Examples of patriotism in the Patriotic War. The power and role of patriotism in World War II

The word "Patriot" is everywhere today. Russian flags are fluttering, calls are made for the integrity and unity of the nation, and the people in chorus perform Katyusha, Kalinka in the metro and shopping centers. All this would be wonderful, if not for one "but". The very concept of "patriotism", does everyone understand it correctly? Are all those who proudly call themselves "patriots" actually they are.

- the term is new, and everything behind it is bad and even dangerous.

Here is a vivid example of false patriotism if:

• You hear insulting speech addressed to other countries, peoples, cultures, against which the words "Russia" and "Russian" stand out as a model of superiority;
• You hear insults against those who go on holiday abroad, or (even worse) go to live in another country;
• You hear propaganda for the use of only Russian products, goods, proposals for the termination of market relations with other countries;
• You hear insults against those who have entered into a marriage (relationship) with a representative of another nation.

Know patriotism is love for one's people, culture and motherland. All of the above has nothing to do with it.

"Shame on the traitors"

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, Russians discovered a whole world rich in cultures, tastes, colors and sounds. The desire to learn new things, to explore other countries is a normal desire of a literate, spiritually developed person. To learn something new from a foreign culture, leaving a piece of one's own, beloved, as a replacement - this is development. This is how human civilization grew and developed, borrowing and exporting.

The trouble is that not everyone can afford to visit other countries. Everyone has their own reasons - some are economic, some are social. This problem gave rise to envy, which, as you know, will not lead to anything good. From this came angry and full of malice remarks against traveling Russians, accusing them of a lack of patriotic feelings. “Aunt Zina”, who every summer rests in the village or at the dacha, is considered a true patriot of the country, and those who dared to bask on the Turkish coast are hardly traitors to their homeland.

A separate target for "psychological execution" are those who, for one reason or another, temporarily or permanently reside abroad. Here the verdict is final and not subject to appeal - treason to the motherland. Nobody cares about the reason for the move. The argument from the series “The whole world is our home” is not taken into account. Statements addressed to such "traitors" are usually harsh and painful. “Ran away from problems”, “sold out to the West”, “faded”, “sold their homeland”. At the same time, the patriotic sanctity of a certain Pyotr Petrovich is always emphasized, who lives all his life in his city, in his house on his street.

Such Petras Petrovichs are often those who, in fact, cannot stand either the city itself or their country. They do not have the slightest desire to do something useful for their homeland, for the people. And sometimes just get up, go to work with your hands and head. What for? They expect that the Motherland owes them. Of course it should. He's a patriot!

But in fact, it’s still worth considering who brings more benefit to her people: a Russian woman teaching Russian in London, who lovingly brings her culture to the world; a composer who writes kind children's songs for Russian kindergartens, from Italy, or a parasite Petya, who indefatigably scolds the country, the authorities and the whole world? Which one is more patriotic?

Give Russian production

A separate class of false patriots are those who call on Russians to abandon all foreign-made goods "because they are evil." A call for the rejection of everything foreign - clothing, technology, food. The same applies to everything intangible - films, language, songs, dances. They even concern the use of borrowed words in the lexicon. True patriotism for such people means using only domestic consumer goods. On the one hand, the support of our own production is commendable, but its development itself is necessary. It is a fact. But there is a reasonable limit to everything. A complete rejection of imported goods is simply physically impossible. Because then, for complete fairness, it will be necessary to admit that many necessary things are inventions of foreign companies. Letting go of everything? Computers, telephones, household appliances, perfumes, cosmetics, household chemicals, toilet paper - all this was not invented by us. Are the "patriots" ready to give up all these benefits?

Patriotism - "yes" - Nazism - "no"

Unlike the others, this example is just false, but also dangerous. Here we are talking about what they are trying so hard to teach us from TV screens, and more often from our monitors - hostility on national grounds.

“All countries that are not called “Russia” are enemies whose goal is to destroy our Motherland, and all other peoples are some kind of subhuman, clearly inferior to the great Russians in intelligence, talents and abilities” - this is the approximate meaning of couch false patriots.

Do you think about your mothers how much other mothers give their children (money, love, freedom)? Do you stop loving your mother if she has temporary difficulties?

Now about other mothers. A lot of them. They can be better or worse. But they are all someone's mothers, and they need to be respectfully spoken of. After all, it is unpleasant for their children to hear negative statements from you.

Other moms might like it too. We willingly communicate with the mothers of our friends, neighbors, sometimes recognizing their beauty, kindness and ability to manage the household. And their kitchen is excellent, and the house is well-groomed. At the same time, love for our mothers does not suffer at all. Communicating with others, admiring them, we still love our own mothers more than anyone else. Because it's natural.

And we're also leaving. This happens too. Loving your mother does not mean constantly sitting by her skirt. Sometimes we are far from home. But do our sons' feelings suffer from this? Do we love them less? Rather the opposite. Those who are thousands of miles away from their mothers suffer doubly. And doubly loved. That's what love is for a mother."

And now, replace the word "mother" with the word "Motherland". Read again. After all, it's practically the same thing. This is a great example to understand what "love for the Motherland" is, what "true patriotism" is.

The speech of Metropolitan Alexy (Simansky) of Leningrad and Novgorod at the Liturgy in the Cathedral of the Epiphany.

Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod Alexy (Simansky)

The patriotism of a Russian person is known to the whole world. According to the special properties of the Russian people, it bears the special character of the deepest, ardent love for the motherland. This love can only be compared with love for a mother, with the most tender care for her. It seems that in no language next to the word "motherland" is the word "mother", as we do.

We say not just motherland, but mother - motherland; and how much deep meaning in this combination of the two most precious words for a person!

A Russian person is infinitely attached to his fatherland, which is dearer to him than all the countries of the world. He is especially characterized by homesickness, about which he has a constant thought, a constant dream. When the homeland is in danger, then this love flares up especially in the heart of a Russian person. He is ready to give all his strength to protect her; he is eager to fight for her honor, inviolability and integrity and shows selfless courage, complete contempt for death. Not only as a duty, a sacred duty, he looks at the cause of her protection, but it is an irresistible command of the heart, a rush of love that he is unable to stop, which he must exhaust to the end.

Prince Dimitry Donskoy

Countless examples from our native history are an illustration of this feeling of love for the homeland of a Russian person. I recall the difficult time of the Tatar yoke, which weighed over Russia for about three hundred years. Russia is destroyed. Its main centers have been destroyed. Batu crushed Ryazan; incinerated Vladimir on the Klyazma; defeated the Russian army on the City River and went to Kyiv. It was with difficulty that the prudent leaders, the princes of Russia, held back the impulse of the people, who were not accustomed to slavery and were eager to free themselves from the chains. The time has not yet come. But here is one of the successors of Batu, the fierce Mamai, with ever-increasing cruelty, is trying to finally crush the Russian land. The time has come for a final and decisive struggle. Prince Dimitry Donskoy goes to the Trinity Monastery to St. Sergius (of Radonezh) for advice and blessing. And the Monk Sergius gives him not only firm advice, but also a blessing to go to Mamai, predicting success in his work, and releases with him two monks - Peresvet and Oslyabya, two heroes, to help the soldiers. We know from history with what selfless love for the suffering homeland the Russian people went to battle. And in the famous Battle of Kulikovo, although with enormous casualties, Mamai was defeated, and the liberation of Russia from the Tatar yoke began. So the invincible power of the love of the Russian people for their homeland, their universal irresistible will to see Russia free overcame a strong and cruel enemy who seemed invincible.

Prince Alexander Nevsky

The struggle and victory of St. Alexander Nevsky over the Swedes at Ladoga, over the German knight dogs in the famous Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipsi, when the Teutonic army was completely defeated. Finally, the era of the Patriotic War with Napoleon, famous in Russian history, dreamed of conquering all peoples and daring to encroach on the Russian state. By the providence of God, he was allowed to reach Moscow itself, to strike the heart of Russia, as if only to show the whole world what the Russian people are capable of when the fatherland is in danger and when almost superhuman strength is needed to save it. We know only very few names of these countless patriotic heroes who gave all their blood, to the last drop, for the fatherland.

At that time there was not a single corner in the Russian land where help from the motherland would not come. And the defeat of the brilliant commander was the beginning of his complete fall and the destruction of all his bloodthirsty plans.

One can find an analogy between the historical situation of that time and the present. And now the Russian people, in unparalleled unity and with an exceptional impulse of patriotism, are fighting against a strong enemy who dreams of crushing the whole world and barbarously sweeping away in its path everything valuable that the world has created over the centuries of progressive work of all mankind.

