Memorial plaque to Karl Mannerheim: Enemy occupation. The reverse side of the board: who defeated Mannerheim Who initiated the installation of a memorial plaque to Mannerheim

An epic stretching over four months with the installation of a commemorative plaque in St. Petersburg Marshal Carl Gustav Mannerheim, completed.

On the evening of October 13, workers, using special equipment, dismantled the memorial sign from the wall of the Military Academy of Logistics and Technical Support of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation on Zakharyevskaya Street, after which they took it away in an unknown direction.

Since there was no information about the purpose of what was happening, it was assumed that the board was sent for restoration after numerous attacks on it.

However, then a message appeared on the website of the Russian Military Historical Society, from which it follows that the dismantling of the sign is final.

“A memorial sign to Karl Mannerheim, previously located in St. Petersburg on the building of the Military Academy of Logistics named after Army General A.V. Khrulev, was transferred by the Russian Military Historical Society to the Tsarskoye Selo Museum-Reserve. Now,” the message says.

Gustav Mannerheim in 1918. Photo: Public Domain

Respect to the organizer of the blockade

As the statement emphasizes, the sign will be kept in its current form, without restoration, “as a symbol of historical disputes in modern Russian society.”

Carl Gustav Mannerheim, a former military leader of the Russian army, after Finland gained independence, actively participated in the Civil War in this country, which ended in the victory of the local “whites”. The short but bloody conflict ended with mass terror against the “Reds,” to which Mannerheim had a direct connection.

During the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939-1940, and then during the Great Patriotic War, Mannerheim was the commander-in-chief of the Finnish army. In this capacity, he took part in the siege of Leningrad, which killed hundreds of thousands of civilians. In Karelia, occupied by Mannerheim’s troops, concentration camps were organized for the Karelian and Russian population.

It was these circumstances that caused a wave of protests against the opening of a memorial plaque to Mannerheim in the city on the Neva.

Gustav Mannerheim in 1942. Photo: Public Domain

Ax as a tool of discussion

The first attempt to install the board was made in 2015. It was supposed to take place on the facade of house No. 31 on Galernaya Street, where the military intelligence of the Russian Empire was located before the October Revolution. However, literally on the eve of the planned ceremony, all events were cancelled.

As a result, the board was opened on June 16, 2016 on the facade of house No. 22 on Zakharyevskaya Street, where the building of the Military Engineering and Technical University is located. Until 1948, on this site there was a church of Saints and Righteous Zechariah and Elizabeth of the Life Guards Cavalry Regiment in which Mannerheim served.

The opening ceremony took part Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky and then Head of the Russian Presidential Administration Sergei Ivanov.

Almost from the first day of its existence, the memorial sign to Mannerheim was attacked. He was doused with paint, feces, acid several times, and attacked with an axe.

"Nobody's" memorial

At the same time, a lawsuit was filed in court demanding the dismantling of the memorial sign.

The Council on Memorial Plaques under the Government of St. Petersburg refused to recognize this memorial sign as a memorial plaque due to several violations. The St. Petersburg Culture Committee cited technical errors, incorrect data, and the lack of permits.

At the same time, the authorities stated that they could not dismantle the board because they did not know who it belonged to.

A truly unique situation arose - they were solemnly opening a memorial sign, which, according to the authorities of St. Petersburg, was unknown to whom it belonged and it is unknown on whose initiative it was installed in the first place.

Surrender

The apotheosis of this theater of the absurd was the decision of the Smolninsky District Court, which rejected the citizen’s claim Pavel Kuznetsova to the authorities to recognize the illegal installation of a memorial plaque to the first President of Finland, Carl Gustav Mannerheim, and its dismantling.

The reasoning for the judge's decision was that since the city authorities claim that they did not install the board, it means that there were no illegal actions. Consequently, there is no reason to demand that the St. Petersburg administration remove the board.

The miracles of jurisprudence, however, did not bother opponents of honoring Mannerheim’s memory. On October 13, it became known that the Kuibyshevsky District Court accepted for consideration a new claim for dismantling, this time from a siege survivor Flora Gerashchenko.

On the same day, a group of activists tried to hang an “alternative” sign next to the memorial, with the inscription “In memory of the most cowardly governor of St. Petersburg.” The protesters were detained and taken to the police department. They explained that they wanted to protest against the position of the city authorities, who deny interference in the situation with the scandalous sign.

It became obvious that the expectation that passions would subside over time did not work. And finally, on the evening of October 13, the memorial sign left St. Petersburg.

A memorial plaque in memory of Karl Mannerheim was taken to the museum. However, this is hardly a victory for the activists who regularly attacked the board; rather, the authorities retreated before a discussion threatened to unfold, in which they would have to explain too much.

So, the finale of the four-month scandal with the memorial plaque to Karl Mannerheim was the evacuation - the Russian Military Historical Society announced that the memorial plaque had been transported to the Museum of the First World War, where it would be kept as an exhibit. With some resentment in its voice, the Russian Military Historical Society noted that the controversial figure of Karl Mannerheim is a subject of study and a reason for discussion, while illegal actions are not at all the method of this discussion.

