After posting information about this topic in some forums, an interesting discussion of the problem under consideration arose on them. In particular, many opinions were expressed at VIF-RJ. This included the following message:

From: Correct VI forum, 17.03 15:35
In response to: Re: So what time did the Germans attack on 06/22/41? - Zakoretsky

Everything has already been discussed in this thread: http://vif2ne.ru:2003/nvk/forum/archive/1135/1135829.htm

K. Zakoretsky. If you decide to post part 3 "What time did the Germans attack" on Z-History using materials from the VIF2NE forum, please make a corresponding link.

First, I do. Secondly, I would like to note that I did not create messages on this topic on the VIF2NE forum. And I was pleased to learn that VIF2NE was also carried away by the problem of time. However, after reading most of the opinions there, I do not agree with what is there" ALREADY EVERYTHING discussed". Such a categorical statement arose due to the fact that one of the participants provided a link to a German site, which contains a list of periods when summer time was introduced in Germany:

a) DST, Universal Time + 2 hours:

Clocks were advanced one hour with respect to CET: (Periods where 1 hour was added)

1919 to 1939: No DST (There was no summer time).

Abbreviations:

UT: Universal Time ("Greenwich-Time")
DST: Daylight Saving Time
CET= UT + 1 h: Central European Time
CEST= UT + 2 h: Central European Summer Time
CEMT = UT + 3 h: Central European Midsummer Time

And this is the explanation:

Madame and Monsieur

>From 2:00 04/01/1940 to 3:00 02/11/1942
That is, 2 am on April 1, 1940 became 3 am (GMT+1 became GMT+2),
On November 2, 1942, everything returned to its place again (GMT + 2 => GMT + 1).
The difference with Moscow during this period was 1 ("maternity leave") hour (GMT + 3),
and during "Uranus" - already 2 hours.

>Thus. during the Battle of Kursk and Operation Typhoon, Berlin time differed from Moscow time by 1 hour. And on June 22, 1941, the difference was also 1 hour. The Germans write that they started the war at 3 o'clock, and according to Soviet data, this happened at 4 o'clock.

If I correctly understood all your data, and if our "maternity leave" time then stood unshakably "like a rock", then it should be so.

Happiness is when you have everything at home (not mine), Andrei.

So, is everything settled?
Was it daylight saving time in Germany in June 1941?
And because the difference with Moscow was 1 hour?
And everything fits? And the topic can be closed?

Perhaps ... But it looks somehow strange that in the winters of 1940-1941 and 1941-1942 the Germans lived according to summer time! And secondly, there is one more remark: it is known that the Germans on the morning of June 22, 1941 started the war at 3-00 "FROM DAWN"! But this event can be checked. And if it turns out that on the western border of the USSR, according to German summer time, sunrise began at about 3-00, and according to Soviet decree time, respectively, around 4-00, then everything really converges and the topic can be closed. You can check this, for example, using the same astronomical shareware program SKYGLOBE 3.6.

Here the green horizontal line is the horizon.
Letter " N" is the direction to the north.
Letters " NE"Northeast.
Letter " E" - East (" East"- 90 degrees from the north direction).
Yellow Circle of the Sun (" SUN") coincides with the direction to the northeast (" NE").
To the left below the horizon is the star "Castor", to the right and above are the positions of the planets of Jupiter ( JUP), Uranus ( URA), Saturn ( SAT), moons ( MO), as well as some stars, for example, Aldebaran.
Although, of course, they were no longer really visible, since they were overshadowed by the light of the Sun rising from behind the horizon.

But what is this time (3-43)?
Belt GMT+1? Or summer for this belt GMT + 1 + 1?

In order to understand, it would first be useful to familiarize yourself with the general theory of sunrise on June 22 within any time zone at different latitudes. The fact is that the Earth is round and has been rotating at almost the same speed for many thousands of years. And the meanings of these movements are not secret. For example, you can make calculations for the Greenwich meridian (0 degrees of longitude), starting from the equator. The results can be summarized in the following table:

Sunrise on June 22 according to the latitudes of the northern hemisphere of the Earth (values ​​+ - a few minutes)

What time are the values? In the waist or summer?

This can be checked against known data for known coordinates.
For example, in Kyiv ( 50 deg. 25 min. north latitude, 30 deg. 32 min. east longitude) June 22, 2006 the Sun should rise in 4-46 summer time (or 3-46 , respectively, standard time).

But how to link its coordinates with the created table?

In terms of latitude, this is simple - we take a line for latitude 50-00.
And it remains to be determined what Kyiv is closer to - to the borders of the belt or to its middle (for GMT + 2).
This can be done according to the rule:

The Greenwich meridian is the middle of the zero time zone (GMT). After 7 deg. 30 min. to the east is its eastern border. Further, after 15 degrees, the boundaries of other belts are located. Well, the middle between the two borders is the middle of the time zone.

So: 0 deg. + 7.5 (Eastern GMT) + 15 (GMT+1) + 7.5 (half GMT+2) = 30 degrees.
Those. meridian 30 degrees east longitude is the middle of the 2nd time zone.
Those. Kyiv is practically located on it.
And we find in the table the value of sunrise for the middle of the belt in the line for 50-00: 3-45 , which practically converged with the time indicated in the tear-off calendar (plus 1 hour for the summer).
CONCLUSION: in the created table, the time of sunrise for different latitudes is indicated WARNING.

And you can see that the time of sunrise at the borders of any time zone differs from the middle by 30 minutes, which agrees with the theory: through each time zone, the time should change by 1 hour (and from the middle - by half an hour, i.e. by 30 minutes).

And another conclusion: the closer to the Equator, the later the Sun rises, and the closer to the North Pole, the earlier. And starting from a certain latitude (66 degrees 33 minutes - "Arctic Circle"), the Sun does not set beyond the horizon at all in summer.

TSB, 3rd ed., Volume 20:

POLAR CIRCLE, the earth's parallel, 66 ° 33 "from the equator" (the angle of inclination of the earth's axis to the plane of the ecliptic). P. k. On the day of the summer solstice (June 21 or 22) to the N. from N. P. k. The sun does not set, and on the day of the winter solstice (December 21 or 22) it does not rise. -ryh the Sun does not fall below the horizon or rise above it, it increases as it approaches the pole, where day and night last for half a year (polar day and polar night).A similar phenomenon is observed in the southern hemisphere of the Earth. Light refraction complicates this somewhat a phenomenon that increases the duration of the polar day at the expense of the night and increases the number of days with the sun that does not set.

We return to Berlin: its latitude is 52 degrees. 32 min. Longitude - 13 degrees. 25 min.
In longitude, this is approximately the middle of the time zone:
0 deg. + 7.5 (east GMT) + 7.5 (half GMT+1) = 15 degrees.
We find in the table rows of 50 and 55 degrees. and in the cells in the middle of the belt we read: 3-45 and 3-17.
Those. in Berlin, the time of sunrise according to standard time can be estimated as 3-35 (but this is 2 degrees east). The program shows the time - 3-43. error - 8 minutes (quite acceptable). The main thing is that one hour is shown - 3 .

So, in Berlin, standard time on June 22, the sun rises at 3-43,
and if they introduced summer time, then at 4-43.
And on the eastern border of this time zone (near Brest), it should rise 30 minutes earlier
(i.e. at 3-10).

It remains to find out in what latitudes the Germans advanced on 06/22/41.
As the map shows, they advanced in the geographic zone from 49 degrees. up to 55 deg. northern latitude:
(Hereinafter, information from the "ATLAS OF THE WORLD", Moscow, "State Geodesy of the USSR", 1991)

More information from Athalas, from the map of time zones on page 14:

Mid GMT: Paris, London.
Mid GMT+1: Berlin, Rome.
Eastern border GMT+1: Western border of the USSR.
Western border GMT+2: Western border of the USSR.
Mid GMT+2: Leningrad, Kyiv, Ankara, Cairo.
Eastern border of GMT+2: Moscow, Murmansk.
Mid GMT+3: Volgograd, Tbilisi.

Thus, in the German offensive zone on June 22, 1941, the Sun should have risen Berlin standard time at 2-47 - 3-20 . (Or in 3-47 - 4-20 according to summer, if any).

