The name of which commander of Rus' was carried by a tank column. Tank column "Dimitri Donskoy" in the focus of various aspects of the history of the Great Patriotic War
VICTORY DAY
TANKS OF SAINT DEMITRI
When talking about the role of the Church in the Victory, there are many misunderstandings.
It seems to some that our soldiers, with few exceptions, were zealous Christians. Such a rosy picture is drawn: Stalin meets with Metropolitan Sergius and Orthodox Red Army soldiers are twice as willing to rush to the bunkers. Something along those lines. But, of course, there was none of that.
Just a struggle with faith tore the country apart. I recall the story of my good old friend, Lyudmila Dmitrievna Petrova, whose father was, as they say, a fiery Chekist. Once she heard him say out loud: “I don’t know who rules everything - God, the Most High, but I believe that there is Someone over us and over the whole world.” Many thought so.
And when the war began, someone immediately, and someone by the fall, after the death of our best armies, inwardly realized that both believers and non-believers now need to stick together. On June 22, 1941, the Great Patriotic War began. On the same day the civil war ended. Whether the authorities and the troops wanted this or not, they only had to admit the obvious: Someone is there. Not with Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky), but with God, the former seminarian Joseph Stalin made peace.
He was one of the last to do so. IN besieged Leningrad Even during the famine winter of 1941-1942, Orthodox parishes were regularly supplied with wine and flour, necessary for communion. True, wine was heavily diluted, sometimes replacing it with beetroot juice, and prosphora were baked the size of a five-kopeck coin. But there was an understanding of how much the surviving temples meant for the Victory in the city.
The final turning point in relations between the Church and the state occurred in 1943. Today we will talk about the symbol of this reconciliation - the tank column "Dmitry Donskoy", built with the money of the Orthodox. 8 million rubles were collected, not counting jewelry - wedding rings, earrings. They collected pennies.
As the archpriest of the church of the village of Trinity recalled Dnipropetrovsk region I. V. Ivlev, “there was no money in the church cash desk, but we had to get it ... I blessed two 75-year-old old women for this great deed. Let their names be known to people: Kovrigina Maria Maksimovna and Gorbenko Matryona Maksimovna. And they went, they went after all the people had made their contribution through the village council. Two Maksimovnas went to ask in the name of Christ to protect their dear Motherland from rapists. They went around the entire parish - villages, farms and settlements, located 5-20 kilometers from the village, and as a result - 10 thousand rubles, a significant amount in our places devastated by German monsters.
An important detail. To raise funds, on the personal instructions of Stalin, a special account was opened at the State Bank of the USSR. This was the first approval of the legal status of the Russian Orthodox Church during the years of Soviet power.
This is how forty of the best T-34-85 tanks in the world were born. These were not the “thirty-fours” with which we met the war, but completely new machines capable of fighting on equal terms with the German “tigers”. The new tanks had a more powerful gun, their armor was much stronger than before. This is not to mention the fact that more than half of the vehicles in the convoy - 21 out of 40 - were flamethrowers. It was a terrible weapon. A fire mixture charge of up to 10 liters was fired at a distance of 70-130 meters. Moreover, the rate of fire reached 30 rounds per minute, which made it possible to literally pour enemy fortifications with a stream of fire.
The 516th separate tank regiment was formed from flamethrower tanks, 19 other vehicles were transferred to the 38th separate tank regiment. This happened near the village of Gorelki, which is five kilometers northwest of Tula. On March 8, 1944, a solemn rally took place, at which Metropolitan Nikolay (Yarushevich) of Krutitsky spoke to the tankers. This was the first official meeting of a representative of the clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church with soldiers and commanders of the Red Army. On the snow-covered field stood combat vehicles with inscriptions: "Dmitry Donskoy." Crews lined up in front of them.
“I feel deeply happy to be among you,” Vladyka said and said that on the very first day of the war, the Church blessed all Orthodox to defend the Fatherland. Soon, Patriarch Sergius also met with the tankers in Moscow, wishing them to return alive from the fiery furnace of the war: “So that you return home healthy and unharmed and rejoice with us, with everyone, and with your loved ones. God grant you ... that the glory of Dimitry Donskoy touches you and all representatives of the tank troops.
The Lord so arranged that the tanks from the column "Dmitry Donskoy" lasted longer than others, several of them met the Victory in Germany. This is despite the fact that the average life time of a tank platoon in a battle in a war is about ten minutes.
The 38th Regiment was the first to enter the battle. This happened two weeks after Vladyka Nikolai blessed the tankers to fight honestly for the Motherland.
Near the city of Balta, in the Odessa region, a fierce battle ensued. "Tigers", self-propelled guns, aviation were thrown against the regiment. But the tankers liberated one village after another. On the evening of March 27, the tanks of the "Dmitry Donskoy" column with armored troops broke into the city. Street fighting continued for two days. By the end of March 29, the enemy was completely driven out of Balta.