This was a step towards reconciliation with the past, they say at RVIO. And contemporaries, therefore, did not appreciate it. Activists of radical organizations, primarily the Other Russia, doused the board with paint and chemicals, shot at it and chopped it with an ax. Less radical activists were continually outraged online.

It’s a pity that they didn’t tell us earlier that this turned out to be a step towards reconciliation. And no one understood what it was. The fight against the board can hardly be called a confrontation, because it is unclear what and who the activists were opposing. The organizers prepared the opening of the board without consulting anyone, they did it essentially in person and did not comment on their position in any way, did not object, preferring to pretend that the board appeared somehow on its own, no one is responsible for it, and, and The opening was accidentally blown by the wind. By and large, only now have we learned that RVIO is involved in the board. Those who now admit that the figure of Mannerheim is a reason for discussion then acted as if there was no discussion and there could not be any.

Probably, the initiators of the installation did not expect such a reaction. After all, St. Petersburg residents travel to Finland en masse. In addition, the head of the presidential administration himself opened the memorial sign, together with the Minister of Culture himself.

But this was not a step towards reconciliation - it was a cult action by the marshal’s fans, later disguised as a “step towards reconciliation”. Reconciliation, even an attempt at it, must be preceded by at least some kind of public discussion.

The plaque was dedicated to Gustav Karlovich, a Russian officer, and not to Karl Gustav Emil, a Finnish field marshal. The hermetic cult of Mannerheim, precisely as a general of the Russian Empire who did not swear allegiance to the Bolsheviks and remained the bearer of the spirit of the imperial army, really exists, for example, among adherents of the “White movement”. There was no opportunity to check, but carnations would definitely appear under the board on the marshal’s birthday. Opponents of the board insisted that the defining chapter of the marshal’s life should be considered his participation in the siege of Leningrad from the north.

Mannerheim has one more hypostasis, not spoken out loud (Tvardovsky also called the winter war unfamous), but probably, in fact, the main one - he was the only person who managed to punch Stalin in the teeth. And remain - in the eyes of Stalin - a worthy, respected opponent. From this point of view, the memorial plaque symbolically and clearly represented the opposition not only to Tsarist Russia and Soviet, but also to the Soviet - to the modern idea of ​​the Soviet. The confrontation for official propaganda is bleeding, breaking the concept of a smooth and painless flow of one historical period into another, raising constant unpleasant questions. If the blockade, if Mannerheim is the enemy, why have you never spoken about it directly, why are you outraged by the Estonian “Bronze Soldier”, but not by the Finnish monuments to Mannerheim? Too many questions for one poor Medinsky.

A layer of subtexts and omissions persistently broke through from the back of the board. But it was not discussed or explained by anyone. This led to suspicions of a desire to hide something and show someone something in their pocket, and, as a result, to a reaction of rejection.

Now it is very easy to say that St. Petersburg did not accept Mannerheim, although a small museum in his memory has existed in the city for a long time and does not raise any complaints, and that caring activists overcame bureaucratic arbitrariness; but public pressure in Russia almost never leads to the reversal of decisions already made. The Akhmat Kadyrov Bridge, which appeared on the same days as the Mannerheim plaque, stands serenely; a monument to Ivan the Terrible has just been unveiled in Orel, and on Bolshaya Zeleninaya Street they will soon hang a plaque in memory of Alexander Kolchak - also not very clear-cut figures. And the actions of the “other Russians” are perhaps the last thing that can force the authorities to abandon their opinion.

Who ran away from whom here - if you look into it, that's another question. The authorities themselves reconsidered their position, which was timid, and gave in to the real discussion that was about to begin, inevitably turning the conversation from Mannerheim to Stalin, the causes of the winter war, and further in the text. She still couldn’t stand such a discussion, and closing the portal and hiding the board would be safer and quieter.

Select the fragment with the error text and press Ctrl+Enter

A memorial plaque in memory of the Finnish military leader who fought in World War II against the Soviet Union and participated in the siege of Leningrad was installed in St. Petersburg today, June 16. The reaction of society was not long in coming: politicians, experts and ordinary citizens of St. Petersburg and Russia made condemning statements against the initiators of the installation of the memorial plaque. At this time, the authors of this historical initiative declare that by doing so they tried to “reconcile and unite society,” the correspondent reports.

Head of the Russian Presidential Administration Sergey Ivanov today took part in the installation ceremony in St. Petersburg memorial plaque to the Finnish marshal and president Karl Mannerheim on the facade of the Military Academy of Logistics on Zakharyevskaya Street in St. Petersburg. They decided to open the object perpetuating the ally of Nazi Germany on Thursday, June 16, as part of the anniversary XX St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, TASS reports.

According to the Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation Vladimir Medinsky, the board is installed in order to “preserve memory.”

“The plaque in honor of Mannerheim is another of our attempts to overcome the tragic split in our society on the eve of the centenary of the Russian Revolution. That is why we are erecting monuments throughout the country to the heroes of the First World War, who later found themselves on opposite sides of the barricades,” he noted.

