In October 1941, three and a half thousand Podolsk cadets held back the advance of an entire tank army for two weeks.

In the early morning of October 5, 1941, the advancing German units of the 57th Corps of the 3rd Tank Group occupied the city of Yukhnov and reached the approaches to Maloyaroslavets, finding themselves in the rear of not only the Western Front, but also the Reserve Front. A gap appeared in the defense of the Soviet troops in the Ilyinsky combat sector of the Mozhaisk defense line of Moscow, which the Germans could use to reach Moscow - 190 kilometers remained from Yukhnov to Moscow. . In the area of ​​the village of Ilinskoye, engineering units managed to build about 30 artillery and infantry pillboxes, but there was no one to defend them - our troops, some surrounded, some semi-encircled, defended the long-broken front near Vyazma.
On October 5, in Podolsk, about two thousand cadets of the artillery and one and a half thousand cadets of the infantry schools were removed from classes, alerted and sent to the defense of Maloyaroslavets. The city mobilized all passenger transport and even both Podolsk taxis, remembering how French taxi drivers saved Paris in 1914. All this transport was used to deliver cadets to positions.
The combined detachment of cadets was tasked with blocking the path of the Germans in the Ilyinsky combat area for 5-7 days, until reserves arrived from the depths of the country.

A cadet from the Podolsk artillery school writes a letter to his family the day before the start of the fighting.

The defense line ran along the eastern bank of the Vypreika River, dividing the village of Ilyinskoye in half.
In order to gain time for the deployment of the main forces of the schools near Maloyaroslavets, an advance detachment consisting of the 6th company of the infantry school under the command of Senior Lieutenant Mamchich and an artillery battalion consisting of two batteries under the command of Captain Rossikov was advanced towards the enemy.
The advance detachment of cadets in cars left Podolsk in the evening of the same day, and in the morning, October 6, they threw back units of the 57th German Corps from the Izverv River to the Ugra River. Over five days of fighting, this detachment destroyed 20 tanks, 10 armored vehicles and about 1,000 enemy soldiers and officers.

Our anti-aircraft gun, which took part in the battles at the Ilyinsky line

On October 10, the remnants of the cadets of the advanced detachment reached the Ilyinsky sector of the Maloyaroslavl combat area and joined up with the main forces of the Podolsk military schools.
On October 11, at noon, fighting began throughout the entire combat area. From bomb strikes, artillery and mortar fire, it seemed that the entire earth around stood on end and nothing living on it would survive. After 40 minutes of preparation and processing of the front edge of the cadets of the 10th company, the enemy threw five tanks into battle and up to a company of infantry. But the tanks and infantry were destroyed.
On October 12, the enemy tried to break into our defenses, but he managed to advance only 300 meters. By the end of the day, the entire defense area of ​​the 10th company was literally riddled with craters.
On October 13, the Germans decided to use a trick. Having placed red banners on 15 captured tanks, on which they placed paratroopers with our helmets on their heads, they approached the positions of the Podolsk cadets from the direction of Maloyaroslavets, but the red flags on the tanks looked so theatrical that the deception was recognized, and the tank column was destroyed.

At eight o'clock on October 13, the Nazis opened hurricane fire from guns and mortars. Enemy bombers attacked.
The Nazis brought equipment and infantry into battle. The battle was cruel and unequal. The enemy managed to take possession of the village of Bolshaya Shubinka.
Late at night, having surrounded the village on both sides, the cadets suddenly attacked the village of Bolshaya Shubinka.
On October 14, early in the morning, the Nazis again began intensive artillery preparation. Then they threw air force at the cadets. By the end of the day, the enemy managed to capture the first and second trenches, but was unable to completely break through the defense area.

Broken forty-five
A platoon of cadets under Lieutenant Timofeev showed miracles of heroism. Taking up defensive positions near the village of Malaya Shubinka, the platoon fought in complete encirclement throughout October 14, repelling numerous enemy attacks.
On the night of October 15, the encirclement ring was broken and the remaining five people went to the battalion's location.
On October 15, the remnants of the battalion, in cooperation with the detachment of Captain Chernysh, carried out seven attacks on enemy positions, each attack ending in hand-to-hand combat. During one of the attacks, Captain Chernysh and political instructor Kurochkin were killed.
The artillery cadets showed miracles of heroism and self-sacrifice. Without leaving their firing positions, they repelled the continuous attacks of the Germans. The cadets of the 4th battery of Lieutenant Afanasy Ivanovich Aleshkin especially distinguished themselves.

Artillery bunker in Ilyinsky

His battery was located in the village of Sergievka on the Warsaw highway and was well camouflaged, and the pillbox with a gun was disguised as a wooden barn. The Germans could not recognize Aleshkin’s gun for a long time and suffered heavy losses, and when they found it, they surrounded the pillbox and threw grenades at it. Lieutenant Aleshkin died along with six cadets.
On October 16, German troops captured defensive lines in the Ilyinsky combat area, and almost all the cadets holding the defense in this area were killed. On October 17, the command post of Podolsk cadets was moved to Lukyanovo. For two days, the cadets defended Lukyanovo and Kudinovo. On October 19, the cadets defending Kudinovo were surrounded, but managed to get out of the encirclement. On the same day they received orders to withdraw.
On October 20, the surviving cadets began to retreat to reunite with the troops occupying the defense on the Nara River. The Germans were delayed for two weeks, which was enough to form a continuous line of defense. On October 25, the surviving cadets marched on foot to Ivanovo to continue their training.

Podolsk cadets are combined detachments of military schools in the city of Podolsk, who together with the 43rd Army defended the southwestern approaches to Moscow in October 1941 during the Great Patriotic War. In 1939-1940, artillery and infantry schools were created in Podolsk.
The Podolsk Artillery School (PAS) was created in September 1938; it trained anti-tank artillery platoon commanders. At the same time, the school trained four artillery divisions from three training batteries of 4 platoons each. One training battery consisted of about 120 cadets. About 1,500 cadets were studying at the school at the beginning of the war.
The Podolsk Infantry School (PPU) was formed in January 1940; it trained infantry platoon commanders in 4 training battalions. Each battalion had 4 training companies of 120-150 cadets each. In total, more than 2,000 cadets studied at the infantry school.
By the beginning of the war, more than 3,500 cadets were studying at the schools.

By order of Headquarters, they stood up to defend the city of Moscow, having studied for only three months.
Making such a decision is not easy. This order was a last resort. The command understood that cadets of military schools were a golden fund for the development of the army. But this was the only way out. There was a threat of the capture of Moscow by fascist troops. From Yukhnov to Moscow there were 198 kilometers left; there was nowhere else to get troops to defend the capital on this route.

Podolsk cadets took part in their first battle with the Nazis on October 6, 1941.
The 57th German motorized corps, consisting of 200 tanks and 20,000 soldiers and officers, was marching on Moscow.
Having spent almost all the ammunition, after five days of fighting, the advanced detachment of Podolsk cadets retreated to the Ilyinsky lines, where the main forces of the cadets of the Podolsk schools were already occupying positions.

At the Ilyinsky line, cadets installed guns in pillboxes that not only were not completed, but were not even camouflaged.
The name of the commander of the 4th battery, Lieutenant Afanasy Aleshkin, has been preserved. Together with the soldiers of his battery, he acted in an unusual manner. At the moment when the fascists began to shoot at his pillbox with guns, Afanasy Ivanovich and his soldiers rolled out the gun to a reserve position.
When the fire stopped, the cannon returned to its previous position, and again the cadets fought the enemy.
On the evening of October 16, 1941, German soldiers surrounded the pillbox, and when it got dark, they threw grenades at its defenders.