Developing the offensive, the regiment bypassed the city of Kotovsk from the flanks, creating a threat of encirclement for the Germans who had settled in it. They ran, but the tankers overtook the enemy and completely destroyed his grouping.
By April, only nine cars had survived. For crossing the Dniester, the regiment was given the name Dniester, although it was already difficult to call it a regiment. Rather, it was now a company.
By the end of April, only four tanks of the Dniester regiment continued to fight the Nazis. At a height of 111.1 in the area of the Moldavian village of Ustya, the remaining combat vehicles with landing troops attacked the Germans, destroying them with fire and caterpillars. But the infantry attack bogged down. Height seemed impregnable to her. And then the tankers went for a breakthrough. The first was the crew under the command of junior lieutenant Rumyantsev. The tank managed to cross two lanes of trenches before the gas tanks burst into flames. As one of the historians wrote, “it was impossible to continue moving further, but the tankers understood the true value of their every shot. The crew did not leave the flaming combat vehicle, sending shell after shell to the target until the last breath. Heroes were posthumously awarded orders Patriotic War first degree. Among the brave are the inseparable compatriots of Leningrad: Ensign Nikolai Mikhailovich Rumyantsev, who lived before the war on 20 Sedova Street, and his friend, foreman Konstantin Fedorovich Morozov from Pargolovo. There are no graves on earth ... "
Thanks to this tank, the other two, dragging the infantry along with them, took the height, then liberated the village of Zherven and crossed the Reut River. It was last Stand Dniester regiment. In a month, he destroyed one and a half thousand Nazis, 38 tanks were hit and captured.
Another regiment that received combat vehicles from the Dmitry Donskoy column, the 516th Separate Tank Flame Thrower, was supposed to perform special tasks. Together with the Second Assault Engineer Brigade, he opened, like a knife, the most fortified places of defense of the Nazis.
A letter from the Communists and Komsomol members of the regiment to Metropolitan Nikolai has been preserved. They wrote: “You said: “Drive the hated enemy out of our Great Rus'. Let glorious name Dmitry Donskoy leads us to the battle for the sacred Russian land. Forward to victory, warrior brothers!” Fulfilling this order, the privates, sergeants and officers of our unit on the tanks handed over by you, full of love for their Motherland, for their people, successfully smash the sworn enemy, driving him out of our land. On these formidable combat vehicles, tankers broke through the heavily fortified long-term defense of the Germans and continue to pursue the enemy, freeing their native land from fascist evil spirits ... We will smash and pursue the German invaders, as long as our eyes see, while our heart beats in our chest, worst enemies humanity. The name of the great Russian commander Dmitry Donskoy, like the unfading glory of weapons, we will carry on the armor of our tanks forward to the West, to complete and final victory.
It can be seen from this text that the words of Vladyka made a very strong impression on the tankers. Tanks "Dmitry Donskoy" reached Berlin. Not all. Nineteen people were burned alive in combat vehicles.
It must be understood that there were no atheists in these regiments. Maybe there were, until they got into tanks, on the sides of which the name of Prince Dimitri was inscribed. And after that, it was like a hand removed. And if we, Orthodox, want to be respected, to be drawn to us, we must not ask, but give. Without this, no, even the best, sermon will be heard. Sacrifice for the most important, the most what people need. During the war, these were tanks, aircraft - in addition to the tank column, a squadron named after St. Alexander Nevsky. The church helped orphans and wounded Red Army soldiers, collecting 300 million rubles. To make it clearer, this would be enough for two tank armies. Thus the front of atheism was broken.
G. DONAROV
When talking about the role of the Church in the Victory, there are many misunderstandings.
It seems to some that our soldiers, with few exceptions, were zealous Christians. Such a rosy picture is drawn: Stalin meets with Metropolitan Sergius and Orthodox Red Army soldiers are twice as willing to rush to the bunkers. Something along those lines. But, of course, there was none of that.
Just a struggle with faith tore the country apart. I recall the story of my good old friend, Lyudmila Dmitrievna Petrova, whose father was, as they say, a fiery Chekist. Once she heard him say out loud: “I don’t know who rules everything - God, the Most High, but I believe that there is Someone over us and over the whole world.” Many thought so.
And when the war began, someone immediately, and someone by the fall, after the death of our best armies, inwardly realized that both believers and non-believers now need to stick together. On June 22, 1941, the Great Patriotic War began. On the same day the civil war ended. Whether the authorities and the troops wanted this or not, they only had to admit the obvious: Someone is there. Not with Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky), but with God, the former seminarian Joseph Stalin made peace.
He was one of the last to do so. In besieged Leningrad, even in the famine winter of 1941-1942, Orthodox parishes were regularly supplied with wine and flour, necessary for communion. True, wine was heavily diluted, sometimes replacing it with beetroot juice, and prosphora were baked the size of a five-kopeck coin. But there was an understanding of how much the surviving temples meant for the Victory in the city.