At the opening ceremony, Sergei Ivanov recalled the contribution that Mannerheim made in the Russo-Japanese and First World Wars.

“As they say, you can’t erase words from a song. No one is going to whitewash Mannerheim’s actions after 1918, but until 1918 he served Russia, and to be completely frank, he lived and served in Russia longer than he served and lived in Finland,” Ivanov said at the opening.

At the same time, on the eve of the opening of the memorial plaque, a petition to the President of the Russian Federation with a request " prevent the installation of a memorial plaque to the fascist ally Karl Mannerheim in St. Petersburg". At the time of publication of the news, the petition was signed by about 830 campaign participants.

The text of the petition says:

"We want to change the plans of the Russian Military Historical Society to install a memorial plaque to Karl Mannerheim, an ally of Adolf Hitler, in St. Petersburg."

The petition was supported by a politician Daria Mitina. She asked readers on her Facebook page to “sign a petition to prevent the perpetuation of memory fascist henchman Mannerheim in St. Petersburg - Leningrad!

"Carl Gustav Emil von Mannerheim, President of Finland, former general of the Russian army, was indeed an ally of Hitler and received awards from his hands. His subsequent surrender of this fact doesn't make amends at all. Let memorial plaques and monuments be erected to him in his homeland, and in St. Petersburg, which suffered from the blockade organized, among other things, by the Finns, the memorial plaque will look like strange to say the least", writes one of the citizens who signed the petition in the comments.

In an address delivered on June 16 at the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg, it was noted that Marshal Karl Mannerheim “commanded the Finnish-fascist troops during the siege of Leningrad, pursuing the goal destroy the city named after Lenin, the cradle of the Great October Revolution, together with its defenders and residents."

"Deputies of the Communist Party faction in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg decisively condemn plan to install a memorial plaque in honor of Hitler's accomplice, Finnish Marshal Karl Mannerheim, and perceive this act as mockery of the blessed memory of the dead to the blockade of Leningraders and defenders of the city, as an act of desecration of our Great Motherland,” the statement emphasizes.

"Attempts to falsify and denigrate Soviet history and rehabilitate fascist criminals - Vlasov, Mannerheim, Krasnov and others in Russia, the legal successor of the USSR, which defeated Nazi Germany, mean only one thing: INThe Great Patriotic War, by and large, has not ended even todayI. The followers of Mikhail Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin continue to wage it against our country., and as long as they are in power, Russia will not be independent, great and prosperous,” concluded the head of the Communist Party faction VladimirDmitriev.

Deputies from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation recalled that Russian legislation provides responsibility for the rehabilitation of Nazism- art. 354.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. In particular, approval of crimes established by the International Military Tribunal is prohibited. According to the communists, the installation of this memorial plaque is Oapproval of the crimes of the fascists and their accomplices. In particular, actual approval of their inhumane actions to exterminate the civilian population of the besieged city.

“The installation of a memorial plaque is a blasphemous action, a disregard for all the siege survivors, all those who died in besieged Leningrad, those who gave their lives in the fight against fascism. It is especially scary that this is happening on the eve of June 22 - the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow", - addressed the deputy head of the Communist Party faction in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg Alexey Vorontsov to the assistant city attorney Olga Andreeva.

He shared his opinion on perpetuating the memory of the Finnish marshal with Nakanane.RU writer, historian, author of books about the Great Patriotic War, resident of St. Petersburg Igor Pykhalov.

“If in the situation with Kadyrov (one of the bridges in St. Petersburg on June 16 was named after Akhmat Kadyrov - approx. Nakanune.RU) one can still argue, then everything is obvious here. Mannerheim is simply an ally of Hitler and an accomplice in the siege of Leningrad, therefore Placing a sign is strictly unacceptable. A year ago, such an initiative was defeated and the board was removed. Now I'm even afraid to make predictions. But here everything is clear: there should be no Mannerheim boards", the expert noted.

In connection with the public outcry surrounding the memorial plaque to Mannerheim, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation commented on the situation Dmitry Peskov. In his opinion, the Finnish marshal is a person “whose role will be studied by historians for a long time.”

“Indeed, Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is participating in the opening of the memorial plaque today, and, indeed, Mannerheim’s personality is still controversial. But we can definitely say that this is an extraordinary personality", Dmitry Peskov said in response to a question about how the Kremlin views the installation of a plaque for the marshal, who took the side of Germany in World War II and participated in the siege of Leningrad, as quoted by RIA Novosti.

In response to the public reaction, which mainly condemned the decision to install the sign, Vladimir Medinsky stated:

“To those who are screaming there now, I want to remind you from us: no need to be holier than the Pope and there is no need to try to be a greater patriot and communist than Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin, who personally defended Mannerheim, ensured his election and retention of the post of President of Finland and knew how to treat a defeated but worthy opponent with respect,” said the Minister of Culture.

Let us remind you that Mannerheim is the national hero of Finland. Of the 83 years of his life, 30 years were associated with Russia. In 1887, he entered the Nikolaev Cavalry School in St. Petersburg, served in the 15th Alexandria Dragoon Regiment, in the Cavalry Regiment. In 1897-1903, Mannerheim served at the imperial court in St. Petersburg. He took part in the Russian-Japanese War, commanded various units of the active Russian army in the First World War.

