Defense of Pavlov's house: how it happened. The myth of Sergeant Pavlov

February 28th, 2018 , 12:00 pm

If you find yourself in Volgograd, then you definitely need to visit three places: Mamaev kurgan, Paulus Bunker in the Central Department Store And Panorama Museum Battle of Stalingrad . I read a lot about the Battle of Stalingrad and watched films. A variety of books and films. “Stalingrad” by Yuri Ozerov is impossible to watch, the movie is about nothing, solid Soviet propaganda. The book by German war correspondent Heinz Schröter about the Battle of Stalingrad, written by him in 1943, seemed very interesting. By the way, the book, conceived as a propaganda tool capable of raising the spirit of the German army, was banned in Germany “for its defeatist mood” and was published only in 1948. It was completely unusual to look towards Stalingrad through the eyes of German soldiers. And oddly enough, it was precisely the meticulous analytical German assessment of military operations that showed the incredible feat that the Russian people - the military and the city residents - accomplished.

STALINGRAD- the same stone on which the invincible, powerful German military machine literally broke its teeth.
STALINGRAD- that sacred point that turned the tide of the war.
STALINGRAD- the city of Heroes in the most literal sense.

From the book "Stalingrad" by Heinz Schroter
“In Stalingrad there were battles for every house, for metallurgical plants, factories, hangars, shipping canals, streets, squares, gardens, walls.”
“Resistance arose almost out of nowhere. At the surviving factories, the last tanks were being assembled, the armories were empty, everyone who was able to hold a weapon in their hands was armed: Volga steamships, the fleet, workers of military factories, teenagers.”“The dive bombers delivered their iron blows to the ruins of staunchly defended bridgeheads.”

“The basements of houses and the vaults of workshops were equipped by the enemies as dugouts and strongholds. Danger lurked at every turn, snipers were hiding behind every ruin, but the sewerage structures posed a particular danger to Wastewater- they approached the Volga and were used by the Soviet command to supply reserves to them. Often, Russians suddenly appeared behind the advanced German detachments, and no one could understand how they got there. Later everything became clear, so the channels in the places where the drain covers were located were barricaded with steel beams.”
*It is interesting that the Germans describe houses for which mortal battles were fought not by numbers, but by color, because the German love of numbers has become meaningless.

“The sapper battalion lay down in front of the pharmacy and the red house. These strongholds were equipped for defense in such a way that it was impossible to take them.”

“The advance of the engineer battalions moved forward, but stopped in front of the so-called white house. The houses in question were piles of rubbish, but there were battles for them too.”
*Just imagine how many such “red and white houses” there were in Stalingrad...

I found myself in Volgograd at the very beginning of February, when they celebrated the next anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad. On this day I went to Panorama Museum, which is located on the high bank of the Volga embankment (Chuikova St., 47). I chose the day very well, because on the site in front of the museum I found a concert, performances by our guys, and a gala event dedicated to the memorable date.

I didn’t take pictures inside the museum, it’s dark, it’s unlikely that they would have worked nice photos no flash. But the museum is very interesting. First of all, a circular panorama “The defeat of the Nazi troops at Stalingrad.” As Wiki describes it: “Panorama “Battle of Stalingrad” is a canvas measuring 16x120 m, with an area of ​​about 2000 m² and 1000 m² of subject matter. Plot - The final stage Battle of Stalingrad - Operation Ring. The canvas shows the connection on January 26, 1943 of the 21st and 62nd armies of the Don Front on the western slope of Mamayev Kurgan, which led to the dissection of the encircled German group into two parts.” In addition to the panorama (located on the highest floor of the museum, in the Rotunda) there are 4 dioramas (small panoramas on the ground floor).
Weapons, Soviet and German, awards, personal items and clothing, models, photographs, portraits. You definitely need to take a tour guide. In my case, this could not be done, due to the fact that a solemn ceremony was taking place in the Triumphal Hall, which was attended by veterans, military personnel, young army guys, and the museum was flooded with a large number of guests.

