22 JUNE 1941 OF THE YEAR - THE BEGINNING OF THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR

On June 22, 1941, at 4 am, without declaring war, Nazi Germany and its allies attacked the Soviet Union. The beginning of the Great Patriotic War fell not just on Sunday. It was a church holiday of All Saints who shone in the Russian land.

Parts of the Red Army were attacked by German troops along the entire length of the border. Riga, Vindava, Libava, Siauliai, Kaunas, Vilnius, Grodno, Lida, Volkovysk, Brest, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovichi, Bobruisk, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sevastopol and many other cities, railway junctions, airfields, naval bases of the USSR were bombed , artillery shelling of border fortifications and areas of deployment of Soviet troops near the border from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathians was carried out. The Great Patriotic War began.

Then no one knew that it would go down in the history of mankind as the most bloody. No one guessed that the Soviet people would have to go through inhuman trials, go through and win. Rid the world of fascism, showing everyone that the spirit of a Red Army soldier cannot be broken by the invaders. No one could have imagined that the names of the hero cities would become known to the whole world, that Stalingrad would become a symbol of the resilience of our people, Leningrad a symbol of courage, Brest a symbol of courage. That, on a par with male warriors, old men, women and children will heroically defend the earth from the fascist plague.

1418 days and nights of war.

Over 26 million human lives...

These photographs have one thing in common: they were taken in the first hours and days of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.

On the eve of the war

Soviet border guards on patrol. The photograph is interesting because it was taken for a newspaper at one of the outposts on the western border of the USSR on June 20, 1941, that is, two days before the war.

German air raid

The first to take the blow were the border guards and the fighters of the cover units. They not only defended, but also went on the counterattack. For a whole month, the garrison of the Brest Fortress fought in the rear of the Germans. Even after the enemy managed to capture the fortress, some of its defenders continued to resist. The last of them was captured by the Germans in the summer of 1942.

The picture was taken on June 24, 1941.

During the first 8 hours of the war, Soviet aviation lost 1,200 aircraft, of which about 900 were lost on the ground (66 airfields were bombed). The Western Special Military District suffered the greatest losses - 738 aircraft (528 on the ground). Having learned about such losses, the head of the Air Force of the district, Major General Kopets I.I. shot himself.

On the morning of June 22, Moscow radio broadcast the usual Sunday programs and peaceful music. Soviet citizens learned about the beginning of the war only at noon, when Vyacheslav Molotov spoke on the radio. He reported: "Today, at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country."

1941 poster

On the same day, a decree was published by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on the mobilization of those liable for military service born in 1905-1918 on the territory of all military districts. Hundreds of thousands of men and women received summons, appeared at the military registration and enlistment offices, and then went to the front in trains.

Mobilization opportunities Soviet system, multiplied during the Great Patriotic War by the patriotism and sacrifice of the people, played an important role in organizing a rebuff to the enemy, especially at the initial stage of the war. The call "Everything for the front, everything for victory!" was accepted by all the people. Hundreds of thousands of Soviet citizens voluntarily went into the army. In just a week since the beginning of the war, more than 5 million people were mobilized.

The line between peace and war was invisible, and people did not immediately perceive the change of reality. It seemed to many that this was just some kind of masquerade, a misunderstanding, and soon everything would be resolved.

The fascist troops met stubborn resistance in the battles near Minsk, Smolensk, Vladimir-Volynsky, Przemysl, Lutsk, Dubno, Rovno, Mogilev and others.And yet, in the first three weeks of the war, the troops of the Red Army left Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, a significant part of Ukraine and Moldova. Minsk fell six days after the start of the war. The German army advanced in various directions from 350 to 600 km. The Red Army lost almost 800 thousand people.

A turning point in the perception of residents Soviet Union war has certainly become August 14. It was then that the whole country suddenly learned that The Germans occupied Smolensk . It really was a bolt from the blue. While the fighting was going on "somewhere out there, in the west," and cities flashed in the reports, the location of which many could imagine with great difficulty, it seemed that the war was still far away anyway. Smolensk is not just the name of the city, this word meant a lot. Firstly, it is already more than 400 km from the border, and secondly, only 360 km from Moscow. And thirdly, unlike Vilna, Grodno and Molodechno, Smolensk is an ancient purely Russian city.

The stubborn resistance of the Red Army in the summer of 1941 frustrated Hitler's plans. The Nazis failed to quickly take either Moscow or Leningrad, and in September the long defense of Leningrad began. In the Arctic, Soviet troops, in cooperation with Northern Fleet defended Murmansk and the main base of the fleet - Polyarny. Although in Ukraine in October-November the enemy captured the Donbass, captured Rostov, and broke into the Crimea, nevertheless, here, too, his troops were fettered by the defense of Sevastopol. The formations of the Army Group "South" could not reach the rear of the Soviet troops remaining in the lower reaches of the Don through the Kerch Strait.

Minsk 1941. Execution of Soviet prisoners of war

September 30th within Operation Typhoon the Germans started general attack on Moscow . Its beginning was unfavorable for the Soviet troops. Pali Bryansk and Vyazma. On October 10, G.K. was appointed commander of the Western Front. Zhukov. On October 19, Moscow was declared under a state of siege. In bloody battles, the Red Army still managed to stop the enemy. Having strengthened the Army Group Center, the German command resumed the attack on Moscow in mid-November. Overcoming the resistance of the Western, Kalinin and right wing of the Southwestern fronts, shock groups the enemy bypassed the city from the north and south and by the end of the month they reached the Moscow-Volga canal (25-30 km from the capital), approached Kashira. On this, the German offensive bogged down. The bloodless Army Group Center was forced to go on the defensive, which was also facilitated by the successful offensive operations of the Soviet troops near Tikhvin (November 10 - December 30) and Rostov (November 17 - December 2). On December 6, the counteroffensive of the Red Army began. , as a result of which the enemy was driven back from Moscow by 100 - 250 km. Kaluga, Kalinin (Tver), Maloyaroslavets and others were liberated.

On guard of the Moscow sky. Autumn 1941

The victory near Moscow was of great strategic and moral-political significance, since it was the first since the beginning of the war. The immediate threat to Moscow was eliminated.

Although, as a result of the summer-autumn campaign, our army retreated 850-1200 km inland, and the most important economic regions fell into the hands of the aggressor, the plans for the "blitzkrieg" were nevertheless frustrated. The Nazi leadership faced the inevitable prospect of a protracted war. The victory near Moscow also changed the balance of power in the international arena. They began to look at the Soviet Union as the decisive factor in the Second World War. Japan was forced to refrain from attacking the USSR.

In winter, units of the Red Army carried out an offensive on other fronts. However, it was not possible to consolidate the success, primarily because of the dispersal of forces and means along a front of enormous length.

During the offensive German troops in May 1942, the Crimean Front was defeated on the Kerch Peninsula in 10 days. May 15 had to leave Kerch, and July 4, 1942 after a hard defense fell Sevastopol. The enemy completely took possession of the Crimea. In July - August, Rostov, Stavropol and Novorossiysk were captured. Stubborn battles were fought in the central part of the Caucasus Range.

Hundreds of thousands of our compatriots found themselves in more than 14 thousand concentration camps, prisons, ghettos scattered throughout Europe. Dispassionate figures testify to the scale of the tragedy: only on the territory of Russia, the fascist invaders shot, choked in gas chambers, burned, and hanged 1.7 million. people (including 600 thousand children). In total, about 5 million Soviet citizens died in concentration camps.

But, despite the stubborn battles, the Nazis failed to solve their main task - to break through into the Transcaucasus to master the oil reserves of Baku. At the end of September, the offensive of the fascist troops in the Caucasus was stopped.

To contain the enemy onslaught in the east, the Stalingrad Front was created under the command of Marshal S.K. Timoshenko. On July 17, 1942, the enemy under the command of General von Paulus delivered a powerful blow on the Stalingrad front. In August, the Nazis broke through to the Volga in stubborn battles. From the beginning of September 1942, the heroic defense of Stalingrad began. The battles went on literally for every inch of land, for every house. Both sides suffered huge losses. By mid-November, the Nazis were forced to stop the offensive. The heroic resistance of the Soviet troops made it possible to create favorable conditions for them to go over to the counteroffensive near Stalingrad and thereby initiate a radical change in the course of the war.

By November 1942, almost 40% of the population was under German occupation. The regions captured by the Germans were subject to military and civil administration. In Germany, even a special ministry for the affairs of the occupied regions was created, headed by A. Rosenberg. Political supervision was in charge of the SS and police services. On the ground, the occupiers formed the so-called self-government - city and district councils, in the villages the posts of elders were introduced. Persons dissatisfied with the Soviet government were involved in cooperation. All residents of the occupied territories, regardless of age, were required to work. In addition to participating in the construction of roads and defensive structures, they were forced to clear minefields. The civilian population, mostly young people, was also sent to forced labor in Germany, where they were called "Ostarbeiter" and used as cheap labor. In total, 6 million people were hijacked during the war years. From hunger and epidemics in the occupied territory, more than 6.5 million people were killed, more than 11 million Soviet citizens were shot in camps and at their places of residence.

November 19, 1942 Soviet troops moved into counteroffensive at Stalingrad (Operation Uranus). The forces of the Red Army surrounded 22 divisions and 160 separate units of the Wehrmacht (about 330 thousand people). The Nazi command formed the Don Army Group, consisting of 30 divisions, and tried to break through the encirclement. However, this attempt was not successful. In December, our troops, having defeated this grouping, launched an offensive against Rostov (Operation Saturn). By the beginning of February 1943, our troops liquidated the grouping of fascist troops caught in the ring. 91 thousand people were taken prisoner, led by the commander of the 6th German Army, Field Marshal von Paulus. Per 6.5 months Battle of Stalingrad(July 17, 1942 – February 2, 1943) Germany and its allies lost up to 1.5 million people, as well as a huge amount of equipment. military power Nazi Germany was significantly undermined.

The defeat at Stalingrad caused a deep political crisis in Germany. It was declared three days of mourning. The morale of the German soldiers fell, defeatist sentiments swept over the general population, which less and less believed the Fuhrer.

