Artillery Bombardments of 1941-44

Categories / Army. Navy/Blokade
ARTILLERY BOMBARDMENTS OF 1941-44, conducted by long-range German artillery in order to destroy Leningrad's industrial and military facilities, and to spread panic among its population during the siege of 1941-1944. Bombardments were conducted from 4 September 1941 until 22 January 1944 mainly from the Uritsk (Ligovo) area and the Bezzabotny settlement. A total of forty-four guns with a calibre between 203 and 305 millimetres, and eight guns with a calibre between 420 and 800 millimetres, altogether fired about 150.000 shells on the city. The most violent and destructive bombardments came from November 1941 to April 1942 and January to May 1943. In summer 1942, the intensity of the bombardments decreased due to counterfire. In summer 1943, German artillery was withdrawn to where only nine guns could fire on the city with much lesser frequency. Leningrad was exposed to bombardments during 611 days out of the siege's 881 days. Over 600 plants and about 7.000 residential buildings suffered from the bombardments, and at least 25.000 civilians were killed. On some buildings, inscriptions have been preserved which read, "Citizens! This side of the street is the most dangerous during artillery bombardments" (14 Nevsky Prospect, 61 Lesnoy Avenue, 7 Twenty-Second Line of Vasilievsky Island, and in Kronstadt). Fired shells left traces on a pedestal at the St. Isaac's Cathedral (on the western side), on a pedestal of the horses on Anichkov Bridge, and on a memorial plaque on the Holy Resurrection Cathedral (Griboedova Canal Embankment).

G. V. Kalashnikov. 22nd Line of Vasilievsky Island/Saint Petersburg, city, house 7
Griboedova Canal Embankment/Saint Petersburg, city
Lesnaya Ave/Saint Petersburg, city, house 61
Nevsky prospect/Saint Petersburg, city, house 14
Siege of 1941-44
St. Isaac's Cathedral
Anichkov Bridge
Holy Resurrection Cathedral, (Spas-na-Krovi)
1942