(with photo yarowind

(with photo kerrangjke

(With) muph

Behind the Panorama Museum there is a dilapidated red brick building - Gergard's Mill (Grudinin's Mill). The building became one of the important defense centers of the city. Again, turning to Wiki we find out that “The mill was semi-surrounded for 58 days, and during these days it withstood numerous hits from aerial bombs and shells. These damages are visible even now - literally every square meter the outer walls are cut by shells, bullets and shrapnel, on the roof reinforced concrete beams killed by direct hits from aerial bombs. The sides of the building indicate varying intensities of mortar and artillery fire."

A copy of the sculpture is now installed nearby "Dancing Children". For Soviet Russia it was a fairly typical sculpture - pioneers with red ties (3 girls and three boys) lead a friendly round dance around the fountain. But the children’s figures, damaged by bullets and shell fragments, look especially piercing and defenseless.

Opposite the Panorama Museum across the road is Pavlov's House.
I’ll turn to Wikipedia again so as not to repeat it: “Pavlov’s House is a 4-story residential building in which a group of Soviet soldiers heroically held the defense for 58 days during the Battle of Stalingrad. Some historians believe that the defense was led by senior sergeant Ya. F. Pavlov, who took command of the squad from senior lieutenant I. F. Afanasyev, who was wounded at the beginning of the battles. The Germans organized attacks several times a day. Every time soldiers or tanks tried to get close to the house, I.F. Afanasyev and his comrades met them with heavy fire from the basement, windows and roof. During the entire defense of Pavlov’s house (from September 23 to November 25, 1942), there were civilians in the basement until the Soviet troops launched a counterattack.”

I would like to return to the demonstration performances of our guys again. And I will quote the text of Vitaly Rogozin dervishv about hand-to-hand combat, which I liked incredibly.
...
Hand-to-hand combat - window dressing or a deadly weapon?
Experts continue to argue about whether soldiers need hand-to-hand combat in conditions modern warfare. And if necessary, then in what volume and with what technical arsenal? And what martial arts best suited for this? No matter how much analysts argue, hand-to-hand combat still has its place in training programs. I looked at skills the other day hand-to-hand combat from cadets of the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School.

There is a joke among the troops: “To engage in hand-to-hand combat, a soldier needs to remain in his shorts, find a flat area and a second idiot like him.” And this joke contains considerable wisdom, tested in hundreds of wars. After all, even in the era before the advent of firearms, hand-to-hand combat was not a “major discipline.” The main focus in a soldier's combat training was on his ability to wield a weapon and not bring the battle to hand-to-hand combat.
For example, in China, where the traditions of martial arts go back thousands of years, the training of soldiers for hand-to-hand combat was systematized only during the Ming Dynasty, when General Qi Jiguang selected and published his “32 fist methods” for training troops.
Only 32 techniques from the huge variety of Chinese Wushu! But the most effective and easiest to learn.
Reportedly Western press, the entire hand-to-hand combat course of the American Delta consists of 30 techniques.

1 . The soldier’s task, since he cannot, for some reason, use weapons, is to as soon as possible destroy the enemy or disarm and immobilize him. And you don’t need to know many techniques to do this. It is important to master them; they must be firmly embedded in the subconscious and muscle memory.
2. The most important thing for a fighter is the ability to use personal weapons and equipment in hand-to-hand combat.
3. Let's start with the machine gun. The blows are delivered with a bayonet, barrel, butt, and magazine.
Thus, even without ammunition, the machine gun remains a formidable weapon in close combat.
In Kadochnikov’s system, which is still taught in some places in domestic law enforcement agencies, the machine gun is even used to immobilize and escort a prisoner.
4. Hand-to-hand combat techniques with a knife are characterized by fast, economical and generally short and low-amplitude movements.
5. The targets for striking are mainly the limbs and neck of the enemy, since, firstly, large blood vessels located close to the surface of the body. Secondly, hitting the opponent’s hands sharply reduces his ability to continue the fight (a hit to the neck, for obvious reasons, practically eliminates this). Thirdly, the torso can be protected by body armor.
6. A soldier must still be able to throw a knife without missing from any position. But he only does this when he has no other choice, because the knife is designed to cut and stab and should lie firmly in the hand, and not move in space, leaving the owner without the last weapon.
7. A terrible weapon in the hands of a soldier is a small sapper blade. The radius of destruction and the length of the cutting edge are much greater than that of any knife. But in these exhibition battles it was not used, and in vain.
8. Confronting an armed enemy while unarmed is also a necessary skill.
9. But taking away a weapon from an enemy is not so easy.
10. Real knives and pistols bring the training situation closer to a combat situation, strengthening psychological resistance to weapons in the hands of the opponent.
11. The fighter still needs the skills to silently destroy sentries and capture enemy troops.
12. It is important for any intelligence officer to be able to search, bind and escort captured or detained persons.
13. A soldier of army units in hand-to-hand combat must kill the enemy in the shortest possible period of time and continue completing the assigned task.
14. The targets for his blows are the temples, eyes, throat, base of the skull, heart (a competent, accurate blow to the heart area leads to its stop). Hit to the groin and knee joints are good as “relaxers”.
15 . The stick, in turn, is the most ancient weapons person.
16 . The methods of its use have been refined over thousands of years and can be adopted for service without any modification or adaptation.
17 . Even if you never have to use hand-to-hand combat skills, it is better to know them and be able to use them.
18. Crunch and cut in half.

