How did the UPA differ from the ROA. Lieutenant General A. Vlasov and ROA. General Vlasov and the Russian Liberation Army How many Vlasovites were during the war years

In early September 2009, the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, at his meetings, he touched upon disputes regarding the published book of the church historian, Archpriest Georgy Mitrofanov “The Tragedy of Russia. "Forbidden" themes of the history of the XX century.

In particular, it was noted that:

“The tragedy of those who are commonly called “Vlasovites” ... is truly great. In any case, it should be comprehended with all possible impartiality and objectivity. Out of this mindset historical science– turns into political journalism. We…should avoid “black and white” interpretation historical events. In particular, the naming of the acts of General A.A. Vlasov - a betrayal, is, in our opinion, a frivolous simplification of the events of that time. In this sense, we fully support Father Georgy Mitrofanov's attempt to approach this issue (or rather, a whole series of issues) with a measure adequate to the complexity of the problem. In the Russian Diaspora, of which the surviving members of the ROA became part, General A.A. Vlasov was and remains a kind of symbol of resistance to godless Bolshevism in the name of revival Historical Russia. ... Everything that was undertaken by them was done specifically for the Fatherland, in the hope that the defeat of Bolshevism would lead to the restoration of a powerful national Russia. Germany was considered by the "Vlasovites" exclusively as an ally in the fight against Bolshevism, but they, the "Vlasovites" were ready, if necessary, to resist by armed force any kind of colonization or dismemberment of our Motherland. We hope that in the future Russian historians will treat the events of that time with greater fairness and impartiality than is the case today.”

So, a very authoritative part of the Russian Orthodox Church is ready to forgive A. Vlasov both cooperation with the Nazis, and direct participation in hostilities against the Red Army in the name of the fact that this was done in order to destroy "godless Bolshevism." Let's try to impartially figure out how to interpret the actions of Lieutenant General of the Red Army Andrei Vlasov, and later the commander of the ROA.

Born on September 14, 1901 in the village of Lomakino, now the Gaginsky district of the Nizhny Novgorod region, in a peasant family. Russian.

In the Red Army since 1920. After graduating from the commander's course, he participated in battles with the White Guards on the Southern Front. Since 1922, Vlasov held command and staff positions, and also taught. In 1929 he graduated from the Higher Army Command Courses. In 1930 he joined the CPSU (b). In 1935 he became a student of the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze. From August 1937, he was commander of the 133rd Infantry Regiment of the 72nd Infantry Division, and from April 1938, assistant commander of this division. In the autumn of 1938 he was sent to China to work as part of a group of military advisers. From May to November 1939, he served as chief military adviser. Awarded the Order of the Golden Dragon.

In January 1940, Major General Vlasov was appointed commander of the 99th Infantry Division, which in October of the same year was recognized as the best division in the district. For this, A. Vlasov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. In January 1941, Vlasov was appointed commander of the 4th Mechanized Corps of the Kiev Special Military District, and a month later he was awarded the Order of Lenin.

That is, it can be stated that Andrei Andreyevich made a brilliant military career precisely at the time when the Stalinist regime destroyed the command staff of the Red Army in tens of thousands. The "best friend of all the military" did not doubt Vlasov's loyalty and devotion.

The war for Vlasov began near Lvov, where he served as commander of the 4th mechanized corps. For skillful actions, he received gratitude and, on the recommendation of N.S. Khrushchev was appointed commander of the 37th Army, which defended Kyiv. After fierce battles, scattered formations of this army managed to break through to the east, and Vlasov himself was wounded and ended up in the hospital.

In November 1941, Stalin summoned Vlasov and ordered him to form the 20th Army, which was part of Western front and defended the capital. On December 5, near the village of Krasnaya Polyana (located 27 km from the Moscow Kremlin), the Soviet 20th Army under the command of General Vlasov stopped parts of the German 4th Panzer Army, making a significant contribution to the victory near Moscow. Overcoming the stubborn resistance of the enemy, the 20th Army drove the Germans out of Solnechnogorsk and Volokolamsk. On January 24, 1942, for the battles on the Lama River, he received the rank of lieutenant general and was awarded the second Order of the Red Banner.

G.K. Zhukov assessed Vlasov’s actions as follows: “Personally, Lieutenant General Vlasov is well prepared operationally, he has organizational skills. He copes with the management of the troops quite well. After the successes near Moscow, A. A. Vlasov, along with other generals of the Red Army, is called the "saviors of the capital." On the instructions of the Main Political Directorate about Vlasov, a book is being written called "Stalin's commander."

On January 7, the Luban operation began. The troops of the 2nd Shock Army of the Volkhov Front, created to disrupt the German offensive on Leningrad and the subsequent counterattack, successfully broke through the enemy defenses in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe settlement of Myasnoy Bor (on the left bank of the Volkhov River) and deeply wedged into its location (in the direction of Lyuban). But having no strength for a further offensive, the army found itself in a difficult position. The enemy cut her communications several times, creating a threat of encirclement.

On March 8, 1942, Lieutenant General A. Vlasov was appointed deputy commander of the Volkhov Front. On March 20, 1942, the commander of the Volkhov Front, K.A. Meretskov sent his deputy A. Vlasov at the head of a special commission to the 2nd shock army (Lieutenant General N.K. Klykov). “For three days the members of the commission talked with commanders of all ranks, with political workers, with fighters,” and on April 8, 1942, having drawn up an inspection report, the commission departed, but without General A. Vlasov. The dismissed (“seriously ill”) General Klykov was sent to the rear by plane on April 16.

The question naturally arose, to whom to entrust the leadership of the troops of the 2nd shock army? On the same day, a telephone conversation took place between A. Vlasov and divisional commissar I.V. Zueva with Meretskov. Zuev proposed to appoint Vlasov to the post of commander, and Vlasov - the chief of staff of the army, Colonel P.S. Vinogradov. The Military Council of the [Volkhov] Front supported Zuev's idea. So, from April 20, 1942, Vlasov became commander of the 2nd shock army, while remaining deputy commander of the [Volkhov] front. He received troops that were practically no longer able to fight, he received an army that had to be saved. During May-June, the 2nd shock army under the command of A. Vlasov made desperate attempts to break out of the bag.

"TO THE MILITARY COUNCIL OF THE VOLKHOV FRONT. I report: the troops of the army have been conducting tense fierce battles with the enemy for three weeks ... The personnel of the troops are exhausted to the limit, the number of deaths is increasing and the incidence of exhaustion is increasing every day. As a result of the cross-fire of the army area, the troops suffer heavy losses from artillery mortar fire and enemy aircraft ... The combat strength of the formations has sharply decreased. It is no longer possible to replenish it at the expense of rears and special units. Everything that was taken. On the sixteenth of June in battalions, brigades and rifle regiments only a few dozen remained. All attempts by the eastern group of the army to break through the passage in the corridor from the west were unsuccessful. Army troops receive fifty grams of crackers for three weeks. The last days there was absolutely no food. We eat the last horses. People are extremely exhausted. Group mortality from starvation is observed. There is no ammunition…”

On June 25, the enemy completely completed the encirclement of the army. The testimonies of various witnesses do not answer the question of where Lieutenant General A. Vlasov was hiding for the next three weeks - whether he wandered in the forest or whether there was some kind of reserve command post to which his group made its way. On July 11, 1942, in the village of Old Believers Tukhovezhi, Vlasov was extradited by local residents (according to another version, he surrendered himself) to a patrol of the 28th Infantry Regiment of the 18th Wehrmacht Army.

While in the Vinnitsa military camp for captured senior officers, Vlasov agreed to cooperate with the Nazis and headed the "Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia" (KONR) and the "Russian Liberation Army" (ROA), made up of captured Soviet soldiers.

Vlasov wrote an open letter "Why did I take the path of fighting Bolshevism." In addition, he signed leaflets calling for the overthrow of the Stalinist regime, which were subsequently scattered by the Nazi army from aircraft at the fronts, and also distributed among prisoners of war.

Russian Liberation Army, ROA - military units formed by the German headquarters of the SS Troops during World War II from Russian collaborators. The army was formed mainly from Soviet prisoners of war, as well as from among Russian emigrants. Unofficially, its members were called "Vlasovites", after their leader, Lieutenant General Andrei Vlasov.

The ROA was formed mainly from Soviet prisoners of war who fell into German captivity, mainly at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, during the retreat of the Red Army. The creators of the ROA was declared as a military formation created to "liberate Russia from communism" (December 27, 1942). Lieutenant General Andrei Vlasov, who was captured in 1942, together with General Boyarsky, proposed in a letter to the German command to organize a ROA. General Fyodor Trukhin was appointed chief of staff, General Vladimir Boyarsky was appointed his deputy, and Colonel Andrey Neryanin was appointed head of the operational department of the headquarters. The leaders of the ROA also included Generals Vasily Malyshkin, Dmitry Zakutny, Ivan Blagoveshchensky, and former Brigadier Commissar Georgy Zhilenkov. The rank of General of the ROA had a former major of the Red Army and Colonel of the Wehrmacht Ivan Kononov.