On the morning of October 17, the main positions of the Ilyinsky lines were captured by the Nazis. The surviving cadets retreated to the village of Lukyanovo, and the command post was moved there. For another two days, the cadets defended the settlements of Lukyanovo and Kudinovo.
On October 19, in the Kudinovo area, the Germans surrounded the cadets, but the soldiers managed to break through. In the evening, the command received an order - to join the main forces, the combined regiment of cadets should retreat to the line of the Nara River.
On October 25, the order was given to go to the city of Ivanovo to complete the training. All surviving cadets were taken to the rear that same day.


It is believed that out of 3,500 cadets, about 2,500 cadets died at the Ilyinsky lines. But according to some information, it is believed that out of 3,500 soldiers of the combined regiment, nine out of ten cadets died.

The meeting with the “red cadets” cost the Germans dearly; the Nazis lost about 100 tanks and up to 5,000 soldiers and officers in these battles.
At the cost of their lives, the Podolsk cadets gained time, which was vital for the formation of units on the new line of defense. The operation, code-named “Typhoon,” failed.
The Nazis were unable to enter Moscow and walk along Red Square.

Surviving cadets on the day of the opening of the monument at the Ilyinsky Borders.

PODILSK ARTILLERY SCHOOL

Podolsk Artillery School (PAS) was created in September 1938. It was located in the premises where the archives of the Russian Ministry of Defense are currently located. The school simultaneously trained four artillery divisions from three training batteries of 4 platoons each. One training battery consisted of about 120 cadets. Over 1.5 thousand cadets were studying at the same time. Artillery units of the reserve of the Supreme High Command were formed on the territory of the PAH.

The storage building, which before the war was a cadet barracks.

In addition to the main activities, a lot of time and effort was devoted to horses. The cadets often went for live firing to the Luzhki field camp, which was located in the Serpukhov region.
By October 1941, the school had mainly training models of guns, with which the cadets went to the front and took part in battle together with the cadets of the Podolsk Infantry School near Maloyaroslavets.

A note scribbled on the wall of a vault.

School location:
from September 1938 to October 5, 1941 - Podolsk.
from 10/5/1941 to 10/21/1941 - was part of the 43rd Army
from 10/21/1941 to 11/28/1941 - relocated to Bukhara (SAVO), where it was located until 08/14/1944.
from 08/27/1944 to 07/27/1946 - Tashkent.
Heads of the school:
from 10/31/1938 to 09/04/1941 - Georgy Ivanovich Balashov - colonel.
from 09/05/1941 to 12/08/1941 – Ivan Semenovich Strelbitsky – Major General.
from 12/08/1941 to 02/14/1942 – Smirnov Vasily Andreevich – colonel.
from 02/14/1942 to 05/08/1943 - Nikolai Aleksandrovich Oganesyan - colonel.
from 05/08/1943 to 07/24/1946 - Krasusky Mikhail Grigorievich - colonel.

PAU LEADERS

1. Balasho(e)v Georgy Ivanovich.

Born in 1901. In the Red Army since March 1918. From colonel he rose to major general of artillery. Before the Great Patriotic War, he was awarded the medal “XX Years of the Red Army”. During the Civil War he fought on the Southern Front against Wrangel’s troops, and from 1920 he held command positions. On the fronts of the Second World War, from the first day of the war, in the battles of 1941, he was slightly wounded and shell-shocked.
Balashev took part in the battles for Crimea on Perekop in 1941, as the chief of artillery of the Army Group, Lieutenant General Batov. During the capture of Kerch, as the chief of artillery on the left sector of the front, Georgy Ivanovich directly supervised the actions of the artillery. Since February 1942, Balashov was appointed commander of the 302nd SD. Under his personal leadership, heavily fortified enemy positions were destroyed. Then he participates in the battles of the 396th SD. From December 1942 to May 1943 he was appointed chief of staff of the artillery of the 58th Army. Developed and organized fighting. Georgy Ivanovich repeatedly personally took part in combat operations as part of the infantry and artillery. Balashov was a decisive and courageous commander. In 1943, he was twice nominated for the Order of the Red Banner. Supreme Commander-in-Chief J.S. Stalin three times declared gratitude to the artillerymen under the command of Colonel Balashov. Major General of Artillery Georgy Ivanovich Balashov from 1954 to 1958 was the head of Kolkau named after. S.M.Kirova. First on the left is General Balashov G.I. at the NP during shooting at the Rzhishchevsky training ground. Balashov Georgy Ivanovich died in 1965.

2. Strelbitsky Ivan Semyonovich.

Soviet Lieutenant General of Artillery, Chief of the Radio Engineering Troops of the USSR Armed Forces. Born on October 7, 1900, in the city of Gorlovka, Ekaterinoslav province, Russian Empire, in the family of an employee. Since the times of the Galician-Volyn state, the Strelbitsky surname has been known. She comes from an ancient Cossack-gentry family. As a Red Army soldier in 1918, Ivan Semenovich joined the ranks of the Red Army, where he served for more than 40 years. He took part in three wars, rising from a Red Army soldier to a lieutenant general. When repressions began in the Red Army, he was the chief of artillery of the 33rd Rifle Corps. Like many at that time, Strelbitsky was arrested as a “Polish spy”, but was soon released. He met the beginning of the war with the rank of colonel, commander of the 8th VET artillery brigade. The brigade led by Strelbitsky together with the 24th Infantry Division, north of the city Lida, took on the attack of the 3rd Panzer Group of Hoth. The brigade found itself in the Bialystok-Minsk cauldron. Coming out of the encirclement, he connected with the group of the Deputy Commander of the Western Front, General I.V. Boldin. On August 15, 1941 he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner.
On September 5, 1941, he was appointed head of the Podolsk Artillery School, which he held until December 8, 1941. Together with the cadets, he took part in the defense of Moscow in the Mozhaisk direction. Then, as chief of artillery of the 60th Army, commander of the artillery of the 3rd Shock Army, 2nd Guards Army, Strelbitsky participated in the assault on Sevastopol and Koenigsberg. On April 21, 1944, the commander of the 2nd Guards Army, Lieutenant General G. F. Zakharov, Guard Major General of Artillery I. S. Strelbitsky, was nominated for the rank of Hero Soviet Union. The award sheet noted: “... Under the personal leadership of General Strelbitsky, several dozen counterattacks of enemy infantry and tanks were repelled... For active and skillful participation in the development and leadership of the army’s combat operations to break through the enemy’s modern defenses on the Molochnaya River, on Perekop and Ishun; for personal courage and heroism shown while leading artillery units during the breakthrough of the defenses on Perekop and Ishun.” After the end of the war, from 1945 to 1947 he was deputy chief of artillery of the Kharkov Military District. In 1947, Ivan Semenovich was appointed assistant commander of the armored and mechanized forces of the USSR Armed Forces, where he served until 1953. As a senior military adviser, from 1950 to 1953, he took part in the military conflict of the DPRK and the PRC against the United States. In 1953, Strelbitsky became a student at the Higher Military Academy named after K. E. Voroshilov, from which he graduated in 1955. From 1954 to 1956 he held the position of chief of radio engineering troops. Ivan Semenovich has written many books: “Storm”, “Hurricane”, military memoirs, a book about the civil war. A street in the city is named in his honor. Podolsk (Moscow region) in the new territorial department “Grasshoppers”.
Strelbitsky has state awards: Order of Lenin (after 1945), Order of the Red Banner (2nd after 1945), Order of the Red Banner (1941, 1944), Order of Suvorov I degree (1944), Order of Kutuzov I degree (1945), Order of Kutuzov II degrees (1943), Order of the Red Star (1967), as well as medals. His achievements were also recognized by other states: Sino Soviet Friendship Rib. png. Ivan Semenovich died on November 25, 1980.

