The real story of “Panfilov’s 28 Men.” Facts and documentary information. Panfilov's Panfilov's Wiki

In the years Great Patriotic War many heroic deeds were performed. People gave their own lives so that the future population of the country would be happy and live without worries. Take, for example, the battles Leningrad. The soldiers stopped the cartridges with their chests and went on the offensive to prevent the Germans from moving forward. But did all the exploits we know about actually happen? Let's figure it out and the real story of the heroes - 28 Panfilov's men will help us with this.

As we are used to seeing

We were told about the real story from our school desks 28 Panfilovites. Of course, the information given in school is taken as the ideal. Therefore, the story, which has been familiar since youth, goes like this.

In mid-November 1941, when only five months had passed after the start of Hitler's invasion, 28 men from one of the rifle regiments defended themselves near Volokolamsk from the Nazi offensive. The head of the operation was Vasily Klochkov. The fight with the enemies lasted more than four hours. During all this time, the heroes were able to raze about twenty tanks to the ground, stopping the Germans for several hours. Unfortunately, no one managed to survive - everyone was killed. In the spring of 1942, the whole country was already aware of what they had done 28 heroes. An order was issued that stated that posthumous orders of Heroes of the Soviet Union should be awarded to all fallen soldiers. In the summer of the same year, the titles were awarded.

The real story of the heroes - 28 Panfilov's men - Secrets.Net

Or didn't everyone die?

Ivan Dobrobabin, after the end of the war, in 1947, was convicted of treason. According to the prosecutor's office, at the beginning of 1942 he was captured by the Germans, with whom he later remained in the service. A year later, Soviet forces finally got to him, putting him behind bars. But it takes a long time Ivan didn't stay - he ran away. His next action is clear - he left again to serve the Nazis. He worked for the German police, where he arrested citizens of the Soviet Union.

After the end of the war, a forced search was made at Dobrobabin’s house. The police were shocked to find a book about 28 Panfilov men, where Ivan was listed as killed! Of course, he had the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

The traitor to his homeland understands that his position leaves much to be desired. Therefore, it is advisable to tell the authorities everything that really happened. According to him, he was among these 28 people, but the Nazis did not kill him, but simply shell-shocked him. While checking all the dead, the Germans found Dobrobabina alive and taken prisoner. He did not stay in the camp for long - he managed to escape. Ivan goes to the village where he was born and spent his youth. But it turned out to be occupied by the Germans. It was too late to go back, so he decides to stay in the police service.

This is not the end of the traitor's story. In 1943, the Russian army advances again. Ivan has no choice but to flee to Odessa where his relatives lived. There, of course, no one suspected that the pious Russian soldier was working for the Nazis. When Soviet troops approached the city, Dobrobabin again found himself in the ranks of his compatriots, continuing the joint offensive. The war ended for him Vienna.

After the war, in 1948, a military tribunal took place. Based on the resolution, Ivan Dobrobabina sentenced to fifteen years in prison, confiscation of property and deprivation of all orders and medals, including one of the highest ranks received posthumously. In the mid-50s, the term of imprisonment was reduced to seven years.

His fate after prison was such that he moved to his brother, where he lived to the age of 83 and died an ordinary death.

The newspaper doesn't lie

In 1947, it turns out that not everyone died. One not only remained alive, but also betrayed the country by ending up in German service. The prosecutor's office began an investigation into the events that actually happened.

According to the documents, the newspaper " A red star"was one of the first to publish a note about the heroic feat. The correspondent was Vasily Koroteev. He decided to omit the names of the soldiers, but only said that no one remained alive.

A day later, a small article entitled “The Testament of Panfilov’s Men” appears in the same newspaper. It says that all the fighters were able to stop the enemy’s advance on the Soviet Union. Alexander Krivitsky was the newspaper's secretary at that time. He also signed the article.

After signing the material about the feat of the heroes in “Red Star”, a material appears in which all the names of the dead heroes were published, where, of course, Ivan Dobrobabin.

A few survived!

If you believe the chronicle of events about the real history of 28 Panfilov’s men, then it becomes clear that during the verification of the heroes’ case, Ivan Dobrobabin was not the only survivor of that battle. According to sources, at least five more people besides him did not die. During the battle, they were all wounded, but survived. Some of them were captured by the Nazis.

Daniil Kuzhebergenov, one of the participants in the battle, was also captured. He stayed there for only a few hours, which was quite enough for the prosecutor’s office to admit that he himself surrendered to the Germans. This led to his name being replaced by another at the award ceremony. Of course, he did not receive the award. And until the end of his life he was not recognized as a participant in the battle.

The prosecutor's office studied all the materials of the case and came to the conclusion that there was no story about the 28 Panfilovites. The journalist supposedly made this up. How true this is is known only to the archive, where all the documents of that time are stored.

Interrogation of the commander

Ilya Karpov is the commander of the 1075th regiment, where all 28 people served. When the prosecutor's office conducted an investigation, Karpov was also present. He said that there were no 28 heroes who stopped the Germans.

In fact, at that time the fascists were opposed by the fourth company, from which over a hundred people died. Not a single newspaper correspondent approached the regiment commander for an explanation. Of course, Karpov did not talk about any 28 soldiers, since they simply did not exist. He was completely unaware of what was the basis for writing an article in the newspaper.

In the winter of 1941, a correspondent from the newspaper “ A red star", from which the commander learns about certain Panfilovites who defended the Motherland. The newspapermen admitted that this is exactly how many people were needed to write the note.

According to journalists

Alexander Krivitsky, who was a correspondent for the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, reports that his material about 28 Panfilovites standing in defense of the country is a complete fiction. None of the soldiers testified to the journalist.

According to the prosecutor's office that conducted the investigation, everyone who was in the battle died. Two men from the company raised their hands, which only meant that they were ready to surrender to the Germans. Our soldiers did not tolerate betrayal and killed two traitors themselves. There was not a word in the documents about the number of people who died in the battle. Moreover, the names remained unknown.

When the journalist returned to the capital again, he told the editor “ Red Star"about a battle where Russian soldiers took part. Later, when asked about the number of people participating, Krivitsky replied that there were about forty people, two of whom were traitors. Gradually the number dropped to thirty people, two of whom surrendered to the Germans. Therefore, exactly 28 people are considered heroes.

Local residents think that...

According to the local population, at that time there were actually fierce battles with Nazi forces. Six people who were found dead were buried in this area. There is no doubt that Soviet soldiers truly heroically defended the country.