The victory of the Soviet troops near Stalingrad marked the beginning of a radical turning point in the course of World War II. The strategic initiative finally passed into the hands of the Soviet Armed Forces.

In January-February 1943, the Red Army was conducting an offensive on all fronts. In the Caucasian direction, Soviet troops advanced by the summer of 1943 by 500-600 km. In January 1943, the blockade of Leningrad was broken.

The command of the Wehrmacht planned summer 1943 undertake a major strategic offensive operation near the Kursk salient (Operation Citadel) , defeat the Soviet troops here, and then strike at the rear of the Southwestern Front (Operation Panther) and subsequently, building on success, again create a threat to Moscow. To this end, up to 50 divisions were concentrated in the area of ​​the Kursk Bulge, including 19 tank and motorized divisions, and other units - a total of over 900 thousand people. This grouping was opposed by the troops of the Central and Voronezh fronts, which had 1.3 million people. During the Battle of Kursk, the largest tank battle Second World War.

On July 5, 1943, a massive offensive of the Soviet troops began. Within 5 - 7 days, our troops, stubbornly defending themselves, stopped the enemy, who had penetrated 10 - 35 km beyond the front line, and launched a counteroffensive. It started July 12 near Prokhorovka , where the largest oncoming tank battle in the history of wars (with the participation of up to 1,200 tanks on both sides) took place. In August 1943, our troops captured Orel and Belgorod. In honor of this victory in Moscow, a salute was fired for the first time with 12 artillery volleys. Continuing the offensive, our troops inflicted a crushing defeat on the Nazis.

In September, Left-bank Ukraine and Donbass were liberated. On November 6, formations of the 1st Ukrainian Front entered Kyiv.

Having thrown the enemy back 200-300 km from Moscow, the Soviet troops set about liberating Belarus. From that moment on, our command held the strategic initiative until the end of the war. From November 1942 to December 1943, the Soviet Army advanced 500-1300 km westward, freeing about 50% of the territory occupied by the enemy. 218 enemy divisions were destroyed. During this period, partisan formations inflicted great damage on the enemy, in the ranks of which up to 250 thousand people fought.

Significant successes of the Soviet troops in 1943 intensified diplomatic and military-political cooperation between the USSR, the USA and Great Britain. On November 28 - December 1, 1943, the Tehran Conference of the "Big Three" was held with the participation of I. Stalin (USSR), W. Churchill (Great Britain) and F. Roosevelt (USA). The leaders of the leading powers of the anti-Hitler coalition determined the timing of the opening of a second front in Europe (the landing operation "Overlord" was scheduled for May 1944).

Tehran Conference of the "Big Three" with the participation of I. Stalin (USSR), W. Churchill (Great Britain) and F. Roosevelt (USA).

In the spring of 1944 Crimea was cleared of the enemy.

Under these favorable conditions, the Western Allies, after two years of preparation, opened a second front in Europe in northern France. June 6, 1944 the combined Anglo-American forces (General D. Eisenhower), numbering over 2.8 million people, up to 11 thousand combat aircraft, over 12 thousand combat and 41 thousand transport ships, having crossed the English Channel and the Pas de Calais, started the biggest war in years landing Norman operation ("Overlord") and entered Paris in August.

Continuing to develop the strategic initiative, in the summer of 1944, Soviet troops launched a powerful offensive in Karelia (June 10 - August 9), Belarus (June 23 - August 29), in Western Ukraine (July 13 - August 29) and in Moldova (June 20 - 29 August).

During Belarusian operation (code name "Bagration") Army Group Center was defeated, Soviet troops liberated Belarus, Latvia, part of Lithuania, eastern Poland and reached the border with East Prussia.

The victories of the Soviet troops in the southern direction in the autumn of 1944 helped the Bulgarian, Hungarian, Yugoslav and Czechoslovak peoples in their liberation from fascism.

As a result of the hostilities of 1944, the state border of the USSR, treacherously violated by Germany in June 1941, was restored along its entire length from the Barents to the Black Sea. The Nazis were expelled from Romania, Bulgaria, from most regions of Poland and Hungary. In these countries, pro-German regimes were overthrown, and patriotic forces came to power. The Soviet Army entered the territory of Czechoslovakia.

While the block was falling apart fascist states, grew stronger anti-Hitler coalition, as evidenced by the success of the Crimean (Yalta) Conference of the leaders of the USSR, the United States and Great Britain (from February 4 to February 11, 1945).

But still the decisive role in defeating the enemy at the final stage was played by the Soviet Union. Thanks to the titanic efforts of the entire people, the technical equipment and armament of the army and navy of the USSR by the beginning of 1945 had reached the highest level. In January - early April 1945, as a result of a powerful strategic offensive on the entire Soviet-German front, the Soviet Army decisively defeated the main enemy forces with the forces of ten fronts. During the East Prussian, Vistula-Oder, West Carpathian and the completion of the Budapest operations, Soviet troops created the conditions for further strikes in Pomerania and Silesia, and then for an attack on Berlin. Almost all of Poland and Czechoslovakia, the entire territory of Hungary were liberated.

The capture of the capital of the Third Reich and the final defeat of fascism was carried out during Berlin operation (April 16 - May 8, 1945).

April 30 in the bunker of the Reich Chancellery Hitler committed suicide .

On the morning of May 1, over the Reichstag, sergeants M.A. Egorov and M.V. Kantaria was hoisted the Red Banner as a symbol of the Victory of the Soviet people. On May 2, Soviet troops completely captured the city. The attempts of the new German government, which on May 1, 1945, after the suicide of A. Hitler, was headed by Grand Admiral K. Doenitz, to achieve a separate peace with the USA and Great Britain failed.

May 9, 1945 at 0043 In the Berlin suburb of Karlshorst, the Act of Unconditional Surrender of the Armed Forces of Nazi Germany was signed. From the Soviet side this historical document signed by the hero of the war, Marshal G.K. Zhukov, from Germany - Field Marshal Keitel. On the same day, the remnants of the last large enemy grouping on the territory of Czechoslovakia in the Prague region were defeated. City Liberation Day - May 9 - became the Day of Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. The news of the Victory spread like lightning all over the world. The Soviet people, who suffered the greatest losses, greeted her with nationwide rejoicing. Truly, it was a great holiday "with tears in the eyes."

In Moscow, on Victory Day, a festive salute was fired from a thousand guns.

Great Patriotic War 1941-1945

Material prepared by Sergey SHULYAK

The attack on the Soviet Union took place without a declaration of war in the morning hours of June 22, 1941. Despite the long preparations for war, the attack turned out to be completely unexpected for the USSR, since the German leadership did not even have a pretext for an attack.

The military events of the first weeks inspired full hope for the success of the next "blitzkrieg". Armored formations advanced quickly and occupied vast expanses of the country. In major battles and in encirclement, the Soviet Army suffered millions of casualties in killed and captured. A large number of military equipment was destroyed or captured as trophies. Again, it seemed that the doubts and feelings of fear that had spread in Germany, despite careful ideological preparation, had been refuted by the successes of the Wehrmacht. The Church Board of Trustees of the German Evangelical Church expressed the feelings that gripped many, assuring Hitler by telegraph that "he is supported by all the evangelical Christianity of the Reich in the decisive battles with the mortal enemy of order and Western Christian culture."

The successes of the Wehrmacht evoked various reactions from the Soviet side. There were manifestations of panic and confusion, the soldiers left their military units. And even Stalin first addressed the population only on July 3. In areas captured or annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939/40. part of the population welcomed the Germans as liberators. Nevertheless, from the first day of the war, Soviet troops offered unexpectedly strong resistance even in the most hopeless situations. And the civilian population actively participated in the evacuation and movement of militarily important industrial facilities beyond the Urals.

Persistent Soviet resistance and the heavy losses of the German Wehrmacht (until December 1, 1941, about 200,000 killed and missing, almost 500,000 wounded) soon disproved the German hopes for an easy and quick victory. Autumn mud, snow and a terrible cold in winter interfered with the military operations of the Wehrmacht. The German army was not prepared for the war in winter conditions, it was believed that by this time victory would have been achieved. An attempt to capture Moscow as the political center of the Soviet Union failed, although German troops approached the city at a distance of 30 kilometers. In early December, the Soviet Army unexpectedly launched a counteroffensive, which was successful not only near Moscow, but also in other sectors of the front. Thus, the concept of blitzkrieg was finally wrecked.

In the summer of 1942, new forces were accumulated to advance in a southerly direction. Although the German troops managed to capture large territories and advance as far as the Caucasus, they could not fortify anywhere. The oil fields were in Soviet hands, and Stalingrad became a springboard for west bank Volga. In November 1942, the line of the German fronts in the territory of the Soviet Union reached its greatest extent, but there could be no question of a decisive success.

Chronicle of the war from June 1941 to November 1942

22.6.41. The beginning of the German attack, the advancement of three army groups. Romania, Italy, Slovakia, Finland and Hungary entered the war on the side of Germany.

29/30.6.41 The Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks (b) declares war a "patriotic" war of all the people; formation of the State Defense Committee.

July August. The German offensive along the entire front, the destruction of large Soviet formations in the environment (Bialystok and Minsk: 328,000 prisoners, Smolensk: 310,000 prisoners).

September. Leningrad is cut off from the rest of the country. East of Kyiv, over 600,000 Soviet soldiers were captured and surrounded. The general offensive of the German troops, which suffer heavy losses, is slowed down due to constant resistance. Soviet army.

2.10.41. The beginning of the offensive on Moscow, some sections of the front line at the end of November were 30 km from Moscow.

5.12.41. The beginning of the Soviet counter-offensive with fresh forces near Moscow, the German retreat. After the intervention of Hitler, the stabilization of the defensive positions of Army Group Center in January 1942 at the cost of heavy losses. Soviet success in the south.

12/11/41. Germany declares war on the USA.

In 1941, the Soviet Army lost 1.5 - 2.5 million soldiers killed and about 3 million prisoners. The number of civilian deaths is not precisely established, but it is estimated in the millions. Losses of the German army - about 200,000 people killed and missing.

