Petersburg marks the anniversary of the complete lifting of the blockade of Leningrad

Residents of St. Petersburg celebrate today the 78th anniversary of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the fascist blockade.

On Thursday night, the Palace Bridge was painted in the colors of the blockade ribbon on the occasion of an important event and in memory of the feat of the inhabitants and defenders of the city.

And earlier, in the Northern capital, the all-Russian action “Siege Bread”, dedicated to the 79th anniversary of the breaking of the blockade of Leningrad in 1943, was launched.

Recall that from September 8, 1941 to January 27, 1944, during the Great Patriotic War, Leningrad was blocked by German troops. The Nazis decided to starve the city out after unsuccessful attempts to break through the defenses. According to the calculations of the German command, the isolated inhabitants had to die of hunger and cold. More than two and a half million inhabitants turned out to be in the city, of which 400 thousand children. The blockade lasted almost 900 days and became the most tragic blockade in the history of mankind: more than 641 thousand people died from starvation and shelling. According to other sources – at least one million.

On January 18, 1943, the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts liberated the city of Shlisselburg and the southern coast of Lake Ladoga. Operation Iskra was a turning point in the battle for the city, and the breakthrough of the blockade was the first big victory for Leningrad. The city restored overland communication with the mainland.

We add that the Main Archive of Moscow has published on the portal “Book of memory of the besieged Leningrad” the documents of 140 Heroes of the Soviet Union – participants in the defense of the city on the Neva.