In the USSR, 26 thousand different books were written about the Second World War and the Great Patriotic War. But almost all of them were subjected to strict censorship by Glavlit and were only worn out stamps of Soviet propaganda.
The Library of Congress holds nearly 20,000 books and articles on the subject. However, what happened on Soviet territory and outside it from June 22, 1941 to September 2, 1945 was called the "unknown war" by the Americans. Indeed, despite tens of thousands of publications about the Great Patriotic War, its true story not written yet. Even today, the Great Patriotic War remains unknown in many respects, because many of its events are distorted or simply forgotten.
Therefore, questions remain unanswered. And even those who consider themselves military historians ask them. For example, V. Suvorov: something was being prepared. This "something" could be either defensive or offensive. The defense is gone. And what remains? Was it really not clear to Zhukov before the war that it was impossible to drive a huge number of Red Army troops into mousetrap ledges? Or M. Solonov: was the Soviet Union ready for war? Why did Stalin sleep through Hitler's attack on the USSR? Why did he not heed the notorious warnings of Churchill and Sorge? Why didn’t he announce mobilization to repel Hitler’s aggression and didn’t move troops to the border?
I will add to this list: maybe Stalin needed Hitler's aggression - especially after the inglorious Finnish war, for the unleashing of which the USSR was expelled from the League of Nations?
At the beginning of June 1941, the commanders of the 4th Army Western Front received a telegram from Zhukov, which said that "German squadrons would fly in known areas (air gates)" and that they "should not be shot at."
(And they didn’t shoot. And those who shot were coolly dealt with by the Special Departments.)
On June 10, 1941, the diplomat Cadogan handed over to the Soviet Ambassador Maisky in London Churchill's personal message, which indicated information about the German troops preparing to attack the USSR, down to the numbers of regiments and divisions.
On the same day, Marshal Timoshenko and Zhukov reported to Stalin that “the implementation of the plans for the construction of railways for 1941 is in danger of failure. On 11 new railway lines western direction work started in April has not yet been fully deployed. As of June 1, only 8% of the annual plan was fulfilled for most lines.
The annual plan for the construction of bridges in the western and southwestern directions as of June 1 was completed only within the range of 13 to 20%. The main reason for the difficulties is the lack of building materials.”
(On the other hand, the plan for the construction of railways east of Moscow was overfulfilled by 70%.)
On June 10, 1941, the commander of the Kyiv district, Kirponos, arbitrarily ordered the troops to occupy the forefield - the front line of fortified areas. On the same day, Zhukov became aware of this, and he demanded that Kirponos cancel the order.
The cover plan was never introduced either in Kiev or in other districts. The covering troops did not occupy the foreground. And the German army broke into the USSR without much difficulty.
On June 12, Zhukov ordered: "In order to avoid possible provocations, our aviation should be banned from flying in the 10-kilometer border strip."
(Now the German troops could safely deploy along the Soviet border for the offensive.)
Only on June 13, 1941, did the command of the Kyiv district receive an order from the General Staff to move "deep" formations closer to the border. Their promotion began on June 17-18. They were supposed to arrive in the designated areas on June 27-28. In June, the advance of the armies of the internal districts to the area of the Lvov ledge began. But after the defeat of the Western Front, they were used to plug the resulting hole.
On June 22, only 16 rifle divisions, who were near the border in the strip of the South-Western Front. Over them, the superiority of the Germans was 2.6 times.
The second echelon of the armies covering the border consisted of 14 divisions, of which 12 were armored and motorized, which were located 50-100 km from the border.
Another 27 divisions were located 100-400 km from the border. Their German troops began to eat, having almost finished with the border formations. The same thing happened in the Western District. The Germans had one dense line against three thin Soviet ones, separated by a hundred or more kilometers. Therefore, they smashed the formations of the Red Army in parts.
June 14 Goebbels: "In East Prussia our troops are concentrated so densely that the Russians with preventive air raids could cause us the heaviest damage. Krips left Moscow for London.
On June 14, Timoshenko and Zhukov again proposed to Stalin (according to Zhukov's memoirs) to bring troops to western border in combat readiness. To this, the Secretary General and head of the government of the USSR replied that such actions could cause a war.
After that, Zhukov, having learned that the troops of the Kyiv district came close to the border, demanded that the order be canceled and those responsible punished. The only answer to all their perplexed questions to high-ranking commanders was: “Calm down. The owner knows everything.
Goebbels: “The Russians don't seem to suspect anything yet. They deploy their troops in such a way that their position corresponds to our goals. We cannot wish for better. They are tightly concentrated and will be easy prey to capture."
(Goebbels refers to the Soviet troops located in the Lvov and Bialystok ledges. They were concentrated so that at the base of each ledge there were weak formations, and the main forces were concentrated on the tops of the ledges. This allowed the Germans to cut off the ledges and surround divisions in them with strikes on the base and corps of the Red Army.)
On June 14, 1941, TASS stated that "the rumors that Germany is going to attack the USSR, and the USSR is preparing for war with Germany and is concentrating its troops on its borders, were concocted by the propaganda of forces interested in further expanding and unleashing the war."
Molotov made it clear to the population of the USSR that there was no question of any war. And to Hitler - that the USSR guesses something and he needs to hurry.
On June 15, 1941, Kirponos received a report that “on the border, German troops are removing all engineering structures, and also laying shells and bombs directly on the ground, not counting on their long-term storage. German attacks should be expected any minute. And our troops are in places of permanent deployment.
It will take at least two days for them to occupy defensive positions. But will the enemy give us that much time? It's time to raise an alarm for the frontier guards."
In 1941, the railway military department of the USSR applied for the supply of 120,000 delayed mines. But received only ... 120 pieces.
(Mines were not supposed to be placed in the way of German tanks all the way to Moscow. And then suddenly appeared, like shells for anti-aircraft guns that are dangerous for tanks, anti-tank rifles and grenades, as well as a PPSh automatic machine that the German soldiers loved.)
Marshal Kulik explained the shortage of mines to the surprised generals in this way: “Mines are a powerful thing. But this is a tool for the defenders. And we need demining equipment during the offensive. ”
In mid-June, the division commander Bogaychuk reported to the command: “On our part, defensive measures that guarantee against attack by the enemy’s motorized mechanized units are not being taken. The forefield zone, without a garrison of troops, will not delay the German offensive.
The border units may not warn the field troops in a timely manner. In this regard, the strip of the forefield of my division, according to the calculation of time, will be captured by the Germans before the withdrawal of our units there.
Rodina magazine, 1995: “If the Red Army had struck at the Germans on June 21, when they had completed their concentration and deployment, without having plans for defensive actions, this strike would have taken them by surprise.
The use of the Lvov and Bialystok ledges by the Soviet troops would have led to the encirclement of German shock groups in Poland and East Prussia. A strike against Romania would also be effective, where there were only 7 German divisions and extremely weak Romanian troops.
The German command simply could not fend him off.