Among the leadership of the ROA were the generals of the white army V.I. Angeleev, V.F. Belogortsev, S.K. Borodin, colonels K.G. Kromiadi, N. A. Shokoli, lieutenant colonel A. D. Arkhipov, and also M. V. Tomashevsky, Yu. K. Meyer, V. Melnikov, Skarzhinsky, Golub and others, as well as Colonel I. K. Sakharov (formerly lieutenant of the Spanish army, General F. Franco). Support was also provided by: Generals A.P. Arkhangelsky, A.A. von Lampe, A.M. Dragomirov, P.N. Krasnov, N.N. Golovin, F.F. Abramov, E.I. Balabin, I.A. Polyakov, V.V. Kreiter, Donskoy and Kuban chieftains generals G.V. Tatarkin and V.G. Naumenko. The army was financed entirely by the German state bank.

However, there was antagonism between former Soviet prisoners of war and white emigrants, and the latter were gradually forced out of the leadership of the ROA. Most of them served in other Russian volunteer formations not associated with the ROA (only a few days before the end of the war formally attached to the ROA) - the Russian Corps, the brigade of General A.V. Turkula in Austria, the 1st Russian National Army, the Varyag regiment of Colonel M.A. Semenov, a separate regiment of Colonel Krzhizhanovsky, as well as in Cossack formations (15th Cossack Cavalry Corps and Cossack camp).

On January 28, 1945, the ROA received the status of the German armed forces. On May 12, 1945, an order was signed to dissolve the ROA. After the victory of the allies and the occupation of Germany, most of the members of the ROA were handed over to the Soviet authorities. Some were shot on the spot by the NKVD, together with the soldiers of the United States and Great Britain, and some were sent for many years to the Gulags of the USSR. Some of the "Vlasovites" managed to get asylum in Western countries, as well as in Australia, Canada and Argentina.

At the end of April 1945, A. Vlasov had the armed forces under his command in the following composition:

• 1st Division Major General S.K. Bunyachenko (22,000 people)
• 2nd Division Major General G.A. Zverev (13,000 people)
• 3rd Division Major General M.M. Shapovalova (not armed, there was only a headquarters and 10,000 volunteers)
• reserve brigade of lieutenant colonel (later colonel) S.T. Koydy (7,000 people) is the only commander of a large unit not issued by the US occupation authorities to the Soviet side.
• Air Force General V.I. Maltsev (5000 people)
• VET division
• officer school of General M.A. Meandrov.
• accessory parts,
• Russian Corps Major General B.A. Shteifon (4500 people). General Steifon died suddenly on 30 April. The corps that surrendered to the Soviet troops was led by Colonel Rogozhkin.
• Cossack Stan Major General T.I. Domanova (8000 people)
• group of Major General A.V. Turkula (5200 people)
• 15th Cossack cavalry corps of Lieutenant General H. von Pannwitz (more than 40,000 people)
• Cossack reserve regiment of General A.G. Shkuro (more than 10,000 people)
• several small formations numbering less than 1000 people;

In general, these formations numbered 124 thousand people. These parts were scattered at a considerable distance from each other, which became one of the main factors in their tragic fate. However, in fact, all the ROA servicemen who, at the time of Germany's surrender, were outside the zone occupied by Soviet troops, were extradited by the Western occupation authorities to the Soviet side. And it was legally justified. According to international law, persons who previously had Soviet citizenship and, due to various circumstances, took the path of serving the Nazis, took an oath of allegiance to the Motherland and betrayed it, were considered collaborators and traitors subject to extradition.

Separate parts of the Vlasovites were used by the Germans for security service and punitive operations, in particular, the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising, where they were distinguished by cruelty and looting.

The Vlasovites entered the battle against units of the Red Army for the first time on February 8, 1945. On that day, the anti-tank detachment of Colonel I.K. Sakharova achieved partial success in an attack near the town of Nei-Levin on a position occupied by units of the 990th regiment of the 230th Stalinist rifle division. On April 13, two Vlasov infantry regiments attacked the bridgehead held by the forces of the 415th separate machine gun and artillery battalion from the 119th fortified area of ​​the 33rd Army of the 1st Belorussian Front. During the first attack, the Vlasovites occupied the first line of trenches, having achieved success where the Germans could not achieve it for two months. But then, during the battle, the division commander, Major General S.K. Bunyachenko refused to continue unpromising attacks due to the strong artillery cover of the bridgehead from the eastern bank of the Oder. He carefully led the regiments out of the battle, and the fighting qualities of the Vlasovites were mentioned in a positive context in the report of the High Command of the Wehrmacht (OKW) dated April 14, 1945.

Among the Vlasov military leaders were regular commanders of the Red Army (5 major generals, 2 brigade commanders, 29 colonels, 16 lieutenant colonels, 41 majors), who had excellent attestations while serving in the Red Army, and even three Heroes of the Soviet Union (pilots Antilevsky, Bychkov and Tennikov ). A number of commanders of the Red Army, having spent from a year to three years in German camps, joined Vlasov after the publication of the Prague Manifesto and the creation of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia (KONR), when no one doubted the outcome of the war. Among them are colonels A.F. Vanyushin, A.A. Funtikov, lieutenant colonels I.F. Rudenko and A.P. Skugarevsky and others. In April 1945, under the legal command of A.A. Vlasov, there were more than 120 thousand people, however, who did not have time to complete the reorganization. The Vlasov army, which arose between November 1944 and April 1945, was armed with 44 aircraft, about 25 tanks and armored vehicles, more than 570 mortars, 230 guns, 2 thousand machine guns, etc.

In early May 1945, a conflict arose between Vlasov and Bunyachenko - Bunyachenko intended to support the Prague uprising, and Vlasov persuaded him not to do this and stay on the side of the Germans. At the negotiations in the North Bohemian Kozoedy, they did not agree and their paths diverged.

In an open letter from A. Vlasov dated March 3, 1943, “Why I took the path of fighting Bolshevism,” he, in particular, wrote:

“I have come to the firm conviction that the tasks facing the Russian people can be resolved in alliance and cooperation with the German people. The interests of the Russian people have always been combined with the interests of the German people, with the interests of all the peoples of Europe.

The highest achievements of the Russian people are inextricably linked with those periods of its history when it linked its fate with the fate of Europe, when it built its culture, its economy, its way of life in close unity with the peoples of Europe. Bolshevism fenced off the Russian people with an impenetrable wall from Europe. He sought to isolate our Motherland from the advanced European countries. In the name of ideas utopian and alien to the Russian people, he prepared for war, opposing himself to the peoples of Europe.

In alliance with the German people, the Russian people must destroy this wall of hatred and mistrust. In alliance and cooperation with Germany, he must build a new happy Motherland within the framework of a family of equal and free peoples of Europe.

With these thoughts, with this decision in the last battle, along with a handful of friends loyal to me, I was taken prisoner.

I was in captivity for over six months. In the conditions of the prisoner of war camp, behind its bars, I not only did not change my mind, but strengthened my convictions.

On an honest basis, on the basis of sincere conviction, with full awareness of responsibility to the Motherland, people and history for the actions taken, I call on the people to fight, setting myself the task of building a New Russia.

How do I imagine New Russia? I will talk about this in due time.

History does not turn back. I do not call the people to return to the past. Not! I call him to a brighter future, to the struggle for the completion of the National Revolution, to the struggle for the creation of New Russia - the Motherland of our great people. I call him to the path of brotherhood and unity with the peoples of Europe and, above all, to the path of cooperation and eternal friendship with the Great German people.

My call met with deep sympathy not only among the broadest sections of prisoners of war, but also in broad masses Russian people in areas where Bolshevism still reigns. This sympathetic response of the Russian people, who expressed their readiness to breastfeed themselves under the banner of the Russian Liberation Army, gives me the right to say that I am on the right path, that the cause for which I am fighting is a just cause, the cause of the Russian people. In this struggle for our future, I openly and honestly take the path of an alliance with Germany.

So, the combat general of the Red Army, who personally saw the atrocities of the Nazis on Soviet soil, called on the Russians to "alliance with Germany." At a time when the furnaces of German concentration camps were stoked with might and main by the bodies of his former fellow citizens, A. Vlasov, together with the German special services, developed "cunning" plans for recognizing the ROA as a "belligerent" with neutrality towards the USA and England. Of course, a drowning man clutches at straws, but it's hard to imagine a more insane combination generated by the hopelessness of Hitler's fascism and its henchmen.

On May 12, 1945, A. Vlasov was captured by servicemen of the 25th tank corps of the 13th army of the 1st Ukrainian front near the city of Pilsen in Czechoslovakia while trying to escape to the western zone of occupation. The tankers of the corps pursued Vlasov's car at the direction of the Vlasov captain, who informed them that his commander was in this car. Vlasov was taken to the headquarters of Marshal Konev, from there to Moscow.