After the Bolsheviks came to power, Mannerheim left for Finland, which declared independence from Russia in December 1917. In 1918 he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Finnish army. In 1941-1944 he led the Finnish armed forces in the war against the USSR, while, contrary to German demands, he refrained from attacking Leningrad from the north. Remaining commander-in-chief of the Finnish armed forces, in August 1944 he was elected president of the country and concluded a truce with the USSR.

As reported about a year ago in St. Petersburg, then the installation was prevented.

A memorial plaque to Finnish Field Marshal Karl Mannerheim was unveiled in St. Petersburg.

It is installed on the facade of the Military Academy of Logistics and Technical Support on Zakharyevskaya Street in St. Petersburg.

The head of the Kremlin administration, Sergei Ivanov, took part in the installation ceremony of the memorial. “As they say, you can’t erase words from a song. No one is going to whitewash Mannerheim’s actions after ’18, but before ’18 he served Russia, and to be completely frank, he lived and served in Russia longer than he served and lived in Finland,” he said .

Ivanov recalled Mannerheim’s 31-year service in the Russian army during the Russo-Japanese War. He noted that the Finnish field marshal was wounded twice and was awarded high state awards.

Ivanov said that he brought two documents related to Mannerheim with him to the events. The first document is a report-request from the field marshal for dismissal from military service, written on January 1, 1918. Mannerheim asked in the document to provide him with a pension. The second document, which Ivanov brought, contained an order from the Soviet government to assign Mannerheim a pension in the amount of 3,761 rubles. “That is, if you call a spade a spade, General Mannerheim was a Soviet military pensioner,” noted the head of the Kremlin administration.

Minister of Culture Vladimir Medinsky, at the ceremony of installing the memorial plaque, noted that monuments to the heroes of the First World War, who then found themselves on opposite sides of the barricades, are an attempt to overcome the tragic split in society. “To those who are shouting there now, I want to remind you from us: you don’t need to be holier than the Pope and don’t try to be a greater patriot and communist than Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin, who personally defended Mannerheim, ensured his election and his retention of the presidency Finland and knew how to treat a defeated but worthy opponent with respect,” Medinsky said.

The minister noted that the memorial plaque was being installed in order to preserve the memory: “And now the plaque in honor of Mannerheim is another attempt of the Russian Military Historical Society, another of our attempts to overcome the tragic split in our society on the eve of the centenary of the Russian Revolution. That is why we are erecting monuments throughout the country to the heroes of the First World War, who later found themselves on opposite sides of the barricades.”

In turn, General Director of the State Hermitage Mikhail Piotrovsky believes that Mannerheim is more worthy of perpetuating his memory in St. Petersburg than many other personalities. He said this in a conversation with reporters at SPIEF 2016.

“We answered this question a long time ago. We did a large exhibition about Mannerheim as an officer of the Russian General Staff, an officer of the Russian Guard [in 2005, the Hermitage hosted the exhibition “Mannerheim. Russian Officer. Marshal of Finland” – ed.]. He did a lot, in particular, he was an outstanding Russian intelligence officer, traveler and everything else. Therefore, regardless of everything else, the first part of his biography is ours, St. Petersburg,” said Piotrovsky. “This plaque deserves to exist more than many other things,” he said.

Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov, commenting on the opening of the memorial plaque, said that the Finnish military man and statesman Karl Mannerheim is an extraordinary personality who has an important role in Russian history: “Indeed, Mannerheim’s personality is still controversial. But we can definitely say that this is an extraordinary personality, this is a personality related to our history, and a personality whose role will be studied by historians for a long time.”

Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim served in the Russian army from 1889 to 1917. During the First World War he served at the Russian command headquarters. Not accepting the October Revolution of 1917, Mannerheim returned to Finland.

Since 1939 he served as commander-in-chief of the Finnish army. In this capacity, he twice led the Finnish army in the wars against the USSR - in the Soviet-Finnish and Great Patriotic War. At the end of World War II, as head of state, he drew up the first draft of a treaty of friendship and mutual assistance between the two countries.

The memorial plaque to Karl Mannerheim is solemn - with an orchestra, a military guard and distinguished, but not numerous, guests, among whom were Sergei Ivanov and Vladimir Medinsky, ex. prev The Churov Central Election Commission, and without a crowd of people, opened on June 16. The plaque on the wall of house No. 22 on Zakharyevskaya Street, where the Military Engineering and Technical University is located, appeared the night before the opening and was heavily guarded by police until the morning.

The plaque was placed on the building of the Military Engineering and Technical University on Zakharyevskaya Street: before the 1917 revolution, this house housed the regimental church of the Life Guards Cavalry Regiment, in which Mannerheim served.
As the head of the Kremlin administration, Sergei Ivanov, said at the official opening ceremony of the plaque, “no one is going to whitewash Mannerheim’s actions after 1918, but before 1918 he served Russia.” The ex-chairman of the Central Election Commission Churov discovered inaccuracies in the reproduction of the orders on the general’s chest.