On June 17, Soviet intelligence received a message that a German attack could be expected at any moment. Stalin listened to this information inattentively. According to eyewitnesses, these days he showed increasing anger if someone came to him with reports about the growing danger of a German attack on the USSR.
Already after the first words of the speaker, he lost his temper and abruptly cut off the conversation. He did not need intelligence reports demanding immediate action. Patience was beginning to fail him. In the last days before the war, Stalin's vocabulary was more than usual filled with obscene words.
On June 17, Roosevelt informed Churchill that in the near future the Germans would make "the most powerful attack on the USSR. If this war breaks out, we will give the Bolsheviks energetic encouragement.
In a conversation with Hopkins, Roosevelt predicted that “Stalin would not attack first” and that “Hitler would put all his strength into a blow from which Stalin would not soon recover. We need to go to war somehow."
To Hopkins' proposal to attack the Japanese, Roosevelt replied that "this is impossible, since the United States is a democratic and peaceful country. We must continue to tease the Japanese, as Stalin does with the Germans.
On June 19, Timoshenko ordered the districts to camouflage military installations, paint tanks and sow grass on all airfields, and also ensure that warehouses, workshops, artillery parks are completely unobservable from the air, but - by July 1. However, Stalin then pushed the matter back until 30 July.
On June 19, Soviet intelligence received a message that the German attack on the USSR would take place on June 22 at 3 o'clock in the morning. This information was handed over to the leadership of the USSR on the day it was received. Intelligence also reported that German troops were repairing roads and bridges on the western border, tanks and artillery were concentrated in the forests, and reconnaissance from the air was being intensively carried out.
The new blitzkrieg strategy was to avoid any frontier battles. Already from the first hours of the mass attack German tanks and aviation made a hole in the weak point of the defense, and then an avalanche of vehicles rushed into this gap.
Soviet intelligence made a significant mistake in determining the enemy's forces, but for some reason it was mistaken in the direction of overestimating these forces. For example, in March, the General Staff proceeded from the possible presence of 11,000 tanks and 11,600 aircraft in Germany. However, on June 22, the enemy forces turned out to be significantly smaller than those counted on by the Soviet military leadership. And despite this, the result was disastrous!
On June 20, the command of the Baltic District informed Moscow about the advance of German units to the border. “The construction of pontoon bridges continues along it. German troops in East Prussia were ordered to take their starting position for the offensive.
On June 20, General Pavlov received Vasilevsky's reply from the General Staff: “Your request has been reported to People's Commissar Tymoshenko. However, he did not allow the occupying of field fortifications, as this could provoke a provocation from the Germans.
Due to the lack of storage facilities, 50% of the ammunition of the western military districts was stored in the internal districts of the USSR, with 33% at a distance of up to 700 km from the border.
From 40 to 90% of the fuel reserves of the western districts were stored near Moscow and Kharkov, as well as at civilian oil depots in the depths of the USSR.
Since the expected dates for the start of the war were 1942 and even 1943, the mobilization plan for the start of the war turned out to be unsecured financially. The needs of the Red Army for guns, mortars and aircraft were planned to be met only by the end of 1941, and the supply of all the rest was to be completed in 1942.
(So the Bolsheviks created the conditions for Hitler's aggression. Later, the Wehrmacht used 30% of Soviet captured gasoline. And T-34 tanks appeared in large numbers just during the defense of Moscow.)
On June 20, 1941, Zhukov was informed of the advance of German troops to the border of the USSR. They were ordered to take their starting position for the offensive.
Colonel Belov recalled that “On June 20, an order was received for air units to put them on alert, to prohibit holidays. And suddenly, on June 21, at 4 pm, an order was received to cancel the order of June 20!
General Ivanov wrote: “Stalin sought by the very state and behavior of the troops of the border districts to make it clear to Hitler that calm reigns in our country, and even more than that, carelessness. And it was done in the most natural form. For example, anti-aircraft units were at the training camp. As a result, the combat readiness of our troops was reduced to an extremely low level.”
On June 21, the command of the Western District reported to Moscow that the Germans had removed the barbed wire, the noise of ground motors was heard. Aircraft violated the border. On the same day, the border troops received a day off, and Stalin appointed his assistant Lev Mekhlis as the head of the Political Directorate of the Red Army. According to him, during the years of repression, he "destroyed the enemies of the people like mad dogs."
On June 21, the German diplomat Kegel, who was an agent of Soviet intelligence, announced that the German attack on the USSR would happen at 3-4 in the morning. Although Zhukov ordered the blackout of the Baltic cities to be canceled, Molotov ordered that the entire air defense system of Moscow be put on alert.
On June 21, at 9 pm, Timoshenko suggested that Stalin give a directive to the western districts to bring the troops to full combat readiness. However, Stalin did not agree and demanded that the People's Commissar of Defense give an order to the troops not to succumb to any provocations.
Since the border of the USSR was defended by only 100 thousand border guards, an order from Moscow was necessary to put the cover plan into effect. In accordance with it, troops were to advance to the border. However, all 170 divisions were located at a considerable distance from it. 56 divisions of the first covering echelon - 8-20 km, 52 divisions of the second - from 50 to 100 km, and a reserve of 62 divisions - 400 km to the east.
“Stalin needed German aggression against the USSR for a difficult military and political victory” (“WWII 1941-1945”, Book 1).
At 11 pm on June 21, Timoshenko summoned Admiral Kuznetsov, People's Commissar of the Navy, and told him that in connection with the expected German attack, all fleets should prepare to repel German air raids.
The air defense of Moscow was also activated. All anti-aircraft artillery was withdrawn to the position, and 600 of the latest fighters of the 1st Air Defense Air Corps were preparing to take off. Around 1 am on June 22, full blackout was introduced in Moscow, and the capital was plunged into darkness.
And in the General Staff from the western districts there were a continuous stream of reports that Marshal Timoshenko already called panic. But there were reasons for panic - the cover plan was still not put into action, and the border remained virtually without cover.
Characteristically, new railways were built only to the east of Moscow with the removal to the Urals, Kazakhstan and Far East. The west of the European part of the USSR had old roads that were supposed to fall into the zone of German occupation.
Before the Great Patriotic War, not a single (even the most insignificant) issue was resolved by the General Staff of the Red Army and the People's Commissariat (Ministry) of Defense of the USSR without the sanction of Molotov and Stalin. Especially if it concerned military construction.
Marshal Rokossovsky wrote: “Judging by the concentration of Soviet airfields near the border and the placement of warehouses, it was like preparing for a jump forward. However, the disposition of the troops of the Red Army and the measures taken by the troops did not correspond to this.
Field Marshal Manstein said more: " Soviet troops at the border they were so deeply echeloned that it spoke only of defense. For example, the tank units in the Voroshilov group were located all the way to Pskov.”