3. Smirnov Vasily Andreevich.

Vasily Andreevich was born on February 25, 1889 in the village of Pochinok, Galich district, Kostroma province, Russian Empire.
From December 8, 1941 to February 14, 1942, he was the head of the Podolsk Artillery School.

4. Oganesyan Nikolay Alexandrovich.

Born in Western Armenia in the city of Surmalu in 1899. Graduated from the Academy. Frunze. Artillery commander of the 3rd Guards Tank Army. Killed in battle on January 21, 1945. Buried in Zhitomir.

5. Krasusky Mikhail Grigorievich.

PODILSK INFANTRY SCHOOL

The Podolsk Military Infantry School (PPU) was founded in January 1940 as a small arms and machine gun school on the basis of one of the battalions of the school named after the Supreme Council of the RSFSR. It trained infantry platoon commanders in 4 training battalions. Each battalion had 4 training companies of 120-150 cadets each. In total, more than 2,000 cadets studied at the infantry school.

The school was located in the building where the industrial technical school was located. Now there is the Russian State University of Tourism and Service. From 08/01/1941 - Podolsk Infantry School.
School location:
from January 15, 1940 to October 25, 1941 - Podolsk.
until 05.10.1941 - 2nd Sat. — Podolsk, 4th Sat. — Serpukhov, 1st and 3rd Sat. - Camp Luzhki.
from 10.25.1941 to 11.06.1941 - redeployment.
from 06.11.1041 to 05.07.1944 - Ivanovo, Ivanovo region, - 1st and 4th Sat. - Bogorodskoye village, Ivanovo region, 5th Sat. — camp Kharinka.
from 07/05/1044 to 06/15/1040 - the city of Shuya, Ivanovo region.
Heads of the school:
from 01/08/1940 to 03/15/1940 - Pshenichnikov Afanasy Stepanovich - colonel.
from 03/15/1940 to 12/30/1940 - Ilya Ivanovich Shvygin - brigade commander, major general.
from 12/30/1940 to 11/25/1941 - Vasily Andreevich Smirnov - Major General.
from November 25, 1941 to February 19, 1942 - Boris Sergeevich Zarembovsky - major.
from 02/19/1942 to 07/27/1942 - Svishchev Mikhail Romanovich - colonel.
from 07/21/1942 to 09/28/1947 - Apakidze Valentin Andreevich - colonel, major general.

PPU HEADS

1. Pshenichnikov Afanasy Stepanovich.

from 01/08/1940 to 03/15/1948 Colonel. Born on August 21, 1898 in the village of Berestovka, Rogachev district, Mogilev province. From a peasant family. In 1911 he graduated from two classes of the parochial school. He was drafted into the Red Army on December 3, 1918. with the rank of private. In the same year, Afanasy Stepanovich entered command courses in Simbirsk, which he graduated in 1920. In 1920, Pshenichnikov joined the party. Since 1921 to 1922 undergoes refresher courses at the headquarters of the Western Front. Since 1922 to 1923 studied at the Higher Tactical Rifle School. In 1929 he entered the main faculty of the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze, which he graduated from in 1932. Since 1919 to 1920 Afanasy Stepanovich participates in the Civil War in the Eastern and Western fronts. Holds the position of platoon commander of the 13th reserve, 37th rifle regiment from July to December 1920. From December 1920 to September 1921. Pshenichnikov is the commander of a company, battalion of the 37th Infantry Regiment. Company commander of the 13th Infantry Regiment from July 1922. to May 1925 Appointed head of the regimental school, a special command of the same regiment in May 1925, where he served until September 1929. Then he receives a referral to the RU of the headquarters of the Red Army - RU of the Red Army, where he occupies the following positions: available from May to October 1932; head of the 1st sector from October 1932 to February 1933; commander-leader of the 3rd department of the RKUKS from February 1933 to January 1935; head of the 4th department from January 1935 to February 1936; head of the western department of the 5th (district and naval intelligence agencies) department from February 1936 to June 1937; at the disposal of the Red Army RU from June to November 1937. On November 17, 1937, Pshenichnikov received the rank of colonel. From 1936 to 1937, Afanasy Stepanovich was sent as a military adviser to Spain during the civil war, where he served in the office of the chief military adviser as an instructor in operational and information work. In November 1937, he was appointed head of the RO headquarters of the Kyiv Military District, where he served until October 1939. At the disposal of the Red Army Command Staff Directorate, Pshenichnikov was sent from October 1939 to December 1940. From January 8, 1940 to March 15, 1940, Afanasy Stepanovich was appointed head of the Podolsk Rifle and Machine Gun School. Then in December 1940 he was appointed commander of the 425th Infantry Regiment of the 110th Infantry Division. He met the Great Patriotic War as a regiment commander. Pshenichnikov Afanasy Stepanovich went missing in June 1941. He was awarded: two Orders of the Red Banner (1937, 1941), the Order of the Red Star (1937).

2. Shvygin Ilya Ivanovich.

From 03/15/1940 to 12/30/1940 Brigade commander Major General.
Born June 17, 1888, in the village of Maryino Oryol region. Worked as a miner in Donbass. Then he entered the army as a private in the 44th Kamchatka Infantry Regiment of the 2nd Infantry Division and rose to the rank of non-commissioned officer. He fought on the Austrian front during the First World War.
In 1918, he joined the Red Army as an assistant battalion commander, then was appointed to the position of division commander. Joined the party. In 1937, Ilya Ivanovich became assistant commander of the 46th Infantry Division. Awarded the anniversary medal “XX Years of the Red Army”. In 1938, he led the reconnaissance of the Kamenets-Podolsk fortified area under construction. On September 26, 1938 he was appointed commandant of the Kyiv fortified area. Shvygin commanded the 138th Rifle Division from December 25, 1939. On March 15, 1940, Ilya Ivanovich Shvygin was appointed head of the Podolsk Infantry School. On June 4, 1940, he was awarded the rank of major general. Since December 12, 1940 it has been in the reserve of the Criminal Code of the Red Army. On April 26, 1941, Shvygin was appointed commandant of the fortified area of ​​the Hanko Peninsula. From July 25, 1941 - acting. d. commandant of the Krasnogvardeisky fortified area. August 31, 1941 Ilya Ivanovich - deputy commander of the 42nd Army. From December 10, 1941 to December 22, 1941, he commanded the 13th Infantry Division.
He held command positions on the Southwestern and Don fronts. From July 30, 1943 to May 13, 1944, he commanded the 320th Infantry Division. He died on May 13, 1944 while crossing the Dniester River. Buried in Odessa. For participation in the battles for the liberation of Odessa, General I. I. Shvygin was awarded the order Battle Red Banner. In honor of the 30th anniversary of the liberation of the city of Nikolaev in March 1974, secondary school No. 35 was named after Ilya Ivanovich Shvygin.