The real course of events became known - albeit to a very limited circle of people - already in 1948, during the trial of one of the participants in that legendary battle, Ivan Dobrobabin. Panfilov was tried for collaboration with the German occupiers. The trial materials became available to the general public in 1990 thanks to the Russian historian Boris Sokolov. As it turned out, almost everything in the legend about Panfilov’s men is not true. The soldiers who took part in the battle were not 28, but about 140. The number of tanks they destroyed was greatly exaggerated. A few hours later, Dubosekovo was captured by the Germans, so there is no need to talk about the fact that Panfilov’s men stopped the enemy. There were survivors of the battle, but the very fact of their existence contradicted the legend. And the country for which they shed blood on the battlefield treated them no better than deserters. The distortion of facts is simply monstrous. And all responsibility for it lies not with the abstract “propaganda machine”, but with specific people: “Red Star” correspondent Vladimir Koroteev and the editor-in-chief of this newspaper David Ortenberg.

On November 23–24, 1941, Vladimir Koroteev, together with another journalist, a reporter for Komsomolskaya Pravda, talked with Rokossovsky at the headquarters of the 16th Army. The subject of the conversation was the heroism of soldiers who devote all their strength to the defense of the Fatherland. The journalists were asked to write a report “from the trenches,” but they were still not allowed to go to the front line. I had to be content with second-hand materials. At headquarters they met the commissar of the Panfilov division, Yegorov. Talking about the heroism of the soldiers, Egorov gave an example of a battle between one of the companies and German tanks and suggested writing about this battle. The commissar did not know the exact number of company soldiers. He reported only two cases of betrayal. In the evening, the editorial office worked on the material and settled on the fact that there should have been about 30 soldiers left in the company. The number 28 was obtained by simple subtraction: after all, two were traitors, not heroes. In addition, the next issue was published on November 28, so it turned out to be a beautiful headline. Neither the editor nor the author of the article could have imagined what consequences the publication of the note would have... The topic of Panfilov’s men quickly became popular. A number of more essays about Panfilov’s heroes appeared (however, Koroteev himself did not return to the topic; it was transferred to another journalist, Krivitsky). Stalin really liked the legend, and all 28 Panfilov men were posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

What really happened at the Dubosekovo crossing? And what was the feat of Panfilov’s men? The opinion of historians is this: indeed, the soldiers of Panfilov’s division showed heroism, delaying the advance of the tanks for four hours and allowing the command to bring up troops for the decisive battle. However, the entire battalion deserved glory, and not just the famous 4th company of the 1075th regiment of the 316th Infantry Division. And the main feat of the soldiers was that, having overcome their fear of tanks, with minimal technical support (according to some sources, the entire company had only two anti-tank rifles!) they managed to stop a tank column.

According to the investigation materials, the company on November 16, 1941 was preparing not for defense, but for a counteroffensive. But they didn’t have time: the Germans went on the attack earlier. Despite the fact that the surviving participants in the battle must have provided accurate information, historians still cannot come to a consensus regarding the composition of the German troops that participated in the attacks. Some believe that only tanks were involved in the battle without infantry support. Others insist that the armored vehicles were supported by infantrymen. And the number of tanks varies from 20 to 70. Even more strange is that the name of the Panfilov commander is still the subject of controversy. According to one version, command was taken over by the platoon commander I. E. Dobrobabin, and only after he was wounded, the political instructor of the 4th company V. G. Klochkov, sent by the company commander Gundilovich, managed to get to the Panfilov men. During the first attack, five or six tanks moved to the area that Panfilov’s men defended (the legendary 20 tanks are the total number of vehicles that attacked the entire regiment). The second platoon, commanded by Dobrobabin, managed to knock out one of them. In general, in the company’s sector, thanks to the courage of the soldiers, five or six tanks were knocked out. The Germans retreated. Several lines of tanks, 15–20 in each, already launched the next attack. The second battle lasted about 40 minutes and ended in complete defeat. There were 15 German tanks left on the battlefield (later three more were added to them and it was agreed that all the tanks were knocked out by the soldiers of the fourth company). And from the company, which had 120–140 fighters before the battle, only a few people remained in the ranks. Some died, others surrendered.

After the battle, a German funeral team walked across the battlefield. I. D. Shadrin (unconscious) and D. F. Timofeev (severely wounded) were discovered and captured. There is information that Shadrin lay on the battlefield for six days until the Germans established that he was alive. Two more seriously wounded - I.M. Natarov and I.R. Vasiliev - were taken by local residents to the medical battalion. G. M. Shemyakin, periodically losing consciousness, crawled until the horsemen of General Dovator discovered him in the forest. There were two more survivors: D. A. Kozhubergenov (Kozhabergenov) and I. E. Dobrobabin.

The fate of the surviving heroes turned out differently. Natarov died in the medical battalion from his wounds. The six surviving Panfilovites tried to remind themselves: Vasiliev and Shemyakin - after being discharged from hospitals, Shadrin and Timofeev - later, having gone through all the horrors of the concentration camps. They treated the “resurrected” heroes with extreme caution. After all, the whole country knew that all the participants in the battle at Dubosekov died a brave death. Incessant checks, interrogations, and bullying began. They were especially hostile towards Shadrin and Timofeev: for a Soviet soldier to be captured was tantamount to betraying the Motherland. However, over time, all four received their Gold Stars - some earlier, some later.

The fate of two more Panfilovites was much more tragic: D. A. Kozhubergenov and I. E. Dobrobabin. Daniil Aleksandrovich Kozhubergenov was the liaison officer of the political instructor of the 4th company V. G. Klochkov. In the battle he was shell-shocked, in an unconscious state he was captured by the Germans, but after a few hours he managed to escape, came across Dovator’s cavalry and, together with them, broke out of the encirclement. Having learned from the newspapers that he was considered dead, he was the first of Panfilov’s men to declare himself. But instead of being awarded, he was arrested. Investigator Soloveichik forced Kozhubergenov at gunpoint to sign an “impostor.” He was sent to a marching company, but after being seriously wounded near Rzhev, he was decommissioned, and he returned to Alma-Ata. And in order to avoid problems in the future, we decided to “adjust” the list of heroes. So instead of Daniil Aleksandrovich Kozhubergenov, Askar Kozhebergenov appeared. They even came up with a biography for him. But the real participant in the battle died as an “impostor” in 1976. He has still not been rehabilitated and is not officially recognized.