The precautions were not taken in vain. Three days later, unknown persons covered the board with red paint, as Radio Baltika reported.





The cadets washed off the paint.

Mannerheim's personality is controversial.
You may recall that V. Putin in 2001 laid a wreath at Mannerheim's grave in Helsinki.



Medved was also noticed doing something similar.

Of course, residents of St. Petersburg, many of whom know firsthand about the 900-day siege of Leningrad and that the northern arc of the blockade was held by the allies of Nazi Germany, the Finns. We also remember the war with the White Finns, commanded by Mannerheim, we know, and many have seen, Mannerheim’s defensive line, a high-level fortification structure.

But at the same time, few people know that not a single shell arrived from the Finnish front to Leningrad, the Finnish army stopped at the old Russian border, did not cut the Murmansk-Moscow railway line along which Lend-Lease cargo was transported...

Here, for example, is what writer Daniil Granin said about the opening of the board:

“I understand those who oppose the Mannerheim memorial plaque. Their reproaches are clear to me. Mannerheim’s troops formed part of the blockade ring.
But there is another very important circumstance that many people forget about. The Finns, for their part, did not shell the city, and, despite Hitler’s demand, Mannerheim forbade shelling Leningrad from guns."

.

So who is he, Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim, baron, Russian military leader, lieutenant general of the tsarist army; cavalry general of the Finnish Army, field marshal, Marshal of Finland, regent of the Kingdom of Finland from December 12, 1918 to June 26, 1919, ally of the Third Reich, President of Finland from August 4, 1944 to March 11, 1946?

Gustav Mannerheim came from an old Swedish family. After the victory over the Swedes, one of his ancestors was the leader of the delegation received by Alexander I and contributed to the success of the negotiations, which ended with the approval of the constitution and autonomous status of the Grand Duchy of Finland. Since then, all Mannerheims began to be distinguished by a clear pro-Russian orientation, fortunately Alexander I repeatedly reminded: “Finland is not a province. Finland is a state."
Gustav Mannerheim graduated from the University of Helsingfors and the Nikolaev Cavalry School with honors. He gained his first combat experience in the Russian-Japanese War (1904-1905), commanding two squadrons, and showed himself to be a fairly capable military man. He served with Budyon and Brusilov. Received the rank of colonel.
During the First World War he fought in Galicia. After the revolution in 1918, he decides to leave for his native Finland. He led the Finnish army. He was not only a skilled warrior, but also well versed in politics. In 1927 he began to build a defensive line on the border with the USSR. In the war with the White Finns (a topic, by the way, extremely sparingly covered in our country), the Red Army took this line. But at what cost? Our losses amounted to 400,000, while the Finns lost 20,000.
Since the beginning of the war, Finland seemed to be sandwiched between Germany and the USSR. And Mannerheim found his political line, which ensured the independence of his country during the Second World War.
Here I will quote a post found on LiveJournal. The author somewhat idealizes the positive role of Mannerheim and Finland during the war. But the fact remains that Mannerheim fought for the independence of his country. Finland emerged from the war with the USSR with the conclusion of an armistice agreement, signed on September 19, 1944 in Moscow. After this, Finland, not satisfied with the speed of the withdrawal of German troops from its territory, began military operations against Germany (Lapland War).
So, a post from the LiveJournal of user "anty_big_game"

How Mannerheim “saved” Leningrad

Why do former security officers lay flowers at Mannerheim’s grave and install a memorial plaque in the city on the Neva! It’s no coincidence, you see?

After World War II, the leaders of countries that were German satellites were executed. Some were hanged, others were shot. There was only one exception - the commander-in-chief of the Finnish army, Karl Mannerheim. He was not punished; on the contrary, he was even promoted. At the request of Joseph Stalin, Mannerheim was elected President of Finland. And it was with him that the Soviet Union concluded a peace treaty. And already in our time, Vladimir Putin laid flowers on the baron’s grave in Helsinki. Why this love for Karl Mannerheim?

istpravda.ru

During his tenure as Commander-in-Chief, Karl Mannerheim receives complete information about everything happening in his country, writes rolershar.ru. Nothing can hide from his gaze. In the summer of 1942, military trains arrived in the southern part of Finland in complete secrecy. They are guarded by the Gestapo and selected units of the Wehrmacht. The Abwehr is also on alert. No one along the train route should know what they are carrying in their carriages.

The Soviet command, having received information about these secret transportations, strives to find out as many details as possible. Reconnaissance groups are being sent to Finland. The fate of most of these groups is tragic. But still, with incredible efforts, it is possible to establish where and what the mysterious trains are carrying. The best ships of those years, ideal for conducting combat operations on the lake, secretly appeared on the shores of Ladoga. MAS fast boats with well-trained crews have been deployed from the ports of southern Italy.

The Siebel ferries, a symbol of Hitler's unfulfilled dream of occupying the British Isles, arrived secretly from Germany. They were intended to cross the English Channel. The actions of the Germans are led by Colonel Fritz Siebel himself, the designer of the miracle ferries.

