Author: Dmitry Kiselev
June 30 Rzhev in the Tver region inaugurated the memorial to Soviet soldiers. The ceremony was headed by the presidents of Russia and Belarus Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko. Created in people’s money Korobtsova monument sculptor and architect Fomin built on the results of the international competition.
from a distance the figure of a warrior on the mound floating in the air, as if some invisible force is recreated from the ashes, the ashes of war. Up close, you can see that the floors overcoat woven from skyrocketing cranes. The Association with the ascension of Christ is inevitable. And the monument — the return of the fallen Rzhev in our time, the turnover of our memory.
That battle, the battle of Rzhev from January 1942 to March 1943 in the Soviet times continue by inertia never was listed in the registry is the most important, victorious and even heroic. If generalized, it was an example of trench warfare, where millions of Soviet soldiers were ordered to counter-attack. After a bloody battle of Moscow, the defensive phase of which was completed in December 1941, Stalin decided to immediately pursue the enemy almost on all fronts, to “ensure thus the complete defeat of Nazi troops in 1942”. So formulated task.
meanwhile, Leningrad was already under siege, the Germans continued to drive on Stalingrad and the Caucasus. So Rzhev there was what military historians compared to the meat grinder of Verdun during the First world war. It was a fierce war of attrition. However, Rzhev losses were many times more. Without visible success, if you look at the map. Yes, and they could not be.
the Germans — a considerable superiority in tanks, aircraft, heavy artillery. Defense in depth. We then rebuilt its military industry in the evacuation and was still learning to fight. Rzhev our army ground troops of the enemy, with huge casualties. If the figures, far beyond a million. The ratio of losses was then in favor of the Germans about one to two.
a very difficult test unfairly from the Soviet era posterthe in the textbooks. But in people’s memory preserved the line of Alexander Tvardovsky, written on behalf of the deceased anonymous soldier:
I was killed near Rzhev
In a nameless swamp,
In the fifth company on the left
When a brutal RAID.
for a Long time, these lines remained almost the only reminder of the Rzhev meat grinder, And even a reproach.
And in all this world,
To the end of his days
No pelicci, no stripes
From my shirt”.
And now erected and lifted up the Soviet soldiers near Rzhev already materialized memory. And that’s a huge thing for the whole of present-day Russia is to return unknown exploits, as if in turnover consciousness of the new generations.. And then the line Twardowski on behalf of a nameless soldier are and new way:
I—, where the roots of the blind
Looking for feed in darkness;
I, where a cloud of dust.
Walks the rye on the hill;
I — where’s the cock
At the dawn in the dew;
I — where is your machine
the Air tearing the highway.
the monument Rzhev, by the way, are a great road. And there are these days a lot of people. What is new beneath the monument and how was it opened?
Author: Dmitry Castro
red as a soldier’s blood of the defenders of Rzhev, fresh flowers at the monument is an allegory of a soldier’s soul, drifting in the endless blue of the fragile cranes. They leave those who fought for this uncompromising land with the enemy.
all the living and the dead for Rzhev now is a single nagging memory location. At the opening of the memorial Vladimir Putin with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko. The presidents warmly welcomed the veterans.
Like to soar above the land the memorial was born from the heroism of soldiers and immortal images of the film “the cranes are Flying”, a great song by Jan Frenkel and poem Tvardovsky “I was killed near Rzhev”.
a 25-metre monument to the foot of which Putin and Lukashenko laid flowers, sneaks up chills. Pain and memory, frozen in bronze.
Touching moment of the ceremony — a war veteran Nikolai Chernykh approached the President and asked for an autograph. As it turned out, at the request of the accompanying girls-volunteers.
for many years the feat of the Soviet soldiers near Rzhev was undervalued. The terrible figures of the Soviet losses, the President in the article devoted to the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second world war, President Putin once again reminded at the opening of the memorial.