Those. roundly, dawn on the border of the USSR with Germany on June 22, 1941, according to the German clock, should have either 3 hours (zone time) or in 4 (according to summer, if there was one).

Accordingly, from the Soviet side, the clock had to show or 4 waist or 5 according to summer ("maternity").

DAY TIME standard time plus one hour; unlike summer time, this excess is constant throughout the year. Introduced by a resolution of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR of June 16, 1930 with the aim of more rational use of the daylight hours (cancelled in February 1991). In Russia, standard time was again adopted in October 1991. Thus, the time of this time zone in Russia differs from universal time by the time zone number (in hours) plus one hour (in summer, an additional hour).

Here comes the problem:

If the Germans attacked at 3-00 in the summer, then this is 2-00 in the waist. And there is still 1 hour left before dawn in the Brest region. Those. the Germans would have to use searchlights, car headlights, flashlights, lighting bombs, mines, rocket launchers, tracer bullets. But in this case, in all memoirs, all this light-pandemonium should clearly be.
But she is not. For everyone writes that the war has begun " WITH DAWN".

But according to geo-astronomical data, dawn on June 22 at 2-00 on the eastern border of the belts in standard time (or at 3-00 in summer time) occurs only in latitudes of at least 60-00 degrees north latitude ( Leningrad, Helsinki, Oslo, Magadan, Stockholm a little to the south - 59 degrees).
And at 2-00 in the middle of the time zone, the Sun rises even further north - at 62-00 degrees [this is just the latitude of the upper reaches (from where it flows) of the Kolyma, and the capitals of Karelia (Petrozavodsk) and Komi (Syktyvkar) a little to the south].
Well, almost all of Great Britain to the south is not only 62-00, but also 60-00.

And SKYGLOBE 3.6 persistently shows...

Or maybe this whole program is lying?
Can it be checked?

For example, it is known that on March 22 the day is equal to the night. Those. sunrise in the middle of any time zone should begin at 6-00 local time (summer time is not yet used at this time!) Or at 7-00 maternity time, if that was applied (as it is now in Russia or as in 1941 in the USSR). And, accordingly, on the western border - in 6-30 waist or in 7-30 by summer.

For control in SKYGLOBE 3.6 we take the coordinates of Moscow for 06/22/41 and shift them to Brest, setting the position of the Sun on the horizon. We get 7-28 :

CONVERSING!

Similarly, according to Berlin time for Brest (Berlin is in the middle of GMT + 1, and in Brest the sunrise should be 30 minutes earlier, i.e. somewhere around 5-30):

CONVERSING!

Well, in Berlin itself, the sunrise should be around 6-00:

CONVERSING!

Yes, that means SKYGLOBE 3.6 not lying?

We open the tear-off calendar for Kyiv for March 22 (also the middle of the time zone and should be around 6-00). Reading: "Sunrise - 5:57"

CONVERSING!

We open the memoirs of Marshal G.K. Zhukov, "MEMORY AND REFLECTIONS", 7th edition, 1986, volume 2, p. 8-9:
=====

Sorry, at 3-30 to dry the dew near Rivne on June 22 The sun can only German standard time! And nothing else! No summer time! By daylight saving time, this means 2-30 UTC. And according to the belt at 2-30 on June 22, the Sun can dry the dew only near Leningrad or Helsinki ...

Oh-oh! What a mess though!
By the way, if the Germans attacked at 3-00 summer time, can this be compared with someone else who attacked the USSR with them? (And when did they attack?)
For example, when did the Romanians start the war? Got data?

There is one site CORNER OF THE SKY"(Aviation Encyclopedia), where the article by A. Gulyas is posted -
The first days of the war (June 22, 1941)

And it provides information about the combat work of Soviet pilots on 06/22/41 in the zone of the Odessa Military District. In particular:
======================
Events unfolded in a completely different way in the zone of the Odessa Military District. The enemy attacked 11 airfields; but almost everywhere he received a decisive rebuff and suffered losses. Major Rudakov's 67th IAP achieved the greatest success. ..... At 4am The regiment was put on alert. Soon towards airfield Bulgaria a scout appeared. Lieutenant Yermak took off from the interception and shot him down in two bursts. Some time later, 9 (according to other sources - 10) bombers appeared over the airfield. A group of Lieutenant A. Moklyak rose to meet them on I-16 fighters. ....

Having suffered two failures in a row and making sure that Bulgaria - tough nut to crack, the German command launched a massive raid, which involved about 50 bombers and 30 fighters. The bombers came in waves at intervals of 2-3 minutes. Each nine was covered by six Bf-109s. The entire regiment entered the battle with them - fifty I-16s. Divided into groups, our pilots attacked the bombers and their cover at the same time. The enemy formation was immediately broken. 5 bombers and 2 fighters were shot down. In this fight, Alexander Moklyak showed himself brilliantly. With well-aimed fire, he shot down two He-111s (according to other sources - S.M.81), and the third rammed and died in the process. All this happened between 5 and 6 am. So at the end of the second hour of the war A. Moklyak became the leader among Soviet pilots in terms of the number of victories. ....

Failure befell the enemy and during a raid on Grosulovo airfield. At 5 o'clock 10 minutes three nine Ju-88s under the cover of nine Bf-109s tried to bombard the SB and Pe-2 parking lots. The first group of attackers missed, and the second was prevented by Afanasy Karmanov. In the Grosulovo area, he happened to be driving the MiG-3 from the field camp to main airport in Chisinau. Captain A. Karmanov was not embarrassed by the multiple superiority of the enemy. He immediately shot down one "Junkers" and scattered the rest. However, all nine cover fighters immediately fell on him. ... To survive with the aircraft is a skill. .... A. Karmanov's plane resembled a sieve, but landed at its airfield, but one of the Messerschmitts was burning down in the vicinity of Grosulovo. AT 4th IAP other pilots also distinguished themselves. A.I. Pokryshkin writes that over Grigoriopol, Tiraspol and Chisinau the pilots of the regiment shot down about 20 enemy aircraft.

55th IAP under the command of Mr. V.P. Ivanov was based in Balti. In April, as at many airfields on the western border, they began to build a concrete runway there, and three squadrons of the regiment flew over to Lighthouses. One of the experienced pilots was Art. L-t A.I. Pokryshkin. The war caught his link at the airport in Grigoriopol. He returned to Mayaki after the first enemy raids. Based in Balti The 1st squadron of Mr. F. Atrashkevich turned out to be understaffed - in addition to the Pokryshkin link, there was no Figichev link, which was patrolling at the very border near Ungheni. F.Atrashkevich was also summoned there. In Chisinau the commander of the third link K. Seliverstov was at the headquarters. The remaining 5 ordinary pilots, led by flight commander Mironov and squadron adjutant Ovchinnikov, did everything to repel a raid by a large group of bombers under the cover of Messerschmitts (more than 20 He-111 and 18 Bf-109). But the forces were unequal, and it was not possible to prevent the raid. 2 people died at the airport fuel depot burned down three MiGs damaged. .... F.Atrashkevich especially distinguished himself by shooting down the "Messerschmitt" of the group commander - a major with an Iron Cross. Only the lack of accurate information about the location of the headquarters of the 27th fighter squadron (JG-27) does not allow us to state with full confidence that the downed major was the commander of JG-27 Wolfgang Schelmann ...

Along with the above 4th IAP over Chisinau pilots fought 69th IAP, where the deputy The commander of the regiment was one of the most famous Soviet aces in Spain, Lev Shestakov. The regiment was part of the 21st SAD and based near Odessa. On the first day of the war, he suffered no losses, and Major L. Shestakov and Mr. Astashkin shot down 3 aircraft: 2 Ju-88s were destroyed over Chisinau, and Astashkin shot down a Do-215 on the outskirts of the airfield, scoring his second victory.

Moses Stepanovich Tokarev started the war in the 131st IAP. June 22, patrolling at the head of nine I-16 near Tiraspol, he met a group of 20 Ju-88s, covered by 12 Bf-109s. ....