This struggle is not only a struggle for their homeland, which is in great danger, but, one might say, for the entire civilized world, over which the sword of destruction is raised. And just as then, in the era of Napoleon, it was the Russian people who were destined to free the world from the madness of a tyrant, so now our people have the lofty mission of delivering humanity from the atrocities of fascism, restoring freedom to enslaved countries and establishing peace everywhere, so brazenly violated by fascism. The Russian people are moving towards this holy goal with complete selflessness. Daily<…>there are news of the successes of Russian weapons and of the gradual disintegration in the fascist camp. This success is achieved by indescribable tension and unprecedented feats of our amazing defenders amid the unceasing rumble of guns, amid the terrible whistle of hellish shells, the disturbing, insidious sounds of which no one who heard them will forget, in an atmosphere where death hovers, where everything speaks of the suffering of living human souls.

But victory is forged not only at the front, it is born in the rear, among civilians. And here we see an extraordinary upsurge and the will to win, an unshakable confidence in the triumph of truth, in the fact that “God is not in power, but in truth,” as St. Alexander Nevskiy.

In the rear, which under the current conditions of the war is almost the same front, and the elderly, and women, and even teenage children - everyone is actively involved in the defense of their native country.

One can point to innumerable cases when people who, it would seem, have absolutely no part in the war and hostilities, show themselves to be the most ardent accomplices of the belligerents. I will point out a few examples. An air raid alert has been issued in the city. Ignoring the danger, not only men, but also women and teenagers rush to take part in protecting their homes from bombs. They cannot be kept in the house, they cannot be driven into a shelter. With me, one 12-year-old schoolboy, at the request of his mother - not to go to the roof during the air raid - told her with conviction that he could put out bombs better than an adult, that his father was protecting his homeland, and he must protect the house and his mother. And in fact, this young patriot was ahead of many adults and put out four bombs in a few days. There are so many examples when young and, conversely, elderly people try to hide their years so that they can be enrolled as volunteers in the Red Army. One old man in my presence wept bitter tears, because he was denied entry as a volunteer and thus deprived of the opportunity to contribute his share in defense of the fatherland. This is the will to win, which is the key to victory itself. And here's another example from real life. A man comes out of the temple and gives alms to an old beggar woman. She tells him: "Thank you, father, I will pray for you and for God to help defeat the bloody enemy - Hitler." Isn't that also the will to win?

And here is the mother who saw her son - a pilot to the Southern Front and then found out that it was on this front that there were hot battles. She is sure that her son is dead, but she subordinates the feeling of maternal grief to the feeling of love for the motherland and, having cried out her grief in the temple of God, she says almost with joy: “God helped me to contribute my share of help to the motherland.” I know more than one case when people with the most insignificant means set aside a ruble each to contribute to the needs of defense. One deep old man sold his only valuable thing - a watch, in order to make a sacrifice on his own for defense.

All these are facts taken by chance from life, but how much they say about the feeling of love for the motherland, about the will to win! And there are many such cases, they are before our eyes, and they speak louder than any words about the invincible power of patriotism that has gripped the entire Russian people in these days of trials. They speak of the fact that the entire nation has truly risen both actively and spiritually against the enemy. And when all the people have risen, they are invincible.

As in the time of Demetrius of the Don, St. Alexander Nevsky, as in the era of the struggle of the Russian people with Napoleon, the victory of the Russian people was due not only to the patriotism of the Russian people, but also to their deep faith in God's help to a just cause; just as then both the Russian army and the entire Russian people were overshadowed by the cover of the Chosen Voivode, the Mother of God, and the blessing of the saints of God was accompanied, so now we believe: all the heavenly army is with us. Not for any of our merits before God, we are worthy of this heavenly help, but for those exploits, for the suffering that every Russian patriot bears in his heart for his beloved motherland.

We believe that even now the great intercessor for the Russian land, Sergius, extends his help and his blessing to the Russian soldiers. And this faith gives us all new inexhaustible strength for a stubborn and tireless struggle. And no matter what horrors befall us in this struggle, we will be unshakable in our faith in the final victory of truth over lies and evil, in the final victory over the enemy. We see an example of this faith in the final triumph of truth, not in words, but in deeds, in the unprecedented deeds of our valiant defenders-fighters who fight and die for our homeland. They seem to be telling us all: we were given a great deed, we courageously took it upon ourselves and preserved our loyalty to the motherland to the end. Among all the trials, among all the horrors of war, which have not been since the time that the world stands, we did not flinch in our souls. We stood up for the honor and happiness of our native land and fearlessly gave our lives for it. And, dying, we give you a covenant to love your homeland more than life, and, when someone's turn comes, to stand up for it to the end and defend it.

Patriots of Russia

PETER THE GREAT

Biography

The great Russian reformer was born on May 30 (June 9), 1672. Like all Russian tsars, the descendant of Alexei Mikhailovich and N.K. Naryshkina was educated at home. The boy showed early enough ability to study, from childhood he learned languages ​​- first German, and then French, English and Dutch. From the palace masters he mastered a lot of crafts - blacksmithing, soldering, weapons, printing. Many historians mention the importance of "fun" in the formation of the personality of the future First Russian Emperor. In 1688, Peter went to Lake Pereyaslavl, where he learned to build ships from the Dutchman F. Timmerman and R. Kartsev, a Russian master. Peter does not stop there and takes a trip to Amsterdam, where he works as a carpenter for six months, continuing to study shipbuilding. During his first trip abroad, which lasted only a year, the future emperor managed not only to "carpentry". In Koenigsberg, he mastered the full course of artillery sciences, and in England he completed a theoretical course in shipbuilding. In 1689, having received the news that Sophia was preparing a coup, Peter was ahead of the princess, removed her from power and occupied the Russian throne. During his reign, he proved to be an outstanding statesman. Peter's reforms were not limited to "cutting a window to Europe." They affected all spheres of life of citizens: new manufactories and factories were opened, new deposits were developed, new bureaucracy was created. One of the most important deeds of his life was the strengthening of the military power of Russia, because the tsar, who had recently ascended the throne, had to end the war with Turkey, which began back in 1686. But the victory did not bring Russia the desired access to the seas. It was only possible to obtain it after a long war with Sweden (1700-1721). Peter also made a significant contribution to culture. In particular, he eliminated the monopoly of the clergy on education. He supported the creation of schools and the publication of textbooks (then primers), he also became the first editor and journalist of the Vedomosti newspaper. By order of Peter, expeditions were carried out to the Far East, Siberia and Central Asia. Peter I encouraged the construction of buildings and architectural ensembles. He contributed to the development of the activities of scientists and researchers. Approved the planning and construction of cities and fortresses. All his thoughts were aimed at strengthening the state. He died on January 28, 1725 in St. Petersburg. Buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress.

PAVEL TRETYAKOV

Biography

All dictionaries and encyclopedias agree to write next to the name of P. M. Tretyakov: “Russian entrepreneur, patron of the arts, collector of works of Russian fine art, founder of the Tretyakov Gallery.” But everyone forgets that it was Tretyakov who first came up with the idea to collect a collection of Russian paintings that would represent the Russian school as fully as possible. The future founder of the Tretyakov Gallery was born on December 15 (27), 1832 in Moscow, into a merchant family. Parents gave the boy an excellent home education. Pavel Tretyakov shone the continuation of his father's activities, which he did with his brother Sergei. Developing a family business, they took up the construction of paper mills. This provided jobs for several thousand people. From his youth, P. Tretyakov, in his words, "selflessly loved art." Anyway, in 1853 he buys the first paintings. A year later, he acquires nine works by Dutch masters, which he has in his room. There they hung until the death of the patron. But Tretyakov was and remained a deep patriot. Therefore, he decides to collect a collection of modern Russian painting. And in 1856 he buys "Temptation" by N. G. Schilder and "Finland Smugglers" by V. G. Khudyakov. Next - a new acquisition, or rather, acquisitions. Works by K. Bryullov, I. P. Trutnev, F. A. Bruni, A. K. Savrasov, K. A. Trutovsky, L. F. Lagorio ... At his request, painters create portraits of prominent figures of Russian culture - P.I. Tchaikovsky, L. N., Tolstoy, I. S. Turgenev and many others. In 1874, Tretyakov Street provided an extensive space for his collection. And in 1792, he transferred a thoroughly overgrown collection of works (by that time it included 1276 paintings, 470 drawings and a large number of icons) to the city. True, when his best friend, V.V. Stasov, writes an enthusiastic article about him, Tretyakov prefers to simply run away from Moscow. Endless kindness and excellent business acumen coexisted in the character of the philanthropist. For a long time he could financially support artists - Vasiliev, Kramskoy, Perov, patronize a shelter for the deaf and dumb, organize a shelter for orphans and widows of artists. And he patiently bargained with the authors of the paintings, often not agreeing to a price that was too high, in his opinion. Sometimes it came to the refusal of the purchase. His favorite direction in painting was the movement of the Wanderers. Until now, no collection of the world has a more detailed collection of works by these artists. An outstanding philanthropist died in 1898 in Moscow. He was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery.