The final turning point in relations between the Church and the state occurred in 1943. Today we will talk about the symbol of this reconciliation - the tank column "Dmitry Donskoy", built with the money of the Orthodox. 8 million rubles were collected, not counting jewelry - wedding rings, earrings. They collected pennies.
As the archpriest of the church in the village of Troitsky, Dnepropetrovsk region, I. V. Ivlev, recalled, “there was no money in the church cash desk, but they had to be obtained ... I blessed two 75-year-old old women for this great deed. Let their names be known to people: Kovrigina Maria Maksimovna and Gorbenko Matryona Maksimovna. And they went, they went after all the people had made their contribution through the village council. Two Maksimovnas went to ask in the name of Christ to protect their dear Motherland from rapists. They went around the entire parish - villages, farms and settlements, located 5-20 kilometers from the village, and as a result - 10 thousand rubles, a significant amount in our places devastated by German monsters.
An important detail. To raise funds, on the personal instructions of Stalin, a special account was opened at the State Bank of the USSR. This was the first approval of the legal status of the Russian Orthodox Church during the years of Soviet power.
This is how forty of the best T-34-85 tanks in the world were born. These were not the “thirty-fours” with which we met the war, but completely new machines capable of fighting on equal terms with the German “tigers”. The new tanks had a more powerful gun, their armor was much stronger than before. This is not to mention the fact that more than half of the vehicles in the convoy - 21 out of 40 - were flamethrowers. It was a terrible weapon. A fire mixture charge of up to 10 liters was fired at a distance of 70-130 meters. Moreover, the rate of fire reached 30 rounds per minute, which made it possible to literally pour enemy fortifications with a stream of fire.
Drive the hated enemy out of our Great Rus'. May the glorious name of Dmitry Donskoy lead us to the battle for the sacred Russian land. Forward, to victory, warrior brothers!" Fulfilling this order, the privates, sergeants and officers of our unit on the tanks handed over by you, full of love for their Motherland, for their people, successfully smash the sworn enemy, expelling him from our land. On With these formidable combat vehicles, the tankers broke through the heavily fortified long-term defense of the Germans and continue to pursue the enemy, freeing their native land from fascist evil spirits ... We will smash and pursue the German invaders, as long as our eyes see, while our heart beats in our chests, not knowing mercy for the worst enemies of mankind The name of the great Russian commander Dmitry Donskoy, like the unfading glory of weapons, we will carry on the armor of our tanks forward to the West, to complete and final victory. It can be seen from this text that the words of Vladyka made a very strong impression on the tankers. Tanks "Dmitry Donskoy" reached Berlin. Not all. Nineteen people were burned alive in combat vehicles. It must be understood that there were no atheists in these regiments. Maybe there were, until they got into tanks, on the sides of which the name of Prince Dimitri was inscribed. And after that, it was like a hand removed. And if we, Orthodox, want to be respected, to be drawn to us, we must not ask, but give. Without this, no, even the best, sermon will be heard. Sacrifice for the most important, the most necessary for people. During the war, these were tanks, aircraft - in addition to the tank column, a squadron named after St. Alexander Nevsky. The church helped orphans and wounded Red Army soldiers, collecting 300 million rubles. To make it clearer, this would be enough for two tank armies. Thus the front of atheism was broken. |
Drive the hated enemy out of our Great Rus'.
May the glorious name of Dmitry Donskoy lead us to the battle for the sacred Russian land.
Forward to victory, warrior brothers!"
(Metropolitan Nikolay Krutitsy).
The tank column "Dmitry Donskoy" consists of 40 tanks (19 T-34-85 vehicles and 21 OT-34 flamethrowers). The TK was created on the initiative of the Moscow Patriarchate on donations from believers and transferred to the Red Army on March 7, 1944. More than 8 million rubles were collected for the creation of tanks, which were built in a short time at the Nizhny Tagil Tank Plant. The solemn transfer of the tank column took place 5 km northwest of Tula, near the village of Gorelki. Tanks T-34-85 served in the 38th tank, and flamethrower - in the 516th flamethrower separate shelf. And on March 7, 2014 at 14.00 in the village of Gorelki, festive events will be held, a solemn ceremony of installing a memorial sign will be held in honor of the 70th anniversary of the transfer of the Dmitry Donskoy tank column to the Red Army.
There is information on the Internet that the foundation stone will be opened in the village of Gorelki at the address Moskovskoye highway, house 2, and at 15.00 a gala concert will be held at the Tula Regional Philharmonic Society with the participation of the Tula State Choir, the Legend Ensemble and the Svetoch Ensemble.
