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Issues of 2008

"Fighting monuments". 1941√1945

On May, 9 our country celebrates 61th anniversary of Victory Day. On the eve of the holiday we talked to the head of the Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps colonel Valery Krylov about the collection of weapons and military equipment dating the time of the Great Patriotic War (World War II).

The Head of the Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps Valeriy Krylov [zoom (47k)]

≈ Military-Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps is the oldest museum in St. Petersburg. Tell us, please, about the history of its creation.

≈ The museum was founded by Peter the great on August, 29 1703 as an armoury for storage and "memory for eternal glory" of unique historic samples of armourment. In 1756 on the basis of the collection of the armoury the general count P. Shuvalov created the Memorable Hall situated in the building of the Arsenal on Litejny Prospect in St.Petersburg. By the end of the XVIII century the collection possessed about 6000 of exhibits. In 1868 the Memorable Hall was transmitted into the building of the New Arsenal in Kronverk of St. Peter and Paul▓s Fortress where it is situated now and got the title of Artillery museum (and from 1903 Artillery Historic Museum).

≈ How did they manage to preserve the unique exhibits during the time of the World War II? Was the evacuation held?

≈ The considerable part of the collection was evacuated. On July 5 and 14, 1941 two echelons consisting of 37 and 48 wagons and platforms were sent to deep rear and in two weeks arrived to Novosibirsk. The third echelon that was fully prepared didn▓t manage to depart ≈ the enemy cut off the last railway line connecting St. Petersburg with the rest of the country. The museum was split. The main part of the collections and collaborators was in Novosibirsk, 21 persons and a quarter of the funds in the besieged Leningrad.

The exhibitions were organized in Leningrad and Novosibirsk. They had different titles but they had the same leitmotif ≈ the fight of the Russian people against the foreign invaders. The list of the activities of the museum during the war time could be continued. We give just a mere enumeration of facts. And how many dramatic and even tragic events endured by the collaborators of the Artillery Historical Museum are behind it.

Hungry, in frozen building, suffering from bombardment the collaborators who stayed in Leningrad continued to fulfill their professional duties. The situation grew more and more serious. In autumn 1941 the museum twice underwent the bombardment from the air. They had to liquidate the resulted destructions and to transmit the museum property into the more safe building. Parallel they carried out the basic job: gave consultations, collected trophy, organized exhibitions and so forth. They had less and less power. On January 1 1942, as the documents say, there were only 19 people in the team. Among them ≈ 5 seriously ill, 3 very weak, 2 extremely weak persons and only four of them attended work on the daily basis. And a new trouble┘ According to the decree of Leningrad command on the allowance of which the Leningrad part of the museum had been, the small group of the collaborators was reduced. During the first winter of the siege 10 collaborators of the museum died. In spring 1942 there was only one person able to work out of the whole Leningrad team, but practically all the museum property was safe. For the self-sacrificing work on the salvation and storage of the museum objects five collaborators of the museum were awarded by the government, some of them ≈ posthumously.

≈ Taking into consideration the specialization of the museum, did the exhibits that were in the city take part in the defense of Leningrad during the siege?

≈ As for the direct aid of the museum to the army, it was carried out first of all in delivery of the armament that could be used: Russian and trophy artillery systems (34 and 26), devices (90), rifles, submachine guns, carabines (72) and more than 6000 patrons. All these museum objects and then "fighting monuments" went for the arming of the divisions of people▓s militia. Secondly, the museum staff possessed the great knowledge of Russian and trophy armament and became the teachers and instructors educating the soldiers sent to the frontline. Novosibirsk group created three educating centres of the kind in Krasnoyarsk, Barnaul and Yurgino camps. In Leningrad from October 1 1941 there was a consulting room on the questions of military training. Besides that, Leningrad group taught the usage of the arms in hospitals.

Double telegraph Bodo-Duplex. The Act of unconditional surrender of the Nazi Germany was transmitted from this apparatus on May 9, 1945 at 22.45. The Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps [zoom (55k)]

≈ Have you acquired any new exhubits during World War II?

≈ As early as in August 1941 Leningrad team managed to communicate with the trophy department of Artillery Board of the Northern Front concerning the handing over the trophy objects for the exhibition "Trophy of the Great Patriotic War". By the way, this exhibition was a great success in Leningrad. In spring 1942, after the defeat of the Nazis near Moscow, the collaborators of Novosibirsk part visited Kalinin frontline and gathered the samples of armament, munitions and uniform of the Nazis that were sent to Novosibirsk.

As early as on February 11 1942 the head of the museum Y. Kuske sent the report to the Main Archival Board with the grounds of the necessity of continual gathering of the relics and trophy. The initiative of the museum was supported and on March 23 1943 the Decree of the People▓s Commissar of defense ╧ 143 was edited and it dictated: "Artillery Historic museum of the Red Army gathers the monuments and relics of the Great Patriotic War in order to commemorate the glory of the victorious arms of the Red Army". The commanders of the regiments and units were to organize the collecting, fixation, storage and documentation of relic monuments of the war. The museum staff from Leningrad and Novosibirsk didn▓t limit itself to centralized collecting, they went directly to frontlines: Leningrad, Volkhov, Brjansk, Steppe, Voronezh, the region of Stalingrad and other places. The collecting of the relics took place continually from 1943 till the beginning of 1947.

≈ Are there any exhibits that "participated" in heroic deeds; the exhibits with their own history?