The combat account of the pilots of the Black Sea Fleet was opened by ml. Lt. M.S. Maksimov. Early in the morning of June 22, the 96th squadron, consisting of 16 I-153 and I-16 under the command of A.I. Korobitsyn on the outskirts of Ishmael met 12 Romanian bombers . Our pilots shot down 5 planes. In addition to M.S. Maksimov, personal victories were won by Senior Lt. A.P. Borisov, Dr. A.I. Korobitsyn. Two planes were shot down by B.V. Maslov and A.A. Malinovsky.
==============

It turns out that SIMULTANEOUSLY (and why delay?) hostilities also began in the south of the Soviet western border, which at that time passed between the USSR and ROMANIA! And it turns out that along with the German planes, the Romanian planes also began to cross the Soviet garrison. More precisely, not only SIMULTANEOUSLY with the German ones in the PribOVO, ZapOVO and KievOVO zones, but German planes also took off from Romanian airfields in the direction of Moldova. AND TOGETHER with them, Romanian planes went into battle. This is evidenced by the remark that a plane was shot down over the Soviet airfield in Bulgaria. S.M.81- Whose production is this? German? Which troops were armed with such aircraft? Romanian? And when describing the battles over Ishmael, this article directly refers to Romanian airplanes.

So, one must assume, SIMULTANEOUSLY with the Germans, Romanian planes also flew into battle.
At what time, you might ask?

It turns out you can...
By the way, if the Germans attacked in 3-00 supposedly summer time, then it must be assumed that in Romania, located in the same time zone, summer time should also show the same 3-00 . Is it logical?
But if the Germans attacked at 3-00 waist, then if summer time was used in Romania, then the Romanians should have started at 4-00. And if they didn’t use it, then like the Germans at 3-00.

All this can be clarified on another site: Kharina V.V. "World War II Aviators", and on it in the article by M. Zhirokhov with the participation of A. Stratulat (Moldova) - Romanian squadrons in the sky of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, June 22, 1941

In the introduction, the authors note that " the actions of the Romanian Air Force during the Second World War represent a little-studied piece of the history of air warfare"and they wanted in this article" analyze the actions of the Romanian aviation on the first day of the war". As for the start time, the information there is as follows:
========
On the night of June 21-22, 1941, in all Romanian aviation formations at the front, the commanders gathered the pilots and read out to them the message of the State Undersecretary of Aviation, Gheorghe Zhienescu. At the end of this message, the following was said: "Young flyers! Buchums are trumpeting and their echo is heard in the forests, the sky rumbles in the song of engines, to arms, to the helm, forward with God!" At dawn on June 22 For the Romanian Royal Air Force, the Second World War began.

The main strike force of Romania was the Combat Air Group, under the command of Squadron General Constantin Chelereanu, a large aviation formation that included 2 bomber fleets (11 bomber squadrons - He-111, S.M.-79, Loos, Potez 63, Bloch 210, IAR-37), .....

The Red Army concentrated significant air force forces in Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina. In Bessarabia, at the Bolgrad airfield, there were 67 IAPs, and at the airfields Bulgarica-Ialoveni there were 68 and 82 air regiments. In Chisinau there was 20 SAD, which included 55 IAP (Balti airfield), 45 BAP (Tiraspol airfield) and 2 parachute regiments. In Bukovina, at the airfields near the city of Chernivtsi, there were 87, 187 and 149 IAPs. Also in this area were 86 BAP, 224 PBB and 4 parachute regiments. In total, the Red Army had at its disposal in Bessarabia, Northern Bukovina and Transnistria 840 bombers and 960 fighters. This can add 240 reconnaissance aircraft and approximately 2,500 paratroopers.

"Ardyalul" at 4.00

The General Staff of the Combat Air Group received from General Ramiro Enescu, Chief of the General Staff of the Air Force, a message with the following content: "The combat operations of our aviation on the Eastern Front, developed jointly with the German command, will begin at dawn on June 22 1941 Directive no. 34. The operation must be organized in such a way that so that all bombers and reconnaissance at the same time, with the call sign "Ardyalul", crossed the border at 4 o'clock in the morning. Fighter aircraft will be on alert at dawn to provide air cover. I wish you success and it is also necessary to contact the IVth Army regarding the conduct of aerial reconnaissance, which should be carried out, taking into account the border crossing of the Air Combat Group and according to the plan and instructions of the German Army Air Command. I expect an operational report tomorrow, more precisely this morning, after the completion of the first task." General Constantin Chelereanu immediately replied: "The combat air group is ready and able to carry out directive No. 34".

First wave

Airfield Ziliste-Buzau, 0 hours 5 minutes.

“A terrible roar broke the silence of the night, and the walls of the hangars shook so that it seemed they were about to collapse,” recalled Lieutenant Mircea Nicolau. All 200 German bombers He-111 4th German Fleet and 27th Flotilla under the command of General Boelcke took off and headed east. There was an indescribable noise, a fantastic performance that cannot be forgotten. After the German planes took off, at 12.30[those. at 0-30 - zhistory], and we began to prepare ... "

3 hours 50 minutes.

The 5th bomber group, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Paul Landmann, from 17 He-111H3 aircraft of the 78th, 79th and 80th squadrons took off to bombard airfields near Chisinau and Tiraspol, the station and the railway siding. Each aircraft carried 4 250 kg and 16 50 kg bombs. Accompanied by 27 He-112 and Bf-109E fighters of the 5th and 7th Fighter Groups, at 4 o'clock in the morning the Romanian He-111H3 bombers crossed the Prut. The aircraft, tail number 21, with a crew of Lieutenant Mircea Nicolau - crew commander, junior lieutenant Ion Pedureanu and lieutenant Sorin Tulia - gunner (since he was appointed on duty, he could not fly, but volunteered), was the first Romanian aircraft , who dropped bombs on the Tiraspol airfield, where the planes of the 45th BAP were based. “Tiraspol appeared in the distance,” recalled Lieutenant Sorin Tulya. Airfield facilities, warehouses and hangars were visible. We dropped half of the bombs, avoiding hits in the strip, which we planned to use soon. We headed towards Chisinau and, from a height of 500 meters, struck at the railway siding, on which there were trains with ammunition and troops. The blast wave was so powerful that the plane was thrown up. At 5.20 we landed ". Bombs dropped by Romanian aircraft destroyed 12 Soviet aircraft on the ground.

Pogoanele Buzau airfield.

At 2.45 the engines of the S.M.-79 bombers are launched 1st bomber group. The first plane to take off is No. 5 of the 71st Squadron (call sign Mihai), which is controlled by the group commander himself, Lieutenant Commander Komsha Liviu. Due to soft ground, plane no. 13, but the crew was not injured. After a twenty minute delay, planes take off No. 72 Squadron (callsign Romeo). Due to the sudden shutdown of the left engine, aircraft no. 12 forced to return. The frustrated chief adjutant pilot Ioan Kirya could not restrain himself and began to cry. The remaining 9 bombers crossed the Prut at 4.03 , heading for enemy airfields in Bolgrad and Bulgarica. Above the target, they were attacked by Soviet I-16s and a heated battle ensued over the airfield. The crew of Captain Constantin Stoenescu shot down 2 I-16 fighters in this battle ....

Of the four aircraft of the 72nd Squadron (Romeo) that took off, only three bombed the airfield in Bulgarica: at 4.45 , when the planes were heading towards Bolgrad, the formation was attacked by several I-16s. ....

The bombers of the 1st bomber group landed between 0505 and 0530. Of the 9 aircraft participating in this raid, 2 were lost, as well as 10 flight personnel.

Fighter actions

Ramnicu Sarat airfield, 3 hours 35 minutes.

Non-112 fighters of the 51st squadron under the command of the squadron captain Virgil Trandafirescu take off to attack the Izmail Karaklia airfield. Above the target, the leader ordered by radio to attack the airfield from south to north, where you could see the formation of Soviet aircraft . Some I-16s began to fly across the airfield, but were attacked by the trailing pair of Non-112s. Junior Lieutenant Teodor Moscu, diving into the I-16s taking off, shot down one Soviet fighter and announced two more shot down in the ensuing air battle. His aircraft was seriously damaged and Moscu was forced to withdraw from the battle. He landed at Rimniku Sarat at 4.50 . Led by Moscu, adjutant Pavel Konstantin, confirmed two and one probable victory of his leader ....

18 IAR-80 aircraft of the 8th Fighter Group took off at 3.45 to cover the S.M.-79 bombers of the 72nd squadron. ....

To cover the Non-111 group sent to bomb the airfield near Chisinau, a Bf-109E link was allocated, led by Captain Alexandru Manoliu, commander of the 57th squadron. ....