The 516th Separate Flame Thrower Tank Regiment first entered combat on June 16, 1944 in Belarus, together with the 2nd Assault Engineer Brigade of the 1st Belorussian Front. On June 24-27, the regiment took part in the Bobruisk offensive operation. Flamethrower tank units mainly operated with assault battalions. Then the regiment participated in the Lublin-Brest operation and its tankers were the first to break into Brest, and soon reached the state border. In August 1944, he entered the territory of Poland. After intense fighting, by October 10, only two tanks remained in the regiment, they were sent for overhaul. The regiment was re-equipped with new equipment. The regiment was given the honorary name "Lodz". Then the tankers stormed the fortress of Poznan, burned machine-gun and gun nests on the Seelow Heights with fire, and ended the war in Berlin. In total, the tankers of the regiment destroyed over 3800 enemy soldiers and officers, 48 tanks and assault guns, 130 guns and mortars, 400 machine-gun points, 47 bunkers.
The 38th separate tank regiment took part in the Uman-Batashev operation, in early April 1944, only 9 tanks remained in the regiment. For a month, changing the direction of attacks, the regiment fought over 60 km. The personnel of the 38th regiment distinguished themselves when crossing the Dniester River with subsequent access to the state border of the USSR. April 8, 1944 the regiment was given the honorary name "Dnestrovsky". By the end of April, there were four tanks left in the regiment. Developing the offensive, tankers with landing forces liberated the village of Zherven and crossed the Reut River. By 21 o'clock on April 24, 1944, the 38th separate tank Dniester regiment completed its last battle. But even after it, the remaining two tanks in the rifle units destroyed the enemy until May 5, 1944. In less than two months, the regiment fought over 130 km, the tankers destroyed about 1420 Nazis, 40 various guns, 108 machine guns, knocked out and captured 38 tanks, 17 armored personnel carriers, 101 transport vehicles, captured 3 fuel depots and captured 84 German soldiers and officers. Then, being in the reserve of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander, the 38th regiment was renamed the 74th division. ttp, and then reorganized into the 364th self-propelled tank artillery regiment. At the same time, he was awarded the title of "Guards" and retained the honorary name "Dniester".
The decision to install a memorial sign dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the transfer of the Dmitry Donskoy tank column to the Red Army was made at an extraordinary meeting of the Tula City Duma. The foundation stone will be located in the village of Gorelki in the Zarechensky district of the city of Tula. The installation of the stone by the deputies was supported unanimously and will take place on March 7. On the website of the Tula City Duma, a decision dated 05.03.14 "On the installation of a memorial sign - the foundation stone of the monument dedicated to the solemn transfer of the tank column "Dmitry Donskoy" to the Red Army units" was published.
For the purpose of perpetuating historical event- 70th anniversary of the transfer of the tank column "Dmitry Donskoy" to the Red Army, on the basis of a petition from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Tula region taking into account the decision of the Commission on historical heritage and urban toponymy dated 03/04/2014, on the basis of Federal Law No. 131-FZ dated 10/06/2003 "On general principles local government organizations in Russian Federation", the Charter of the municipality of the city of Tula, the Regulations "On the installation and preservation of sculptural monuments and memorial signs in the city of Tula", approved by the decision of the Tula City Duma dated March 25, 2009 No. 65 / 1415, the Tula City Duma decided:
- Install a memorial sign - the foundation stone of a monument dedicated to the solemn transfer of the tank column "Dmitry Donskoy" to the Red Army units in the area of \u200b\u200bhouse No. 2-zh along the Moscow Highway of the city of Tula with the text as follows:
“A monument dedicated to the solemn transfer to the Red Army of the Dmitry Donskoy tank column, created at the initiative of the Moscow Patriarchate with donations from believers, will be erected here.
The foundation stone was set on March 7, 2014 on the day of the 70th anniversary of the transfer of the Dmitry Donskoy tank column. - Accept the proposal of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Tula Region to finance the manufacture and installation of a memorial sign at the expense of the ministry.
- To accept the established memorial sign on the balance sheet of the GUTO "Center for the Development of Culture and Tourism" on the basis of a proposal from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Tula Region.
- The control over the execution of this decision shall be entrusted to the deputy head of the city administration for social policy.
- Publish this decision of the Tula City Duma in the socio-political regional newspaper "Tula" and on the official website of the Tula City Duma on the Internet.
- The decision comes into force from the date of its adoption.
Holy Blessed Prince Dmitry Donskoy.
The surviving tanks of the "Dmitry Donskoy" column after the end of World War II were installed on display in the museums of the Armed Forces of Moscow, Leningrad and Tula. With the blessing of Patriarch Alexy II, in 2005, one of the surviving vehicles of the tank column was installed in Moscow's Donskoy Monastery in memory of the parishioners and clergy, on whose donated funds it was created.