NIKOLAI VAVILOV

Biography

Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov - the great Soviet geneticist, plant breeder, geographer. He created the doctrine of the world centers of origin of cultivated plants, their geographical distribution, and also laid the foundations of modern breeding. The future great scientist was born in 1887 in Moscow in the family of a businessman. In 1911 he graduated from the Moscow Agricultural Institute, where he later worked at the Department of Private Farming. In 1917 he was elected professor at Saratov University. In 1921 he was appointed head of the Department of Applied Botany and Breeding (Petrograd), which 9 years later was reorganized into the All-Union Institute of Plant Growing. Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov led it until August 1940. In addition, in 1930 he was appointed director of the genetic laboratory, later transformed into the Institute of Genetics of the USSR Academy of Sciences. After research conducted in 1919-20 in the European part of the USSR, the scientist published a work entitled "Field cultures of the South-East." Beginning in 1920, for 20 years he led numerous botanical and agronomic expeditions. He studied the plant resources of Greece, Italy, Portugal, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Afghanistan ... In particular, during the expeditions, he found that the birthplace of durum wheat was Ethiopia. He discovered new types of wild and cultivated potatoes, which later became the basis for selection. Thanks to his scientific research, experimental geographical sowings of cultivated plants were made in different regions of the USSR, they were given an evolutionary and selection evaluation. Under the leadership of Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov, a world collection of cultivated plants was created. It has more than 300 thousand samples, many of them became the basis for breeding work. The great scientist considered one of his main tasks to be the promotion of agriculture in the undeveloped regions of the North, in semi-deserts and on lifeless highlands. In 1919, Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov substantiated the doctrine of plant immunity to infections and immune varieties. In 1920, a geneticist and plant breeder discovered the law of homological series, which states that similar hereditary changes occur in closely related plant species and genera. The great scientist also owns a number of other discoveries; on his initiative, new research institutions were organized, he created a school of plant growers, geneticists and breeders. Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov was awarded high Soviet awards, he was an honorary member of many foreign academies. The great scientist died in 1943.

YURI GAGARIN

Biography

Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin was born on March 9, 1934 in the village of Klushino, not far from the city of Gzhatsk (later renamed Gagarin). On May 24, 1945, the Gagarin family moved to Gzhatsk. After 4 years, Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin entered the Lyubertsy vocational school No. 10 and, at the same time, entered the evening school for working youth. In May 1951, the future cosmonaut graduated from the school with honors, having received the specialty of a moulder-caster, and in August he entered the Saratov Industrial College. On October 25 of the same year, he first came to the Saratov flying club. 4 years later, Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin graduated with honors and made his first flight as a pilot on a Yak-18 aircraft. In 1957, the future cosmonaut graduated from the 1st military aviation school for pilots named after K. E. Voroshilov in Orenburg. On March 3, 1960, by order of the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force, he was enlisted in the group of cosmonaut candidates and a few days later began training. The launch of the Vostok spacecraft with the world's first cosmonaut on board was made from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 09:07 Moscow time on April 12, 1961. Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin completed one revolution around the planet and completed the flight a second earlier than planned (at 10:55:34). On Earth, a grandiose meeting was arranged for the hero of space. On Red Square, he was awarded the Gold Star of the "Hero of the Soviet Union" and was awarded the title of "Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR." In subsequent years, the hero made several foreign visits. A long break in flight practice followed (Yuri Mikhailovich Gagarin, in addition to social activities, studied at the academy). The first flight after a long interval on the MiG-17 was made by him at the end of 1967, shortly after that he received a referral for the restoration of qualifications. The circumstances of the death of the world's first cosmonaut have not yet been fully clarified. The UTI MiG-15 aircraft with Yuri Gagarin on board crashed on March 27, 1968 near the village of Novoselovo, Vladimir Region. Neither the astronaut's body nor traces of his blood have yet been discovered.

GEORGY ZHUKOV

Biography

Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov - Marshal of the Soviet Union, who made an invaluable contribution to the victory of the USSR over Nazi Germany. He was born on December 2, 1896 in the village of Strelkovka in the Moscow region, into a peasant family. The future military leader graduated from three classes of the parochial school, after which he was sent by his father to Moscow. There the boy was apprenticed to a furrier. During the First World War, Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov was awarded two St. George's Crosses. In 1918 he joined the Red Army, and a year later became a member of the Bolshevik Party, participated in the battles against Wrangel and Kolchak. At the end of the Civil War, the future commander remained in military service. In 1939 he commanded the Soviet troops in the battle on the Khalkhin-Gol River, was awarded the star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. Later he was awarded this high award three more times (in 1944, 1945, 1956). In January 1941, Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov headed the General Staff of the Red Army. After the start of the Great Patriotic War, he commanded the troops of the Reserve, Leningrad and Western fronts. In August 1942, he assumed the powers of First Deputy People's Commissar of Defense and Deputy Supreme Commander-in-Chief. In the last years of the Great Patriotic War, Zhukov commanded the troops of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Belorussian fronts in the Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations. On May 8, 1945, Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov accepted the surrender of Nazi Germany. From 1945 to 1946, Zhukov served as commander-in-chief of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany and commander-in-chief of the Ground Forces. But after the Potsdam Conference, he was sent by Stalin to the Odessa, and then the Urals military district, which was actually a link. In 1955, after the death of Stalin, Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov became the Minister of Defense of the USSR, but in 1957 he was dismissed by Khrushchev who came to power. Obviously, the new ruler was afraid of the popularity and enormous authority of the commander. In the last years of his life, the former military leader creates his memoirs ("Memories and Reflections"). Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov died in Moscow on June 18, 1974.

ZOYA KOSMODEMYANSKAYA

Biography

She died as soon as she reached adulthood. At the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War and life. A young schoolgirl from one of the Moscow schools, the partisan Zoya, was executed by the German invaders in December 1941: she was hanged with a sign on her chest with the inscription "Pyro". February 16, 1942 Zoya Anatolyevna Kosmodemyanskaya was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. This fragile girl remains a symbol of female heroism to this day. After school, a 10th grade student and Komsomol group organizer Zoya dreamed of entering the Literary Institute, inspired by her acquaintance with the children's writer Arkady Gaidar. However, the impending war prevented her plans from coming true. In the autumn, when the enemy approached Moscow, all the Komsomol volunteers who remained to defend the capital gathered in the Coliseum cinema (now the Sovremennik theater building). From there they were sent to the Central Committee of the Komsomol, where Kosmodemyanskaya was assigned to the reconnaissance and sabotage military unit No. 9903 of the headquarters of the Western Front under the command of P. S. Provorov. Three days of training and, after the order of I.V. Stalin "to smoke out all the Germans from warm shelters and premises", the group received the task to burn 10 settlements near Moscow occupied by the Nazis within a week. Zoya was given 3 Molotov cocktails, a revolver, dry rations and a bottle of vodka. On November 27, in the village of Petrishchevo, after setting fire to three houses, Zoya was captured by the Germans while trying to set fire to the barn of the traitor Sviridov. During interrogation, she called herself Tanya, and even under incredibly brutal torture, she did not reveal the location of her comrades. The next morning, at 10:30 sharp, she was taken to her execution. Zoya “walked straight up to the gallows, with her head held high, proudly and silently…”. When a noose was thrown over her head, she shouted in an unwavering voice: “Comrades, victory will be ours! German soldiers, before it’s too late, surrender… No matter how many of us you hang, you don’t outweigh everyone, we are 170 million.” She wanted to say something else, but at that moment the box was removed from under her feet ... Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya was reburied at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.

MIKHAIL KUTUZOV

Biography

The famous Russian commander M. I. Kutuzov is probably known to everyone. And for some reason, no one knows the exact date of his birth. According to some sources, this is 1745, it is also carved on the grave of the commander. According to others - 1947. So, in 1745 or in 1747, a lieutenant general and senator Illarion Matveevich Golenishchev-Kutuzov and his wife had a son, who was named Mikhail. At first, the parents preferred to train the boy at home, and in 1759 they were sent to the Noble Artillery and Engineering School. Six months later, he receives the rank of Conductor 1st class and is sworn in. He is even given a salary and entrusted with the training of officers. Then follow the ranks of ensign engineer, adjutant wing, captain. In 1762, he was appointed company commander of the Astrakhan Infantry Regiment, commanded by none other than Suvorov. The character of the commander was finally formed during the Russian-Turkish wars, where he distinguished himself in battles, for which he was promoted to prime minister. And for success in the battle of Popesty, he earned the rank of lieutenant colonel. In 1774, during a battle near Shuma, Kutuzov was seriously wounded. The bullet pierced the temple and exited at the right eye, which ceased to see forever. The Empress awarded the battalion commander with the Order of George 4th class and sent him abroad for treatment. Instead, the stubborn Kutuzov chose to improve his military education. In 1776 he returned to Russia and soon received the rank of colonel. In 1784 Kutuzov put down an uprising in the Crimea and became a major general. And three years later, the second war with Turkey (1787) begins. The general distinguished himself in the capture of Izmail, for which he earned the praise of Suvorov himself: "Kutuzov was my right hand." Kutuzov Ishmael got it. He was appointed commandant of this fortress, promoted to lieutenant general and awarded George of the 3rd degree. He managed to take part in the Russian-Polish war, become Russia's Ambassador Extraordinary to Turkey, was appointed to the post of commander-in-chief of all troops in Finland and the director of the Land Cadet Corps. Kutuzov's career was generally extremely successful, until in 1802 he fell into disgrace with Alexander I. He was removed from the post of St. Petersburg governor and went to live on his estate. Perhaps there he would have lived out his life, if the war with Napoleon had not broken out. The march maneuver from Braunau to Olmutz remained in military history as a brilliant example of a strategic move. And yet, Russia was defeated at Austerlitz, despite the fact that Kutuzov persuaded the tsar not to get involved in the battle. In 1811, the commander manages to make peace with the Turkish sultan, whom Napoleon had hoped so much for. It makes no sense to describe the Battle of Borodino, the surrender of Moscow, the famous Tarutino maneuver and the subsequent defeat of Napoleon in Russia. On April 16 (28), 1813, M. I. Kutuzov died. From Bunzlau, his body was sent to St. Petersburg and buried in the Kazan Cathedral.