I. E. Dobrobabin was shell-shocked during the battle and covered with earth. This is probably why the German funeral team did not immediately find him. At night he woke up and crawled to the forest. When, trying to find his own people, Dobrobabin entered the village, he was captured by the Germans and sent to the Mozhaisk camp. During the evacuation of the camp, he managed to escape from the train by breaking the boards and jumping out at full speed. It was impossible to break through to our own people: all the surrounding villages were occupied by the Germans. Then Dobrobabin decided to make his way to his native village of Perekop in Ukraine. There were no Germans in Perekop, and he settled with his sick brother Grigory, who helped him, through the headman P. Zinchenko, who sympathized with the Soviet regime, obtain a certificate of permanent residence in this village. But a denunciation soon followed, and Dobrobabin was sent to the Levandal camp. Apparently, there were also bribe takers among the Germans, because his relatives managed to buy him out of there. But in August 1942, an order appeared to send specialists to work in Germany. His relatives persuaded him to accept the position of policeman in the village: he wouldn’t have to go to Germany, and he could help his own people. This decision almost became fatal. When in 1943, during the retreat of the Germans, Dobrobabin broke out to his own people and, appearing at the field military registration and enlistment office in the village of Tarasovka, Odessa region, told Lieutenant Usov everything, an indelible suspicion fell on his honor. After a check that did not reveal the fact of treason, he was enlisted with the rank of sergeant in the 1055th regiment of the 297th division. Dobrobabin distinguished himself in battles more than once and was awarded the Order of Glory, 3rd degree. But they refused to give him the Hero Star, despite the petition of the chief of counterintelligence of the 2nd Ukrainian Front.

After demobilization, Dobrobabin returned to the city of Tokmak, where he lived before the war. Here a street was named after him and there was a full-length monument to him. But no one needed a living hero. Moreover, Ivan Dobrobabin was repressed as a former police officer. He was arrested and tried on June 8–9, 1948. For “treason to the Motherland,” Dobrobabin was sentenced to 25 years in the camps. However, this term was reduced to 15 years (after all, one of the 28 Panfilovites). According to the court in Moscow, he was deprived of the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Not a single witness was called to the trial from the village of Perekop (40 km from Kharkov, where the trial took place), who would confirm his struggle with the Germans. The “traitor” was also not given a lawyer. The Panfilov hero went to the camps... At the monument to Dobrobabin, they cut off his head and welded another one, also a Panfilov hero, only he died.

Dobrobabin was released early after 7 years, still deprived of all awards. His name was not mentioned anywhere (he was considered dead), and in 1960 it was officially forbidden to mention Dobrobabin. For many years, the Moscow military historian G. Kumanev worked on the rehabilitation of the hero. And he achieved his goal: in 1993, the Supreme Court of Ukraine rehabilitated Dobrobabin. And after the death of Ivan Evstafievich (he died on December 19, 1996), the title of Hero of the Soviet Union was returned to him by the so-called “Permanent Presidium of the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR”, headed by Sazhi Umalatova.

And the phrase of political instructor Klochkov, which has become a catchphrase, is entirely on the conscience of journalists. The Panfilov division was formed mainly from Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Uzbeks; much less than half of it was Russian. Many knew almost no Russian (only basic commands). So political instructor Klochkov would hardly have made pathetic speeches in front of the company: firstly, a good half of the soldiers would not have understood anything, and secondly, the roar from the explosions was such that even the commands were not always heard.

