The Battle of Stalingrad ended 75 years ago .
Today, more and more often you can hear that the battle was a senseless meat grinder and in general, if, they say, they had not "renamed Tsaritsyn after Stalin, then nothing would have happened." Unfortunately not only professional buns and conscious anti-Soviet distorters lied poorly and know little about it as a whole, about the reasons for the "Operation Blau" and the significance of the battles around Stalingrad for both sides ...
And just the day before, an excellent material from Sergey Kuzmichev appeared in IA Regnum, telling about Battle of Stalingrad literally on your fingers.
Highly recommend. Moreover, it is written not dryly, but lively, interesting and very informative.

The cities of Stalingrad are now on geographical map Russia is not. But in the history of our people, and indeed of all mankind, Stalingrad was, is and will be. It has long turned from a geographical point into one of the main symbols of Russian history, unbending stamina, courage and the will to fight. A symbol of a difficult victory, the path to which lay through the bitterness of defeat and tears of loss.
For the enemy who came to us from the west, Stalingrad is also a symbol. A symbol of an unequivocal, unexpected and therefore difficult to explain defeat, still endowed with some mystical features.

It was a gigantic battle that would have been visible even from Earth orbit. At the same time, no less large-scale events took place that significantly influenced its outcome ...

In July 1942, the troops of Field Marshal Manstein were able to storm Sevastopol and the entire Crimean peninsula and gathered near Leningrad in order to apply the experience gained near Sevastopol there. Then they did not yet know that instead of storming Leningrad, heavy defensive battles awaited them in the forests and swamps of the Volkhov Front.

From August 1, in the central sector of the Soviet-German front near Rzhev, the Red Army will begin the most major operation 1942 against Army Group Center, resulting in a whole series of the most brutal "meat grinders" in the style of the First World War.

These failed Red Army offensives would consume virtually all of the German reserves. It is they who will first force the German command to cover the flanks of their Stalingrad grouping with Italian and Romanian divisions, incapable of serious battles, and then they will not allow the creation of a full-fledged grouping to save the Paulus troops surrounded in Stalingrad.

But all this will become clear later, and in July 1942 the general situation on the Soviet-German front did not give reasons for optimism at all.

Having lost the battle for Moscow, the military-political leadership of the Third Reich quickly realized that the blitzkrieg had failed and now Germany and its numerous satellites were waiting for a war of attrition. From this understanding, a new strategic plan of the German command (Operation Blau) was born, aimed at depriving the USSR of the oil resources of the Caucasus, which in June 1941 provided up to 80% of the needs Soviet Union, capture Stalingrad as the largest industrial center and block the Volga strategic transport artery in the Astrakhan region. In the event of the success of Operation Blue, the USSR should have received damage that undermined its economic ability to resist for a long time.

Not the last place in German calculations was the fact that the largest of the three tank factories of the USSR was located in Stalingrad. An industrial and transport hub, Stalingrad became a critical point in the struggle for which both sides spared neither technical nor human resources.

The battle, which lasted over six months and was collectively known as the "Battle of Stalingrad", is now divided into three phases: (1) a maneuver battle in the Don steppes on the distant approaches to the city in July and August 1942; (2) battles for urban areas and numerous counterattacks of the Stalingrad Front on the northern flank of the German group, which lasted from August to November 19, 1942; (3) the encirclement of Paulus's troops, the repulsion of the deblocking German attack and the destruction of the troops encircled in Stalingrad, which ended on February 2, 1943.

The gigantic scale of events will not allow us to consider all the details of the Battle of Stalingrad, but it general course and turning points will be described in this article.

On July 12, 1942, the Southwestern Front was officially renamed Stalingrad. Now the word Stalingrad sounded daily throughout the Soviet Union in the reports of the Soviet Information Bureau.

For obvious reasons, these reports did not inform ordinary citizens of the USSR of the entire tragedy of the events of the summer of 1942, but their meager information was enough to feel the intensity of what was happening in Stalingrad.

In July 1942, the defeated Soviet troops near Millerovo retreated east to Stalingrad and south to the Caucasus. The headquarters of the Supreme High Command ordered the Stalingrad Front to occupy and hold the line west of the Don River. “Under no circumstances should the enemy break through to the east of this line towards Stalingrad,” the Stavka demanded.

