 1812, during the occupation by the French, became another blow to the enemy, and delayed his advance. Meanwhile, Kutuzov's troops undertook the famous Tarutinsky maneuver, which cut off Napoleon's road to southern Russia on the eve of the coming winter. Realizing the critical situation, Napoleon sent an adjutant to Kutuzov with a proposal for peace negotiations, but the Russian commander replied that "the war is just beginning ..."
"The war ended with the complete annihilation of the enemy"
Napoleon had no choice but to start the withdrawal of troops from Moscow on October 7, which then turned into a stampede. During the retreat, the French emperor lost his army in Russia - more than 500 thousand people killed, wounded and captured, almost all of the artillery and cavalry. On December 21, Kutuzov, in an order for the army, congratulated the Russian troops on the expulsion of the enemy from Russia, declaring: "The war ended with the complete annihilation of the enemy."
For the skillful leadership of the army in 1812, Mikhail Kutuzov was awarded the title of Prince of Smolensk. He also received the Order of St. George I degree as a reward, becoming his first full cavalier in the history of Russia.
The victorious liberation of Europe from the French was led by Emperor Alexander I, who decided to continue the war with Napoleon outside of Russia. With the arrival of the king to the troops, Kutuzov gradually withdrew from command. On April 5, the field marshal came down with a bad cold in the small Prussian town of Bunzlau, there was no hope for the recovery of the elderly commander. The Russian Tsar arrived to say goodbye to his commander. Their dialogue was passed down like a legend. “Forgive me, Mikhail Illarionovich!” Alexander I said to the dying Kutuzov. "I forgive, sir, but Russia will never forgive you" replied the field marshal.
Biography of Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin(real name Dzhugashvili) was born into a Georgian family (in a number of sources there are versions about the Ossetian origin of the ancestors Stalin) in the city of Gori, Tiflis province.
During the life Stalin and for a long time afterwards the birthday of I.V. Stalin The date was set as December 21, 1879. A number of researchers, with reference to the first part of the metric book of the Gori Assumption Cathedral Church, intended for registration of births, have established a different date of birth Stalin- December 18, 1878.
Joseph Stalin was the third son in the family, the first two died in infancy. His native language was Georgian. Russian language Stalin learned later, but always spoke with a noticeable Georgian accent. According to the statements of the daughter of Svetlana, Stalin, however, sang in Russian with virtually no accent.
At the age of five in 1884 Joseph Stalin falls ill with smallpox, which left marks on his face for life. Since 1885, due to a severe bruise - a chaise flew into him - at Joseph Stalin throughout life remained a defect of the left hand.
Stalin's education. Stalin's entry into revolutionary activity
In 1886 mother Stalin, Ekaterina Georgievna wanted to determine Joseph to study at the Gori Orthodox Theological School. However, since the child did not know the Russian language at all, it was not possible to enter the school. In 1886-1888, at the request of his mother, to teach Joseph the Russian language was taken up by the children of the priest Christopher Charkviani. The result of the training was that in 1888 Stalin does not enter the first preparatory class at the school, but immediately into the second preparatory. Many years later, on September 15, 1927, mother Stalin, will write a letter of thanks to the teacher of the Russian language of the school, Zakhary Alekseevich Davitashvili:
“I remember well that you singled out my son Soso in particular, and he said more than once that it was you who helped him fall in love with teaching, and it was thanks to you that he knew Russian well ... You taught children to treat ordinary people with love and think about those who is in trouble."
In 1889 Joseph Stalin, having successfully completed the second preparatory class, was admitted to the school. In July 1894, after graduating from college Joseph was awarded as the best student. His certificate contains the highest score - 5 (excellent) in most subjects. Thus, in the Certificate issued to the graduate of the Gori Theological School I. Dzhugashvili in 1894, noted:
“Pupil of the Gori Theological School Dzhugashvili Joseph with excellent behavior (5) showed success: in the Sacred History of the Old Testament (5); — Sacred History of the New Testament (5); — Orthodox catechism (5); - Explanation of worship with the church charter (5); — Languages: Russian with Church Slavonic (5), Greek (4) very good, Georgian (5) excellent; - Arithmetic (4) is very good; — Geography (5); — Calligraphy (5); - Church singing: Russian (5), and Georgian (5).
In September 1894 Stalin, brilliantly passing the entrance exams, was enrolled in the Orthodox Tiflis Theological Seminary, which was located in the center of Tiflis. There he first became acquainted with the ideas of Marxism. By the beginning of 1895, the seminarian Joseph Dzhugashvili gets acquainted with underground groups of revolutionary Marxists exiled by the government to Transcaucasia. Subsequently, Stalin recalled:
“I entered the revolutionary movement from the age of 15, when I got in touch with underground groups of Russian Marxists who then lived in the Transcaucasus. These groups had a great influence on me and instilled in me a taste for underground Marxist literature.”
From June to December 1895 in the newspaper "Iberia", edited by I. G. Chavchavadze signed "I. J-shvili” published five poems by the young Stalin, another poem was also published in July 1896 in the social democratic newspaper "Keali" ("Furrow") signed "Soselo". Of these, the poem "To Prince R. Eristavi" in 1907 was included, among the selected masterpieces of Georgian poetry, in the collection "Georgian Reader".