At first, the leadership of the USSR planned to hold a public trial of Vlasov and other leaders of the ROA in the October Hall of the House of the Unions, however, due to the fact that some of the accused could express views during the process that "objectively could coincide with the mood of a certain part of the population dissatisfied with the Soviet government", it was It was decided to make the process closed. The decision on the death sentence against Vlasov and others was taken by the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks on July 23, 1946. On July 30-31, 1946, a closed trial took place in the case of Vlasov and a group of his followers. All of them were found guilty of high treason. By the verdict of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR, they were stripped of their military ranks and hanged on August 1, 1946, and their property was confiscated.

The time has come to return to the beginning of our study and compare Hauptmann Shukhevych and Lieutenant General Vlasov, UPA and ROA. We have already noted that both Shukhevych and most of the UPA fighters were not citizens of the USSR before the war. That is, by definition, they could not change him. Raised on the radical ideology of the OUN, they fought for the Ukraine that corresponded to their ideals. Yes, they collaborated with the Nazis, but who in those days did not dream of an alliance with the invincible Fuhrer? The Germans did not appreciate the opportunities that opened up before them in the event of a formal restoration of Ukrainian sovereignty. But the hopes of the OUN members were quite justified. Another thing is that Hitler would then not be Hitler, but the greatest political strategist. Until the autumn of 1944, the OUN were used by the Abwehr as an auxiliary force in the occupied territory. However, after the liberation of Ukraine, they fought for many years guerrilla war against Soviet power, defending their ideals with all the methods available to them. It was a full-scale civil war with heavy losses on both sides. Thousands of Galicians died under the heavy boot of "Uncle Joe", but stopped the fight only after the complete depletion of the sources of replenishment and weapons. As in every civil war, there was no right or wrong. Each side fought for its own vision of Ukraine. Therefore, neither the UPA fighters, nor their commander-in-chief cannot fail to inspire a certain respect. As for their status as a “belligerent”, then this should be recognized for them precisely in a civil war.

The Stalinist commander Andrei Vlasov and his associates, on the contrary, were citizens of the USSR, took the oath of allegiance to the Motherland, being in the ranks of the Red Army. Therefore, they are clearly traitors and collaborators. If R. Shukhevych was devoted to the ideals of the OUN all his conscious life, then A. Vlasov, having joined the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks at the age of 29, after the captivity suddenly “saw the light” and desired to fight against “godless Bolshevism”. And on the side of the bloody Hitler, guilty of the deaths of tens of millions of Russians. Therefore, it makes no sense to compare the ideological "credo" of the OUN and Vlasovites: the former had it, while the latter did not. It is significant that if the OUN members fought underground for a long time against Bolshevism, then the Vlasovites immediately after the defeat of Germany surrendered and did not even think about fighting for the “new Russia”.

Concluding our reflections, let us return to “godless Bolshevism” for the declarative, basically, struggle against which the fathers of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad call for the rehabilitation of A. Vlasov. So, before the war, L. Trotsky noted that the most ardent anti-Bolshevik is I. Stalin, who destroyed more communists than Hitler and Mussolini combined. According to the logic of church hierarchs, and the mustachioed "father of all peoples" should be forgiven?

Very contradictory. Over time, historians cannot agree on when the army itself began to form, who the Vlasovites were and what role they played during the war years. In addition to the fact that the very formation of soldiers is considered, on the one hand, patriotic, and on the other, treacherous, there is also no exact data when exactly Vlasov and his fighters entered the battle. But first things first.

Who is he?

Vlasov Andrei Andreevich was a well-known political and military figure. He started on the side of the USSR. Participated in the battle for Moscow. But in 1942 he was captured by the Germans. Without hesitation, Vlasov decided to go over to the side of Hitler and began to cooperate against the USSR.

Vlasov remains a controversial figure to this day. Until now, historians are divided into two camps: some are trying to justify the actions of the military leader, others - to condemn. Supporters of Vlasov furiously shout about his patriotism. Those who joined the ROA were and remain true patriots of their country, but not of their government.

Opponents have long decided for themselves who the Vlasovites are. They are sure that since their boss and they themselves joined the Nazis, they were, are and will remain traitors and collaborators. In addition, patriotism, according to opponents, is just a cover. In fact, the Vlasovites went over to the side of Hitler only in the name of saving their lives. In addition, they did not become respected people there. The Nazis used them for propaganda purposes.

Formation

For the first time, it was Andrei Andreevich Vlasov who spoke about the formation of the ROA. In 1942, he and Baersky created the "Smolensk Declaration", which was a kind of "helping hand" for the German command. The document dealt with a proposal to establish an army that would fight against communism in Russia. The Third Reich acted wisely. The Germans decided to report this document to the media in order to create a resonance and a wave of discussion.

Of course, such a step was aimed primarily at propaganda. Nevertheless, the soldiers who were part of the German army began to call themselves the military ROA. In fact, this was permissible; theoretically, the army existed only on paper.

Not Vlasov

Despite the fact that since 1943 volunteers began to form into the Russian Liberation Army, it was still too early to talk about who the Vlasovites were. The German command fed Vlasov "breakfasts", and in the meantime gathered everyone in the ROA.

At the time of 1941, the project included more than 200 thousand volunteers, but then Hitler did not yet know about this amount of help. Over time, the famous "Havi" (Hilfswillige - "who want to help") began to appear. At first the Germans called them "our Ivans". These people worked as security guards, cooks, grooms, drivers, porters, etc.

If in 1942 there were just over 200 thousand hawi, then by the end of the year there were almost a million "traitors" and prisoners. Over time, Russian soldiers fought in the elite divisions of the SS troops.

RONA (RNNA)

In parallel with the Xavi, another so-called army is being formed - the Russian People's Liberation Army (RONA). At that time, one could hear about Vlasov, thanks to the battle for Moscow. Despite the fact that RONA consisted of only 500 soldiers, it was a defense for the city. It ceased to exist after the death of its founder Ivan Voskoboynikov.

At the same time, the Russian National People's Army (RNNA) was created in Belarus. She was an exact copy of RON. Its founder was Gil-Rodionov. The detachment served until 1943, and after Gil-Rodionov returned to Soviet power, the Germans disbanded the RNNA.

In addition to these "non-Vlasovites", there were also legions that were famous among the Germans and were held in high esteem. As well as the Cossacks, who fought for the formation of their own state. The Nazis sympathized with them even more and considered them not Slavs, but Goths.

Origin

Now directly about who the Vlasovites were during the war years. As we already remember, Vlasov was captured and from there began active cooperation with the Third Reich. He proposed to create an army in order for Russia to become independent. The Germans, of course, did not like this. Therefore, they did not allow Vlasov to fully realize his projects.

But the Nazis decided to play on the name of the commander. They called on the soldiers of the Red Army to betray the USSR, to enroll in the ROA, which they did not plan to create. All this was done on behalf of Vlasov. Since 1943, the Nazis began to give the soldiers of the ROA more to show themselves.

Perhaps this is how the Vlasov flag appeared. The Germans allowed the Russians to use sleeve patches. They had an appearance. Although many soldiers tried to use the white-blue-red banner, the Germans did not allow it. The remaining volunteers, of other nationalities, often used patches in the form of national flags.

When the soldiers got stripes with the St. Andrew's flag and the inscription ROA, Vlasov was still far from command. Therefore, this period can hardly be called "Vlasov".

Phenomenon

In 1944, when the Third Reich began to guess that a blitzkrieg was not working, and their affairs at the front were completely deplorable, it was decided to return to Vlasov. In 1944, Reichsführer SS Himmler discussed with the Soviet commander the question of the formation of an army. Then everyone already understood who the Vlasovites were.

Despite the fact that Himmler promised to form ten Russian divisions, the Reichsführer later changed his mind and agreed to only three.

Organization

The Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia was formed only in 1944 in Prague. It is then that the practical organization of the ROA begins. The army had its own command and all types of troops. Vlasov was both the chairman of the Committee and the commander in chief, which, in turn, both on paper and in deed, were an independent Russian national army.

The ROA was connected with the Germans by allied relations. Although the Third Reich was involved in financing. The money that the Germans issued was credit and had to be paid as far as possible.

Vlasov's thoughts

Vlasov, on the other hand, set himself a different task. He hoped that his organization would become as strong as possible. He foresaw the defeat of the Nazis and understood that after that he would have to represent the "third party" in the conflict between the West and the USSR. The Vlasovites, with the support of Britain and the United States, had to realize their political plans. Only at the beginning of 1945, the ROA was officially introduced as the armed forces of the allied power. A month later, the fighters were able to get their own sleeve insignia, and on the cap - a ROA cockade.

Baptism of fire

Even then they began to understand who the Vlasovites were. During the war years, they had to work a little. In general, the army participated in only two battles. Moreover, the first took place against the Soviet troops, and the second - against the Third Reich.

On February 9, the ROA entered combat positions for the first time. Actions took place in the Oder region. The ROA performed well, and the German command highly appreciated its actions. She was able to occupy Neulevien, the southern part of Karlsbiese and Kerstenbruch. On March 20, the ROA was supposed to capture and equip a bridgehead, and also be responsible for the passage of ships along the Oder. The actions of the army were more or less successful.