November 16, 1941 at the Dubosekovo junction, the 1075th regiment of the 316th division took on battle with superior enemy forces. The 316th division, commanded by Major General Panfilov, was in the direction of the main attack throughout October. The heroism of Panfilov’s men immediately became known to the Soviet people, and the division and its commander became legendary after the battles in the Volokolamsk direction. It is not surprising that the heroic division attracted increased attention from the press. On November 16, 1075 the regiment was attacked by superior German forces. The regiment repelled the attack, knocking out several tanks. The Germans brought up their reserves and broke through the defenses by evening. Resisting heroically, Soviet soldiers were forced to retreat, suffering huge losses. The fate of the regiment also befell the rest of the division. Almost defeated during the November battles, it was forced to retreat to the Istra line. On November 18, General Panfilov himself died in battle. Subsequently, the 316th Division was transformed into the 8th Guards Rifle Division and took part in the battles near the famous village of Kryukovo on the Leningradskoe Highway. And only at the end of December 1941. she went to the rear for reorganization. The commander of the 1075th regiment Kaprov recalled: “By November 16, 1941, the regiment that I commanded was on the left flank of the division and covered the exits from Volokolamsk to Moscow and the railway. The 2nd battalion occupied the defense: the village of Novo-Nikolskoye- villagePetelino and Dubosekovo junction.... > The fourth company was commanded by Captain Gundilovich, political instructor Klochkov... By November 16, 1941, there were 120 in the company- 140 people. ... >. In total there were 10 battalions in the area- 12 enemy tanks. I don’t know how many tanks went to the 4th company’s site, or rather, I can’t determine. With the help of the regiment and the efforts of the 2nd battalion, this German tank attack was repulsed. In the battle the regiment destroyed 5- 6 German tanks, and the Germans retreated... Around 14.00- At 15.00 the Germans opened heavy artillery fire on all positions of the regiment, and German tanks again went on the attack. ... >Over 50 tanks attacked the regiment's sector, and the main attack was directed at the positions of the 2nd battalion, since this sector was most accessible to enemy tanks. For about 40- 45 minutes later, enemy tanks crushed the location of the 2nd battalion,including the section of the 4th company. ... > When I crossed the railway embankment, people who had survived the attack by German tanks began to gather around me. The 4th Company suffered the most from the attack; Led by company commander Gundilovich, 20 people survived- 25, the rest all died. The remaining companies suffered less damage." The Soviet people learned about the heroism of the Division from the Izvestia newspaper within 3 days. November 19, 1941 it contained a note by G. Ivanov, “The 8th Guards Division in Battles,” which described the battle of one of the companies. The encircled company put up heroic resistance, knocking out 9 tanks (3 of them burned out), and forcing the rest to retreat. There is no information about where Ivanov received the information, but the information, firstly, is plausible, and secondly, operational, from which we can conclude that Ivanov received it from sources close to the front line. Thirdly, the information did not raise any questions in the Authorities. But more on that below. Koroteev About a week later, the Red Star correspondent Koroteev visited the headquarters of the 16th Army (which included Panfilov’s division). This is how he himself describes it in 1948. during interrogation by the investigator, the way in which he received the information. " Around 23-On November 24, 1941, I, together with the war correspondent of the newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda" Chernyshev, was at the headquarters of the 16th Army... When leaving the army headquarters, we met the commissar of the 8th Panfilov Division Egorov, who spoke about the extremely difficult situation at the front and said that our people are fighting heroically in all areas. In particular, Egorov gave an example of the heroic battle of one company with German tanks; 54 tanks advanced on the company’s line, and the company delayed them, destroying some of them. Egorov himself was not a participant in the battle, but spoke from the words of the regiment commissar, who also did not participate in the battle with German tanks... Egorov recommended writing in the newspaper about the heroic battle of the company with enemy tanks, having previously become acquainted with the political report received from the regiment... The political report spoke about the battle of the fifth company with enemy tanks and that the company stood “to the death” - it died, but did not retreat, and only two people turned out to be traitors, they raised their hands to surrender to the Germans, but they were destroyed by our soldiers. The report did not say about the number of company soldiers who died in this battle, and their names were not mentioned. We did not establish this from conversations with the regiment commander. It was impossible to get into the regiment, and Egorov did not advise us to try to get into the regiment. Upon arrival in Moscow, I reported the situation to the editor of the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper, Ortenberg, and talked about the company’s battle with enemy tanks. Ortenberg asked me how many people were in the company. I answered him that the company apparently was incomplete, about 30-40 people; I also said that two of these people turned out to be traitors... I didn’t know that the front line was being prepared on this topic, but Ortenberg called me again and asked how many people were in the company. I told him that there were about 30 people. Thus, the number of those who fought appeared to be 28, since out of 30 two turned out to be traitors. Ortenberg said that it was impossible to write about two traitors, and, apparently, after consulting with someone, he decided to write about only one traitor in the editorial. On November 27, 1941, my short correspondence was published in the newspaper, and on November 28, the Red Star published the editorial “The Testament of 28 Fallen Heroes,” written by Krivitsky" .
Either not trusting Koroteev’s literary abilities, or guided by considerations of subordination in the journalistic table of ranks, or for some other reason, the editor-in-chief of “Red Star” Ortenberg assigns the writing of the editorial not to the “getter” of information, but to the lit. newspaper secretary A.Yu. Krivitsky. Who eagerly gets down to business, and already on November 28, an editorial filled with pathos entitled “Testament” appears in “Red Star”
28 fallen heroes." " Resistance might seem crazy. Fifty armored monsters against twenty-nine people! In what war, in what times did such an unequal battle take place! But the Soviet soldiers accepted it without flinching. They didn't back down, they didn't retreat. "We have no way back"- they told themselves. Only one out of twenty-nine lost heart. When the Germans, confident of their easy victory, shouted to the guards- "Give up!"- only one raised his hands up. A salvo immediately rang out. Several guardsmen simultaneously, without agreement, without command, shot at the coward and traitor. It was the homeland that punished the apostate. Already eighteen mangled tanks stood motionless on the battlefield. The battle lasted more than four hours, and the armored fist of the Nazis could not break through the line defended by the guards. But the ammunition ran out, the cartridges in the anti-tank rifle magazines ran out. There were no more grenades. Fascist vehicles approached the trench. The Germans jumped out of the hatches, wanting to take the surviving brave men alive and deal with them. But there is only one warrior in the field, if he is a Soviet warrior! Political instructor Diev grouped the remaining comrades around him and a bloody battle ensued again. Our people fought, remembering the old motto: “The Guard dies, but does not surrender.” And they laid down their heads- all twenty-eight. We died, but did not let the enemy through!" - writes Krivitsky, showing an example of how a journalist does not have the right to work. Too lazy to check the information. Or they were scared - after all, to do this they need to go closer to the front line and put the precious journalistic life at risk. And this is unacceptable: it is women who give birth to soldiers, but there are few journalists, and they must be protected. How many fighters fought is unknown? Well, let there be about thirty people. Are two traitors for thirty people too many? Well, let there be one. What is the surname of the political instructor? There, like some hero named Diev was mentioned, so let him be Diev! How many tanks were destroyed? Well, let there be 18.50 tanks in the regiment's sector? Not heroic enough, let it be 50 to 28 people. The rear journalists apparently did not even think about the fact that this number was completely implausible. Neither Koroteev nor Krivitsky are professional military journalists wearing shoulder straps! - they didn’t even think about how physically 54 tanks could advance in an area defended by 28 people. Provided that about 50 tanks is a lot even for the area defended by the regiment, as Kaprov’s testimony quoted above clearly shows. Journalist Chernyshev from Komsomolskaya Pravda, together with Koroteev “received information” at the headquarters of the 