MIKHAIL LOMONOSOV

Biography

Lomonosov was everything for Russia - a naturalist, historian, chemist, physicist, writer, artist, an ardent champion of education. We still use his technology for producing colored glass or "night-sight tube" (the prototype of modern night vision). And the future pride of the state was born on November 8 (19), 1711 in the village of Denisovka, Kurostrovskaya volost (now the village of Lomonosovo). His father was a Pomor peasant Vasily Dorofeevich Lomonosov. In 1730, the son leaves his father and goes to Moscow, where he successfully pretends to be the son of a nobleman and enters the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy. Then, among the best students, he goes to the Academic University of St. Petersburg, from there to the Magsburg University of Germany, where he studies physics and chemistry under the guidance of H. Wolf. His next teacher was the chemist and metallurgist I. Genkel. Returning to Russia, the young scientist first becomes an adjunct of the Academy of Sciences, and then a professor. The scope of Lomonosov's achievements, due to the versatility of his personality and extraordinary talent, is extremely wide. Among his merits is the foundation of an open university of the European type (modern Lomonosov Moscow State University). The creator of "Ancient history from the beginning of the Russian people to the death of Grand Duke Yaroslav the First, or until 1054", the author of numerous odes, poems, tragedies, Lomonosov was also a public and political figure. This is evidenced by the treatise "On the Preservation and Reproduction of the Russian People" (1761). He also owns the proposal of new methods for determining the longitude and latitude of a place in "Discourses on the great accuracy of the sea route" (1759). Lomonosov, on the other hand, developed the idea that not everything on Earth is of divine origin. And he successfully proved this in the "Word about the birth of metals from the shaking of the Earth" (1757). The scientist also carried out large-scale physical and chemical work, intending to write a large "corpuscular philosophy", where he wanted to combine physics and chemistry on the basis of molecular-atomic concepts. Unfortunately, he was unable to carry out this plan. Lomonosov drew up an extensive program for the study of chemical solutions, devoted much time to studying the nature of atmospheric electricity, and designed a reflecting (or mirror) telescope. He also became the author of the manual "The First Foundations of Metallurgy or Mining", completed the reform of the syllabic-tonic system of versification, begun by V.K. Trediakovsky. M. V. Lomonosov died from a trifling spring cold on April 4 (15), 1765 in St. Petersburg. He was buried at the Lazarevsky cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.

DMITRY MENDELEEV

Biography

Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev is a brilliant Russian chemist, he owns the discovery of a system of chemical elements, which has become the cornerstone of the development of this science. The future great scientist was born in 1834 in Tobolsk, in the family of the director of the gymnasium. In 1855 he graduated with a gold medal from the course of the Department of Natural Sciences of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of the Main Pedagogical Institute in St. Petersburg. A year later, at St. Petersburg University, the great chemist defended his master's thesis, and since 1857, having become an assistant professor, he taught a course in organic chemistry there. In 1859, Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev went on a scientific trip to Heidelberg, where he spent almost 2 years. In 1861, he published the textbook Organic Chemistry, which was awarded the Demidov Prize by the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. After 4 years, the scientist defended his doctoral dissertation "On the combination of alcohol with water", in 1876 he was elected a corresponding member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. From 1890 to 1895 he was a consultant at the Scientific and Technical Laboratory of the Naval Ministry, during this period he invented a new type of smokeless powder, and set up its production. In 1892, Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev was appointed scientific curator of the Depot of Exemplary Weights and Scales. Thanks to the great chemist, it was transformed into the Main Chamber of Weights and Measures, the director of which the scientist remained until the end of his life. Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev is the author of fundamental works in chemistry, chemical technology, physics, metrology, aeronautics, meteorology, agriculture ... His discovery of the famous periodic law dates back to February 17 (March 1), 1869, when the scientist compiled a table entitled “Experience of a system of elements, based on their atomic weight and chemical similarity." This system has been recognized as one of the fundamental laws of chemistry. In 1887, a scientist without a pilot made a balloon ride to observe a solar eclipse and study the upper atmosphere. He was the initiator of the construction of oil pipelines and the versatile use of oil as a chemical raw material. His scientific and social activities are incredibly wide and multifaceted. Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev was awarded over 130 diplomas and honorary titles from Russian and foreign academies, learned societies and educational institutions. The chemical element 101 discovered in 1955, mendelevium, is named after him. The great scientist died in 1907 in St. Petersburg.

IVAN PAVLOV

Biography

The famous physiologist Ivan Petrovich Pavlov was born in 1849 in the family of a priest in the Ryazan province. He graduated from the course of sciences at the medical-surgical academy. He was appointed Privatdozent of Physiology, and later (in 1890) - an extraordinary professor at Tomsk University, at the Department of Pharmacology. In the same year, he was transferred to the Imperial Military Medical Academy, and seven years later became its ordinary professor. Ivan Petrovich Pavlov proved through experiments that the work of the heart is controlled, in particular, by a special amplifying nerve. The scientist also experimentally established the value of the liver as a purifier of the body from harmful products. The physiologist also managed to shed light on the regulation of juice secretion by the glands of the gastrointestinal tract. So, he found out that the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal canal has a specific excitability: it seems to recognize what kind of food product it is given (bread, water, vegetables, meat ...) and produces juice of the required composition. The amount of juice can vary, as can the acid or enzyme content. Some foods cause increased activity of the pancreas, others - the liver, and so on. At the same time, Ivan Petrovich Pavlov discovered the significance of the vagus and sympathetic nerve for the secretion of gastric and pancreatic juice. The most famous works of the physiologist: "The amplifying nerve of the heart" (published in the "Weekly Clinical Gazette" in 1888); "Ekkovsky fistula of the veins of the inferior vena cava and portal and its consequences for the body" ("Archive of Biological Sciences of the Imperial Institute of Experimental Medicine", 1892); "Lectures on the work of the main digestive glands" (1897); "Centrifugal nerves of the heart" (St. Petersburg, 1883).

NIKOLAY PIROGOV

Biography

The great surgeon Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov was born on November 25, 1810 in Moscow, into the family of a small estate nobleman. One of the friends of his family, the famous doctor and professor at Moscow University Mukhin, noticed an outstanding medical talent in the boy and began to educate the child. At the age of 14, Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov entered the medical faculty at Moscow University. The student scholarship was not enough for life: the teenager had to earn extra money in the anatomical theater. The latter predetermined the choice of profession: the student decided to become a surgeon. After graduating from the university, Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov was preparing for a professorship in Tartu, at Yuryev University. There he worked in a clinic, defended his doctoral dissertation, and became a professor of surgery. As a dissertation topic, the scientist chose ligation of the abdominal aorta: at that time it was performed only once - by the English surgeon Cooper. In 1833, Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov went to Germany and worked in the Berlin and Göttingen clinics to improve his professionalism. Returning to Russia, he publishes the famous work "Surgical Anatomy of the Arterial Trunks and Fascia". In 1841, the physician moved to St. Petersburg and began working at the Medical and Surgical Academy. Here he spent more than ten years, created the first Russian surgical clinic. Soon another famous work by Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov, "A Complete Course in the Anatomy of the Human Body," saw the light of day. Taking part in military operations in the Caucasus, the great surgeon operated on the wounded under ether anesthesia - this happened for the first time in the history of medicine. During the Crimean War, he was the first in the world to use a plaster cast to treat fractures. It was also thanks to his initiative that sisters of mercy appeared in the army: the beginning of military field medicine was laid. Upon returning to St. Petersburg, Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov was appointed trustee of the Odessa and Kyiv educational districts, but in 1861 he retired. In his estate "Cherry", near Vinnitsa, the scientist organized a free hospital. During this period, he made another discovery - a new way of embalming bodies. Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov died in 1881, after a serious illness. The embalmed body of the great surgeon is stored in the crypt of the church in the village of Cherry.