Today it has become fashionable among the townsfolk to ask the Russian Church: what, they say, did she do for the country in general? In order not to spread our thoughts along the tree, we will focus on the contribution of the Church during the years of the Great Patriotic War. Namely, the creation of a tank column "Dmitry Donskoy" and an aviation squadron "Alexander Nevsky" with funds raised by the clergy and laity.
Tank column "Dmitry Donskoy"
In March 1944, Metropolitan Nikolay (Yarushevich) of Krutitsky went to the front to hand over to the Red Army a tank column named after Dimitry Donskoy, a gift from the Russian Orthodox Church.
On February 7, 1944, the tank column “Dmitry Donskoy”, built with money collected by the Church since the beginning of 1943, was transferred to the army. . The column consisted of 40 T-34-80 tanks.
Having reported on the patriotic activity of the Church, its indestructible unity with the people, the Metropolitan conveyed greetings to the fighters, gifts and blessings from the Russian Orthodox Church and Patriarch Sergius. In his speech to the tankers, the bishop gave them a parting order: “Forward, dear warriors, in the name of the complete cleansing of our land, in the name of a peaceful life and happiness of our people. For a holy cause - forward!
The tankers of the Dmitry Donskoy column took their first battle on the 1st Belorussian front, where "... they broke through the heavily fortified defenses of the Germans."
In less than two months, the 38th regiment fought more than 130 km and managed to overcome more than 500 km off-road on their tanks. For the courage and heroism shown, 49 tankers of the Dimitry Donskoy column from the 38th regiment were awarded orders and medals of the USSR. 21 soldiers and 10 officers of the regiment died a heroic death on the battlefields, 19 of them were burned in combat vehicles.
Aviation Squadron "Alexander Nevsky"
Active disinterested assistance was rendered to the defenders of the Motherland by all strata of our society. I cannot but mention that during the Great Patriotic War the Russian Orthodox Church made large contributions to the National Defense Fund.
On January 5, 1943, Pravda published the Epistle of Metropolitan Sergius of Moscow. “With our special Message,” it said, “I invite the clergy and believers to donate for the construction of a column of tanks named after Dimitry Donskoy. To begin with, the patriarchate contributes 100,000 rubles, the Elokhov Cathedral in Moscow - 300 thousand, the rector of the cathedral Kolchitsky Nikolai Fedorovich - 100 thousand " .
Literally all dioceses responded to the Message. So, a few days later, Pravda published a message that the Leningrad diocese, under the conditions of the blockade, collected and contributed 3,182,143 rubles to the Defense Fund. Dean of the city of Gorky, Archpriest Alexander Alexandrovich Arkhangelsky said:
"Our church community in 1942 contributed 2.5 million rubles in cash to the State Bank to the Defense Fund. The heroic offensive of the valiant Soviet troops undertaken in Lately simultaneously on several fronts, and the successes achieved at the same time even more inspired all honest Russian people to exploits for the speedy liberation of their native land ...
I personally contribute 200 thousand rubles for the construction of a new combat aircraft of the squadron named after the famous Russian military leader Alexander Nevsky ...
I call on all Orthodox clergy to use their contributions to create a mighty combat squadron "Alexander Nevsky" that is formidable to the enemy.
On a fighter with an inscription on board "Alexander Nevsky" fought a famous fighter pilot, Hero Soviet Union, Alexander Dmitrievich Bilyukin. In total, during the war, he completed 430 successful sorties, in 36 air battles he personally shot down 23 and as part of a group 1 enemy aircraft.
On June 22, 1941, the war began, which after a few days received the name "Patriotic". The war was real, big, not at all like that victorious toy from the popular pre-war film “If there is war tomorrow”. The proletariat of Germany did not rise up as one man, having learned about the attack on the USSR, German soldiers they did not turn their bayonets against the Hitler clique, and the Red Army did not throw the enemy away from our borders in an instant with “little blood, a mighty blow”, as it should have been according to the schemes of the Comintern-Soviet propaganda. Everything happened as it should in real life.
However, this did not become clear in the rear soon, and propaganda, which immediately mobilized the image folk hero and patriot Susanin for military needs, she still thought in the same old patterns. So, for example, the chairman of the Domninsky collective farm. The NKVD I. Pukhov wrote to the district newspaper (his letter was published in the issue of June 26): “In response to the brutal attack of the fascist jackals, the descendants of the national hero Ivan Susanin, the collective farmers of the agricultural artel named after the NKVD, the Susaninsky village council, are working with redoubled energy for fields. Following the example of the national hero Ivan Susanin, who gave his life for his homeland, we will give everything that is needed for the Red Army in order to ensure the fastest victory over the enemy. 1 But securing a quick victory was not so easy. The Germans inevitably moved deep into the USSR, the Red Army, suffering defeat, retreated, a more than real threat of military defeat and occupation loomed over the country. And under these conditions, something happened that was natural for any nation that was in mortal danger - an appeal to the heroic images of their ancestors, to the trampled national traditions of Russia. In the flames of the war, former idols - such as Voroshilov and Budyonny - finally faded into the background, giving way to images that seemed to have risen from the depths of Russian history - Alexander Nevsky and Dmitry Donskoy, Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky, Suvorov and Kutuzov. In this line of historical heroes of Russia, who helped their descendants to defend their homeland, there was also Ivan Susanin, whose heroic and tragic image from a purely bookish one became alive and close to modern generations at that cruel time. A Characteristic in this regard is the poem “Susanin”, written by S.N. Markov (Kostroma by origin) in 1941. The tragic feeling of the time of the first year of the war gives the images of Susanin and foreign enemies a striking modernity.