At that time there was nothing to fulfill this order of the Headquarters. 20 infantry, tank and motorized divisions of the 6th field army of F. Paulus and the 4th tank army of G. Hoth confidently marched on Stalingrad. They included about 400 thousand experienced, well-trained soldiers and officers, who were deservedly considered the most dangerous military mechanism of the entire Soviet-German front.

A column of German assault guns marches towards Stalingrad

The remnants of the troops of the South-Western Front (numbering corresponding to three rifle divisions) and the newly formed three reserve armies sent to help them together numbered no more than 200 thousand people, most of whom had yet to be delivered to the scene.

Watch the film by Sergei Bondarchuk "They fought for the Motherland." It is about those events shown on the example of the remnants of the rifle regiment retreating with battles, commanded first by the captain, then by the lieutenant, and then by the foreman. The picture, which has long become a film classic, very accurately illustrates what was happening then in the Don steppes ...

The Soviet units and formations of the summer of 1942 were hastily trained formations, as a rule, without combat experience. And this applied not only to infantry, but also to tankers. There was no time to study. How critical the situation was at that time can be understood from the fact that near Stalingrad, undertrained cadets of eight military schools were sent into battle as ordinary infantrymen! Yesterday's schoolchildren and civilians had not yet been reforged into those warriors before whom all of Europe later froze in fear.

Soviet T-34 tanks knocked out near Stalingrad

And this applied not only to ordinary fighters and junior commanders. The future hero of this battle, Lieutenant General Chuikov, who then arrived in the post of commander of the 62nd Army near Stalingrad, was going to be replaced by the General Staff of the Red Army with a more experienced General Gordov, since Chuikov had not previously participated in battles with the Germans at all.

Another chronic problem ground forces By 1942, the Red Army still had a lack of vehicles, which greatly complicated the maneuver of reserves and the supply of troops. All the free resources of the Soviet automobile industry were then directed to the production of tanks, which were the only means of repelling German mechanized strikes, which resulted in a variety of boilers.

By the summer of 1942, the Red Army was able to form not only tank brigades, but also tank corps, and even began to create tank armies capable of deciding the fate major battles. However, their combat capabilities in the summer of 1942 were still modest, since for the confident interaction of tanks with aviation, artillery and infantry, practice and experience are needed. They will say their weighty word a little later, and it will sound like a death sentence.

Soviet tank in position near the Don River

The first battle of the Battle of Stalingrad took place at 17:40 on July 16 near the Morozov farm. Three T-34 medium tanks and two T-60 light tanks of the 645th tank battalion, conducting reconnaissance, collided with German anti-tank guns. The advance detachment safely withdrew, but at 20:00 it was itself attacked by German tanks. After a brief exchange of fire, both sides withdrew to the main forces. Fights of others forward detachments The Stalingrad front was less successful: experienced, with an overwhelming advantage in numbers, confident in the support of the main forces advancing behind, actively using air reconnaissance and radio communications, the Germans pinned them down in battle, while outflanking and cutting off from the main forces.

On July 23, the enemy began active operations against the Stalingrad Front. The front met German strikes in unfavorable conditions, not having the strength to create its own strike force, capable of, if not seizing the initiative, then at least intervening in battles in time. right time in the right place. Over and over again, the front was forced to stretch its few forces, hopelessly trying to guess where the Germans would strike, who were not prevented by anyone from calmly choosing the time and place of action. The only thing that the front command could then count on was its tank reserves, which consisted of brigades of the 13th tank corps and two tank armies formed in the near rear. However, throughout the rest of July and throughout August 1942, the action of a well-functioning German military machine was inexorably repeated in the Don steppes: in the area chosen for the strike, Luftwaffe bombers destroyed or suppressed the positions of Soviet artillery with massive air strikes, and then German tanks, artillery and infantry broke into the defenses of Soviet rifle divisions left without fire support. Rifle divisions that came under attack were dismembered by tank wedges and blocked in parts. The infantry, sappers and artillerymen of the German infantry divisions were engaged in the liquidation of the blocked centers of resistance, and the German tank and mechanized columns immediately rushed further, to the objects critical for the success of the operation planned for capture. Soviet tank brigades and corps immediately set off to meet them, upon meeting with which the German tankers immediately went on the defensive, knocking out the attacking Soviet tanks with the fire of the anti-tank artillery accompanying them and strikes by assault aircraft. During this time, the Soviet rifle units surrounded in their rear either tried to break out of the encirclement with varying degrees of success, or ...