MSTISLAV ROSTROPOVICH

Biography

The great conductor and cellist Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich was born on March 27, 1927 in Baku. From 1932 to 1937 he studied in Moscow at the Gnessin Music School. At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, his family was evacuated to the city of Chkalov (Orenburg). At the age of 16, the future great musician entered the Moscow Conservatory, and in 1945 he won a gold medal at the Third All-Union Competition of Performing Musicians, conquering everyone with the skill of a cellist. Soon Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich became famous abroad. His repertoire included almost all works of cello music that existed during his lifetime. About 60 composers dedicated their works to him, including Aram Khachaturian, Alfred Schnittke, Henri Dutilleux. Since 1969, the great musician supported the "disgraced" writer and human rights activist Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn. This entailed the cancellation of concerts and tours, the halt of recordings. Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich and his family were even deprived of Soviet citizenship, which was returned to them only in 1990. The great musician spent many years abroad, receiving great recognition there. For 17 seasons in Washington, he was the artistic director and conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra, making it one of the best in the United States. Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich performed regularly at the Berlin and London Philharmonics. A documentary film "Return to Russia" was made about his trip to Moscow with the National Symphony Orchestra in 1990. Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich has received state awards from 29 countries and is a five-time Grammy Award winner. The musician was known for his charitable work. Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich died on April 27, 2007 after a severe and prolonged illness.

ANDREY SAKHAROV

Biography

The great scientist and human rights activist Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov was born on May 21, 1921 in Moscow. In 1942 he graduated from the Faculty of Physics of Moscow State University with honors. Immediately after that, according to the distribution, he was sent to the cartridge factory in Ulyanovsk. There, Dmitry Andreevich Sakharov made an invention for the control of armor-piercing cores. In the next two years, he wrote several scientific papers and sent them to the Physical Institute. Lebedev. In 1945 he entered the graduate school of the Institute, and after 2 years he defended his PhD thesis. In 1948, Dmitry Andreevich Sakharov was enrolled in a special group and worked for twenty years in the development of thermonuclear weapons. At the same time, he also carried out pioneering work on a controlled thermonuclear reaction. Since the late 1950s, he has been actively advocating an end to nuclear weapons testing. In 1953, Dmitry Andreevich Sakharov received a doctorate in physical and mathematical sciences. In the late 1960s, he became one of the leaders of the human rights movement in the USSR, and in 1970, one of the three founding members of the Human Rights Committee. In 1974, the scientist and human rights activist held a press conference at which he announced the Day of Political Prisoners in the USSR. A year later, he wrote the book "On the Country and the World", in the same year Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Having made a number of statements against the introduction of Soviet troops into Afghanistan, he was deprived of all government awards and sent to the city of Gorky, where he spent almost 17 years. The articles "What the US and the USSR Should Do to Keep the Peace" and "On the Danger of Thermonuclear War" were written there. At the end of 1988, the scientist and human rights activist made his first trip abroad and met with the heads of the United States and a number of European states. In 1989 he became a people's deputy of the USSR. Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov died on December 14, 1989 from a heart attack.

ALEXANDER SOLZHENITSYN

Biography

The great human rights activist and writer Alexander Isaevich (Isaakovich) Solzhenitsyn was born on December 11, 1918 in Kislovodsk. In 1924, his family moved to Rostov-on-Don, where the future great writer studied at school from 1926 to 1936. Then he entered the Rostov State University at the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics, graduated in 1941 with honors. In 1939 he entered the correspondence department of the Faculty of Literature of the Institute of Philosophy, Literature and History in Moscow, interrupting his studies in 1941 due to the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War. October 18, 1941 was called to the front. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War and the Red Star, in June 1944 he received the rank of captain. In February 1945, Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn was arrested for criticizing the Stalinist regime and sentenced to 8 years in labor camps. After his release, he was sent into exile in southern Kazakhstan. The novel "In the First Circle" was written there. In June 1956, the writer was released, on February 6, 1957 he was rehabilitated. In 1959, Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn wrote the story "Sch-854", later under the title "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich", the work was published in the journal "New World", and soon the author was admitted to the Writers' Union of the USSR. In 1968, when the novels "In the First Circle" and "Cancer Ward" were published in the USA and Western Europe, the Soviet press launched a propaganda campaign against the author, and he was soon expelled from the Writers' Union of the USSR. In 1970 Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. At the end of December 1973, the first volume of The Gulag Archipelago was published abroad. On February 13, 1974, the author was deprived of Soviet citizenship and expelled from the USSR. In 1990 he was restored to Soviet citizenship, for the book "The Gulag Archipelago" he was awarded the State Prize. He returned to his homeland in 1994. In 1998 he was awarded the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called, but refused the award. One of the last large-scale works of the writer was the epic "Red Wheel". Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn died on August 3, 2008 from acute heart failure.

PETER STOLYPIN

Biography

The famous Russian reformer was born on April 14, 1862 in Dresden, into an old noble family. The future Minister of the Interior spent his childhood and youth in Lithuania, sometimes going to Switzerland for the summer. When the time came to study, he was sent to the Vilna Gymnasium, then to the Oryol Gymnasium, and in 1881 he entered the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of St. Petersburg University. During his studies, Pyotr Stolypin managed to get married. The father-in-law of the future reformer was B. A. Neidgardt, who is credited with significant influence on the future fate of his son-in-law. In 1884, even before graduating from university, Stolypin was enlisted in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. True, after some time he took a six-month vacation, apparently to write a diploma. After the vacation, a request was made to transfer to the Ministry of State Property. In 1888, he again transferred to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, where he received the appointment of the Kovno district marshal of the nobility. A year later, he became the Kovno provincial marshal of the nobility. Three years later - a new appointment: the governor of Grodno. And after 10 months - the governor of the Saratov province. The Saratov province, which was previously ruled, to put it mildly, carelessly, with the arrival of Pyotr Arkadyevich Stolypin began to raise its head. The Mariinsky Women's Gymnasium and a nightshop were founded, the modernization of the telephone network and asphalting of the streets began. In addition, the new governor reorganized the management system and actively took up agriculture. And in May 1904, riots broke out in the Saratov province. True, thanks to the determination of the new governor, they quickly choked. Then - a prison riot in Tsaritsyno. After Bloody Sunday, rallies and strikes began in Saratov. Stolypin did not particularly stand on ceremony with the rebels, but he still could not cope alone, and first Adjutant General V. V. Sakharov came to his aid, and later Adjutant General K. K. Maksimovich. Shortly thereafter, an uprising breaks out in the neighboring province of Samara, and Stolypin sends troops there without hesitation. After the resignation of the Witte government, the Saratov governor was appointed Minister of the Interior. A little later, he becomes prime minister. But all the reformer's attempts to "refresh" the Cabinet of Ministers in any way lead to nothing. In 1906, revolutionaries raided Stolypin's dacha. Not to say that this greatly crippled the minister. But by order of Nicholas II, Peter Arkadievich is settled in the Winter Palace, which is carefully guarded. That moment Stolypin becomes much less liberal. To control the observance of order, he travels to the field, compares the reports of the governors with personal observations. But by doing this, he made himself many enemies among the bureaucratic elite, which he often subjected to checks and revisions. And soon there is a turning point in relations with Nicholas II, after which Stolypin submits his resignation. The resignation of the king does not accept. In 1911, the great reformer was mortally wounded by an agent of the security department, Dmitry Mardechai Bogrov. Stolypin died on September 5 (18) in Makovsky's private clinic. Buried in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.

VALENTINA TERESHKOVA

Biography

The future first female cosmonaut of the Earth was born on the eve of International Women's Day in the village of Bolshoye Maslennikovo, Yaroslavl Region. The young lady loved the heights, so she enrolled in parachute school. In 1961, having seen on TV a story about the first manned flight into space and the radiant smile of Yuri Gagarin from the screen, parachuting instructor Valya wrote an application to the cosmonaut corps the very next day. The detachment was secret, so relatives had to say that she was leaving for the annual paratrooper competition. Her parents learn about her flight only by radio. In the meantime, there are endless workouts before him, which the super-soft will call "difficult." The name of the centrifuge alone instilled fear in the five girls of the detachment from the entire Soviet Union, headed by Tereshkova. She endured seven days in a confined space, entertaining herself with songs. In June 1963, at five minutes to five, the folk heroine climbed aboard the Vostok-6 and with the words “Hey! Heaven, take off your hat!” set off towards the stars. So, reclining in it for three days, without eating and alternately losing consciousness, the first female cosmonaut with the call sign “Seagull” periodically cried out: “Oh, moms,” but found the strength to smile at the camera. Overnight, Valentina Tereshkova became a role model for all Soviet women, not only with her hair, but also with her determination and strong character. Three months after the flight, she married an astronaut. N.S. himself attended her wedding. Khrushchev. In 1997, Major General and Honored Master of Dispute of the USSR Valentina Tereshkova resigned and is now a member of the Regional Duma of the Yaroslavl Region from the United Russia party. Awarded with the Order of Merit for the Fatherland II and III degree. An interesting fact: the landing of Vostok-6 turned out to be so difficult that Valentina was immediately taken away by ambulance to a local hospital. After the rehabilitation from the “tops”, they requested material on the filming of a report for television, where Tereshkova, allegedly just returned, steps on the ground in a spacesuit and waves at the camera.