3. Smirnov Vasily Andreevich.

From 12/30/1940 to 11/25/1941. Major General. Vasily Andreevich was born on February 25, 1889 in the village of Pochinok, Galich district, Kostroma province, Russian Empire. Smirnov joined the 106th Ufa Infantry Regiment in Vilno in October 1909, after joining military service with the rights of a volunteer. In August 1913, he graduated from the Vilna Military School, to which he was sent in August 1910. After graduating from the school, he was promoted to second lieutenant and appointed as a junior officer in the 141st Mozhaisk Infantry Regiment in Orel. In August 1914 he went to the front and fought on the Northwestern Front in East Prussia . From August to September 1914 he participated in the East Prussian operation with the rank of half-company commander. Since February 1915, Smirnov was already a company commander and regimental adjutant, and in May he was appointed battalion commander in the same regiment. But on August 28, 1915, Vasily Andreevich was captured. Until December 1918 he was in a prisoner of war camp near Magdeburg. And only in December 1928, after the exchange of prisoners of war, Smirnov returned to his homeland. On June 20, 1919, Smirnov was drafted into the Red Army and assigned to the 2nd reserve rifle regiment in Kostroma. This is how the Civil War began for him. Vasily Andreevich was a platoon commander, for assignments under the battalion commander, a regimental adjutant. Subsequently, in March 1920, he was transferred to the 7th reserve rifle regiment in Yaroslavl, where he was appointed to the position of assistant. regimental adjutant and regimental adjutant. In June 1922, the regiment was disbanded. Smirnov receives a new appointment - adjutant of the divisional school of the 18th Infantry Division in Yaroslavl. In December 1922, he held the position of chief of staff of the 54th Infantry Regiment, stationed in the cities of Rostov-Yaroslavsky and Shuya. In May 1926, Vasily Andreevich was transferred to the 53rd Infantry Regiment in Rybinsk to the same position. In November 1926, he was appointed to the position of assistant. the commander of the combat unit and the commander of this regiment. From November 1929 to June 1930 he studied at the Shot course. Since February 1931, he commanded the 9th separate rifle territorial battalion as part of the 3rd separate Ryazan regiment. In January 1934, Smirnov was sent to D. Vostok, where he was appointed commander of the training battalion of the 118th Infantry Regiment OKDVA. In June of the same year, he took command of the 119th Infantry Regiment in the village. Barabash. Since September 1937 he has been chief of staff of the 66th, and since May 1938 of the 26th Infantry Division. In June 1938, Colonel Smirnov was sent to the Moscow Military District as assistant. commander of the 17th Gorky Rifle Division. Since September 1939, he was appointed to the post of head of a special group under the Military Council of the District. December 8, 1940 Vasily Andreevich Smirnov was appointed head of the Podolsk Rifle and Machine Gun School. On February 5, 1941, Major General Smirnov spoke with a school near Maloyaroslavets. From October 5 to October 16, the school cadets under his command fought heavy battles west of the city, holding their defensive positions. On October 25, 1941, the school, by order of the commander of the Moscow Military District, was removed from the front and relocated to the city. Ivanovo-Voznesensk. Then Major General Smirnov was appointed commander of the 2nd Moscow Rifle Division. On November 7, 1941, she took part in the parade of troops on Red Square. From December 8, 1941 to February 14, 1942, he was the head of the Podolsk Artillery School. On October 3, 1942, during the army’s advance near the village. Kozlov, Major General Smirnov was seriously wounded and was in the hospital. Upon recovery in January 1943, he left for the North-Western Front, where in February he was appointed deputy. Chief of Staff for the VPU of the 53rd Army. Since April 1943, he served as head of the combat training department of the headquarters of the Steppe Military District. In this position he took part in Battle of Kursk, liberation of Left Bank Ukraine and the battle for the Dnieper. In December, Major General Smirnov was appointed commander of the 116th Red Banner Kharkov Division. Not once was the division commander Vasily Andreevich Smirnov mentioned in I.V. Stalin’s thank-you orders. But even after the war, Vasily Andreevich continued to serve in the army. He remained in command of the division in the city of Sambir. In July 1946, Smirnov was appointed head of the military cycle of the Military pedagogical institute Soviet army. Since May 1948, head of the 1st department of the Rifle-Tactical Committee of the Ground Forces, since March 1950, head military department Moscow Institute of Foreign Trade. In October 1954, Vasily Andreevich was transferred to the reserve. One of the streets of Podolsk bears his name. Smirnov Vasily Andreevich died on November 19, 1979 in Moscow. Government awards: Order of Lenin, three Orders of the Red Banner, Order of Kutuzov II degree, Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky II degree, Order of the Patriotic War I degree, Order of Tudor Vladimirescu II degree, and also awarded the medals: “For the Defense of Moscow”, “For Victory over Germany” in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945", "Veteran Armed Forces USSR".

4. Zarembovsky Boris Sergeevich.

5. Svishchev Mikhail Romanovich.

from 02/19/1942 to 07/27/1942 Colonel.

6. Apakidze Valentin Andreevich.

Lieutenant colonel. Colonel. Major General. From July 27, 1942 to 09/28/1947 Valentin Andreevich was born in 1904 in the village. Pakhulani, Kutaisi province, Russian Empire in the family of a lieutenant colonel in the Russian army, Prince Andrei Levanovich Apakidze. His two brothers also served in the army. Its roots come from an ancient Georgian princely family - a vassal of the rulers of Megrelia. The ancestor is considered to be the commander Apaka (Arpa-Kana), who came “from the Tatars of the time of Genghis Khan” (beginning of the 13th century), converted to Christianity and settled in Abkhazia. His descendants moved to Megrelia (Odishi). In historical documents, the names of representatives of the clan appear earlier - from the 11th century. In 1914, Valentin Andreevich was assigned to the Voronezh cadet corps. In 1918, Apakidze joined the ranks of the Red Army. He was only 14 years old when he took part in the Civil War. As part of the 103rd Bogucharsky Rifle Regiment, he fought on the Southern Front, was wounded in the head and sent to a hospital for treatment. After discharge, V. A. Apakidze enters the Red Commanders Course in Orel. After completing the course, he was appointed platoon commander of the reserve regiment in Kremenchug. Next, he receives assignment to a detachment attached to the special department of the 6th Army (Kherson), in which he took part in the battles on the Don Front. Then transfer to Fergana. In 1921-1922, as part of the Turkestan Front, he participated in battles with the Basmachi. During the time Civil War Valentin Andreevich was wounded twice. After the end of the Civil War, he served in Tula, then in Tbilisi. In 1928 he graduated from the Tiflis Military Infantry School and was sent to serve in the 57th Regiment of the 19th Infantry Division, in which he rose to the rank of battalion commander. In 1938 he was awarded the medal “XX Years of the Red Army”. In December 1939, he was sent to serve in the 524th Infantry Regiment of the 112th Infantry Division, in the Urals. On June 12, 1941, the 112th Rifle Division began redeployment to the Leningrad Military District “for training camps.” The division's echelons arrived at the Dretun station already under enemy bombing. V. A. Apakidze, as part of the 524th Regiment of the 112th Infantry Division, participated in the Great Patriotic War from the first day. Included Northwestern Front The division defended Kraslava, the city changed hands several times. By mid-July 1941, the 112th Infantry Division was fighting surrounded. But on the night of July 19, units of the division made a breakthrough; the remnants of the rifle regiments managed to break through to their units. Valentin Andreevich was seriously wounded. After his recovery in 1942, he was appointed head of the combat training department of the Moscow Military District. On July 27, 1942, V. A. Apakidze was appointed head of the Podolsk Infantry School, located at that time in the city of Ivanovo, Moscow Region, where he served until its disbandment (09/28/1947). On November 7, 1945 he received the rank of major general.
In 1947 he entered the Academy. Frunze. In September 1948 he was appointed head of the military department of the Rostov state university. In May 1950, he was appointed head of the 2nd Tashkent Infantry School. From November 1952 to December 1953, Valentin Andreevich was the commander of the 201st Gatchina Motorized Rifle Division. In 1960 he resigns. Valentin Andreevich Apakizde died in 1969. Has government awards: Order of Lenin; two Orders of the Red Banner; Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class and other medals.

