Solovyov crossing. Smolensk battle. Memorial Complex

There are such coincidences in history! Two battles - in one place. Only the gap between them is 129 years.

At the crossroads

Very long ago there was a village called Solovyevo. Nowadays it belongs to the Kardymovsky district (this is the Smolensk region). According to 2014, it is home to only 292 people. But the story of a sparsely populated village is extremely interesting. She survived a lot, which is reminiscent of many things. So, almost three centuries in local houses of peasants anchors, abandoned by Lithuanians once were stored. Men used them on the farm.

This place is historical. It is located at the intersection of the land and waterways. The name of the village was in the XVIII century. There was such an engineer Ivan Solovyov, who built the famous road Smolensk. In honor of him they named the village.

The attack of the French

When Napoleon moved to Russia in 1812, Solovyov's ferry played a great role. Russian grenadiers, retreating, came to the village and only realized that there was only one way out: to get to the opposite bank of the Dnieper. But how? The available ferry is so low-powered that only 30 soldiers can take it.

And the dispatches went to Moscow. Russian general Ferdinand Vincentgerode, who during this war led the "volatile" cavalry units, demanded the speedy construction of an additional crossing across the river. The case was assigned to the nobleman Ivan Glinka. He was famous for his special zeal. The general gave him a difficult task: no more than two days to build the bridge. From logs.

Glinka recruited peasants from the district. And the work went off. But it took a bridge to fasten. This is where the anchors came in handy. The peasants dragged a lot of them.

A couple of days later, crossing the Dnieper was ready. Two floating bridges were opened to the road and carts with the wounded, and food carts, and even cavalry. And also to large crowds of people who fled from the provinces occupied by the French.

How the icon returned

In the records of Mikhail Barclay de Tolly, an outstanding Russian commander and hero of the war of 1812, it is said: the ferry that near Solovievo village helped the soldiers to capture a lot of captured weapons. They, suddenly appearing here, began to shoot at this traffic. Napoleon's soldiers were confused: where did the Russians suddenly jump out? They rushed off, pushed each other, fell from a narrow bridge. Someone drowned. So the enemy lost hundreds of dead. A thousand Russians were captured by the Russians.

When the Smolensk citizens still fled from these places "from the Frenchman", they took out a great value - the Smolensk icon of the Mother of God. But first they went with her around the city, there were prayer services.

Three months later, the icon that visited the Russian army in all battles was returned to Smolensk.

Fast travel

Time passed. And again the enemy, already different, encroached on our freedom. In 1941, after capturing Belarus, the Germans outlined a course: the Smolensk region. On July 13 they marched on a campaign. The next day Semyon Timoshenko, marshal, instructed to defend Smolensk, Lieutenant-General Mikhail Lukin. He commanded the 16th Army. Interestingly, in 1916, after finishing the school of ensigns, Lukin commanded the company of the Fourth Grenadier Nesvizh Regiment named after Barclay de Tolly. The experienced was a military man, brave. And the "operational group of Lukin," and the general himself, when the Smolensk battle of 1941 was going on, showed exceptional courage and ingenuity. His troops distracted from the movement to Moscow the large forces of the Hitlerites.

However, July 15, the Germans could still enter the city. In the encirclement fell Russian army. This is the 16th, 19th and 20th. Communication with the rear was almost impossible to maintain. Only through the forests, through the inhabitants of the village Solovyevo.

But on July 17 the German paratroopers landed 13 km from the village - in the town of Yartsevo. From here for them the exit to the highway "Smolensk-Moscow" was opened.

The Solovyov crossing was at that time the only point where the supply of parts of the army of our "Western front" was going. From her depended very much. And in the strategic plan, and in the human. After all, here, on a rope ferry, took out all the sick, as well as the wounded. That's why our soldiers guarded this path carefully, guarded. For her possession there were constant battles. The Nazis were bombed from the air.

Colonel Alexander Lizyukov was charged with defending the crossing. The goal is not only to bring up everything necessary for those who are fighting near Smolensk, but also, if necessary, to ensure the possibility of retreat of soldiers.

Swim - on the opposite shore

When the Fritzes appeared in the district, the stream of refugees from Smolensk and the surrounding area rushed to the crossing. There was never a stationary bridge here. And the ferry is too small, only two cars are placed. Yes, and pull it with a hand winch.

But for the only chance to escape, they all seized it. People went and just ran, overtaking each other. Sanitary wagons with wounded men were moving, horses were galloping. Everyone was driven by fear. At the very crossing of the refugees there was so much that nothing could be seen.

And the real hell began. Above - the Germans throw bombs, on the ground - they are firing artillery shells of unarmed tarants. The sirens are howling. The occupiers included them specially. Screaming frantic people with horror. Women are sobbing, the wounded are crying. It was a real nightmare! Many then perished at this crossing - both civilian and military.