VLADIMIR GILYAROVSKY

Biography

Repeater, barge hauler, hooker, worker, fireman, herdsman, circus rider, military man or actor? The first Russian reporter!
No one in Vologda could even imagine that the lazy first-grader Vladimir, having remained in his second year in his first academic year, would in the future become the most honored resident of Moscow and the most famous journalist in Russia. For the first time, Gilyarovsky's poetic and writing talent manifested itself in the gymnasium, where he wrote "dirty things about mentors." After failing the next exam, a young high school student without documents and money runs away from home to Yaroslavl, where he gets a job as a barge hauler and hooker. Then in Tsaritsyn he contracted as a herdsman, in Rostov he was hired as a rider in a circus, after he entered the actors and toured with the theater in Russia. In 1877 he left to serve in the Caucasus. A life rich in impressions did not pass without a trace: Gilyarovsky wrote, made sketches, composed poems and sent it by letter to his father. In 1881, the satirical magazine "Alarm Clock" published a series of poems, after which the newly minted poet abandoned everything and began to write. Moscow life flowed like a stormy river from Gilyarovsky’s ink: essays, reports, exhibition openings, theatrical premieres, a description of the terrible tragedy on the Khodynka field ... He was published in Russkaya Gazeta, Russkiye Vedomosti, Sovremennye Izvestiya and other publications: “ ... For fourteen days I sent information by courier and by telegraph about every step of the work ... and all this was printed in Listok, which was the first to publish my big telegram about the catastrophe and which was selling like hot cakes at that time. All other papers were late." (From an essay on the railway accident near the village of Kukuevka). All of Moscow knew or heard about "Uncle Gilyai", and he was friends with Chekhov, Andreev, Kuprin and many others. His first book, Moscow and Muscovites, was published in 1926. Following are "My Wanderings" and "Slum People", which was banned by censorship. All copies were burned, but essays, stories and articles were published in different editions before the book was published. After the 1917 revolution, Vladimir Gilyarovsky worked for Izvestia, Evening Moscow, and Ogonyok. By old age, his eyesight began to deteriorate, but, almost completely blind, Gilyarovsky continues to write and write ... The best Moscow reporter of the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. died two months before his 80th birthday.

VICTOR TALALIKHIN

Biography

A young man of 15 years old named Victor, who was dreaming about the sky, once knocked at the door of the factory apprenticeship school of the Moscow Meat Processing Plant. The fate of two older brothers who served in the army in aviation did not leave him indifferent, and after 2 years he enrolled in a glider circle that opened at the plant. The first flight of the future war hero was so successful that the next time Victor, by all means, decided to fly even higher: “I want to fly the way Chkalov, Baidukov and Belyakov fly.” Having received the basics of flight, Victor goes to the flying club of the Proletarsky district of Moscow. They did not want to take him because of his small stature - 155 cm - although his health was excellent. But the desire and stubbornness of the future pilot overcame all the established canons. In 1937, Talalikhin entered the Borisoglebsk Red Banner Military Aviation School. Chkalov. Here, in one of the master classes in aerobatics, a young pilot performed several loops at a dangerously low altitude. After the flight, the garrison guardhouse was waiting for him for two days. At the beginning of 1941, junior lieutenant Talalikhin, upon completion of the course, was appointed commander of the 1st squadron of the 177th Fighter Aviation Regiment. In July, Viktor Talalikhin, after special training at the Dubrovitsy airfield near Podolsk, made his first combat flight over Moscow. On the night of August 6-7 on I-16, Junior Lieutenant Talalikhin made his immortal ram. Above Podolsk, at an altitude of 4.5 km, he discovered an enemy He-111 (Heikel). Having fallen under the bombardment, the enemy changed the flight course and began to evade pursuit. However, Talalikhin did not lag behind and continued to attack the enemy, pouring machine-gun fire on him. But the cartridges quickly ran out, and the He-111 was still in flight. Then it was time for the ram. Approaching the enemy closely, Talalikhin decided to cut off the enemy tail with a screw and at the same second came under fire: “I burned my right hand. He immediately gave gas and, no longer with a screw, but with his whole machine, rammed the enemy. Then our hero, having unfastened his belt, left the plane and successfully landed with a parachute. The news spread all over the country in one day and, on August 8, 1941, for the first night ramming of an enemy bomber in the history of aviation, the pilot was awarded the Order of Lenin. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the brave pilot was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. For a short period of participation in the Second World War, Junior Lieutenant Viktor Talalikhin flew more than 60 sorties, shot down 7 enemy aircraft. On October 27, 1941, our troops, led by Talalikhin, flew to battle in the Kamenka region, which is 85 km from Moscow. Having shot down one enemy Me (Messerschmitt), Talalikhin rushed after the next. “He didn’t leave, the scoundrel, flew off over our land,” Victor’s words sounded in the radio transmitter. Those were his last words. Three more fascist planes "surfaced" from the cloud and opened fire. One of the bullets hit our pilot in the head... Viktor Talalikhin was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow. A monument to the Hero of the Soviet Union was erected in Podolsk. On September 18, 2008, the famous Hero of the Soviet Union and the author of Talalikhin's ram would have turned 90 years old.

MAYA PLISETSKAYA

Biography

Her debut took place on the stage of the Moscow Operetta Theater on June 21, 1941. The next day she had to forget about ballet for a year. The war has begun. She was distinguished by her own, unique style of choreography, in which each step, each wave of the hand, each direction of gaze formed a special dance pattern in a single impulse. At the age of 20, she received the part of the Autumn Fairy in S. Prokofiev's ballet Cinderella, and the small role of a young dancer overshadowed the main ones, thanks to an outstanding jump and unusual graceful plasticity. Ballet in the 1950s and 60s was inseparably linked with the name of Plisetskaya and her roles in the ballets Don Quixote and Raymond. But Bejart's Bolero remains Maya Mikhailovna's favorite performance. Maurice Bejart himself once admitted: "If I had known Plisetskaya twenty years earlier, the ballet would have been different." She danced almost all the classical ballets, one after the other. All the main parts of the directors and directors trusted only Plisetskaya. However, her dream was to do something new. Bring your own. She became "Carmen". At first, critics and spectators of the Bolshoi Theater did not accept her. Or didn't understand. The authorities were in a panic. But Maya did not give up. Calming down the director and polishing every move over and over again, she achieved her goal, creating a new image with "an intensity of emotion and a flamboyance of form." "Swan Lake", "Isadora", "Sleeping Beauty" and other eminent works brought Maya Plisetskaya to the world ballet prima pedestal. In the 1970s, she took up choreography and staged Anna Karenina, The Seagull and The Lady with the Dog at the Bolshoi Theatre. Unable to find a suitable journalist who would write a book in her intonation, she sat down to write her memoirs herself. 1994 - the autobiography of the outstanding ballerina "I, Maya Plisetskaya" is published. The book becomes a bestseller and has been translated into 11 languages. To this day, Maya Mikhailovna does not change the stage and periodically performs concert programs abroad, and also teaches master classes in ballet dancing. “The main thing is to be an artist,” says Plisetskaya, “to hear music and know why you are on stage. Know your role and what you want to say.

1. On the "time tape", sign the centuries in Roman numerals, and write the years below them:

a) the beginning of the Patriotic War, during which the Russian army was headed by M. I. Kutuzov; (XIX century)

b) the start of World War I. (XX century)

2. The First World War was called by her contemporaries in Russia the Second Patriotic War. Explain (orally) why it was considered the Patriotic War, and also why it was the Second Patriotic War. Give examples of Russian patriotism in these wars.

The majority of Russians took part in World War I, thousands of able-bodied men were called up. Therefore, contemporaries considered it the Patriotic War. And the second, because the First Patriotic War was the war with Napoleon in 1812.

The exploits of Russians in World War 1 - Cossack Kozma Kryuchkov alone destroyed 11 Germans and received 11 wounds. He became the first Knight of St. George. and then received more awards - a full "St. George's bow" (4 G. of the cross).

Pyotr Nesterov died in an air battle with the Austrians - the author of the "dead loop"

Sailor Pyotr Semenishchev saved the ship from a mine, etc. - St. George's Crosses

13-year-old Vasily Pravdyuk for bravery and courage - St. George's crosses of all four degrees.

A. Brusilov organized the Brusilovsky breakthrough, causing enormous damage to the enemy (1.5 million killed, wounded and captured)

3. Who is depicted in the portrait? Write what you know about this person.

The portrait depicts Tsar Nicholas II. He came to the throne at the end of the 19th century. He wanted to rule according to the precepts of his ancestors. There were people who did not like that all power belongs to one person. And in 1917 the tsar abdicated.