Second wave

At 1050, 12 Potez 63 aircraft of the 2nd bomber group, escorted by 12 He-112s, attacked the airfield at Bolgrad, the railway and the airfield to the south and, respectively, southeast of Bulgarik. As a result, at least 200 meters of the railway were destroyed by a direct hit from an aerial bomb. The Romanian group met fierce opposition from Soviet anti-aircraft artillery and fighter aircraft ...
===========

Thus, the Romanian planes crossed the border with the USSR at about 4:00 am, and at that time the Sun was already illuminating targets on the ground, since some Romanian planes were landing back already at 4:45 am, having completed the task visually without illumination by searchlights visible Soviet aircraft (and not the former in the dark). Question: what time of sunrise in the region of the Soviet border along the Prut (say, in its northern part) can the program show SKYGLOBE 3.6? Theoretically - approximately 4-00 (Romanian summer time):

or 5-00 Moscow maternity leave:

CONVERSING!

Another question: where did the German He-111 bombers fly, taking off at 0-30 from the airfield Ziliste-Buzau? It can be assumed that to Sevastopol. Then the next question is: when could they have reached it?

performance characteristics Heinkel-111:

Takeoff weight - 14000 kg
Max speed - 400 km/h
Ceiling - 8400 m
Flight range - 2800 km

With a cruising speed of 370 km / h, the Germans could fly to Sevastopol in an hour and a half. Those. by 2-00 Romanian summer time or by 3-00 Moscow maternity time - GOOD! Conclusion: Zhukov, when describing the morning of June 22, 1941, used MOSCOW DECREE TIME! No objections?

Then whose planes bombed Soviet cities at 2:30 Berlin summer time or at 1:30 Berlin standard time? They haven't crossed the border yet! After 30 minutes (or after 1-30) they were only supposed to fly up to the Soviet western border! Who is lying? Whose planes did Zhukov tell Stalin about when he woke him up at 3:45 am Moscow standard time? Or is this whole conversation an invention of the marshal?

And the question remains according to the following words of Zhukov:

. . . . . . .
At 04:10, the Western and Baltic special districts reported the start of hostilities by German troops in the land areas of the districts.
At 4:30 am Timoshenko and I arrived at the Kremlin. All the summoned members of the Politburo were already assembled. Me and the people's commissar were invited to the office.
JV Stalin was pale and sat at the table, holding a pipe stuffed with tobacco in his hands. He said:
“We need to urgently call the German embassy...

If the Germans attacked in the dark at 3-10 am summer time (and 4-10 am Moscow time) in the light of searchlights, headlights, flashlights, highlighting with light bombs, shells, tracer bullets and launching rocket launchers (did they have night vision devices? ), then we can agree that at 4-30 Moscow time in Moscow a meeting could theoretically begin in Stalin's office (after all, 4-30 is later than 4-10 or 4-20 - not earlier, after all!).

But if you try to time it...
If Zhukov's call to Stalin at 3-45 is a lie, then they could not wake him up until 4-20. Where was Stalin at that time? In the country? How long does it take him to get to the Kremlin? (Wake up the driver, start the car, go to the highway, drive, go up to the office ...) In 10 minutes? INCREDIBLE! It will take 10 minutes just to wake up the driver and start the car...

Thus, even if the Germans started at 4:10 am Moscow time, Zhukov's meeting with Stalin at 4:30 am in the Kremlin is a lie. And all the more a lie, because judging by the Journal of visitors to Stalin's office, this meeting began in... 5-45.("Robin", Volume 2, p. 300):

And by this time, the German ambassador, Count von der Schulenburg, had already read out a statement from the German government (ibid., p. 432):

In view of the further intolerable threat created to the German eastern frontier as a result of the massive concentration and training of all armed forces of the Red Army, the German Government considers itself compelled to immediately take military countermeasures.

The corresponding note will be handed over to Dekanozov at the same time in Berlin.

WUA RF. F.06. Op.Z. P. 1. D.5. Ll. 12-15. \433\
===========

Next CONCLUSIONS:

1) The description of events given in Zhukov's memoirs on the morning of June 22, 1941 to the phrase; " At 7:15 a.m. on June 22, Directive N: 2 People's Commissars for Defense was handed over to the districts" - LIE!

2) The Germans attacked at dawn at 3-00 Berlin summer time (or 4-00 Moscow maternity time).

3) The question (in 2006) remains: What time did the watches of Soviet soldiers on the western border of the USSR show if it was 4-00 at the SAME TIME? (And why?)
(in 2016 - it was shown at 4-00)

June 21, 1941, 13:00. German troops receive the code signal "Dortmund", confirming that the invasion will begin the next day.

21:00. Soldiers of the 90th border detachment of the Sokal commandant's office detained a German soldier who had crossed the border river Bug by swimming. The defector was sent to the headquarters of the detachment in the city of Vladimir-Volynsky.

23:00. German minelayers, who were in Finnish ports, began to mine the way out of the Gulf of Finland. At the same time, Finnish submarines began laying mines off the coast of Estonia.

June 22, 1941, 0:30. The defector was taken to Vladimir-Volynsky. During interrogation, the soldier named himself Alfred Liskov, servicemen of the 221st regiment of the 15th infantry division of the Wehrmacht. He reported that at dawn on June 22 the German army would go on the offensive along the entire length of the Soviet-German border. The information has been passed on to the higher command.

At the same time, the transfer of directive No. 1 of the People's Commissariat of Defense for parts of the western military districts begins from Moscow. “During June 22-23, 1941, a sudden attack by the Germans on the fronts of the LVO, PribOVO, ZAPOVO, KOVO, OdVO is possible. The attack may begin with provocative actions,” the directive said. “The task of our troops is not to succumb to any provocative actions that could cause major complications.”

The units were ordered to be put on alert, covertly occupy the firing points of fortified areas on the state border, and aviation was dispersed over field airfields.

It is not possible to bring the directive to the military units before the start of hostilities, as a result of which the measures indicated in it are not carried out.

Mobilization. Columns of fighters are moving to the front. Photo: RIA Novosti

“I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory”

1:00. The commandants of the sections of the 90th border detachment report to the head of the detachment, Major Bychkovsky: "nothing suspicious was noticed on the adjacent side, everything is calm."

3:05 . A group of 14 German Ju-88 bombers drops 28 magnetic mines near the Kronstadt raid.

3:07. The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Vice Admiral Oktyabrsky, reports to the Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov: “The VNOS [airborne surveillance, warning and communications] system of the fleet reports on the approach from the sea of ​​a large number of unknown aircraft; The fleet is on full alert.

3:10. The UNKGB in the Lvov region transmits by telephone to the NKGB of the Ukrainian SSR the information obtained during the interrogation of the defector Alfred Liskov.

3:30. Chief of Staff of the Western District General Klimovsky reports on enemy air raids on the cities of Belarus: Brest, Grodno, Lida, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovichi and others.

3:33. The chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reports on air raids on the cities of Ukraine, including Kyiv.

3:40. Commander of the Baltic Military District General Kuznetsov reports on enemy air raids on Riga, Siauliai, Vilnius, Kaunas and other cities.

"Enemy raid repulsed. An attempt to strike our ships has been thwarted."

3:42. Chief of the General Staff Zhukov calls Stalin and announces the start of hostilities by Germany. Stalin orders Tymoshenko and Zhukov to arrive at the Kremlin, where an emergency meeting of the Politburo is being convened.

3:45. The 1st frontier post of the 86th Augustow border detachment was attacked by an enemy reconnaissance and sabotage group. Outpost personnel under command Alexandra Sivacheva, having joined the battle, destroys the attackers.

4:05. The outposts of the 86th August Frontier Detachment, including the 1st Frontier Post of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev, are subjected to heavy artillery fire, after which the German offensive begins. The border guards, deprived of communication with the command, engage in battle with superior enemy forces.

4:10. The Western and Baltic Special Military Districts report the start of hostilities by German troops on land.

4:15. The Nazis open massive artillery fire on the Brest Fortress. As a result, warehouses were destroyed, communications were disrupted, and there were a large number of dead and wounded.