January - March 1942 A wide winter offensive of the Soviet Army, partly successful, but not reaching its goals due to heavy losses. The losses of the German army in manpower and equipment were also so great that the continuation of the offensive on a wide front turned out to be this moment impossible.

May. The failure of the Soviet offensive near Kharkov; during the counteroffensive, 250,000 Soviet soldiers were surrounded and taken prisoner.

June July. The capture of the fortress of Sevastopol and thus the entire Crimea. The beginning of the German summer offensive, with the aim of reaching the Volga and capturing oil fields in the Caucasus. Soviet side in view of the new victories of Germany is in a state of crisis.

August. German troops reach the Caucasus Mountains, but fail to inflict a decisive defeat on the Soviet troops.

September. The beginning of the battles for Stalingrad, which in October was almost completely captured by the Germans. Nevertheless, the Soviet bridgehead on the western bank of the Volga under the command of General Chuikov could not be destroyed.

9.11.42. Beginning of the Soviet counter-offensive at Stalingrad.

50 The Soviet population listens in the street to the government message about the beginning of the war, 22.6.1941.

Text 33
From a speech on the radio by People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov on 22 June 1941

Citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union! The Soviet government and its head, Comrade Stalin, have instructed me to make the following statement:

Today, at 4 o'clock in the morning, without declaring any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed our cities - Zhitomir, Kiev, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others, moreover, more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from the Romanian and Finnish territories. This unheard-of attack on our country is treachery unparalleled in the history of civilized peoples. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that a non-aggression pact was concluded between the USSR and Germany, and the Soviet government fulfilled all the conditions of this pact in all good faith. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that during the entire period of the validity of this treaty the German government could never make a single claim against the USSR regarding the fulfillment of the treaty. All responsibility for this robbery attack on the Soviet Union will fall entirely on the German fascist rulers. [...]

This war was imposed on us not by the German people, not by the German workers, peasants and intelligentsia, whose sufferings we understand very well, but by a clique of bloodthirsty fascist rulers of Germany who enslaved the French, Czechs, Poles, Serbs, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Greece and other peoples . [...]

This is not the first time our people have had to deal with an attacking, conceited enemy. At one time, our people responded to Napoleon's campaign in Russia with a Patriotic War, and Napoleon was defeated and came to his own collapse. The same will happen to the arrogant Hitler, who has announced a new campaign against our country. The Red Army and all our people will again lead the victorious patriotic war for the motherland, for honor, for freedom.

Text 34
An excerpt from the diary of Elena Scriabina dated 22.6.1941 about the news of the German attack.

Molotov's speech sounded haltingly, hurriedly, as if he were out of breath. His encouragement sounded completely out of place. Immediately there was a feeling that a monster was approaching menacingly, slowly and terrified everyone. After the news, I ran out into the street. The city was in a panic. People hurriedly exchanged a few words, rushed to the shops and bought everything that came to hand. As if beside themselves, they rushed about the streets, many went to the savings banks to collect their savings. This wave swept over me too, and I tried to get rubles from my passbook. But I came too late, the cashier was empty, the payment was suspended, everyone around was noisy, complaining. And the June day was blazing, the heat was unbearable, someone felt ill, someone cursed in despair. All day the mood was restless and tense. Only in the evening it became strangely quiet. It seemed that everyone was somewhere huddled with horror.

Text 35
Excerpts from the diary of NKVD major Shabalin from 6 to 19 October 1941

Major Shabalin died on 20.10. when trying to get out of the environment. The diary was transferred to the German army for military analysis. Back translation from German; the original is lost.

A diary
Major NKVD Shabalin,
head of the special department of the NKVD
at 50 army

for the accuracy of transmission
Chief of Staff of the 2nd Tank Army
Signed Frh.f. Liebenstein
[...]

The army is not what we used to think and imagine at home. Huge lack of everything. The attacks of our armies are disappointing.

We are interrogating a red-haired German prisoner, a shabby guy, covered in shrouds, extremely stupid. [...]

The situation with the personnel is very difficult, almost the entire army consists of people whose native places have been captured by the Germans. They want to go home. Inactivity at the front, sitting in the trenches demoralize the Red Army. There are cases of drunkenness of command and political personnel. People sometimes do not return from reconnaissance. [...]

The enemy has encircled us. Continuous cannonade. Duel of artillerymen, mortarmen and submachine gunners. Danger and fear almost the whole day. I'm not talking anymore about the forest, the swamp and the lodging for the night. Since the 12th I have not slept any more, since October 8th I have not read a single newspaper.

Creepy! I wander, around the corpses, the horrors of war, continuous shelling! Again hungry and without sleep. He took a bottle of alcohol. Went to the forest to explore. Our complete annihilation is evident. The army is defeated, the convoy is destroyed. I am writing in the woods by the fire. In the morning I lost all the Chekists, I was left alone among strangers. The army collapsed.

I spent the night in the forest. I haven't eaten bread for three days. There are a lot of Red Army soldiers in the forest; there are no commanders. Throughout the night and in the morning the Germans shelled the forest with weapons of all kinds. At about 7 o'clock in the morning we got up and went north. Shooting continues. At the halt, I washed up. [...]

All night we walked in the rain through the swampy terrain. Endless darkness. I was soaked to the skin, my right leg was swollen; terribly hard to walk.

Text 36
Field mail letter from non-commissioned officer Robert Rupp to his wife dated July 1, 1941 about the attitude towards Soviet prisoners of war.

They say that the Fuhrer's order was issued that prisoners and those who surrender are no longer subject to execution. It makes me happy. Finally! Many of the executed, whom I saw on the ground, were lying with their hands raised up, without weapons and even without a belt. I have seen at least a hundred of them. They say that even a truce envoy walking with a white flag was shot dead! After dinner, they said that the Russians were surrendering in whole companies. The method was bad. Even the wounded were shot.

Text 37
Diary entry of the former ambassador Ulrich von Hassell dated 18.8.1941 regarding the war crimes of the Wehrmacht.

Ulrich von Hassell took an active part in the anti-Hitler Resistance of conservative circles and was executed after the assassination attempt on Hitler on July 20, 1944.

18. 8. 41 [...]

The whole war in the east is terrible, the general savagery. One young officer received an order to destroy 350 civilians driven into a large barn, among whom were women and children, at first refused to do this, but he was told that this was a failure to comply with the order, after which he asked for 10 minutes to think and finally did it , sending, together with some others, machine-gun bursts into the open door of the shed into a crowd of people, and then, finishing off the still alive from machine guns. He was so shocked by this that later, having received a slight wound, he firmly decided not to return to the front.

Text 38
Excerpts from the order of the commander of the 17th Army, Colonel General Hoth, dated 11/17/1941, regarding the basic principles of warfare.

Command
17th Army A.Gef.St.,
1a No. 0973/41 secret. dated 17.11.41
[...]

2. The campaign to the East must end differently than, for example, the war against the French. This summer it becomes more and more clear to us that here, in the East, two internally irresistible views are fighting against each other: the German sense of honor and race, the centuries-old German army against the Asiatic type of thinking and primitive instincts, fueled by a small number of mostly Jewish intellectuals: fear of whip, disregard for moral values, equalization of the lower, neglect of one's life of no value.

51 German Junkere Ju-87 (Shtukas) dive bombers take off from a field airfield in the Soviet Union, 1941.

52 German infantry on the march, 1941

53 Soviet prisoners dig their own grave, 1941.

54 Soviet prisoners before execution, 1941. Both photographs (53 and 54) were in the wallet of a German soldier who died near Moscow. The place and circumstances of the execution are unknown.

More strongly than ever, we believe in a historical turning point, when the German people, by virtue of the superiority of their race and their successes, will assume control of Europe. We are more clearly aware of our calling to save European culture from Asiatic barbarism. Now we know that we have to fight an embittered and stubborn enemy. This struggle can only end in the annihilation of one side or the other; there can be no agreement. [...]

6. I demand that every soldier of the army should be imbued with pride in our successes, with a sense of unconditional superiority. We are the masters of this country which we have conquered. Our feeling of dominance is expressed not in satiety, not in contemptuous behavior, and not even in the selfish abuse of power by individuals, but in a conscious opposition to Bolshevism, in strict discipline, inflexible determination and tireless vigilance.

8. There should be absolutely no place for sympathy and gentleness towards the population. The Red soldiers brutally killed our wounded; they dealt cruelly with the prisoners and killed them. We must remember this if the population, which once endured the Bolshevik yoke, now wants to receive us with joy and worship. The Volksdeutsche should be treated with a sense of self-awareness and with calm restraint. The fight against impending food difficulties should be left to the self-government of the enemy population. Any trace of active or passive resistance, or any machinations of Bolshevik-Jewish instigators, must be eradicated immediately. The need for harsh measures against elements hostile to the people and our policy must be understood by the soldiers. [...]

Behind everyday life, we should not lose sight of the worldwide significance of our struggle against Soviet Russia. The Russian masses have been paralyzing Europe for two centuries now. The need to take Russia into account and the fear of her possible attack constantly dominated political relations in Europe and hampered peaceful development. Russia is not a European, but an Asian state. Each step into the depths of this dull, enslaved country allows you to see this difference. From this pressure and from the destructive forces of Bolshevism, Europe and especially Germany must be liberated forever.

For this we fight and work.

Commander Hoth (signed)
Send to the following units: regiments and separate battalions, including construction and service units, to the commander of the patrol service; distributor 1a; reserve = 10 copies.

Text 39
Report of the commander of the rear of the 2nd Panzer Army, General von Schenckendorff dated 24. 3. 1942 regarding looting.

