The history of the creation, existence and destruction of the so-called Russian Liberation Army under the command of General Vlasov is one of the darkest and most mysterious pages of the Great Patriotic War.

First of all, the figure of its leader is amazing. Nominee N.S. Khrushchev and one of the favorites of I.V. Stalin, lieutenant general of the Red Army, Andrey Vlasov was taken prisoner on the Volkhov front in 1942.

Leaving the encirclement with the only companion - the cook Voronova, in the village of Tukhovezhi, he was given to the Germans by the local headman for a reward: a cow and ten packs of makhorka.

Almost immediately after being imprisoned in a camp for senior military near Vinnitsa, Vlasov goes to cooperate with the Germans.

Soviet historians interpreted Vlasov's decision as personal cowardice. However, Vlasov's mechanized corps in the battles near Lvov proved to be very good.

The 37th Army under his leadership in the defense of Kyiv too. By the time of his capture, Vlasov had the reputation of one of the main saviors of Moscow. He did not show personal cowardice in battles.

Later, a version appeared that he was afraid of punishment from Stalin. However, leaving the Kyiv Cauldron, according to Khrushchev, who was the first to meet him, he was in civilian clothes and was leading a goat on a rope. No punishment followed, moreover, his career continued.

In favor of the latest version, for example, Vlasov's close acquaintance with the repressed in 1937-38 speaks. the military. Blucher, for example, he replaced as an adviser to Chiang Kai-shek.

In addition, his immediate superior before the capture was Meretskov, the future marshal, who was arrested at the beginning of the war in the case of "heroes", gave confessions, and was released "on the basis of instructions from the directive bodies for reasons of special order."

And yet, at the same time as Vlasov, the regimental commissar Kernes, who went over to the side of the Germans, was kept in the Vinnitsa camp.

The commissar went out to the Germans with a message about the presence in the USSR of a deeply conspiratorial group. Which covers the army, the NKVD, Soviet and party organs, and stands on anti-Stalinist positions.

A high-ranking official of the German Foreign Ministry Gustav Hilder came to meet with both of them. Documentary evidence of the last two versions does not exist.

But let's go back directly to the ROA, or, as they are often called "Vlasovites." You should start with the fact that the prototype and the first separate "Russian" unit on the side of the Germans was created in 1941-1942. Bronislav Kaminsky Russian Liberation People's Army - RONA. Kaminsky, born in 1903 to a German mother and a Pole father, was an engineer before the war and served time in the Gulag under Article 58.

Note that during the formation of RONA, Vlasov himself still fought in the ranks of the Red Army. By the middle of 1943, Kaminsky had 10,000 fighters, 24 T-34 tanks and 36 captured guns under his control.

In July 1944, his troops showed particular cruelty in the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising. On August 19 of the same year, Kaminsky and his entire headquarters were shot by the Germans without trial or investigation.

Around the same time as RONA, the Gil-Rodionov squad was created in Belarus. Lieutenant Colonel of the Red Army V.V. Gil, acting under the pseudonym Rodionov, in the service of the Germans created the Fighting Union of Russian Nationalists and showed considerable cruelty against Belarusian partisans and local residents.

However, in 1943, with most of the BSRN, he went over to the side of the Red partisans, received the rank of colonel and the Order of the Red Star. Killed in 1944.

In 1941, the Russian National People's Army, also known as the Boyarsky Brigade, was created near Smolensk. Vladimir Gelyarovich Boersky (real name) was born in 1901 in the Berdichevsky district, it is believed that in a Polish family. In 1943 the brigade was disbanded by the Germans.

From the beginning of 1941, the formation of detachments of people calling themselves Cossacks was actively going on. Quite a lot of different divisions were created from them. Finally, in 1943, the 1st Cossack division was created under the leadership of a German colonel von Pannwitz.

She was thrown into Yugoslavia to fight the partisans. In Yugoslavia, the division worked closely with the Russian Security Corps, created from white emigrants and their children. It should be noted that in the Russian Empire, the Kalmyks, in particular, belonged to the Cossack estate, and abroad all emigrants from the Empire were considered Russians.

Also in the first half of the war, formations subordinate to the Germans from representatives of national minorities were actively formed.

The idea of ​​​​Vlasov about the formation of the ROA as the future army of Russia liberated from Stalin, Hitler, to put it mildly, did not cause much enthusiasm. The head of the Reich did not need an independent Russia at all, especially having its own army.

In 1942-1944. The ROA as a real military formation did not exist, but was used for propaganda purposes, to recruit collaborators.

Those, in turn, were used by separate battalions mainly to perform security functions and fight partisans.

Only at the end of 1944, when the Hitlerite command simply had nothing to plug the gaps in the defense with, was the go-ahead given to the formation of the ROA. The first division was formed only on November 23, 1944, five months before the end of the war.

For its formation, the remnants of the units disbanded by the Germans and battered in battles that fought on the side of the Germans were used. As well as Soviet prisoners of war. Few people looked at nationality here.

The deputy chief of staff Boersky, as we have already said, was a Pole, the head of the combat training department, General Asberg, was an Armenian. Great help in the formation was provided by Captain Shtrik-Shtrikfeld. As well as figures of the white movement, such as Kromiadi, Chocoli, Meyer, Skorzhinsky and others. The rank and file, in the circumstances, most likely, no one checked for nationality.

By the end of the war, the ROA formally numbered from 120 to 130 thousand people. All units were scattered over vast distances and did not represent a single military force.

Until the end of the war, the ROA managed to take part in hostilities three times. On February 9, 1945, in the battles on the Oder, three Vlasov battalions under the leadership of Colonel Sakharov achieved some success in their direction.

But these successes were short-lived. On April 13, 1945, the 1st division of the ROA took part in battles with the 33rd Army of the Red Army without much success.

But in the battles of May 5-8 for Prague, under the leadership of her commander Bunyachenko, she showed herself very well. The Nazis were driven out of the city, and could not return to it.

At the end of the war, most of the "Vlasovites" were extradited to the Soviet authorities. Leaders hanged in 1946. The rest were waiting for camps and settlements.

In 1949, less than half of the 112,882 “Vlasov” special settlers were Russians: - 54,256 people.

Among the rest: Ukrainians - 20,899; Belarusians - 5,432; Georgians - 3,705; Armenians - 3,678; Uzbeks - 3,457; 807, Kabardians - 640, Moldovans - 637, Mordovians - 635, Ossetians - 595, Tajiks - 545, Kirghiz -466, Bashkirs - 449, Turkmens - 389, Poles - 381, Kalmyks -335, Adyghes - 201, Circassians - 192, Lezgins - 177, Jews - 171, Karaites - 170, Udmurts - 157, Latvians - 150, Mari - 137, Karakalpaks - 123, Avars - 109, Kumyks - 103, Greeks - 102, Bulgarians -99, Estonians - 87, Romanians - 62, Nogais - 59, Abkhazians - 58, Komi - 49, Dargins - 48, Finns - 46, Lithuanians - 41 and others - 2095 people.

Alexey Nos.

Thank you colleague a011kirs for a link to .

Putin's modern rashists accuse Ukraine of all sins and crimes. Although, it was the Russian Federation that brazenly sent its troops into the Crimea, started a senseless massacre in the Donbass, capturing part of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions ... Syria, Turkey ... Russian propagandists have no shame or conscience.

Ukraine for them is a fascist junta, where “Banderites of the Galicia division” are in power…

The Museum of the Poster of Ukraine under the magazine "Museums of Ukraine" politely reminds of Vlasov's ROA. Their crimes and symbolism. Which, surprisingly, became the state in the Russian Federation.

So who are the “fascists, junta and Nazis”? I would like to ask the successors of Goebbels' propaganda and Vlasov's fascist ideology ...