16th Army, also wrote an article entitled “Glory to fearless patriots.” Where he described the battle described to him by the division commissar who did not participate in it from the words of the regiment commissar who did not participate in it. I even added for authenticity the names of Lieutenant Bezvremny and senior political instructor Kalachev, it is not known whether on my own or from the words of one of the staff officers of the 16th Army. This is how not the most successful literary works appeared, which generalized and “creatively” processed the real events of mid-November. Well, it would seem, God bless this. In the end, why not consider the articles of Chernyshev and Krivitsky a literary fiction based on real facts of mass heroism, and close this topic? But, alas, it doesn’t work. After all, if Chernyshev had the conscience and common sense to stop at what had been “achieved,” then Krivitsky and Ortenberg decided to squeeze as much as possible out of the heroic theme. In January 1942, Krivitsky published an essay “About 28 Fallen Heroes,” in which he already lists by name those killed in a battle he himself invented. And Ortenberg, who personally sucked the number 28 out of his finger, prints it! Ortenberg “When guardsmen die in battle, winged glory flies from the military banner and invisibly stands as an honorary and permanent guard at the head of the dead. The news of the feat of twenty-eight Panfilov guardsmen who laid down their lives on the battlefield spread far across Soviet soil. We didn’t know yet all the details of their death, the names of the heroes had not yet been named, their bodies were still resting on the ground captured by the enemy, but rumors about the fabulous valor of twenty-eight Soviet heroes were already going around the fronts. Only now have we been able to reconstruct the full picture of the death of a handful of brave guardsmen."- Krivitsky writes proudly. Krivitsky A. Yu. We have already seen the method of “establishing a complete picture of the battle.” But where do the surnames come from? Throughout November and half of December, the 1075th regiment (like the entire division) fought bloody stubborn battles, repeatedly changing locations. In some companies, 20% of the personnel remained alive. And as soon as the regiment is withdrawn to the rear for reorganization, a Moscow journalist arrives with the division commissar (as the one that most distinguished itself and suffered in the battles of November 16). And they demand the names of 28 people who fought off the attack of German tanks on November 16. Which, naturally, puts the regiment commander and commissar at a dead end. From the testimony of regiment commander I.V. Kaprova to the investigator of the Main Military Prosecutor's Office: " At the end of December 1941, when the division was withdrawn for formation, the Red Star correspondent Krivitsky came to my regiment along with representatives of the political department of the division Glushko and Egorov. Here I first heard about the 28 Panfilov guardsmen. In a conversation with me, Krivitsky said that it was necessary to have 28 Panfilov guardsmen who fought with German tanks. I told him that the entire regiment and especially the 4th company of the 2nd battalion fought with German tanks, but I know nothing about the battle of 28 guardsmen... Krivitsky’s last name was given to Krivitsky from memory by Captain Gundilovich, who had conversations with him about this topic, there were and could not be any documents about the battle of 28 Panfilov men in the regiment. Nobody asked me about last names" . In response to an urgent request, or rather an order, to name the 28 names of those who fought the tanks on November 16, regiment commander Kaprov names the 4th company of the 2nd battalion, and directs the journalist to the company commander Gundilovich. When asked “where exactly did you fight on November 16,” he answers that he fought in the Dubosekovo area. And the requirement to name 28 fighters by name is satisfied as follows. From Krivitsky’s testimony to the GVP investigator: “Kaprov did not tell me the names, but instructed Mukhamedyarov and Gundilovich to do this, who compiled the list, taking information from some kind of statement or list. Thus, I have a list of the names of 28 Panfilov men who died in battle with German tanks at the Dubosekovo crossing. Arriving in Moscow, I wrote a letter to the newspaper under the heading “About 28 fallen heroes”; the basement was sent for a visa to the PUR. When talking at the PUR with Comrade Krapivin, he asked where I got the words of political instructor Klochkov, written in my basement: “Russia is great, but there is nowhere to retreat - Moscow is behind us,” I told him that I had invented it myself. The basement was placed in the "Red Star" of January 22, 1942. Here I used the stories of Gundilovich, Kaprov, Mukhamedyarov, Egorov. As for the feelings and actions of the 28 heroes, this is my literary conjecture. I did not talk to any of the wounded or surviving guardsmen. I'm from the local populationril only with a boy of about 14-15, who showed the grave where Klochkov was buried. ...In 1943, from the division where 28 Panfilov heroes were and fought, they sent me a letter conferring on me the rank of guardsman. I was only in the division three or four times." Gundilovich P.M. Commander of the 4th company. Thus, the myth of 28 is already taking shape. Now there is a battle site and 28 names, selected, however, completely randomly. The latter almost ruined the journalist Krivitsky. After a month and a half of difficult fighting (let me remind you that on November 16 alone the company lost over 100 people), when the composition of the company was constantly changing, even the best commander will not be able to accurately account for the losses in killed and wounded. Therefore, among the “28 heroically fallen” were: - Sergeant Dobrobabin, who deserted and subsequently worked as a policeman (more about him below). - liaison Kuzhebergenov, who did not participate in the battle and was captured by the Germans. - row. Notarov, as it turned out later, fell two days before the battle on November 16. - row. Timofeev, who was captured by the Germans wounded. - Sergeant Major Shemyakin and a row. Shadrin, seriously wounded and taken to rear hospitals. The last three were subsequently awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. A discrepancy also occurred with the surname of the political instructor, who was already named Diev in the first publication, but in the company lists bore the surname Klochkov. Apparently, the surname Diev belongs to some other person. And I will talk about some research in this direction at the end of the article. For some reason, the hero’s name stuck in the head of a staff member, and he told it to journalists on November 23-24. So Diev was mentioned in Koroteev’s November article and Krivitsky’s editorial. And when Krivitsky received 28 names of fighters and saw that the deceased political instructor of the 4th company of the 2nd battalion bore the last name Klochkov, the journalist, without blinking an eye, came up with another story. He explained the confusion with the names of the political instructor by the fact that Klochkov was a political instructor according to his passport, and one of the Ukrainian fighters jokingly dubbed him Diev. He was a very active (active) man. Krivitsky developed vigorous activity. The matter was not limited to just articles; by the end of the war, books about 28 Panfilovites were already in print. The feat was adopted by Soviet propaganda as an exemplary one. Krivitsky wrote tirelessly, the battle at Dubosekovo acquired absolutely incredible, truly fabulous details. Krivitsky described in detail who said what and who thought what, his books were published in large editions and translated into foreign languages. 28 Panfilov men were the most powerful business project of their time in the field of PR. It all almost ended soon after the war. In 1947 the “fallen hero” Dobrobabin was arrested, who managed to desert, work as a policeman, flee to another area during the advance of the Red Army, and be re-enlisted in the army from the liberated territory, hiding his service in the police. He was ruined (as it almost ruined Krivitsky) by his own arrogance. Anyone else with such a biography would have hidden, but Dobrobabin, armed with Krivitsky’s book about his heroism, went to demand the hero’s star. And after checking he was arrested. During the investigation, the prosecutor’s office found out that four more “fallen heroes” were alive and decided to investigate the case. The results of the work of the Stalinist prosecutor's office are known and published: http://statearchive.ru/607 The conclusion of the people in uniform is clear. Thus, the investigation materials have established that the feat of 28 Panfilov guardsmen, covered in the press, is an invention of the correspondent Koroteev, the editor of “Red Star” Ortenberg, and especially the literary secretary of the newspaper Krivitsky. This fiction was repeated in the works of writers N. Tikhonov, V. Stavsky, A. Bek, N. Kuznetsov, V. Lipko, M. Svetlov and others and was widely popularized among the population of the Soviet Union. The memory of 28 Panfilovites was immortalized by the installation of a monument in the village. Nelidovo, Moscow region. A marble obelisk with a memorial plaque was installed in the Alma-Ata Culture and Recreation Park; The Federation Park and several streets of the capital of the republic are named after them. The names of 28 Panfilovites were assigned to many schools, enterprises and collective farms of the Soviet Union.