Posts tagged “Volgograd”:

In July 1942, the Germans reached Stalingrad. By capturing this city on the Volga River, they would be able to cut off oil supplies from the south destined for the armies in the north. After numerous artillery attacks and air raids, the Germans launched a ground assault against the Russians, who were noticeably outnumbered.

In September, several units of the 6th German Army approached the central part of the city three blocks from the Volga. There they were met by Sergeant Yakov Pavlov and his soldiers, who took up defensive positions in an apartment building.

Pavlov and his soldiers managed to hold back the Germans for two months until reinforcements arrived, which helped push the fascist troops back.

Home takeover

September 27 to the detachment Soviet army, consisting of 30 people, was ordered to return a four-story residential building captured by the Germans with good review on large area to the center of Stalingrad. Since the lieutenants and senior sergeants of the platoon had already either died or been wounded, the fighters were led into battle by 24-year-old junior sergeant Pavlov Yakov Fedotovich.

After a fierce battle in which 26 of the 30 men in his platoon were killed, Pavlov and three of his soldiers seized control of the house and began to fortify and organize the defense.

The house had an excellent view of almost a kilometer in three directions - east, north and south. There were 10 civilians hiding in the basements of the house, who had nowhere else to go.

Reinforcement and home defense

A few days later, another 26 Soviet soldiers, led by Lieutenant Ivan Afanasyev, who formally took command, finally reached Pavlov’s detachment. They brought with them the necessary provisions and weapons, including land mines, machine guns and PTRD-41. Four layers of barbed wire and minefields were installed on the approaches to the house, and heavy machine guns looked out onto the square from the windows of the house.

By that time, German infantry, supported by a tank platoon, attacked every day, sometimes several times a day, trying to dislodge the enemy from their positions. Pavlov realized that if you let the tanks come within 22 meters and then fire an anti-tank rifle from the roof, you could penetrate the top armor of the turret at its thinnest point, and the tank would not be able to raise the gun high enough to fire back. During this siege, Pavlov is believed to have destroyed nearly a dozen tanks with his anti-tank rifle.

Later, the Soviet defenders managed to dig a tunnel through the wall of the basement of the house and establish a communication trench with another post of Soviet soldiers. Thus, when the Soviet ships that survived the German artillery and air bombardment finally crossed the Volga, food, supplies and, most importantly, water began to flow into Stalingrad. Periodically, 19-year-old Anatoly Chekhov visited the fighters, who liked to conduct aimed fire from the roof of the house. was a real paradise for snipers - it is believed that about 3,000 Germans died from sniper bullets alone in Stalingrad. Chekhov alone accounted for 256 Germans.

Wall of Dead Germans

In the end, an aerial bomb destroyed one of the walls of the house, but Soviet soldiers continued to hold off the Germans. Every time the enemy crossed the square and tried to encircle them, Pavlov's platoon rained down such a barrage of machine-gun fire, mortar shells and 14.5 mm PTRD shots that the Germans had to retreat with serious losses.