List of sources used
J. Boff "History of the USSR", vol. 1-2 (M., International relationships, 1990), K. Tippelskirch "History of the Second World War" (M., AST, 1999), A. Bulok "Hitler and Stalin: Life and Power" (Smolensk, Rusich, 1998), "History of the Great Patriotic War Soviet Union”, vol. 1-6 (M., 1989), G. Zhukov “Memories and Reflections” (M., Olma-press, 2001), E. Rzhevskaya “Goebbels. Portrait against the background of a diary "(M., AST, 2004), G. Kumanev "War and railway transport of the USSR" (M., 1969), N. Muller "Wehrmacht and occupation" (M., 1974), M. Beshanov " Tank pogrom of 1941 Where did 28 thousand disappear Soviet tanks? (M., AST, 2001), S. Burin " recent history. XX century”, textbook (M., 2000), K. Becker “Military diaries of the Luftwaffe” (M., 2004), G. Rudel “Pilot “Stuka” (Memoirs of a German pilot officer)” (M., Tsentrpoligraf, 2004 ), V. Keitel "Field Marshal's Memoirs" (M., Tsentrpoligraf, 2004), "The Great Patriotic Catastrophe". Tragedy of 1941" (M., Yauza, 2006), B. Sokolov “Molotov. The Shadow of the Leader "(M., AST, 2005), V. Nevezhin" If tomorrow on a campaign "(M., Yauza, 2007), A. Isaev" Five circles of hell. Red army in "cauldrons" (M., Yauza-Eksmo, 2009).
Shortly before the start of World War II, Hitler awarded the Russian pilot Ivan Fedorov one of the highest awards of the Reich - for aerobatics. Fedorov immediately knocked out the heel of his boot with a German cross.
Ivan Fedorov after the Victory with his wife Anna Babenko.
He was remarkably fearless. It is not surprising that in the war Ivan Fedorov was assigned to command a regiment of aces. And that in 1948 he became a Hero of the Soviet Union is also not surprising, because he was the first in the country to overcome the speed of sound during the test of a jet aircraft. It is surprising that the Star of the Hero was not given to him for so long.
Too close to the ground
The legendary pilot, who shot down dozens of enemy aircraft, lived a long life, leaving this world in 2011 at the age of 97. “At the age of 80, Ivan Evgrafovich could climb the steps of the entrance to the second floor on his hands,” the candidate tells about the pilot historical sciences, writer Vyacheslav Rodionov, who was friends with Fedorov. - He was a brilliant pilot. Once, when the La-174 landed in Zhukovsky after a test flight and entered the glide path, approaching the runway, I felt that the plane was listing to the right. According to flight science, the pilot needs to level the car, which in this situation was impossible to do, because the car practically stopped obeying. After that, it usually crashes - the ground is too close ... Fedorov decides in a split second: since the car wants to roll over, let it roll over. And the plane makes a 360-degree turn around its axis, miraculously landing at the airfield. Fedorov gets out of the cockpit and says: "Probably something with the aileron thrust." And when the mechanics checked his assumption, it turned out so.
Ivan Fedorovon the eve of the Great Patriotic War. He was unique in his way, a nugget. By origin - Don Cossack, Old Believer. He was born in the February steppe, when his parents drove up in a sleigh to the village of Kamenskaya. I saw the plane for the first time at the age of 15, working as a train driver. And he fell ill with the sky, in which, after graduating from the flight school, he will literally live.
On the eve of the Great Patriotic War, in May 1941, Fedorov, along with three colleagues, was sent on a short business trip to Germany, where they were met by aircraft designer Messerschmitt. Our ace shocked local specialists: for the first time, sitting in the cockpit of an experimental and unfamiliar German fighter, he immediately soared into the sky and began to perform aerobatics, which attracted the attention of Hitler, who was on the airfield. The Fuehrer expressed his desire to dine with Soviet pilots. And after Fedorov was handed a small box, in which was one of the highest awards of the Reich - an iron cross with oak leaves. The next day, he appeared on the airfield without a cross on his chest and to the question "Where is the award?" pointed to the heel of his boot, where the day before he had nailed a cross: “This is where German orders are worn here in Russia!”
“Oh, I got it from our man from the embassy, who was in charge of the protocol. They removed the shavings from me, ”Ivan Evgrafovich himself later recalled. This and his other stories have been preserved for history by the famous Belarusian documentary filmmaker Anatoly Alai, who made a film about Fedorov in Moscow for his 90th birthday in 2004.
He took the plane to the front"With great difficulty, we managed to obtain permission for our film crew get acquainted with the personal file of Fedorov No. 14874, since the admission to the documents of this category of officers is determined by the Main Directorate of Personnel of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, ”director Anatoly Alai tells AiF. - But I read it with cuts. Many sheets were sealed with gray paper. The pilot told Alai how he ended up at the front. He was eager to beat the enemy with all his heart, but the aircraft designer Lavochkin, whose planes he tested in Design Bureau in Gorky, did not let him go to the front. And then, during the test of the LaGG-3 fighter, Fedorov simply took the car to the front line. He did not have a map, he was guided by the railway tracks and the Volga. He flew to the Kalinin Front, where at that time, in July 1942, a group of penal pilots was preparing. This group was instructed to lead Fedorov, no one else agreed. And a few months later, in September 1942, the command entrusted Colonel Fedorov with the formation of a regiment of aces on the Kalinin Front under the 3rd Air Army. For the brilliant performance of the task in December of the same year, he was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree. From the summer of 1942 until the Victory, Fedorov was uninterruptedly at the forefront, fighting as a division commander (273rd Fighter Aviation Division) and deputy division commander (269th Fighter Aviation Novgorod Red Banner Division).
It was he who came up with the famous “big royal turn”: he soared up, then dived sharply and already from below into the “belly” shot enemy aircraft.
broken chandelier
“Fyodorov's personal file contains descriptions of two amazing battles that took place in September 1942,” says A. Alai. - In the first case, he alone entered into battle with 18 enemy bombers and 6 fighters, in which he shot down one and knocked out two bombers. In the second, Fedorov alone fought with two enemy bombers and 8 fighters, shot down one bomber and one fighter. This document (combat characteristic) was signed by the commander of the 3rd Air Army, Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General of Aviation Gromov. Ivan Fedorov was nominated three times for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, but he was awarded it only after the war.And for the first time, the pilot could receive the Star of the Hero in 1938, when he returned from Spain, where he spent almost a year, making 286 sorties and personally shooting down 11 enemy aircraft and hitting 13 vehicles in the group. “He went there voluntarily,” says V. Rodionov. - as a tester latest technology Fedorov once participated in a flight over Red Square. Then there was a reception in the Kremlin, and Marshal Voroshilov, delighted with the skill of the pilot, asked what reward he wanted. He asked to be sent to war in Spain.
Fedorov returned to his homeland with other volunteers. In Moscow, this event was celebrated with a banquet. And a fight.