Press Service of the Poster Museum of Ukraine

Russian Liberation Army, ROA- the historical name of the armed forces of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia (KONR), who fought on the side of the Third Reich against the political system of the USSR, as well as the totality of the majority of Russian anti-Soviet units and units from Russian collaborators in the Wehrmacht in 1943-1944, mainly used at the level separate battalions and companies, and formed by various German military structures (headquarters of the SS Troops, etc.) during the Great Patriotic War.

About 800,000 people wore insignia of the Russian Liberation Army (sleeve badge) at different times, but only a third of this number was recognized by the leadership of the ROA as actually belonging to their movement.

Until 1944, the ROA did not exist as any specific military formation, but was mainly used by the German authorities for propaganda and recruiting volunteers for service. The 1st division of the ROA was formed on November 23, 1944, other formations were created a little later, and at the beginning of 1945 other collaborationist formations were included in the ROA.

The army was formed in the same way as, for example, the North Caucasian special-purpose battalion "Bergmann", the Georgian Legion of the Wehrmacht, - mainly from Soviet prisoners of war or from among emigrants. Unofficially, the Russian Liberation Army and its members were called "Vlasovites", after the name of their leader, the former Soviet lieutenant general Andrey Vlasov.

At the end of June 1942, the 2nd Shock Army of the Volkhov Front was cut off from the main forces of the Red Army. Most of the fighters died, the survivors scattered through the swampy forests. In this critical situation, the army commander and at the same time the deputy commander of the Volkhov Front, General A. Vlasov, abandoned the troops entrusted to him and disappeared in an unknown direction. In early July 1942, Vlasov surrendered to the Germans. Due to his high official position, Vlasov knew a lot, so he was soon sent to the Vinnitsa prisoner of war camp, which was run by German military intelligence - the Abwehr. There Vlasov declared his consent to participate in the struggle against the Red Army on the side of the Nazis. In early August 1942, he proposed to the German authorities to create an independent volunteer "Russian Liberation Army" (ROA) to fight in alliance with Germany against the Stalinist regime. This idea interested the Nazi leadership, and Vlasov was entrusted with the recruitment of volunteers in prisoner-of-war camps and in an emigre environment. Vlasov pursued the task of uniting all anti-Soviet forces. However, the practical implementation of this plan by Hitler was postponed. Given the cases of transition of such volunteers to the side of the Red Army, there was little trust in them. It was not until mid-1944 that the Nazi rulers began to realize that things were now going very badly for them. In September 1944, the head of the SS and the Gestapo, G. Himmler, met with Vlasov and gave the green light to the formation of independent Russian divisions from proven forces.

On November 14, 1944, in Prague, with the money of the German Reich, the so-called “Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia” (KONR) was formed. The committee adopted a manifesto of the anti-Soviet movement, literally reproducing Hitler's propaganda texts about the USSR, England and the USA. Following this, the formation of ROA divisions began from units that had previously taken part in the fight against Soviet partisans, in the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising, in hostilities on various sectors of the Soviet-German front, as well as volunteers from France, Denmark, Norway, the Balkan countries, Italy and etc. with a total number of up to 50 thousand fighters. In December 1944, at the direction of the Minister of Aviation of Nazi Germany G. Goering, the air forces of the ROA were also created on the basis of the “Russian air group”, formed as part of the Luftwaffe back in November 1943 (in total, they were provided with 28 Messerschmitt and Junkers aircraft ”). ROA units managed to take part in battles with Soviet troops during the Vistula-Oder and Berlin operations in the spring of 1945, as well as on the Yugoslav-Hungarian border.

PROPAGANDA

To reinforce the ROA, the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad was also involved, which could not forgive the Soviet authorities for religious persecution. Here is what, for example, calling for armed struggle against Soviet soldiers, wrote in one of the Vlasov publications in November 1944, the priest of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad Alexander Kiselev: “Who among us does not have a heartache at the thought that the bright cause of saving the Motherland is connected with the necessity of fratricidal war - a terrible thing. What is the answer? What's the way out? And he himself answered: "War is evil, but sometimes it is the least evil and even good."

And here is another, how terrible, just as absurd text - also from the Vlasov newspaper, only dated already in 1945. This is a short article entitled “The Poles lost 10 million people”: “The British Reuters agency reports the information bureau of the Polish armed forces, according to which Poland lost 10 million people during this war. Such are the terrible results of the fatal war for the Polish people, caused by the criminal policy of the Warsaw government deceived by London.” In other words, the Vlasovites who fought together with the Germans in Poland believed that it was not Hitler and his assistants who were to blame for the terrible sacrifices made, but the Poles themselves and their allies!

MYTHS ABOUT VLASOVIANS

In some publications, one can find statements that the Vlasovites did not participate in hostilities against the Red Army. Such, unsupported by facts, theses do not stand up to scrutiny. Suffice it to quote the Vlasov newspaper "For the Motherland", which from November 15, 1944 was published in Russian twice a week in the territories occupied by Hitler. One of Vlasov's closest associates, Major General F. Trukhin, himself denounces his movement in the very first issue of the mentioned newspaper: “The German people are convinced that they have true allies in the person of our volunteers. In the battles on the Eastern Front, in Italy, in France, our volunteers showed courage, heroism and an unbending will to win.” Or: “We have cadre units of the Russian Liberation Army, the Ukrainian Vizvolny Viysk and other national formations, united in battles and having gone through a harsh school of war on the Eastern Front, in the Balkans, in Italy and France. We have experienced and trained officers.” And further: "We will courageously, not for life, but for death, fight with the Red Army." The article also states that the Vlasov troops will have in their composition all the types of troops necessary for the conduct of a modern war, and weapons with the latest technology: "In this regard, our German allies are of great help." The editorial of the newspaper “For the Motherland” dated March 22, 1945, speaks of the solemn transfer to the Vlasovites of the Russian battalion, which was still in parts of the German army: “Glorious and instructive is the path traveled by the battalion. It was formed in Belarus and distinguished itself there in battles with partisans. After this preliminary combat training, which showed a high degree of courage, fearlessness and stamina of Russian soldiers, the battalion was included in the active German army, was in France, Belgium, Holland. On the memorable days of the Anglo-American offensive in the summer of 1944, the battalion took part in hot battles. fighters have awards for bravery.”

And here are excerpts from a report on the arrival of the former commander of the German division, which previously included this Russian battalion: “Great, brothers! - his greeting is heard in purely Russian. Until today, you belonged to the German army. For a year and a half you fought alongside the German soldiers. You fought near Bobruisk, Smolensk, in France, Belgium. Many feats are yours, the third company is especially glorious. We are now required to fight to the last drop of blood. We need to win in order to liberate long-suffering Russia from the 25-year yoke of Jews and communists. Long live the new Europe! Long live liberated Russia! Long live the leader of the new Europe, Adolf Hitler! Hooray! (Everyone stands up. Three powerful cheers shake the hall)”.

We will also cite interesting excerpts from a letter to the editors of the newspaper from one Russian volunteer from the front: “I went through the hard school of war together with my soldiers. For three years we have been hand in hand with the German comrades on the eastern, and now on the northeastern front. Many fell heroes in battle, many were awarded for bravery. My volunteers and I look forward to the next evening broadcasts. Say hello personally to General Vlasov. He is our commander, we are his soldiers, imbued with true love and devotion.”

Another message says: “We have a group of volunteers here in the German battalion. Four Russians, two Ukrainians, two Armenians, one Georgian. Having heard the call of the committee, we hasten to respond and want an early transfer to the ranks of the ROA or national units.