Combined regiment of Podolsk cadets

In October 1941, approximately 3.5 thousand cadets of the Podolsk military schools wrote another heroic page in the history of Russia; they stopped the Wehrmacht units that were rushing towards Moscow.

A combined regiment was formed from the cadets of the Podolsk infantry and artillery schools, which was given the order to take up defense on the Ilyinsky line, the unfinished Maloyaroslavets fortified area and at any cost to delay the enemy for 5-7 days until the reserves arrived.

The infantry school was divided into 4 battalions. The PAU formed several divisions.

On June 14, 1941, a large group of Kremlin cadets was transferred to the Podolsk Infantry School, which, as part of a combined regiment of Podolsk cadets, took part in the defense of Moscow in the Mozhaisk direction.
Cartridges, grenades, rations for three days, rifles - that’s all the cadets’ equipment. PAU cadets advanced with their own training tools, guns of the times Russian-Turkish war 1877-1878.

Using vehicles from Podolsk enterprises, the advance detachment reached almost Yukhnov, which had already been occupied by the Germans. The cadets took their first battle on the evening of October 6 on the eastern bank of the Ugra, together with a battalion of paratroopers.

No more than a third of the cadets remained from the advanced detachment. The fate of the majority of the dead cadets of the combined regiment will remain unknown. There was no time to bury the dead, and after the battle the regiment often rolled back to a new position. Local residents who collected frozen corpses after the battle did not always look for documents, and some of the dead did not have them. Therefore, the names of half of those buried in mass graves remain unknown.

Documents used Central Archive M.O. Russia.

"Podolsk military artillery and infantry schools by 1941."

"In October 1941, 3.5 thousand

stopped an entire fascist division,

rushing to Moscow"

PodolThe Chinese artillery and infantry schools were created in the 1939-1940s. Before the start of the Great Patriotic War, up to 3 thousand people studied there. The head of the Podolsk Infantry School was Major General Vasily Smirnov, and the Podolsk Artillery School was Colonel Ivan Strelbitsky. With the beginning of the war, Komsomol students from various higher educational institutions of the USSR were sent to these schools. The 3-year training program was reduced to 6 months. Many of the school cadets only had time to study for one month - September - before they entered the battle.“There were quite a few among them who had never shaved, never worked, never traveled anywhere without mom and dad,”- later wrote in my memorieshead of the artillery school I.S. Strelbitsky. But this was the last reserve of the Headquarters in this direction, and it had no choice but to plug the giant gap that had formed in the defense of Moscow with the boys.

Podolsk Infantry School (PPU) ) was formed in January 1940 and trained infantry platoon commanders in 4 training battalions. Each had 4 training companies of 120-150 cadets each. In total, over 2,000 cadets studied here. The head of the school was Major General V.A. Smirnov, who already had combat experience.

The building (1928) of the former industrial technical school.

In 1940-41 it housed the Podolsk Infantry School.

June issue of PPU 1941. June issue of PPU 1941. Photos from the Luzhki field camp, which is in the Serpukhov region.

I.S. Strelbitsky

Head of the Podolsk Artillery School

N and in the walls of one of the storage rooms of the Central Archives of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in 2011, a note was discovered, scratched with a needle in... 1941. This message is very short and exciting, it has no beginning, no end, no signature. At the end there is only the date - July 12, 1941. Here is the text verbatim: “We were standing and our dads were already there. We left for the front from here. We have a strange feeling. 12.VII. '41" In 1941, as is known, the storage building housed the barracks of the cadet batteries of the Podolsk Artillery School. In October 1941, a combined regiment was formed from cadets of the Podolsk infantry and artillery schools, which was thrown near Maloyaroslavets, where almost all of it heroically fell. Perhaps the unknown author of the note shared this fate.

FRAGMENT

A note scribbled on the wall of a vault

Article by Valentin Krylov: Has the fallen regiment been erased from memory? In the year of the 70th anniversary of the start of the war, the Ministry of Defense plans to demolish the barracks of Podolsk cadets

"On June 22, 2011, the Russian Ministry of Defense opens in Manege an exhibition of unique front-line documents from the Great Patriotic War. Many of them were preserved only thanks to the careful and caring attitude of the employees of the Central Military Archive, which after the war was created on the territory of the former Podolsk Artillery School. Its barracks became repositories for the funds of divisions, armies and fronts of the Soviet army. Built thoroughly, from good-quality brick, they would probably have served as a reliable repository for military documents for a long time, but the Ministry of Defense decided to raze them to the ground....

The Ministry of Defense is aware of the existence of a unique note left on a brick of the former cadet barracks. General Alexander Kirilin, Head of the Office for Perpetuating the Memory of Military Personnel, assured us that he would do everything possible to preserve this relic. To our correspondent’s question about the fate of the former buildings of the Podolsk Artillery School, he replied that demolishing them is unacceptable - in addition to the fact that they themselves are architectural monuments, these barracks, from which Podolsk cadets left to defend Moscow, represent an important part of the country’s history, defeated fascism and could well become at least a museum." (Free Press; articleJune 21, 2011 11:42 | Valentin Krylov)

On October 5, about 2 thousand cadets of the artillery and 1.5 thousand cadets of the infantry schools were taken out of classes by alarm and sent to the defense of Maloyaroslavets. The combined detachment of Podolsk cadets was given the task of blocking the path of German troops in the Ilyinsky combat area for about 5-7 days until reserves were transferred.

Varshavskoe highway in the village of IlinskoyeMaloyaroslavetskydistrict of the Kaluga region. October 1941.

On October 6, 1941, the detachment arrived at the Ilyinsky combat site of the Maloyaroslavl fortified area and took up defense along the Luzha and Vypreika rivers from the village of Lukyanovo to Malaya Shubeika. Two lines of reinforced concrete pillboxes were erected there, but they did not have time to complete their construction - there was no camouflage or armored shields over the embrasures. The cadets installed their training artillery guns in pre-prepared long-term firing points and took up defense on a front of 10 kilometers, with only 300 people per kilometer. Together with local residents, they hastily fortified the lines and dug an anti-tank ditch.

Even before the start of the main battles, the advanced detachment of cadets met with a detachment of paratroopers of Captain Storchak. For 24 hours, the paratroopers held back the enemy on the eastern bank of the Ugra River. Together with the cadets, they decided to organize a night counterattack; it turned out to be unexpected for the Germans. The paratroopers and cadets, holding back the enemy's onslaught, gradually retreated to the main line of defense - on Ilyinsky. In 5 days of fighting, they knocked out 20 tanks, 10 armored vehicles, and destroyed up to 1 thousand enemies. But they themselves suffered heavy losses; in the cadet companies of the forward detachment, up to two-thirds of the personnel died.

On the morning of October 11, the enemy began hostilities - the positions of the Podolsk combined detachment were subjected to massive airstrikes and artillery fire. After this, a column of enemy armored vehicles with infantry tried to cross the bridge. But the German attack was repulsed.

Artillery pillbox to the right of the road on the territory of the Ilyinsky Frontiers museum.

On October 13, in the afternoon, a Nazi tank landing force of 15 tanks was able to bypass the 3rd battalion and reach the Warsaw Highway to the rear of the detachment. The Germans used a military trick and, in order to deceive the cadets, attached red flags to the tanks. But the deception was discovered, and the attempt to attack from the rear failed. In a fierce battle, the enemy was destroyed.

Attempts to break the spirit of Soviet cadets with the help of propaganda leaflets failed. The “Red Junkers” were called upon to surrender, to break their will with a false message that the Warsaw Highway had been captured almost to Moscow, and that the capital of the USSR would be captured in a day or two. But no one gave up!

The artillery pillbox to the left of the bridge... you can clearly see how the concrete is literally blown up by explosions inside - the actino pillbox was shot from tanks.