In 1896-1898 at the seminary Joseph Stalin leads an illegal Marxist circle, which met at the apartment of the revolutionary Vano Sturua at number 194 on Elizavetinskaya Street. In 1898 Joseph joins the Georgian social-democratic organization Mesame-dasi. Together with V. Z. Ketskhoveli and A. G. Tsulukidze I. V. Dzhugashvili forms the core of the revolutionary minority of this organization. Later, in 1931, Stalin in an interview with the German writer Emil Ludwig to the question “What prompted you to become an opposition? Perhaps the mistreatment by the parents? answered: “No. My parents treated me quite well. Another thing is the theological seminary where I studied then. Out of protest against the humiliating regime and the Jesuit methods that existed in the seminary, I was ready to become and really became a revolutionary, a supporter of Marxism ... ".
In 1898-1899 Joseph leads a circle in the railway depot, and also conducts classes in working circles at the Adelkhanov shoe factory, at the Karapetov factory, at the Bozardzhianets tobacco factory, and at the Main Tiflis railway workshops. Stalin recalled this time: “I remember 1898, when I first received a circle of workers from railway workshops ... Here, in the circle of these comrades, I then received my first baptism of fire ... My first teachers were Tiflis workers.” On December 14-19, 1898, a six-day strike of railway workers takes place in Tiflis, one of the initiators of which was a seminarian Joseph Stalin.
Not having completed the full course, in the fifth year of study, before the exams on May 29, 1899, Stalin was expelled from the seminary with the motivation “for failure to appear for exams for an unknown reason” (probably the actual reason for the expulsion, which was also adhered to by official Soviet historiography, was the activity Joseph Dzhugashvili Propaganda of Marxism among seminarians and workers of railway workshops). In the certificate issued Joseph Stalin with an exception, it meant that he could serve as a teacher in elementary public schools.
After being expelled from the seminary Stalin I have been tutoring for some time. Among his students, in particular, was S. A. Ter-Petrosyan (the future revolutionary Kamo). From the end of December 1899, I.V. Dzhugashvili As a computer-observer he was admitted to the Tiflis Physical Observatory.
July 16, 1904 in the Tiflis Church of St. David Joseph Dzhugashvili married Ekaterina Svanidze. She became the first wife Stalin. Her brother studied with Joseph Dzhugashvili at the Tiflis Theological Seminary. But three years later, his wife died of tuberculosis (according to other sources, the cause of death was typhoid fever). From this marriage in 1907 the first son will appear. Stalin— Jacob.
Before 1917 Joseph Dzhugashvili used a large number of pseudonyms, in particular: Besoshvili, Nizheradze, Chizhikov, Ivanovich. Of these, in addition to the pseudonym " Stalin”, The most famous was the pseudonym “Koba”. In 1912 Joseph Dzhugashvili finally adopts the alias " Stalin».
Revolutionary activity of Stalin
April 23, 1900 Joseph Stalin, Vano Sturua and Zakro Chodrishvili organized a workers' Mayday, which brought together 400-500 workers. At the rally opened by Chodrishvili, among others, Joseph Dzhugashvili. This performance was the first appearance Stalin in front of a large gathering of people. In August of the same year Dzhugashvili participated in the preparation and conduct of a major action of the workers of Tiflis - a strike in the Main Railway Workshops. Revolutionary workers M. I. Kalinin, S. Ya. Alliluyev, and also M. Z. Bochoridze, A. G. Okuashvili, and V. F. Sturua took part in organizing the workers’ protests. From 1 to 15 August, up to four thousand people took part in the strike. As a result, more than five hundred strikers were arrested. The arrests of Georgian Social Democrats continued in March-April 1901. Stalin, as one of the leaders of the strike, escaped arrest: he quit his job at the observatory and went underground, becoming an underground revolutionary.
In September 1901, the Nina printing house, organized by Lado Ketskhoveli in Baku, published the illegal newspaper Brdzola (Struggle). The front page of the first issue, entitled "From the Editor", belonged to a twenty-two-year-old Stalin. This article is the first known political work Stalin.
In 1901-1902 Joseph- Member of the Tiflis, Batumi committees of the RSDLP. Since 1901 Stalin, being in an illegal position, organized strikes, demonstrations, organized armed robbery attacks on banks, transferring stolen money (also called expropriated in a number of other sources) for the needs of the revolution. On April 5, 1902, he was arrested for the first time in Batumi. On April 19, he was transferred to the Kutaisi prison. After a year and a half in prison and transfer to Butum, he was exiled to Eastern Siberia. November 27 Stalin arrived at the place of exile - in the village of Novaya Uda, Balagansky district, Irkutsk province. More than a month later Joseph Dzhugashvili made his first escape and returned to Tiflis, from where he later moved again to Batum.