Already at the end of March 1945, the ROA decided to get together and join the Cossack Cavalry Corps. This was done in order to show the whole world its power and potential. Then the West was quite cautious about the Vlasovites. They did not particularly like their methods and goals.

The ROA also had retreat routes. The command hoped to reunite with the Yugoslav detachments or break into the Ukrainian rebel army. When the leadership realized the inevitable defeat of the Germans, it was decided to go west on their own to surrender there to the Allies. Later it became known that Himmler wrote about the physical elimination of the leadership of the Committee. It was this that became the first reason for the escape of the ROA from under the wing of the Third Reich.

The last event that remains in history was the Prague Uprising. Parts of the ROA reached Prague and revolted against Germany along with the partisans. Thus, they managed to liberate the capital even before the arrival of the Red Army.

Education

In the entire history, there was only one school that trained soldiers in the ROA - Dabendorf. For all the time, 5 thousand people were released - these are 12 issues. The lectures were based on harsh criticism of the existing system in the USSR. The main emphasis was precisely the ideological component. It was necessary to re-educate the captured soldiers and grow up staunch opponents of Stalin.

From here, real Vlasovites were issued. The photo of the school badge proves that it was an organization with clear goals and ideas. The school did not last long. At the end of February, she had to be evacuated to Gischuebel. Already in April, it ceased to exist.

controversy

The main dispute remains what was the flag of the Vlasovites. Many to this day argue that it is the current state flag of Russia that is the banner of "traitors" and followers of Vlasov. In fact, that's how it is. Some believed that the banner of the Vlasovites was with the St. Andrew's Cross, some individual collaborators used the modern tricolor of the Russian Federation. Last fact even confirmed by video and photography.

Questions to other attributes also began. It turns out that the awards of the Vlasovites somehow relate to the currently famous dispute about the St. George ribbon. And here it is worth explaining. The fact is that the Vlasov ribbon, in principle, did not exist at all.

Now it is the St. George ribbon that is attributed to the defeated in the Great Patriotic War. It was used in awards for members of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia and the ROA. And initially it was attached to the Order of St. George back in imperial Russia.

In the Soviet award system, there was a guards ribbon. She was a special sign of distinction. They used it in the design of the Order of Glory and the medal "For the Victory over Germany".

Little is known about the early life of the future general. Andrei Vlasov was born in a village in Nizhny Novgorod in 1901. His father, according to some reports, was a non-commissioned officer of extra-long service. According to others - an ordinary peasant. There were 13 children in the family, Andrei was the youngest of them. Nevertheless, with the help of his older brothers, he managed to study at the Nizhny Novgorod Seminary. Then Vlasov studied at a local university as an agronomist, but he completed only one course. The Civil War flared up, and his education was interrupted by mobilization in the Red Army. And so began his army career.

In the Red Army, which lacked literate and educated people, Vlasov quickly made his way to the company commander, and then was transferred to staff work. He headed the headquarters of the regiment, then led the regimental school. He joined the party relatively late, only in 1930.

Vlasov was in good standing and was considered a competent commander. It is no coincidence that in the late 30s he was sent to China as part of a group of military advisers to Chiang Kai-shek. Moreover, for several months, Vlasov was considered the main military adviser to the Chinese leader. At the end of 1939, he was recalled to the USSR and appointed commander of the 99th division.

There Vlasov again proved himself from the best side. In just a few months, he managed to restore such order that, according to the results of the exercises, she was recognized as the best in the Kiev military district and was especially noted by the highest authorities.

Vlasov also did not go unnoticed and was promoted to commander of a mechanized corps, and also received the Order of Lenin. The corps was stationed in the Lvov region and was one of the first Soviet units to join the fighting with the Germans.

He proved himself well in the first battles, and a month later Vlasov again went on promotion. He was urgently transferred to Kyiv to command the 37th Army. It was formed from the remnants of the units retreating from the west of the Ukrainian SSR, and the main task was not to allow the Germans to take Kyiv.

The defense of Kyiv ended in disaster. There were several armies in the cauldron. However, Vlasov managed to prove himself here too, units of the 37th Army were able to break through the encirclement and reach the Soviet troops.

The general is recalled to Moscow, where he is entrusted with the command of the 20th Army in the most important direction of the German strike - Moscow. Vlasov did not disappoint again, during German offensive The army managed to stop Göpner's 4th Panzer Group near Krasnaya Polyana. And then go on the offensive, liberate Volokolamsk and go to Gzhatsk.

Lieutenant General Vlasov became a celebrity. His portrait, along with several other military leaders, was printed on the front pages of the largest Soviet newspapers as the most distinguished in the defense of Moscow.

Doomed to captivity

However, this popularity had a downside. Vlasov began to be perceived as a lifesaver, which in the end led to an inglorious end. In the spring of 1942, the 2nd shock army penetrated the German defenses, occupying the Luban salient. It was planned to use it as a springboard for a further offensive on Leningrad. However, the Germans took advantage of the favorable conditions and closed the encirclement in the Myasnoy Bor area. The supply of the army became impossible. The headquarters ordered the army to withdraw. In the area of ​​​​Myasny Bor, they managed to break through the corridor for a short time, along which several units came out, but then the Germans closed it again.

Vlasov at that time served as deputy commander of the Volkhov Front Meretskov and, as part of a military commission, was sent to the location of the army in order to assess the situation on the spot. The situation in the army was very difficult, there was no food, no ammunition, it was also impossible to organize its supply. In addition, the army suffered very heavy losses in the battles. In fact, the 2nd shock was doomed.

By this time, the commander of the Klykov army was seriously ill, and he had to be evacuated by plane to the rear. There was a question about the new commander. Vlasov proposed to Meretskov the candidacy of Vinogradov, chief of staff of the army. He himself did not want to take responsibility for the perishing army. However, Meretskov appointed him. In this case, his track record played against Vlasov. He already had a successful experience of breaking through the encirclement, and also showed himself well near Moscow. If someone could save the perishing army, then only a person with such experience.

However, the miracle did not happen. Until the end of June, with the support of the 59th Army, desperate attempts were made to break out of the encirclement. On June 22, for several hours, they managed to break through a 400-meter corridor, along which some of the wounded were carried out, but soon the Germans closed it.

On June 24, the last, desperate attempt to break through was made. The situation was very difficult, the army had been starving for a long time, the soldiers ate all the horses and their own belts and still died of exhaustion, there were no more artillery shells, there was almost no equipment. The Germans, in turn, carried out a hurricane of shelling. After a failed attempt to break through, Vlasov gave the order to escape, as best he could. Break into small groups of 3-5 people and try to covertly get out of the environment.

What happened to Vlasov in the following weeks has not yet been established and is unlikely to ever become known. Most likely, he was trying to get to the reserve command post, where food was stored. Along the way, he entered the villages, introducing himself as a village teacher and asking for food. On July 11, in the village of Tukhovezhi, he entered the house, which turned out to be the house of the headman of the village, who immediately handed over the uninvited guests to the Germans. Having set the table for them in the bathhouse, he locked them up and informed the Germans about it. Soon their patrol detained the general. In some sources there are allegations that Vlasov deliberately intended to surrender to the Germans, but this is somewhat doubtful. For this, it was not necessary to wander for two and a half weeks through the forests, hiding from patrols.

In captivity

Vlasov was interrogated several times, but rather for show. Because it was obvious that the general, who had been surrounded for a long time, was hardly well versed in the current situation. Vlasov was sent to a special officer prisoner of war camp in Vinnitsa, which was subordinate to the OKH - the supreme command of the Wehrmacht ground forces.

It is no secret that there were tensions between the generals and the party, which later culminated in a military conspiracy against Hitler. In addition, in the occupied territories, everyone played their own game. The Nazis did not have any unified policy in this direction, Rosenberg pulled in one direction, the military command in the other, the SS in the third. Everyone was in conflict with each other, and everyone was for himself.

Vlasov was far from the first general to be taken prisoner, and at first no one was interested. With the exception of a few generals from the OKH, who, on their own initiative, decided to probe the Soviet generals for future potential cooperation. Vlasov was worked on by Shtrik-Shtrikfeld, a former Russian officer from the Baltic Germans, who settled in Latvia after the revolution and served as an interpreter in the army. As a result of conversations with him, Vlasov agreed that communism must be fought, and Stalin is the main evil. Shtrikfeld suggested that he put the memorandum on paper for submission to higher authorities.

Vlasov wrote a note about the need to create a Russian army that would fight the communist forces on the side of the Germans. However, in the OKH, the general's memorandum was treated with absolutely no enthusiasm. They perfectly knew all the alignments and understood that it would be simply impossible to achieve the creation of such an army, primarily for ideological reasons. In addition, in the middle of 1942, an early victory still seemed to the Germans a reality.

