A nation that does not remember its past has no future. One of the greatest events for our country is the Second World War and the victory of the Soviet people. Descendants will remember those fiery years that our grandfathers and grandmothers had to endure. It is for the young that museums dedicated to that bloody war continue to work, courage classes are held in schools, and we all honor our veterans. In the article we will talk about the federal state budgetary institution of culture - the State Museum of Defense of Sevastopol.
Museum today
Since 2014, this object was included in the list of federal cultural objects of Russia. The Federal State Budgetary Institution “The State Museum of Heroic Defense and Liberation of Sevastopol” includes five historical objects:
- Panorama "Defense of Sevastopol in 1854-1855" (in historical terms the very first battle).
- The defensive structure (tower) on the Malakhov Kurgan.
- Cathedral of St. Vladimir.
- House Museum of the underground period 1942-1944.
- Large-scale diorama “Assault on the Sapun-Gory 05/07/1944”.
In addition, the Sevastopol Museum of Defense includes eight permanent exhibitions, many open displays and monuments of the two defenses of Sevastopol - during the Crimean War and World War II.
The total area of expositions and exhibitions is 22,007 square meters, the park zone of the museum is 39.5 hectares.
Museum treasures
The funds of the Museum of Defense of Sevastopol contain over 100,000 exhibits that reflect the history of the hero city from its inception (1783) to the present, the history of the creation of two fleets - Russia and Ukraine. A significant part of the exhibits illustrates the history of the administrative structure, the construction and development of industry, education, the formation of the city's culture. Especially valuable are the collections of various army uniforms, awards and decals, medals, and personal belongings of the city’s defense heroes. The total area of the funds is 689 square meters.
The documentary fund of the Museum of Heroic Defense and Liberation of Sevastopol contains personal files and information about the Heroes of the Soviet Union who received this title in battles near Sevastopol.
There is a huge collection of weapons, both during the Crimean War and the Second World War.
The library of the museum has about 30,000 volumes.
History of creation
The official opening date of the Museum of Defense of Sevastopol is May 27, 1905. It was then, on the 50th anniversary of the defense, that a panoramic exhibition was opened on Historic Boulevard. The museum-panorama "Defense of Sevastopol 1854-1855" during the war was almost completely destroyed. In 1942, after the bombing, the building caught fire. The fire spread to the exposition. The picture was saved by a miracle. For the sake of this, several sailors, not sparing themselves, rushed into the fire. At night, the remaining fragments of the panorama were loaded onto the ship, the last one breaking through to Sevastopol. This glorious destroyer "Tashkent" was called. It was commanded by Lieutenant Commander V.N. Eroshenko.
On the last ship, they tried to take out the wounded, women and children from the city. Under the ceaseless fire of the Nazis, “Tashkent” miraculously survived and arrived in Novorossiysk, but the heroically rescued fragments of the panorama were damaged by water and could not be restored. Soviet artists began to restore them after the war, in 1944, but they were restored. In 1954, the museum received the first post-war visitors.
In 1959, a diorama opened on Sapun Mountain, which illustrates the battle for the city on May 7, 1944.
In 1960, Panorama and Diorama were combined. The date of foundation of the State Museum of Defense of Sevastopol is considered 08/06/1960
In subsequent years, a defensive tower and house 46 were added to the museum on Revyakina Street, where the headquarters of the city underground worked during the occupation of 1942-1944. The tomb of the Russian admirals and the Cathedral of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir were included in the museum in 1973.
According to the order of the Government of the Russian Federation dated 03.10.2015 No. 1975r, the museum was taken into ownership of Russia. In 2015, by Decree of the President of the Russian Federation V. Putin (December 7, 2015 No. 559), the Museum of Heroic Defense of Sevastopol was included in the list of especially valuable objects of cultural heritage of the peoples of Russia.
Museum Pride
The panorama “Defense of Sevastopol of 1853-1854” became a grandiose construction and a monumental work of art. It opened in 1905 and was then called the “Assault on June 6, 1855”.
The panorama is located in a round building, designed by architect V. Feldman in 1904. The author of the panorama exposition itself was the outstanding battle painter Franz Alekseevich Roubaud (1856-1928).
The panorama shows the battle on the Malakhov Hill, when 5 thousand Russian soldiers repelled the attack of 11 thousand soldiers of the Anglo-French troops. Among more than 4 thousand figures, we see in the foreground the greatest military surgeon N. Pirogov, the legendary Dasha of Sevastopol, Admiral P. Nakhimov, General S. Khrulev.
Memorial complex "Defensive tower of Malakhov Kurgan"
This is a fortification that has been preserved since the first defense of Sevastopol. The loopholes, embrasures and walls of the lower tier with a thickness of 170 centimeters served as wired fighters of the Crimean War and World War II.