After the Second Congress of the RSDLP (1903), held in Brussels and London, he was a Bolshevik. On the recommendation of one of the leaders of the Caucasian Union of the RSDLP, M. G. Tskhakaya, Koba was sent to the Kutaisi region to the Imeretino-Mingrelian Committee as a representative of the Caucasian Union Committee. In 1904-1905 Stalin organizes a printing house in Chiatura, participates in the December strike of 1904 in Baku.
During the First Russian Revolution of 1905-1907 Joseph Dzhugashvili busy with party affairs: writes leaflets, participates in the publication of Bolshevik newspapers, organizes a combat squad in Tiflis (autumn 1905), visits Batum, Novorossiysk, Kutais, Gori, Chiatura. In February 1905, he took part in arming the workers of Baku in order to prevent Armenian-Azerbaijani clashes in the Caucasus. In September 1905, he participated in an attempt to capture the Kutaisi arsenal. In December 1905 Stalin participates as a delegate to the 1st conference of the RSDLP in Tammerfors, where he first met with V. I. Lenin. In May 1906, he was a delegate to the IV Congress of the RSDLP, held in Stockholm.
In 1907 Stalin delegate to the 5th Congress of the RSDLP in London. In 1907-1908 one of the leaders of the Baku Committee of the RSDLP. Stalin involved in the so-called. "Tiflis expropriation" in the summer of 1907.
At the plenum of the Central Committee after the 6th (Prague) All-Russian Conference of the RSDLP (1912), he was co-opted in absentia to the Central Committee and the Russian Bureau of the Central Committee of the RSDLP. Trotsky at work Stalin claimed that this was facilitated by a personal letter Stalin V. I. Lenin, where he said that he agreed to any responsible work.
March 25, 1908 Stalin In Baku, he was again arrested and imprisoned in the Bayil prison. From 1908 to 1910 he was in exile in the city of Solvychegodsk, from where he corresponded with Lenin. In 1910 Stalin fled from exile. Thereafter Joseph Dzhugashvili was detained by the authorities three times, and each time he escaped from exile to the Vologda province. From December 1911 to February 1912 in exile in the city of Vologda. On the night of February 29, 1912, he fled from Vologda.
In 1912-1913, while working in St. Petersburg, he was one of the main contributors to the first mass Bolshevik newspaper Pravda. At the suggestion of Lenin at the Prague Party Conference in 1912 Stalin was elected a member of the Central Committee of the party and placed at the head of the Russian Bureau of the Central Committee. May 5, 1912 on the day of the publication of the first issue of the newspaper Pravda Stalin was arrested and exiled to the Narym Territory. A few months later he fled (5th escape) and returned to St. Petersburg, where he settled with the worker Savinov. From here he led the election campaign of the Bolsheviks to the State Duma of the IV convocation. During this period, the wanted Stalin lives in St. Petersburg, constantly changing apartments, under the pseudonym Vasiliev.
November and December 1912 Stalin twice goes to Krakow to see Lenin at meetings of the Central Committee with party workers. At the end of 1912-1913 in Krakow Stalin at the insistence of Lenin, he wrote a long article "Marxism and the national question", in which he expressed Bolshevik views on the ways of solving the national question and criticized the program of "cultural-national autonomy" of the Austro-Hungarian socialists. The work gained fame among Russian Marxists, and since that time Stalin regarded as an expert on national problems.
January 1913 Stalin spent in Vienna. Soon, in the same year, he returned to Russia, but in March he was arrested, imprisoned and exiled to the village of Kureika in the Turukhansk Territory, where he spent 4 years - until the February Revolution of 1917. In exile he corresponded with Lenin.
Stalin's participation in the October Revolution of 1917
After the February Revolution Stalin returned to Petrograd. Before Lenin's arrival from exile, he was one of the leaders of the Central Committee of the RSDLP and the St. Petersburg Committee of the Bolshevik Party. In 1917, he was a member of the editorial board of the Pravda newspaper, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party, and the Military Revolutionary Center. at first Stalin supported the Provisional Government. In relation to the Provisional Government and its policy, he proceeded from the fact that the democratic revolution was not yet completed, and the overthrow of the government was not a practical task. However, then he joined Lenin, who advocated the transformation of the "bourgeois-democratic" February revolution into a proletarian socialist revolution.
April 14 - 22 was a delegate to the I Petrograd City Conference of the Bolsheviks. On April 24-29, at the VII All-Russian Conference of the RSDLP, he spoke in the debate on the report on the current situation, supported the views of Lenin, and made a report on the national question; elected a member of the Central Committee of the RSDLP.
May - June Stalin was a participant in anti-war propaganda; was one of the organizers of the re-elections of the Soviets and in the municipal campaign in Petrograd. June 3-24 participated as a delegate to the First All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies; was elected a member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee and a member of the Bureau of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee from the Bolshevik faction. Also participated in the preparation of demonstrations on June 10 and 18; published a number of articles in the newspapers Pravda and Soldatskaya Pravda.
In view of the forced departure of Lenin into the underground Stalin spoke at the VI Congress of the RSDLP (July-August 1917) with a report of the Central Committee. At a meeting of the Central Committee of the RSDLP on August 5, he was elected a member of the narrow membership of the Central Committee. In August - September, he mainly conducted organizational and journalistic work. On October 10, at a meeting of the Central Committee of the RSDLP, he voted in favor of a resolution on an armed uprising, was elected a member of the Political Bureau, created "for political leadership in the near future."