Soviet youth fought to the death, withstanding artillery and air strikes. Strength was dwindling, ammunition was running out, and by September 16, only 5 guns remained in service. It was on this day, after a powerful fire strike along the entire defensive front, that the Wehrmacht was able to capture the defensive lines in the Ilyinsky sector, and then only after almost all the cadets who defended here had died. Until the evening, he delayed the enemy's advance with a pillbox on the highway near the village of Sergeevka, it was commanded by the commander of the 4th battery, Lieutenant A.I. Aleshkin. The crew of the 45-mm cannon knocked out several enemy combat vehicles. Only when it got dark were the enemy infantry able to enter the rear of the pillbox garrison and throw grenades at it.

Machine gun pillbox on the museum grounds.

Another machine gun pillbox.

Observation point with an embrasure for mounting a rangefinder.

On October 17, the detachment's command post was moved to Lukyanovo. For another 2 days, the cadets defended Lukyanovo and Kudinovo. On October 19, the fighters defending Kudinovo were encircled, but they managed to break out of it. On the same day, the cadets received orders to withdraw. On October 20, the few surviving cadets of the Podolsk consolidated detachment began to retreat to reunite with the troops who were occupying defenses on the Nara River. On October 25, the cadets who returned to their homes were sent to Ivanovo to complete their training.

In this fierce battle, the Podolsk combined detachment lost approximately 2,500 cadets, while the enemy lost about 5 thousand people and up to 100 tanks were destroyed and knocked out. They completed their task - the enemy was detained, time was won.

"Key information:
On October 4, 1941, the Germans were still 150 kilometers from Yukhnov. October 5 at 5:30 am - they occupied Yukhnov and found themselves in the rear of not only the Western Front, but also the Reserve Front. From Yukhnov to Moscow there were 190 kilometers left - several hours of tank travel. There were still practically no troops on the Mozhaisk defense line. The cadets of two schools in Podolsk were alerted with an order to detain the Germans until the rest of the units arrived.

The road to our settlement goes for about a kilometer straight along the defense line (you can see pillboxes on the side of the road). The museum and the Eternal Flame are 100 meters from the road. Several enthusiasts have prepared a selection of materials (including new translations from German, videos, photos, maps). Check it out. It's worth it."

Peter Lebedev. Mozhaisk line of defense

Memoirs of one of the cadets

One hundred and sixth day of the war. Sunday, October 5, 1941. At approximately three o'clock in the afternoon, the deputy commander of the Moscow Military District, Lieutenant General Nikolsky, on instructions from Headquarters, alerted both military schools (infantry and artillery) located in Podolsk near Moscow.

The task is to urgently form a forward detachment, reinforced by an artillery battalion, and move in vehicles along the Warsaw Highway to meet the advancing enemy mobile units. The rest of the schools are to occupy the southern section of the Mozhaisk fortified line in the area west of Maloyaroslavets by October 8. Varshavsky was the name given to the highway approaching Moscow from the southwest through Yukhnov, Medyn, Maloyaroslavets, and Podolsk.

Many years later, the events of those days in Podolsk were reproduced in the film epic “The Battle of Moscow.” In the movies, everything came out military-style and even beautiful. In reality everything was different.

It turned out that it was not so easy to form even one artillery division at the school to operate in the forward detachment. Guns more or less suitable for combat were removed from the training art park and even classrooms. Among them I even saw long-decommissioned British anti-tank guns from the twenties. The battalions of the infantry school were at defensive work near Podolsk, and they managed to assemble one company. The main difficulty is vehicles.

The artillery school was horse-drawn and had few vehicles. The same was the case with our neighbors. Soon civilian cars began to arrive at the military town along with elderly drivers, already mobilized, but still in civilian clothes. These homely-looking men, as it soon became clear, were not only experienced drivers who knew their shabby cars well, but also very conscientious and courageous people. As far as I remember, there were no rallies. But it was already known that the schools were raised on the personal instructions of Stalin. The commander of the forward detachment was the company commander of the infantry school, Senior Lieutenant Mamchich, our combined division was commanded by Captain Rossikov, and the commissar was appointed senior political instructor Postnov, who had just given us a lesson on the history of the party the day before.

As far as I remember, two batteries were formed: one of 45-mm anti-tank guns, the other (which included me) - of 76-mm guns of the 1927 model, colloquially referred to as regiments. The gun crews were commanded by officers (then “middle commanders”).

I became a cadet just two weeks ago. Me, like others who graduated high school, were selected from the division being formed to be sent to the front. I felt lonely in the new environment, and besides, I was poorly trained in artillery. I was very worried about the fate of my relatives. The city from which he had enlisted in the army in the early days of the war was now in the hands of the Germans.

I’ll immediately make a reservation that the memory of an ordinary cadet is not a very reliable basis for describing the events on one of the borders near Moscow in the fall of forty-one. Therefore, I will try to support it with archival documents and testimonies of other participants in the battles available to me.

...Already in the dark, our column left Podolsk and on the march joined Mamchich’s company, which formed the core of the advance detachment. Cars with their headlights off moved slowly, as if by touch, along the highway. The cold wind, mixed with rain and snow flakes, whips our faces and pierces right through our smart, tight-fitting cadet overcoats. With chilled hands we hold the “regiment” fidgeting on the wet flooring of the body. And one thought does not leave us for a minute: what awaits us ahead?

Last Reserve Bets

Documentary film 2009, 51 min., Russia. Director: Vladimir Novikov. In the fall of 1941, fascist German troops, having broken through the defenses of the Red Army, were approaching Moscow in marching formations. With the support of aviation and artillery, more than 200 tanks and 20 thousand infantrymen moved along the Warsaw Highway. The road to the heart of our Motherland - Moscow was open. The only obstacle on their way was the last reserve of Headquarters - the Podolsk cadets. The film uses unique newsreels from the State Archive of Film and Photo Documents (Krasnogorsk), as well as German trophy newsreels from the State Film Fund of Russia.

“October 5, 1941, the fifth month of the Great Patriotic War is already underway. German armored units are rapidly advancing on Moscow. During a reconnaissance flight, pilots of the Moscow military district discover a column of German tanks that stretch for 25 kilometers, which I immediately report to the command "The best crews fly out twice to check this information and, after it has been confirmed, they report to Stalin about the critical situation on the Warsaw Highway. There were no troops at the disposal of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's headquarters at that time."

Responsible class for page design: 10 A

creative team of the project: Magsumov Artem; Evseev Anton; Shevtsova Maria

project manager: Svirina Olga Aleksandrovna

The monument to Podolsk cadets was opened in the town of Podolsk near Moscow in the spring of 1975, on the eve of Victory Day.

The material from which the monument is created is stainless steel; The sculptural composition includes three figures of fighters, a waving banner, as well as a diagram of the military operations in which Podolsk cadets took part. The space in front of the monument is paved with concrete slabs.

In the first year of the Great Patriotic War, cadets became one of those who defended the approaches to Moscow. About three and a half thousand cadets of the artillery and infantry schools were promptly removed from classes and sent to the front (namely, near Maloyaroslavets). Their task was to repel enemy attacks in this area for several days, after which Soviet reserve troops were supposed to arrive.

The cadets repelled several attacks by the Nazis, and one of them was like this: the Nazis raised red Soviet flags over their tanks, hoping that they would be mistaken for approaching reinforcements. The deception failed, Hitler's tanks were destroyed.

The fighting continued for about two weeks, in which the cadets took part. Almost two and a half thousand of them died - but the enemy also suffered serious losses in the battles. When the reserve troops were already close, the cadets found themselves surrounded, but they managed to get out of it. On the same day, they received an order to leave the scene of hostilities. The surviving cadets were sent to Ivanovo, where they continued their training.