4:25. The 45th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht begins an attack on the Brest Fortress.

The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Residents of the capital on June 22, 1941 during the announcement on the radio of a government message about the perfidious attack of Nazi Germany on the Soviet Union. Photo: RIA Novosti

"Defending not individual countries, but ensuring the security of Europe"

4:30. A meeting of members of the Politburo begins in the Kremlin. Stalin expresses doubt that what happened is the beginning of the war and does not exclude the version of a German provocation. People's Commissar of Defense Timoshenko and Zhukov insist: this is war.

4:55. In the Brest Fortress, the Nazis manage to capture almost half of the territory. Further progress was stopped by a sudden counterattack by the Red Army.

5:00. German Ambassador to the USSR Count von Schulenburg presents the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Molotov“Note from the German Foreign Ministry to the Soviet Government”, which states: “The German government cannot be indifferent to a serious threat on the eastern border, therefore the Führer ordered the German armed forces to ward off this threat by all means.” An hour after the actual start of hostilities, Germany de jure declares war on the Soviet Union.

7:00. Reich Minister for Foreign Ribbentrop begins a press conference at which he announces the start of hostilities against the USSR: "The German army invaded the territory of Bolshevik Russia!"

“The city is on fire, why aren’t you broadcasting anything on the radio?”

7:15. Stalin approves the directive on repulsing the attack of Nazi Germany: "The troops will attack the enemy forces with all their strength and means and destroy them in areas where they have violated the Soviet border." The transfer of "Directive No. 2" due to the violation by saboteurs of the communication lines in the western districts. Moscow does not have a clear picture of what is happening in the war zone.

9:30. It was decided that at noon Molotov, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, would address the Soviet people in connection with the outbreak of war.

10:00. From the memories of the announcer Yuri Levitan: “They call from Minsk: “Enemy planes are over the city”, they call from Kaunas: “The city is on fire, why are you not transmitting anything on the radio?”, “Enemy planes are over Kyiv.” Women's crying, excitement: “Is it really a war? ..” However, no official messages are transmitted until 12:00 Moscow time on June 22.

11:00. The Baltic, Western and Kyiv special military districts were transformed into the Northwestern, Western and Southwestern fronts.

“The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours"

12:00. People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Vyacheslav Molotov read out an appeal to the citizens of the Soviet Union: "Today at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed from our cities - Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others - more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from Romanian and Finnish territory ... Now that the attack on the Soviet Union has already taken place, the Soviet government has given an order to our troops to repel the piratical attack and drive the German troops from the territory of our homeland ... The government calls on you, citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union, to rally their ranks still more closely around our glorious Bolshevik Party, around our Soviet government, around our great leader Comrade Stalin.

Our cause is right. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours" .

12:30. Advanced German units break into the Belarusian city of Grodno.

13:00. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issues a decree "On the mobilization of those liable for military service ..."
“On the basis of Article 49 of paragraph “o” of the Constitution of the USSR, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR announces mobilization on the territory of the military districts - Leningrad, Special Baltic, Western Special, Kyiv Special, Odessa, Kharkov, Oryol, Moscow, Arkhangelsk, Ural, Siberian, Volga, North - Caucasian and Transcaucasian.

13:30. The Chief of the General Staff, General Zhukov, flies to Kyiv as a representative of the newly created Headquarters of the High Command on the Southwestern Front.

Photo: RIA Novosti

14:00. The Brest Fortress is completely surrounded by German troops. Soviet units blockaded in the citadel continue to offer fierce resistance.

14:05. Foreign Minister of Italy Galeazzo Ciano declares: “In view of the current situation, due to the fact that Germany has declared war on the USSR, Italy, as an ally of Germany and as a member of the Tripartite Pact, also declares war on the Soviet Union from the moment the German troops enter Soviet territory.”

14:10. The 1st frontier post of Alexander Sivachev has been fighting for more than 10 hours. The border guards, who had only small arms and grenades, destroyed up to 60 Nazis and burned three tanks. The wounded head of the outpost continued to command the battle.

15:00. From the notes of Field Marshal Commander of Army Group Center bokeh background: “The question of whether the Russians are carrying out a planned withdrawal is still open. There is now ample evidence both for and against this.

Of the 485 frontier posts attacked, none retreated without an order.

16:00. After a 12-hour battle, the Nazis occupy the positions of the 1st frontier post. This became possible only after all the border guards who defended it died. The head of the outpost, Alexander Sivachev, was posthumously awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st class.

The feat of the outpost of Senior Lieutenant Sivachev became one of the hundreds accomplished by the border guards in the first hours and days of the war. As of June 22, 1941, the USSR state border from the Barents to the Black Sea was guarded by 666 border outposts, 485 of them were attacked on the very first day of the war. None of the 485 outposts attacked on June 22 withdrew without orders.

The Nazi command took 20 minutes to break the resistance of the border guards. 257 Soviet frontier posts held the defense from several hours to one day. More than one day - 20, more than two days - 16, more than three days - 20, more than four and five days - 43, from seven to nine days - 4, more than eleven days - 51, more than twelve days - 55, more than 15 days - 51 outposts. Up to two months, 45 outposts fought.

The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. The working people of Leningrad listen to the message about the attack of fascist Germany on the Soviet Union. Photo: RIA Novosti

Of the 19,600 border guards who met the Nazis on June 22 in the direction of the main attack of Army Group Center, more than 16,000 died in the first days of the war.

17:00. Hitler's units manage to occupy the southwestern part of the Brest Fortress, the northeast remained under the control of Soviet troops. Stubborn battles for the fortress will continue for another week.

"The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox for the defense of the sacred borders of our Motherland"

18:00. The Patriarchal Locum Tenens, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna Sergius, addresses the faithful with a message: “Fascist robbers have attacked our homeland. Trampling all sorts of treaties and promises, they suddenly fell upon us, and now the blood of peaceful citizens is already irrigating our native land ... Our Orthodox Church has always shared the fate of the people. Together with him, she carried trials, and consoled herself with his successes. She will not leave her people even now… The Church of Christ blesses all Orthodox to defend the sacred borders of our Motherland.”

20:00. Directive No. 3 of the People's Commissariat of Defense was approved, ordering the Soviet troops to go on the counteroffensive with the task of defeating the Nazi troops on the territory of the USSR with further advance into the territory of the enemy. The directive prescribed by the end of June 24 to capture the Polish city of Lublin.

Great Patriotic War 1941-1945. June 22, 1941 Nurses assist the first wounded after the Nazi air raid near Chisinau. Photo: RIA Novosti

"We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can"

21:00. Summary of the High Command of the Red Army for June 22: “At dawn on June 22, 1941, the regular troops of the German army attacked our border units on the front from the Baltic to the Black Sea and were held back by them during the first half of the day. In the afternoon, the German troops met with the advanced units of the field troops of the Red Army. After fierce fighting, the enemy was repulsed with heavy losses. Only in the Grodno and Krystynopol directions did the enemy manage to achieve minor tactical successes and occupy the towns of Kalvaria, Stoyanuv and Tsekhanovets (the first two at 15 km and the last at 10 km from the border).

Enemy aviation attacked a number of our airfields and settlements, but everywhere they met with a decisive rebuff from our fighters and anti-aircraft artillery, which inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. We shot down 65 enemy planes."

23:00. Message from the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the British people in connection with the German attack on the USSR: “At 4 o’clock this morning, Hitler attacked Russia. All his usual formalities of treachery were observed with scrupulous precision ... suddenly, without a declaration of war, even without an ultimatum, German bombs fell from the sky on Russian cities, German troops violated Russian borders, and an hour later the German ambassador, who just the day before generously lavished his assurances to the Russians in friendship and almost an alliance, paid a visit to the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs and declared that Russia and Germany were in a state of war ...

The past, with its crimes, follies and tragedies, recedes. I see Russian soldiers standing on the border of their native land and guarding the fields that their fathers have plowed since time immemorial. I see how they guard their homes; their mothers and wives pray—oh, yes, because at such a time everyone prays for the preservation of their loved ones, for the return of the breadwinner, patron, their protectors ...

We must give Russia and the Russian people all the help we can. We must call on all our friends and allies in all parts of the world to follow a similar course and pursue it as steadfastly and steadily as we will, to the very end.