By November, after numerous raids, Pavlov and his soldiers had to retreat between salvos and, they say, they literally raked away walls of German bodies so that they would not block their view.

By the way, on German maps Pavlov's house was depicted as a fortress.

At one point, the Germans controlled 90% of the city and split the Soviet forces into three, leaving the Volga behind.

The history of the city also knew other heroic centers of resistance, for example, in the north, where the struggle for large factories lasted for several months.

Pavlov and his soldiers held the house for two months, until November 25, 1942, when the Red Army launched a counteroffensive.

Crucial moment

The Battle of Stalingrad lasted from July 1942 until February 1943, when German troops, surrounded on all sides, surrendered.

The Soviet army suffered enormous losses of 640,000 killed, missing or wounded soldiers and 40,000 civilians. 745,000 Germans were killed, missing or wounded; 91,000 were captured. Of the prisoners of war, only 6,000 returned to Germany.

One of the most powerful German armies was completely destroyed, and the Red Army, against all odds, proved that it could not only heroically defend itself, but also attack. It was crucial moment Great Patriotic War and all

The further fate of Sergeant Pavlov

Sergeant Pavlov was awarded the title Hero Soviet Union, Order of Lenin, Order of the October Revolution, two Orders of the Red Star and other medals. The residential building he defended was renamed Pavlov's House.

The building was later restored, and now one of its walls is decorated with a monument made from the bricks of the original building. Pavlov's house is located in Volgograd ( former Stalingrad). Yakov Pavlov was demobilized in 1946 with the rank of lieutenant and joined the Communist Party. He was elected three times as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR. Pavlov died on September 29, 1981.

Why did the Krauts call this battle the “rat war”? Why did the Nazis need this city? Blitzkrieg plans. Why was Pavlov's House so important? If we hadn't won, WHAT would have happened...

The Battle of Stalingrad is the bloodiest battle in human history. About 2 million soldiers died during the defense of the city.

The Fuhrer needed Stalingrad for 2 reasons:

Use Stalingrad to seize the oil of the Caucasus.

Humiliate Stalin by destroying the city that bears his name.

Any strategist, looking at the balance of forces before the Battle of Stalingrad, would have predicted the death of the Red Army. But not a victory!!!

This battle lasted 200 days and nights.

Stalin did not allow the citizens to be evacuated - after all, this way the soldiers would better defend the city.

The most terrible the day was August 23... The Germans had 6 times more planes than the Soviet troops. The Wehrmacht hoped to destroy the city by bombarding it with high-explosive and incendiary bombs. And then - they thought - all that remains is to occupy the burned Stalingrad...

Blitzkrieg! One powerful blow and the battle is over!

By the way, Türkiye was going to attack the USSR from the south. In case of successful capture of Stalingrad.

On August 23, Soviet planes were destroyed. A massive attack from the Fritz swept through the city like an avalanche. The city center turned into ruins and ashes... A colossal fire began. 40 thousand civilians died that day...

The Nazis went on the offensive to occupy the city. BUT! Russian riflemen appeared from somewhere and hand-to-hand fighting broke out. Here the forces were approximately equal: the Germans could not use either aviation or artillery! Street by street, house by house, they slowly retreated soviet soldiers...

It's begun for the Germans the most fierce battles during the entire war. They called them "Rattenkrieg" ("Rat War").

The fighting took place on the ground and underground: fighters dug tunnels and entire systems of underground tunnels. Every home or business there were basements!

The Germans said that the purpose of thisunderground war - get to the bottom of hell andsummon demons from there ... That's when the Germans came up with STEEL HELMETS.

It happened more than once that these tunnels were buried alive... Houses with strong walls that could withstand artillery attacks were turned into fortresses.

Stalingrad is a city located on the western bank of the Volga. Pavlov's house and Gerhardt's mill were the HIGHEST, the overview of which was about a kilometer! After the houses there was a steep descent to the Volga. If the Krauts had occupied the houses, the Soviet troops would have had a very, very sad time later: thousands of soldiers would have died storming the heights...