Another common myth is that Vlasov's campaign materials supposedly did not contain a single word of anti-Semitism. One “eyewitness” defending the general recalls: “It is unlikely that I saw all the Vlasov leaflets, but if at least one came across with a call to fight the“ Jewish-Bolshevik ”regime, General A. Vlasov would cease to exist for me. The slightest hint of anti-Semitism was completely absent.” Our own analysis of issues of the newspaper Za Rodinu, the printed organ of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia, shows that almost every issue contains calls for a fight against “Judeo-Bolshevism” (the newspaper’s stable stamp), direct attacks on Jews (true, not necessarily Soviet), lengthy quotations of speeches by Hitler, other Nazis, or reprints from the fascist newspaper Völkischer Beobachter, to one degree or another touching on the topic of “Judeo-communism”. We do not consider it necessary to reproduce them here.

Of particular interest in the "biography" of the Vlasov movement is the episode associated with the Prague events in May 1945. An absurd version is being planted that Prague, they say, was liberated from the Nazis by the Vlasovites! Without going into details of the offensive operation of the 1st, 2nd and 4th Ukrainian fronts, as a result of which a million-strong enemy grouping was surrounded and defeated and thereby assisted the insurgent Prague, let us pay attention to the following. Even before the start of the Prague operation, Vlasov, who realized that the Wehrmacht had come to an end, telegraphed to the headquarters of the 1st Ukrainian Front: “I can hit the rear of the Prague group of Germans. The condition is forgiveness for me and my people.” Thus, by the way, there was another betrayal - now of the German masters. However, no response was received. Vlasov and his associates had to make their way through the German detachments in Prague to the Americans. They expected to sit out with the Americans until the third world war. The Vlasovites seriously proceeded from the fact that the United States and England, after the defeat of Germany, would dare to attack the USSR. And now, between the troops of the three fronts of the Red Army, moving day and night along all roads to the insurgent Prague, on May 6, 1945, the 1st division of the ROA slipped there, numbering about 10 thousand people, in which A. Vlasov himself was. Such a small, demoralized formation, of course, could not have played any serious role in the liberation of Prague, in which there were more than a million Nazis. The Prague residents, mistakenly mistaking the ROA division for the Soviet one, at first greeted it cordially. But the clumsy maneuver of the Vlasovites was soon understood, and the armed detachments of the Czechoslovak Resistance threw them out of Prague, having managed to partially disarm them. Fleeing, the Vlasovites were forced to engage in battle with the SS barriers that blocked their path to the zone of American troops. This ended the “decisive role” of the Vlasovites in the liberation of Prague.

END OF MOVEMENT

On May 12, 1945, the Soviet command learned from radio interception that Vlasov was located in the area of ​​the Czech city of Pilsen. The operation to capture it was carried out by the 162nd tank brigade under the command of Colonel I. Mashenko. The forward detachment of the brigade captured the commander of one of the ROA battalions, who indicated the exact location of Vlasov. Everything else was a matter of technique. Some time later, the general was taken to the headquarters of the 13th Army of the 1st Ukrainian Front, and then by plane to Moscow. The trial of Vlasov and his eleven henchmen took place in July-August 1946. By the decision of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the RSFSR, Vlasov and his closest accomplices were sentenced to death.

Most of the Soviet collaborators chose to surrender to the Americans and the British. The allies, as a rule, considered the “Vlasovites” as prisoners of war of the anti-Hitler coalition. According to the Yalta agreements of the allied powers of 1945, all citizens of the USSR who found themselves abroad as a result of the war, including traitors, were subject to repatriation. By decision of the courts, most of the participants in the Vlasov movement ended up in labor camps, and the officers were executed.

However, not all Nazi accomplices were extradited to the Soviet side. So, the remnants of the 1st Russian National Army of the white emigrant B. Smyslovsky (about 500 people) on the night of May 2-3 managed to escape from the zone of French occupation in Austria (Vorarlberg land) to neutral Liechtenstein. There they were interned. The "Smyslovites" were not formally part of the Vlasov army. They operated independently from July 1941, when the Russian Foreign Battalion was created at the headquarters of the German Army Group North to collect intelligence. Later, it was transformed into a training reconnaissance battalion, that is, in essence, into a school for the training of intelligence officers and saboteurs. At the end of 1942, Smyslovsky headed a special structure to combat the partisan movement. In 1945, Smyslovsky's army numbered almost 6 thousand people.

The French and the Soviet side demanded that the Smyslovites be handed over to them, but the then Liechtenstein authorities, who sympathized with Hitler, refused to do so. In 1946, the Argentine government agreed to receive Smyslov and his accomplices. Transportation costs were later borne by the Federal Republic of Germany.

The Americans, in contrast to the British, also tried not to extradite those who could be useful to them for future subversive work against the USSR. And this is understandable: after the defeat of Nazi Germany by the Soviet Union, which conquered all of continental Europe, the words of F. Schiller that only Russians can defeat Russians acquired particular relevance ...

WHO ARE THEY?

According to some estimates, a total of 800 thousand to 2 million Soviet citizens and emigrants from Russia and the USSR fought (or helped) against the USSR and its allies on the side of the Germans - those who participated in the terrorist actions of the invaders, prolonged them and slowed down coming of victory.

For most of our contemporaries, the common noun in relation to all of them, the name "Vlasov" and the concept of "traitor" mean the same thing. On the Internet, we found the memoirs of one of the participants in the Vistula-Oder operation - K. V. Popov, which contain characteristic assessments of this group of people: “In Germany, we met Vlasovites. We did not take them prisoner - they shot them, although there was no such order. We hated these traitors to the Motherland fiercely - they were worse than the Nazis. They found diaries. There, the traitors described how they were captured, how they were kept, how they went over to the side of the enemy. I read such a diary of one murdered Vlasovite and I. Vlasovets wrote that he wanted to return to his own, but the Germans were vigilantly watching them. Then, when the opportunity arose to cross, it became clear: they would not believe their own people, they would not forgive them - that’s how they had to shoot their own people to the end. ”

Attempts to make general Vlasov and his comrades-in-arms fighters against Stalinism, fighters for democratic Russia have little connection with reality. Indeed, in Vlasov's appeals there was a lot of such rhetoric. Of course, the ideological opponents of the Soviet government joined the Vlasov units, but in the vast majority they were those who wanted to avoid the hard fate of German captivity. The morale of the Vlasovites fluctuated depending on the situation at the front. That is why the German command considered the Vlasov units as unreliable.

The “ideological commitment” of most Vlasovites was just a beautiful wrapper for their desire to save their own lives at all costs, and if they were lucky, to make a career, get rich, or settle old scores with offenders. With “ideology” they only calmed their mental anguish due to treason and cooperation with the Germans. It is unlikely that they, shooting at the Red Army soldiers and partisans, did not understand that they could potentially shoot at their own fathers or mothers, brothers or sisters, sons or daughters, who were not related to the crimes of the regime, but rather were its victims. How did they then differ from the “criminals-Bolsheviks”? Therefore, objectively, the Vlasovites did not fight against Stalinism, but against their own people, and the Vlasov team was just an obedient cog in the Nazi machine of conquest. If the Russian collaborators fought against Bolshevism, then why did they also fight on the Atlantic coast with the allies in the anti-Hitler coalition, receiving thanks and promotions from the German command for this? It's just that the Vlasovites miscalculated, betting on the invincibility of the Reich.

Now it is no secret to anyone that the war of 1941-1945 had elements of the Second Civil War, since about 2 million people, 1.2 million citizens of the USSR and 0.8 million white emigrants fought against Bolshevism, which illegally seized power in 1917. There were only 40 divisions in the SS, 10 of which were staffed from citizens of the Russian Empire (14th Ukrainian, 15th and 19th Latvian, 20th Estonian, 29th Russian, 30th Belorussian, two Cossack divisions of the SS , North Caucasian, SS brigades Varyag, Desna, Nakhtigal, Druzhina, etc. There was also the RNA of General Smyslovsky, the Russian Corps of General Skorodumov, Cossack Stan Domanov, the ROA of General Vlasov, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), the Eastern divisions of the Wehrmacht, police, Khiva There were many of our compatriots directly in the German units, and not just in the national formations.