It is unlikely that anyone can say what exactly prompted Vlasov to go over to the side of the Germans. Difficult conditions of captivity? But Vlasov was in a special camp with special conditions, there was a normal attitude towards high-ranking officers. Cowardice? But Vlasov, according to the testimony of those who knew him before the war, was not a coward. Ideological reasons? Vlasov himself claimed that it was they who prompted him to side with the Germans. But before being captured, there was not a hint that Vlasov was dissatisfied with something. He was a member of the party, did not fall under repression, was in good standing and generally did not have any visible problems in the official line and nothing hinted at his discontent. ambition? Perhaps they were the reason for Vlasov's decision.

In mid-1942, the chances of the Germans to win looked quite real. Probing by individual representatives of the Wehrmacht, Vlasov could be mistaken for signals coming from the very top. That his candidacy can be considered as a representative of some future non-Soviet Russia or what remains of it. Therefore, I decided to take the initiative.

"Smolensk Appeal"

The idea of ​​creating an army looked like madness, but Vlasov made it clear that he agreed to cooperate, and in September 1942 he was transferred to Berlin to the propaganda department of the Wehrmacht. The task of the department staff, recruited from prisoners of war, was to analyze Soviet newspapers for valuable information.

Meanwhile, the situation on the fronts was changing. The Germans were thoroughly stuck in Stalingrad, and after a while the OKH remembered Vlasov and decided to use him more effectively. The captured general was assigned a purely propaganda role (about the same as he played later with Soviet side captive Paulus).

It was decided to create a semi-virtual Russian committee headed by Vlasov, which would publish appeals calling for an end to resistance, to go over to the side of the Germans, etc. Leaflets with his appeals were planned to be scattered over Soviet positions. On December 27, 1942, the Smolensk Appeal was published, in which Vlasov called for people to go over to his side in order to build a new Russia. It even contained some political points such as the abolition of collective farms. The German leadership approved the appeal, but viewed it as a purely propaganda action. They wrote about him in the newspapers, and leaflets in Russian were also printed for throwing into Soviet territories.

The party leadership was completely indifferent to Vlasov. Hitler and Himmler did not care about the captured general, he did not interest them. The main lobbyists of Vlasov were the military, who may have seen in Vlasov a potential leader of the future puppet government, if there is such a thing. On the initiative of Field Marshals von Kluge and von Küchler, Vlasov made several trips to the location of Army Group North and Center in the winter and spring of 1943. He not only met with prominent German military leaders, but also spoke to local residents in the occupied territories and gave several interviews to collaborationist newspapers.

However, the party did not like that the military was playing their game and trying to enter their territory. The Russian committee was disbanded, Vlasov was temporarily banned from speaking publicly, and the military was reprimanded. At Nazi Party there was no desire to turn Vlasov into something more than a propaganda phantom.

Meanwhile, the activities of Vlasov became known in the USSR. Stalin was so indignant that he personally corrected the newspaper article "Who is Vlasov?". This article reported that Vlasov was an active Trotskyist who planned to sell Siberia to the Japanese, but was exposed in time. Unfortunately, the party took pity on Vlasov and forgave him, allowing him to lead the army. But as it turned out, even in the first days of the war, he was recruited by the Germans, and then returned to Moscow, showed himself well for some time in order to avoid suspicion, and then specially led the army into an environment and finally defected to the Germans.

Vlasov found himself in a difficult position. In Moscow, they already learned about his activities, but in Germany he was in limbo. The party leadership, including Hitler, did not want to hear about the creation of a separate army, which was what the military wanted. When Field Marshal Keitel tried to probe the waters, Hitler made it clear that he would not allow it to go beyond the usual propaganda actions.

For the next year and a half, Vlasov became a party-goer. His patrons organized meetings for him with prominent figures who looked at the "Russian question" not as radically as the leaders. In the hope that, having enlisted their support, it would be possible to influence Hitler and Himmler at least indirectly, Vlasov was even arranged for a marriage with the widow of an SS man.

But all that his patrons managed to achieve was the creation of a "school of propagandists" in Dabendorf. For more, the party did not give permission.

Russian Liberation Army

For a year and a half, Vlasov made acquaintances in various fields. As the situation on the fronts became worse for the Germans, they began to look closely at Vlasov already in the SS. The positions of the Wehrmacht were weakening, and after the military conspiracy in July 1944, they finally weakened. But Vlasov managed to find new patrons in the person of the SS.

The Germans were already sinking and were ready to grasp at any straw. Himmler, who had not even wanted to hear about any Russian armies before, summoned Vlasov to him. Their meeting took place in September 1944. Vlasov assured the leader of the SS that he had great authority among the Soviet generals and that there was no better figure for the job. Vlasov left Himmler with permission to create the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia - a kind of semi-virtual government in exile.

In November 1944, the first meeting of the KONR was held, at which the Manifesto was announced. freedom movement- political program of the organization. In the same month, the formation of the ROA, the Russian Liberation Army, began, which had previously existed only in the form of a propaganda phantom.

In total, three divisions were formed. One of them had no weapons at all, the other did not have heavy weapons, having only small arms. And only the 1st division of the ROA, numbering about 20 thousand people, was combat-ready and fully equipped.

Formally, the ROA was not part of the Wehrmacht, but was considered an allied army. Funding came from the German treasury in the form of loans that would be repaid sometime in the future.

Contrary to popular notions, the ROA did not operate at all in the occupied territories, since by the time it was created the Soviet army was already at the German borders. This was probably the result of a common mistake: in the USSR, everyone who served the Germans began to be called Vlasov, from drivers and cooks from the Khiva to village policemen who had nothing to do with the ROA.

However, at the beginning and middle of the war, the Germans created small detachments (usually the size of a company / battalion and very rarely a regiment), the so-called. eastern battalions / companies, which were often involved in anti-partisan operations. A significant part of their personnel was later transferred to the ROA. For example, former soviet commissar Zhilenkov, before getting to Vlasov, held a prominent post in the RNNA - the Russian National People's Army, numbering several thousand people. Which just acted against partisans in the occupied territories.

For some time, the RNNA was commanded by the former Soviet colonel Boyarsky, who later also became a person close to Vlasov. Most often, the eastern battalions and companies were part of the German divisions, under which German officers were created and controlled. The personnel of these units sometimes wore cockades and stripes used later by the ROA, which creates additional confusion. However, these units, which appeared even when Vlasov was a Soviet general, were subordinate to the Germans and Vlasov had no influence on them.

The ROA was recruited from among the members of the eastern battalions previously created by the Germans and separate disbanded units such as the RNNA and RONA. Soviet prisoners of war recruited in the camps were a minority. There were also very few White emigrants, relations with them did not work out due to the fact that they considered the Vlasovites "the same Bolsheviks, only against the collective farms." Thus, it is possible to sum up this confusing issue. The ROA did not operate in the occupied Soviet territories, but some of the personnel of this army had previously served in the German eastern battalions in Soviet territories.

The combat path of the newly minted army turned out to be very short in general. During the five months of its existence, units of the ROA only twice took part in battles with Soviet troops. Moreover, in the first case, this participation was extremely limited. In February 1945, three platoons of volunteers from the Dabendorf school took part in the battle on the side of the Germans with the 230th division of the Red Army.

And in early April, the 1st division of the ROA fought along with the Germans in the Furstenberg area. After that, all parts of the ROA were withdrawn to the rear. Even with the imminent end, the Nazi leadership did not have much confidence in the newly minted allies.

By and large, the ROA has remained a propaganda, and not a real fighting force. One combat-ready division, which only once took part in hostilities, could hardly have had any influence on the course of the war, except for propaganda.

Arrest and execution

Vlasov expected to get to the location of the Americans, as he expected a new world war between the USSR and the USA. But he never managed to get to them. On May 12, 1945, he was arrested by a Soviet patrol on a tip. However, the Americans would have given him to the USSR anyway. First, he was a symbolic and familiar figure. Secondly, militarily, the ROA was not any significant force, so even as a potential ally by the Americans in case new war would not be considered. Thirdly, an agreement on the extradition of Soviet citizens was reached at the conference of allies, only a few managed to avoid this extradition.

Vlasov and all his associates from among the Soviet citizens were taken to Moscow. Initially, it was supposed to hold an open trial, but Abakumov, who supervised it, was afraid that the leakage of the views of the defendants would cause some undesirable consequences in society, and suggested that they sort it out quietly. In the end, it was decided to hold a closed trial without any publications in the press. The final decision was made by the Politburo. Instead of an open trial of traitors on August 2, 1946, a stingy note was given in Soviet newspapers that Vlasov and his closest associates were found guilty of treason and executed the day before by the verdict of a Soviet court.

An incredible number of myths and stereotypes are associated with the history of the Vlasov army, as well as with the personality of General Vlasov. Unfortunately, in last years their numbers are on the rise. However, the problem is that the very phrase "Vlasov movement", if we mean it as a kind of political phenomenon, is, of course, much wider than what is called the "Vlasov army". The fact is that participants in the Vlasov movement can be considered not only military personnel, but also civilians who, to military service had nothing to do with it at all. For example, members of the “assistance groups” of the KONR, which arose in the guest worker camps after November 1944: these are civil servants of the Committee and its institutions, divisions, several thousand people - all of them can be considered participants in the Vlasov movement, but not military personnel of the Vlasov army.