On the night of October 16 at an enlarged meeting of the Central Committee Stalin opposed the position of L. B. Kamenev and G. E. Zinoviev, who voted against the decision to insurrection; was elected a member of the Military Revolutionary Center, in which he entered the Petrograd Military Revolutionary Committee.
On October 24, after the Junkers destroyed the printing house of the Rabochy Put newspaper, Stalin secured the publication of a newspaper in which he published an editorial "What do we need?" with a call for the overthrow of the Provisional Government and its replacement by the Soviet government, elected representatives of the workers, soldiers and peasants. On the same day Stalin and Trotsky held a conference of Bolsheviks - delegates to the 2nd All-Russian Congress of Soviets of the RSD, at which Stalin delivered a report on the course of political events. On the night of October 25, he participated in a meeting of the Central Committee of the RSDLP, which determined the structure and name of the new Soviet government. On the afternoon of October 25, he carried out Lenin's instructions and was not present at the meeting of the Central Committee.
In the elections to the All-Russian Constituent Assembly, he was elected a deputy from the Petrograd Capital District from the RSDLP.
Stalin's participation in the Russian Civil War 1917-1922
After the victory of the October Revolution Stalin joined the Council of People's Commissars as People's Commissar for Nationalities. At this time, the Civil War broke out on the territory of Russia. At the II All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies Stalin was elected a member of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. On the night of October 28, at the headquarters of the Petrograd Military District, he was a participant in the development of a plan to defeat the troops of A.F. Kerensky and P.N. Krasnov, advancing on Petrograd. October 28 Lenin and Stalin signed a resolution of the Council of People's Commissars prohibiting the publication of "all newspapers closed by the Military Revolutionary Committee."
29th of November Stalin entered the Bureau of the Central Committee of the RSDLP, which also included Lenin, Trotsky and Sverdlov. This body was given "the right to decide all urgent matters, but with the obligatory involvement in the decision of all members of the Central Committee who were at that moment in Smolny." At the same time Stalin was re-elected to the editorial board of Pravda. November-December 1917 Stalin mainly worked in the People's Commissariat for Nationalities. November 2, 1917 Stalin Together with Lenin, he signed the Declaration of the Rights of the Peoples of Russia.
In April 1918 Stalin together with Kh. G. Rakovsky and D. Z. Manuilsky in Kursk, he negotiated with representatives of the Ukrainian Central Rada on the conclusion of a peace treaty.
During the Civil War from October 8, 1918 to July 8, 1919 and from May 18, 1920 to April 1, 1922 Stalin also a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the RSFSR. Stalin also was a member of the Revolutionary Military Councils of the Western, Southern, South-Western fronts.
As the doctor of historical and military sciences M. M. Gareev notes, during the Civil War Stalin gained vast experience in the military-political leadership of large masses of troops on many fronts (the defense of Tsaritsyn, Petrograd, on the fronts against Denikin, Wrangel, the White Poles, etc.).
The French writer Henri Barbusse quotes an assistant Stalin according to S. S. Pestkovsky, People's Commissar for National Affairs, regarding the period of the Brest negotiations in early 1918:
Lenin could not do without Stalin not a single day. Probably, for this purpose, our office in Smolny was "next door" to Lenin. During the day he called Stalin on the phone an infinite number of times, or he came into our office and took him away with him. Most of the day Stalin sat with Lenin.<…>At night, when the bustle in Smolny was a little less, Stalin I went to a direct wire and disappeared there for hours. He conducted lengthy negotiations either with our commanders (Antonov, Pavlunovsky, Muravyov and others), then with our enemies (with the Minister of War of the Ukrainian Rada Porsh) ...
About the Brest negotiations in the work " Stalin» L. D. Trotsky wrote:
Lenin during this period was in dire need of Stalin... Thus, under Lenin, he played the role of chief of staff or official on responsible assignments. Lenin could entrust conversations over direct wires only to a tried and tested person who was aware of all the tasks and concerns of Smolny.
In May 1918, after the start of the civil war due to the aggravation of the food situation in the country, the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR appointed Stalin responsible for the supply of food in the south of Russia and seconded as an extraordinary representative of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee for the procurement and export of bread from the North Caucasus to industrial centers. Arriving June 6, 1918 in Tsaritsyn, Stalin took control of the city. He took part not only in the political, but also in the operational-tactical leadership of the district.
At this time, in July 1918, the Don army of Ataman P. N. Krasnov launched the first offensive against Tsaritsyn. On July 22, the Military Council of the North Caucasian Military District was created, chaired by Stalin. The council also included K. E. Voroshilov and S. K. Minin. Stalin, taking leadership of the defense of the city, at the same time showed a tendency to tough measures.