“The tipsy “employee in civilian clothes”, having quarreled with Fedorov’s friend, the pilot Turzhansky, took out a small ladies’ browning and shot at the combat pilot. Ivan, being a master of sports in boxing, laid down the shooter with one blow. And then a general fight began, - says V. Rodionov. - Fedorov gave all the "combat" for Spain for a broken crystal chandelier and dishes. The pilots in this story were appointed extreme. I had to forget about the Star. Although, of course, Fedorov was not a drunkard. He loved his job and the sky too much to trade it all for a bottle. I always drank milk. And the second time, when he was presented to the Star in 1944 for heroism at the front and the number of planes shot down (10 bombers and 5 fighters), detractors simply did not let the papers go up. Banal envy ... ".
"Shoot me first"
Fedorov received the deserved title of Hero in 1948. In peacetime, he returned to test work and was the first in the USSR to overcome the speed of sound on a jet plane.“After the war, Ivan Evgrafovich lived in Moscow,” says V. Rodionov. - In Khimki, for all the flight money due to him for the war, he bought a house - a pre-revolutionary mansion. Then he gave it to a kindergarten. He did not have his own children. With the pilot Anna Babenko, whom he himself taught to fly an airplane, Fedorov married before the war. The wife, like her husband, fought on the front lines. Both he and she were wounded more than once, but the battle wounds affected Anna Artyomovna's health much more strongly. She passed away in 1988. Ivan Evgrafovich was constantly there, courting his wife.
He was amazing kind person. In all my life I have never harmed anyone. On the contrary, he saved many. Once, his group of penalty boxers was accused of not taking to the skies and not covering our bridgehead from the air. Marshal Konev ordered everyone to be shot. They dug graves. Konev himself arrived. And then Fedorov became a chest, saying: "Shoot me first." Konev: "Who are you?" - “I am Russian Ivan, and you are Russian Ivan (Konev's name. - Ed.). Why do we need to shoot each other? And my guys took to the sky. The weather was non-flying. And they just couldn't be seen from below." It all turned out that way. Konev then said: "For the first time I cancel my order."
Ivan Evgrafovich had a winged soul and a fiery heart. He never gave up, never gave up. He was always ready to protect the weak, to fight for the truth, - continues V. Rodionov. - Yes, the pilot had no children left. But for the umpteenth time, my daughter and I will carry his portrait at the procession of the Immortal Regiment. Like the whole country, we believe: heroes do not die - they live in the grateful memory of their descendants.
Autumn of the 43rd year. The Battle of Kursk has just ended victoriously. The Red Army is advancing. Stalin invited People's Commissar of State Security Vsevolod Merkulov and Pavel Sudoplatov, head of the 4th NKVD reconnaissance and sabotage department, to his nearby dacha in Kuntsevo. The mood of both generals before the meeting was excellent. And not by chance. Now they were finally sure that they would be able to fulfill the very important order of the leader, which was given at the beginning of the war. The report was short, but very convincing. At the end, Sudoplatov summed up:
Comrade Stalin, our scouts have come close to the object and are ready to carry out your responsible task - to destroy the enemy of all mankind, Adolf Hitler.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
This operation was absolutely fair in its essence. And the fact that Iosif Vissarionovich ordered - did not even think about it - ordered to kill Hitler, it was, in my opinion, an absolutely correct and fair decision. The man who claimed millions of lives deserved retribution.
However, the answer of the leader, after a long pause, baffled the Chekists. Stalin said that killing Hitler is not worth it. Ask the question "Why?" the generals did not dare. But they also did not finally curtail the preparation for the operation.
Pavel Sudoplatov
Soviet spy
Did we have such opportunities? It could be found, but for this there had to be an order. Without an order, such things are not done, cannot be done. You may not be able to do something.
The next report to Stalin was already in the 44th: they say, everything is ready, we are only waiting for your go-ahead. And again the leader forbids killing Hitler. Moreover, he orders to stop preparing for a special operation, and to recall the intelligence officer who was preparing the fateful assassination to his homeland.
So what happened? Why did Stalin cancel his order to destroy Hitler? Although he constantly monitored the preparations for this most complex operation. What made the leader save the life of his main enemy?
On the existence of Stalin's plan to assassinate the Fuhrer in Soviet time never mentioned. It was one of the most closely guarded state secrets. The prepared plan for the destruction of Adolf Hitler became known only when the Soviet Union was no more, and even then - in general terms. Today I will reveal all the intricacies of this unusual story, which is related to the secrets of big politics.
Assassination attempt at the Burgerbräukeller in autumn 1939
Adolf Hitler wanted to be killed from the moment he came to power. Only in the 30s, at least 4 assassination attempts were made, which could take the Fuhrer's life. The Soviet secret services had nothing to do with them.
Most real try took place on November 8, 1939. A powerful explosion thundered in the famous Munich beer "Bürgerbräukeller", in which Hitler performed every year on the occasion of the Beer putsch of the 23rd year. The assassination attempt was staged by a lone anti-fascist Georg Elzer. He prepared for his action for a long time and carefully.
Georg Elser became a frequenter of the pub, and in the evenings before it closed, he hid in the pantry, where rags and mops were stored.
When the hall was empty, Georg made his way to a huge concrete column, sheathed with wooden panels, near which a podium was usually installed. He made holes in the panels and planted explosives in the voids.
On the eve of Hitler's arrival, Elser set the clockwork to 21:20.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
He was sure that Hitler would come out and stay there for at least an hour or at least 20 minutes, he was supposed to destroy him in the 20th minute. And he destroyed other people, because Hitler left at the 15th minute unexpectedly and quickly. In the same way, Hitler approximately escaped with his nasty animal instinct from other assassination attempts. He seemed to smell trouble, danger to himself. And this bestial instinct allowed him more than once or twice to get away from some events quite suddenly, on a whim, at which he should have been present to the end.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
Calculations of assassination attempts on Hitler are a very complex thing, and different researchers estimate them differently. Usually they bring the figure to 20-30 attempts, but not so long ago another study was published in England. The researcher counted 50 attempts. Not the assassination attempts that were committed on Hitler, but those assassination attempts that someone planned and, let's say, did not carry out, but took at least some steps towards this implementation.
How to get close to the Fuhrer if he ends up in Moscow
With the outbreak of World War II, Adolf Hitler had even more personal enemies. The order "Destroy the Fuhrer" in the autumn of 1941 came from Stalin.
The first assassination attempt was being prepared in the winter of 1942, when our intelligence quite reasonably assumed that the Fuhrer, like Napoleon, would come to the Soviet capital in the event of the capture of Moscow and arrange a parade on Red Square. A list of parts that will participate in it was even compiled, and invitation cards have already been printed. It was on Red Square that they wanted to present a "surprise" to the Fuhrer. Special groups were created, several variants of this operation were developed. Everything was led by the head of the special group of the NKVD, Pavel Sudoplatov.
Pavel Sudoplatov
Soviet spy
Moreover, an instruction was immediately given in my presence: all heads of departments of independent departments of the NKVD of the USSR should provide me with full assistance in all work. And I began to receive employees with agents who were in touch with them, (they) began to come at my disposal. I must say that this order was carried out, and nowhere in any case can I complain that I was denied anything.