Soviet heavy tank KV-1

Having finished with the encircled, the German infantry units approached the lines captured by their tankers and motorized infantry and quickly built strong defenses there. The German motorized or panzer corps they had replaced quickly withdrew from the front line to strike another surprise attack elsewhere. In the summer of 1942, their result was almost always the same. In such battles, not only died big number fighters and junior commanders of the Red Army, but also the headquarters of regiments and divisions burned down, which did not have time to accumulate, comprehend and pass on to others invaluable combat experience and combat command and control skills.

Yes, these battles were not easy for the Germans either. The army of Paulus constantly suffered combat losses in people and equipment. But she lost only ordinary and junior officers, who are easy to replace. brain and nervous system their war machines remained intact, preserving and honing their accumulated experience and skills.

In the Don steppe

In a couple of years, the time will come when the German command will already throw towards the ruthless and skillful Soviet tank armies undereducated cadets of officer schools and hastily put together formations, which will be given beautiful names instead of qualified middle and senior commanders. But the army of the Third Reich had yet to be brought to such a state ...

Cemetery of German soldiers near Stalingrad

But in the summer of 1942, the series of defeats near Stalingrad was taken so seriously by the Soviet Supreme High Command that on August 25, I.V. Stalin authorized the withdrawal of troops to the city limits so as not to lose the remnants of the 62nd and 64th armies in new large and small encirclements . On September 1, 1942, the troops of the 62nd and 64th armies of the Stalingrad Front received an order to withdraw to fortify the outer bypass of Stalingrad.

It is no longer possible to find out how conscious the calculation was for the transfer of hostilities to Big city with numerous thick-walled buildings of plants and factories. But from that moment on, the character Stalingrad battle slowly began to change.

The German 6th field and 4th tank armies continued to rush towards Stalingrad. By the end of August, a kind of “specialization” had already developed - the Stalingrad Front opposed the army of Paulus, and the troops of the South-Western Front fought with the tank army of Goth, advancing to the south. Both Soviet fronts experienced alternate pressure from the enemy, so the Soviet Supreme High Command constantly reviewed plans to reinforce one direction or another. At this time, Paulus believed that he had to overcome the last line of Soviet defense. To do this, the main forces of his army had to break through the Don, go to the Volga north of Stalingrad and intercept the railroad. Paulus considered the capture of the city itself, although necessary, but less important.

On August 21, the Paulus strike force crossed the Don and created a bridgehead on its eastern bank, quickly building two temporary bridges there. On them, by the morning of August 23, nine infantry, motorized and tank divisions rapidly crossed the Don.

German motorized units cross the river Don

This mass of troops without difficulty tore to shreds the defense of the 98th Infantry Division, which single-handedly tried to block the German bridgehead. On the same day, the rapidly advancing Germans cut the railway to Stalingrad, went to the Volga north of the city and staged a powerful aerial bombardment of its industrial and residential areas. To evacuate the 400,000th population of Stalingrad, supplemented by tens of thousands of refugees, was absolutely unrealistic under those conditions. The city and the people who inhabited it were prudently and demonstratively destroyed by massive air strikes. Even after going through the whole war, eyewitnesses of that bombing recalled it as a terrible nightmare, consisting of tens of thousands of killed and maimed women, children and the elderly, gigantic fires and streams of burning oil that continued to burn on the water surface of the Volga along with river boats who tried to take people to the other side of the river.

Aircraft of the Luftwaffe in the sky over Stalingrad

The breakthrough of the Germans to the Volga north of Stalingrad threatened the troops defending the city with a new encirclement. The seriousness of the situation at that time is well illustrated by the fact that on August 25, the Stavka sent Chief of the General Staff A. M. Vasilevsky directly to the Stalingrad Front. One of the best operational minds of the Red Army was to organize counterattacks by four tank corps against the penetrating troops of Paulus, which the front began to inflict on August 24th. These hasty, but unexpected for the Germans, tank attacks prevented their entry into the city, although they could not cut off and destroy the enemy, as ordered by the command. The Germans did their best to defend this corridor leading to the Volga, the width of which did not exceed several kilometers. Paulus hoped through him to connect with the troops of Goth. Intense fighting continued here until August 31, and, taking advantage of them, the 62nd and 64th armies were able to retreat in relative order to the city quarters of Stalingrad.