The defense of Pavlov's house was 58 days. The Germans intensively attacked - sometimes up to several attacks per day!!! Several times they occupied the 1st floor... But the Soviet soldiers fiercely defended themselves. A trench was dug from the house through which the soldiers received food and ammunition.

Where did the house get its name?

Yakov Pavlov led the reconnaissance group (3 fighters). They knocked out several Krauts from a 4-story building and discovered that the house had been defended by our residents for two days! Civilians lived in the basement of the house. Pavlov, his soldiers and residents held the defense of the house for 3 days!!! Then a machine-gun platoon of guard Lieutenant Ivan Afanasyev (24 soldiers) arrived.

Afanasyev built the defense very competently - in 58 days only three soldiers died.

58 days... On German military maps the house was listed as "fortress". Sergeant Pavlov received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, and Lieutenant Afanasyev received the highest military award of the USSR - the Order of the Red Banner.

The main citadels of the battle of Stalingrad were its large factories - tractor, "Red October", "Barricades" - in their numerous workshops battles raged for a long time.

On November 19, the Soviet Union launched a counteroffensive and on November 23, the encirclement was closed. The USSR did the unprecedented: in a short period, about a million people joined the ranks of the Red Army! These were not just “newbies” - they had already been trained, and they had weapons - not like in the first months of the war. They decided the outcome of the battle: about 230 thousand soldiers of the Nazi coalition were surrounded.

Paulus asked to retreat. Hitler refused. There was no supply. Soviet air defense thwarted all Goering's plans to supply the encircled troops. The Russian winter has begun... Frostbitten, hungry, doomed Wehrmacht soldiers fought furiously to the last...

Von Paulus did not carry out the Fuhrer’s order to “shoot himself,” but surrendered.

Of the 110 thousand soldiers captured in Soviet labor camps, about 5,500 survived and returned to Germany.

The Battle of Stalingrad is a victory over the troops of Germany, Italy, Romania, Hungary and Croatia.

A difficult victory... It changed the course of history: Turkey abandoned the attack on the USSR, Japan also canceled the “Siberian” campaign.

If it were not for the courage of Soviet soldiers and residents of Stalingrad... USSR... 2 more fronts...

Eternal glory to you, defenders of Stalingrad!

Every year the number of veterans and witnesses of the Second World War becomes less and less. And in just a dozen years they will no longer be alive. Therefore, it is now so important to find out the truth about these distant events in order to avoid misunderstandings and misinterpretations in the future.

State archives are gradually being declassified, and military historians have access to secret documents, and therefore accurate facts, which make it possible to find out the truth and dispel all speculation that concerns certain points military history. The Battle of Stalingrad also has a number of episodes that cause mixed assessments by both the veterans themselves and historians. One of these controversial episodes is the defense of one of the many dilapidated houses in the center of Stalingrad, which became known throughout the world as “Pavlov’s house.”

During the defense of Stalingrad in September 1942, a group of Soviet intelligence officers captured a four-story building in the very center of the city and established a foothold there. The group was led by Sergeant Yakov Pavlov. A little later, machine guns, ammunition and anti-tank rifles were delivered there, and the house turned into an important stronghold of the division's defense.

The history of the defense of this house is as follows: during the bombing of the city, all the buildings turned into ruins, only one four-story house survived. Its upper floors made it possible to observe and keep under fire the part of the city that was occupied by the enemy, so the house itself played an important strategic role in the plans of the Soviet command.

The house was adapted for all-round defense. Firing points were moved outside the building, and underground passages were made to communicate with them. The approaches to the house were mined with anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. It was thanks to the skillful organization of defense that the warriors were able to repel enemy attacks for such a long period of time.

Representatives of 9 nationalities fought a staunch defense until Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive in the Battle of Stalingrad. It would seem, what is unclear here? However, Yuri Beledin, one of the oldest and most experienced journalists in Volgograd, is sure that this house should bear the name of the “house of soldier’s glory”, and not at all “Pavlov’s house”.