June 22 has come to an end. Ahead were another 1417 days of the most terrible war in the history of mankind.

And the allies swiftly struck at several points at once, catching the Russian army by surprise. This day was the beginning of a new period in the life of the USSR - the Great Patriotic War.

Prerequisites for the German attack on the USSR

After the defeat in the First World War, the situation in Germany remained extremely unstable: the economy and industry collapsed, a crisis occurred that the authorities could not solve. It was at this time that Hitler came to the government, whose main idea was to create a single nationally oriented state that would not only take revenge for losing the war, but also subordinate the entire main world to its order.

Following his own ideas, Hitler created a fascist state on the territory of Germany and in 1939 unleashed it by invading the Czech Republic and Poland and annexing them to Germany. During the war, Hitler's army rapidly advanced across Europe, seizing territories, but did not attack the USSR - a preliminary non-aggression pact was concluded.

Unfortunately, the USSR was still a tasty morsel for Hitler. The opportunity to seize territories and resources opened up an opportunity for Germany to enter into open confrontation with the United States and declare its dominance over most of the world's landmass.

To attack the USSR, the Barbarossa plan was developed - a plan for a treacherous military assault, which was to be carried out within two months. The implementation of the plan began on June 22 with the German invasion of the USSR.

German goals

Germany's main goals were:

• ideological and military: Germany sought to destroy the USSR as a state, as well as to destroy the communist ideology, which it considered incorrect; Hitler sought to establish the hegemony of nationalist ideas throughout the world (the superiority of one race, one people over others);
• imperialistic: as in many wars, Hitler's goal was to seize power in the world and create a powerful empire, to which all other states would be subordinate;
• economic: the capture of the USSR gave the German army unprecedented economic opportunities for the further conduct of the war;
• racist: Hitler sought to destroy all "wrong" races (in particular, Jews).

The first period of the war and the implementation of the plan "Barbarossa"

Although Hitler planned a surprise attack, the command of the USSR army suspected what could happen, so on June 18, 1941, part of the army was put on alert, and the armed forces were drawn to the border at the places of the alleged attack. Unfortunately, the Soviet command had only vague information regarding the date of the attack, so by the time the fascist troops invaded, many military units did not have time to properly prepare in order to competently repel the attack.

At 4 am on June 22, 1941, German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop presented the Soviet ambassador in Berlin with a note declaring war, at the same time German troops launched an attack on the Baltic Fleet in the Gulf of Finland. Early in the morning, the German ambassador arrived in the USSR to meet with People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov and made a statement stating that the Union was carrying out subversive activities in Germany in order to establish Bolshevik power there, therefore Germany breaks the non-aggression agreement and begins hostilities .

On the same day, Italy, Romania, and then Slovakia declared official war on the USSR. At 12 noon, Molotov made an official radio address to the citizens of the USSR, announcing the German attack on the USSR and announcing the start. A general mobilization began.

Causes and consequences of the German attack on the USSR

The Barbarossa plan could not be carried out, since the Soviet army put up good resistance, was better equipped than expected, and generally fought competently, taking into account territorial conditions. However, the first period of the war turned out to be a losing one for the USSR. Germany in the shortest possible time managed to conquer a significant part of the territories, including Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia and Lithuania. German troops advanced inland, encircled Leningrad and began bombing Moscow.

The suddenness of the attack played its part. The Soviet army was inferior to the German one: the level of training of the soldiers was much lower, the military equipment was worse, and the leadership made a number of very serious mistakes in the early stages.

The German attack on the USSR resulted in a protracted war that claimed many lives and actually brought down the country's economy, which was not ready for large-scale military operations. Nevertheless, in the middle of the war, Soviet troops managed to gain an advantage and launch a counteroffensive.

On December 18, 1940, Hitler in Directive No. 21 approved the final plan for the war against the USSR under the code name "Barbarossa". To implement it, Germany and its allies in Europe - Finland, Romania and Hungary - created an invasion army unprecedented in history: 182 divisions and 20 brigades (up to 5 million people), 47.2 thousand guns and mortars, about 4.4 thousand combat aircraft, 4.4 thousand tanks and assault guns, and 250 ships. In the grouping of Soviet troops that opposed the aggressors, there were 186 divisions (3 million people), about 39.4 guns and mortars, 11 thousand tanks and more than 9.1 thousand aircraft. These forces were not brought to combat readiness in advance. The directive of the General Staff of the Red Army about a possible German attack on June 22-23 arrived in the western border districts only on the night of June 22, and the invasion began at dawn on June 22. After a long artillery preparation, at 4.00 in the morning, German troops, treacherously violating the non-aggression pact concluded with the USSR, attacked the Soviet-German border along its entire length from the Barents to the Black Seas. The Soviet troops were taken by surprise. The organization of powerful counterattacks against the enemy was hampered by the fact that they were relatively evenly distributed along the entire front along the entire border and dispersed to a great depth. With such a formation, it was difficult to resist the enemy.

On June 22, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs V.M. Molotov. In particular, he said: “This unheard-of attack on our country is an unparalleled treachery in the history of civilized peoples. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that a non-aggression pact was concluded between the USSR and Germany.

On June 23, 1941, the highest body of strategic leadership of the armed forces, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, was created in Moscow. All power in the country was concentrated in the hands of the State Defense Committee (GKO), formed on June 30. He was appointed Chairman of the State Defense Committee and Supreme Commander-in-Chief. The country began to implement a program of emergency measures under the motto: “Everything for the front! Everything for the victory! The Red Army, however, continued to retreat. By mid-July 1941, German troops advanced 300-600 km deep into Soviet territory, capturing Lithuania, Latvia, almost all of Belarus, a significant part of Estonia, Ukraine and Moldova, creating a threat to Leningrad, Smolensk and Kyiv. Mortal danger hung over the USSR.

OPERATIONAL REPORT No. 1 OF THE CHIEF OF THE GENERAL STAFF OF THE RKKA ARMY GENERAL G.K. Zhukov. 10.00, June 22, 1941

At 04:00 on June 22, 1941, the Germans, without any reason, raided our airfields and cities and crossed the border with ground troops ...

1. Northern front: the enemy with a link of bomber-type aircraft violated the border and went to the region of Leningrad and Kronstadt ...

2. Northwestern front. The enemy at 0400 opened artillery fire and at the same time began to bomb airfields and cities: Vindava, Libava, Kovno, Vilna and Shulyai ...

Z. Western Front. At 4.20, up to 60 enemy aircraft bombarded Grodno and Brest. At the same time, the enemy opened artillery fire on the entire border of the Western Front .... With ground forces, the enemy is developing a strike from the Suwalki area in the direction of Golynk, Dombrova and from the Stokolow area along the railway to Volkovysk. The advancing enemy forces are being specified. …

4. Southwestern Front. At 4.20 the enemy began shelling our borders with machine-gun fire. From 04.30 enemy planes have been bombarding the cities of Lyuboml, Kovel, Lutsk, Vladimir-Volynsky ... At 04.35, after artillery fire in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bVladimir-Volynsky, Lyuboml, enemy ground forces crossed the border, developing an attack in the direction of Vladimir-Volynsky, Lyuboml and Krystynopol ...

The front commanders have put into effect a cover plan and by active actions of mobile troops they are trying to destroy the part of the enemy that has crossed the border ...

The enemy, having preempted our troops in deployment, forced the Red Army units to take up battle in the process of taking up their starting position according to the cover plan. Using this advantage, the enemy managed to achieve partial success in certain areas.

Signature: Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army G.K. Zhukov

The Great Patriotic War - day after day: based on declassified operational reports of the General Staff of the Red Army. M., 2008 .

RADIO SPEECH BY THE DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF THE USSR COUNCIL OF PEOPLE'S COMMISSARS AND PEOPLE'S COMMISSAR FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE USSR V.M. MOLOTOV June 22, 1941

Citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union!

The Soviet government and its head, Comrade Stalin, have instructed me to make the following statement:

Today, at 4 o'clock in the morning, without presenting any claims against the Soviet Union, without declaring war, German troops attacked our country, attacked our borders in many places and bombed our cities - Zhitomir, Kyiv, Sevastopol, Kaunas and some others, moreover, more than two hundred people were killed and wounded. Enemy aircraft raids and artillery shelling were also carried out from the Romanian and Finnish territories.