Commander of the 2nd Panzer Army 24.3.42
Rel.: unauthorized requisition;
Application

1) The commander of the rear of the 2nd Panzer Army in a daily report dated 23.2.42: “Unauthorized requisition by German soldiers near Navlya is increasing. From Gremyachey (28 km southwest of Karachev), soldiers from the area of ​​Karachevo took away 76 cows without a certificate, from Plastovoye (32 km southwest of Karachev) - 69 cows. Not a single head of cattle remained in either place. In addition, the Russian law enforcement service was disarmed in Plastovoi; the next day the settlement was occupied by partisans. In the area of ​​Sinezerko (25 km south of Bryansk), the soldiers of the platoon commander, Fellow Sebastian (code 2), wildly requisitioned cattle, and in a neighboring village they shot at the village headman and his assistants. [...]

Increasingly, these cases are being reported. In this regard, I especially point out the issued orders on the conduct of troops and their supply in the country in accordance with the order. They are once again reflected in the application.

In the direction of the main attacks of the Nazis, 257 Soviet frontier posts held the defense from several hours to one day. The remaining frontier outposts held out from two days to two months. Of the 485 frontier posts attacked, not a single one withdrew without an order. The story of a day that forever changed the lives of tens of millions of people.

“They don’t suspect anything about our intentions”

June 21, 1941, 13:00. German troops receive the code signal "Dortmund", confirming that the invasion will begin the next day.

The commander of the 2nd Panzer Group of the Army Group Center, Heinz Guderian, writes in his diary: “Careful observation of the Russians convinced me that they did not suspect anything about our intentions. In the courtyard of the fortress of Brest, which was visible from our observation posts, to the sounds of an orchestra, they were holding guards. Coastal fortifications along the Western Bug were not occupied by Russian troops.

21:00. Soldiers of the 90th border detachment of the Sokal commandant's office detained a German soldier who had crossed the border river Bug by swimming. The defector was sent to the headquarters of the detachment in the city of Vladimir-Volynsky.

23:00. German minelayers, who were in Finnish ports, began to mine the way out of the Gulf of Finland. At the same time, Finnish submarines began laying mines off the coast of Estonia.

June 22, 1941, 0:30. The defector was taken to Vladimir-Volynsky. During interrogation, the soldier identified himself as Alfred Liskov, a serviceman of the 221st regiment of the 15th Wehrmacht infantry division. He reported that at dawn on June 22 the German army would go on the offensive along the entire length of the Soviet-German border. The information has been passed on to the higher command.

At the same time, the transfer of directive No. 1 of the People's Commissariat of Defense for parts of the western military districts begins from Moscow. “During June 22-23, 1941, a sudden attack by the Germans on the fronts of the LVO, PribOVO, ZapOVO, KOVO, OdVO is possible. The attack may begin with provocative actions,” the directive said. - "The task of our troops is not to succumb to any provocative actions that could cause major complications."

The units were ordered to be placed on combat readiness, covertly occupy the firing points of fortified areas on the state border, and aviation was dispersed over field airfields.

It is not possible to bring the directive to the military units before the start of hostilities, as a result of which the measures indicated in it are not carried out.

“I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory”

1:00. The commandants of the sections of the 90th border detachment report to the head of the detachment, Major Bychkovsky: "nothing suspicious was noticed on the adjacent side, everything is calm."

3:05. A group of 14 German Ju-88 bombers drops 28 magnetic mines near the Kronstadt raid.

3:07. The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Vice Admiral Oktyabrsky, reports to the Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov: “The VNOS [air surveillance, warning and communications] system of the fleet reports on the approach from the sea of ​​a large number of unknown aircraft; The fleet is on full alert.

3:10. The UNKGB in the Lvov region transmits by telephone to the NKGB of the Ukrainian SSR the information obtained during the interrogation of the defector Alfred Liskov.

From the memoirs of the head of the 90th border detachment, Major Bychkovsky: “Without finishing the interrogation of a soldier, I heard strong artillery fire in the direction of Ustilug (the first commandant's office). I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory, which was immediately confirmed by the interrogated soldier. I immediately began to call the commandant by phone, but the connection was broken ... "

3:30. The chief of staff of the Western District, General Klimovskikh, reports on an enemy air raid on the cities of Belarus: Brest, Grodno, Lida, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovichi and others.

3:33. The chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reports on air raids on the cities of Ukraine, including Kyiv.

3:40. The commander of the Baltic Military District, General Kuznetsov, reports on enemy air raids on Riga, Siauliai, Vilnius, Kaunas and other cities.

German soldiers cross the state border of the USSR.

"Enemy raid repulsed. An attempt to strike our ships has been thwarted."

3:42. Chief of the General Staff Zhukov calls Stalin and reports the start of hostilities by Germany. Stalin orders Timoshenko and Zhukov to arrive at the Kremlin, where an emergency meeting of the Politburo is being convened.

3:45. The 1st frontier post of the 86th Augustow border detachment was attacked by an enemy reconnaissance and sabotage group. The personnel of the outpost under the command of Alexander Sivachev, having entered the battle, destroy the attackers.

4:00. The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Vice Admiral Oktyabrsky, reports to Zhukov: “The enemy raid has been repulsed. An attempt to strike our ships has been thwarted. But there is destruction in Sevastopol.”

4:05. The outposts of the 86th August Frontier Detachment, including the 1st Frontier Post of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev, are subjected to heavy artillery fire, after which the German offensive begins. The border guards, deprived of communication with the command, engage in battle with superior enemy forces.

4:10. The Western and Baltic Special Military Districts report the start of hostilities by German troops on land.

4:15. The Nazis open massive artillery fire on the Brest Fortress. As a result, warehouses were destroyed, communications were disrupted, there big number killed and wounded.

4:25. The 45th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht begins an attack on the Brest Fortress.

"Defending not individual countries, but ensuring the security of Europe"

4:30. A meeting of members of the Politburo begins in the Kremlin. Stalin expresses doubt that what happened is the beginning of the war and does not exclude the version of a German provocation. People's Commissar of Defense Timoshenko and Zhukov insist: this is war.

4:55. In the Brest Fortress, the Nazis manage to capture almost half of the territory. Further progress was stopped by a sudden counterattack by the Red Army.

5:00. The German Ambassador to the USSR, Count von Schulenburg, presents the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Molotov with a "Note of the German Foreign Ministry to the Soviet Government", which says: "The German government cannot be indifferent to a serious threat on the eastern border, so the Fuhrer gave the order to the German armed forces by all means ward off this threat. An hour after the actual start of hostilities, Germany de jure declares war on the Soviet Union.

5:30. On the German radio, Reich Minister of Propaganda Goebbels read out Adolf Hitler's appeal to the German people in connection with the outbreak of war against the Soviet Union: “Now the hour has come when it is necessary to oppose this conspiracy of Jewish-Anglo-Saxon warmongers and also Jewish rulers of the Bolshevik center in Moscow ... At the moment the greatest in terms of its length and volume of the performance of troops, which the world has ever seen ... The task of this front is no longer the defense of individual countries, but the security of Europe and thereby the salvation of all.

7:00. Reich Minister for Foreign Affairs Ribbentrop begins a press conference at which he announces the start of hostilities against the USSR: "The German army has invaded the territory of Bolshevik Russia!"

“The city is on fire, why aren’t you broadcasting anything on the radio?”

7:15. Stalin approves the directive on repulsing the attack of Nazi Germany: "The troops will attack the enemy forces with all their strength and means and destroy them in areas where they have violated the Soviet border." The transfer of "Directive No. 2" due to the violation by saboteurs of the communication lines in the western districts. Moscow does not have a clear picture of what is happening in the war zone.

9:30. It was decided that at noon Molotov, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, would address the Soviet people in connection with the outbreak of war.

10:00. From the memoirs of announcer Yuri Levitan: “They call from Minsk: “Enemy planes over the city”, they call from Kaunas: “The city is on fire, why are you not transmitting anything on the radio?”, “Enemy planes are over Kyiv.” Women's crying, excitement: “Is it really a war? ..” However, no official messages are transmitted until 12:00 Moscow time on June 22.

10:30. From the report of the headquarters of the 45th German division on the battles on the territory of the Brest Fortress: “The Russians are fiercely resisting, especially behind our attacking companies. In the citadel, the enemy organized defense by infantry units supported by 35-40 tanks and armored vehicles. The fire of enemy snipers led to heavy losses among officers and non-commissioned officers.

11:00. The Baltic, Western and Kyiv special military districts were transformed into the North-Western, Western and South- Western Front s.

“The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours"

12:00. People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Vyacheslav Molotov read out an appeal to the citizens of the Soviet Union: "Today at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed from our cities - Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others - with their own planes, more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from Romanian and Finnish territory ... Now that the attack on the Soviet Union has already taken place, the Soviet government has given an order to our troops to repel the piratical attack and drive the German troops from the territory of our homeland ... The government calls on you, citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union, to rally their ranks even more closely around our glorious Bolshevik Party, around our Soviet government around our great leader Comrade Stalin.

Our cause is right. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours".

12:30. Advanced German units break into the Belarusian city of Grodno.

13:00. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issues a decree "On the mobilization of those liable for military service ..."

“On the basis of Article 49 of paragraph “o” of the Constitution of the USSR, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR announces mobilization on the territory of the military districts - Leningrad, Special Baltic, Western Special, Kyiv Special, Odessa, Kharkov, Oryol, Moscow, Arkhangelsk, Ural, Siberian, Volga, North - Caucasian and Transcaucasian.

Those liable for military service who were born from 1905 to 1918 inclusive are subject to mobilization. Consider June 23, 1941 as the first day of mobilization. Despite the fact that June 23 is named the first day of mobilization, recruiting offices at the military registration and enlistment offices begin to work by the middle of the day on June 22.

13:30. The Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov, flies to Kyiv as a representative of the newly created Headquarters of the High Command on the Southwestern Front.

"Italy also declares war on the Soviet Union"

14:00. The Brest Fortress is completely surrounded by German troops. Soviet units blockaded in the citadel continue to offer fierce resistance.

14:05. Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano states: “In view of the current situation, due to the fact that Germany has declared war on the USSR, Italy, as an ally of Germany and as a member of the Tripartite Pact, also declares war on the Soviet Union from the moment German troops enter Soviet territory.”