The exposition consists of materials from these two defenses of the city, divided by time, but united by heroism. Malakhov Kurgan is a strategic height that was of great importance in the defense of the city. The fact that here during both wars there were fierce battles is evidenced by numerous finds - bullets, fragments, weapons, elements of uniforms.
In memory of the heroes of these battles, a memorial Eternal Flame has been burning in front of the tower since 2009. And the exposition today is complemented by multimedia installations.
Cathedral of Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir
The beautifully preserved temple of the late 19th century, founded by the Russian emperor Alexander I in 1825. It is built on voluntary donations designed by architect C. Ton. The construction of the temple was finally completed in 1888. The frescoes of the cathedral are painted by Akim Korneev, a famous Russian artist. Ornamental painting of the walls and arch was performed by an artist from Switzerland R. Iselli. The marble cladding of the columns and the iconostasis is the work of the Italian sculptor V. Bonanni. The building with a cross-shaped base and a helmet-shaped dome is faced with Inkerman stone. Its height with a cross is 32.5 meters, width - 20 meters, and with a porch - 29 meters.
Russian admirals Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev and Vladimir Alekseevich Kornilov, Pavel Stepanovich Nakhimov and Vladimir Ivanovich Istomin, as well as nine naval officers, were buried here. During the Crimean War, the tomb was looted. In 1858, the admiral's ashes were reburied in the common crypt.
The cathedral survived the terrible 1930s (then aircraft engine workshops were arranged in it), the bombing of 1942-1944. Only in 1974 the building was transferred to the Museum of Defense of Sevastopol. Today it is a functioning Orthodox church.
Underground history
This exposition of the Museum of Defense and Liberation of Sevastopol is located in the house where the head of the underground organization Vasily Revyakin lived during the occupation of the city by German-Romanian troops. The title of Hero of the Soviet Union was assigned posthumously to him.
In the historical part of the exposition, materials are presented on the activities of the underground and the tragic defeat of their organization in 1944, as well as on the development of the partisan movement in Crimea.
In the memorial part of the exposition, the atmosphere of the residential part of the house and the underground printing house where the newspaper “For the Motherland!” Was printed was restored.
Museum Pearl
The drama “Storming the Sapun Mountains May 7, 1944” is the world's largest object of such a plan. The strict diorama building in the form of a semicircle (architect - V.P. Petropavlovsky), the Sapun-Gora memorial complex, the chapel of St. Great Martyr George the Victorious, the obelisk to the liberating soldiers and the monumental Eternal Flame create a complete architectural complex.
The author of the battle canvas (length - 25.5 meters, height - 5.5 meters) and the subject plan (area - 83 square meters) dioramas - artist and honored artist of the Soviet Union P.T. Maltsev. For the first time in the foreground, the figures of the participants in the battle were made in full size. The composition of the objective plan included real trophy weapons, fragments and sleeves.
The diorama illustrates the battle of May 7, 1944 on Sapun Mountain. The battlefield is flooded with afternoon sun. The shelling has been going on for more than seven hours. In the genre scenes we see assault groups of the Soviet troops, the famous battalion commander Vitaly Komissarov, whose photo flew around the world, the feat of the nurse Zhenya Deryugina, who saved 80 soldiers in 4 days of those battles, sapper Fedor Skoryatin, who covered a mine and paved the way for other fighters, and others Heroes of the defense of Sevastopol.
You can spend all day on examining this diorama, but this is not enough to consider all the compositions. The viewer is immersed in the atmosphere of battle, and the pride of our compatriots overwhelms the heart.
Since the beginning of the opening, more than 25 million visitors have been here.
For visitors
Address of the Museum of Defense of Sevastopol - Historical Boulevard, 1. Bus stop - pl. Ushakova / "University". Schedule:
- From October to April - from 09:30 to 17:00, Monday is a day off.
- In May and September, the museum is open seven days a week from 09:30 to 17:30.
- From June to August you can view the exposition from 09:30 to 19:00. The museum is open all days of the week.
The museum can be accessed both as part of organized groups, and individually. The cost of an admission ticket for one object is from 150 to 400 rubles for adults, the price depends on excursion services. Children under 7 years old, even with a guide, are served free of charge.
In addition, there is an opportunity to ride on the Historical Boulevard on an electric car and visit the panorama (ticket costs 250-500 rubles).
Reviews
People who visited the museum leave reviews about the same. Our contemporaries, who were lucky enough to live under a peaceful sky, are struck by the horror that befell their ancestors. Panorama and diorama scenes impress with their realism, scale, and entertainment. Each person leaves the museum, shocked, full of pride for our glorious warriors.
The minuses noted in the reviews do not relate to the exposition, but to the organization of the service. So, people do not like the fact that excursions for very many groups are carried out simultaneously, so the excursionists have to walk one after another.
Another minus for sightseers is that the museum has paid photo and video filming.