Today I would like to talk about ROA ( Russian Liberation Army) General Vlasov.

P.S. The article does not justify ROA and does not blame anything. The article was solely made for historical reference. Everyone decides for himself who they were heroes or traitors, but this is part of our history and I think everyone has the right to know about this history.

Russian Liberation Army , ROA - military units that fought on the side of Adolf Hitler against the USSR, formed by the German headquarters of the SS Troops during the Great Patriotic War from Russian collaborators.

The army was formed mainly from Soviet prisoners of war, as well as from among Russian emigrants. Unofficially, its members were called "Vlasovites", after their leader, Lieutenant General Andrei Vlasov.

Story:The ROA was formed mainly from Soviet prisoners of war who fell into German captivity, mainly at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, during the retreat of the Red Army. The creators of the ROA was declared as a military formation created for " liberation of Russia from communism "(December 27, 1942). Lieutenant General Andrei Vlasov, who was captured in 1942, together with General Boyarsky, proposed in a letter to the German command to organize a ROA. General Fyodor Trukhin was appointed chief of staff, General Vladimir Baersky (Boyarsky) was appointed his deputy, and Colonel Andrei Neryanin was appointed head of the operational department of the headquarters. The leaders of the ROA also included generals Vasily Malyshkin, Dmitry Zakutny, Ivan Blagoveshchensky, and former brigade commissar Georgy Zhilenkov. The rank of general of the ROA was held by a former major of the Red Army and Wehrmacht colonel Ivan Kononov. Some priests from the Russian emigration served in the field churches of the ROA, including priests Alexander Kiselev and Dmitry Konstantinov.

Among the leadership of the ROA were former generals of the civil war in Russia from the White Movement: V. I. Angeleev, V. F. Belogortsev, S. K. Borodin, Colonels K. G. Kromiadi, N. A. Shokoli, Lieutenant Colonel A. D. Arkhipov, as well as M. V. Tomashevsky, Yu. K. Meyer, V. Melnikov, Skarzhinsky, Golub and others, as well as Colonel I. K. Sakharov (formerly a lieutenant of the Spanish army, General F. Franco). Support was also provided by: Generals A. P. Arkhangelsky, A. A. von Lampe, A. M. Dragomirov, P. N. Krasnov, N. N. Golovin, F. F. Abramov, E. I. Balabin, I. A. Polyakov, V. V. Kreiter, Don and Kuban chieftains, Generals G. V. Tatarkin and V. G. Naumenko.

Captain V.K. Shtrik-Shtrikfeldt, who served in the German army, did a lot to create a collaborator of the ROA.

The army was financed entirely by the German state bank.

However, there was antagonism between former Soviet prisoners of war and white emigrants, and the latter were gradually forced out of the leadership of the ROA. Most of them served in other Russian volunteer formations not connected with the ROA (only a few days before the end of the war formally attached to the ROA) - the Russian Corps, the brigade of General A.V. Turkul in Austria, the 1st Russian National Army, the regiment " Varyag "by Colonel M. A. Semenov, a separate regiment of Colonel Krzhizhanovsky, as well as in Cossack formations (15th Cossack Cavalry Corps and Cossack camp).

On January 28, 1945, the ROA received the status of the armed forces of an allied power that remains neutral in relation to the United States and Great Britain. On May 12, 1945, an order was signed to dissolve the ROA.

After the victory of the USSR and the occupation of Germany, most of the members of the ROA were transferred to the Soviet authorities. Some of the "Vlasovites" managed to escape and get asylum in Western countries and avoid punishment.

Compound:

At the end of April 1945, A. A. Vlasov had the armed forces under his command in the following composition:
1st Division Major General S. K. Bunyachenko (22,000 people)
2nd division of Major General G. A. Zverev (13,000 people)
3rd division of Major General M. M. Shapovalov (not armed, there was only a headquarters and 10,000 volunteers)
the reserve brigade of Lieutenant Colonel (later Colonel) S. T. Koida (7,000 people) is the only commander of a large unit not issued by the US occupation authorities to the Soviet side.
Air Force General V. I. Maltsev (5000 people)
VET division
officer school of General M. A. Meandrov.
accessory parts,
Russian Corps of Major General B. A. Shteifon (4500 people). General Steifon died suddenly on 30 April. The corps that surrendered to the Soviet troops was led by Colonel Rogozhkin.
Cossack camp of Major General T. I. Domanov (8000 people)
group of Major General A. V. Turkul (5200 people)
15th Cossack cavalry corps of Lieutenant General X. von Pannwitz (more than 40,000 people)
Cossack reserve regiment of General A. G. Shkuro (more than 10,000 people)
and several small formations numbering less than 1000 people;
security and punitive legions, battalions, companies; Russian liberation army of Vlasov; Shteifon's Russian security corps; 15th Cossack Corps von Pannwitz; separate military formations that were not part of the ROA; "volunteer helpers" - "hivi".

In general, these formations numbered 124 thousand people. These parts were scattered at a considerable distance from each other.

I, a faithful son of my Motherland, voluntarily joining the ranks of the Russian Liberation Army, solemnly swear: to fight honestly against the Bolsheviks, for the good of my Motherland. In this struggle against a common enemy, on the side of the German army and its allies, I swear to be faithful and unquestioningly obey the Leader and Commander-in-Chief of all liberation armies, Adolf Hitler. I am ready, in fulfillment of this oath, not to spare myself and my life.

I, as a faithful son of my Motherland, voluntarily joining the ranks of the fighters of the Armed Forces of the Peoples of Russia, in the face of my compatriots, I swear - for the good of my people, under the command of General Vlasov, to fight against Bolshevism to the last drop of blood. This struggle is waged by all freedom-loving peoples in alliance with Germany under the general command of Adolf Hitler. I swear to be true to this union. In fulfillment of this oath, I am ready to give my life.



Symbols and insignia:

As the flag of the ROA, the flag with the St. Andrew's Cross was used, as well as the Russian tricolor. The use of the Russian tricolor, in particular, was documented in the footage of the parade of the 1st Guards Brigade of the ROA in Pskov on June 22, 1943, in the photo chronicle of the formation of the Vlasovites in Münsingen, as well as other documents.

A completely new uniform and insignia of the ROA could be seen in 43-44 on the soldiers of the eastern battalions stationed in France. The uniform itself was sewn from grayish-blue fabric (stocks of captured French army cloth) and in terms of cut it was a compilation of a Russian tunic and a German uniform.

The epaulettes of soldiers, non-commissioned officers and officers were of the model of the Russian tsarist army and were sewn from dark green matter with a red edging. The officers had one or two narrow red stripes along their epaulettes. The general's shoulder straps were also of the royal type, but the same green shoulder straps with a red piping were more common, and the general's "zig-zag" was depicted with a red stripe. The placement of insignia among non-commissioned officers roughly corresponded to the tsarist army. For officers and generals, the number and placement of stars (German-style) corresponded to the German principle:

In the figure, from left to right: 1 - soldier, 2 - corporal, 3 - non-commissioned officer, 4 - sergeant major, 5 - lieutenant (lieutenant), 6 - lieutenant (senior lieutenant), 7 - captain, 8 - major, 9 - lieutenant colonel , 10 - colonel, 11 - major general, 12 - lieutenant general, 13 - general. The last highest rank in the ROA Petlitsy was also provided for in three types - a soldier's. and non-commissioned officers, officers, generals. The officer's and general's buttonholes were edged with silver and golden flagella, respectively. However, there was a buttonhole that could be worn by both soldiers and officers. This buttonhole had a red border. A gray German button was placed at the top of the buttonhole, and 9mm went along the buttonhole. aluminum galloon.