I must say that the experience of such operations in the Soviet intelligence was. So on September 21, 1941, a pre-mined observation deck in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra was blown up.
As a result, dozens of Wehrmacht staff officers were destroyed.
And on November 3, 1941, a sabotage group under the command of Captain Lutin blew up a radio high-explosive, which was laid in the Kiev Assumption Cathedral.
As a result of this action, about 20 senior German officers and generals were killed, and Gauleiter Erich Koch was seriously injured.
In Moscow, Pavel Sudoplatov created three sabotage groups. They were supposed to destroy Hitler if he and his retinue appeared in the occupied capital of the USSR.
One of the groups included the recruited musician Lev Knipper.
During civil war he served with the whites and therefore should not have aroused the suspicions of the Germans. A person who is well prepared physically, an experienced climber.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
Knipper was ready to sacrifice his life. He himself was a German, and it was believed that his sister Olga Chekhova, who was recognized in Germany as an actress of the Reich - the highest title that an actor could only receive - really was a member of some secular circles, was invited to receptions, where Goering was also, and Himmler, and even Hitler. That was some, I would say, a real potentially feasible moment in order to find some kind of approach to Hitler, if he were in Moscow, and try to destroy him.
Olga Chekhova bore the name of her husband, the rising star of the Moscow Art Theater of the early 20th century, Mikhail Chekhov.
Russified German, nee Knipper, she studied at the studio at this famous theater. After the revolution in the 20th she left for Germany. By the 30s she had a brilliant career. She was close to Hitler, who called her his favorite actress. It was assumed that Olga would be able to arrange a meeting between her brother and the Fuhrer in Moscow, during which he could kill Hitler.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
Interestingly, our famous intelligence officer Zoya Rybkina in her memoirs directly admitted that Olga Chekhova was fulfilling her duty to the Motherland, i.e. this can be considered a kind of recognition of its systemic involvement in the work against the Nazis.
However, the Soviet capital was not handed over to the Germans. And the plan to assassinate Hitler disappeared by itself. But the beginning of the 42nd year turned out to be even more difficult and tragic for the country and the Red Army than the 41st. The Germans captured new vast territories of the country. Under their heel was Ukraine, North Caucasus, 70 million Soviet people found themselves in occupied lands. Finally, the Nazis reached the Volga, tried to break through in the Transcaucasus - to Baku, the main fuel base of the country.
Eliminate the beast in its lair
In the winter of 1942, Stalin summoned Pavel Sudoplatov and his deputy Naum Eitingon. The order was short: to begin preparations for the operation to eliminate Hitler. Now in Germany itself, as they said then - in the lair of the beast.
The choice fell on Sudoplatov not by chance. In 1938, in Rotterdam, he personally liquidated the leader of the Ukrainian nationalists, Yevgen Konovalets, to whom he presented a bomb disguised as a box of Kyiv sweets. In 1940, together with Nahum Eitingon, he led Operation Duck in Mexico. The victim was Leon Trotsky.
But now the stakes were even higher: the target was the Fuhrer of the Third Reich. The task is more than difficult, and such scouts as the cinematic Stirlitz, we have in Berlin in real life did not have.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
We had very, very few of our own illegal immigrants, and in the highest echelons of German power there was only one such person. The last name of the person is Willy Lehman, a small rank.
Of course, Lehman had no access to Hitler, and he had already been destroyed by the Germans at that time. So, it was necessary to send people who were capable of killing Hitler, and it was necessary to do this as soon as possible.
The plan was gradually filled with real figures. Sudoplatov decided to use the emigrant Prince Janusz Radziwill, who lived in Berlin, a friend of Goering and at the same time a secret agent of the NKVD.
He was close friends with Olga Chekhova, who was a real socialite and was familiar with Hitler, Mussolini, Goebbels, Goering. Chekhova starred in 145 films and at the same time performed the tasks of Lavrenty Beria.
It was these two people, using their connections among the German aristocracy, who were supposed to ensure the access of the liquidator to Hitler somewhere at a private reception or party.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
There was hope for Olga Chekhova, whom many call the Soviet intelligence officer. I did not find evidence of this, just as I did not find evidence that she was not a Soviet intelligence officer. A mythical figure, very mysterious so far. I think that, perhaps, I was at best an agent of influence, and, perhaps, sometimes for the sake of my brother Lev Knipper, who was in Moscow, I carried out some separate assignments of Soviet intelligence.
Igor Miklashevsky: the path of a scout
But the main question was still: who to entrust the role of the performer? This person must understand that he is going to certain death. The choice eventually fell on Igor Miklashevsky.
In December 1941, he was personally invited to serve in intelligence by the Commissar of State Security, the head of the 3rd department of the Secret Political Directorate of the NKVD, Viktor Ilyin.
Pavel Sudoplatov
Soviet spy
Igor Miklashevsky is a very interesting person. I also received it from the Secret Political Directorate. But here he turned around, we immediately sent him behind enemy lines with a certain specific task.
In the 42nd Miklashevsky was 24 years old. Before becoming a State Security officer, he served in the army, was a sports guy - an excellent boxer.
But the main argument in favor of choosing Igor as the perpetrator of the assassination attempt on Hitler was his uncle, the actor Vsevolod Blumenthal-Tamarin.
In November 1941, he voluntarily went over to the side of the Germans.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
Together with his wife, he waited for the arrival of the Germans, voluntarily agreed to cooperate with them, and being a good actor, as they say, and even, I emphasize, an honored artist of the RSFSR (then these titles were given to a few!), He brilliantly copied Stalin's muffled voice. He informed the Germans about this and often spoke on the German radio, copying the leader, and, allegedly speaking on behalf of Stalin, all sorts of inflammatory texts.
But to Berlin and to Uncle Miklashevsky, a difficult path full of drama still lay ahead. In 1942, he was trained at a special intelligence school near Kirov. These were short courses. And in December 42, with a pre-thought-out legend of a deserter from the Red Army, he crossed the front line.
During this transition, he could die. The commander of the army unit, through whose positions Igor went, either did not report, or did not know, about the minefield, which was located between our and German trenches. Miraculously, Miklashevsky was not blown up.
The German soldiers could not believe their eyes, they were dumbfounded: how did this guy manage to get through unscathed? This became a weighty argument that Miklashevsky was a real defector, and not an agent of the NKVD.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
They framed it as desertion and as a completely heartfelt desire to fight on the side of the Nazis. The Germans believed Miklashevsky, because he immediately began to talk about his uncle - they began to check, yes, such an uncle really was ...
They believed, but not completely, and just in case, decided to try it again. Igor Miklashevsky was allegedly taken to be shot. It was a psychological test. After all, another is more weak person, feeling that he has a few minutes left to live, he can ask for mercy and confess everything.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
Many said - yes, I'm not who I say I am, but Miklashevsky endured, did not say a word. They believed him, enrolled in the ROA (Russian Liberation Army) ...