Simultaneously with the appearance of a powerful Italian-German flotilla on Ladoga, it became known where Manstein’s 11th Army had been moved from near Sevastopol. Her traces were found near Leningrad. Here, the excellent strategist and greatest commander of the Wehrmacht, Erich von Manstein, placed both the latest Tiger tanks and the super-powerful Dora gun. With their help, Hitler wanted to destroy the troops of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts. He has already come up with a name for this operation. He had already come up with a name for this operation - “Nordlicht”, “Northern Lights”.

The Soviet leadership links all this information together. The General Staff concludes: a major Wehrmacht operation is being prepared to capture Leningrad and eliminate water communications on Ladoga. Hitler is confident of success. However, he did not take into account one thing - the Russians are ready for a strike, they know a lot about Operation Nordlicht. And they owe this knowledge partly to the man whom the Fuhrer considered his faithful ally - Finnish Marshal Karl Mannerheim.

Karl Mannerheim
The Baron knew very well all the weaknesses and strengths of the Russian army, because he himself had served in it for a long time. He understood that the USSR would not lose the war with the Germans, but would most likely win. Therefore, Mannerheim was as careful as possible. He ordered Finnish troops not to cross the old border with the Soviet Union, and from the very beginning he was most likely preparing not for victory, but for defeat, realizing that he would have to negotiate peace with the Soviet Union. Karl Mannerheim is the oldest politician in Europe. He is an officer of the old school, the school of the 19th century. Mannerheim’s principles do not fit the idea of ​​exterminating millions of people; he does not want to destroy the city on the Neva, with which he has been associated for almost 30 years of his life.

Adolf Hitler is a child of the 20th century, a person not rooted in traditional culture. He prefers to destroy the foundations and create a new civilization. The old familiar culture, morality and religion have fallen. Leningrad, the cradle of the Bolshevik revolution, will be the first result of the Third Reich's modernization of the barbaric world.

The German-Italian flotilla on Lake Ladoga included selected soldiers of the Italian “marinomilitare” and the Wehrmacht. These were experienced warriors who survived numerous bloody battles with the British. They knew how to fight both on land and at sea.

Soviet intelligence establishes channels for communication and exchange of information with the Finnish side. This mission was entrusted to the representative of the Soviet embassy in Sweden, Boris Yartsev. The Finns are making it clear: their army will not cross the line of the old border along the Sestra River. This means the Finnish commander-in-chief's refusal to support German plans for the final destruction of Leningrad.

Finnish Vickers tank

Vessels of the Italian-German flotilla make test trips and practice interaction. The crews indulge in Finnish cured herring, Karelian pies, and venison from Lapland. In the evenings, in the company of charming Finnish girls, sailors watch luxurious films with simple plots.

Marshal Mannerheim gave many orders orally, without leaving copies that could get to the Germans, who were quite active in his General Staff. Coldly and calmly, he increases the distance between him and his German ally. He refuses to subordinate the Finnish army to the German command, but also does not agree to take German units under his command. At the beginning of 1942, in response to regular questions from Wehrmacht generals about the fate of the Finnish front, Mannerheim snapped: “I will not attack anymore.”

The Americans maintained diplomatic relations with the Finns, and they warned the Finnish leadership that an attempt to expand the front line and attacks on the Soviet Union would lead to the severance of Finland’s ties with the West. Mannerheim did not want to become a complete vassal of Nazi Germany, and therefore he made a decision for himself: to stay away from the Germans. But Hitler hopes to break the will of his stubborn ally. Now he urgently needs Finland to destroy Leningrad. But with a commander like Mannerheim, Finnish soldiers will not be able to help the German army. This means that you need to look for a truly faithful person in this northern country. And there is such a person - General Paavo Talvela.

This man began serving in the German army, then transferred to the Finnish army, fought with the Russians in the Civil War, and graduated from the Academy in 1924, defending a diploma on the topic “War with the Russians in Karelia.” He had one ally in his head - Germany, his profession was to fight the Russians.

In 1942, Talvela became the Finnish representative at Hitler's headquarters. Endless colorful ceremonies, military parades, discipline, bearing, luxury and wealth of the Reich. One soil, one nation, one leader. The imperial spirit is great. This is what modest Finland is missing. Talvela feels Hitler's favor and strives to meet his hopes. A plan for a brilliant operation is created in his head, which became an integral part of the German plan for the destruction of Leningrad. The purpose of the operation was to capture Suho Island, located in the middle of the Road of Life.

The German command is trying to hide preparations for the operation from Mannerheim, but not a single secret can be hidden from the marshal. He is aware of all their preparations. The Baron is looking forward to the performance of the German-Italian flotilla and is preparing a surprise for his ally. It is beyond his capabilities to prohibit General Talvela from carrying out the operation. He is Hitler's protege, but Finland is completely dependent on Germany for the supply of weapons and food.