The journalist writes about this in his book, which is called “A Shard in the Heart.” According to him, battalion commander A. Zhukov was responsible for the seizure of this house. It was on his orders that company commander I. Naumov sent four soldiers, one of whom was Pavlov. Within 24 hours they repulsed German attacks. The rest of the time, while the defense of the house was being carried out, Lieutenant I. Afanasyev was responsible for everything, who came there along with reinforcements in the form of a machine-gun platoon and a group of armor-piercing men. The total composition of the garrison located there consisted of 29 soldiers.

In addition, on one of the walls of the house, someone made an inscription that P. Demchenko, I. Voronov, A. Anikin and P. Dovzhenko heroically fought in this place. And below it was written that Ya. Pavlov’s house was defended. In the end - five people. Why then, of all those who defended the house, and who were in absolutely equal conditions, only Sergeant Ya. Pavlov was awarded the star of the Hero of the USSR? And besides, most records in military literature indicate that it was under the leadership of Pavlov that the Soviet garrison held the defense for 58 days.

Then another question arises: if it is true that it was not Pavlov who led the defense, why were the other defenders silent? At the same time, the facts indicate that they were not silent at all. This is also evidenced by the correspondence between I. Afanasyev and fellow soldiers. According to the author of the book, there was a certain “political situation” that did not make it possible to change the established idea of ​​​​the defenders of this house. In addition, I. Afanasyev himself was a man of exceptional decency and modesty. He served in the army until 1951, when he was discharged for health reasons - he was almost completely blind from wounds received during the war. He was awarded several front-line awards, including the medal “For the Defense of Stalingrad.” In the book “House of Soldier's Glory,” he described in detail the time his garrison stayed in the house. But the censor did not let it through, so the author was forced to make some amendments. Thus, Afanasyev cited Pavlov’s words that by the time the reconnaissance group arrived there were Germans in the house. Some time later, evidence was collected that there was in fact no one in the house. Overall, his book is a true story about a difficult time when Soviet soldiers heroically defended their home. Among these fighters was Ya. Pavlov, who was even wounded at that time. No one is trying to belittle his merits in defense, but the authorities were very selective in singling out the defenders of this building - after all, it was not only Pavlov’s house, but first and foremost a house large quantity Soviet soldiers - defenders of Stalingrad.

Breaking through the defense of the house was the main task of the Germans at that time, because this house was like a bone in the throat. German troops tried to break the defense with the help of mortar and artillery shelling, and air bombing, but the Nazis failed to break the defenders. These events went down in the history of the war as a symbol of the perseverance and courage of the soldiers of the Soviet army.

In addition, this house has become a symbol of labor valor Soviet people. It was the restoration of Pavlov's house that marked the beginning of the Cherkasovsky movement to restore buildings. Immediately after the end of the Battle of Stalingrad, A.M. Cherkasova’s women’s brigades began restoring the house, and by the end of 1943, more than 820 brigades were working in the city, in 1944 – already 1192, and in 1945 – 1227 brigades.

In September 1942, fierce battles broke out in the streets and squares of the central and northern parts of Stalingrad. “A fight in the city is a special fight. Here the issue is decided not by strength, but by skill, dexterity, resourcefulness and surprise.

City buildings, like breakwaters, cut the battle formations of the advancing enemy and directed his forces along the streets. Therefore, we held tightly to especially strong buildings and created a few garrisons in them, capable of conducting an all-round defense in the event of encirclement.

Particularly strong buildings helped us create strong points from which the city’s defenders mowed down the advancing fascists with machine gun and machine gun fire.”, - later noted the commander of the legendary 62nd Army, General Vasily Chuikov.

One of the strongholds, the importance of which was spoken by the commander of Army 62, was the legendary Pavlov’s House. Its end wall overlooked the January 9 Square (later Lenin Square). The 42nd Regiment of the 13th Guards Rifle Division, which joined the 62nd Army in September 1942 (divisional commander General Alexander Rodimtsev), operated at this line. The house was occupied important place in the defense system of Rodimtsev’s guards on the approaches to the Volga. It was a four-story brick building.

However, he had a very important tactical advantage: from there he controlled the entire surrounding area. It was possible to observe and fire at the part of the city occupied by the enemy by that time: up to 1 km to the west, and even more to the north and south.

