Unexploded WWII bomb found in Russian Kremlin

August 16, 2019

Russian officials said they had defused a WWII bomb in the Kremlin, which they believe lay undetected in a cellar since 1941.

The Moscow palace was under reconstruction when workers found the bomb on Thursday, state media revealed.

The Kremlin’s chief commander, Sergey Khlebnikov, told the news agency Ria Novosti they had taken every necessary measure to “ensure the Kremlin’s security.”

Nazi troops sieged Russian cities in 1941 and 1942, in which thousands died.

70 years undetected

Nazi troops bombed the palace in the Second World War as they advanced on Moscow in late 1941. Hundreds of Moscow civilians were killed as the Wehrmacht attacked the city.

The Soviet victory at Moscow was the first significant victory against the Nazis, and began their retreat back towards Berlin.

Read more: Who disarms Germany’s WWII bombs?

The Kremlin sits in the famous Red Square in the center of Moscow, and has been named a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Russia, as the former seat of the Russian Tsars and then the Soviet Union leaders.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

Passage across the ice

Leningrad was under siege for nearly two and a half years by the Wehrmacht: from September 1941 until January 1944. Only during the two extremely cold winters was there a way in and out: across frozen Lake Lagoda. Food was brought into the city across the ice and more than one million people were able escape. Lake Ladoga was the “Road of Life” and at the same time a dangerous journey.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

The onset of winter in Leningrad

Ration cards were already distributed during the first winter of the siege. Hunger was a constant companion for the population of what is now St. Petersburg, and diseases, like typhus and scurvy, were rampant. Temperatures frequently dropped far below zero degrees, freezing the lake and turning it into an escape and supply route.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

The ice road

Engineers and local fishermen developed a construction plan for a road across the ice. A reconnaissance group on skis explored and marked possible routes. Places with thin ice were bridged using tree trunks and crushed blocks of ice. That was how the legendary ice road – officially named Military Road No. 101 – was built. It was known by the residents of Leningrad as the “Road of Life”.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

A life-saving load

Horse-drawn sleighs were the first vehicles on the ice road. Starving horses had to pull goods and people along the treacherous snow-covered path. Not all managed to finish the distance. But, many horses with urgently needed food returned to the city.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

Trucking on thin ice

When the last stocks of flour ran out, bakers tried to make bread substitutes with dust. Eventually, trucks with food also began to drive across the ice road. The first ones to return loaded with goods were welcomed with cheers as well as tears. But, in the first two weeks alone, 157 trucks broke through the ice and sank.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

Non-stop without sleep

The drivers – among them many young women – delivered their vital supplies to the starving city. Even totally exhausted, they continued their work. They had to fight against hunger, cold and the danger of falling asleep at the wheel. The truckers attached cooking pots on the front of the cab so that the noise would keep them awake.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

Daily bread ration

During the winter of 1941, the daily bread ration in Leningrad was only 125 grams per person. Contemporary witnesses claim that the piece of bread displayed in St. Petersburg’s Road of Life museum is significantly larger than the bread ration at the time. The bread was made of a mixture unthinkable today and contained bark, bran, pomace, pine needles and a bit of flour.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

Evacuation

During the second winter of the siege, thousands were evacuated across the ice road. People had to wait at Leningrad’s Finland train station for the next opportunity to leave the city. But there wasn’t enough space on the trains to bring all the people to the lake. Many of them – mainly children – died before they could start their journey across the frozen lake.

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

The victims

The siege of Leningrad lasted a total of 872 days. More than one million people died. 90 percent of the victims died of hunger. Nearly 1.5 million people were able to escape across Lake Ladoga and more than 1.5 million tons of food were delivered to the residents of Leningrad over the ice road .

Leningrad’s Road of Life: 70 years later

70 years later

The modern highway which today leads to the western shore of Lake Ladoga has nothing to do with the life-saving Road of Life. The road which led to the lake during the siege was hilly and twisting and was often shelled by Nazi artillery. Today, the road seems idyllic and peaceful.

Author: Violetta Rjabko / re