Some of the sources claim that the history of the Brest Fortress began a century before her heroic deed in 1941. This is somewhat untrue. The fortress has existed for a long time. The complete reconstruction of the medieval citadel in the town of Berestye (the historical name of Brest) began in 1836 and lasted 6 years.
Immediately after the fire of 1835, the tsarist government decided to modernize the fortress in order to give it the status of a western outpost of national importance in the future.
Medieval Brest
The fortress arose back in the 11th century, references to it can be found in the well-known Tale of Bygone Years, where the chronicle depicted episodes of the struggle for the throne between two great princes - Svyatopolk and Yaroslav.
Having a very advantageous location - on a cape between two rivers, the Western Bug and Mukhavets, Berestye soon acquired the status of a major shopping center.
In ancient times, rivers were the main ways of merchant movement. And here, as many as two waterways made it possible to move goods from east towest and vice versa. It was possible to get to Poland, Lithuania and Europe along the Bug, and along the Mukhavets, through the Pripyat and the Dnieper, to the Black Sea steppes and the Middle East.
One can only guess how picturesque the medieval Brest Fortress was. Photos of illustrations and drawings of the fortress of the early period are very rare, it is possible to meet them only as museum exhibits.
Due to the constant transition of the Brest Fortress under the jurisdiction of one or another state and the arrangement of the town in its own way, the plan of both the outpost and the settlement underwent minor changes. Some of them were inspired by the demands of the time, but for more than half a thousand years the Brest Fortress managed to maintain its original medieval color and atmosphere.
1812. The French in the citadel
The border geography of Brest has always been the reason for the struggle for the town: for 800 years, the history of the Brest Fortress captured the dominion of the Turov and Lithuanian principalities, the Commonwe alth (Poland), and only in 1795 Brest became an integral part of Russian lands.
But before the invasion of Napoleon, the Russian government did not attach much importance to the ancient fortress. Only during the Russo-French War of 1812, the Brest Fortress confirmed its status as a reliable outpost, which, as the people said, helps its own people and destroys its enemies.
The French also decided to keep Brest behind them, but the Russian troops recaptured the fortress, having won an unconditional victory over the Frenchcavalry units.
Historic decision
This victory served as the starting point for the decision of the tsarist government to build a new and powerful fortification on the site of a rather flimsy medieval fortress, corresponding to the spirit of the times in architectural style and military significance.
And what about the heroes of the Brest Fortress during the Patriotic War of 1812? After all, any military action involves the appearance of desperate daredevils and patriots. Their names remained unknown to the wide circles of the then public, but it is possible that they received their awards for courage from the hands of Emperor Alexander himself.
Fire in Brest
The fire that engulfed the ancient settlement in 1835 accelerated the process of the general reconstruction of the Brest Fortress. The plans of the then engineers and architects were to destroy the medieval buildings in order to erect in their place completely new structures in terms of architectural character and strategic significance.
The fire destroyed about 300 buildings in the settlement, and this, paradoxically, turned out to be in the hands of the tsarist government, and the builders, and the population of the town.
Reconstruction
Having issued compensation to the victims of the fire in the form of cash and building materials, the state convinced them to settle not in the fortress itself, but separately - two kilometers from the outpost, thus providing the fortress with the only function - a protective one.
The history of the Brest Fortress has not known such a grandiose restructuring before: the medieval settlement was demolished to the ground, and a powerful citadel with thick walls grew in its place,a whole system of drawbridges connecting three artificially created islands, with bastion forts equipped with ravelins, with an impregnable ten-meter earth rampart, with narrow embrasures that allow the defenders to remain as protected as possible during the shelling.
Defensive capabilities of the fortress in the 19th century
In addition to defensive structures, which, of course, play a leading role in repelling enemy attacks, the number and well-trained soldiers serving in the border fortress are also important.