But the main thing is that from here the paths of a possible German breakthrough to the Volga were visible: it was just a stone’s throw away. Intense fighting here continued for more than two months.

The tactical significance of the house was correctly assessed by the commander of the 42nd Guards Rifle Regiment, Colonel Ivan Elin. He ordered the commander of the 3rd Rifle Battalion, Captain Alexei Zhukov, to seize the house and turn it into a stronghold. On September 20, 1942, soldiers from the squad led by Sergeant Yakov Pavlov made their way there. And on the third day, reinforcements arrived: a machine-gun platoon of Lieutenant Ivan Afanasyev (seven people with one heavy machine gun), a group of armor-piercing soldiers of Senior Sergeant Andrei Sobgaida (six people with three anti-tank rifles), four mortar men with two mortars under the command of Lieutenant Alexei Chernyshenko and three machine gunners. Lieutenant Ivan Afanasyev was appointed commander of this group.

The Nazis conducted massive artillery and mortar fire on the house almost all the time, carried out air strikes on it, and continuously attacked.

But the garrison of the “fortress” - this is how Pavlov’s house was marked on the headquarters map of the commander of the 6th German Army, Paulus - skillfully prepared it for all-round defense. The fighters fired from different places through embrasures, holes in bricked-up windows and holes in the walls.

When the enemy tried to approach the building, he was met by dense machine-gun fire from all firing points. The garrison steadfastly repelled enemy attacks and inflicted significant losses on the Nazis. And most importantly, in operational and tactical terms, the defenders of the house did not allow the enemy to break through to the Volga in this area.

At the same time, Lieutenants Afanasyev, Chernyshenko and Sergeant Pavlov established fire cooperation with strongholds in neighboring buildings - in the house defended by the soldiers of Lieutenant Nikolai Zabolotny, and in the mill building, where the command post of the 42nd Infantry Regiment was located. The interaction was facilitated by the fact that an observation post was equipped on the third floor of Pavlov’s house, which the Nazis were never able to suppress.

“A small group, defending one house, destroyed enemy soldiers more than the Nazis lost during the capture of Paris,” noted Army 62 commander Vasily Chuikov.

Pavlov's house was defended by fighters of different nationalities - Russians Pavlov, Alexandrov and Afanasyev, Ukrainians Sobgaida and Glushchenko, Georgians Mosiashvili and Stepanoshvili, Uzbek Turganov, Kazakh Murzaev, Abkhaz Sukhba, Tajik Turdyev, Tatar Romazanov. According to official data - 24 fighters. But in reality - up to 30. Some dropped out due to injury, others died, but they were replaced.

As a result of continuous shelling, the building was seriously damaged. One end wall was almost completely destroyed. To avoid losses from the rubble, some of the firepower was moved outside the building by order of the regiment commander.

One cannot help but ask: how were Sergeant Pavlov’s fellow soldiers not only able to survive in the fiery hell, but also to defend themselves effectively? The reserve positions they equipped helped the fighters a lot.

In front of the house there was a cemented fuel warehouse; an underground passage was dug to it. And about 30 meters from the house there was a hatch for a water supply tunnel, to which an underground passage was also made. It brought ammunition and meager supplies of food to the defenders of the house.

During shelling, everyone, except observers and combat guards, went down to shelters. Including the civilians who were in the basements, who were various reasons They couldn’t evacuate right away. The shelling stopped, and the entire small garrison was again in its positions in the house, again firing at the enemy.

The garrison of the house held the defense for 58 days and nights. The soldiers left it on November 24, when the regiment, along with other units, launched a counteroffensive. All of them were awarded government awards. And Sergeant Pavlov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. True, after the war - by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 27, 1945 - after he had joined the party by that time.

For the sake of historical truth, we note that most At the time, the defense of the outpost house was led by Lieutenant Afanasyev. But he was not awarded the title of Hero. In addition, Ivan Filippovich was a man of exceptional modesty and never emphasized his merits.

And “at the top” they decided to present to high rank junior commander, who, together with his fighters, was the first to break through to the house and take up defense there.