≈ Yes. One of the exhibits ≈ 37 mm anti-aircraft cannon. It belonged to 632nd anti-aircraft artillery regiment and took part both in defense and the breakage of the siege of Leningrad. On its barrel there are 18 tin five-pointed stars ≈ 18 Nazis planes were damaged by the gunners headed by the senior sergeant I. Shalov. Shalov▓s cannon ≈ the second cannon it terms of effectiveness during the great Patriotic War (there was the average of 4√6 damaged German planes for each Soviet anti-aircraft gun). Now Ivan Shalov, the retired guards colonel, lives in Ukraine, and one of the gun-layers our compatriot Yakov Prokhorov, the retired captain of the second rank, died a year ago.

The 45 mm antitank cannon type of 1937, the shield of which is covered with dents and holes ≈ the traces of the cruel fights against the enemy, gives the testimony of the artillerists▓ perseverance, zeal and courage in Stalingrad. The gun doesn▓t have the wheels; they were lost during the battle. The detachment of this survived gun under the command of the senior sergeant A. Alikantsev in August 1942 took the fire position near Tundutovo station. This fight was one of the thousands fights in the course of Stalingrad Battle. During the fight repulse of the tank attack of the enemy only one person ≈ the commander, remained alive. He himself carried the shells to the gun, loaded and pointed the gun and gave the command "Fire!" to himself. A total of 12 tanks of the enemy were damaged, 8 of them ≈ personally by him. "Thus fought and won, having made his position the line of military glory and valour the senior sergeant Alexandre Alikantsev┘", ≈ was written in one of the army newspapers. It is impossible to look at his gun and the soil from Mamaev burial mound without excitement. Such debris were found there in the quantity of 500√1250 on each square meter.

Combat vehicle БМ-13 ⌠Katiusha■ with rocket missiles M-13. The Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps [zoom (63k)]

The exhibited 76 mm gun type of 1942 that is also exhibited in the hall and that belonged to the 5th battery of the 1217th light artillery regiment of the 31st artillery brigade also reminds of the outstanding heroism of artillerists. Taking part in the fight for Dnepr, the detachment of the gun headed by the sergeant Kotelnikov destroyed 12 enemy▓s tanks, 4 self-propelled guns, 4 cannons, a great number of soldiers and officers. On December 27 1943 all the soldiers of the detachment died in the fight near Kirovograd, having accomplished their soldier▓s duty.

≈ A separate hall of the museum is devoted to the history of military signaling from 1941 to 1945. Tell us, please, about the telegraph printer that transmitted the report about the capitulation of Germany. How did it become part of the museum collection?

≈ In the hall devoted to the history of the signal corps during the great Patriotic War unique exhibits can be seen. This is the original telegraph printer 2BD-BG with the help of which signalling of the commandment of the Headquarters of the chief commandment with Stalingrad, Voronezh frontlines, Transcaucasia and the quarters of the 62nd army of the general V. Chujkov was accomplished as well as the telegraph printer "Olivetti" that was situated in the signal office centre of the headquarters of field-marshal Paulus.

The microphone that was used by the Marshal of the Soviet Union G. Zhukov during subscription of the Act of the Unconditional Surrender of Germany in Karlshorst and telegraph printer that transmitted this act to Moscow are also exhibited there. All these objects came to the museum with the collection of the Signal Museum in 1965.

≈ What exhibitions devoted to the Victory Day were held in the museum during the last years? Do you have any exhibitions in project this year?

≈ Last year we organized a number of exhibitions devoted to the 60th anniversary of the victory. First of all, one of the biggest exhibitions in the city "The power of weak: Women in the Great Patriotic War of 1941√1945". The biggest St.-Petersburg museums took part in this inter-museum projects: Military-Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps, Military-Medicine Museum, Central Military-Marine museum, Memorial Museum of Defense and Siege of Leningrad, Museum of Military and Departmental costume as well as public organizations of veterans of the Great Patriotic War and private collectors. Such a large-scale exhibition devoted to women during the Great Patriotic War was for the first time held in Russia. The exhibition "With the Arm of the Poster. 1941√1945" was a success. We showed a collection of rare and little-known Soviet posters created during the time of the Great Patriotic War.

At the exhibition "Front drawings of Alexandre Kharshak" the onlookers could see a collection of front works of the honoured artist of Russia Alexandre Kharshak (1908√1989). By the way, our museum purchased the biggest part of the collection from the heirs of the artist.

A unique collection of shooting weapon gathered by the major-general of the engineer-artillery service, designer of the shooting weapon, Doctor of Science Vasily Degtjarev (1880√1949) could be seen at the exhibition "Climbing to the top" devoted to the 125 anniversary of the designer. With this weapon the Red Army fought throughout the Great Patriotic War.

Dog ≈ tank destroyer. The Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps [zoom (71k)]

This year the museum opens two exhibitions. The first one (opens in the end of April) is entitled "For Work and Patria" and is devoted to the history of the order of Alexandre Nevsky and its cavaliers.

In the beginning of May, continuing the series of exhibitions devoted to military artists, we open the exhibition of front drawings and pictorial sketches of the famous Soviet artist Ilja Lukomsky. The collection is provided by the artist▓s son, but the works from our collection will also be exhibited, among them the famous canvas "The oath of Stalingrad inhabitants". So, welcome to our museum!

"/" magazine expresses gratitude to the deputy head of the Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineer and Signal Corps Sergei Efimov for assistance in organizing the interview and photographing.