The defensive strategy of the citadel was thought out by the architects to the subtleties. Otherwise, why attach the importance of the main fortification to an ordinary soldier's barracks? Living in rooms with walls two meters thick, each of the servicemen was subconsciously ready to repel possible enemy attacks, literally, jumping out of bed - at any time of the day.
500 casemates of the fortress easily fit 12,000 soldiers with a full set of weapons and provisions for several days. The barracks were so successfully disguised from prying eyes that the uninitiated could hardly have guessed about their presence - they were located in the thickness of that same ten-meter earthen rampart.
The architectural feature of the fortress was the inseparable connection of its structures: the protruding towers covered the main citadel from fire, and targeted fire could be fired from the forts located on the islands, protecting the front line.
When the fortress was fortified with a ring of 9 forts, it became almost invulnerable: each of them could fit a whole soldiergarrison (which is 250 servicemen), plus 20 guns.
Brest Fortress in peacetime
During the period of calm on the state borders, Brest lived a measured, unhurried life. An enviable regularity reigned both in the city and in the fortress, services were performed in churches. There were several churches on the territory of the fortress - nevertheless, one temple could not fit a huge number of military men.
One of the local monasteries was rebuilt into a building for meetings of officers and was named the White Palace.
But even in calm periods, it was not so easy to get into the fortress. The entrance to the "heart" of the citadel consisted of four gates. Three of them, as a symbol of their impregnability, have been preserved by the modern Brest Fortress. The museum begins with the old gates: Kholmsky, Terespolsky, Northern … Each of them was ordered to become the gate to paradise for many of their defenders in future wars.
Equipment of the fortress on the eve of World War I
During the period of unrest in Europe, the fortress of Brest-Litovsk remained one of the most reliable fortifications on the Russian-Polish border. The main task of the citadel is "to facilitate the freedom of action of the army and navy", which did not have modern weapons and equipment.
Out of 871 weapons, only 34% met the requirements of combat in modern conditions, the rest of the weapons were outdated. Among the cannons, old models prevailed, capable of firing shots at a distance of no more than 3 versts. At this time, a potential enemyhad mortars and 45-caliber artillery systems.
In 1910, the aeronautic battalion of the fortress received its first airship, and in 1911, the Brest-Litovsk fortress was equipped with its own radio station by a special royal decree.
The first war of the 20th century
The First World War caught the Brest Fortress in a rather peaceful occupation - construction. Attracted villagers from nearby and distant villages actively built additional forts.
The fortress would have been perfectly protected if the military reform had not erupted the day before, as a result of which the infantry was disbanded, and the outpost lost its combat-ready garrison. At the beginning of the First World War, only the militia remained in the Brest-Litovsk fortress, who, during the retreat, were forced to burn down the strongest and most modern of the outposts.
But the main event of the first war of the 20th century for the fortress was not connected with military actions - the Brest peace treaty was signed within its walls.
Monuments of the Brest Fortress have a different look and character, and this treaty, significant for those times, remains one of them.
How the people found out about the feat of Brest
Most of contemporaries know the Brest Citadel from the events of the first day of Nazi Germany's treacherous attack on the Soviet Union. Information about this did not appear immediately, it was made public by the Germans themselves in a completely unexpected way: showing restrained admiration for the heroism of the defenders of Brest in personal diaries, which were later found and published by military journalists.
Thishappened in 1943-1944. Until that time, the feat of the citadel was unknown to a wide audience, and the heroes of the Brest Fortress who survived in the "meat grinder", according to the highest military officials, were considered ordinary prisoners of war who surrendered to the enemy out of cowardice.
The information that local battles were sharpening in the citadel in July, and even in August 1941, also did not immediately become public. But, now historians can say for sure: the Brest Fortress, which the enemy expected to take in 8 hours, held out for a very long time.
Date Hell Begins: June 22, 1941
Before the war, which was not expected, the Brest Fortress looked completely unthreatening: the old earthen rampart sank, overgrown with grass, flowers and sports grounds on the territory. In early June, the main regiments stationed in the fortress left it and went to summer training camps.