Most often, with the phrase "Vlasov army" we have such an association - the Russian Liberation Army (ROA). But in reality, the ROA was a fiction; it never existed as an operational association. It was an exclusively propaganda stamp that appeared in late March - early April 1943. And all the so-called (or almost all) Russian "volunteers" who served in the German armed forces: freiwilliger, partly Khiva - they all wore this chevron and were considered soldiers of an army that never existed. In fact, they were members of the German armed forces, the Wehrmacht, in the first place. Until October 1944, the only unit that was subordinate to Vlasov was a security company scattered in Dabendorf and Dalen, where the general was actually under house arrest. That is, there was no Vlasov army. And only in November 1944, or rather in October, did a really serious, qualified headquarters begin to be created.

By the way, I must say that Vlasov performed more representative functions in his army. Its true organizer, a man who has managed to achieve a lot over the past six months, was Fyodor Ivanovich Trukhin, a professional General Staff officer, former head of the operations department of the North-Western Front, deputy chief of staff of the North-Western Front, who was captured in the last days of June 1941 . Actually, it was General Trukhin who was the real creator of the Vlasov army. He was Vlasov's deputy for the affairs of the Committee, military affairs, deputy head of the military department.

The true creator of the Vlasov army was General Fyodor Trukhin

If we talk about the structure of the Vlasov army, then it developed as follows: firstly, Vlasov and Trukhin counted on the fact that the Germans would transfer all existing Russian units, subdivisions, formations under their command. However, looking ahead, this did not happen.

In April 1945, the Vlasov army de jure included two Cossack corps: in the Separate Cossack Corps in Northern Italy there were 18.5 thousand combat ranks, and in the 15th Cossack Corps von Pannwitz without German personnel - about 30 thousand people. On January 30, 1945, the Russian Corps also joined Vlasov, which was not very large in number, about 6 thousand people, but consisted of fairly professional personnel. Thus, as of April 20-22, 1945, about 124 thousand people were subordinate to General Vlasov. If we single out Russians separately (without Ukrainians, Belarusians), then about 450 - 480 thousand people passed through the Vlasov army. Of these, 120 - 125 thousand people (as of April 1945) can be considered Vlasov military personnel.

The certification of servicemen who arrived in the officer reserve was carried out by a qualification commission led by Major Arseniy Demsky. The commission assessed the knowledge, training, professional suitability of former Soviet officers. As a rule, the serviceman retained his old military rank, especially if documents or a prisoner of war card were kept, where it was recorded, but sometimes he was assigned a higher rank. For example, military engineer II rank Alexei Ivanovich Spiridonov served in Vlasov's Main Directorate of Propaganda - he was immediately accepted into the ROA as a colonel, although his military rank did not correspond to this rank. Andrei Nikitich Sevastyanov, head of the logistics department of the Central Headquarters, in general, a personality in Russian history unique (we will say a few words about him below), received the rank of major general in the ROA.

KONR meeting in Berlin, November 1944

The fate of Andrei Nikitich Sevastyanov has almost never been the subject of attention of historians and researchers. He was the son of a Moscow clerk or even a merchant of the second guild (versions differ). He graduated from a commercial school in Moscow, after which he studied for some time at the Higher Technical School. Before the revolution, he served in active service in the ranks Imperial Army, came out with the rank of ensign of the reserve. The First World War began. Sevastyanov immediately went to the front, ending the war in the fall of 1917 with the rank of staff captain. In principle, there is nothing to be surprised here. However, we note that during these three years of the war, our hero received seven combat Russian awards, including the St. George Cross of the 4th degree and the Order of St. Vladimir with swords. As far as is known, this is the only case in the history of the First World War when a non-professional officer (Sevastyanov was from the reserve) received seven military orders, including the two highest ones. At the same time, he also earned a serious wound: during the attack of the Austrian cavalry, Sevastyanov was wounded with a blade in the head and spent almost the entire 1917 in the hospital.

In 1918, Sevastyanov went to serve in the Red Army, from where he was fired for anti-Soviet views. For twenty years he was imprisoned, then released. And in 1941, near Kiev, according to one version, he went over to the side of the enemy himself, according to another, he was captured.

In the Red Army, Sevastyanov passed the certification, his card was in the card file of the commanding staff, but military rank he was never assigned. Apparently he was waiting. According to one version, he should have been given the rank of captain, which corresponded to a staff captain, but for some reason the head of artillery of the 21st Army ordered Sevastyanov to wear one rhombus in his buttonholes. It turns out that Andrei Nikitich was captured with the rank of brigade commander, a rank that was no longer there in September 1941. And on the basis of this entry in the ROA, Sevastyanov was certified as a major general.

In February 1945, Andrei Sevastyanov, together with the generals of the ROA, Mikhail Meandrov and Vladimir Artsezo, who served with Vlasov under the pseudonym "Iceberg", was extradited by the Americans to Soviet representatives. In 1947, he was shot by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR.

In April 1945, about 124 thousand people obeyed General Vlasov

If we estimate the size of the officer corps of the Vlasov army, then as of April 1945, it ranged from 4 to 5 thousand people in the ranks from second lieutenant to general, including, of course, white emigrants who joined Vlasov in a fairly compact group. Mostly they were officers of the Russian Corps. For example, military personnel under the leadership of Lieutenant General Boris Aleksandrovich Shteifon, hero of the Erzurum battle of 1916, commandant of the Gallipoli camp, participant white movement. It is worth noting that almost all white émigré officers occupied separate, rather important posts in Vlasov's army.

If we compare the number of Soviet officers who were captured with the number of white emigrants who joined the Vlasov army, then the ratio will be somewhere around 1:5 or 1:6. At the same time, we note that the latter compared favorably with the commanders of the Red Army. It can even be said that the officers of the Russian Corps were more ready for rapprochement with the Vlasovites than the soldiers of the Red Army.

How can this be explained? Partly because the appearance of General Vlasov was psychologically justified in the eyes of white emigrants. In the 30s, all the magazines of the white military emigration (“Sentry” and a number of others) enthusiastically wrote (the theory of “comcor Sidorchuk” was very popular) that there would be some popular commander of the Red Army who would lead the people’s struggle against the authorities, and then we will definitely support this commander, even if he opposed us during the Civil War. And when Vlasov appeared (the first meeting between Vlasov and Major General of the General Staff Alexei von Lampe took place on May 19, 1943 at the house of the former vice-director of the department of agriculture Fyodor Schlippe, Stolypin's ally in agrarian reform), he made a very good impression.

Thus, we emphasize this once again, there were much more white emigrants in the ranks of the Vlasov army than participated in the resistance movement. If you objectively look at the number, then about 20 thousand Russian white emigrants during the Second World War fought on the side of the enemy.

Soldiers of the Russian Liberation Army, 1944

The “baptism of fire” of the ROA, with the exception of the active hostilities that the formations conducted before they entered the Vlasov army, took place on February 9, 1945. strike group under the command of Colonel Igor Sakharov, formed from Soviet citizens, volunteers who served in the Vlasov army, and several white émigrés, together with German troops took part in battles with the 230th Infantry Division of the Red Army, which took up defensive positions in the Oder region. I must say that the actions of the ROA were quite effective. In his diary, Goebbels noted "the outstanding achievements of the detachments of General Vlasov."

> The second episode involving the ROA, much more serious, took place on April 13, 1945 - the so-called operation "April weather". It was an attack on the bridgehead of the Soviet fortification, the Erlenhof bridgehead, south of Furstenberg, which was defended by the 415th separate machine-gun and artillery battalion, which was part of the 119th fortified area of ​​the Soviet 33rd Army. And Sergey Kuzmich Bunyachenko, a former colonel of the Red Army, major general of the ROA, put two of his infantry regiments into action. However, the terrain there was so unfavorable, and the front of the attack was only 504 meters, and the attackers exposed themselves from the flank under the strong barrage of Soviet artillery of the 119th UR, that success (advance 500 meters, capture the first line of trenches and hold out on it until the next days) achieved only the 2nd regiment. The 3rd regiment under the command of Georgy Petrovich Ryabtsev, who served under the pseudonym "Alexandrov", a former major of the Red Army, lieutenant colonel of the Vlasov army, was defeated.

By the way, the fate of Ryabtsev, who shot himself on the demarcation line in the Czech Republic after the Prague uprising, is very curious. In the First World War, he was captured by the Germans, fled, being a non-commissioned officer of the Russian army, to the allies, the French. He fought in the Foreign Legion, then returned to Russia. He served in the Red Army, in 1941 he was the commander of the 539th regiment. He fell into German captivity for the second time, spent two years in the camp, filed a report with the ROA and was enrolled in the inspectorate of Major General Blagoveshchensky.