When, by August 31, Paulus's troops calmed down for a short time north of Stalingrad, Gotha's tank army attacked south of the city until September 10. The Germans were getting closer and closer to the quarters and factories, the capture of which was considered a victorious point in the operation.

German tanks in the suburbs of Stalingrad

To imagine how difficult the trials befell the defenders of Stalingrad, we must remember that the Germans themselves, quite "spoiled" by artillery and air support, described it in these battles as "fire training of unprecedented strength."

German tank set on fire on the street of Stalingrad

Soviet infantrymen and tankers in Stalingrad could not yet boast of such "arguments", but their opponents increasingly mentioned in their reports that "the enemy is becoming more and more stubborn, and the effectiveness of his defense is growing." The spring of resistance was compressed, but then no one knew how it would end ...

Education

What is the name of the city of Stalingrad now? History of Stalingrad

May 15, 2015

Remember the history of the Second World War - 1942, for example. The battle for the city of Stalingrad (as it is now called, probably, outside of Russia and not everyone knows), in which the Red Army gained success, turned the tide of the war back. It deservedly bears the title of Hero City.

The city of Stalingrad: what it is called now and what it used to be called

During the Paleolithic period, there was a parking lot on the outskirts of the city. primitive people, which was called Dry Mechetka. In the 16th century in historical sources this area is associated with the stay of representatives of the Tatar people. Since in the memoirs of the English traveler Jenkinson, "the abandoned Tatar city of Meskhet" is mentioned. In official royal documents, this city was first mentioned on July 2, 1589 under the name Tsaritsyn. So it was called until 1925.

As is known, in the 1920s and 1930s, cities were mainly called by the names and surnames (pseudonyms) of Soviet leaders and party leaders. The former Tsaritsyn in 1925 was the 19th city in the USSR in terms of the number of inhabitants, so its fate of renaming could not be avoided. In 1925 the city was renamed Stalingrad. It is under this name that he is best known, because the Battle of Stalingrad entered the world history how major event Second World War.

In 1956, the debunking of the cult of Stalin began. The party had a lot of work in this direction, so the party leaders got to the renaming of the city only in 1961. Since 1961 and to the present time, the settlement has the name that very accurately characterizes its location - Volgograd (a city on the Volga).

Brief history of the city from 1589 to 1945

Initially, the city concentrated on a small island. Why is it based here? Because until that time people had already lived here, and the place was convenient for trade. The location on the Volga gave the settlement good chances for dynamic development. Real transformations in the city began to take place in the 19th century. The first school for children of the nobility, the first gymnasium, was opened, in which 49 children studied. In 1808, a doctor came to the city, who did a lot for the development of medicine in it (she was the first local doctor).

With the development of transport infrastructure (Volga-Don and other railways), since the late 1850s, industry and trade in the city have been developing very strongly, and the well-being of residents has increased.

For the first three decades of the 20th century, the territory of Stalingrad was expanding. New industrial facilities, residential buildings, places of mass recreation of the population are being built. In 1942, the Germans came to the city of Stalingrad. What is this time called now? An occupation. 1942 and 1943 were the worst years in the history of the city.

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Our time: the city is flourishing

Stalingrad - what city is it now? Volgograd. This name fully reflects its essence, because the river is one of the main trade routes. In the 1990-2000s, Volgograd acquired the status of a millionaire several times. Industry, services and recreation, sports are actively developing in the city. The football team of the Volgograd "Rotor" has played more than one season in the major league of Russia.

But still, the settlement played its most important role in history under the name "city of Stalingrad" (as it is now called, you should also not forget, because the old name is unlikely to return).

Volgograd is one of the most famous and significant cities bearing the title of Hero City. In the summer of 1942, the Nazi troops launched a massive offensive on the southern front, trying to capture the Caucasus, the Don region, the lower Volga and the Kuban - the richest and most fertile lands of the USSR. First of all, the city of Stalingrad came under attack, the attack on which was entrusted to the 6th Army under the command of Colonel General Paulus.

On July 12, the Soviet command creates the Stalingrad Front, the main task of which is to stop the invasion of the German invaders in the southern direction. On July 17, 1942, one of the greatest and largest battles in the history of World War II began - the Battle of Stalingrad. Despite the desire of the Nazis to capture the city as soon as possible, it lasted 200 long, bloody days and nights, ending in complete victory, thanks to the dedication and incredible efforts of the heroes of the army, navy and ordinary residents of the region.