Chief Military Prosecutor of the USSR Armed Forces

Lieutenant General of Justice

N. Afanasyev.

The investigation of the prosecutor's office was directed as intended - i.e. Andrei Aleksandrovich Zhdanov, secretary of the Central Committee, who oversaw the ideological and propaganda direction. But the matter was not progressed. As the historian Aleksey Isaev, the author of the book “anti-Suvorov”, which dealt in detail with the history of the “28 Panfilovites”, said about this: “In my opinion, it would be more reasonable if Krivitsky was sent to Verkhoyansk for this. Then the story would be extremely instructive and would remain in journalism textbooks as an example of what not to do. But the Soviet government, represented by such a person, like A.A.Zhdanov,showed softness." Isaev also drew attention to the fact that data on the losses of such a number of tanks undoubtedly should have been reflected in the German archives. And they were always reflected. But nothing similar to the destruction of two dozen tanks on November 16 at Dubosekovo was found. It is also important to note that during the entire war and post-war period this was the only case when the prosecutor’s office was involved in such an investigation. The consequences of journalistic and human baseness could be very far-reaching. 28 people who did not distinguish themselves in anything special received the stars of Heroes, which disavowed the very concept of feat. The mass heroism of hundreds of people is forgotten and replaced by feat 28, which was also invented for career purposes. The party leadership is put in the position of hostages when it is forced to follow the lead of an irresponsible and unscrupulous scribbler. Moreover, one of Panfilov’s men turned out to be a policeman. Let him go now? Or imprison a “hero”? Both solutions are bad. What if this story leaks abroad? With what gusto the enemy would attack her in the conditions of the Cold War! It is impossible to agree with Isaev on one thing: that Zhdanov showed softness. Zhdanov sent the received document to members of the Politburo and personally to Stalin. Thus, the fact that the case was not progressed is not on Andrei Aleksandrovich’s conscience. Moreover, since Zhdanov informed other senior party leaders about the circumstances of the case, it can be assumed that he wanted to give the case a legal proceeding. It seems that only a progressive illness and imminent death prevented Zhdanov from dotting all the i’s in this matter. But be that as it may, Krivitsky escaped with a slight fright. Someone may ask, is it really so important whether the forgery is exposed or not? Is it necessary to “say to the end who is a bastard,” as Mayakovsky said? Time has shown that then, in 1948, it was certainly necessary to do this. There are among us (and, alas, there are more and more of them) patriots who sincerely believe that any lie can and should be used if it is aimed at a “good patriotic” cause. Let's try to take their position. Let’s forget that for the rest of their lives, 28 Panfilov men fed Krivitsky and fed him much more nutritiously than an ordinary Soviet person. That all his life he (like his boss in “Red Star” Ortenberg) wrote about the war and depicted exploits, raising children on opuses, the degree of conscientiousness of which we already know. That Krivitsky, who, according to his own statement, was in the division 3-4 times throughout the war, received the rank of guardsman on a par with the true heroes of the war. That the mythical feat of the 28th overshadowed real mass heroism. That the stars of heroes were received by people who were no different from any of the hundreds of thousands of other ordinary participants in the battle for Moscow. That out of a hundred dead soldiers of the 4th company, only 28 were “worthy” of being counted as heroes, and no one remembered the soldiers of neighboring companies, each of which lost up to 4/5 of its strength. That among the heroes there was a policeman and a deserter... In a word, let’s forget about the moral side of the matter and begin to be guided by considerations of “pragmatic patriotism” a la modern Russian professional patriots. But even from this position, the myth of 28 needed to be exposed. For Krivitsky’s forgery, which was not exposed in time, backfired on Perestroika.

Perestroika

Putin's noughties

It seems that the authors of both this and other similar emotional letters are inclined to support, without deeply understanding the essence of the issue, any campaign fanned in the press. This time they warmly responded to the call of Kumanev and Dobrobaba. Katusev F. A. Alien glory of Ivan Dobrobaba

https://www.site/2016-11-15/pochemu_dazhe_spustya_75_let_istoriya_28_geroev_panfilovcev_vyzyvaet_spory

“We held the line with blood and life”

Why, even after 75 years, the story of 28 Panfilov heroes is controversial

Major General Ivan Panfilov (left), Chief of Staff of the 316th Division Ivan Serebryakov (center), battalion commissar Sergei Egorov. Photo taken November 18, 1941 S. Kalmykov / RIA Novosti

75 years ago, on November 16, 1941, the 316th division of General Ivan Panfilov took battle with the German divisions advancing along the Volokolamsk highway towards Moscow. Through the efforts of the military commanders, this battle became known throughout the country as the feat of 28 Panfilov men. Decades later, the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Historical Sciences Vladimir Medinsky called “consummate scum” all those who “try to touch” this “holy legend.”

The first information about the battles in the Volokolamsk Highway area with the participation of the division of “commander Panfilov” appeared on November 19, 1941 in an article by Izvestia newspaper correspondent G. Ivanov “The 8th Guards Division in Battles.” It reported on the awarding of the military unit with the Order of the Red Banner, the renaming from the 316th Rifle Regiment to the 8th Guards Regiment and, below, the battle of one of the companies of the 1075th Rifle Regiment.

“And then something happened that cannot be talked about without delight,” the correspondent wrote. - As soon as the enemy approached 25-30 meters, a group of heroes brought down a barrage of anti-tank fire on him. As a result of the hot battle, nine tanks were shot down, three were burned, and the rest, unable to withstand the stubborn resistance of the brave souls, turned back.”

"Wild division"

The 316th division was formed in Alma-Ata by August 1941, consisting of 1073, 1075, 1077 rifle and 857 artillery regiments. It was headed by the military commissar of the Kirghiz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, Major General Ivan Panfilov. On August 18, 1941, the division was transferred to the front to Novgorod. Having taken up positions in the second echelon of the army in the area of ​​​​the village of Kresttsy, the division spent a month equipping a defense line. At the beginning of October, the division was transferred to Moscow. Until November, soldiers of the 316th Division participate in the defense of Volokolamsk, fighting off attacks from four Wehrmacht divisions (2, 5, 11 - tank and 35th Infantry).

By the beginning of November, when the Germans broke through the defenses of their neighbors, Panfilov's division retreated to a new line and occupied defenses east and southeast of Volokolamsk. On November 16-20, soldiers of the 316th fight against two tank and infantry divisions of the Wehrmacht, who were trying to break through at the junction of the Panfilov men and the cavalry group of Major General Lev Dovator along the Volokolamsk Highway to Moscow. On November 18, the day before the renaming, in the battles for the village of Gusenevo, division commander Ivan Panfilov himself died from a German mine fragment that hit his temple, according to the recollections of Colonel Mikhail Katukov (later Marshal of the USSR Armored Forces).

In the battles of November 16-20, the 316th Rifle/8th Guards Division, together with the Dovator group and the 1st Guards Tank Brigade, delayed the advance of the 46th Motorized Corps (5th and 11th Tank Divisions) and the 5th Army Corps (2nd Tank, 35th and 106th infantry divisions). A few days later, during the retreat across the Istra Reservoir and the Istra River, all water outlets were blown up, which again complicated the advance of German troops towards Moscow.

The commander of the 4th Panzer Group, which was defeated in the autumn battles with the 316th Division, Colonel General Erich Gepner called the enemy in his reports to the commander of Group Center Fedor von Bock “a wild division fighting in violation of all regulations and rules of engagement, whose soldiers do not surrender, are extremely fanatical and are not afraid of death.”

In December 8th Panfilov's Guards Division liberated Kryukovo, in January-April 1942 it fought with the SS division “Totenkopf” and participated in the Demyansk operation. But only the battles of November 16, 1941 were included in all textbooks on the history of the Great Patriotic War under the name “the feat of 28 Panfilov’s men.”

The role of the media in the history of Panfilov's men

Perhaps the most serious role in this was played by journalists. Eight days after Ivanov’s article in Izvestia about the 8th Guards Division, on November 27, the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper published an article by military correspondent Vasily Koroteev, “Panfilov’s Guardsmen in the Battles for Moscow.” “For more than four hours, a group of soldiers of the fifth company held back 54 German tanks. The guardsmen held the line with their blood and lives. Every single one of them died, but they did not let the enemy through, this publication reported. - The guards stubbornly fought back, defending Diev’s positions. As a result of the battle, the enemy lost 800 soldiers and officers killed and 18 tanks.”