14:10. The 1st frontier post of Alexander Sivachev has been fighting for more than 10 hours. The border guards, who had only small arms and grenades, destroyed up to 60 Nazis and burned three tanks. The wounded head of the outpost continued to command the battle.

15:00. From the notes of the commander of Army Group Center, Field Marshal von Bock: “The question of whether the Russians are carrying out a planned withdrawal is still open. There is now ample evidence both for and against this.

It is surprising that nowhere is any significant work of their artillery visible. Strong artillery fire is conducted only in the north-west of Grodno, where the VIII Army Corps is advancing. Apparently, our air force has an overwhelming superiority over Russian aviation.

Of the 485 frontier posts attacked, none retreated without an order.

16:00. After a 12-hour battle, the Nazis occupy the positions of the 1st frontier post. This became possible only after all the border guards who defended it died. The head of the outpost Alexander Sivachev was posthumously awarded the order Patriotic War I degree.

The feat of the outpost of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev became one of the hundreds accomplished by the border guards in the first hours and days of the war. The state border of the USSR from the Barents to the Black Sea on June 22, 1941 was guarded by 666 border outposts, 485 of them were attacked on the very first day of the war. None of the 485 outposts attacked on June 22 withdrew without orders.

The Nazi command took 20 minutes to break the resistance of the border guards. 257 Soviet frontier posts held the defense from several hours to one day. More than one day - 20, more than two days - 16, more than three days - 20, more than four and five days - 43, from seven to nine days - 4, more than eleven days - 51, more than twelve days - 55, more than 15 days - 51 outposts. Up to two months, 45 outposts fought.

Of the 19,600 border guards who met the Nazis on June 22 in the direction of the main attack of Army Group Center, more than 16,000 died in the first days of the war.

17:00. Hitler's units manage to occupy the southwestern part of the Brest Fortress, the northeast remained under the control of Soviet troops. Stubborn battles for the fortress will continue for another week.

"The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox for the defense of the sacred borders of our Motherland"

18:00. The Patriarchal Locum Tenens, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna Sergius, addresses the faithful with a message: “Fascist robbers have attacked our homeland. Trampling all sorts of treaties and promises, they suddenly fell upon us, and now the blood of peaceful citizens is already irrigating our native land ... Our Orthodox Church has always shared the fate of the people. Together with him, she carried trials, and consoled herself with his successes. She will not leave her people even now… The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox to defend the sacred borders of our Motherland.”

19:00. From the notes of the Chief of the General Staff of the Wehrmacht Ground Forces, Colonel General Franz Halder: “All the armies, except for the 11th Army of the Army Group South in Romania, went on the offensive according to plan. The offensive of our troops, apparently, was a complete tactical surprise for the enemy on the entire front. The border bridges across the Bug and other rivers have been captured everywhere by our troops without a fight and in complete safety. The complete surprise of our offensive for the enemy is evidenced by the fact that the units were taken by surprise in the barracks, the planes stood at the airfields, covered with tarpaulins, and the advanced units, suddenly attacked by our troops, asked the command what to do ... The Air Force command reported, that today 850 enemy aircraft have been destroyed, including entire squadrons of bombers, which, having taken to the air without fighter cover, were attacked by our fighters and destroyed.

20:00. Directive No. 3 of the People's Commissariat of Defense was approved, ordering the Soviet troops to go on the counteroffensive with the task of defeating the Nazi troops on the territory of the USSR with further advance into the territory of the enemy. The directive prescribed by the end of June 24 to capture the Polish city of Lublin.

"We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can"

21:00. Summary of the High Command of the Red Army for June 22: “At dawn on June 22, 1941, the regular troops of the German army attacked our border units on the front from the Baltic to the Black Sea and were held back by them during the first half of the day. In the afternoon, the German troops met with the advanced units of the field troops of the Red Army. After fierce fighting, the enemy was repulsed with heavy losses. Only in the Grodno and Krystynopol directions did the enemy manage to achieve minor tactical successes and occupy the towns of Kalvaria, Stoyanuv and Tsekhanovets (the first two at 15 km and the last at 10 km from the border).

Enemy aircraft attacked a number of our airfields and settlements, but everywhere met a decisive rebuff from our fighters and anti-aircraft artillery, which inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. We shot down 65 enemy planes."

23:00. Appeal of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the British people in connection with the German attack on the USSR: “At 4 o'clock this morning, Hitler attacked Russia. All his usual formalities of treachery were observed with scrupulous precision ... suddenly, without a declaration of war, even without an ultimatum, German bombs fell from the sky on Russian cities, German troops violated Russian borders, and an hour later the German ambassador, who just the day before generously lavished his assurances to the Russians in friendship and almost an alliance, paid a visit to the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs and declared that Russia and Germany were in a state of war ...

No one has been a more staunch opponent of communism over the past 25 years than I have been. I will not take back a single word said about him. But all this pales before the spectacle unfolding now.

The past, with its crimes, follies and tragedies, recedes. I see Russian soldiers standing on the border of their native land and guarding the fields that their fathers have plowed since time immemorial. I see how they guard their homes; their mothers and wives pray - oh yes, because at such a time everyone prays for the preservation of their loved ones, for the return of the breadwinner, patron, their protectors ...

We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can. We must call on all our friends and allies in all parts of the world to follow a similar course and pursue it as steadfastly and steadily as we will, to the very end.

June 22 has come to an end. There were still 1417 days of the most terrible war in the history of mankind.

In most of the memoirs of Soviet military leaders, the idea is tirelessly repeated that the beginning of the Great Patriotic War found the majority of the Red Army soldiers sleeping peacefully, which is why the troops of the border districts were defeated. Blame, of course, Stalin, who did not heed the warnings of the military and to the last opposed bringing the army to combat readiness. Similarly, French and German generals in their memoirs they swore that they did their best to dissuade Napoleon and Hitler, respectively, from attacking Russia, but they did not listen. The goal in all three cases is the same - to shift the blame for the defeat from oneself to the head of state, and each time a study of the documents gives a completely opposite picture.

Ten days to assemble an army

In normal times, a military unit resembles a disassembled designer: each part is in its own box. Equipment - in the parks, in a mothballed form. Ammunition, fuel, food, medicines, etc. - in the appropriate warehouses. In order for a unit to fight, the designer must be assembled. That is, put the troops on alert.

By the Directive of the Revolutionary Military Council No. 61582ss of April 29, 1934, three positions were established in the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army (RKKA): normal, reinforced and full readiness. Each involved a whole list of activities. Somewhat later, in Soviet times, such a list for putting the howitzer division on alert (it was brought to me by the writer Valery Belousov, a former artillery officer), looked like this:

Howitzer division of 122-mm M-30 howitzers. Divisional artillery level. Three batteries of six guns. Management (scouts, signalmen, headquarters), rear services (household, traction, first-aid post). Personnel of about one and a half hundred people.

Of the three batteries in ordinary civilian life, the first is deployed, firing. The remaining 12 guns are in the gun park. On the blocks to unload the springs. With barrels sealed with inhibitor paper, with hydraulics drained from the pistons of the knurler and recoil brake cylinders. Naturally, there are practically no personnel in the two batteries.

What is full combat readiness?

1. To accept personnel up to the number of staff, namely, six people per gun, drivers for all tractors, and an economic platoon.

2. De-mothball the tractors, that is, install batteries, fill the vehicles with fuel, water and oil.

3. Scroll the mechanisms, clean the guns from grease, wash them with kerosene, fill in the hydraulics, pump the pneumatics, get and install the sights (the optics are stored separately).

4. Receive ammunition and bring it to the oksnarvid, that is, finally equip it: remove it from the boxes, wipe it with kerosene, unscrew the stop covers and screw in the fuses, put it back in the boxes, spread it out according to the scales (pluses to pluses, minuses to minuses), immerse in equipment .

5. Get compass, rangefinders, binoculars, radio stations, telephones, cable, check communications, get code tables. The foremen receive dry rations, the drivers fill up their cars.

6. Get personal weapons and ammunition.

7. Carry out elementary combat coordination, at least a couple of times going to the training ground.

When the “alarm” command is given, everyone grabs clothes, without getting dressed, runs to the equipment and takes it out of the location to the concentration area.

And that is not all. Ammunition is received at warehouses, and warehouses are subordinate to the Main Artillery Directorate, and without an order from Moscow, not a single warehouse worker will even sneeze. The same applies to all other types of allowance. Bringing the unit to combat readiness is preceded by an avalanche of orders. Without all this, the army simply cannot fight.

But she fought, which means she was put on alert, and the documents confirm this.

“From the directive of the Military Council of the KOVO to the military councils of the 5th, 6th, 12th, 26th armies. June 11, 1941.

"one. In order to reduce the terms of combat readiness of the cover units and detachments allocated to support the border troops, carry out the following measures:

Rifle, cavalry and artillery units

a) Have a portable supply of rifle cartridges in sealed boxes. For each heavy machine gun, have 50 percent of the ammunition loaded and packed in boxes, and 50 percent of the equipped magazines for a light machine gun.

Boxes with cartridges, boxes with stuffed tapes and disks should be stored sealed in subdivisions in specially protected premises.

b) Store hand and rifle grenades in sets in the depots of the unit in special boxes for each unit.

Photo: Anatoly Garanin / RIA Novosti

c) 1/2 ammunition load of artillery shells and mines of the emergency reserve for all parts of the cover must be fully equipped. For military anti-aircraft artillery, have 1/2 ammunition load of non-reserve artillery shells in the final equipped form.

d) Military-chemical, engineering and communication property to store parts in warehouses, in sets for each unit.

e) Keep the portable supply of food and personal belongings of the fighters in a prepared form for packing in duffel bags and satchels.

f) Fuel supply for all types of vehicles to have two refuelings - one filled in the tanks of vehicles (tractors) and one in tanks (barrels).

Please note: the directive was issued on June 11th. There are still ten days before the war, and measures to bring the troops to combat readiness are being carried out at full speed. The same directive established the terms of readiness for alarm after the implementation of the indicated measures: for rifle and artillery units on horse-drawn traction - 2 hours; for cavalry, motorized units and artillery on mechanical traction - 3 hours. The pre-war night would have been enough.