The first attack on the city took place on August 23, 1942. Then, a little north of Volgograd, the Germans almost approached the Volga. Policemen, sailors of the Volga Fleet, NKVD troops, cadets and other volunteer heroes were sent to defend the city. On the same night, the Germans made the first air raid on the city, and on August 25, a state of siege was introduced in Stalingrad. At that time, about 50 thousand volunteers signed up for the people's militia - heroes from among ordinary citizens. Despite the almost uninterrupted shelling, the factories of Stalingrad continued to work and produce tanks, Katyushas, ​​cannons, mortars and a huge number of shells.

September 12, 1942 the enemy came close to the city. Two months of fierce defensive battles for Volgograd inflicted significant damage on the Germans: the enemy lost about 700 thousand people killed and wounded, and on November 19, 1942, the counteroffensive of the Soviet troops began.

75 days lasted offensive and, finally, the enemy at Stalingrad was surrounded and defeated. January 1943 brought complete victory in this sector of the front. Fascist invaders were surrounded, and General Paulus with the whole army surrendered. For the entire time of the Battle of Stalingrad, the German army lost more than 1.5 million people.

Stalingrad was one of the first to be called a hero city. This honorary title was first announced in the order of the commander-in-chief of May 1, 1945. And the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" became a symbol of the courage of the defenders of the city.

In the hero city of Volgograd there are many monuments dedicated to the heroes of the Great Patriotic War. Among them is the famous memorial Complex on Mamaev Kurgan - a hill on the right bank of the Volga known since the times Tatar-Mongol invasion. During the battle for Stalingrad, especially fierce battles took place here, as a result of which, about 35,000 hero warriors were buried on Mamaev Kurgan. In honor of all the fallen, in 1959 a memorial to the Heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad was erected here.

The main architectural attraction of Mamaev Kurgan is the 85-meter monument "Motherland Calls". The monument depicts a woman with a sword in her hand, who calls on her sons - heroes to fight.

The old mill of Gergardt (Grudinin's mill) is another silent witness of the courageous struggle of the defenders of the hero city of Volgograd. This is a destroyed building that has not been restored to this day in memory of the war.

During street fighting in the city, a four-story building on the current Lenin Square became an impregnable stronghold. In the second half of September, the reconnaissance and assault group, led by Sergeant Pavlov, captured the house and entrenched in it. Four days later, reinforcements arrived under the command of Senior Lieutenant Afanasyev, who delivered weapons and ammunition - the house became an important stronghold in the defense system. For 58 days, the small garrison of the house repelled German attacks until the Soviet troops launched a counterattack. In 1943, after the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad, the house was rebuilt. It is considered the first restored building in the city. In 1985 on end wall memorial wall-monument was opened.

On October 2, 1942, in a battle near the Krasny Oktyabr plant, an ordinary soldier of the 883rd Infantry Regiment and a former sailor of the Pacific Fleet, Mikhail Panikakha, at the cost of his life, destroyed german tank. A stray bullet shattered a Molotov cocktail in his hand, the liquid instantly spilled over the fighter's body and ignited. But, not at a loss, and overcoming the pain, he grabbed the second bottle, rushed to the advancing tank and set it on fire. For this feat, on December 9, 1942, he was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class. On May 5, 1990, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. On the site of the feat of Mikhail Panikakha, on Metallurgov Avenue, in 1975 a monument was erected to him in the form of a six-meter copper sculpture on a reinforced concrete pedestal.

In the place where in January 1943 the troops of the Don Front, under the command of Colonel-General K. Rokossovsky, completed the defeat of the southern group of German troops, today there is the Square of the Fallen Fighters and the Alley of Heroes. The peculiarity of its architectural ensemble is the marble steles of the Heroes of the Soviet Union, erected for the 40th anniversary of the Victory, on which the names of 127 Stalingrad heroes are immortalized. And on the Square of the Fallen Fighters, where on January 31, 1943, the commander of the 6th German Army, Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus with his headquarters, was captured in the basements of a department store, in 1963 an eternal flame was lit.