And Mannerheim applies the tactics that he learned during his 30 years of service in Russia: after all, any undertaking can be ruined by delays, bureaucracy and sabotage. Suddenly, the Finns fall ill with an incomprehensible serious illness - the equipment that previously worked like a clock stops working, the Finnish diligence has disappeared somewhere. For some reason, the port workers are surprisingly slow and inefficient. German sailors are surprised: nothing is being done on time.

Mannerheim at a meeting with Hitler

Paavo Talvela understands: only Hitler can cure the Finns from the Russian disease. He convinces the Fuhrer to personally fly to Finland and convince Mannerheim. On June 4, 1942, Mannerheim celebrates his 75th anniversary. Opportunity. With the help of the Fuhrer, Talvela will be able to persuade the obstinate marshal and begin to implement his plan for creating a Greater Finland. But he doesn’t understand - for Mannerheim, Hitler’s speech is not an argument, rather an irritant.

Karl Mannerheim is a lonely, cold man, with established habits once and for all. He does not like new friends, books, activities, he watches the shape of his own mustache, he loves hunting large predators, and horse riding. Of all the world's politicians, only the King of Sweden is respected. Adolf Hitler is a man of the crowd. He likes rallies, sports competitions, torchlight processions. He loves Nietzsche, Wagner. This inspires him to new conquests. Among politicians, he values ​​only himself and, perhaps, Stalin.

Arriving at Mannerheim's headquarters, Hitler unleashed a stream of incoherent words on the marshal. He showered Mannerheim with gifts: a luxurious Mercedes 770, 3 military all-terrain vehicles, the Order of the German Eagle with a large gold cross. But the most important gift was the Reich Chancellor’s own portrait, painted by the artist Troupe.

All this could have impressed anyone, but not Mannerheim. He does not value the Fuhrer's gifts, especially those that are bourgeois and in poor taste. Mannerheim sells the expensive Mercedes to Sweden, gives the all-terrain vehicles to the army, and throws the cross and the portrait away, out of sight. For him, a meeting with Hitler is a diplomatic ritual, nothing more.

In 1941, the situation in Finland could not have been worse. It was sandwiched between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. In the distance were the influential Great Britain and France. Mannerheim and President Ryti believed that Finland must survive this moment. The main thing for her is to remain small but independent. And General Talvela believed that with the help of Germany it should become a great country in the northeast, defeat Russia and spread from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains, from the Arctic Ocean to the Volkhov.

Talvela expected a lot from this visit, but the old marshal turned everything around in his own way. Knowing that the visit was being watched in Moscow, London, and Washington, Mannerheim decided to show that he would not dance to the tune of the “Pied Piper of Munich.” There is a “prohibition” law in the Finnish army. Only Mannerheim, following a habit established since Tsarist times, did not sit down at the table without a glass of vodka. However, in honor of his anniversary, the marshal decided to please his soldiers. Big gesture! Trucks with valuable cargo are rushing to the front line. Two bottles of vodka for the dugout. On the marshal's birthday, the Finnish army is demonstratively incapable of combat. A sign to the enemies of the anti-Hitler coalition: the Finns have finished their war.

General Talvela understands where Mannerheim is pushing. If the operation he has planned is not carried out now, then his plans will not come true. Suho Island must be captured before the end of navigation; later the Ladoga ice will leave the Siebel ferries and speedboats motionless. We need to land troops on Suho and gain a strong foothold. Then the Germans will completely control transportation on Ladoga, both on ice and by water. Leningrad will be left without supplies and die.

At Hitler's headquarters, Operation Brazil is scheduled for October 21, 1942. Information is again hidden from Baron Mannerheim. But the marshal again knows everything and manages to warn the Russian command about the departure of the German-Italian flotilla from the ports of the northwestern shore of Ladoga. On October 21-22, at the Soviet Headquarters of the High Command, Stalin and Vasilevsky waited for news from Ladoga. They were ready to give the combat-ready strategic aviation the order to act.

Strictly according to plan, the first battle group left at 17.30, the second at 17.45. Both are from different points. On the ferries there are strike groups, an elite landing force, a team of sappers, and a special infantry unit. The total number is more than 100 people.

Talvala sets the task for the flotilla: to land troops on the island, install artillery and equip Suho as a base for further attacks. There is no doubt about victory. After all, the ships of the Soviet Ladoga flotilla are trash not worth mentioning. By 7 o'clock in the morning the enemy squadron was approaching Suho. Thanks to the heavy fog, she was not noticed. But 2 small ships of the Ladoga flotilla are on combat duty in the island’s waters. This is the sea hunter “107” of Lieutenant Kovalevsky and the minesweeper “100” of Senior Lieutenant Karpin.

At the airfields of the Volkhov and Leningrad fronts, aircraft are being prepared, and the crews are undergoing detailed instructions. Combat vehicles are refueled and equipped with full ammunition. At 7.10 at the island's lighthouse they notice an enemy flotilla, but mistake them for their convoy. At 7.15 the Germans open hurricane artillery and machine gun fire on the island and the fortifications located on it. The very first salvos turn out to be accurate, leaving the Suho garrison without radio contact. But a Soviet coastal battery of 100mm guns returns fire on the approaching ships. Lieutenant Karpin sends a radiogram from his ship to radio operators in Novaya Ladoga.