Speaking about the monument to cadets in Podolsk, it should be noted that the city also has a street named in honor of these war heroes.

A monument was erected in honor of the feat of the Podolsk cadets.
In October-November 1941, Podolsk cadets, together with units of the 43rd Army, held back the onslaught of Nazi troops rushing towards Moscow and helped gain time to bring up reserves. For 15 lead-fiery days, they withstood more than a hundred attacks, more than two hundred bombings and shelling, but none of them gave up or ran. This is heroism! They were no different from their peers, but what they had to do and how they did it inspires a feeling of deepest respect. Even when killed, they struck terror into the hearts of their enemies.
Authors: sculptors – Y. Rychkov and A. Myamlin, architects – L. Zemskov and L. Skorb. The monument was opened on May 7, 1975 at the intersection of Kirova Street (Varshavskoe Highway), Parkovaya Street and Archive Proezd.
The monument is made of stainless steel and consists of figures of cadets united by a huge waving banner with a star at the top: one figure with a raised hand and two figures holding machine guns with disc magazines at their chests. On the back of the monument there is a metal diagram of the combat operations of Podolsk cadets. To the right of the monument is installed concrete wall bordering the memorial area, and a metal text is placed: “Dedicated to the courage, perseverance, and immortal feat of Podolsk cadets.” On the left, the complex is bordered by an earthen parapet with a cannon. The area in front of the monument is paved with concrete slabs.
The history of the great feat began in 1941 on October 5 at nine o'clock in the morning.
At this time, a pilot flew out from the Moscow airfield for reconnaissance and was horrified to discover, 220 km from Moscow along the Warsaw Highway, a column of tanks 25 kilometers long that had broken through. These were the selected elite troops of the 54th Motorized Corps under the command of General von Bock.
Upon returning, the pilot excitedly reported: “The Germans have broken through the defenses of our troops and are rapidly moving towards Moscow.” The command refused to believe it and they sent 2 more pilots to confirm the information. The worst was confirmed. The defensive lines were not ready. It was a disaster!
Hitler developed a diabolical plan to destroy Moscow called Typhoon. The goal of this plan was terribly cruel: to surround Moscow, kill all children, women, old people, raze the city to the ground and flood it with water, so that there would not even be a mention of the great capital of Russia. But a handful of boys stood in the way of this inhuman plan...
In the entire history of the war, this was the most dangerous moment - a moment on which not only the future of Russia, but also the whole world depended. The stakes are very high! The command makes the only possible decision: to throw the last reserve into battle - two military schools: the Podolsk artillery school and the Podolsk infantry school.
However, it was categorically impossible to send children alone, and the 53rd and 312th rifle divisions, 17th and 9th tank brigades were given to help the detachment.
The greatest story of heroism will be further conveyed from the words of one of the few surviving Podolsk cadets - Nikolai Ivanovich Merkulov.
This is how Nikolai Ivanovich recalls the day of October 5, 1941, Sunday: ... “The day was absolutely ordinary. The cadets were resting after continuous 18-hour classes, meeting with relatives, writing letters. But everything instantly changed.
At 12 o'clock in the afternoon, a combat alarm sounded simultaneously in two schools: Podolsk artillery and Podolsk infantry. The cadets put on their greatcoats as they ran and quickly lined up in the courtyard. In the deafening autumn silence the order sounded: “We are moving towards the enemy!”
Three thousand one hundred boys in a combined detachment under the command of General Smirnov, the commander of the infantry school, advanced to meet the fascist armada. The command of the artillery was entrusted to the commander of the artillery school, Colonel Ivan Semenovich Strelbitsky. They walked in silence, it was forbidden to speak.
On this day, it was not just two armies moving towards each other. Good and evil, light and darkness were preparing for battle. On the one hand, there are professionals armed to the teeth, who conquered all of Europe, who never knew defeat, seasoned, cold-blooded killers. On the other hand, there are boys 15-18 years old. The fourth battery was trained for only two weeks; there was absolutely no experience in fighting.
According to the plans of the command, it was necessary to have time to occupy the defensive lines. Near the village of Ilyinskoye, the width of the defense was 10 kilometers. This meant: per kilometer of defense there were only three hundred weakly armed children.
Smirnov and Strelbitsky decided to send an advance detachment of 100 people with the goal of delaying the enemy for at least a few hours, so that the main forces had time to dig in and prepare defensive fortifications. The cadets were joined by a detachment of airborne troops who had previously defended the village of Strekalovo.
The first battle took place in the village of Krasny Stolb. The fascists, dressed in ceremonial uniforms, were already celebrating their victory with might and main. They were the winners then. The Nazis conquered Poland in just 21 days, France in 30 days. They were absolutely sure that they would soon destroy Moscow too. At this moment they had only one problem: where to get marble and granite to urgently erect a monument to the conquerors of Moscow. It never even occurred to them that they would be stopped. They knew for sure that Moscow was defenseless.
The clock of human history struck the hour of immortality: the boys immediately went on the attack - just a few dozen young brave men.
As Ivan Semenovich Strelbitsky recalls: “They went on the attack as if they had been waiting for this very moment all their previous lives. It was their holiday, their celebration. They rushed fast - nothing could stop them - without fear, without looking back. Even if there were few of them, it was a storm, a hurricane capable of sweeping everything out of its path. I think that until then the Nazis had never seen anything like this. The attack on the village of Krasny Stolb stunned them. Throwing away their weapons and backpacks, they ran headlong back.
For five days, the forward detachment held back the advance of superior enemy forces. During this time, 20 tanks, 10 armored vehicles were knocked out and about a thousand enemy soldiers and officers were destroyed.
The fascist command was shocked by the daring attack. It could not even occur to them that they were defeated by only a few dozen young cadets. General Von Bock ordered aircraft and artillery to burn the nearby forest. He was sure that there was a whole army there. Several hours of continuous shelling and bombing turned the dense forest into a scorched field. At this time, the main forces of the boys were preparing for defense. The guys dug trenches and installed guns. At this time, Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov drove up to the cadets’ redoubts, the bravest commander, tough as steel. A man who began his career as a soldier in the first world war, who received three St. George Crosses for bravery. Zhukov spoke to the cadets, saying only a few words: “Children, hold out for at least five days. Moscow is in mortal danger." He called them not soldiers, but “children.” Children stood in front of him.
And now the hour of truth has struck. The Germans immediately launched 60 tanks and five thousand soldiers into the attack. The guys repulsed the first attack. And they didn’t just fight back, but, jumping out of the trenches, went to the bayonet line. The counterattack was so swift that the Germans became cowardly, threw down their weapons and rushed from the battlefield. Invincible warriors, conquerors of Europe, fled from the schoolchildren. The boys won their first victory. This was their first fight in their lives, and they believed in themselves, they believed that they could beat the bastards. But they did not rejoice for long. The Germans unleashed the full might of artillery and aviation on the guys’ positions, literally scorching the earth. The guys' positions were not covered from the air. The German planes, knowing that they were in no danger, lined up in a circle of 20 planes - this was called a “Ferris wheel” and took turns diving at the positions of the cadets, dropping bombs, and shooting the children from machine guns and cannons.
Bombs, shells, and mines turned the battlefield into a burning hell. Black smoke, torn bodies of boys, molten metal, people, earth, equipment, animals - everything was mixed by devilish force into one bloody, black mass, saturated with horror, the howling of sirens and the continuous explosions of bombs and shells.
