January 27th is marked as the Day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade. The scientific director of the Russian Military Historical Society, Mikhail Myagkov, spoke on the significance of this day: “Nowadays, many media outlets write that maybe it was better for Leningrad to surrender, then many people would have survived. Paris surrendered and the citizens of the city stayed alive. However, those media forget the lessons of history that need to be conveyed in documents and reminiscences of what Nazis wanted to do with the city on the Neva. Goering, Borman and Hitler, in September 1941, said that Leningrad should be obliterated, surrounded by a ring of the blockade and shelled. Germans were not interested to have someone there to stay. The city was to cease to exist completely. Here's a destiny Leningrad was doomed to by Nazis.”
On top of all that, Myagkov focused on the fact that the inhabitants of besieged Leningrad not only survived but also fought, worked at factories, produced military goods: "This is an incredible feat. I think that in New York, the shrill lines from Tanya Savicheva’s diary must be written on the United Nations building or inside it.”
“From a strategic point of view, if Leningrad was taken, Germans would have transferred part of their troops from the center to the Caucasus, and nobody knows what the defense of Moscow and then Stalingrad would have been like. Leningrad was grinding the huge German forces. This became possible thanks to the Leningrad front and all citizens of Leningrad. And the fact that there were no epidemics in the city is also a merit of Leningrad. We must definitely talk about these things today and remember Leningrad, " Mikhail Myagkov said.
In this regard, the Russian Military History Society and the department of the society in St. Petersburg prepared several events. "On January 18th, on the Day of Breaking the Blockade of Leningrad, in 1943, a special exhibition was opened based on photographs taken during the wartime. At the exhibition in the Military Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineers and Signal Corps, private belongings, weapons and uniform of the Leningrad front soldiers who were fighting and protecting their city are presented. Yesterday, the Nazi Occupation exhibition opened at the Art Gallery. It presents the paintings and drawings of Meer Axelrod showing what Germans were doing in our land, what they did with Leningrad, what was happening around Leningrad. A huge amount of monuments, Tsarskoye Selo, Pushkin and Gatchina were destroyed by Nazis. Our country and our culture were damaged badly,’’ Myagkov said.
Mikhail Romanov, Deputy Chairman of the Duma Control and Regulations Committee, told about other events that will be held to mark the 75th anniversary of the lifting of the blockade. “In every Leningrad family, the memory about this event is preserved across the generations. A large number of international delegations come, in particular, blockade members, who live not only in other regions of the federation but also abroad ... This year it was decided to hold a parade on Palace Square because the Day of the Leningrad Victory is a very significant and important holiday for every Leningrad citizen,” Romanov said.
According to him, on January 26th, at 10 am, there will be a ceremonial laying of wreaths at the Piskaryovskoye memorial cemetery: ”What is important, young people and schoolchildren will participate in the event. The veterans who survived the blockade will take part in the event. On January 27th, at 10 am, the Leningrad victory parade will take place on Palace Square. The samples of military equipment of the Great Patriotic War, which were in Leningrad, will be presented at the parade. Also, the Ministry of Defense will present the winter uniforms and equipment for military personnel who, during the years of the World War II, participated in the battles for Leningrad. The concerts for the blockade veterans will be held in the Oktyabrsky concert hall and in the Ice Palace. “The government of the region organizes delivery for the veterans, buses will run from each district. There will be an opportunity to watch at modern performers who will sing the wartime songs,” Romanov said.