The next day, November 28, the editorial of the same “Red Star” published the article “The Testament of 28 Fallen Heroes” by the literary secretary of the newspaper Alexander Krivitsky, in which for the first time the exact number of Panfilov’s dead appears. “Only one out of twenty-nine became faint-hearted. When the Germans, confident of their easy victory, shouted to the guards: “Surrender!” - only one raised his hands up. Several guardsmen simultaneously, without agreement, without command, shot at the coward and traitor. It was the guardsmen of the Red Army who, without hesitation, destroyed one who wanted to cast a shadow on twenty-eight brave men with his treason,” wrote Krivitsky.

The names of the “twenty-eight brave” were first listed in the publication “About 28 Fallen Heroes” dated January 22, 1942, all in the same “Red Star” signed by the same Krivitsky. In it, in particular, it was revealed who the real political commissar Diev was: “The political commissar of the company, Klochkov, reached the trench. Only now have we learned his real name. The country glorified him under the name Dieva. This is what the Ukrainian Red Army soldier Bondarenko once called him. He said: “Our political instructor is constantly die” - in Ukrainian it means “working.” In the same publication, a phrase attributed to Vasily Klochkov arose, which was later included in all textbooks: “... Russia is great, but there is nowhere to retreat. Moscow is behind!

RIA News

The feat of 28 fighters described by Koroteev and Krivitsky caused a wide resonance and was replicated in various, including poetic, works. A completely logical conclusion to this story at that time was the decision of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on July 21, 1942 to posthumously award all 28 dead people the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

“Today we are publishing the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on awarding the title of Hero of the Soviet Union to 28 fallen heroic guardsmen: Ananyev, Bezrodny, Bolotov, Bondarenko, Vasiliev, Dobrobabin, Dutov, Emtsov, Yesibulatov, Keleinikov, Kasaev, Klochkov, Kozhebergenov, Konkin, Kryuchkov, Maksimov, Mitin, Mitchenko, Moskalenko, Natarov, Petrenko, Sengirbaev, Timofeev, Trofimov, Shadrin, Shapokov, Shemyakin, Shepetkov. Their names sparkle in the rays of golden stars and resurrect the harsh days of November last year,” the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper published on July 22.

“Two traitors for an editorial is too much”

It would seem that that’s all: the journalists, as they say, “worked through the topic”, the country recognized its heroes, the country’s leadership duly noted their feat. But in November 1947, the military prosecutor's office of the Kharkov garrison arrested Ivan Dobrobabin for treason. According to the information available to the prosecutor's office, Dobrobabin went over to the Germans in the spring of 1942 and served in the German police. During the investigation, it unexpectedly turned out that he was the same Ivan Evstafievich Dobrobabin, who was listed as one of the 28 dead Panfilov heroes, and he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In addition, from the testimony of the detainee himself, it became clear that nothing of what was told about 28 Panfilov heroes earlier, including himself, actually happened. During the investigation undertaken by the prosecutor's office, it also became clear that of the 28 Soviet soldiers who heroically died in the battle at Dubosekovo, four more from the list - Vasiliev, Shemyakin, Shadrin and Kuzhebergenov - did not actually die.

Dmitry Astakhov / RIA Novosti

The authors of the original source - Krasnaya Zvezda correspondent Vasily Koroteev, literary editor Alexander Krivitsky and editor-in-chief David Ortenberg - were summoned for questioning. It turned out that they did not go to the front line, and described the episode with the battle at the Dubosekovo crossing from hearsay. Moreover, when Koroteev wrote the first note and returned to Moscow, editor-in-chief Ortenberg, preparing the material for publication, asked him to clarify how many people were in the company. Koroteev replied that there were about 30, but there were two traitors. The editor decided that two were too many for the editorial; as a result, 29 people appeared, one of whom was shot by the soldiers themselves. The names of the fighters were given to the correspondent Krivitsky from the lists of personnel by the company commander, Captain Pavel Gundilovich.

By the way, there is an opinion that the investigation into the case of 28 Panfilov men, undertaken by the military prosecutor’s office, is part of a campaign sanctioned by Joseph Stalin against the command of the USSR armed forces. Including against “Marshal of Victory” Georgy Zhukov, whose authority after the war was at an extremely high level, and Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky. In the fall of 1941, it was Rokossovsky who commanded the 16th Army, which included Panfilov’s 316th Infantry Division.

Medinsky vs Mironenko

Now, after 75 years, there are no longer any true witnesses to this story. The last of the 28 Panfilov members listed on that list, Ivan Dobrobabin, passed away 20 years ago, in 1996. During the Soviet era, the “feat of 28 Panfilov men” described by Red Star journalists was not accepted to be publicly questioned. In the Yeltsin era, everything depended on the teacher. Democratic-minded historians told schoolchildren as it is - history is the fruit of the creativity of journalists, serving as an example of heroism. Others continued to give the same line of presentation.

Unexpectedly, the story took on a new meaning after an interview with the General Director of the State Archive of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Historical Sciences Sergei Mironenko, given to the Kommersant newspaper in April 2015, on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War.

litrossia.ru

In a conversation with journalists, Mironenko quoted a certificate-report from the chief military prosecutor of the USSR armed forces Nikolai Afanasyev dated May 10, 1948: “The feat of 28 Panfilov guardsmen, covered in the press, is an invention of the correspondent Koroteev, the editor of “Red Star” Ortenberg and especially the literary secretary Krivitsky newspapers. This fiction was repeated in the works of writers N. Tikhonov, V. Stavsky, A. Bek, N. Kuznetsov, V. Lipko, Svetlov and others and was widely popularized among the population of the Soviet Union.” “There are historical facts, there are documents that confirm them. And let psychologists do everything else,” Mironenko emphasized then.

This is not the first time Mironenko has made such statements. A similar interview with him was published, for example, back in 2011 in Komsomolskaya Pravda. However, this was precisely the reason for a violent reaction from the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, also Doctor of Historical Sciences Vladimir Medinsky. He then recommended that archival workers (obviously meaning Mironenko) do “what the state pays them for, and not master related professions,” that is, “present documents to people.” “Then let the journalists draw conclusions,” stressed Medinsky (a journalist by training).

medialeaks.ru

In March 2016, Mironenko was forced to resign from his post as director of the State Archive of the Russian Federation. In October, Medinsky presented a feature film about 28 Panfilovites to the Presidents of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, during their meeting in Astana. Communicating with journalists after watching the tape, Medinsky said: “My deepest conviction is that even if this story were made up from beginning to end, even if there was no Panfilov, even if there was nothing - this is a holy legend, which you simply cannot touch. And the people who do this are complete scum.”

Subjectively, only one thing is surprising - intransigence. Moreover, there are not many contradictions in the position set out by Mironenko and in the position set out by Medinsky: this is a legend formed as an example of courage and heroism. Yes, it does not correspond to historical facts. But is it still worth arguing about this? After all, the 28 Panfilov men are something akin to the story of the 300 Spartans - a story that has become a legend, and a legend that has become history. This should already be accepted as a fact. Historical.