“not long ago, in the official history about the battles of Rzhev was not accepted to talk a lot. Little, sparingly told about those events and the participants. It was too hard to remember the terrible so-called Rzhev meat-grinder. Impossible without pain to think about the losses suffered by the Red Army. Were killed, wounded, missing more than one million 300 thousand people. Monstrous, unthinkable figure. The value of this protracted and bloody battle the victory of the Soviet people over Nazism is enormous. Try again to deploy the attack on Moscow it is impossible. As it is impossible to break, subdue the people, who defended their Motherland”, — stressed the head of state.
“there’s burned earth, melted stone and crumbling armor. But not surrendered Soviet soldiers. Bleeding on the snow in the dead of winter. Died, but stood to the death. We give them FILIAL long, the duty of Holy memory. And while we create monuments, until we come to monuments, we are not going to fight,” — said Alexander Lukashenko.
Veterans were waiting for this event with great excitement. Rzhevskiy memorial — the memory of all the fallen, and the worship of the living heroes of the battle.
This unique project was implemented by the Russian military-historical society PRand the support of the Union state of Russia and Belarus as a symbol of memory common feat.
“Time has no power over this feat. And he should never, cannot be forgotten. And even more tattered, smeared with lies and falsification. We don’t allow that. Fate cut short the war will always respond to us with an open wound,” — said Putin.
every year, the search teams find Rzhevsk the ground the remains of thousands of Soviet soldiers. During the search expeditions with special power appears the full scale of the Rzhev tragedy.
“Most importantly, we find fighters. And the most reverent, of course, we find the soldier’s medallions. The most difficult is to establish the identity of the man, his destiny, to find relatives”, — said Yaroslav Smirnov, a member of the search group “Worship.” This sorrowful mission will last more than one decade.
“the moment our army has lost 7 thousand people a day. This is the worst and most prolonged and bloodiest battle of the Second world war”, — said Vladimir Medinsky, presidential aide, Chairman of RVIA.
99-year-old veteran Petr Mikhin was a participant in those bloody attacks. After the war he first introduced into scientific use the name Rzhevskaya battle. Prior to that, after all, said: “local fighting”.
the Monument was created young author team, the sculptor Andrey Korobtsov and architect Konstantin Fomin. Both a little over thirty. Their workshop among others belong to the monuments of Ivan III in Kaluga, Pyotr Stolypin in Moscow, to Princess Olga Romanova in Thessaloniki. Rzhevskiy memorial — brand new top of the creative team.
Incredible lightness that drew the attention of the President, creates a special frame. The Cape of the soldier seemed to lift into the air 35 the flying cranes.
In the form of the bronze soldier reflected traits that were collected on the basis of real photos of dead soldiers thatthe characters remember living and future generations.
In memory of the heroes Putin and Lukashenko fir-trees were planted on the territory of the Rzhev memorial, taking part in the international project “the memory Garden”.
all-Russian action “memory Garden” was held throughout the country. 27 million seedlings from Kamchatka to Kaliningrad planted 300 thousand volunteers, among whom were politicians, social activists, cultural figures.
people’s artist of the USSR Vasily Lanovoi participated in the rally organized in Sevastopol. “I think that’s a good sign for modern Russia, pointing a sign to remind people, because the great story of the past — every dollar here,” he said.
the cost of Victory, for example, artifacts found with the leader of Russia and Belarus said in the Rzhev branch of the Museum of Victory. Part of the impressive memorial. Found searchers items with ruthless clearly show how and what European countries were supplying the Nazi invaders, fought near Rzhev.
During the battle over small — only a kilometer — stretch of land from the Novorizhskoye highway, where now stands a monument, killing 60 thousand Soviet soldiers. At the base of the monument is engraved a line from Tvardovsky: “We have fallen for their country, but she is saved.” Saved her including fighters and commanders of Rzhev. The great city, where there is now a place where each of us must come and worship the names of immortal heroes.
Text: “News of the week”