The first military measures taken by the Military Council of the North Caucasus Military District headed by Stalin, turned into defeats for the Red Army. At the end of July, the White Guards captured the Trade and Grand Dukes, and in connection with this, Tsaritsyn's connection with the North Caucasus was interrupted. After the failure of the Red Army offensive on August 10-15, Krasnov's army surrounded Tsaritsyn from three sides. The group of General A.P. Fitskhelaurov broke through the front north of Tsaritsyn, occupying Erzovka and Pichuzhinskaya. This allowed them to go to the Volga and break the connection of the Soviet leadership in Tsaritsyn with Moscow.
The defeats of the Red Army were also caused by the betrayal of the chief of staff of the North Caucasian military district, the former tsarist colonel A. L. Nosovich. Historian D. A. Volkogonov writes:
Despite the help to Denikin from the traitor, the former tsarist colonel military specialist Nosovich, the assault on Tsaritsyn did not bring success to the White Guards ... The betrayal of Nosovich, a number of other former officers of the tsarist army, strengthened the already suspicious attitude Stalin to military experts. The People's Commissar, vested with emergency powers on food matters, did not hide his distrust of specialists. On the initiative Stalin a large group of military experts were arrested. A floating prison was created on the barge. Many were shot.
So, blaming the "military experts" for the defeats, Stalin made large-scale arrests and executions.
In his speech at the VIII Congress on March 21, 1919, Lenin condemned Stalin for executions in Tsaritsyn.
At the same time, from August 8, the group of General K.K. Mamontov was advancing in the central sector. On August 18-20, military clashes took place on the near approaches to Tsaritsyn, as a result of which Mamontov's group was stopped, and on August 20, the Red Army forces threw back the enemy with a sudden blow north of Tsaritsyn and liberated Yerzovka and Pichuzhinskaya by August 22. On August 26, a counteroffensive was launched on the entire front. By September 7, the White troops were thrown back over the Don, while they lost about 12 thousand killed and captured.
In September, the White Cossack command decided on a new offensive against Tsaritsyn and additional mobilization was carried out. The Soviet command took measures to strengthen the defense and improve command and control. By order of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic of September 11, 1918, the Southern Front was created, commanded by P.P. Sytin. Stalin became a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Southern Front (until October 19, K. E. Voroshilov until October 3, K. A. Mekhonoshin from October 3, A. I. Okulov from October 14).
On September 19, 1918, in a telegram sent from Moscow to Tsaritsyn to the front commander Voroshilov, the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars Lenin and the chairman of the Military Revolutionary Council of the Southern Front Stalin, in particular, noted: "Soviet Russia notes with admiration the heroic deeds of the communist and revolutionary regiments of Kharchenko, Kolpakov, Bulatkin's cavalry, Alyabyev's armored trains, and the Volga Flotilla."
Meanwhile, on September 17, the troops of General Denisov launched a new offensive against the city. The most fierce battles took place from 27 to 30 September. October 3 I.V. Stalin and K. E. Voroshilov send a telegram to V. I. Lenin with a demand to discuss in the Central Committee the question of Trotsky's actions, threatening the collapse of the Southern Front. October 6 Stalin leaves for Moscow. On October 8, by the Decree of the Council of People's Commissars I.V. Stalin appointed as a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic. October 11 I.V. Stalin returns from Moscow to Tsaritsyn. On October 17, 1918, having suffered heavy losses from the fire of Red Army batteries and armored trains, the Whites retreated. October 18 I.V. Stalin telegraphs V. I. Lenin about the defeat of the Krasnov troops near Tsaritsyn. October 19 I.V. Stalin leaves Tsaritsyn for Moscow.
In January 1919 Stalin and Dzerzhinsky leave for Vyatka to investigate the reasons for the defeat of the Red Army near Perm and the surrender of the city to the forces of Admiral Kolchak. Commission Stalin-Dzerzhinsky contributed to the reorganization and restoration of the combat capability of the defeated 3rd Army; however, on the whole, the situation on the Permian front was corrected by the fact that Ufa was taken by the Red Army, and Kolchak already on January 6 gave the order to concentrate forces in the Ufa direction and go on the defensive near Perm.
Summer 1919 Stalin organizes a rebuff to the Polish offensive on the Western Front, in Smolensk.
Decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of November 27, 1919 Stalin was awarded the first Order of the Red Banner "in commemoration of his merits in the defense of Petrograd and selfless work on the Southern Front."
Created on the initiative Stalin I Cavalry Army led by S. M. Budyonny, K. E. Voroshilov, E. A. Shchadenko, supported by the armies of the Southern Front, defeated Denikin's troops. After the defeat of Denikin's troops, Stalin directs the restoration of the destroyed economy in Ukraine. In February-March 1920, he headed the Council of the Ukrainian Labor Army and directed the mobilization of the population for coal mining.