In the eyes of white emigrants, the appearance of Vlasov was psychologically justified

The 2nd Regiment was led by Lieutenant Colonel Vyacheslav Pavlovich Artemiev, a career cavalryman, by the way, is also a very interesting character. He was captured by the Germans in September 1943. At home, he was considered dead, posthumously awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After the war, Artemyev avoided forced extradition to the Soviet administration. He died in Germany in the 60s.

But the life story of General Ivan Nikitich Kononov could easily become the basis for a cinematic film or a detective story. A former Red Army soldier, commander of the 436th regiment of the 155th rifle division, Kononov on August 22, 1941, with a fairly large group of soldiers and commanders, went over to the side of the enemy, immediately offering to create a Cossack unit. During interrogation to the Germans, Kononov stated that he was from the repressed Cossacks, his father was hanged in 1919, two brothers died in 1934. And, interestingly, the Germans retained the rank of major assigned to Kononov in the Red Army, in 1942 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel, in 1944 to colonel of the Wehrmacht, and in 1945 he became a major general of KONR. Over the years of service to the Wehrmacht, Kononov received twelve military awards - this is in addition to the Order of the Red Star, acquired at home.

As for the fate of the Colonel of the Red Army, Major General of the KONR Sergei Kuzmich Bunyachenko, there are many ambiguities in it. Bunyachenko was born into a poor Ukrainian family, more than half of which died from the "Holodomor". In 1937, at a party meeting, he criticized collectivization, for which he was immediately expelled from the party. The exception was later, however, replaced by a severe reprimand. In 1942, Bunyachenko commanded the 389th Rifle Division on the Transcaucasian Front and, following the order of General Maslennikov, blew up the bridge in the Mozdok-Chervlenoe section before some of the Red Army units had time to cross it. Bunyachenko was made a scapegoat, sent to court by a military tribunal, sentenced to death, which was later replaced by ten years of labor camps with departure after the end of the war. In October 1942, Bunyachenko took command of the 59th separate rifle brigade, seriously weakened, having lost in previous battles more than 35% of the personnel. In mid-October, in fierce defensive battles, the brigade suffered new losses, and in November it was practically destroyed. This defeat was also blamed on Bunyachenko, who was threatened with another arrest. And then there are two versions of the development of events: according to one of them, Bunyachenko was captured by the reconnaissance group of the 2nd Romanian infantry division, according to the other, he himself went over to the side of the Germans in December 1942 (however, the problem is this case lies in the fact that the Germans sent defectors to special camps, and Bunyachenko until May 1943 was in a regular camp).

After the Prague uprising, having disbanded the division on the orders of Vlasov and removed his insignia, Bunyachenko went in a headquarters column to the headquarters of the 3rd american army. On May 15, 1945, he, along with the chief of staff of the division, Lieutenant Colonel of the Armed Forces of the KONR Nikolaev and the head of divisional counterintelligence, Captain of the Armed Forces of the KONR Olkhovik, was transferred by American patrols to the command of the 25th Soviet tank corps. Nikolaev and Olkhovik were shot separately, and Bunyachenko was included in the group of officers and generals who were involved in the Vlasov case - he was hanged along with the commander-in-chief of the ROA. At the same time, there is reason to believe that it was Bunyachenko who was subjected to torture during the investigation: the time of the interrogation, judging by the record in the protocol, took 6-7 hours. Sergei Kuzmich was a man of principle, rude, boorish, but collectivization made a very terrible impression on him. In general, it is worth noting that this was the main reason why the Vlasov movement arose.

General Vlasov inspects the soldiers of the ROA, 1944

Let's say a few words about the aviation of the Vlasov army. It is known that among the “falcons” of the general there were three Heroes of the Soviet Union: Bronislav Romanovich Antilevsky, Semyon Trofimovich Bychkov and Ivan Ivanovich Tennikov, whose biography is the least studied.

A career pilot, a Tatar by nationality, Tennikov, performing a combat mission to cover Stalingrad on September 15, 1942 over Zaikovsky Island, fought with enemy fighters, rammed the German Messerschmitg-110, shot him down and survived. There is a version that he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for this feat, but his name is not on the list of persons who were deprived of this title. Tennikov served in Soviet aviation until the autumn of 1943, when he was shot down and considered missing. While in a prisoner of war camp, he entered the service of German intelligence and was then transferred to the Vlasov army. For health reasons, he could not fly and served as a propaganda officer. ABOUT future fate Tennikov after April 1945 nothing is known. According to the documents of the Main Directorate of Personnel of the Ministry of Defense, he is still missing.

White emigrant pilots also served with Vlasov: Sergei Konstantinovich Shabalin, one of the best aviators of the First World War, Leonid Ivanovich Baidak, who in June 1920 initiated the defeat of the 1st cavalry corps of Dmitry Zhlob, Mikhail Vasilyevich Tarnovsky, the son of a famous Russian gunsmith, Colonel of the Russian army, hero of the Russo-Japanese War Vasily Tarnovsky. At the age of 13, Mikhail left his homeland with his family. Lived first in France, then in Czechoslovakia, finished there flight school becoming a professional pilot. In 1941, Tarnovsky entered the service of German propaganda. He was an announcer and editor of a number of programs of the Vineta radio station, developed scripts and hosted radio programs of an anti-Stalinist and anti-Soviet nature. In the spring of 1943, in May, he applied to join the ROA. He served near Pskov in the Guards shock battalion, and then transferred to the Air Force, where he commanded a training squadron.

Why do we focus on Tarnovsky? The fact is that, surrendering to the Americans, he, as a citizen of the Czechoslovak Republic, was not subject to extradition to the Soviet occupation zone. However, Tarkovsky expressed a desire to share the fate of his subordinates and follow them to the Soviet zone. On December 26, he was sentenced to death by a military tribunal. Shot on January 18, 1946 in Potsdam. In 1999 he was rehabilitated by the prosecutor's office of St. Petersburg.

The third Hero of the Soviet Union in the ROA was pilot Ivan Tennikov

And finally, a few words about the ideological component of the Vlasov movement. Briefly state the theses - draw your own conclusions. Contrary to very common stereotypes and myths, most of the Vlasov officers began to cooperate with the enemy after Stalingrad, that is, in 1943, and some joined the general's army in 1944 and even in 1945. In a word, the life risks of a person, if he enrolled in the ROA after 1943, did not decrease, but increased: the situation in the camps had changed so much compared to the first months of the war that only a suicide could join the Vlasov army in these years.

It is known that Vlasov had completely different people not only by military ranks, but also by political views. Therefore, if during such terrible war there is such a mass betrayal of captured generals and officers to their own state, the oath, after all, you need to look for social reasons. During the First World War, the enemy had thousands of officers of the Russian army in captivity, but there was nothing like that, not a single defector officer (except Ensign Yermolenko) was even close. Not to mention the situation of the XIX century.

As for the trial of General Vlasov and other leaders of the ROA, at first the leadership of the USSR planned to hold a public trial in the October Hall of the House of the Unions. However, this intention was later abandoned. Perhaps the reason was that some of the accused could express views in court that could objectively coincide with the moods of a certain part of the population dissatisfied with the Soviet regime.

On July 23, 1946, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks issued a decision on the death sentence. On August 1, General Vlasov and his followers were hanged.

General Vlasov at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War stood on a par with the best commanders in chief of the Red Army. General Vlasov distinguished himself in the Battle of Moscow in the autumn of 1941. By the middle of the summer of 1942, when Vlasov surrendered to the Germans, a large number of soldiers and officers of the Red Army were captured by the Germans. A large number of the population of Ukraine, Russia, the Baltic States and the Cossack formations of the Don Cossacks went over to the side of the Germans. After Vlasov was interrogated by German field marshal Theodore von Bock, the Russian Liberation Army, or ROA, began its life. Andrei Vlasov, together with like-minded people (of course, with the Germans) wanted to start a new civil war on the territory of the USSR.
Meanwhile, the general was one of the favorites of Joseph Stalin. Vlasov first distinguished himself in the Battle of Moscow, when the Red Army created a layered defense on the outskirts of the capital, and then repelled German attacks with counterattacks.

General Andrey Vlasov

On December 31, 1941, a photograph of General Andrei Vlasov was placed on the front page of the Izvestia newspaper, along with other military leaders (Zhukov, Voroshilov, etc.). The very next year, Vlasov was awarded the Order, and later he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general. Joseph Stalin gives the task Soviet writers write a book about General Vlasov "Stalin's commander". After this promotion by Stalin, Vlasov became very popular in the country. He receives greeting cards and letters from all over the country. Vlasov often gets into the camera lens.

General Andrey Vlasov

Andrei Vlasov was drafted into the armed forces of the Red Army in 1920. In 1936, Vlasov was awarded the rank of major. The following year, the rapid growth of Andrei Vlasov's career began. In 1937 and 1938 Vlasov served in the military tribunal of the Kiev Military District. He was a member of the military tribunal and signed death warrants.
Vlasov's excellent career was the result mass repression which were carried out by Stalin in the Red Army in the command staff in the mid-30s. Against the background of these events in the country, the career of many military men was very rapid. Vlasov was no exception. At 40, he becomes a lieutenant general.
According to many historians, General Andrei Vlasov was an excellent and strong-willed commander, at the same time he was a diplomat and well versed in people. Vlasov gave the impression of a strong and demanding personality in the Red Army. Thanks to the good qualities of the commander, Joseph Stalin was loyal to Vlasov, and always tried to move him up the ranks.