In the end, Miklashevsky was allowed to come to Berlin and settle in the apartment of the Blumenthal-Tamarins. From that moment, the stage of its introduction into high society began. In the capital of the Third Reich, Igor tried to become an inveterate theatergoer. At one of the performances, he was introduced to Olga Chekhova, through her at the Lubyanka, they learned about the successful completion of the first part of the task by Miklashevsky - to gain a foothold in Berlin.
This was helped by the fact that our scout was an excellent boxer. He began to regularly participate in demonstration fights. During one of them, Igor made a new, very valuable acquaintance.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
He entered secular circles, met the famous Max Schmeling, a boxer, German heavyweight champion. Max Schmeling was one of the propaganda icons of the Third Reich.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
Schmeling was really Hitler's favorite. Getting to know him was very prestigious. And Schmeling, seeing the Russian, he liked that the Russian jumped over to the Germans, gave him his photograph with the caption "To Igor Miklashevsky from Schmeling." It really was a pass...
Through these new contacts, Igor gained additional access to the top and repeatedly had the opportunity to meet with Hitler and Goering. Retribution was inexorably approaching the Fuhrer.
But time passed. It was already the 43rd year in the yard. The situation on the fronts changed radically. During the time that Miklashevsky spent on preparation, the transition to the Nazis, legalization in the Reich, there was a serious turning point in the war.
In February, ended with a brilliant victory Battle of Stalingrad, the Germans rolled back from the North Caucasus.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
Behind was Battle of Kursk, forcing the Dnieper is the most powerful line of defense of the Nazis, which gave Hitler reason to believe that he would be able to keep Ukraine with its raw materials. Those hopes were dashed.
For the Western allies, it becomes obvious: Germany is losing the war, and the Red Army will definitely enter Europe, and this was not just a scarecrow, it was terrifying.
A new turn of history: do not touch Hitler!
In the autumn of 1943, Igor Miklashevsky sent a radiogram to Moscow:
Readiness to liquidate Hitler has been achieved.
Moreover, it is possible to destroy not only Hitler, but also Goering. In the theater, during a performance with the participation of Olga Chekhova.
And then Stalin summons Sudoplatov and Merkulov to him and cancels the entire operation. Moreover, he specifically orders: do not touch Hitler!
This was all the more strange, since at the same time, attempts to destroy the Fuhrer are multiplying in Germany itself.
On March 21, 1943, a high-ranking officer of the Wehrmacht and at the same time an active member of the German resistance movement, Baron Rudolf-Christoph von Gersdorff, could blow up Adolf Hitler in the Zeuchhaus Berlin Armory Museum, where an exhibition of captured weapons was held.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
When Gersdorff accompanied Hitler to the exhibition and he had a bomb with him, which he was about to detonate, this, in general, was not an attempt, because the bomb was not detonated.
The assassination attempt on Hitler was also prepared by Western intelligence services. At the beginning of the 44th, British intelligence MI6 planned to drop a super-powerful bomb on the Fuhrer's headquarters "Wolf's Lair" in East Prussia. Then this action was abandoned.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
An operation was developed, and quite a serious one at that. In general, she had a chance of success, although, in my opinion, she was built somewhat adventurously, and, of course, this did not give a 100% guarantee ...
Stalin during this period of the war more than once received information from intelligence about secret separate negotiations between our allies in anti-Hitler coalition with top German officials. These contacts became more frequent and worried him, since it was about the possibility of concluding a separate peace, and living Hitler was extremely dangerous for these negotiators.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
And the Vatican also intervened, conducting secret negotiations with representatives of certain German forces, who said that they would destroy Hitler and there would be a government that would fight against the Russians along with the allies.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
If, in the event of the death of Hitler, someone comes to power, well, for example, Goering, then it is quite likely that a separate peace will be concluded, the preservation of Nazi Germany as such, because the regime is preserved, it will simply be modified, it will not be so terrorist, not so anti-human, will be veiled...
If an ordinary Soviet person during the war years had become aware that Stalin had the opportunity to kill Hitler and he deliberately did not use it, then most likely they would simply not have believed it.
But the leader was already thinking about the post-war structure of the world. The unconditional victory over fascism made it possible to significantly expand the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union in Europe. And a separate peace between the Germans and the allies would put an end to all these far-reaching plans of Stalin.
But Western countries Hitler interfered greatly, only his death could make their negotiations real. New Germany, without Hitler, without the Soviets, sounds beautiful.
Now it is the life or death of the Fuhrer that is the most important factor in the big geopolitical game.
Assassination attempt in the "Wolf's Lair": Hitler is already interfering with Germany
On July 20, 1944, the most famous assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler took place at the headquarters of the Fuhrer "Wolf's Lair".
Colonel of the Army Reserve Headquarters Count Klaus Schenck von Stauffenberg and his adjutant Lieutenant Werner von Haften tried to assassinate their supreme commander.
The powerful explosion of the infernal machine was the culmination of a well-prepared plot.
Part of the German generals and senior officers, foreseeing the imminent defeat of Germany, decided to eliminate Hitler and conclude a separate peace with the Western powers, thereby preventing the final defeat of the Third Reich.
The conspirators coordinated their actions with the American and British intelligence services.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
Contacts were constant. German conspirators went to the West. Not on us, on the West. This was necessary for the following reasons: it was extremely important for the conspirators not only to kill Hitler and carry out a coup d'état, they needed to receive immediate support.
At the moment when they seize power, they would immediately receive the support of Western democracy, a truce at the front, the arrival of Western troops, because they believed that Germany, if Hitler and the Nazi regime were eliminated, had a chance not only to keep the borders in the east 39- th year, but there were generally talks about maintaining the borders of even the 41st year and possibly even the 42nd.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
One of the leaders of the conspirators, Colonel General Beck, sent a letter to the Americans shortly before the opening of the second front and the attempt on Hitler that we could carry out a coup and, moreover, allow the American and British troops to land unhindered on the territory of the Reich.
But the allies did not always have a negative attitude towards Hitler. The Third Reich, as a powerful military force, turned primarily to the East, is in many ways a project of the West.
It was on Western, mainly on American investments that the economy of Nazi Germany and its military power rose in the 30s. The Reich led by Hitler was the one bloodthirsty dog, which could be unleashed against the "Red Project" called the USSR. And the frantic Fuhrer became the best driving force behind this project.
The secret society of the Aryans of Thule and the tacit support of the West
The formation of Hitler's worldview took place in the early 20s in Munich in the secret society of Thule (Thule-Gesellschaft). It got its name in honor of the mythical northern island, where the Aryan race allegedly originated.
One of the leaders of this society was Dietrich Eckart.
Mystic, practicing occultist, writer and ideologue of Nazism.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
A man who was one of Hitler's first teachers, but only for a short time. In the 23rd year, he had already died, but he said such a remarkable thing: “Follow Hitler, he will dance, and I ordered the music. I have made a huge contribution to the future of Germany.”