On the eve of the seventy-fifth anniversary of the start of the counteroffensive of Soviet troops near Moscow, the “democratic” public and press once again raised the question of whether there were actually 28 Panfilovites, myth or reality their feat. Today, in the press, on television and on the Internet, discussions have once again flared up about the reality of political instructor Vasily Klochkov (Deev), the significance of the battle at the Dubosekovo junction and the influence of the battle near Moscow on the entire course of not only the Great Patriotic War, but also the Second World War. In the West, it is customary to compare the Moscow defensive-counteroffensive battle with the attack of the English corps near El Alamein (North Africa), which won the first victory over the combined group of German-Italian troops under the command of E. Rommel. True, the “researchers” of this fact do not focus on the number of military units, of which 23 times less were deployed in the sands of Egypt than near Moscow.

28 Panfilovites - myth or truth

The first investigation, which did not reach the general public, was carried out in 1942 by special departments of the NKVD (since 1943, SMERSH agencies) after the facts were established that not all the soldiers of the fourth company died, and some of the 28 Panfilov men were captured by to the Germans. In the conclusion of the Military Prosecutor's Office of 1948, also marked “for official use,” A. Krivitsky’s article, published in the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper in November 1941, was called “fiction.”

Of course, the events at Dubosekovo were not subject to wide public discussion, but among the people, in the kitchens of the intelligentsia, quite often, after a glass of vodka, doubts were expressed regarding not only the significance of the counter-offensive near Moscow, but also the contribution of the Soviet Union to the victory in World War II. These facts were so widespread that the fifth (ideological) department of the KGB reported them to Yu.V. Andropov, and he reported to the General Secretary of the CPSU L.I. Brezhnev, to which he immediately responded at the November 1966 plenum. Brezhnev called the facts of V. Klochkov’s denial of reality and his phrases “Moscow is behind us and we have nowhere to retreat” unacceptable, and rumors about the unreality of 28 Panfilov’s men should be considered provocative.

Later, in times of general openness and irresponsibility not only for the spoken word, but also for the written phrase, the director of the State Archives S.V. Mironenko published his historical research on the pages of the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper. He not only published tendentious facts compiled from the prosecutor's investigation of 1948, but also argued that the feat of Panfilov's men was a myth, and their names were invented by correspondent A. Krivitsky.

Today, due to the openness of archives and the all-pervasiveness of the Internet, any interested historian can independently draw a conclusion about who the 28 Panfilovites are - myth or truth.

A little history

For the first time, mention of the heroic battle of the 4th company of the 1075th Infantry Regiment, 316th Infantry Division at the Dubosekovo junction, during which 15 tanks were destroyed (according to the Wehrmacht archives, only 13), was published by the front-line correspondent of the Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper V.I. Koroteev 27 November 1941. A day later, in the editorial of the same newspaper edition, the editorial secretary A.Yu. Krivitsky published extensive material “About 28 Fallen Heroes,” which listed the military ranks and names of 28 fallen heroes. All further publications were written either by Alexander Yuryevich, or based on his editorial dated November 28, 1941.

The death of an entire platoon, whose fighters disrupted a tank breakthrough by their death, destroying 15 tanks, received a wide public response, and in July 1942, all 28 Panfilov men mentioned in A. Krivitsky’s first publication were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. At the same time, in the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR there was a clarification - “posthumously”. Thus, the fact of the death of the soldiers of the fourth company was legitimized.

In fact, of the 28 “posthumously” awarded Heroes of the Soviet Union, not all died. Two of them (G. Shemyakin and I. Vasiliev) were wounded and were treated in the hospital for a long time, but survived. Participants in the battle D. Timofeev and I. Shadrin were captured, but were not deprived of a high award.

I. Dobrobabin, having been captured, went into service with the Germans, which he ended up as the chief of police in the village of Perekop, after the liberation of which he again fought in units of the Red Army. In 1948, after the end of the investigation by the Main Military Prosecutor's Office, he was stripped of the title of Hero and served 7 years in “places not so remote.” His attempts during “glasnost” to achieve rehabilitation failed.

Initially included in the list for awarding the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, political commissar V. Klochkov’s liaison officer Daniil Aleksandrovich Kozhabergenov did not participate in the battle at Dubosekovo, and was sent with a report to the battalion headquarters and was captured. He fled from there and took part in a raid on the fascist rear as part of the formation of General Lev Dovator. After returning from the raid, he was interrogated by SMERSH authorities and truthfully described all the vicissitudes of this period of his life. No reprisals from the NKVD D.A. Kozhabergenov was not subjected, however, in the Decree on conferring the highest award, his person was replaced by a relative of Askar Kozhabergenov. And here lies the secret of one of the bureaucratic incidents, of which there were probably a sufficient number during the bloodiest war in human history. Modern research has established that Askar was enrolled in the 316th Infantry Division in January 1942 and, therefore, could not take part in the battle at Dubosekovo. A. Kozhabergenov died in January 1942 during a raid by one of the Panfilov detachments along the German rear.

Today it has been documented that the names of all 28 participants in the battle at the Dubosekovo crossing, who were either killed or missing, were dictated from memory to A.Yu. Krivitsky by the commander of the fourth company, Captain Pavel Gundilovich. The captain's name was initially listed in the documents for conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, but then in the final version of the Decree he was awarded the Order of Lenin. Pavel Gundilovich died in April 1942 during the counter-offensive of Soviet troops near Moscow.

The bodies of six soldiers found after the liberation of the village in February - April 1942 were buried in a mass grave near the Dubosekovo crossing in the village of Nelidovo. Among the dead, the body of political instructor Vasily Klochkov was identified with one hundred percent probability.

So was it a feat?

Let's look at the bare facts... According to German archives, the Soviet defense in the Dubosekovo area was supposed to be broken through by battle group 1, consisting of a shock tank battalion supported by a rifle regiment. An anti-tank company and an artillery battalion were attached to the group, which were supposed to neutralize Soviet tanks (if they were brought into battle). The losses established by the German side were 13 tanks, 8 of which were hit by anti-tank grenades or anti-tank rifles, and 5 were burned with bottles of Molotov cocktails. The tank battalion was equipped with PzKpfw IV tanks with a crew of 5 people. Thus, the Nazis lost 65 people only due to the destruction of tanks. But we must also take into account the loss of manpower of the fighters of the fascist rifle regiment, which was necessarily accompanied by a breakthrough.

Therefore, the question “Panfilov’s 28 men - a myth or a real reality?” is, to say the least, immoral. And better than the catchphrase of the Russian Minister of Culture V.R. Medinsky - “...their feat is symbolic and is in the same series of feats as the 300 Spartans,” it is impossible to say about this battle.