"Execution to be delivered by 24 o'clock on June 21"

The next line of preparation for war is June 18. On this day, a directive came from the General Staff, after which the units began to withdraw to the areas of concentration.

“From the order for the 12th mechanized corps No. 0033. June 18, 1941.
[…] 4. At 23:00 on 06/18/41, the units set out from the occupied winter apartments and concentrate ... (further signs which division goes where - approx. "Tapes.ru").

5. Marches only at night. In areas of concentration, carefully disguise and organize all-round security and observation. Dig cracks, disperse troops to a company with a company removed from the company 300-400 meters.

Pay attention to the timing - the corps literally rushed out of the military camps.

“[...] 8. By 23:00 on 06/18/41, report to the corps headquarters (Jelgava) by telephone or telegraph with the conditional figure “127” about the performance from winter quarters.

10. Command post of the 12th mechanized corps from 04:00 06/20/41 - in the forest 2 km west of the city of DV. Nice (1266). Until 22:00 on 06/18/41, the command post of the corps is Jelgava.

In the early 1950s, the Military Scientific Directorate of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces conducted a survey of Soviet military leaders regarding the concentration and deployment of troops in the western border military districts in June 1941. They recalled that they received orders to withdraw their units to the areas of concentration on June 18-19.

“Colonel General of the Tank Forces P.P. Poluboyarov (former head of the PribOVO armored forces):

“On June 16, at 23:00, the command of the 12th mechanized corps received a directive to put the formation on alert... On June 18, the corps commander raised formations and units on alert and ordered them to be withdrawn to the planned areas. During June 19 and 20 this was done.

On June 16, by order of the district headquarters, the 3rd mechanized corps was also put on alert, which concentrated in the indicated area at the same time.

Lieutenant General P.P. Sobennikov (former commander of the 8th Army):

“By the end of the day, verbal orders were given to concentrate troops on the border. On the morning of June 19, I personally checked the progress of the order.”

Major General I.I. Fadeev (former commander of the 10th Infantry Division of the 8th Army):

“On June 19, 1941, an order was received from the commander of the 10th Rifle Corps, Major General I.F. Nikolaev about bringing the division to combat readiness. All units were immediately withdrawn to the defense area, occupied bunkers and artillery firing positions. With dawn, the commanders of regiments, battalions and companies on the ground specified the combat missions according to the previously developed plan and brought them to the commanders of platoons and squads.

Major General P.I. Abramidze (former commander of the 72nd Mountain Rifle Division of the 26th Army):

“On June 20, 1941, I received the following code from the General Staff: “All units and units of your formation located on the very border should be taken back a few kilometers, that is, to the line of prepared positions. Do not respond to any provocations from the German units until such will not violate the state border. All parts of the division must be put on alert. Execution should be reported by 24 hours on June 21, 1941 ".

As you can see, the troops concentrated, and, if necessary, deployed, and even the date of the attack was known exactly. So the famous Directive No. 1 issued on the night of June 21-22 was not the last desperate attempt to save the situation, but the logical finale of a whole series of orders.

Who was in Stalin's office

If you believe the memoirs of the then Chief of the General Staff Georgy Zhukov, when on the evening of June 21 he and People's Commissar of Defense Semyon Timoshenko, having received information about another defector, came to Stalin to persuade him to allow the troops to be put on alert, they found the leader alone, then members of the Politburo appeared .

However, according to the log of visitors to Stalin's office, by the time Tymoshenko arrived (7:05 pm), Vyacheslav Molotov, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, had been sitting there for half an hour. Together with the people's commissar of defense, people's commissar of the NKVD Lavrenty Beria, chairman of the State Planning Commission Alexei Voznesensky, head of the personnel department of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, Georgy Malenkov, who oversaw the defense industry, chairman of the defense committee under the Council of People's Commissars, commander of the Kyiv military district, Marshal Kliment Voroshilov and several other people came up.

After the end of the part of the meeting devoted to the mobilization of industry, at 20:15 Voznesensky leaves. At the same time, Timoshenko also retired to return half an hour later with Zhukov, the first deputy people's commissar for defense, Marshal Semyon Budyonny, and the People's Commissar of State Control Lev Mekhlis.

The second one started military unit meetings. The military districts were transformed into fronts, Budyonny was appointed commander of the armies of the second line, Mehlis received the post of head of the political propaganda department of the Red Army, Zhukov was entrusted with the overall leadership of the Southwestern and Southern fronts. All four and Malenkov, then head of the personnel department of the Central Committee and secretary of the Central Committee, left Stalin's office at 10:20 pm. Molotov, Beria and Voroshilov remained with the leader. At 11 o'clock the office was empty. What did they do next?

The answer is simple: people worked hard all afternoon - they, in fact, would need to eat! Stalin dined just about eleven in the evening, his dinners served at the same time as working meetings. So the assumption that the future members of the State Defense Committee moved from the Stalinist office to the Stalinist apartment seems the most logical.

At this time, Tymoshenko and Zhukov in the People's Commissariat of Defense wrote down Directive No. 1 in a cipher notebook. According to the first edition of the memoirs of the Commissar navy Nikolai Kuznetsov (later the admiral corrected them in accordance with the general line about Stalin resisting the proposals of the military), at about 11 pm in the People's Commissariat of Defense, “the people's commissar in an unbuttoned tunic walked around the office and dictated something. Sitting at the table was Chief of the General Staff G.K. Zhukov and, not looking up, continued to write a telegram. Several sheets of a large notebook were lying to his left... An attack by Nazi troops is possible, - S. K. Timoshenko began the conversation. According to him, the order to put the troops on alert to repel the expected enemy attack was received by him personally from I.V. Stalin, who by that time already apparently had the relevant reliable information ... "

Now this is more like the truth!

Writing, encoding and decoding a directive is a long process. The telegram went to the troops at 00:30 in the morning, to the fleets even later. What did Admiral Kuznetsov do when he learned about the impending attack? That's right: he immediately gave the order to call the fleets and warn his subordinates verbally. Why, as is commonly believed, did not the People's Commissar of Defense do this?

And who, by the way, said that he did not?

The most interesting memories were left by the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR Matvey Zakharov, who was the Chief of Staff of the Odessa Military District before the war. On the evening of June 21, he was in Tiraspol at a field command post, fully equipped in case of war, while the district commander was still in Odessa.

“At about 10 p.m. on June 21, I was summoned by the BODO apparatus for negotiations from Odessa, the commander of the district troops. He asked if I could decipher the telegram if I received it from Moscow. The commander was given the answer that I could decipher any encryption from Moscow. Another question followed: "They ask for the second time, confirm your answer, can you decipher the encryption from Moscow?" I was extremely surprised by the repetition of the request. I replied: "I report for the second time that I can decipher any encryption from Moscow." An instruction followed: “Expect the receipt of a code of particular importance from Moscow. The Military Council authorizes you to immediately decipher the code and give the appropriate orders.”

Naturally, he immediately gave the appropriate orders. But here's what happened next:

“Having assessed the situation, at about 11 p.m. on June 21, I decided to call the commanders of the 14th, 35th and 48th rifle corps and the chief of staff of the 2nd cavalry corps to the apparatus ... All of them were given the following instructions: 1. Headquarters and raise troops on combat alert and withdraw from settlements. 2. Parts of the cover to occupy their areas. 3. Establish contact with border units.

Please note: the chief of staff of the Odessa district begins to act two hours before receiving the directive. He, in fact, does not need an order - the order of actions is dictated to him by previous events and a plan to cover the state border. Therefore, he took the strange double request from the district headquarters (obviously following the double request from Moscow) as a signal for action, like most other military leaders.

But what about famous story about three divisions of the 4th Army of the Western Military District stationed in Brest and coming under fire from German artillery right in the barracks? Is this a fabrication? No, the purest truth. However, one should not forget that the commander of the 4th Army, Alexander Korobkov, and the commander of the Belarusian Military District, Dmitry Pavlov, were shot shortly after the start of the war for acts very similar to sabotage. But this is already the subject of a separate investigation, as well as the question of why the Soviet military leaders, who received documents in advance about bringing the troops to combat readiness, already in the autumn of 1941 found themselves at the walls of Moscow and Leningrad.

“On June 21 at 21.00, a soldier who had fled from the German army, Liskov Alfred, was detained at the site of the Sokal commandant's office. Since there was no interpreter at the commandant's office, I ordered the commandant of the section, Captain Bershadsky, to deliver the soldier in the city of Vladimir to the detachment headquarters by truck.

At 0.30 on June 22, 1941, the soldier arrived in the city of Vladimir-Volynsk. Through an interpreter, at about 1 a.m., soldier Liskov testified that on June 22, at dawn, the Germans should cross the border. I immediately reported this to the responsible officer on duty at the headquarters of the troops, Brigadier Commissar Maslovsky. At the same time, I personally informed the commander of the 5th Army, Major General Potapov, by telephone, who was suspicious of my message, not taking it into account.

I personally was also not firmly convinced of the veracity of the message of soldier Liskov, but nevertheless called the commandants of the districts and ordered to strengthen the protection of the state border, to put up special listeners to the river. Bug and in the event of the Germans crossing the river, destroy them with fire. At the same time, he ordered that if anything suspicious was noticed (any movement on the adjacent side), immediately report to me personally. I was at headquarters all the time.

The commandants of the districts at 1.00 on June 22 reported to me that nothing suspicious was seen on the adjacent side, everything is calm ... "("Mechanisms of War" with reference to the RGVA, f. 32880, on. 5, d. 279, l. 2. Copy).

Despite doubts about the reliability of the information transmitted by the German soldier, and the skeptical attitude towards it on the part of the commander of the 5th Army, it was promptly transferred "upstairs".

From the telephone message of the UNKGB in the Lvov region to the NKGB of the Ukrainian SSR.

