The history of the Great Patriotic War illustrated in the films of the Presidential Library

June 22 marks the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow - the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. On this day in 1941, fascist Germany attacked the Soviet Union and unleashed the most bloody and cruel war in the history of mankind.

The Presidential Library’s portal in "Audiovisual Materials" section presents films, newsreels, interviews and lectures detailing one of the worst periods in the history of our country. The materials spotlight the course of the Great Patriotic War, the main events and the lives of people in that difficult period.

The film "Victory is one for everyone" reflects the fight again fascism.  The film speaks of the invaluable contribution to the Great Victory of all the socialist republics that were part of the USSR.

The documentary film “Invincible and Legendary” tells the story of the 2nd Guards Army on the battlefields of World War II. The film explains how the famous military formation was formed and in what conditions the soldiers underwent training. The film also speaks of military operations in which the 2nd Guards Army took part and played an important role in the fight against the enemy.

Of particular interest is the documentary film “War in the Sight”. Viewers can learn about snipers - heroes of World War II, as well as the development of small arms.

The last front-line operations of the Great Patriotic War are covered in the film-trilogy “Final”. Some shots taken by military cameramen in the Soviet Union, Germany, Hungary, and Norway were not previously shown to a wide audience. The first part “The Long Way to Germany” tells about the last battles of the Karelian, Leningrad, and 1st Baltic fronts that ended the war in Norway, the Baltic states, and East Prussia. About the battles of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Ukrainian fronts, which completed the military journey in Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, tells the second part of the film - "Overseas Campaign". The final part of the film trilogy is “The Road to Berlin”. The film tells the story of the last and largest military operation of the Second World War - the Berlin strategic offensive operation conducted by the armies of the 1st, 2nd Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian fronts.

The films of the cycle “The Great Patriotic War. The Battle of the Black Sea” spotlight the battles on the water t. The film "Cruisers" tells about the warships of the USSR and discusses their role in naval military operations. The film "Marine Landing" tells about the landing troops on the Black Sea coast. The film “Coastal batteries” will tell the story of the coastal guns of Sevastopol, and in the film “Leaders of destroyers” - about the role of Soviet destroyers in battles for the Black Sea coast.

During the Great Patriotic War, people performed feats beyond the front. For example, they firmly defended the historical and cultural values ​​of our country. The film “Mikhail Bobrov. Guardian of an Angel” tells the story of the life and career of the Soviet and Russian military climber, front-line reconnaissance officer, honored trainer of Russia and USSR master of sports Mikhail Bobrov, who during the years of World War II participated in disguising the high-rise dominants of Leningrad - Peter and Paul, St. Isaac's, St. Nicholas Cathedrals, Admiralty, Mikhailovsky castle.

Thanks to the film “Library Front: 1941-1945”, viewers will learn about the activities of the republican libraries of the Soviet republics (now the national libraries of the CIS countries) from 1941 to 1945 in the occupied territories, on the front line, in the rear.

The war did not bypass a single family. The memory of the heroes is passed down from generation to generation, all relics associated with the participation of relatives and friends in those terrible events are carefully preserved. One can get familiar with family stories, photographs, letters of participants in the Great Patriotic War in the film "Letters from the Front". It was voiced by children involved in the school of young professionals "M-Art" as part of St. Petersburg Center for Creative Development and Humanitarian Education of Children “On Vasilyevsky”.

Of particular value in the collection of audiovisual materials is newsreel. For example, the Presidential Library’s portal presents fragments of the newsreel “The Defence of Leningrad. The Siege of Leningrad”, which not only shows shots of hostilities that reflect the heroic stamina of the soldiers of the Leningrad Front, but also details the life of the besieged city: icy Aurora and St. Isaac’s Cathedral, empty snowy streets, Leningraders who are gathering water into the ice-hole with all their strength, a column of cars on the Road of Life.

Of great value is the video evidence of Leningrad siege survivors. The Presidential Library’s portal provides an interview with Ninel Krasnolutskaya, who spent all 900 siegedays as a child in Leningrad. Her story is about life, about the events of that period, about what helped to survive in the besieged city. The difficult blockade days are also remembered by the writer, screenwriter, public figure Daniil Granin in the documentary film "Daniil Granin", created by the specialists of the Presidential Library.

The institution’s portal also offers video lectures by modern researchers of the Great Patriotic War. Thus, from a speech by Kirill Nazarenko, Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor at the Institute of History of St. Petersburg State University, “Trends in the Modern Historiography of the Great Patriotic War” one can learn about studies related to the events of 1941-1945 and their features. Analyzing the work of the poetess Olga Berggolz and the contents of the “Siege Book” by Daniil Granin and Ales Adamovich, the chief librarian of the manuscript department of the Russian National Library Natalia Rogova talks “About the war and victory in the language of the book”. Aleksey Popov, Doctor of Historical Sciences, leading researcher at the Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, in his lecture “Resistance in the Occupied Soviet Territory during the Great Patriotic War” explores various forms of popular resistance to the enemy, to a greater extent - partisan struggle.

The section “Audiovisual Materials” is constantly updated with new lectures, interviews and films prepared by the Presidential Library, as well as leading film studios of the country.

In June, part of the films and lectures will be available live on the Presidential Library's portal in Live broadcasts section. The shows are dedicated to the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow.

On June 22 at 6:00, 8:00, 10:00, 12:00, viewers will be able to watch the lecture “Resistance in the occupied Soviet territory during the Great Patriotic War” by Alexei Popov, and at 19:00, 21:00 - to see the documentary “Moscow-Berlin. Tomorrow is War”, telling about who the people were who met in a mortal battle with the enemy, what they lived and what they dreamed about.

On June 23 at 6:00, 8:00, 10:00, 12:00 a lecture “Trends in the Modern Historiography of the Great Patriotic War” by Kirill Nazarenko will be shown, and at 15:00, 17:00, 19:00, 21:00 - screening of the film "Letters from the Front".

On June 24, at 6:00, 8:00, 10:00, 12:00 one can listen to Mikhail Frolov's lecture “The Leningrad Battle and its role in achieving victory in the Great Patriotic War” live, at 15:00, 17:00, 19:00, 21:00 - to see the film "Victory is one for everyone".