"Russia is ours. Russia's past is ours. Russia's future is also ours" (gen. A. A. Vlasov)

Press organs: newspapers " ROA fighter" (1944), weekly " Volunteer"(1943-44)," Front leaflet for volunteers "(1944)," Volunteer Herald "(1944)," Nabat"(1943)," Volunteer Page "(1944)," Warrior voice"(1944)," Dawn"(1943-44)," Work », « arable land", weekly" Truth"(1941-43)," with hostility». For the Red Army: « Stalinist warrior », « brave warrior », « Red Army », « front-line soldier», « Soviet warrior ».

General Vlasov wrote: "Recognizing the independence of each people, National Socialism provides all the peoples of Europe with the opportunity to build their own lives in their own way. For this, each people needs a living space. Hitler considers possession of it the basic right of every people. Therefore, the occupation of Russian territory by German troops is not aimed at destruction Russians, but vice versa - the victory over Stalin will return to the Russians their Fatherland within the framework of the New Europe family.

On September 16, 1944, Vlasov and Himmler met at the headquarters of the Reichsfuehrer SS in East Prussia, during which the latter said: "Mr. General, I spoke with the Fuhrer, from now on you can consider yourself commander-in-chief of the army with the rank of colonel general." A few days later, the reorganization of the headquarters began. Prior to this, in addition to Vlasov and V.F. Malyshkin included: the commandant of the headquarters, Colonel E.V. Kravchenko (since 09.1944, Colonel K.G. Kromiadi), head of the personal office, Major M.A. Kalugin-Tensorov, Vlasov's adjutant Captain R. Antonov, supply manager Lieutenant V. Melnikov, communications officer S.B. Frelnh and 6 soldiers.

On November 14, 1944, the founding congress of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia (KONR) was held in Prague, and A. Vlasov was elected chairman. In his opening speech, Vlasov said: “Today we can assure the Fuhrer and the entire German people that in their difficult struggle against the worst enemy of all peoples - Bolshevism, the peoples of Russia are their faithful allies and will never lay down their arms, but will go shoulder to shoulder with them until complete victory. At the congress, the creation of the Armed Forces of the KONR (AF KONR), headed by Vlasov, was announced.

After the congress from Dabendorf to Dalem, the security company of Major Begletsov and the guard of Major Shishkevich were transferred. Major Khitrov was appointed commandant of the headquarters instead of Kromiadi. Kromiadi was transferred to the post of head of Vlasov's Personal Office, his predecessor, Lieutenant Colonel Kalugin, to the post of head of the Security Department.

On January 18, 1945, Vlasov, Aschenbrener, Kroeger met with the Secretary of State of the German Foreign Ministry, Baron Stengracht. An agreement was signed on subsidizing the German government for KONR and its aircraft. At the end of January 1945, when Vlasov visited the German Foreign Minister von Ribbenthorp, he informed Vlasov that cash loans were being provided for the KONR. Andreev testified about this at the trial: “As the head of the main financial department of the KONR, I was in charge of all the financial resources of the Committee. I received all financial resources from the German State Bank from the current account of the Ministry of the Interior. I received all the money from the bank by checks drawn by representatives of the Ministry of the Interior Sievers and Ryppei, who controlled the financial activities of the KONR. With such checks I received about 2 million marks.”

On January 28, 1945, Hitler appointed Vlasov Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces. The ROA was treated as the Armed Forces of an allied power, temporarily subordinated in operational terms to the Wehrmacht.

"Telegram from the Reichsführer SS to General Vlasov. Compiled at the direction of Obergruppenführer Berger. From the day this order was signed, the Führer appointed you supreme commander of the 600th and 650th Russian divisions. At the same time, you will be entrusted with the supreme command of all new Russian formations that are being formed and regrouped. You will the disciplinary right of the supreme commander in chief and at the same time the right to promotion to officer ranks up to lieutenant colonel will be recognized. Promotion to colonels and generals takes place in agreement with the head of the main department of the SS according to the provisions existing for the Great German Empire. G. Himmler".

On February 10, 1945, the inspector general of volunteer formations, E. Kestring, informed Vlasov that, in view of the completion of the creation of the 1st division and the progress made in the formation of the 2nd, he could officially take command of both formations.

The swearing-in parade took place on 16 February in Müsingen. The parade was attended by Kestring, Aschenbrenner, commander of the 5th military division. in Stuttgart Fayel, the head of the polygon in Müsingen, gene. Wenniger. The parade began with a round of troops by Vlasov. Bunyachenko raised his hand in an Aryan greeting and reported. Having finished the round, Vlasov went up to the podium and said the following: “During the years of joint struggle, the friendship of the Russian and German peoples was born. Both sides made mistakes, but tried to correct them - and this speaks of a common interest. The main thing in the work of both sides is trust, mutual trust. I thank the Russian and German officers who participated in the creation of this alliance. I am convinced that we will soon return to our homeland with the soldiers and officers that I see here. Long live the friendship of the Russian and German peoples! Long live the soldiers and officers of the Russian army! Then the parade of the 1st division began. There were three infantry regiments with rifles at the ready, an artillery regiment, an anti-tank destroyer battalion, battalions of sappers and communications. The procession was closed by a column of tanks and self-propelled guns. On the same day, the Russian Corps announced its entry into the ROA.

The text of the oath of the ROA / Armed Forces of the KONR: “As a faithful son of my Motherland, I voluntarily join the ranks of the troops of the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia. In the presence of my countrymen, I solemnly swear to fight honestly to the last drop of blood under the command of General Vlasov for the good of my people against Bolshevism. This struggle is waged by all freedom-loving peoples under the supreme command of Adolf Hitler. I swear that I will remain true to this alliance."

On February 20, 1945, a KONR memorandum was handed over to the deputy representative of the International Red Cross in Germany on protecting the interests of prisoners of war from the ROA if they surrender to representatives of the Western powers. When making contact with the International Red Cross, Vlasov counted on the help of the secretary of the organization, Baron Pilar von Pilahu, a Russian officer.

By the end of March 1945, the total strength of the KONR Armed Forces was about 50,000 people.

On March 24, 1945, at the All-Cossack Congress in Virovitica (Croatia), a decision was made to unite the Cossack troops with the KONR Armed Forces. Vlasov was also joined by the brigade of Major General A.V. Turkula, who began the formation of regiments in Lienz, Ljubljana and Villach.

Major General Smyslovsky, who headed the 1st Russian National Army, refused to cooperate with Vlasov. Negotiations with General Shandruk on the inclusion of the SS division "Galicia" in the KONR Armed Forces remained without result. The German command did not subordinate the 9th PBR to Vlasov. Major General von Henning, in Denmark. Later, one of the regiments of br. (714th), which has been stationed since February on the Oder front under the command (from the beginning of March) of Colonel Igor Konst. Sakharova (participant in the Spanish Civil War, head of the Spanish branch of the Russian Fascist Party).

To test the combat capability of the Armed Forces of the KONR, on the orders of Himmler, an assault group (505 people) of Colonel I.K. was formed. Sakharov. Armed with SG-43 rifles, MP-40 submachine guns and faustpatrons, the group was put into action on February 9 in the area between Vritsen and Güstebize in the Kyustrin region in order to dislodge Soviet troops from the bridgehead on the western bank of the Oder. The detachment as part of the "Döberitz" division participated in the battles against the 230th division. Commander of the 9th Army Gen. Busse ordered the commander of the 101st Corps, Gen. Berlin and the division commander, Colonel Hünber, "to accept the Russians as friends" and "to behave politically with them very cleverly." During the night attack, the detachment was entrusted with the task of freeing a number of settlements in the area of ​​the 230th division of the Red Army and persuading its soldiers to stop resistance and surrender. During a night attack and a 12-hour battle, the Vlasovites, dressed in Red Army uniforms, managed to capture several strongholds and capture 3 officers and 6 soldiers. In the following days, Sakharov's detachment undertook two reconnaissance in force in the region of the city of Schwedt and participated in repelling a tank attack, destroying 12 tanks. On the actions of the Russians, the commander of the 9th Army, General of the Infantry Busse, reported to the High Command of the German Ground Forces (OKH) that the Russian allies distinguished themselves by the skillful actions of the officers and the courage of the soldiers. Goebbels wrote in his diary: "... during the Sakharov operation in the Kustrin area, the troops of General Vlasov fought superbly ... Vlasov himself believes that although the Soviets have enough tanks and weapons, they nevertheless faced almost insurmountable difficulties supplies from the rear. They have a mass of tanks concentrated on the Oder, but they do not have enough gasoline ... ". Gene. Berlin personally awarded the soldiers and officers with Iron Crosses (Sakharov was awarded the Iron Cross 1st class), Vlasov received Himmler's personal congratulations on this occasion. After that, Himmler told Hitler that he would like to have more Russian troops under his command.