Between May 26 - September 1, 1920 Stalin He was a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the South-Western Front as a representative of the RVSR. There he led the breakthrough of the Polish front, in the liberation of Kyiv and the advance of the Red Army to Lvov. August 13 Stalin refused to comply with the directive of the commander-in-chief on the basis of the decision of the Plenum of the Central Committee of the Russian Communist Party of August 5 on the transfer of the 1st Cavalry and 12th armies to help the Western Front. During the decisive Battle of Warsaw on August 13-25, 1920, the troops of the Western Front suffered a heavy defeat, which turned the tide of the Soviet-Polish war. September 23, at the IX All-Russian Conference of the RCP, Stalin tried to lay responsibility for the failure near Warsaw on Commander-in-Chief Kamenev and Commander Tukhachevsky, but Lenin reproached Stalin in an affectionate manner towards them.
In the same 1920 Stalin participated in the defense of the south of Ukraine from the offensive of Wrangel's troops. Stalinist the instructions formed the basis of Frunze's operational plan, according to which Wrangel's troops were defeated.
As the researcher Shikman A.P. notes, “the rigidity of decisions, the enormous capacity for work and the skillful combination of military and political activities made it possible Stalin win many supporters.
Stalin's participation in the creation of the USSR
In 1922 Stalin participated in the creation of the USSR. Stalin considered it necessary to create not a union of republics, but rather a unitary state with autonomous national associations. This plan was rejected by Lenin and his associates.
On December 30, 1922, at the First All-Union Congress of Soviets, a decision was made to unite the Soviet republics into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics - the USSR. Speaking at the convention Stalin said:
“Today is a turning point in the history of Soviet power. He places milestones between the old, already passed period, when the Soviet republics, although they acted together, but went apart, preoccupied primarily with the question of their existence, and the new, already opened period, when the separate existence of the Soviet republics is put to an end, when the republics unite into a single union state for the successful struggle against economic disruption, when the Soviet government is no longer thinking only about existence, but also about developing into a serious international force that can influence the international situation "
Beginning in late 1921, Lenin increasingly interrupted his work in leadership of the party. He instructed to carry out the main work in this direction Stalin. In this period Stalin was a permanent member of the Central Committee of the RCP, and at the Plenum of the Central Committee of the RCP on April 3, 1922, he was elected to the Politburo and the Organizing Bureau of the Central Committee of the RCP, as well as the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the RCP. Initially, this position meant only the leadership of the party apparatus, while Lenin, the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR, formally remained the leader of the party and government.
In the 1920s, the highest power in the party, and in fact in the country, belonged to the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union, in which, until the death of Lenin, in addition to Lenin and Stalin, included five more people: L. D. Trotsky, G. E. Zinoviev, L. B. Kamenev, A. I. Rykov and M. P. Tomsky. All issues were decided by majority vote. Since 1922, due to illness, Lenin actually retired from political activity. Inside the Politburo Stalin, Zinoviev and Kamenev organized a "troika" based on opposition to Trotsky. In conditions when the trade union leader Tomsky had a negative attitude towards Trotsky since the time of the so-called. "discussions about trade unions", Rykov could become the only supporter of Trotsky. During these same years Stalin successfully increased his personal power, which soon became state power. Particularly important were his actions to recruit his bodyguard Yagoda, nominated by him to the leadership of the GPU (NKVD).
Immediately after the death of Lenin on January 21, 1924, several groups formed within the leadership of the party, each of which claimed power. The Troika teamed up with Rykov, Tomsky, N. I. Bukharin and candidate member of the Politburo V. V. Kuibyshev, forming the so-called. "seven".
Trotsky considered himself the main contender for leadership in the country after Lenin and underestimated Stalin as a competitor. Soon other oppositionists, not only the Trotskyists, sent the so-called Politburo to the Politburo. "Statement of the 46". "Troika" then showed its power, mainly using the resource of the apparatus led by Stalin.
At the XIII Congress of the RCP (May 1924), all oppositionists were condemned. Influence Stalin increased greatly. Main allies Stalin in the "seven" became Bukharin and Rykov.
A new split appeared in the Politburo in October 1925, when Zinoviev, Kamenev, G.Ya. Sokolnikov, People's Commissar for Finance of the USSR, and N.K. "Seven" broke up. At that moment Stalin began to unite with the so-called. "Right", which included Bukharin, Rykov and Tomsky, expressing the interests primarily of the peasantry. In the beginning of the intra-party struggle between the "rights" and "lefts" Stalin provided them with the forces of the party apparatus, and they (namely Bukharin) acted as theoreticians. The left opposition in the CPSU of Zinoviev and Kamenev was condemned at the XIV Congress (December 1925).
January 1, 1926 Stalin By the Plenum of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union, he was again approved as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
By that time, "the theory of the victory of socialism in one country" had arisen. This view was developed Stalin, in the pamphlet "To Questions of Leninism", (1926) and Bukharin. They divided the question of the victory of socialism into two parts - the question of the complete victory of socialism, that is, the possibility of building socialism and the complete impossibility of restoring capitalism by internal forces, and the question of final victory, that is, the impossibility of restoration due to the intervention of the Western powers, which would be ruled out only by establishing a revolution in the West.
Trotsky, who did not believe in socialism in one country, joined Zinoviev and Kamenev. The so-called. Left opposition in the CPSU ("United Opposition"). Stalin in 1929, he accuses Bukharin and his allies of a “right deviation” and actually begins to implement the program of the “leftists” to curtail the NEP and accelerate industrialization through the exploitation of the countryside.