In the second half of 1942, G.K. Zhukov, who then held the rank of Army General, being a representative of the Supreme Command Headquarters, coordinated the actions of the armies of the Stalingrad Front. In memory of his contribution to the Victory, on the avenue that bears his name, in 1996, a monument was erected on the 100th anniversary of Zhukov's birth. It is a bronze semi-figure of the Marshal of Victory in a tunic mounted on a pedestal. On the left side of it is a granite slab with the image of the four stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union, which he was awarded, and the battles in which he took part are recorded on the stone blocks.

A great contribution to the Stalingrad victory was made by the ships of the Volga military flotilla. They provided fire support. Soviet troops, landed troops, brought ammunition, evacuated the population. In 1974, a monument to the Volga rivermen was erected - the Gusitel boat, located on a pedestal, was a participant in the Battle of Stalingrad. A thirteen-meter stele is installed behind the boat, in the lower part of which there is an anchor, and at the top - a star. In the fairway of the Volga opposite Mamayev Kurgan in 1980, a monument in the form of an anchor, 15 meters high, was opened, mounted on a floating platform. It has an inscription - "To the Volga rivermen, ships that died in the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942-1943." In 1995, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Victory, another monument to the sailors of the Volga Flotilla was opened on the embankment - the BK-13 armored boat mounted on a pedestal.

In January 1942, in Stalingrad, the 10th Infantry Division of the NKVD troops was formed from the inhabitants of the city. Parts of the border guards from the Urals and Siberia also joined it. Together with the militias, she took the first blow of the German invasion in August 1942. On December 2, 1942, the division was awarded the Order of Lenin, and throughout the Second World War, 20 Chekists of the division were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In memory of their feat in 1947, a monument was erected on the square of the Chekists "To the Chekists - the defenders of the city." It is a 17-meter pedestal, which is crowned with a bronze figure of a warrior with a naked sword raised high in his hand.

Not far from the monument to the Chekists on May 28, 2011, on the day of the border guard, a "Monument to Demolition Dogs, Tank Destroyers" was erected. The 10th division of the NKVD included the 28th separate detachment of demolition dogs, which destroyed dozens of German armored vehicles.

The 62nd Soviet Army was commanded by General V. Chuikov, an excellent organizer and tactician of the war. His contribution to the Stalingrad victory was invaluable. Later, the experience of fighting in the conditions of the city will come in handy during the storming of Berlin in 1945. For the defense of Stalingrad, V. Chuikov received the Order of Suvorov, 1st degree. In total, during the Second World War, he was twice awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. It was V. Chuikov who surrendered and capitulated the Berlin garrison. According to his will, after his death on March 18, 1982, he was buried on Mamaev Kurgan at the foot of the Motherland monument. In 1990, a monument to the marshal was erected on the street named after him, at the place where the headquarters of the 62nd Army was located during the war years. The author of the monument was his son, architect A. Chuikov.

In July 1942, units were formed from the workers and employees of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant. militia. On August 23, 1942, a massive offensive of Wehrmacht units began from the north along the Volga to Stalingrad. active army was not in the city, but the factory militias, along with other volunteers, stopped the enemy, preventing the Germans from trying to take Stalingrad outright. In memory of their feat, in 1983, a monument made of forged copper with a bas-relief of three militiamen was erected in the park near the plant.

During the war, the Stalingrad Tractor Plant completely switched to the production of military products - artillery and tanks. His role in creating the firepower of the Soviet army is invaluable, because he was the closest supplier of military products to the front line. In 1943, one of the T-34 tanks was installed near the central entrance of the plant in honor of the labor feat of the factory workers. It was one of the first monuments dedicated to the events of the Second World War. In 1949, the tank was put on a pedestal, and in 1978 it was reconstructed.

A unique memorial complex dedicated to the events of the Battle of Stalingrad was created in Volgograd in post-war years. From 1948 to 1954, 17 towers of T-34 tanks were installed on granite pedestals in four districts of the city. The monuments are installed at the points of maximum approach of the German troops to the banks of the Volga and form a line 30 km long, the distance between the pedestals is 2-3 kilometers. Tank towers were assembled from equipment that died in the Battle of Stalingrad. The towers of T-34 tanks of various modifications, manufacturers, with traces of battles and holes were chosen.

The city of Stalingrad: what is it called now, and what was its name before? This will be our conversation.Turning the pages of history, one can understand that the city has a complex, heroic biography.Tsaritsyn, Stalingrad, Volgograd - all these are the names of the same city. Few cities in Russia have changed their names three times in their history.