The Soviet people waged a just, liberation war. Winning it meant defending socialism in the USSR and preserving the prospect of its development in world history. Precisely as a result of this, the entire 200 million people, led by the Bolshevik Party, rose up to fight against fascism in order to cast it into the dust.

Throughout their history, the peoples of Russia have repeatedly demonstrated high patriotic qualities in the fight against foreign invaders. However, history has not yet known such spiritual fortitude as the Soviet people and their army showed when defending their homeland during the Great Patriotic War. This was due to the birth of a new, socialist state.

The Soviet people fought for victory on the fronts of the war, in the rear of the country and behind enemy lines. And these were not spheres of struggle that were separated from each other, but a single whole. The Soviet people have earned the right to be called heroic. Every page of the glorious annals of the socialist state eloquently testifies to this: the Great October, which changed the entire course of world history; industrialization and collectivization, fanned by the revolutionary romance of creation; the civil war and, finally, the Great Patriotic War, which showed the world amazing examples of courage and steadfastness.

Heroic deeds have become a demonstration of the enormous spiritual power of the builders and defenders of socialism, evidence of a high degree of patriotism in solving political, social, economic and defense tasks.

First of all, it was characteristic that, brought up on the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, the Soviet people in the most dramatic days and months of fierce confrontation with the fascist invaders did not lose deep confidence in the final victory over the enemy. Their faith in the wisdom of the party's political line remained unshakable. Communist convictions, expressing a deep fusion of personal and social interests, allowed the fighting people to retain the ability and readiness to endure the most difficult trials of the war. “The results of the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union most convincingly showed that there are no forces in the world that could crush socialism, bring to their knees a people loyal to the ideas of Marxism-Leninism, devoted to the socialist Motherland, rallied around the Leninist party” (30) .

By the time of the attack on the USSR, the aggressor had such advantages as the militarization of the economy and the entire social life of Germany; lengthy preparations for aggression and the experience of military operations in the West; superiority in military equipment and the number of troops concentrated in advance in the border zones; the use by Germany of the material and human resources of almost all of Europe. The actions of fascist Germany were favored by the policy of the USA and England. The lack of experience among the Soviet troops in conducting large-scale operations in the conditions of a world war also had an effect.

The fascist army that treacherously attacked the Soviet Union was technically highly equipped and well drilled. In the entire history of mankind, a blow of such force has never yet fallen on any state. Intoxicated by easy victories in the west, the Nazi leadership believed that the Wehrmacht would march through the territory of the USSR just as easily as it did in Western Europe.

However, already from the first hours of the war on Soviet territory, the Nazis met with stubborn resistance, in which the slogan "Victory or death!", put forward by V.I. Lenin back in the 20s, expressed the idea of ​​an uncompromising and merciless struggle against the enemy. “Defend every inch of Soviet land, fight to the last drop of blood for our cities and villages!”, “Stand to the death!”, “Not a step back!” - this is how the nationwide tasks were formulated in the appeals of the Central Committee of the Party and the orders of the People's Commissar of Defense. These slogans on different fronts were transformed into a form that reflected the tasks of units and formations. For example, during the defense of Moscow, it swept across the country: "Russia is great, but there is nowhere to retreat - behind Moscow." During the defense of Stalingrad, there was a slogan "There is no land for us beyond the Volga."

The fate of not only the socialist Fatherland, but of the entire world civilization depended on the steadfastness of the personnel of the Soviet Armed Forces and of the entire people. Already on the first day of the war, the border guards of many outposts fought to the death, and the legendary defense of the Brest Fortress began. At critical moments, the pilots used ramming attacks on enemy aircraft. In total, more than 450 air rams were made during the war years. Hundreds and thousands of warriors “stepped into single combat with enemy tanks. The garrisons of many pillboxes and thousands of soldiers fought to the last bullet. The dead were replaced by new fighters. Even those who were injured hurried to take their place in the ranks and, after being cured, again went into battle.

History carefully preserves examples of the boundless stamina of the defenders of the Brest Fortress, the naval base of Liepaja, Tallinn, the Moonsund Islands and the Hanko Peninsula, Odessa and Sevastopol, Leningrad and Moscow. Stalingrad and Novorossiysk, the Arctic. The feat of 28 Panfilov soldiers at the Dubosekovo junction near Moscow, the 58-day defense of Pavlov's House in Stalingrad, and the 225-day battles for the bridgehead near Novorossiysk became a kind of symbol and the highest manifestation of the resilience of Soviet soldiers. L. I. Brezhnev, who was then the head of the political department of the 18th Airborne Army, recalls that for each defender of Malaya Zemlya there were 1,250 kilograms of enemy shells and bombs, not to mention machine-gun fire. “The earth burned, stones smoked, metal melted, concrete collapsed, but people, true to their oath, did not back away from this earth” (31).

Many hundreds of thousands of Soviet soldiers were awarded by the Motherland with medals "For the Defense of Leningrad", "For the Defense of Moscow", "For the Defense of Odessa", "For the Defense of Sevastopol", "For the Defense of Stalingrad", "For the Defense of Kyiv", "For the Defense of the Caucasus", "For the Defense of the Soviet Arctic". In heavy defensive battles, they defended the socialist Fatherland with their blood and their lives. In the most incredibly difficult conditions, Soviet soldiers believed: "Our cause is just - victory will be ours!"

The heroism of the Soviet war as the highest manifestation of moral, political and combat qualities was clearly manifested in offensive battles. Such qualities as purposefulness and perseverance, courage and bravery, steadfastness and courage greatly increased the offensive impulse of Soviet soldiers. These qualities became the norm for the behavior of soldiers and sailors, sergeants and foremen, officers, generals and admirals of the Soviet Armed Forces, who understood that you could not get victory over the enemy by defense alone: ​​it could be won only in a decisive offensive. How many advancing troops had to break through pre-equipped defensive lines fortified by the enemy; what rivers did not have to be crossed and what fortresses did not happen to storm - and all this for the sake of achieving victory.

Both on the defensive and on the offensive, many Soviet soldiers made self-sacrifice, which is the highest moral category. So, in August 1941, near Novgorod, political instructor A.K. Pankratov, in early December 1941, during the counteroffensive near Moscow, in the battle for the village of Ryabinki, sergeant V.V. Vasilkovsky, in February 1943, in the battle for the village Chernushki, under Velikiye Luki, Private A. M. Matrosov, accomplished an immortal feat: they closed the embrasures of enemy bunkers with their bodies, saving the lives of their comrades and ensuring the completion of a combat mission. Their majestic feat was repeated by more than 200 Soviet soldiers.

A high offensive impulse was shown by the soldiers of the Leningrad Front, when in January 1943, breaking the blockade ring, they crossed the Neva covered with ice and snow under enemy fire. Soviet tankers fought heroically near Prokhorovka in July 1943 - in the largest tank battle of the Second World War.

A feat of arms unprecedented in the history of wars was the massive forcing of the Dnieper in September 1943. In those days, the Pravda newspaper wrote: “The battle for the Dnieper assumed truly epic proportions. Never before have so many super-brave men stood out from the multitude of brave Soviet soldiers. The Red Army, which has already given the world so many examples of military courage, seems to surpass itself” (32). Tens and hundreds of thousands of soldiers took part in the crossing of the Dnieper - 2438 of them were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

The growing offensive impulse of the Soviet troops was clearly manifested in the quick and skillful organization of a whole series of large and small encirclements of the Nazi troops. The battles of 1944 were characterized by mass heroism, during which a significant part of the personnel and military equipment of the Nazis was destroyed, and the Soviet land was almost completely liberated from the invaders. This was the great contribution of the Soviet Armed Forces to achieving complete victory over the enemy.

From the first days of the Great Patriotic War, it was clear that every blow against the Nazi military machine inflicted on the Soviet-German front was of great importance not only for the USSR, but also was a significant help for all peoples fighting against fascism. In the spring of 1944, the Soviet Armed Forces began to directly liberate the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe from the yoke of the invaders. The still strong enemy fiercely resisted. But Soviet soldiers fought for the liberation of the European peoples just as boldly, resolutely, not sparing their blood and lives, as they did for the liberation of their Motherland. The whole world saw with its own eyes the nobility and greatness of the Soviet soldier, his readiness for self-sacrifice for the freedom of the peoples of other states. Millions of Soviet soldiers-liberators were awarded medals "For the capture of Budapest", "For the capture of Koenigsberg", "For the capture of Vienna", "For the capture of Berlin", "For the liberation of Belgrade", "For the liberation of Warsaw", "For the liberation of Prague", and also other awards; soldiers who distinguished themselves most outside the borders of the USSR were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

One of the indicators of the mass heroism of the personnel of the Armed Forces was the exploits of the Soviet Guards. The first guard formations in the battles near Yelnya in 1941 were the 100.127, 153 and 101 divisions. By the end of the war in Europe, guards ranks were awarded to 11 combined arms and 6 tank armies, 82 corps, 215 divisions, a large number of individual units, as well as many formations and ships of the Navy. The Soviet Guard became the personification of the high moral, political and combat qualities inherent in the army of a socialist state.