In the society of Thule, Hitler learned the main thing - the superiority of the Aryan race and hatred of other peoples, especially Jews and Slavs. And the main driving force in Germany was to be the Nazi Party.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
Interestingly, when Hitler was involved in the activities of the closed secret organization Thule, the idea of creating this party was born in the DAP - Deutsche Arbeiterpartei - German Workers' Party. And in the 20th, it already received the name that it will have until its collapse, NSDAP - the National Socialist Workers' Party of Germany.
But when Hitler came to power in Germany, he stopped noticing his former mentors, with a few exceptions, although many of them sincerely aspired to work in the structures of the Third Reich.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
And just then it turned out that Hitler, borrowing some ideas from them, was not going to admit this. That is, he believed that everything he received, he processed, and he himself is the author of this. Accordingly, Hitler was not going to tolerate under any circumstances any attempt at ideological competition. Who was accepted by Hitler? Hitler received Rosenberg, Hitler received Hess, and both people categorically stated that Hitler was our messiah...
And the West initially supported such an uncontrollable aggressor until Hitler completely got out of control. But even with the beginning of World War II, some US financial and industrial structures continued to cooperate with Nazi Germany and maintain contact with former partners.
Periodically, the Reich was supplied with American oil, which was carried out by sea in tankers to the Canary Islands. The further part of the route passed under the escort of German warships.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
Yes, it was. As for the sale of oil, there were deliveries through neutral countries. The States did not trade directly with Germany.
All economic ties between the West and the Germans during the war were kept in the strictest confidence by both sides.
This was especially true of the trade in valuables that the Nazis took from the occupied countries and, above all, from the Soviet Union.
Among the stolen were world-class works of art - ancient icons, antiques.
Many of these treasures were then sold at secret auctions in neutral Switzerland, and the main buyers were "moneybags" from the United States.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
The International Bank for Currency Settlements, which still exists and existed during the war in Switzerland, is a bank that was created by all European powers, the British headed it during the war, and through it during the war the Reichsbank traded in gold obtained in concentration camps.
The mining scheme for this gold was well developed. The SS men took valuables from the Jews, who were massively sent to concentration camps.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
They were not told that they were being sent to a concentration camp. They were told that they were being sent to a new place of residence in the East, so they were advised to take with them the valuables that were confiscated. Then the Jews were sent to the gas chamber, after which the SS transferred this gold to the Reichsbank, and the Reichsbank credited a certain amount to the account of the SS. After that, the gold ended up in the cellars of the Reichsbank, where it was melted down into bars, and these bars were sold abroad.
But the development of economic ties between the West and Germany was hindered by Hitler. No one wanted to deal with this little adequate person. In addition, the Fuhrer firmly stood on the position of "war to a victorious end", and by the 44th year it became clear to the Americans and the British that Hitler would lose this war, he was already worked out material.
The Red Army was inevitably approaching the borders of the Third Reich. And this terrified our allies. Russian communists must be stopped! To do this, you must first destroy Hitler, and then make peace with the new German government.
On June 6, 1944, the Allies open a second front and start running towards Berlin, trying to reach it first. And after only two weeks - the most high-profile attempt on Adolf Hitler, arranged by Colonel Stauffenberg. What is this? Coincidence or coordinated actions with Western intelligence agencies? There is no exact answer to this question yet.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
First of all, the British intelligence services worked very actively, and, in general, the rate was on the conspirators. The question was not just to eliminate Hitler as a figure, but was to simultaneously carry out a coup d'état, to confirm that Germany would stop resistance in the West.
The conspirators had a clear program, which was to take effect after the death of the Fuhrer: to form a provisional government, immediately explain to the people the criminal role of Hitler, immediately end the war and conclude a compromise peace with the Western powers.
Konstantin Zalessky
Historian, journalist
Stauffenberg insisted that a truce in the East was necessary in a categorical manner. But the group of old German conservative nationalists, Goerdeller was there, they just thought that it was quite enough to make peace with the West, to incorporate Germany into the Western world, not the Eastern one - in no case! Soviet system, the Bolshevik system was hostile ...
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
The fact that the assassination attempt took place, in this case, is not a mistake of a trained canine German guard, but a mistake of Hitler. He overestimated not someone, not the guards, he underestimated not these people who did not love him, he overestimated himself, believing that he really is a god and a favorite of these generals.
From the explosion of a bomb left by Colonel Stauffenberg in a briefcase at the massive table at which the meeting was held, 24 people were injured.
Four of them - two generals, a colonel and a stenographer - were killed. The rest were injured varying degrees gravity.
Hitler miraculously survived.
Nikolai Dolgopolov
Journalist, writer, assistant chief editor of Rossiyskaya Gazeta
He suffered greatly, he was very seriously wounded, this was concealed, of course, from Germany and from the world. But I would say that it made a big impression, firstly, on the army; secondly, on the people; and thirdly, Hitler fell ill and very seriously. Only his relatives knew about it, such as, for example, his concubine Eva Braun. She writes that he was deaf in one ear, that one eye stopped seeing, his hands began to shake, and that sometimes he fell into a kind of oblivion.
The fact that Hitler survived was to Stalin's advantage. The Red Army continued its victorious offensive in Europe without hindrance. No separate negotiations between the West and the Germans were possible.
The further fate of those involved in the assassination attempt, which never took place
And what happened to the Soviet intelligence officer Igor Miklashevsky after the leader canceled his order to destroy Hitler?
At first, Miklashevsky remained in Germany, but then, as an officer of the Vlasov army, the Germans sent him to Normandy to fight with the Anglo-American allies. There, in one of the battles, he was seriously wounded, but thanks to Igor's connections, he was sent to the best Berlin hospital.
After being discharged by order from the Center, the scout goes to visit his uncle Blumenthal-Tamarin, who by that time lived in a small town in southern Germany. The death sentence, which was pronounced on the traitor at the beginning of the war, has not been canceled.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
And, in fact, Igor Miklashevsky carried out the sentence at the end of the war. He visited the Anglo-Americans, then he was extradited in the 47th year - he returned back, but a bullet wound in Normandy did not give him the opportunity to continue working in the intelligence field.
Igor Miklashevsky returned to his homeland and continued to box, but already as a coach.
He was only 27 years old when he returned. He achieved success in this field, raised several champions of the USSR, died in Moscow in September 1990.
Alexander Korshunov
Historian, journalist
The post-war fate of Olga Chekhova is also unusual, as, in fact, her life in Germany. After the Victory, she was detained by the Smersh authorities and taken by plane to Moscow. A few weeks later she was released, she returned to Germany, where she settled in the future West Berlin, then moved to Munich. She will still star in 22 films, later she will even have a good business - she will open her own company, Olga Chekhova Cosmetics, which will have branches in Berlin and Milan ...
But if Stalin had not canceled his order, the fate of these people would not have been so happy. Most likely, if the scouts had carried out the sentence to the Fuhrer, they would have died.
But Stalin deliberately allowed Hitler to hold out until the end of the war. After the last assassination attempt, the Fuhrer will live another 9 months and 10 days. Soviet army capture Berlin and defeat the Nazis.