Tsaritsyn

Let's start the journey into history from the distant 16th century, when the city of Tsaritsyn was erected on the banks of the Volga, designed to become one of the trade and political centers that was needed here, since the river in those days was a means of transportation in summer for ships, in winter - for carts . And this path had to be maintained and protected from enemy attacks.

The wooden fortress erected here in 1589, built by settlers, was burnt down by the tsarist troops. Stone structures appeared in place of the wooden ones. The settlement roamed from place to place, sometimes rebuilding on the right bank of the Volga, sometimes on the left. Either the Cossacks ruled there, or the Adyghes, Circassians, Nogais ran in.

This continued until Peter the Great arrived in the city and ordered the construction of the Tsaritsyno guard line, giving the city his cap and cane, which are kept in the museum to this day. It happened in 1718.

Many more terrible events befell the city of Tsaritsyn: two devastating fires, the raid of Emelyan Pugachev, a settlement on the banks of the Volga by German colonists.

In the 19th century, Tsaritsyn reached an unprecedented flourishing. The first school opened in the city, doctors began to receive patients, a mustard plant opened, potatoes began to be grown in the fields, a branch appeared railway. These events turned out to be only the forerunners of the rapid development of Tsaritsyn as a center of industry and culture.

In 1917, the power of the Bolsheviks was established in the city peacefully, and this served only as another impetus for its rapid flourishing.

Stalingrad

In 1925, the congress of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee decided to give the city the name of I.V. Stalin, who, according to eyewitnesses, was against this and did not even appear at the congress.

As a result of the congress in 1925, the city lost its historical name Tsaritsyn. Stalingrad is a name that marked a new milestone in its development.

New factories and factories are being built, the Stalingrad State District Power Plant is being launched, the Stalingrad Tractor Plant has been put into operation, pedagogical and medical institutes are being opened. Stalingrad (1925-1961), in spite of everything, in the most difficult historical conditions, became the largest industrial and cultural center Volga region.

The city developed and got upset until disaster struck our country. In 1941 the Great Patriotic War began.

Battle of Stalingrad

The Nazis moved across the country by leaps and bounds. Stalingrad was an important strategic point for their offensive.

The days from July 17, 1942 to February 2, 1943 are a terrible time for the city and for the whole country, which received the name of the Battle of Stalingrad. According to official figures, more than a million people died in those days. Soviet people. Among them were old people, women and children.

People died not only in battle - the city was subjected to air raids, as a result of which a huge number of civilians died. Although it is difficult to call those people civilians. Everyone who could hold tools in their hands, young and old, took to the construction protective structures in the ruined city. Despite the ruin, factories continued to operate, releasing new tanks and shells. Who could, became to the machines.

The command sent more and more military units to the Stalingrad Front. Relentless statistics show that the average life of a fighter on the Stalingrad lines was 24 hours.

They fought for every street, every house. The Nazis joked bitterly, calling that war on the streets of Stalingrad a "rat war."

The real massacre went beyond the highest point near the city - Mamaev Kurgan. From time immemorial, the enemy has been trying to capture this important strategic object. From it, as in the palm of your hand, you could see the whole city and its districts for many kilometers.

Particularly fierce fighting took place in the areas of the artillery and tractor factories, which continued to produce all this time military equipment, which immediately went into battle.

February 2 - official victory day Soviet army over the Nazis in the Battle of Stalingrad. This day was a turning point for the outcome of the entire war. In Germany, mourning was declared over the defeat at Stalingrad.

The city of Stalingrad suffered terrible battles. The name of the place that immortalized the memory of the defenders who died here is now known to every resident of the city and all of Russia. A majestic monument to the heroes who gave their lives in that battle rises on Mamayev Kurgan.

In the post-war years, the city quickly began to recover, acquiring the past grandeur and beauty. Destroyed buildings, plants, factories were revived, new ones were built.

Volgograd

The city of Stalingrad: what is the name of this hero city now? No one doubts why the name of the city has changed once again.

The decision to rename was made in 1961. The working people of the country did not want the name of the city to remind of a person whose name was associated with the destruction of a huge number of innocent people.

Changes have taken place on the map of our vast country. The replacement of Stalingrad-Volgograd did not affect the rapid development of the city. Currently, it is a million-plus city that attracts many tourists who remember its heroic history.