Splinters are cracking even beams,
A frozen birch knocks on the roof.
All night the crickets chime
And the logs burst from the frost.
And on the floor under a pile of sheepskins
Hangover hussars scream in their sleep -
And the Poles, and the tattered German,
And black mustachioed Magyars.
Farewell, huts, frozen meadows
And a dark pond in a silver frame...
How joyful it is to walk through the snow
Towards death, feat and glory.
Sparkling ice fringe.
Susanin looks with sad eyes
At noon, where Kostroma took refuge
Behind the ancient lingonberry forests.
And a faithful ally-blizzard
On the pines suddenly hit with a swing.
“Snowstorm, make a snow bed for me,
No wonder I put on a death shirt ... "
And for some reason the old man remembered
Your warm shelter ... “Defend, lord:
Yesterday I forgot a kochedyk on the bench
And a golden lime bast.
And kochedyk for mischievous ideas
The foolish guys will be dragged away.
He was lazy, a sinner, did not finish the bast shoes,
I didn’t knock together an oak tub ... ”
And the forest shuddered, and the snow lit up,
Distant ringing resounded gave,
And the age of old ended
A communion of blood and misty steel. 3
A lot was written about Susanin during the war, and of the two pre-war versions of his feat - with Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich and without him - at that time the "royal" version completely dominated. For a while, it was as if forgotten that Mikhail Fedorovich was the head of a “feudal-feudal dictatorship”, and the consideration that he was the Russian Tsar came to the fore. Here is just one example of how they wrote about Susanin during the war - the essay "Yaroslavl", placed in September 1942 in the newspaper of the People's Commissariat of Defense "Red Star". The essay, which tells about the participation of the Yaroslavl people in the defense of the Russian land, described in detail the feat of Susanin in his “royal” version and, in particular, said: “Ivan Susanin agreed to be a guide, and the gang set off. But there was no end to the forest, and the long winter night - dawn. For such a night, you can lead far into the forest ... He did - the son of the Russian people, Ivan Susanin. Around the dense wall stood shaggy from the snow, mighty Russian firs. From the starry frosty light, the snow turned blue. In front of Susanin stood a bunch of panting, exhausted, colorfully dressed fools who believed him that he would help, that he, the old man, would betray Russia ...
The calm courage, the courage of Susanin, was brought with them by the Yaroslavl people into the Patriotic war against fascism. 4
During the war years, a lot was written about people who, to one degree or another, repeated the feat of Susanin in the occupied territory. The most famous was the feat of the “Pskov Susanin” - M.K. Kuzmin, who led a detachment of Germans under the fire of our soldiers near Velikie Luki on February 14, 1942 (posthumously in 1965, M.K. Kuzmin was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union). 5 In the spring of 1942, a story-essay by V.Ya. Shishkov “Soviet Susanin”, dedicated, in particular, to the feat of M.K. Kuzmin (in 1943, under the title “Susanins of the Soviet Land”, he was included in the book of stories by V.Ya. Shishkov). The beginning of this story-essay is characteristic: “To each Soviet people dear bright image of Ivan Susanin. The unforgettable image of an avenger for his people is still alive. Our Patriotic War of Liberation will give birth to many Soviet Susanins.” 6
In general, the image of Ivan Susanin in the war, perhaps more than ever, had a dual character. On the one hand, the old Russian peasant-hero could not but evoke in people a living "warmth of patriotism" - natural, normal patriotism, without which victory cannot be won. On the other hand, Susanin's official appearance at that time, more than ever, bore the stamp of official patriotism (although the use of Susanin's name by propaganda during the war years, of course, was incomparably more natural and politically pure - in contrast to the period of 1938-1939, when this name covered up the crimes of the Stalinist regime). Perhaps most clearly this duality manifested itself at the end of 1942, during the collection of funds for the construction of the Ivan Susanin tank column.