On March 26, at the last meeting of the KONR, it was decided to gradually pull all formations into the Austrian Alps for surrender to the Anglo-Americans.

On April 13, the Swiss ambassador in Berlin, Zehnder, announced that the arrival of the Vlasovites in Switzerland was undesirable, because. it could harm the interests of the country. The Swiss government also refused Vlasov personally.

In April, with the task of establishing contact with the allies, Vlasov sent Captain Shtrik-Shtrikfeld and General Malyshkin.

On April 10, the Southern ROA group performed in the Budweiss-Linz region. The 1st division moved here from the Oder front. In early May, she was not far from Prague, where by this time a rebellion had broken out. Chekhir on the radio asked for help.

On May 11, Vlasov surrendered to the Americans and was in the Shlisselburg fortress in the position of a prisoner of war. At 2 pm on May 12, under the protection of an American escort, he was sent to a higher American headquarters, ostensibly for negotiations. The column of cars was stopped by Soviet officers. At gunpoint, they demanded that Vlasov and Bunyachenko, who was with him, get into their cars. American officers and soldiers did not intervene. German historians believe that Colonel P. Martin, deputy NSh of the 12th corps of the American army, played an important role in this.

ROA officers were shot without trial, and all the rest in battened down freight cars were sent to concentration camps. Those who were not sentenced to death and camp terms, according to the decision of the State Defense Committee of August 18, 1945, received 6 years of special settlement out of court.

In addition to Vlasov, Malyshkin, Zhilenkov, Trukhin, Zakutny, Blagoveshchensky, Meandorov, Maltsev, Bunyachenko, Zverev, Korbukov and Shatov appeared at a closed trial. The court sentenced them to death by hanging. The sentence was carried out on August 1, 1946.

1. Commander-in-Chief: Lieutenant General Andrey A. Vlasov, former commander of the 2nd Shock Army of the Red Army. Iron Cross (9.02.1945).

2. NSH and Deputy Commander-in-Chief: Major General F.I. Trukhin (08.1946, hanged), former deputy of the NSH of the North-Western Front of the Red Army

3. Deputy NSH: Colonel (since 09/24/1944 Major General) V.I. Boyarsky

4. officer at the Commander-in-Chief for special assignments: Nikolai Aleksan. Troitsky (b. 1903), in 1924 he graduated from the Simbirsk Polytechnic Institute, then the Moscow Architectural Institute. He worked in the People's Commissariat of Education, scientific secretary of the Moscow Architectural Society, deputy scientific secretary of the Academy of Architecture of the USSR. Arrested in 1937, 18 months was under investigation in the Lubyanka. In 1941 he was taken prisoner, until 1943 he was in a concentration camp. Co-author of the Prague Manifesto KONR. After the war, one of the leaders and organizers of the SBONR. In 1950-55. Director of the Munich Institute for the Study of the History and Culture of the USSR. Author of the book "Concentration camps of the USSR" (Munich, 1955) and a series of short stories.

5. adjutant of the leading group of the Headquarters: Lieutenant A.I. Romashin, Romashkin.

6. commandant of the headquarters: colonel E.V. Kravchenko

7. officer for special assignments: senior lieutenant M.V. Tomashevsky. Graduated from the Faculty of Law of Kharkov University.

8. liaison officer: Nikol. Vladim. Vashchenko (1916 - after 1973), pilot, in 1941 was shot down and taken prisoner. He graduated from propagandist courses in Luckenwald and Dabendorf.
head of the office: Lieutenant S.A. Sheiko
translator: Lieutenant A.A. Kubekov.
Head of the General Department: Lieutenant Prokopenko
head of food supply: captain V. Cheremisinov.

Operations department:

1. Chief, Deputy NSh: Colonel Andrey Geor. Aldan (Neryanin) (1904 - 1957, Washington), the son of a worker. In the Red Army since 1919. He graduated from infantry courses and the Military Academy. M.V. Frunze (1934, with honors). In 1932, he was expelled from the CPSU (b) for a left-Trotskyist deviation, then reinstated. Head of the operational department of the Urals v.o. (1941), was taken prisoner near Vyazma in November 1941, being the head of the operations department of the headquarters of the 20th Army. In 1942-44. member of the Anti-Comintern. Responsible for the organizational activities of the headquarters of the ROA. Chairman of the Union of Liberation Movement Warriors (USA). Member of the Central Bureau of the SBONR.

2nd Deputy: Lieutenant Colonels Korovin

3. head of the subdivision: V.F. Riel.

4. head of the subdivision: V.E. Michelson.

Intelligence department:

Initially, the military and civilian intelligence services were under the jurisdiction of the KONR security department, Lieutenant Colonel N.V. Tensorova. His deputies were Major M.A. Kalugin and b. head of the special department of the headquarters of the North Caucasian v.o. Major A.F. Chikalov. On February 2, 1945, military intelligence separated from civilian intelligence. Under the supervision of Major General Trukhin, a separate intelligence service of the ROA began to be created, and an intelligence department was formed at the Headquarters. On February 22, the department was divided into several groups:
intelligence: chief lieutenant N.F. Lapin (senior assistant to the head of the 2nd department), later - lieutenant B. Gai;

counterintelligence.

enemy intelligence group: Lieutenant A.F. Vronsky (assistant to the head of the 1st department).

According to the order of Major General Trukhin dated 8.03. In 1945, the l / s of the department was, in addition to the chief, 21 officers. Later, Captain V. Denisov and other officers joined the department.

1. chief: major I.V. Grachev

2. head of counterintelligence: Major Chikalov, supervised the operational intelligence of the ROA, since 1945 organized the training of personnel for the military intelligence unit and terrorist actions in the USSR.

Counterintelligence Department:

Chief Major Krainev

Investigation Department:

chief: Major Galanin

Department of secret correspondence:

chief: captain P. Bakshansky

Human Resources Department:

Head: Captain Zverev

Communication department:

head of the office senior lieutenant V.D. Korbukov.

Department of VOSO:

Head: Major G.M. Kremensky.

Topographic department:

Head: Lieutenant Colonel G. Vasiliev. Senior Lieutenant of the Red Army.

Encryption department:

1st head: Major A. Polyakov
2nd Deputy: Lieutenant Colonel I.P. Pavlov. Senior Lieutenant of the Red Army.

Formation department:

1st head: Colonel I. D. Denisov
2nd Deputy: Major M.B. Nikiforov
3. group leader of the formation department: captain G.A. Fedoseev
4. head of the group of formations department: captain V.F. Demidov
5. head of the group of formations department: captain S.T. Kozlov
6. head of the group of the formations department: Major G.G. Sviridenko.

Combat Training Department:

1. Chief: Major General Asberg (Artsezov, Asbyargas) (r. Baku), Armenian. He graduated from a military school in Astrakhan, commander of a tank unit. Colonel of the Red Army. He left the encirclement near Taganrog, was convicted by a military tribunal and sentenced to death in 1942, which was replaced by a penal battalion. In the first battle he went over to the Germans.