The first Luftwaffe planes are approaching Suho. 9 Junkers bomb the island. Soon there is no living space left on it. The only shelter for the defenders is the lighthouse. Under the cover of aircraft, the Germans approach Suho. 3 infantry strike groups and 1 demolition group are landed from landing boats. They manage to destroy 2 of the three Russian guns. The battle was short, only one hour, but terrible. Just imagine a site the size of half a football field. There are stones everywhere. And 70 paratroopers and 90 Red Navy men met in these stones. Grenades, bayonets, butts, point-blank shots. By the end of the battle, only 12 of the Soviet garrison could fight, the rest were killed or seriously wounded.

The Germans are close to victory. You just need to capture the third gun, and also wait for the rest of the landing force to land. But the Red Navy and Marshal Mannerheim took away the victory that Talvela and Hitler had been waiting for. The weather forecast presented by the Finns did not come true. Storm 5 points - instead of clear weather. The Siebel ferries ran into underwater rocks. It turns out that the Finns did not provide the necessary information about the location of the area they knew well. At 8.00 the Germans lost contact with the boats in which the rifle groups were located and the commander decides to send a signal with a rocket to cancel the actions of these groups. But not only this order interrupted the German landing attack. The garrison of Suho Island, commanded by Senior Lieutenant Gusev, counterattacks.

Noticing the missile, all German strike groups returned from the island to the ferries, taking with them five captured Russians. The squadron still faces a difficult journey back. And the storm and fire from the hunter and minesweeper do not allow repairs to be carried out on site. Ferries that are already damaged have to be abandoned. The Germans transfer all their fire to Soviet ships, which maneuver in the forest from the gaps. Airplanes from two fronts and the Baltic Fleet are rushing to the aid of their two ships and the surviving defenders of the island. They rain bombs on the Germans and hit them with machine guns. Gunboats and sea hunters of the Ladoga military flotilla approach the island. Throughout the daylight hours they pursue and destroy the enemy. As a result of the battle, 15 German aircraft were shot down and 17 ships were sunk.

Mannerheim spent this day as usual. He could no longer change anything; everything depended on the Russians. The marshal was waiting for the outcome, and it came. On October 23, at 4 a.m., the badly battered German squadron returned to base, where Italian boats had already returned earlier. Even on the way to Suho, they reported a lack of fuel. The operation failed. General Talwell's plan failed. The same fate befell Operation Nordlicht - Leningrad was not taken, the Road of Life continued to function. Soon Ladoga will freeze, and German ships and their crews will be out of work.

In the late autumn of 1942, German Siebels and Italian boats set off back to the Baltic. The defeat of the Italian-German flotilla became known to everyone. Like a true military man, Mannerheim found time to express admiration for the courage of the German soldiers who fought in this battle and visited the wounded in the hospital. But he did not take any further steps to support his allies. Mannerheim did not participate in the Talvela operation and did not send his troops to Leningrad. Knowing the vulnerability of the Soviet fleet on Ladoga, he did everything possible to ensure that the German command’s operation failed.

For General Talvel, the defeat in Operation Brazil was the ruin of his life. He failed to impose an active anti-Russian position on Mannerheim. In 1944, Finland leaves the war. Each was rewarded according to his deeds. Stalin agreed to conclude a peace agreement only with Mannerheim. Mannerheim was surrounded by honor. It was he who established such relations with Moscow that allowed Finland to remain independent.

Mannerheim on the hunt

But General Talvela walked along the Helsinki esplanade with a pistol in his pocket. He expected that he could be arrested any minute. And although this did not happen, he was not hired into the business. Neither the British, nor the Americans, nor the Russians wanted to deal with Hitler's henchman. He died in deep disgrace.

Mannerheim understood: he managed to deceive Hitler, now it is necessary to improve relations with the Soviet Union. In this maneuver between Hitler and Stalin, the Finnish marshal will outplay both of them. Finland will not lose its face. Mannerheim's plans to preserve an independent country in Northern Europe, where order and law reign, will become a reality. In Suomi there is a place for everyone who honestly served their Motherland. “Only he was able to convince the Finnish people that Finland would capitulate, and he was truly a patriot of his country,” said Stalin. When Herda Kuusinen put her position on war criminals on his desk, Stalin crossed out Mannerheim, the first on the list, with a red pencil and wrote “Do not touch” at the top.

Stalin's unusual attitude towards Mannerheim is explained not least by the service that the marshal provided to the Soviet Union at a critical moment. In the terrible year of 1942, a timely warning saved Leningrad. And this was enough to forgive Mannerheim for his alliance with Hitler. Finland defended its values ​​and continued to live its life. And Mannerheim, restrained for the time being, decided to openly confront the Third Reich. The Finnish army turned its bayonets against its forced ally. And Mannerheim emerged victorious from this battle.

***
As for my opinion, I would refrain from installing a memorial plaque.
Just as I would not name a bridge in St. Petersburg after Akhmat Kadyrov. Why? I will refrain from expressing my opinion; they will consider me an extremist.
By the way, this is the bridge of discord.