Six hours in high school are devoted to the study of World War II. Unfortunately, portraits of the true heroes of the war, examples of the heroism and dedication of ordinary people, remain beyond a cursory acquaintance with the main events, facts, and battles. For example, such as Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich, whose name is the House of Soldier Glory in Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad).
"No step back!"
In July 1942, the Nazis reached the Volga, from where, after the conquest of Stalingrad, they planned to rush to the Caucasus. Two weeks in the plans of the Fuhrer was allocated to the capture of the city, which was of serious strategic importance during the hostilities. An order was received from Stalin: to defend Stalingrad at all costs. In history, he is known under the slogan: "Not a step back!".
At that time, Yakov Fedotovich Pavlov, whose photo is presented in the article, served as a sergeant in the division of A.I. Rodimtsev, who arrived at the citadel on the Volga before the start of the heroic defense of the city. Located in Kamyshin, the military conducted exercises, realizing the importance of the upcoming battles. Unable to immediately break into the city, the Nazis began shelling it. Only on the day of August 23 they dropped so many bombs on Stalingrad that no more buildings remained in it, and burning oil from railway tanks poured into the Volga stream. The defenders saw a terrible sight - a flaming river, covering a coast with a fiery avalanche.
Street fighting
On September 13, 1942, the Germans broke into the city. General Rodimtsev miraculously managed to stop the onslaught of the enemy a hundred meters from the coastline. The battle was fought for every street and building on January 9th Square (now Defense Square). Here, any solid building turned into a strong point, capable of holding a circular defense.
It was the end of September. One of the four-story brick buildings facing the square had a serious tactical advantage: it opened up an excellent view of the fascist part of the city and the path of their possible breakthrough to the Volga. The unit commander, Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich, received from the company commander an assignment to investigate the situation in the indicated house at 31 Penzenskaya. With three soldiers, he managed to force the Germans out of the seized building and hold him for two days. In the basement, they found locals hiding from the fire. Among them was the architect of the house with his pregnant wife, who died during the shelling.
On the third day, reinforcements consisting of 24 people arrived: a group of armored combatants and machine gunners led by senior lieutenant I.F. Afanasyev. The garrison managed to turn the object into an impregnable fortress for the Nazis. It was from these heroic events that Sergeant Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich became known to the world public.
Feat of the defenders
The battle of Stalingrad lasted 200 days and nights, 58 of which the defenders of the house, known in history under the name of Pavlov’s House, steadfastly fought. The soldiers survived until the Red Army went on the offensive on 11/19/1942, losing only three of their comrades: Private I.T. Svirin, Sergeant I. Ya. Haight and Lieutenant A.N. Chernyshenko. On the general map of General Paulus, the object was marked as a fortress, which is defended by an entire battalion.
In fact, 24 people, representatives of 9 nationalities, covered their names with glory, hitting the enemy with their courage and heroism. The garrison mined the approaches to the house, breaking through the trench through which communication with the command was maintained. Food and ammunition were delivered along it, a field telephone cable passed and the wounded were evacuated. The Nazis stormed the building several times a day, but failed to break through above the first floor.
Each soldier cost a whole platoon, firing through the embrasures punched in the brick walls. On the third floor was equipped with a round-the-clock observation post, tracking any movement of the enemy and opening heavy machine-gun fire as he approached.
A handful of Soviet soldiers became a symbol of resistance to the enemy, who conquered all of Europe. Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich, who heroically fought in the battles to liberate Stalingrad, was wounded in the leg on November 25. He was sent to the hospital. Subsequently, together with the 3rd Ukrainian and 2nd Belorussian fronts, he will go from Stalingrad to Elba, having received the Star of the Hero of the USSR in June 1945.
Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich: biography of the hero
Born in October 1917, on the eve of the Great October Revolution, Yakov Fedotovich linked his whole life to his small homeland, the Novgorod Region. The birthplace is the village of Krestovaya, from where in 1938, after working in agriculture, he will be called up for military service. Here, in the city of Valdai, he will return after mobilization in 1946, having received the rank of officer.
His career will be associated with party and economic activity after graduating from the Higher School of Economics under the Central Committee of the CPSU. Repeatedly, the hero of the Great Patriotic War will represent his land in the Supreme Council of the RSFSR, earning a government award in peacetime. In 1963, together with his wife Nina Alexandrovna and her son Yuri, he will move to Veliky Novgorod, where he will work at the Comet plant. Public activity will lead him to Stalingrad more than once. Here he will meet with residents, restoring it from the ruins. Among the awards of Y. F. Pavlov is the title of Honorary Citizen of this legendary hero city. Unfortunately, in 1981, the heart of a brave man stopped right on the operating table.
Memory
Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich was buried in the Western cemetery of his native city, where a kind of avenue of heroes was created. The monument represents a symbolic brick wall with its bas-relief. A memorial plaque is installed on a house in Veliky Novgorod, and a ship and a boarding school are named after the legendary man. In the post-war years, the restored so-called Pavlov’s house was visited by millions of citizens from all over the world, giving the post to the courage and dedication of its defenders.