There are many memorable places here, and to this day, residents of the whole country remember the city of Stalingrad. What is the name of the panorama of military events now? Of course, the Stalingrad panorama. And how can you rename that battle? No way. It will forever keep the name -Stalingrad battle.

Formally, the decision to rename the newly rebuilt Stalingrad to Volgograd was made by the Central Committee of the CPSU "at the request of the working people" on November 10, 1961 - just a week and a half after the completion of the XXII Congress of the Communist Party in Moscow. But in fact, it turned out to be quite logical for those times, a continuation of the anti-Stalinist campaign that unfolded at the main party forum. The apotheosis of which was the removal of Stalin's body from the Mausoleum, secret from the people and even most of the party. And the hasty reburial of the now former and not at all terrible General Secretary near the Kremlin wall - late at night, without the obligatory speeches, flowers, honorary and salute in such cases.

It is curious that when taking such a state decision, none of the Soviet leaders dared to declare its necessity and importance personally, from the rostrum of the same congress. Including head of state and party Nikita Khrushchev. A modest party official, secretary of the Leningrad regional party committee, Ivan Spiridonov, was instructed to “voice” the leading opinion, who was soon safely dismissed.

One of the numerous decisions of the Central Committee, designed to finally eliminate the consequences of the so-called personality cult, was the renaming of all settlements, previously named after Stalin - Ukrainian Stalino (now Donetsk), Tajik Stalinabad (Dushanbe), Georgian-Ossetian Staliniri (Tskhinvali), German Stalinstadt (Eisenhüttenstadt), Russian Stalinsk (Novokuznetsk) and the hero city of Stalingrad. Moreover, the latter did not receive the historical name Tsaritsyn, but, without further ado, was named after the river flowing in it - Volgograd. Perhaps this was due to the fact that Tsaritsyn could remind people of the not so old days of the monarchy.

The decision of party leaders was not influenced even by historical fact that from the past to the present, the name of the battle of Stalingrad, which was key in the Great Patriotic War, has passed and has survived to this day. And that the whole world calls the city where it took place at the turn of 1942 and 1943 exactly Stalingrad. At the same time, focusing not on the late generalissimo and commander in chief, but on the truly steely courage and heroism of the Soviet soldiers who defended the city and defeated the Nazis.

Not for kings

The earliest historical mention of the city on the Volga is dated July 2, 1589. And its first name was Tsaritsyn. The opinions of historians on this matter, by the way, differ. Some of them believe that it comes from the phrase Sary-chin (in translation - the Yellow Island). Others point out that the river Tsaritsa flowed not far from the border settlement of the archers of the sixteenth century. But both those and others agreed on one thing: the name has no special relation to the queen, and indeed to the monarchy. Consequently, Stalingrad in 1961 could well have returned its former name.

Was Stalin angry?

Historical documents of the early Soviet times show that the initiator of the renaming of Tsaritsyn to Stalingrad, which happened on April 10, 1925, was not Joseph Stalin himself and not one of the communists of a lower leadership level, but ordinary residents of the city, an impersonal public. Like, in this way the workers and intellectuals wanted "dear Joseph Vissarionovich" for participating in the defense of Tsaritsyn in the years civil war. They say that Stalin, having learned about the initiative of the townspeople, even expressed displeasure about this. However, he did not cancel the decision. And soon thousands of settlements, streets, football teams and enterprises named after the “leader of the peoples” appeared in the USSR.

Tsaritsyn or Stalingrad

Several decades after the name of Stalin disappeared from Soviet maps, it seemed, forever, a discussion broke out in Russian society and in Volgograd itself about whether it is worth returning the historical name to the city? And if so, which of the two previous ones? Even the Russian Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin contributed to the unfolding process of discussions and disputes, different time who invited the townspeople to express their opinion on this matter at a referendum and promised to take it into account. And the first one did it on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, the second one - at a meeting with veterans of the Great Patriotic War in France.

And on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Stalingrad, the country was surprised by the deputies of the local Duma. Taking into account, according to them, the numerous requests of veterans, they decided to consider Volgograd as Stalingrad for six days a year. Such memorable dates at the local legislative level are:
February 2 - the day of the final in the Battle of Stalingrad;
May 9 - Victory Day;
June 22 - Day of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War;
August 23 - Day of Remembrance for the victims of the most bloody bombing of the city;
September 2 - Day of the end of World War II;
November 19 - Day of the beginning of the defeat of the Nazis near Stalingrad.

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