This unheard-of attack on our country is treachery unparalleled in the history of civilized peoples. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that a non-aggression pact was concluded between the USSR and Germany, and the Soviet government fulfilled all the conditions of this pact in all good faith. The attack on our country was carried out despite the fact that during the entire period of the validity of this treaty, the German government could never make a single claim against the USSR regarding the implementation of the treaty. All responsibility for this predatory attack on the Soviet Union falls entirely on the German fascist rulers (...)

The government calls on you, citizens of the Soviet Union, to rally your ranks still more closely around our glorious Bolshevik Party, around our Soviet government, around our great leader Comrade. Stalin.

Our cause is right. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours.

Documents of foreign policy. T.24. M., 2000.

J. STALIN'S RADIO SPEECH, July 3, 1941

Comrades! Citizens!

Brothers and sisters!

Soldiers of our army and navy!

I turn to you, my friends!

The treacherous military attack of Nazi Germany on our Motherland, launched on June 22, continues. Despite the heroic resistance of the Red Army, despite the fact that the best divisions of the enemy and the best parts of his aviation have already been defeated and found their grave on the battlefields, the enemy continues to push forward, throwing new forces to the front (...)

History shows that there are no invincible armies and never have been. Napoleon's army was considered invincible, but it was defeated alternately by Russian, English, German troops. Wilhelm's German army during the first imperialist war was also considered an invincible army, but it was defeated several times by Russian and Anglo-French troops and was finally defeated by Anglo-French troops. The same must be said about Hitler's current German fascist army. This army has not yet encountered serious resistance on the European continent. Only on our territory did it meet serious resistance (...)

It may be asked: how could it happen that the Soviet government agreed to conclude a non-aggression pact with such treacherous people and monsters as Hitler and Ribbentrop? Was there a mistake on the part of the Soviet government here? Of course not! A non-aggression pact is a peace pact between two states. It was this pact that Germany proposed to us in 1939. Could the Soviet government refuse such a proposal? I think that not a single peace-loving state can refuse a peace agreement with a neighboring power, if at the head of this power there are even such monsters and cannibals as Hitler and Ribbentrop. And this, of course, on one indispensable condition - if the peace agreement does not affect either directly or indirectly the territorial integrity, independence and honor of a peace-loving state. As you know, the non-aggression pact between Germany and the USSR is just such a pact (...)

With the forced withdrawal of the Red Army units, it is necessary to steal the entire rolling stock, not to leave the enemy a single locomotive, not a single wagon, not to leave the enemy a kilogram of bread or a liter of fuel (...) In areas occupied by the enemy, partisan detachments, horse and foot, create sabotage groups to fight against units of the enemy army, to kindle guerrilla warfare everywhere and everywhere, to blow up bridges, roads, damage telephone and telegraph communications, set fire to forests, warehouses, carts. In the occupied areas, create unbearable conditions for the enemy and all his accomplices, pursue and destroy them at every step, disrupt all their activities (...)

In this great war we will have true allies in the peoples of Europe and America, including the German people, enslaved by the Hitlerite rulers. Our war for the freedom of our Fatherland will merge with the struggle of the peoples of Europe and America for their independence, for democratic freedoms (…)

In order to quickly mobilize all the forces of the peoples of the USSR, to repulse the enemy who treacherously attacked our Motherland, the State Defense Committee was created, in whose hands all power in the state is now concentrated. The State Defense Committee has begun its work and calls on all the people to rally around the party of Lenin-Stalin, around the Soviet government for the selfless support of the Red Army and the Red Navy, for the defeat of the enemy, for victory.

All our strength is to support our heroic Red Army, our glorious Red Fleet!

All the forces of the people - to defeat the enemy!

Forward to our victory!

Stalin I. About the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union. M., 1947.

June, 22. Ordinary Sunday. More than 200 million citizens are planning how to spend their day off: go on a visit, take their children to the zoo, someone is in a hurry to play football, someone is on a date. Soon they will become heroes and victims of the war, killed and wounded, soldiers and refugees, blockade runners and prisoners of concentration camps, partisans, prisoners of war, orphans, and invalids. Winners and veterans of the Great Patriotic War. But none of them know about it yet.

In 1941 The Soviet Union stood quite firmly on its feet - industrialization and collectivization bore fruit, industry developed - out of ten tractors produced in the world, four were Soviet-made. Dneproges and Magnitogorsk have been built, the army is being re-equipped - the famous T-34 tank, Yak-1, MIG-3 fighters, Il-2 attack aircraft, Pe-2 bomber have already entered service with the Red Army. The situation in the world is turbulent, but the Soviet people are sure that "the armor is strong and our tanks are fast." In addition, two years ago, after three-hour talks in Moscow, USSR People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov and German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop signed a 10-year non-aggression pact.

After the abnormally cold winter of 1940-1941. A rather warm summer has come to Moscow. Amusements operate in the Gorky Park, football matches are held at the Dynamo stadium. The Mosfilm film studio is preparing the main premiere of the summer of 1941 - the editing of the lyrical comedy Hearts of Four, which will be released only in 1945, has just been completed here. Starring the favorite of Joseph Stalin and all Soviet moviegoers, actress Valentina Serova.

June, 1941 Astrakhan. Near the village of Liney

1941 Astrakhan. On the Caspian Sea

July 1, 1940 A scene from the film "My Love" directed by Vladimir Korsh-Sablin. In the center, actress Lidia Smirnova as Shurochka

April, 1941 Peasant greets the first Soviet tractor

July 12, 1940 Residents of Uzbekistan work on the construction of a section of the Great Fergana Canal

August 9, 1940 Byelorussian SSR. Collective farmers of the village of Tonezh, Turovsky district, Polesye region, for a walk after a hard day's work

May 05, 1941 Kliment Voroshilov, Mikhail Kalinin, Anastas Mikoyan, Andrey Andreev, Alexander Shcherbakov, Georgy Malenkov, Semyon Timoshenko, Georgy Zhukov, Andrey Eremenko, Semyon Budyonny, Nikolai Bulganin, Lazar Kaganovich and others in the presidium of the ceremonial meeting dedicated to graduation commanders who graduated from military academies. Joseph Stalin speaking

June 1, 1940. Classes in civil defense in the village of Dikanka. Ukraine, Poltava region

In the spring and summer of 1941, exercises of the Soviet military began to be carried out more and more often on the western borders of the USSR. War is already in full swing in Europe. Rumors reach the Soviet leadership that Germany could attack at any moment. But such messages are often ignored, since a non-aggression pact was signed just recently.
August 20, 1940 Villagers talking to tankmen during military exercises

"Higher, higher and higher
We strive for the flight of our birds,
And breathes in every propeller
The tranquility of our borders."

Soviet song, better known as "March of the Aviators"

June 1, 1941. An I-16 fighter is suspended under the wing of a TB-3 aircraft, under the wing of which a high-explosive bomb weighing 250 kg

September 28, 1939 People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop shake hands after the signing of the joint Soviet-German treaty "On Friendship and Borders"

Field Marshal V. Keitel, Colonel General V. von Brauchitsch, A. Hitler, Colonel General F. Halder (left to right in the foreground) near the table with a map during a meeting of the General Staff. In 1940, Adolf Hitler signed the main directive number 21, codenamed "Barbarossa"

On June 17, 1941, V. N. Merkulov sent to I. V. Stalin and V. M. Molotov an undercover message received by the NKGB of the USSR from Berlin:

“A source working at the headquarters of the German aviation reports:
1. All German military measures to prepare for an armed uprising against the USSR have been completely completed, and a strike can be expected at any time.

2. In the circles of the aviation headquarters, the TASS message of June 6 was perceived very ironically. They emphasize that this statement cannot have any meaning ... "

There is a resolution (regarding 2 points): “To Comrade Merkulov. You can send your "source" from the headquarters of the German aviation to the fucking mother. This is not a "source", but a disinformer. I. Stalin»

July 1, 1940. Marshal Semyon Timoshenko (right), General of the Army Georgy Zhukov (left) and General of the Army Kirill Meretskov (2nd from left) during an exercise in the 99th Rifle Division of the Kyiv Special Military District

June 21, 21:00

At the site of the Sokal commandant's office, a German soldier, Corporal Alfred Liskof, was detained after swimming across the Bug River.