On the night of June 22, the outpost was practically defenseless.
The history of the Brest Fortress for all the centuries has never known such treachery: the predawn hours of a short summer night have become an absolute hell for its inhabitants. Suddenly, out of nowhere, artillery fire was opened on the fortress, taking everyone in it by surprise, and 17,000 ruthless "fellows" from the Wehrmacht burst into the territory of the outpost.
But neither blood, nor horror, nor the death of comrades could break and stop the heroic defenders of Brest. They fought for eight days according to official figures. And two more monthsunofficial.
The Brest Fortress did not give up so easily and not so quickly. The defense of 1941 became an omen of the entire further course of the war and showed the enemy the ineffectiveness of his cold calculations and superweapons, which are defeated by the unpredictable heroism of the poorly armed, but passionately loving the fatherland of the Slavs.
Talking Stones
What is the Brest Fortress silently screaming about now? The museum has preserved numerous exhibits and stones on which you can read the records of its defenders. Short phrases in one or two lines are taken to the quick, touching representatives of all generations to tears, even though they sound sparingly, masculinely dry and businesslike.
Muscovites: Ivanov, Stepanchikov and Zhuntyaev chronicled this terrible period - with a nail on the stone, with tears in the heart. Two of them died, the remaining Ivanov also knew that he did not have much time left, he promised: “The last grenade remained. I won’t surrender alive,” and immediately asked: “Revenge us, comrades.”
Among the evidence that the fortress held out for more than eight days, there are dates on the stone: July 20, 1941 - the most distinct of them.
To comprehend the significance of the heroism and stamina of the fortress defenders for the whole country, you just need to remember the place and date: Brest Fortress, 1941.
Creating a memorial
For the first time after the occupation, representatives of the Soviet Union (official and from the people) were able to enter the territory of the fortress in 1943. Just at that time, publications of excerpts from the diaries of German soldiers andofficers.
Before that, Brest was a legend passed from mouth to mouth on all fronts and in the rear. In order to give the events officiality, to stop all kinds of fiction (even of a positive nature) and to capture the feat of the Brest Fortress through the centuries, it was decided to reclassify the western outpost as a memorial.
The implementation of the idea took place several decades after the end of the war - in 1971. Ruins, burnt and shelled walls - all this has become an integral part of the exposition. The wounded buildings are unique and form the main testament to the courage of their defenders.
In addition, during the peaceful years, the Brest Fortress memorial acquired several thematic monuments and obelisks of a later origin, which harmoniously fit into the original ensemble of the fortress-museum and emphasized the tragedy that occurred within these walls with their rigor and conciseness.
Brest Fortress in Literature
The most famous and even somewhat scandalous work about the Brest Fortress was the book by S. S. Smirnov. Having met with eyewitnesses and surviving participants in the defense of the citadel, the author decided to restore justice and whitewash the names of real heroes who were blamed by the then government for being in German captivity.
And he succeeded, even though the times were not the most democratic - the mid-50s of the last century.
The book "Brest Fortress" helped many to return to normal life, not despised by fellow citizens. Photos of some of these lucky peoplewidely published in the press, the names sounded on the radio. Even a series of radio broadcasts was established, dedicated to the search for the defenders of the Brest stronghold.
Smirnov's work became the saving thread along which, like a mythological heroine, other heroes emerged from the darkness of oblivion - the defenders of Brest, privates and commanders. Among them: Major Gavrilov, Commissar Fomin, Lieutenant Semenenko, Captain Zubachev.
The Brest Fortress is a monument to the valor and glory of the people, quite tangible and material. Many mysterious legends about its fearless defenders still live among the people. We know them in the form of literary and musical works, sometimes we meet them in folklore.
And live these legends for centuries, because the feat of the Brest Fortress is worthy of being remembered in the 21st, and in the 22nd, and in subsequent centuries.