Tank column named after Ivan Susanin
November 7, 1942 - in the midst of Battle of Stalingrad- Stalin made a presentation at the solemn meeting of the Moscow Council, dedicated to the 25th anniversary of October revolution. A few days later, members of the Krasny Volunteer collective farm in the Izberdeevsky district of the Tambov region, “in response to the report” of the leader, came up with an initiative to raise funds for the construction of the Tambov Collective Farmer tank column. This initiative was, of course, organized "from above", but, as always, it was portrayed that it comes "from below" - from the broad collective farm masses. In fact, it was another military tax imposed on the collective farm peasantry. The example of the Tambovites, as Pravda wrote in those days, “inspired all the collective farmers Soviet country”, 7 and the collection of funds for the construction of new tank columns organized by the regional party committees unfolded everywhere. Following the Tambov Collective Farmer, initiatives were taken in a matter of days to build the Moscow Collective Farmer, the Ryazan Collective Farmer, the Ivanovo Collective Farmer, the Krasnoyarsk Collective Farmer, the Chelyabinsk Collective Farmer, etc., etc. Of course, the Yaroslavl region could not stand aside either, where in early December, members of the Voskhod collective farm of the Yaroslavl region, supporting the initiative of the Tambovites, took the initiative to raise funds for a tank column in their region. Initially, the column was supposed to be named according to the general template - "Yaroslavl collective farmer", b however, it was soon decided to give her a different name. In the second half of December, a group of collective farmers from the Susaninsky district addressed the Yaroslavl Regional Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks with a letter - most likely in the regional committee itself and written - which said: “The great patriot of the Russian land, Ivan Susanin, gave his life for the Motherland. Following the patriotic initiative of the Tambov collective farmers, we, the collective farmers and collective farmers of the collective farms named after the NKVD, named after Stalin, named after Frunze, named after Molotov, “Red Banner”, named after Kalinin and others, of the Susaninsky district, V having collected 900 thousand for the construction of a tank column, we ask the regional committee of the CPSU (b) to give it the name of the national hero of our countryman Ivan Susanin. Let the tanks with the name of Ivan Susanin mercilessly smash the Nazi bandits. Let the name of Ivan Susanin call our dear red warriors forward to defeat the enemy.” 9
Simultaneously with this letter, two telegrams were published in the newspapers: one - by the 1st secretary of the regional party committee A.N. Larionov to Stalin, which read: “Moscow, the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, Comrade Stalin. The collective farmers and collective farmers of the Yaroslavl region, following the example of the Tambov collective farmers, within a few days have collected 70 million rubles for the construction of a tank column and are asking you, Comrade Stalin, to name the tank column of the Yaroslavl collective farmers the name of the Russian folk hero, Yaroslavl countryman, Ivan Susanin. Fundraising continues”; 10 and the second - the answer of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief: “Give to the collective farmers and collective farmers of the Yaroslavl region, who collected 70 million rubles for the construction of the Ivan Susanin tank column, my fraternal greetings and thanks to the Red Army. I. Stalin”. 11
Thus, the assignment of the Susanin name to the tank column was authorized at the very high level. Of course, in connection with the Stalinist telegram, workers' rallies were held throughout the region, and the regional committee and the regional executive committee came out with special treatment“To all collective farmers and collective farmers, to all working people of the Yaroslavl region”, which said: “Comrade collective farmers and collective farmers! In response to Comrade Stalin's telegram, we will intensify the collection of funds for the construction of a powerful tank column of Yaroslavl collective farmers named after Ivan Susanin. All collective farmers and collective farmers of our region should become active participants in raising funds for a tank column.” 12
In those December days, Susanin's name was constantly declined in the press and at rallies, and on December 25 - the day when the collection of funds for the column as a result of "wide explanatory work" was to be successfully completed, according to the decision of the bureau of the regional committee - in the regional newspaper "Northern Worker ” appeared a large article “Ivan Susanin”. After the story about Susanin's feat - of course, in his "royal" version, with information about Mikhail Romanov - there was a text: “330 years have passed since then. But the memory of the feat of Ivan Susanin did not fade. The light of this feat is now illuminating the paths of our soldiers defending their native country from the invasion of Nazi bandits. When the descendants of a national hero meet with the enemy in an unequal battle, they do not retreat. The immortal feat of Ivan Susanin inspires the soldiers of the Red Army to fight to the death against fascist monsters, to fight for freedom, honor and independence home country. The name Susanin has become a symbol of selfless service to the motherland.
To us, Yaroslavl residents, Susanin is especially close and dear - this is our fellow countryman. The birthplace of Ivan Susanin is the former Molvitinsky district. At the request of the workers, the district was named Susaninsky. G
Now, on the patriotic initiative of the Tambov collective farmers, the collective farmers of our region are contributing their labor savings to the construction of a tank column. At the request of the workers of the Susaninsky district, this column was named after the Yaroslavl peasant Ivan Susanin.” 13 After quoting lines from a popular pre-war song: “Thundering with fire, sparkling with the brilliance of steel, the cars will go on a furious campaign,” the author ended the article like this: “On their way they will shoot, crush, crush the enemy’s manpower and equipment. This will be a continuation of the legendary path of Ivan Susanin, glorious way victory.