" On June 22, 1941, at 3:10 a.m., the UNKGB in the Lvov region transmitted the following message by telephone to the NKGB of the Ukrainian SSR: “The German corporal who crossed the border in the Sokal region testified as follows: his surname is Liskov Alfred Germanovich, 30 years old, worker, carpenter of a furniture factory in Kolberg (Bavaria), where he left his wife, child, mother and father.

The corporal served in the 221st sapper regiment of the 15th division. The regiment is located in the village of Tselenzha, which is 5 km north of Sokal. He was drafted into the army from the reserve in 1939.

He considers himself a communist, is a member of the Union of Red Soldiers, says that life in Germany is very hard for soldiers and workers.

Before evening, his company commander, Lieutenant Schultz, gave the order and announced that tonight, after artillery preparation, their unit would begin crossing the Bug on rafts, boats and pontoons. Like a supporter Soviet power, having learned about it, decided to run to us and report.("History in documents" with reference to "1941. Documents". Soviet archives. "News of the Central Committee of the CPSU", 1990, No. 4.").

G.K. Zhukov recalls: “At about 24 hours on June 21, the commander of the Kyiv district, M.P. Kirponos, who was at his command post in Ternopil, reported via HF [...] another German soldier appeared in our units - 222- 1st Infantry Regiment of the 74th Infantry Division. He swam across the river, appeared to the border guards and said that the German troops would go on the offensive at 4 o'clock. MP Kirponos was ordered to quickly transmit the directive to the troops to put them on alert ... ".

However, there was no time left. The above-mentioned head of the 90th border detachment, M.S. Bychkovsky, continues his testimony as follows:

"... In view of the fact that the translators in the detachment are weak, I called a German teacher from the city, who is fluent in German, and Liskov again repeated the same thing, that is, that the Germans were preparing to attack the USSR at dawn on June 22, 1941. He called himself a communist and stated that he had come specifically to warn on his own initiative.

Without finishing the interrogation of the soldier, he heard strong artillery fire in the direction of Ustilug (the first commandant's office). I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory, which was immediately confirmed by the interrogated soldier. I immediately began to call the commandant by phone, but the connection was broken ... "(cit. source) The Great Patriotic War began.

03:00 - 13:00, General Staff - Kremlin. First hours of the war

Was the German attack on the USSR completely unexpected? What did the generals, the General Staff and the People's Commissariat of Defense do in the first hours of the war? There is a version that the beginning of the war was banally overslept - both in the border units and in Moscow. With the news of the bombardment of Soviet cities and the transition of the fascist troops to the offensive, confusion and panic arose in the capital.

Here is how G.K. Zhukov recalls the events of that night: “On the night of June 22, 1941, all employees of the General Staff and the People's Commissariat of Defense were ordered to remain in their places. It was necessary to transfer to the districts as soon as possible a directive on bringing the border troops on combat readiness. At this time, the People's Commissar of Defense and I were in continuous negotiations with the commanders of the districts and the chiefs of staff, who reported to us about the increasing noise on the other side of the border.They received this information from the border guards and advanced cover units.Everything indicated that the German troops were moving closer to the border."

The first message about the beginning of the war was received by the General Staff at 03:07 on June 22, 1941.

Zhukov writes: “At 03:07, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, F.S. Oktyabrsky, called me on HF and said: “The VNOS [air surveillance, warning and communications] system of the fleet reports on the approach from the sea of ​​a large number of unknown aircraft; the fleet is in full combat readiness, I ask for instructions" [...]

“At 4 o’clock I again spoke with F.S. Oktyabrsky. He reported in a calm tone: “The enemy raid has been repulsed. An attempt to hit the ships was thwarted. But there is destruction in the city.”

As you can see from these lines, Black Sea Fleet The start of the war was not taken by surprise. The air raid was repulsed.

03.30: Chief of Staff of the Western District, General Klimovskikh, reported on an enemy air raid on the cities of Belarus.

03:33 The chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reported on an air raid on the cities of Ukraine.

03:40: Commander of the Baltic District General Kuznetsov and reported on the raid on Kaunas and other cities.

03:40: People's Commissar of Defense S. K. Timoshenko ordered the Chief of the General Staff G. K. Zhukov to call Stalin at the "Near Dacha" and report on the start of hostilities. After listening to Zhukov, Stalin ordered:

Come with Tymoshenko to the Kremlin. Tell Poskrebyshev to call all the members of the Politburo.

04.10: The Western and Baltic special districts reported the start of hostilities by German troops in the land sectors.

At 4:30 am, members of the Politburo, People's Commissar for Defense Tymoshenko, and Chief of the General Staff Zhukov gathered in the Kremlin. Stalin asked to urgently contact the German embassy.

The embassy said that Ambassador Count von Schulenburg asked to receive him for an urgent message. Molotov went to meet Schulenberg. Returning to the office, he said:

The German government has declared war on us.

At 07:15, JV Stalin signed a directive to the Armed Forces of the USSR on the repulse of Hitler's aggression.

At 9:30 a.m., I. V. Stalin, in the presence of S. K. Timoshenko and G. K. Zhukov, edited and signed a decree on mobilization and the imposition of martial law in the European part of the country, as well as on the formation of the Headquarters of the High Command and a number of other documents .

On the morning of June 22, it was decided that at 12 o'clock V. M. Molotov would address the peoples of the Soviet Union with the Statement of the Soviet Government by radio.

“JV Stalin,” recalls Zhukov, “being seriously ill, of course, could not make an appeal to the Soviet people. He, together with Molotov, drafted a statement.”

“At about 1 pm I.V. Stalin called me,” writes Zhukov in his memoirs, “and said:

Our front commanders do not have sufficient experience in directing the combat operations of troops and, apparently, are somewhat confused. The Politburo has decided to send you to the Southwestern Front as a representative of the Headquarters of the High Command. We will send Shaposhnikov and Kulik to the Western Front. I called them to my place and gave the appropriate instructions. You need to fly immediately to Kyiv and from there, together with Khrushchev, go to the front headquarters in Ternopil.

I asked:

And who will lead the General Staff in such a difficult situation?
JV Stalin replied:

Leave Vatutin behind.

Don't waste your time, we'll get around here somehow.

I called home so that they would not wait for me, and after 40 minutes I was already in the air. I just remembered that I hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. The pilots helped me out by treating me with strong tea and sandwiches. (the chronology is based on the memoirs of G.K. Zhukov).

05:30. Hitler announces the start of war with the USSR

June 22, 1941 at 5:30 am Reich Minister Dr. Goebbels in a special broadcast of the Greater German Radio, he read out Adolf Hitler's appeal to the German people in connection with the outbreak of war against the Soviet Union.

“...Today, 160 Russian divisions are stationed on our border,” the appeal said, in particular. “In recent weeks, there have been continuous violations of this border, not only ours, but also in the far north and in Romania. Russian pilots amuse themselves by that they carelessly fly over this border, as if they want to show us that they already feel like masters of this territory.On the night of June 17-18, Russian patrols again invaded the territory of the Reich and were driven out only after a long skirmish.But now the hour has come when it is necessary to oppose this conspiracy of Jewish-Anglo-Saxon warmongers and also Jewish rulers of the Bolshevik center in Moscow.

German people! At the moment, the greatest in terms of its extent and volume of military action, which the world has ever seen, is being carried out. In alliance with the Finnish comrades are the fighters of the winner at Narvik near the Arctic Ocean. The German divisions under the command of the conqueror of Norway, together with the Finnish heroes of the struggle for freedom, under the command of their marshal, defend the Finnish land. From East Prussia to the Carpathians deployed formations of the German eastern front. On the banks of the Prut and in the lower reaches of the Danube to the Black Sea coast, Romanian and German soldiers unite under the command of the head of state, Antonescu.

The task of this front is no longer to protect individual countries, but to ensure the security of Europe and thereby the salvation of all.

That is why I have decided today to once again place the fate and future of the German Reich and our people in the hands of our soldiers. May the Lord help us in this struggle!

Battles across the front

Fascist troops went on the offensive along the entire front. Not everywhere the attack developed according to the scenario conceived by the German General Staff. The Black Sea Fleet repelled an air raid. In the south, in the north, the Wehrmacht failed to gain an overwhelming advantage. Heavy positional battles ensued here.

Army Group "North" ran into fierce resistance from Soviet tankers near the city of Alytus. The capture of the crossing over the Neman was critically important for the advancing German forces. Here, units of the 3rd Panzer Group of the Nazis stumbled upon the organized resistance of the 5th Panzer Division.

Only dive bombers managed to break the resistance of the Soviet tankers. The 5th Panzer Division did not have air cover, under the threat of destruction of manpower and materiel, it began to retreat.

The bombers swooped down on the Soviet tanks until noon on 23 June. The division lost almost all armored vehicles and, in fact, ceased to exist. However, on the first day of the war, the tankers did not leave the line and stopped the advance of the Nazi troops inland.

The main blow of the German troops fell on Belarus. Here the Brest Fortress stood in the way of the Nazis. In the first seconds of the war, a hail of bombs fell on the city, followed by heavy artillery fire. After that, units of the 45th Infantry Division went on the attack.

The hurricane fire of the Nazis caught the defenders of the fortress by surprise. However, the garrison, which numbered 7-8 thousand people, had the advancing German units fierce resistance.

By the middle of the day on June 22, the Brest Fortress was completely surrounded. Part of the garrison managed to break out of the "cauldron", part was blocked and continued to resist.

By the evening of the first day of the war, the Nazis managed to capture the southwestern part of the fortress city, the northeast was under the control of Soviet troops. Pockets of resistance also remained in the territories controlled by the Nazis.

Despite the complete encirclement and overwhelming superiority in people and equipment, the Nazis failed to break the resistance of the defenders of the Brest Fortress. Skirmishes continued here until November 1941.

Battle for air supremacy

From the first minutes of the war, the USSR Air Force entered into a fierce battle with enemy aircraft. The attack was sudden, some of the aircraft did not have time to rise from the airfields and were destroyed on the ground. The Belarusian military district took the greatest blow. 74th assault air regiment, which was based in Pruzhany, was attacked at about 4 o'clock in the morning by Messerschmites. The regiment did not have air defense systems, the planes were not dispersed, as a result of which enemy aircraft smashed equipment as if on a training ground.