2. Deputy: Colonel A.N. Tavantsev.

head of the 1st subdivision (training): Colonel F.E. Black

3. Head of the 2nd subdivision (military schools): Colonel A.A. Denisenko.

4. head of the 3rd subdivision (statutes): lieutenant colonel A.G. Moskvichev.

Command Department:

Consisted of 5 groups.

1. Chief: Colonel (02.1945) Vladimir Vas. Poznyakov (05/17/1902, St. Petersburg - 12/21/1973, Syracuse, USA). In the Red Army since 1919. In 1920 he graduated from the Kaluga command courses. From 09.20 instructor of the newspaper business of the South-Western Front. In 1921-26. student of the Higher Military Chemical School. From 01.26, the head of the chemical service of the 32nd Saratov sd. In 1928-31. teacher at the Saratov school of reserve commanders. In 1931-32. teacher at the Saratov armored school. In 1932-36. head of the chemical service of the Ulyanovsk armored school. Captain (1936). Major (1937). In 1937-39. arrested, tortured. In 1939-41. teacher of chemistry at the Poltava Auto-Technical School. Since 03.41, the head of the chemical service of the 67th SC. Lieutenant Colonel (05/29/1941). 10.1941 was taken prisoner near Vyazma. In 1942, the head of the camp police near Bobruisk, then at the propagandist course in Wulheide. 04.1943 at the Dabendorf school of propagandists, commander of the 2nd cadet company. Since 07.43, the head of the preparatory courses for propagandists in Luckenwalde. In the summer of 1944, he was the head of the ROA propagandist group in the Baltic states. Since 11.1944, the head of the command department of the headquarters of the ROA. On October 9, 1945, he was sentenced to death in absentia. From the beginning of the 50s. taught at military schools of the US Army, worked in the CIA. From the beginning of the 60s. taught at the military aviation school in Syracuse. Author of the books: The Birth of the ROA (Syracuse, 1972) and A.A. Vlasov" (Syracuse, 1973).

2. Deputy: Major V.I. Strelnikov.

3. Head of the 1st subdivision (officers of the General Staff): Captain Ya. A. Kalinin.

4. Head of the 2nd subdivision (infantry): Major A.P. Demsky.

5. head of the 3rd subdivision (cavalry): senior lieutenant N.V. Vashchenko.

6. Head of the 4th subdivision (artillery): Lieutenant Colonel M.I. Pankevich.

7. Head of the 5th subdivision (tank and engineering troops): Captain A. G. Kornilov.

8. Head of the 6th subdivision (administrative and economic and military sanitary services): Major V.I. Panayot.

Russian Liberation Army - ROA. Part 1.

Vlasovites, or fighters of the Russian Liberation Army (ROA) - are ambiguous figures in military history. Until now, historians cannot come to a consensus. Supporters consider them fighters for justice, true patriots of the Russian people. The opponents are unconditionally sure that the Vlasovites are traitors to the Motherland, who went over to the side of the enemy and mercilessly destroyed their compatriots.

Why Vlasov created ROA

The Vlasovites positioned themselves as patriots of their country and their people, but not the government. Their goal was allegedly to overthrow the established political regime in order to provide people with a decent life. General Vlasov considered Bolshevism, in particular Stalin, the main enemy of the Russian people. He associated the prosperity of his country with cooperation and friendly relations with Germany.

treason

Vlasov went over to the side of the enemy at the most difficult moment for the USSR. The movement he propagated and in which he involved former soldiers of the Red Army was aimed at the destruction of the Russians. Having taken an oath of allegiance to Hitler, the Vlasovites decided to kill ordinary soldiers, burn villages and destroy their homeland. Moreover, Vlasov presented his Order of Lenin to Brigadeführer Fegelein in response to the loyalty shown to him.

Demonstrating his loyalty, General Vlasov gave valuable military advice. Knowing the problem areas and plans of the Red Army, he helped the Germans plan attacks. In the diary of the Minister of Propaganda of the Third Reich and the Gauleiter of Berlin, Joseph Goebbels, there is an entry about his meeting with Vlasov, who gave him advice, taking into account the experience of defending Kyiv and Moscow, how best to organize the defense of Berlin. Goebbels wrote: “The conversation with General Vlasov inspired me. I learned that the Soviet Union had to overcome exactly the same crisis that we are overcoming now, and that there is certainly a way out of this crisis, if you are extremely resolute and do not succumb to it.

At the mercy of the fascists

Vlasovites took part in the brutal massacres of civilians. From the memoirs of one of them: “The next day, the commandant of the city, Schuber, ordered all the state farmers to be driven out to Chernaya Balka, and the executed communists to be duly buried. Here stray dogs were caught, thrown into the water, the city was cleared ... First from Jews and cheerful ones, at the same time from Zherdetsky, then from dogs. And bury the corpses at the same time. trace. How else, gentlemen? After all, it’s not the forty-first year already - the forty-second in the yard! Already carnival tricks, joyful ones had to be hidden slowly. After all, it was possible before, and so, in a simple way. Shoot and throw on the coastal sand, and now - bury! But what a dream!”
The soldiers of the ROA, together with the Nazis, smashed the partisan detachments, enthusiastically talking about it: “They hung the captured partisan commanders at the poles of the railway station at dawn, then continued to drink. They sang German songs, embracing their commander, walked the streets and touched the frightened sisters of mercy! The real gang!

Baptism of fire

General Bunyachenko, who commanded the 1st division of the ROA, received an order to prepare the division for an offensive on the bridgehead captured by the Soviet troops with the task of pushing the Soviet troops back to the right bank of the Oder in this place. For Vlasov's army, it was a baptism of fire - it had to prove its right to exist.
On February 9, 1945, the ROA entered the position for the first time. The army captured Neulevien, the southern part of Karlsbyse and Kerstenbruch. Joseph Goebbels even noted in his diary "the outstanding achievements of the detachments of General Vlasov." The soldiers of the ROA played a key role in the battle - due to the fact that the Vlasovites noticed in time a disguised battery of Soviet anti-tank guns ready for battle, the German units did not become a victim of a bloody massacre. Saving the Fritz, the Vlasovites mercilessly killed their compatriots.
On March 20, the ROA was supposed to capture and equip a bridgehead, as well as ensure the passage of ships along the Oder. When during the day the left flank, despite strong artillery support, was stopped, the Russians, who were waiting with hope for the exhausted and discouraged Germans, were used as a "fist". The Germans sent Vlasov on the most dangerous and obviously failed missions.

Prague uprising

The Vlasovites showed themselves in occupied Prague - they decided to oppose the German troops. On May 5, 1945, they came to the aid of the rebels. The rebels demonstrated unprecedented cruelty - they shot down a German school from heavy anti-aircraft machine guns, turning its students into a bloody mess. Subsequently, the Vlasovites, retreating from Prague, met with the retreating Germans in hand-to-hand combat. The uprising resulted in robberies and murders of the civilian population and not only the German one.
There were several versions of why the ROA took part in the uprising. Perhaps she was trying to earn the forgiveness of the Soviet people, or she was seeking political asylum in liberated Czechoslovakia. One of the authoritative opinions remains that the German command delivered an ultimatum: either the division follows their orders, or it will be destroyed. The Germans made it clear that the ROA would not be able to exist independently and act according to its convictions, and then the Vlasovites went on sabotage.
The adventurous decision to take part in the uprising cost the ROA dearly: about 900 Vlasovites were killed during the fighting in Prague (officially - 300), 158 wounded disappeared without a trace from Prague hospitals after the arrival of the Red Army, 600 Vlasov deserters were identified in Prague and shot by the Red Army

November 14, 1944 in Prague, Andrey Vlasov published the "Manifesto for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia", which was a universal program of Russian collaborators.

It is Vlasov who is the most famous Russian traitor during the Great Patriotic War. But not the only one: what was the real scale of the anti-Soviet movement?