The more tanks go in the column named after the great patriot of the Russian land, the faster it will be cleared motherland from fascist scum. The blood of the ancestor calls the Yaroslavl collective farmers to increase their efforts in the fight against foreign invaders. 14
After raising funds for the construction of a tank column 15 In the same April 1943, the senior livestock specialist of the Karavaevo breeding farm located near Kostroma, S.I. Shteiman transferred to the defense fund the Stalin Prize he received in the amount of 1,000 thousand rubles, asking in a letter addressed to Stalin, published in all newspapers, to build an airplane with this money, naming it after the national hero Ivan Susanin. In a reply telegram, Stalin, betraying him his greetings and gratitude to the Red Army, said that his wish would be fulfilled. "> d and the highest - by Stalin himself - consecration of its name, the name of Susanin finally became cult, sacred, sounded from the highest stands. For example, speaking at the end of January 1943 in Yaroslavl at a meeting of secretaries of the collective farm Komsomol organizations of the region, 1st secretary Central Committee of the Komsomol N.A. Mikhailov, in particular, said: “You, comrades of Yaroslavl, can be legitimately proud of the immortal feat of your fellow countryman Ivan Susanin, you, comrades, can be proud of the fact that in this great war there was more than one representative of the Soviet youth from among the Yaroslavl youth, who turned out to be a worthy successor to Susanin. 18 But only 4 years have passed since the “rehabilitation” of Susanin! However, the steady rise in Susanin's status also had its real positive aspects. It was for this reason that at the final stage of the war, the Assumption Church in Domnino was revived.
Photo by G.P. Belyakova. 1953
The temple in Domnina is working again.
Revival of the Domnino temple
By the fall of 1943, the war was in full swing. Our troops fought to the west, in the rear at back-breaking work the notorious “collective farmers and collective farmers” - women, old people and teenagers - were tearing themselves to pieces, propaganda still - among other names of our great ancestors - declined the name of Susanin, and the Assumption Church in Domnino remained in its desecrated form, continuing to serve as a granary of the NKVD collective farm; the cemetery trampled down in the pre-war years near it was overgrown with grass. Believers went to pray - and there was something to pray about during the war! - to distant churches that miraculously survived the destruction of the 30s, in particular, to the Trinity Church in the village of Isupova. It seemed that it would always be so; and suddenly a real miracle happened - the temple was revived.
As you know, after a truly historic meeting of Stalin on September 4, 1943 with the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church, a rather abrupt, but, in principle, logically following from all the practice of the war years, turn of the state policy towards the church took place. The latter was allowed to re-elect a patriarch, allowed to have theological academies and seminaries, allowed the publication of church publications, and - most importantly - as a result of this turn, a fairly large number of churches were revived. There were quite a few reasons for such a change in course, but one of the main ones was that Stalin, preparing for the Red Army to go beyond the state border of the USSR, urgently took measures to make his regime more respectable (at the same time, the Comintern was also dissolved). However, even without this reason, the church would still sooner or later receive the rights that were given to it in 1943. In the 1930s, having destroyed almost everything in it that seemed dangerous to his power, Stalin could, as it seemed to him - in accordance with long-standing Russian traditions - once again make the clergy a part of his state apparatus.
As a result of this liberalization, the fruits of which, for a number of reasons, were very, very modest in the Kostroma region, the revival of the old Domna church took place. Apparently, either at the end of 1943 or at the beginning of 1944, a nun of the Trinity Sumarokovsky Monastery who lived in Domnina e Ksenia (Gruzdeva), who was a member of the former church council, together with other believers, began to write to Moscow, asking the authorities to return the temple to the Domnins. In her petitions, she pointed to historical meaning Assumption Church and its connection with the name of Susanin. And a miracle happened: the countrymen of the Russian folk hero were not refused - an order came from Moscow to transfer the temple to the religious community. Soon - according to the materials of the archive of the Kostroma diocese, this happened on August 15, 1944, on the Assumption of the Mother of God 19 - A priest was appointed in Domnino, Fr. Gennady Goritsky. Together with the parishioners, the 67-year-old priest, who took the place of the executed Father Konstantin Sokolsky, quickly managed to restore the temple, especially since the iconostasis in it suffered relatively little damage. Many saved icons from other closed temples of the district were demolished in the Assumption Church, and in the same 1944, after the consecration, it again began to operate.
So the shadow of Susanin helped the people of Domnino to revive their temple, for liberalization is liberalization, but if they weren’t fellow countrymen of the highest recognized patriot of the Russian land, the temple in Domnino could still be in the abomination of desolation.
Then, in August 1944, there was another an important event: By the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the Kostroma region was separated from the Yaroslavl region (and, in fact, restored). For Susanin, this fact had the significance that he was finally no longer called a Yaroslavl, and by the end of the war he again became what he had always been - a Kostroma peasant.