The Nazis stood and watched as children died. They were waiting for the white flag to appear. Strange, this did not happen... Where are the raised hands, where are the bent backs, where are the eyes of the slaves, filled with horror?! After all, they are so used to seeing this almost every day.
The guys were very poorly armed. There weren't enough weapons. The artillerymen have broken training 45-mm guns. They were so worn out that they failed after every 5-6 shots. Gunsmiths had to repair them right under enemy dagger fire. Everything was burning: metal, earth, the boys’ bodies. The cadets died, but did not give up. Not a single boy betrayed his comrades...
It seemed that everything was burned out, nothing alive could remain. But then one gun began to fire, then another. Gun shots were joined by gun shots, and somewhere a machine gun came to life. And once again the Nazi attack turned into flight. It was there, on the Ilyinsky lines, that the phrase was born: “It’s not enough to kill a Russian, he still needs to be brought down.”
Only real heroes can withstand and not break in hell. And only superheroes can joke while looking death in the face. On the seventh day of defense, the fascist landing force tried to capture the cadets' headquarters.
Having lost hope of breaking through the cadets’ defenses, the Germans decided to strike from the rear.
In the afternoon of October 13, the Nazi tank column managed to bypass the 3rd battalion, reach the Warsaw Highway and attack the cadet positions from Moscow. The Germans resorted to a trick; red flags were attached to the tanks. As the few survivors recalled: “When they heard the roar of tanks coming towards them from Moscow, they thought that they were ours - red flags were flying on the tanks. Jumping out of the trenches, the guys laughed, jumped, hugged each other, threw their hats into the air: “Hurray! Hooray! The long-awaited help has arrived!” But when the tanks came closer, they saw ominous black crosses on the gray towers. None of the guys were confused; they deployed their guns and immediately hit the enemy.
Yuri Dobrunov alone knocked out six tanks and three armored personnel carriers in this battle.
There was chaos in Moscow, the government evacuated to Kuibyshev, there was no time for heroic cadets. The cadets of the Infantry School were not inferior in courage to the artillerymen. Sniper cadet Alexander Ivanov killed 93 fascists in three days.
At one of the positions, only 18 cadets remained alive. 200 heavily armed Germans attacked them again. The guys ran out of ammunition. They had nothing to shoot with, but they did not give up: they jumped out of the trenches and loudly shouted “Hurray!” went on a counterattack. The Germans were seized with panic, they ran, throwing away their weapons.
Even the wounded boys did not leave their positions. In the early days, when there was still contact with Moscow, medical battalion vehicles arrived at the front line. The wounded cadets hid in trenches and crawled into the bushes, but none of them left their comrades; the ambulances left empty. This was the only order from the commanders that they did not comply with.
Yakov Gavrilov was wounded in the head and became blind. His comrades persuaded him: “Go to the hospital, how can you help us.” “My hands are intact. Give me the case." The blind, bleeding boy stuffed machine-gun disks until his last breath.
Another boy had his stomach torn open by a large fragment. The dying cadet bandaged his stomach with a footcloth, took an anti-tank grenade and crawled towards the tanks. Before his death, bleeding, he blew up a fascist tank.
These guys really loved their homeland, and gave for it the most precious thing they had - their lives...
The Germans were terrified, fear settled in their hearts forever. The road to the fascist troops, who had never known defeat, was blocked by only a handful of boys. The boys overshadowed Moscow with their children's hearts.
On the morning of October 16, the enemy launched a new powerful fire strike throughout the Ilyinsky combat area. The cadet garrisons in the remaining pillboxes and bunkers were shot by direct fire from tanks and cannons.
The Aleshkinsky pillbox brought particular horror to the Germans. Senior Lieutenant Aleshkin successfully camouflaged his firing position and created a reserve position to the right of it. For a long time the Germans could not discover where the fire was coming from. Their tanks were burning, infantrymen were dying. The well-aimed fire of the artillerymen mercilessly destroyed their ranks, the losses were colossal. Later, the Germans managed to discover the pillbox. The forces were unequal, and everyone understood this. Unable to storm the pillbox from the front, the Nazis attacked it from the rear in the evening and threw grenades through the embrasure. They literally burned the pillbox with fire. They saw everything inside the bunker burning, nothing alive could remain. Nothing. The heroic garrison was almost completely destroyed.
On the night of October 17, the command post of Podolsk schools moved to the location of the 5th PPU company in the village of Lukyanovo.
On October 18, they were subjected to new enemy attacks and by the end of the day the command post and the 5th company were cut off from the cadets defending Kudinovo. The commander of the combined detachment, General Smirnov, gathered the remnants of the 5th and 8th cadet companies and organized the defense of Lukyanovo. By the evening of October 19, an order to withdraw was received. The defenders of Kudinovo, thanks to the decision of the senior group of PAU Lieutenant Smirnov and the assistant platoon commander of PPU cadets Konoplyanik to throw grenades at the Germans, managed to escape from the encirclement. The surviving guys were physically and mentally beyond human capabilities. We were freezing, didn’t sleep, didn’t eat for several days. But even against the backdrop of inhuman fatigue, they showed ingenuity.
At night, while planting explosives under another damaged fascist tank, Ivan Kaytmazov noticed that the tank was the least damaged compared to the others. The very next day, the tank's gun opened fire on its former owners.
Machine gunner cadet Boris Timoshenko fought off the Nazi onslaught for five hours. The day before, he was seriously wounded and told the commander: “I cannot think about my wounds when my comrades die in battle.” His machine gun was damaged by shrapnel. Having sealed the broken casing of the Maxim machine gun with bread crumbs and filling it with water, he repelled attack after attack, destroying about a hundred Nazis.
The Germans, despite their numerical superiority, despite their superiority in weapons, despite the support of aviation, were morally broken. They lost. They were defeated by the children. Every day they were more and more afraid to attack. Their commanders, on pain of death, forced them to storm the Ilyinsky lines. Even one wounded cadet, Mikhail Kruglov, who survived, terrified the Nazis. All his comrades died. However, while bleeding, he loaded the gun, aimed it and fired accurately.
The attacks on the guys were not only fire - the Germans dropped empty barrels from planes along with bombs. These barrels, falling, emitted a heartbreaking howl. The Germans wanted to morally break the resistance of the cadets, intimidate them, break their will, but nothing worked. Each fascist attack, taking the lives of cadets, was drowned in blood.
Knowing that the guys were starving and freezing in the trenches, the Nazis printed leaflets and scattered them from airplanes over the positions of the cadets:
“Valiant red cadets! - it said. “You fought bravely, but now your resistance has lost its meaning. The Warsaw highway is ours almost all the way to Moscow. In a day or two we will enter it. You are real soldiers. We respect your heroism. Come over to our side. With us you will receive a friendly welcome, delicious food and warm clothes. This leaflet will serve as your pass."
Only on October 20, at night, did the cadets begin to withdraw from the Ilyinsky line to join the army units occupying the defense on the Maare River. And from there, on October 25, the surviving PPU personnel set off on a field march to the city of Ivanovo to continue their studies.
Later, when our troops pushed the enemies back from Moscow, a terrible picture opened up before them at the Ilyinsky lines. The entire battlefield was strewn with children's bodies with thin wasp-like waists, tied with wide soldier's belts, the ground was strewn with school notebooks, the guys were preparing to take tests, exams...
They were buried in December 1941 and even in 1942, no longer knowing who was buried. Therefore, most of the dead cadets are considered missing...
Zhukov set an unrealistic task for the cadets: to hold out for at least 5 days. The boys did the impossible - they lasted 15 days. During these 15 lead-fiery days, they withstood more than a hundred attacks, more than two hundred bombings and shelling, but none of them gave up or ran. This is heroism!