February 13, 1930 Stalin was awarded the second Order of the Red Banner for "services on the front of socialist construction." In 1932, his wife committed suicide Stalin— Nadezhda Alliluyeva.
Mother dies in May 1937 Stalin, however, he could not come to the funeral, but sent a wreath with an inscription in Russian and Georgian: “Dear and beloved mother from her son Joseph Dzhugashvili(from Stalin)».
May 15, 1934 Stalin signs the resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR "On the teaching of national history in the schools of the USSR", in accordance with which the teaching of history in secondary and higher schools was resumed.
In the second half of the 1930s Stalin is working on preparations for the publication of the textbook "A Short Course in the History of the CPSU", the main author of which he was. On November 14, 1938, the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union adopted a resolution "On the organization of party propaganda in connection with the publication of the Short Course in the History of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union." The resolution officially made the textbook the basis of Marxism-Leninism propaganda and established its compulsory study in universities.
Stalin and the Great Patriotic War
More than a month and a half before the start of the war (since May 6, 1941) Stalin occupies the post of head of the government of the USSR - chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR. On the day of the German attack on the USSR Stalin still also one of the six secretaries of the Central Committee of the CPSU.
A number of historians personally blame Stalin unpreparedness of the Soviet Union for war and huge losses, especially in the initial period of the war, despite the fact that Stalin many sources gave 22 June 1941 as the date of the attack. Other historians take the opposite view, including because Stalin received conflicting data with a large difference in dates. According to an employee of the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation, Colonel V. N. Karpov, “intelligence did not give an exact date, they did not say unequivocally that the war would begin on June 22. No one doubted that war was inevitable, but no one had a clear idea of exactly when and how it would begin. Stalin did not doubt the inevitability of the war, however, the terms named by intelligence passed, but it did not begin. A version arose that these rumors were being spread by England in order to push Hitler against the USSR. Therefore, intelligence reports appeared Stalinist resolutions like "Isn't this a British provocation?". Researcher A. V. Isaev states: “with a lack of information, intelligence officers and analysts drew conclusions that did not reflect reality. At Stalin there was simply no information that could be 100% trusted.” A former employee of the NKVD of the USSR Sudoplatov P. A. recalled that in May 1941, in the office of the German ambassador V. Schulenburg, the Soviet special services installed listening devices, as a result of which, a few days before the war, information was received about Germany's intention to attack the USSR. According to the historian O. A. Rzheshevsky, on June 17, 1941, the head of the 1st department of the NKGB of the USSR P. M. Fitin I. V. Stalin a special message was presented from Berlin: "All military activities of Germany in preparation for an armed uprising against the USSR have been fully completed, a strike can be expected at any time." According to the version common in historical works, on June 15, 1941, Richard Sorge radioed to Moscow about the exact date of the start of the Great Patriotic War - June 22, 1941. According to the representative of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service V.N. Karpov, Sorge's telegram about the date of the attack on the USSR on June 22 is a fake created during, and Sorge called several dates for the attack on the USSR, which were never confirmed.
The day after the start of the war - June 23, 1941 - the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union, by a joint resolution, formed the Headquarters of the High Command, which included Stalin and the chairman of which was appointed People's Commissar of Defense S. K. Timoshenko. June 24 Stalin signs a resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR on the creation of an Evacuation Council, designed to organize the evacuation of "the population, institutions, military and other cargo, equipment of enterprises and other values" of the western part of the USSR.
A week after the start of the war - June 30 - Stalin was appointed Chairman of the newly formed State Defense Committee. 3 July Stalin made a radio address to the Soviet people, beginning it with the words: “Comrades, citizens, brothers and sisters, soldiers of our army and navy! I turn to you, my friends! On July 10, 1941, the Headquarters of the High Command was transformed into the Headquarters of the High Command, and Timoshenko was appointed chairman instead of Marshal of the Soviet Union Stalin.
July 18 Stalin signs the resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union "On the organization of the struggle in the rear of the German troops", which sets the task of creating unbearable conditions for the Nazi invaders, disorganizing their communications, transport and the military units themselves, disrupting all their activities, destroying the invaders and their accomplices, and helping in every possible way the creation of cavalry and foot partisan detachments, sabotage and extermination groups, to deploy a network of Bolshevik underground organizations in the occupied territory to direct all actions against the fascist invaders.
July 19, 1941 Stalin replaces Tymoshenko as People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. Since August 8, 1941 Stalin By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, he is appointed Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the USSR.
July 30, 1941 Stalin receives personal representative and closest adviser to US President Franklin Roosevelt - Harry Hopkins. 16 — 20 December in Moscow Stalin negotiates with British Foreign Secretary A. Eden on the issue of concluding an agreement between the USSR and Great Britain on an alliance in the war against Germany and on post-war cooperation.
During the war period Stalin- as the Supreme Commander-in-Chief - signed a number of orders that cause an ambiguous assessment of modern historians. So, in the order of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command No. 270 of August 16, 1941, signed Stalin, meant: “Commanders and political workers who, during a battle, tear off their insignia and desert to the rear or surrender to the enemy, are considered malicious deserters, whose families are subject to arrest as families of deserters who have violated the oath and betrayed their homeland”.