Hanged ROA collaborators in the last years of the war

Let's start with the total. Throughout the war, the number of collaborators slightly exceeded 1,000,000 people. But it is important to note that most of them were the so-called Khivs, that is, prisoners employed in rear work. In second place are Russian emigrants from Europe, members of the white movement. The percentage of the population of the USSR involved in direct operations against, and even more so in leading them, was extremely insignificant. The political composition of the participants was also extremely heterogeneous, which shows that the collaborators lack a powerful ideological platform.

ROA (Russian Liberation Army)

Commanding: Andrey Vlasov

Maximum population: 110-120,000 people

Vlasov in front of the soldiers

ROA Vlasov was the most numerous group that collaborated with the Germans. Nazi propaganda paid special attention to it, so the very fact of its creation in 1942 was presented in the media as a "personal initiative of Vlasov" and other "fighters against communism." Almost all commanders in it were recruited from ethnic Russians. This, of course, was done for ideological reasons, in order to demonstrate "the desire of the Russians to join the liberation army."

True, at the first stage of the formation of the ROA, there were not enough qualified personnel from prisoners who wished to embark on the path of cooperation with the Nazis. Therefore, positions in the movement were occupied by former white officers. But by the end of the war, the Germans began to replace them with Soviet traitors, since understandable friction arose between the Whites and the ex-Red Army.

The number of Vlasov formations is usually defined as more than one hundred thousand people, but this figure is what stands behind this figure. At the end of 1944, when the Nazis finally decided to throw Vlasov’s army to the front — before that, its role was quite operatic — other Russian national formations like the “Cossack camp” of Major General Domanov and the “Russian Corps” General Major Shteyfon. But the union took place only on paper. There was still no unified command of the reinforced army: all its units were scattered at great distances from each other. In reality, the Vlasov army is only three divisions - Generals Zverev, Bunyachenko and Shapovalov, and the latter was not even armed. Their total number did not exceed 50,000 thousand.

By the way, legally, the ROA received the status of an independent "ally" of the Reich, which gives some revisionists reason to represent Vlasov as a fighter against Stalin and Hitler at the same time. This naive assertion is broken by the fact that all funding for the Vlasov army came from the funds of the Ministry of Finance of Nazi Germany.

Hivi

Heavis received special books confirming their status as military personnel

Number: about 800 thousand people.

Naturally, in the conquest of Russia, the Nazis needed helpers from among the local population, civil servants - cooks, waiters, cleaners of machine guns and boots. The Germans cordially recorded all of them in "Khivi". They did not have weapons and worked in rear positions for a piece of bread. Later, when the Germans were already defeated at Stalingrad, the Goebbels department began to classify the Khivs as "Vlasovites", hinting that they were inspired by the political example of Andrei Vlasov to betray communism. In reality, many Khivs had a very vague idea of ​​who Vlasov was, despite the abundance of propaganda leaflets. At the same time, about a third of the Khivs were actually engaged in hostilities: as local auxiliary units and policemen.

"Russian Corps"

Maximum population: 16,000 people

Commanding: Boris Shteifon

The formation of the "Russian Corps" began in 1941: then the Germans captured Yugoslavia, where a large number of white emigrants lived. From their composition, the first Russian voluntary formation was created. The Germans, confident in their impending victory, treated the ex-White Guards with little interest, so their autonomy was reduced to a minimum: throughout the war, the Russian Corps was mostly engaged in the fight against the Yugoslav partisans. In 1944, the Russian Corps was included in the ROA. Most of his employees eventually surrendered to the Allies, which allowed them to avoid trial in the USSR and stay in Latin America, the USA and England.

"Cossack camp"

Maximum population: 2000-3000 people

Commanding: Sergey Pavlov

Under the flag of the SS, the Cossack cavalry goes on the attack

The history of the Cossack detachments was of particular importance in the Reich, since Hitler and his associates saw in the Cossacks not the Slavic population, but the descendants of the Gothic tribes, who were also the ancestors of the Germans. From this arose the concept of a "German-Cossack State" in the south of Russia - a stronghold of the Reich's power. The Cossacks within the German army tried in every possible way to emphasize their own identity, so it came to curiosities: for example, Orthodox prayers for the health of "Hitler Tsar" or the organization of Cossack patrols in Warsaw, looking for Jews and partisans. The Cossack movement of collaborators was supported by Pyotr Krasnov, one of the leaders of the white movement. He described Hitler as follows: “I ask you to tell all the Cossacks that this war is not against Russia, but against the Communists, the Jews and their henchmen who sell Russian blood. God help the German weapons and Hitler! Let them do what the Russians and Emperor Alexander I did for Prussia in 1813.”

Cossacks were sent to different European countries as auxiliary units to suppress uprisings. An interesting moment is connected with their stay in Italy - after the Cossacks suppressed the uprisings of anti-fascists, a number of cities occupied by them were renamed "villages". The German press treated this fact favorably and wrote with great enthusiasm about "Cossacks asserting Gothic superiority in Europe."

At the same time, it should be taken into account that the number of the "Cossack camp" was very modest, and the number of Cossacks who fought in the Red Army significantly exceeded the number of collaborators.

1st Russian National Army

Commanding: Boris Holmston-Smyslovsky

Number: 1000 people

Smyslovskiy in Wehrmacht uniform

The very project of the 1st Russian National Army is of little interest, since it was no different from the numerous small gangs that formed under the wing of Vlasov. It is perhaps distinguished from the general series by the charismatic personality of its commander, Boris Smyslovsky, who had the pseudonym Arthur Holmston. Interestingly, Smyslovsky came from Jews who converted to Christianity and received a title of nobility in tsarist times. However, the Nazis were not embarrassed by the Jewish origin of the ally. He was helpful.

In 1944, a conflict of interests arose between Smyslovsky and Vlasov, the commander of the ROA. Vlasov told the German generals that the introduction of characters like Smyslovsky into his structure contradicted the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe movement of ordinary Soviet people, infringed by the Stalinist regime. Smyslovsky, on the contrary, considered all Soviet traitors to the original tsarist Russia. As a result, the conflict escalated into a confrontation, and Smyslovsky's squads left the ROA, forming their own formation.

Boris Smyslovsky with his wife in the 60s. Quiet life of the former executioner.

By the end of the war, the few remnants of his army withdrew to Liechtenstein. Smyslovsky's position that he was not a supporter of Hitler, but only an anti-Soviet, allowed him to stay in the West after the war. A little-known, but revered in certain circles, French film “Wind from the East” was made about this story. The role of Smyslovsky in the film was played by the legendary Malcolm McDowell, the fighters of his army are depicted as heroes who fled from Stalin's tyranny due to repression. In the end, some of them, deceived by Soviet propaganda, decide to return home, but in Hungary, the Red Army soldiers stop the train and, on the orders of political workers, shoot all the unfortunate. This is rare nonsense, since most of Smyslovsky's supporters left Russia immediately after the revolution, and in the post-war USSR, no one shot collaborators without trial.

Ethnic formations

Maximum population: 50,000 people

The motives of the members of the Ukrainian SS division "Galicia" or the Baltic SS-sheep are obvious: hatred of the USSR for invading their lands, plus the desire for national independence. However, if the ROA Hitler allowed at least some formal autonomy, the Germans were much less condescending towards the national movements in the USSR: they were included in the German armed forces, the vast majority of officers and commanders were Germans. Although the same Lviv Ukrainians, of course, could amuse the national feeling by translating German military ranks into their own language. For example, in "Galicia" the obershutze was called the "senior strylets", and the haupscharführer was called the "mace".

Ethnic collaborators were entrusted with the most rough work - the fight against partisans and mass executions: for example, Ukrainian nationalists were the main executioners at Babi Yar. Many representatives of national movements settled in the West after the war; after the collapse of the USSR, their descendants and supporters play a significant role in the politics of the CIS countries.