Then a socialist camp friendly to the Soviet Union will be formed.
The new political landscape in Europe following World War II will continue for another half a century.
The history of the early 20th century may repeat itself again due to the collapse of the liberal world order.
Sometimes a certain event or the fate of a particular person becomes a symbol of a global, historical trend. The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the consulate in Istanbul was one such moment.
It symbolizes the departure of the United States from the role of a force that held back the evil actors in the world, writes the Washington Post.
There were other scary signs as well. . The military of Myanmar staged a genocide of the Rohingya people. In Syria, there is a deliberate and constant massacre of the civilian population with the use of even prohibited chemical weapons. Russia invaded Ukraine and occupied Crimea. The rise of right-wing radicals in Europe and other parts of the world is also associated with a loss of strength and vitality among democracies. Doubts about America have been reverberating around the planet for more than 10 years, and the rest of the powers have begun to respond accordingly.
When Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán boasted about his "illiberal state" a few years ago, he stressed that he was only reacting to new realities, namely "a major redistribution of the world's financial, economic, trade, political and military force, which became apparent in 2008".
“Congratulations on the decline of the liberal world order that the US once supported. And this is just the beginning,” the newspaper writes.
World order is one of those things that people don't think about until it's gone. This is the lesson America learned in the 1930s when the old European order collapsed and the US refused to intervene to support or replace it. It was then that the Americans realized that the world will always be dangerous people who lack the strength and ability to carry out their plans. They can be suppressed by a justified stable international order. Whether it be Rome, a united Christendom, a European concept of power, or any form of "civilization" at a certain place and time.
As long as the world order is strong, evil sits in the shadows, but never disappears. When the dominant order falls apart, then the time comes when the shadow is dispelled, and those dark sides of human nature that lived in it crawl out.
This is exactly what happened in the first half of the 20th century. The conditions under which Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Benito Mussolini came to power were provided by a world in which no one was willing or able to maintain any semblance of world order. This gave the bloody dictators a chance to show what they are capable of. If there had been an order to dispel their ambitions, probably the world would never have dealt with the bloody tyrants who went down in history as aggressors and mass murderers.
“Today the shadow dissipates again. Those who urge us to withdraw from the world and show more restraint tell us that we must accept the world "as it is." But they have no idea what the world "as it is" is really like. They grew up inside a bubble of protection created by the power of the US and the liberal world it supported. In a world where other countries had to behave as they demanded. those realities of power,” the article says.
It was shaped by the beliefs of its leaders about what the US could or would have to put up with. They were driven by a sense of strength and consolidation of the liberal order. The same goes for the behavior of China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and every state or non-state actor who might be looking for ways to undermine or overthrow the existing order. All of them would have behaved differently long ago if America and its allies behaved differently too.
I will try to write the accumulated thoughts about revolutions, political technologies and my conclusions about the development paths. Already in the process of writing, I was faced with the fact that even having completely omitted the evidence part, I still cannot fit into one post and will have to be divided into several. So, part one "Russia and Germany. How the cat became a dog":
At school I did not like the subject "history". An overripe, plump wench with unpleasant-looking skin and a shrill voice tediously told about the affairs of some ancient dudes, requiring only a stupid memorization of dates. It wasn't even boring because I wasn't even listening. Nobody listened. They slapped everyone with a triple, on which they fled. And then I no longer had a compulsory subject "history" and I lived happily without knowledge of the past for most of my life. I'm sure many had similar "teachers" and you will understand me.
About the significance of history as a science, I thought already being quite an adult. When some political changes began in Russia and the world, references to the concept of "revolution" began, then I asked the first question, which gave me an interest in history as the most important tool for understanding the current situation and predicting future developments. That question sounded simply “Until 1917, for many hundreds of years, Russia was a monarchical state with a quite good economy, traditions and a relatively stable political situation. How did it happen that in October 1917 everything changed COMPLETELY and the country turned towards catastrophic development, like the USSR ?". I found the answer to this question by reading several articles about Lenin, Stalin, the First World War, the Second World War, the political games of Germany and Russia, the influence of the United States and a bunch of different notes. I must say that this greatly changed my vision of the situation and made it possible to take a different look at what is happening now.
As I wrote repeatedly: Russia and Germany at the beginning of the 20th century were twin brothers, the countries were not just twins, but literally two countries with the same EVERYTHING. This paradox is surprising because just a few years earlier, Russia and Germany were bitter enemies. German Empire Bismarck and Russian empire Nicholas II fought not for life, but for death for their economic interests and claims to "disputed" (actually - lightly armed) lands. But literally in 20-30 years everything changed exactly the opposite (the first allusion to the revolution of 1017).
Around the same time, the monarchies are overthrown and both countries begin military industrialization and military buildup, which clearly indicates preparations for a global world war. In both countries, immediately after the overthrow of the tsars, power passes into the hands of revolutionary, but quite moderate forces, who prepared the ground for the further economic growth of the country and for reconstruction after the war. And literally at the same time, power smoothly passes from the hands of moderate forces aimed at "licking wounds" into the hands of extremists, militants and outright bandits. In Russia it is the terrorist cell of Lenin, and in Germany it is the National Socialist Party. Moreover, the most surprising thing in this story is that even though these two political forces opposed each other (one of the reasons for Hitler's victory in the elections is the fierce criticism communist party Germany), but they act using the same methods to the smallest detail using the same political technologies. Hitler is chosen as the monopoly chairman of the party only after his defiant "exit" from it. Exactly the same story happens with Stalin: Lenin criticizes him in his letter, Stalin makes an offended face and allegedly leaves the party, but then he was "persuaded to return" and he becomes the sole "owner" of the only real political force in the country.
Surprising coincidences are replete with the entire history of the reign of Hitler and Stalin. Both begin to physically eliminate their political opponents, both announce a total modernization of production and a reorientation towards increasing military potential, both at the end of the 30s begin the SAME expansion into Europe. I will not now dwell on the proofs of these theses, it will take a VERY long time and require a truly gigantic work. Simply, if you decide to read about this period yourself, pay attention to the similar methods and ways of development of two initially completely different states.
For me, these similarities served as a wake-up call that sang "but here, after all, not everything is clean." No, well, really, if a cat starts wagging its tail, running after a stick and writing on trees with its paw up, then you involuntarily wonder what happened to him. I will say right away - I don’t know exactly what happened to Germany or Russia, but there are very funny facts that Lenin was very active in Austria and Germany from the end of the 1890s, and later received serious cash subsidies from there. In exactly the same way, there are facts that in the early 1920s, already Soviet Russia very actively pushed her ideas into Germany and shared resources. This despite the fact that the entire south of the future USSR did not even suspect that they belonged to the Soviets. That is, the new government in Russia paid much more attention to Germany with which Russia had no common borders than to that Ukraine and Central Asia with which there were borders. It's amazing why. And so in everything. I'm talking about twin brothers.
That's all for now.