Also, the so-called. "Order No. 227", which tightened discipline in the Red Army, forbade the withdrawal of troops without orders from the leadership, introduced penal battalions as part of the fronts and penal companies as part of the armies, as well as barrage detachments as part of the armies.
During the Battle of Moscow in 1941, after the announcement of Moscow in a state of siege, Stalin remained in the capital. November 6, 1941 Stalin spoke at a solemn meeting held at the Mayakovskaya metro station, which was dedicated to the 24th anniversary of the October Revolution. In his speech Stalin explained the start of the war, which was unsuccessful for the Red Army, in particular, by the "lack of tanks and partly aviation." The next day, November 7, 1941, at the direction of Stalin A traditional military parade was held on Red Square.
During the Great Patriotic War Stalin several times went to the front in the front lines. In 1941-1942, the commander-in-chief visited the Mozhaisky, Zvenigorodsky, Solnechnogorsk defensive lines, and was also in a hospital in the Volokolamsk direction - in the 16th army of K. Rokossovsky, where he examined the work of BM-13 rocket launchers ("Katyusha"), was in 316 th division of I. V. Panfilov. October 16 (according to other sources - in mid-November) Stalin goes to the front line in a field hospital on Volokolamsk highway near the village of Lenino (Istra district of the Moscow region) in the division of General A.P. Beloborodov, talks with the wounded, awards soldiers with orders and medals of the USSR. Three days after the parade on November 7, 1941 Stalin left for the Volokolamsk highway to inspect the combat readiness of one of the divisions that arrived from Siberia. In July 1941 Stalin left to get acquainted with the state of affairs of the Western Front, which at that time (in the context of the advance of the German invaders to the Western Dvina and Dniester) included the 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd armies. Later Stalin together with a member of the Military Council of the Western Front, N. A. Bulganin, he went to get acquainted with the Volokolamsk-Maloyaroslavets defense line. In 1942 Stalin traveled across the Lama River to the airfield to test the aircraft. On August 2 and 3, 1943, he arrived on the Western Front to General V. D. Sokolovsky and Bulganin. On August 4 and 5, he was on the Kalinin Front with General A. I. Eremenko. 5th of August Stalin is located on the front line in the village of Khoroshevo (Rzhevsky district of the Tver region). As the officer of the personal guard of the commander-in-chief A. T. Rybin writes: “According to the observation of the personal guard Stalin, during the war Stalin behaved recklessly. Members of the Politburo and N. Vlasik literally drove him into cover from flying fragments, shells exploding in the air.
May 30, 1942 Stalin signs the GKO resolution on the creation of the Central Headquarters of the partisan movement at the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command. On September 5, 1942, he issued an order "On the tasks of the partisan movement", which became a program document in the further organization of the struggle behind the lines of the invaders.
August 21, 1943 Stalin signs the decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union "On urgent measures to restore the economy in areas liberated from German occupation." November 25 Stalin accompanied by the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR V. M. Molotov and a member of the State Defense Committee, Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR K. E. Voroshilov, he travels to Stalingrad and Baku, from where he flies by plane to Tehran (Iran). From November 28 to December 1, 1943 Stalin participates in the Tehran Conference - the first conference of the "Big Three" during the years of the Second World War - the leaders of three countries: the USSR, the USA and Great Britain. February 4 - 11, 1945 Stalin participates in the Yalta Conference of the Allied Powers, dedicated to the establishment of a post-war world order.
Death of Stalin
March 1, 1953 Stalin lying on the floor in the small dining room of the Near Dacha (one of the residences Stalin), was discovered by security officer P. V. Lozgachev. On the morning of March 2, doctors arrived at the Near Dacha and diagnosed paralysis on the right side of the body. March 5 at 21:50 Stalin died. About death Stalin was announced on March 5, 1953. According to the medical report, death was the result of a cerebral hemorrhage.
There are numerous conspiracy theories suggesting the unnaturalness of death and the involvement of the environment in it. Stalin. According to A. Avtorkhanov (“The Mystery of Death Stalin. Beria's conspiracy") Stalin killed L.P. Beria. Publicist Y. Mukhin ("Murder Stalin and Beria”) and historian I. Chigirin (“White and dirty spots of history”) consider N. S. Khrushchev to be the killer-conspirator. Almost all researchers agree that the leader's associates contributed (not necessarily intentionally) to his death, not in a hurry to call for medical help.
Embalmed body Stalin was placed on public display in the Lenin Mausoleum, which in 1953-1961 was called the "Mausoleum of V.I. Lenin and I.V. Stalin". On October 30, 1961, the XXII Congress of the CPSU decided that "serious violations Stalin Lenin's testaments make it impossible to leave the coffin with his body in the Mausoleum. On the night of October 31 to November 1, 1961, the body Stalin was taken out of the Mausoleum and buried in a grave near the Kremlin wall. In 1970, a monument was opened on the grave (a bust by N.V. Tomsky).
