The greatest test that fell to the lot of the Soviet Union - its people and the Armed forces - the Great Patriotic War. Four years passed, hard for all Soviet people, before the war ended and a complete victory was won over fascism.
The consequences of this war were of historical importance and had an impact on the post-war process of development of all mankind. Soviet troops not only cleared the occupied territory of fascist troops, but also helped the peoples of Europe in getting rid of the German invaders.
The situation at the front in May 1945
It must be understood that the medal "For the capture of Berlin" had great symbolic and historical significance.
By the time the decision to storm Berlin had matured, Soviet intelligence had reported to the Supreme Commander’s headquarters that secret negotiations had begun between the CIA intelligence chief Allen Dulles and Nazi Germany.
With the participation of Italian and Swiss mediators, the head of American intelligence A. Dulles began such negotiations. On March 8, 1945, he met in Zurich with a representative of the German command, SS General K. Wolf.
Thanks to the actions of Soviet intelligence and the intervention of the leadership of the Soviet Union, these negotiations were disrupted. But before the command of the Soviet troops the question arose about the start of preparations for the assault on the capital of Germany - the city of Berlin.
Fortifications
The command of the Nazi troops was aware that the fall of Berlin could put an end to Nazi power in Germany.
In order to keep the city as long as possible, powerful defensive structures were built at the borders. For this, not only a favorable relief was used (rivers, lakes, canals), but also each building and stone buildings.
Water barriers at the front line of defense, which passed along the banks of the Oder and Neisse rivers, were also a difficult obstacle. The width of the river reached 250 meters.
The city was surrounded by a triple ring of defensive structures, and inside were built 400 long-term firing points made of reinforced concrete. The largest of these structures are six-story underground bunkers with military units of up to a thousand fighters.
As part of the Berlin garrison, there were 200 thousand people.
Fights for Berlin
Medals of the Great Patriotic War were issued for major and significant events.
Undoubtedly, the military operations of the Soviet group of forces in April-May 1945 also belong to such events.
The assault on the Berlin group of forces began on the night of April 16. Before the offensive, the most powerful artillery and aviation training took place. And under the illumination of powerful spotlights, Soviet tanks and infantry launched an attack from the Kyustrinsky bridgehead.
Stalin, having intelligence about the enemy’s intentions regarding the situation in Zurich, on April 17 sent an urgent telegram to the Front Military Council that it was urgent to put an end to this web of lies. For this, Berlin must be taken by Soviet troops.
As expected, the battles were extremely heavy. Hitler's soldiers fought on the defensive with the despair of the doomed. Especially fierce battles were in the area of Zeelovsky heights.
After the fighting, the troops approached Berlin by April 21, and by April 22, Soviet soldiers broke into the streets of Berlin.
By April 25, the troops of the Belarusian and Ukrainian fronts joined, closing the ring around Berlin, thereby dividing the enemies into two parts.
Reichstag capture
All of Berlin was already on fire. And in the morning of April 30, battles began for the capture of the Reichstag, in which at that time there was a garrison of the selected forces of the SS.
After fierce clashes in the Reichstag building on the night of May 1, the Victory Banner was hoisted on the pediment of this huge building .
But the fights of the fighting units in the city did not stop, only in the morning of May 2 they asked for the surrender of the remaining defending SS soldiers in the Reichstag building.
It was at this moment in the fighting, a turning point came, which ended in the complete victory of the Soviet troops. And about this we are reminded of military medals.
Work on the project of a medal
By the time the award for participation in the storming of Berlin was created, WWII medals were already issued more than once.
In the competition for the appearance of the medal "For the Capture of Berlin", which began on 04/19/1945, 116 sketches participated. And by May 3, the first samples in metal were minted.
The final medal "For the capture of Berlin" acquired thanks to the sketch of the artist A.I. Kuznetsova. Diameter - 32 mm. The material is brass.
On the front side in the center of the coin is the inscription "For the capture of Berlin." Bottom of the inscription is a drawing of an oak half-wreath curled with a ribbon. Over the inscription "For the capture of Berlin" a five-pointed star is minted.
The back side is decorated with the text "May 2, 1945" and below the date there is a five-pointed asterisk.
Million Heroes
The medal "For the capture of Berlin" was awarded to military personnel on the basis of documents that confirmed participation in the assault and capture of Berlin in the period from April 22 to May 2, 1945. It was received by people to whom we owe our lives and freedom.
Over the entire period of post-war life, servicemen awarded the medal "For the capture of Berlin" amounted to over a million people. And even many years after the end of the war, awards continue to find their owners, for the most part from those who were in serious condition at hospitals at the time of the award.
Among the million awarded:
- Soviet pilot ace, thrice hero of the Soviet Union - Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin.
- Soviet commander, Marshal of the Soviet Union - Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov.
And after the death or death of the award awarded for such an award, the medal “For the capture of Berlin”, together with the documents for it, remained in the family of the awarded for preservation in memory of a relative-hero. And to this day, specialists from the Russian Ministry of Defense are searching for those who could not get their medals.