General Andrey Vlasov

When did the Great Patriotic War She found Vlasov when he served in the Kiev military district. He, with many commanders and soldiers of the Red Army, retreated to the east. In September 1941, Vlasov left the encirclement in the Kiev pocket. Vlasov left the encirclement for two months, and he retreated not with the soldiers of the Red Army, but with a female military doctor. In those days of the difficult retreat of the Red Army, General Vlasov sought to break through to his own as quickly as possible. Dressed in civilian clothes with a military doctor in one of settlements, Andrey Vlasov, by the beginning of November 1941, left the encirclement in the area of ​​​​the city of Kursk. After leaving the encirclement, Vlasov fell ill and was placed in a hospital. Unlike other officers and soldiers of the Red Army who left the encirclement, Vlasov was not interrogated. He still enjoyed Stalin's loyalty. Joseph Stalin remarked on this occasion: "Why bother a sick general."

General Andrey Vlasov

With the beginning of the winter of 1941, the German units of Guderian were rapidly advancing towards the capital of the USSR. The Red Army in echeloned defense with difficulty resists the Germans. The critical situation for the Soviet Union is about to begin. At that time, the defense of Moscow in the Battle of Moscow was commanded by Georgy Zhukov. To carry out the combat mission, Zhukov specially selected, in his opinion, the best army commanders. At the time when these events took place, General Vlasov was in the hospital. Vlasov, like other commanders, was appointed to the lists of commanders in the battle for Moscow without his knowledge. General Sandalov developed an operation for the counteroffensive of the Red Army near Moscow. The operation for the counter-offensive of the Red Army, when Vlasov arrived at the headquarters, was fully developed and approved. Therefore, Andrei Vlasov did not take part in it. On December 5, 1941, the 20th Shock Army launched a counterattack against the Germans, which drove them back from Moscow. Many mistakenly believe that General Andrei Vlasov commanded this army. But Vlasov returned to headquarters only on December 19. Only two days later he took command of the army. By the way, Zhukov has repeatedly expressed his dissatisfaction, due to the passive command of the army by Vlasov. After that, the Red Army successfully counterattacked the Germans and Vlasov was promoted. But Vlasov made almost no effort to carry out these events.

General Andrey Vlasov

Many historians seriously argue that Vlasov, even before the start of the war with Germany, was an ardent anti-Stalinist. Despite this, in February 1942 he attended a meeting with Joseph Stalin and was very impressed by his strong personality. Vlasov was always in good standing with Stalin. Vlasov's army has always fought successfully. Already in April 1942, Lieutenant General Andrei Vlasov, Stalin appointed commander of the 2nd shock army.

General Andrey Vlasov

On April 19, 1942, Vlasov appears for the first time before the 2nd shock army with a speech: “I will start with discipline and order. No one will leave my army just because he wants to leave. The people of my army will leave either with orders for promotion, or for execution .... Regarding the latter, of course, I was joking "

General Andrey Vlasov

At that moment, this army was surrounded and something urgently needed to be done to bring it out of the boiler. The army was cut off by the Germans in the Novgorod swamps. The position of the army became critical: there was not enough ammunition and food. Meanwhile, the Germans systematically and cold-bloodedly destroyed the encircled army of Vlasov. Vlasov asked for support and help. At the beginning of the summer of 1942, the Germans blocked the only road (it was also called the "Road of Life"), along which the 2nd Shock Army was provided with food and ammunition. On the same road, the soldiers of the Red Army left the encirclement. Vlasov gave his last order: to break through to everyone on their own. Together with the breakthrough group, Lieutenant General Vlasov headed north in the hope of breaking out of the encirclement. During the retreat, Vlasov lost his temper and was absolutely indifferent to the events taking place. Many surrounded officers of the 2nd Shock Army shot themselves while trying to take them prisoner by the Germans. Systematically, soldiers from the 2nd shock army of Vlasov left the encirclement to their small groups. The 2nd shock army consisted of several hundred thousand fighters, of whom no more than 8 thousand people escaped. The rest were killed or taken prisoner.

General Andrey Vlasov

Against the background of the encirclement of the 2nd shock army, the anti-Soviet sentiments of General Vlasov escalated. July 13, 1942 Vlasov voluntarily surrendered. Early in the morning a German patrol passed through the village. Local residents told the Germans that a Russian soldier was hiding with them. A German patrol seized Vlasov and his companion. It happened in the village of Tukhovezhi, Leningrad region. Before surrendering, Vlasov communicated with local residents who were in contact with Russian partisans. One of the inhabitants of this village wanted to hand over Vlasov to the Germans, but did not have time to do this. According to local residents, Vlasov had the opportunity to go out to the partisans, and then return to his own. But for unknown reasons, he did not.

General Andrey Vlasov

On July 13, a secret note was brought to the NKVD headquarters, which mentioned that the commanders of the 2nd shock army, Vlasov, Vinogradov and Afanasyev, went out to the partisans and were safe with them. On July 16, they found out that a mistake was made in the message and Vlasov was not with the surviving commanders. And the commander Vinogradov did not leave the encirclement. In search of Vlasov and other commanders, on behalf of Stalin, sabotage detachments were sent to the rear of the Germans. Nearly all search parties perished.

General Andrey Vlasov

Vlasov decided to surrender to the enemy for many reasons. First, he assumed that Soviet Union unable to destroy the German army, against the backdrop of the events that took place on the Volkhov front in Myasnoy Bor. He decided that it would be better for him that he would surrender to the Germans. Vlasov planned that after the defeat of the Soviets, he would become the head of the leadership of the conquered country.
General Vlasov was transferred to Germany, to Berlin. In one of the houses on the outskirts of Berlin was the headquarters of Vlasov. The Germans needed this kind of figure from the Red Army. Vlasov was offered to become the head of the army in the liberation from Bolshevism in Russia. Vlasov begins to travel to concentration camps where Soviet soldiers are imprisoned. He begins to create the backbone of the ROA (Russian Liberation Army) from captured Russian officers and soldiers. But not many join this army. Later, in the occupied city of Pskov, a parade of several ROA battalions takes place, where Vlasov takes the parade. At this parade, Andrei Vlasov declares that there are already half a million soldiers in the ranks of the ROA, who will soon fight against the Bolsheviks. But in fact, this army did not exist.
Throughout the existence of the ROA, German officers, and Hitler himself treated this formation with disdain and distrust.

General Andrey Vlasov

After the defeat of the Wehrmacht at the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, General Vlasov decides to act actively and decides to offer the Germans to lead the five hundred thousandth army of Russian prisoners of war who will take up arms and stand up against the USSR. After Hitler's meeting with the highest command staff The Wehrmacht decided not to create a combat-ready Russian army of the ROA. Hitler categorically forbade the formation of military units from Russian volunteers, due to distrust of them.
After Vlasov was denied the creation of his army, he was taken under house arrest. During the period of idleness, Vlasov in his residence often indulged in drinking and other entertainment. But at the same time, with the leaders of the ROA, Vlasov planned an action plan for various scenarios. Realizing that nothing could be expected from the Germans in terms of helping to create an army, the leaders of the ROA planned to take refuge in the Alps and hold out there until the Allies arrived. And then surrender to them. That was their only hope at the time. Moreover, Vlasov has already contacted MI6 (British military intelligence). Vlasov believed that having gone over to the side of England, he would fight with the USSR with his army when England entered Europe and started a war with Russia. But the British did not negotiate with Vlasov, considering him a war criminal who acts contrary to the interests of the allies.
In the summer of 1944, Andrei Vlasov marries the widow of the murdered SS man, Adella Billinberg. Thus, he wanted to gain the loyalty of the Germans towards himself. Moreover, he wanted to reach Himmler with this act, who in the summer of 1944 received Vlasov. Hoping for help from the Vlasov formations, Himmler allows the creation of an army for Vlasov. As a result, General Vlasov achieves his goal: the first division of the ROA is formed under his leadership. The preparation of sabotage detachments immediately begins to overthrow the government in Russia. It was planned to carry out terrorist acts on the territory of Moscow against Soviet government. Vlasov also wanted to create underground organizations in large Russian cities in order to counter the Soviet regime.

General Andrey Vlasov

After the creation of his army, General Vlasov moved to the Czech Republic. In November 1944, the first congress of the Committee of the Liberation Peoples of Russia took place in Prague. The Germans, and Vlasov himself, seriously planned that in the event of victory in the war, Vlasov would become the head of the government governing Russia.
But events unfold differently. The Red Army moves west and systematically destroys the scattered German army. Soviet troops approach the borders of Czechoslovakia. Vlasov understood that the only chance for his salvation was to surrender to the Americans.