However, not a single day Solovyov crossing (Smolensk) did not stop functioning. Sappers and soldiers constantly repaired it. Nearby, they erected temporary bridges, at least some. With difficulty, but they were transferring cars loaded with ammunition, as well as fuel and all kinds of food, to the western shore. But the wounded with refugees, the retreating units crossed to the east.

Everything was going to restore the permanently destroyed crossing. Boats, trees, rafts, just built from everything that comes to hand. However, this was not enough. People used to (including the wounded) rushed into the water and swam to the other shore. Just sent and cattle.

Retreat

For this single channel of communication, for which they fought every day. However, on July 27 the Germans managed to seize it.

Two days passed. The leadership of the Western Front makes a decision to withdraw the troops surrounded by Germans through the same ferry - near Solovyevo.

It was very difficult for everyone, as they walked here from Smolensk. The Germans attacked our units without stopping. Do not have the soldiers already and shells. They took the last bottles with incendiary compounds and threw them into tanks. Many of them died. However, everything was done to transport their medical hospitals with the hospitals to the ferry.

Once they placed crippled comrades in a village school. They hung a white flag on its roof with a big red cross. Like, here are the wounded, do not shoot. But it did not embarrass the Hitlerites. They bombed the school. And again - the dead ...

Not so powerful a ferry moaned under the wheels of thousands of vehicles, different carts and tractors carrying guns. Walked along it and rank-and-file fighters with commanders. And there are tens of thousands of them. And all this - under fire, which did not stop. Together with the army, the inhabitants also moved. The cattle were being driven. The institutions were also evacuated.

Red from the blood of the Dnieper

The Fascists did not stop, they shot. Not a single bullet flew by. After all, the accumulation of military and civilians was formed so dense that it was impossible to miss!

On the river, already scarlet from the human blood, wounded soldiers were sailing. And corpses. Frightened horses neighing. People screamed. And explosions still created a heavy such rumbling. Participants of this action remembered later: "If there is hell on earth, it's Solovyov crossing in the summer of 1941!"

Once in some of these incredible days the German cars came close. Fritz, turning on the speakers, offered the Soviet soldiers just to surrender. And all of a sudden, at this very moment, our Katyusha started talking. The clouds of smoke and flames shot over the tanks of the enemy.

Only two weeks

A little time passed - and the soldiers of General Konstantin Rokossovsky (which he would later be instructed to command the Victory Parade in 1945 in Moscow) and Colonel Lizyukov "returned" the ferry back. On the morning of August 4, our soldiers went on the attack. And the next day she was in their hands.

Almost for two weeks every day, under a hail of bullets and splinters, among the furious rumbling from ruptures of shells, Lizyukov and his children did the transfer of the entire necessary Soviet army, and did not let the enemy in. It's amazing! The well-known Hitlerites occupied entire countries during the same time. And here, in a small village, the fighting was incredibly heavy. Solovyov crossing survived, withstood all.

Release

Full and so long-awaited disposal of residents of the region from uninvited guests came in the 43rd year, at the end of September. Soviet troops launched a very powerful offensive under the code name "Suvorov."

And again in the military reports the words "Solovyov crossing" flashed. After all, the German command still considered it a key point.

But to her (along the Old Smolensk road) regiments from the 312th Infantry Division already broke through. Having broken the strengthening of the enemy near the village, battalions thereby allowed their engineering units to build a permanent crossing.

As they say different sources, here, on this Solovyov crossing, our soldiers and officers died incredibly - from 50 to 100 thousand. In the grave of the brotherly - nameless 895 people.

Reinforced concrete handsome man

Today you will not see any ferry crossing here - neither ferry nor the same pontoon. A powerful iron bridge connected the banks of the Dnieper.

And next to it - the legendary "Katyusha". Solovyov crossing of 1941 received just seven of these rocket launchers.

Today, the memorial complex on this site appeared on the initiative of veterans of the Great Patriotic War and residents of the Kardymovskiy district.

In the evening of July 18, 2015, the Eternal Flame on the Solovyovaya Ferry was lit. Everybody knows: during the war, its defense lasted for two months. Such confrontation with the invaders is tantamount to the defense of the fortress in Brest.

About 1.5 million rubles were allocated by the administration of the Smolensk region to put the Memorial in order, to make repairs to the Common Grave and to improve the Field of Memory well.

The spark of the Eternal Flame arrived in Kardymovskiy from the Alexander Garden of Moscow, from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, where it burns, without fading, this flame.

By the way, one historical event was taken as the basis for the coat of arms of the city of Kardymovo. It was repeated in two Russian wars. This is the way through Solovyov crossing the Russian army and the Soviet.