The exploits of the front-line soldiers received deep recognition from the Communist Party, the Soviet government, and the people. Many formations and units were given the honorary names of the cities they liberated. During the war years, Soviet regiments and divisions were awarded orders over 10,900 times, and 29 units and formations were awarded five or more orders. 5,300,000 servicemen were awarded orders and 7,580,000 medals were awarded. More than 11 thousand people were awarded the highest degree of military distinction - the knowledge of the Hero of the Soviet Union; it is noteworthy that among them are representatives of one hundred nations and nationalities of the USSR. In total, over 7 million Soviet soldiers were awarded orders and medals of the USSR during the war years.

As a symbol of deep love and grateful memory of the Motherland about the immortal feat of the soldiers who fell on the battlefields of the past war, the Eternal Flame burns on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the feet of the ancient Kremlin in Moscow, at the Piskarevsky memorial cemetery in Leningrad, Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, Malakhov Kurgan to Sevastopol , at the monument to the Unknown Sailor in Odessa, on Victory Square in Tula, at the obelisk of military glory on Mount Mithridates in Kerch, on Heroes Square in Novorossiysk, at mass graves in Kyiv, at the monuments to fallen soldiers in Minsk, the Brest Fortress, and also in many other cities of the Soviet Union.

“And if Hitler’s barbarism did not flood the world, do we not owe this to a large extent to the sacrifices and heroism of the Soviet Army and the peoples of the Soviet Union?! Indeed, it is quite clear that neither the armies of the Western Allies, nor the resistance movement... still could have destroyed the monstrous war machine of the Nazis without those gigantic battles... that brought them from the gates of Leningrad and Stalingrad to Berlin... Peoples The Soviet Union fought not only for themselves, they fought, they worked for the working people of all countries of the world” (33) - this is how the famous figure of the international communist movement J. Duclos assessed the heroism of the Soviet people. High appreciation of the heroic deeds of the soldiers of the Armed Forces of the USSR during the liberation of the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe, some countries of Asia was reflected in the first constitutions of these states, in setting the dates of national holidays in connection with the liberation from the fascist yoke, in the erection of majestic monuments in honor of the Soviet warrior liberator.

On the eve of the third anniversary of October, V. I. Lenin proudly said: “Yes, we won a gigantic victory thanks to the dedication and enthusiasm of the Russian workers and peasants, we managed to show that Russia is capable of producing not only lone heroes ... that Russia will be able to put forward these hundreds, thousands of heroes" (34). So it was during the civil war. During the Great Patriotic War, heroism became the rule, the norm of behavior for Soviet people, both at the front and in the rear.

The unshakable confidence of the working class, the collective farm peasantry and the intelligentsia that they were defending the power that they had created and strengthened, without which it was impossible to ensure a free life for themselves or their children, lay at the basis of their readiness to give all their strength to defeat the aggressor. Under the leadership of the Communist Party, the Soviet people in the rear of the country, with selfless labor, responded to the call of the party "Everything for the front, everything for victory!"

As always, in the forefront was the working class - the leading force of Soviet society. During the years of severe military trials, his revolutionary energy and his deep awareness of his historical role in defending socialist gains were even more clearly revealed and manifested. The working class showed an example of heroic labor, which was filled with new content. Shoulder to shoulder with him, the collective farm peasantry and the intelligentsia worked with full dedication of physical and spiritual strength.

The new attitude to work born of socialism, multiplied by the desire to do everything to achieve victory, has become a factor of great importance. Its most striking manifestation was socialist competition. There was not a single factory, collective farm, construction site or scientific institution that was not affected by this historical movement. Its range was enormous. Based on the high consciousness and initiative of the masses, socialist emulation helped to open up and put into action the reserves of production, raise labor productivity and increase the amount of output needed primarily by the front. Thus, during the All-Union Competition (1942-1944), labor productivity increased by 40 percent on average in industry (35). A movement for the release of above-plan products was widely developed. One example is the activities of the work teams of the largest artillery factories, which only in 1943 provided the front with tank guns for arming 22 brigades, divisional and anti-tank guns for arming 76 regiments in excess of the plan. During the competition, valuable patriotic initiatives were born, new, more advanced methods of labor, which became the property of everyone.

Rural workers, following the example of the working class, launched the All-Union Socialist Competition for a high harvest, early fulfillment of obligations to the state. Collective farmers, workers of state farms and MTS achieved outstanding results. Teenagers and pensioners worked selflessly in production.

The competition also included the intelligentsia, which has an exceptional role in applying the latest scientific and technological achievements in the interests of victory. A great creative impulse seized scientists from all fields of Soviet science.

Against the general background, the labor feat of the population of Odessa, Sevastopol, Moscow, Stalingrad, other hero cities and all front-line cities stands out. The whole world was shocked by the unprecedented feat of Leningrad in history. Under the conditions of the blockade, under constant shelling and bombing, when thousands of Leningraders were dying, the survivors continued to manufacture weapons, and not only for the Leningrad Front. In early December 1941, when Soviet troops went on a counteroffensive near Moscow, equipment and weapons manufactured by Leningrad enterprises were sent there by planes and along the ice Road of Life.

The patriotic impulse swept not only the older and middle generation, but also youth and adolescents. Everyone strove to make his own contribution to the common cause of the speediest defeat of the enemy.

In factories and factories, on collective and state farm fields, in scientific institutes and laboratories, Soviet people worked in such a way that it seemed that there was no limit to human capabilities.

Unprecedented in history was the mass participation of women both directly in the armed defense of the socialist Fatherland, and in providing all-round assistance to the front. There were about 600,000 women in the ranks of the Soviet Army, and more than 80,000 officers alone. Together with the organizations of the Russian Red Cross Society (ROKK), the Komsomol trained hundreds of thousands of nurses, nurses and nurses during the war years, who performed heroic work on the battlefield, in medical battalions, field hospitals, military sanitary trains.

Replace" the fathers and brothers, husbands and sons who went to the front, women bore the brunt of labor in industry, agriculture, construction, and transport on their shoulders. “If it were possible to find such scales,” said L. I. Brezhnev, “so that the military feat of our soldiers could be put on one of their bowls, and the labor feat of Soviet women on the other, then the bowls of these scales would probably be level, how the heroic Soviet women stood, without flinching, under a military thunderstorm in the same ranks with their husbands and sons ”(36) .

The new driving forces of Soviet society, formed in the process of building socialism - Soviet patriotism, socio-political, ideological and international unity - gave rise to a unity of front and rear unprecedented in history. Every Soviet person in the rear of the country thought of the Soviet Army as his own army and helped it in any way he could. The motherly care of the motherland surrounded the wounded soldiers in the rear.

A vivid manifestation of Soviet patriotism was the voluntary financial assistance of the working people to the state, which made it possible to send an additional 2505 aircraft, several thousand tanks and many other military equipment to the front. The movement to collect warm clothes and gifts for soldiers has become widespread. Both individuals and collectives of enterprises, institutions, educational institutions, collective farms and state farms took an active part in this patriotic movement. In general, the receipt of funds from the population to the defense fund, for the construction of military equipment amounted to more than 118 billion rubles in loans and lotteries. Soviet patriotism also manifested itself in the donor movement. During the war years, 5.5 million people participated in it (37).

The motherland highly appreciated the labor feat of the working class, the collective farm peasantry and the intelligentsia: only with the medal "For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941 - 1945." more than 16 million people were awarded.

The great force of patriotism was shown by the Soviet people to the rear of the enemy. Hoping to break the will of those who ended up in the occupied territory, the fascist German command established a regime of merciless terror, making extensive use of social demagogy, provocations, and deceit. However, even under the threat of death, the vast majority of Soviet citizens did not submit to the invaders, they participated in sabotage and disruption of the economic and political measures of the German military and occupation authorities. Tens of thousands fought underground. New fighters took the place of those tortured in the dungeons of the Gestapo. Hundreds of thousands fought the enemy in partisan detachments. In a number of western districts and regions, Soviet power was maintained through the efforts of the people, the actions of partisans and underground fighters, and in some cases there were partisan zones and territories where the occupier had not set foot at all. In the summer of 1943, more than 200 thousand square meters were under the complete control of the partisans. km of Soviet land. The creation and existence of partisan territories and zones was a symbol of the resilience and invincibility of Soviet power.

More than 127,000 people were awarded the medal "Partisan of the Patriotic War", and more than 184,000 people were awarded other medals and orders. 248 most distinguished participants in the national struggle behind enemy lines were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

The great feat accomplished by the Soviet people and its Armed Forces in the Second World War was the triumph of Marxism-Leninism and its doctrine of defending the socialist Fatherland. Under the leadership of the Communist Party, the Soviet people not only defended with arms in hand the freedom and independence of their homeland, the gains of the October Socialist Revolution, but also made a decisive contribution to saving civilization from destruction by the fascist barbarians.