A completely different situation developed in the 33rd Fighter Aviation Regiment. Here the pilots entered the battle as early as 3.30 in the morning, when over Brest the link of Lieutenant Mochalov shot down a German plane. This is how the Aviation Encyclopedia website "Corner of the Sky" describes the battle of the 33rd IAP (article by A. Gulyas):

"Soon, about 20 He-111s flew into the airfield of the regiment under the cover of a small group of Bf-109s. At that time, there was only one squadron there, which took off and entered the battle. Soon the other three squadrons, returning from patrolling the Brest-Kobrin area, joined it. "In the battle the enemy lost 5 aircraft. Two Non-111s were destroyed by Lieutenant Gudimov. He won his last victory at 5.20 in the morning, ramming a German bomber. Twice more, the regiment successfully intercepted large groups of Heinkels on the distant approaches to the airfield. After another interception, the returning already on the last liters of fuel, the regiment's I-16s were attacked by Messerschmitts. No one could take off to help. The airfield was subjected to continuous attack for almost an hour. By 10 o'clock in the morning, not a single aircraft capable of taking off was left in the regiment ... ".

The 123rd Fighter Aviation Regiment, whose airfield was located near the town of Imenin, just like the 74th Attack Aviation Regiment, did not have anti-aircraft cover. However, its pilots were in the air from the first minutes of the war:

“By 5.00 am, B.N. Surin already had a personal victory - he shot down a Bf-109. On the fourth sortie, being seriously wounded, he brought his“ seagull ”to the airfield, but could no longer land. Obviously, he died in the cockpit while leveling ... Boris Nikolaevich Surin fought 4 battles, personally shot down 3 German aircraft. But this did not become a record. The young pilot Ivan Kalabushkin turned out to be the best sniper of the day: at dawn he destroyed two Ju-88s, closer to noon - He-111, and sunset, two Bf-109s were sent as victims of his nimble "gulls"! .. "- reports the Aviation Encyclopedia.

“At about eight in the morning, four fighters piloted by Mr. M.P. Mozhaev, L. G.N. Zhidov, P.S. Ryabtsev and Nazarov flew out against eight Messerschmitt-109s. Taking Zhidov’s car into the “pincers” ", the Germans knocked her out. Rescuing a comrade, Mozhaev shot down one fascist. Zhidov set fire to the second. Having used up ammunition, Ryabtsev rammed a third enemy. Thus, in this battle, the enemy lost 3 cars, and we lost one. For 10 hours, the pilots of the 123rd IAP were heavy fighting, making 10-14 and even 17 sorties. Technicians, working under enemy fire, ensured the readiness of aircraft. During the day, the regiment shot down about 30 (according to other sources, more than 20) enemy aircraft, losing 9 of its own in the air."

Unfortunately, in the absence of communication and the prevailing confusion, timely delivery of ammunition and fuel was not organized. Fighting vehicles fought to the last drop of gasoline and the last bullet. After that, they froze dead on the airfield and became easy prey for the Nazis.

The total losses of Soviet aircraft on the first day of the war amounted to 1160 aircraft.

12:00. Radio speech by V.M. Molotov

At noon on June 22, 1941, Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs V.M. Molotov read out an appeal to the citizens of the Soviet Union:

"CITIZENS AND CITIZENS OF THE SOVIET UNION!

The Soviet government and its head, Comrade Stalin, have instructed me to make the following statement:

Today, at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed our cities - Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sevastopol, Kaunas from their aircraft. and some others, more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from Romanian and Finnish territory.

This unheard-of attack on our country is treachery unparalleled in the history of civilized peoples. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that a non-aggression pact was concluded between the USSR and Germany and the Soviet government fulfilled all the conditions of this pact in all good faith. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that during the entire period of the validity of this treaty the German government could never make a single claim against the Soviet Union regarding the fulfillment of the treaty. The entire responsibility for this predatory attack on the Soviet Union falls entirely on the German fascist rulers.

Already after the attack, the German ambassador in Moscow, Schulenburg, at 5:30 in the morning, did to me, as People's Commissar Foreign Affairs, a statement on behalf of their government that the German government decided to go to war against the Soviet Union in connection with the concentration of Red Army units near the eastern German border.

In response to this, on behalf of the Soviet government, I stated that until the last minute the German government did not make any claims against the Soviet government, that Germany had attacked the Soviet Union, despite the peace-loving position of the Soviet Union, and that thereby fascist Germany was the attacking side .

On instructions from the government of the Soviet Union, I must also state that at no point did our troops and our aviation allow the border to be violated, and therefore the statement made by the Romanian radio this morning that allegedly Soviet aircraft fired at Romanian airfields is a complete lie and provocation. Hitler's entire declaration today is just as much a lie and a provocation, trying to concoct, retroactively, accusatory material about non-compliance by the Soviet Union with the Soviet-German pact.

Now that the attack on the Soviet Union has already taken place, the Soviet government has given an order to our troops to repulse the piratical attack and drive the German troops out of our homeland.

This war was imposed on us not by the German people, not by the German workers, peasants and intelligentsia, whose sufferings we understand very well, but by a clique of bloodthirsty fascist rulers of Germany who enslaved the French, Czechs, Poles, Serbs, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Greece and other peoples .

The Government of the Soviet Union expresses its unshakable confidence that our valiant army and navy and the brave falcons of the Soviet aviation will honorably fulfill their duty to their homeland, to the Soviet people, and deal a crushing blow to the aggressor.
This is not the first time our people have had to deal with an attacking arrogant enemy. At one time, our people responded to Napoleon's campaign in Russia with a Patriotic War, and Napoleon was defeated and came to his own collapse. The same will happen with the arrogant Hitler, who has announced a new campaign against our country, the Red Army and all our people will again wage a victorious patriotic war for the motherland, for honor, for freedom.

The Government of the Soviet Union expresses its firm conviction that the entire population of our country, all workers, peasants and intelligentsia, men and women, will treat their duties and their work with due conscience. All our people must now be united and united as never before. Each of us must demand from ourselves and from others discipline, organization, selflessness, worthy of a true Soviet patriot, in order to provide for all the needs of the Red Army, fleet and aviation, in order to ensure victory over the enemy.

The government calls on you, citizens and women of the Soviet Union, to rally your ranks even more closely around our glorious Bolshevik Party, around our Soviet government, around our great leader Comrade Stalin.

Our cause is right. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours".

The first atrocities of the Nazis

The first case of atrocities by the German army on the territory of the Soviet Union falls on the first day of the war. On June 22, 1941, the Nazis, advancing, broke into the village of Albinga, Klaipeda region of Lithuania.

The soldiers robbed and burned all the houses. Residents - 42 people - were herded into a barn and locked up. During the day of June 22, the Nazis killed several people - they beat them to death or shot them.

The next morning, the systematic destruction of people began. Groups of peasants were taken out of the barn and shot in cold blood. First all the men, then the turn came to women and children. Those who tried to escape into the forest were shot in the back.

In 1972, a memorial ensemble for the victims of fascism was created near Ablinga.

The first summary of the Great Patriotic War

SUMMARY OF THE HIGH COMMAND OF THE RED ARMY
for 22.VI. - 1941

At dawn on June 22, 1941, the regular troops of the German army attacked our border units on the front from the BALTIC to the BLACK Sea and were held back by them during the first half of the day. In the afternoon, the German troops met with the advanced units of the field troops of the Red Army. After fierce fighting, the enemy was repulsed with heavy losses. Only in the GRODNO and KRYSTYNOPOLS directions did the enemy manage to achieve minor tactical successes and occupy the towns of KALVARIYA, STOJANOW and TSEKHANOVEC (the first two at 15 km and the last at 10 km from the border).

Enemy aviation attacked a number of our airfields and settlements, but everywhere they met with a decisive rebuff from our fighters and anti-aircraft artillery, which inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. We shot down 65 enemy planes. from RIA Novosti funds

23:00 (GMT). Winston Churchill's speech on BBC radio

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill on June 22 at 23:00 GMT made a statement in connection with the aggression of Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union.

"... The Nazi regime has the worst features of communism," in particular, he said on the air of the BBC radio station. no one has been a more consistent opponent of communism than I have been in the last 25 years. I will not take back a single word I have said about it. But all this pales before the spectacle now unfolding. The past with its crimes, follies and tragedies disappears.

I see Russian soldiers standing on the threshold of their native land, guarding the fields that their fathers have cultivated since time immemorial.

I see them guarding their homes, where their mothers and wives pray - yes, for there are times when everyone prays - for the safety of their loved ones, for the return of their breadwinner, their protector and support.

I see tens of thousands of Russian villages, where the means of subsistence are torn from the ground with such difficulty, but where there are primordial human joys, where girls laugh and children play.

I see how the vile Nazi war machine is approaching all this, with its dapper, rattling spurs Prussian officers, with its skillful agents, who have just pacified and tied hand and foot a dozen countries.

I also see a gray, well-drilled, obedient mass of ferocious Hun soldiers advancing like swarms of creeping locusts.

I see German bombers and fighters in the sky, still scarred from the wounds inflicted on them by the British, rejoicing that they have found what they think is easier and surer prey.

Behind all this noise and thunder, I see a bunch of villains who are planning, organizing and bringing this avalanche of disasters to humanity ... I must announce the decision of His Majesty's Government, and I am sure that the great dominions will agree with this decision in due time, for we should speak out immediately, without a single day of delay. I have to make a statement, but can you doubt what our policy will be?

We have only one single unchanging goal. We are determined to destroy Hitler and all traces of the Nazi regime. Nothing can turn us away from it, nothing. We will never negotiate, we will never enter into negotiations with Hitler or with any of his gang. We will fight him on land, we will fight him at sea, we will fight him in the air until, with God's help, we have rid the earth of his very shadow and free the peoples from his yoke. Any person or state that fights against Nazism will receive our help. Any person or state that goes with Hitler is our enemy...

This is our policy, this is our statement. It follows from this that we will give Russia and the Russian people all the help that we can ... "