From the testimony of the head of the 90th border detachment, Major Bychkovsky:“Due to the fact that the translators in the detachment are weak, I called a German teacher from the city ... and Liskof repeated the same thing again, that is, that the Germans were preparing to attack the USSR at dawn on June 22, 1941 ... Without finishing the interrogation of the soldier, he heard in the direction Ustilug (first commandant's office) strong artillery fire. I realized that it was the Germans who opened fire on our territory, which was immediately confirmed by the interrogated soldier. I immediately began to call the commandant by phone, but the connection was broken.

21:30

In Moscow, a conversation took place between People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov and German Ambassador Schulenburg. Molotov protested in connection with the numerous violations of the borders of the USSR by German aircraft. Schulenburg evaded answering.

From the memoirs of Corporal Hans Teuchler:“At 22 o’clock we were lined up and the order of the Fuhrer was read out. Finally, they told us directly why we are here. Not at all for a rush to Persia to punish the British with the permission of the Russians. And not in order to lull the vigilance of the British, and then quickly transfer troops to the English Channel and land in England. No. We - soldiers of the Great Reich - are waiting for a war with the Soviet Union itself. But there is no such force that could hold back the movement of our armies. For the Russians it will be a real war, for us it will be just a victory. We will pray for her."

June 22, 00:30

Directive No. 1 was sent to the districts, containing an order to covertly occupy firing points on the border, not to succumb to provocations and put the troops on alert.

From the memoirs of the German General Heinz Guderian:“On the fateful day of June 22 at 2:10 in the morning, I went to the command post of the group ...
At 03:15 our artillery preparation began.
At 0340 hours - the first raid of our dive bombers.
At 4:15 a.m., the crossing over the Bug began.

03:07

The commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Oktyabrsky, called the Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army Georgy Zhukov and said that a large number of unknown aircraft were approaching from the sea; The fleet is in full combat readiness. The admiral offered to meet them with fleet air defense fire. He was instructed: "Act and report to your people's commissar."

03:30

Chief of Staff of the Western District, Major General Vladimir Klimovskikh, reported on a German air raid on the cities of Belarus. Three minutes later, the chief of staff of the Kyiv district, General Purkaev, reported on an air raid on the cities of Ukraine. At 03:40, the commander of the Baltic District, General Kuznetsov, reported a raid on Kaunas and other cities.

From the memoirs of I. I. Geibo, deputy regiment commander of the 46th IAP, ZapVO:“... My chest went cold. In front of me are four twin-engine bombers with black crosses on their wings. I even bit my lip. Why, these are Junkers! German Ju-88 bombers! What to do? .. Another thought arose: "Today is Sunday, and on Sundays the Germans do not have training flights." So it's a war? Yes, war!

03:40

People's Commissar of Defense Timoshenko asks Zhukov to report to Stalin about the start of hostilities. Stalin responded by ordering all members of the Politburo to gather in the Kremlin. At that moment, Brest, Grodno, Lida, Kobrin, Slonim, Baranovich, Bobruisk, Volkovysk, Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Sevastopol, Riga, Vindava, Libava, Siauliai, Kaunas, Vilnius and many other cities were bombed.

From the memoirs of Alevtina Kotik, born in 1925 (Lithuania):“I woke up from the fact that I hit my head on the bed - the ground shook from falling bombs. I ran to my parents. Dad said: “The war has begun. We have to get out of here!” We did not know with whom the war started, we did not think about it, it was just very scary. Dad was a military man, and therefore he was able to call a car for us, which took us to the railway station. They took only clothes with them. All furniture and household utensils remained. At first we rode on a freight train. I remember how my mother covered me and my brother with her body, then they transferred to a passenger train. The fact that the war with Germany, they learned somewhere around 12 noon from people they met. Near the city of Siauliai, we saw a large number of wounded, stretchers, doctors.

At the same time, the Belostok-Minsk battle began, as a result of which the main forces of the Soviet Western Front were surrounded and defeated. German troops captured a significant part of Belarus and advanced to a depth of over 300 km. On the part of the Soviet Union in the Bialystok and Minsk “boilers”, 11 rifle, 2 cavalry, 6 tank and 4 motorized divisions were destroyed, 3 commanders and 2 commanders were killed, 2 commanders and 6 division commanders were captured, another 1 corps commander and 2 commanders divisions were missing.

04:10

The Western and Baltic Special Districts reported on the start of hostilities by German troops on land.

04:12

German bombers appeared over Sevastopol. The enemy raid was repulsed, and an attempt to strike at the ships was thwarted, but residential buildings and warehouses were damaged in the city.

From the memoirs of Sevastopol Anatoly Marsanov:“I was then only five years old ... The only thing that remains in my memory: on the night of June 22, parachutes appeared in the sky. It became light, I remember, the whole city was illuminated, everyone was running, so joyful ... They shouted: “Paratroopers! Paratroopers!”… They don't know that these are mines. And they both gasped - one in the bay, the other - down the street below us, they killed so many people!

04:15

The defense of the Brest Fortress began. By the first attack, by 04:55, the Germans occupied almost half of the fortress.

From the memoirs of the defender of the Brest Fortress Pyotr Kotelnikov, born in 1929:“In the morning we were awakened by a strong blow. Broke the roof. I was stunned. I saw the wounded and the dead, I realized: this is no longer an exercise, but a war. Most of the soldiers of our barracks died in the first seconds. Following the adults, I rushed to the weapon, but they did not give me rifles. Then I, with one of the Red Army soldiers, rushed to extinguish the clothing warehouse. Then he moved with the soldiers to the cellars of the barracks of the neighboring 333rd Infantry Regiment ... We helped the wounded, brought them ammunition, food, water. Through the western wing at night they made their way to the river to draw water, and returned back.

05:00

Moscow time, Reich Minister of Foreign Affairs Joachim von Ribbentrop summoned Soviet diplomats to his office. When they arrived, he informed them of the start of the war. The last thing he said to the ambassadors was: "Tell Moscow that I was against the attack." After that, telephones did not work in the embassy, ​​and the building itself was surrounded by SS detachments.

5:30

Schulenburg officially informed Molotov about the beginning of the war between Germany and the USSR, reading out a note: “Bolshevik Moscow is ready to stab in the back of National Socialist Germany, which is fighting for existence. The German government cannot be indifferent to the serious threat on the eastern border. Therefore, the Fuhrer gave the order to the German armed forces to ward off this threat with all their might and means ... "

From the memoirs of Molotov:"The adviser to the German ambassador Hilger, when he handed the note, shed a tear."

From Hilger's memoirs:“He gave vent to his indignation by declaring that Germany had attacked a country with which it had a non-aggression pact. This has no precedent in history. The reason given by the German side is an empty pretext ... Molotov concluded his angry speech with the words: “We did not give any grounds for this.”

07:15

Directive No. 2 was issued, ordering the troops of the USSR to destroy enemy forces in areas of violation of the border, destroy enemy aircraft, and also “bomb Koenigsberg and Memel” (modern Kaliningrad and Klaipeda). The USSR Air Force was allowed to go "to the depth of German territory up to 100-150 km." At the same time, the first counterattack of the Soviet troops took place near the Lithuanian town of Alytus.

09:00

At 7:00 Berlin time, Reich Minister of Public Education and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels read out on the radio Adolf Hitler's appeal to the German people in connection with the outbreak of war against the Soviet Union: “... Today I decided to once again put the fate and future of the German Reich and our people into the hands of our soldier. May the Lord help us in this struggle!

09:30

Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR Mikhail Kalinin signed a number of decrees, including the decree on the introduction of martial law, on the formation of the Headquarters of the High Command, on military tribunals and on general mobilization, to which all those liable for military service from 1905 to 1918 were born.

10:00

German bombers raided Kyiv and its suburbs. The railway station, the Bolshevik plant, an aircraft plant, power plants, military airfields, and residential buildings were bombed. According to official data, 25 people died as a result of the bombing, according to unofficial data, there were many more victims. However, peaceful life continued in the capital of Ukraine for several more days. Only the opening of the stadium, scheduled for June 22, was canceled; on this day, the football match Dynamo (Kyiv) - CSKA was supposed to take place here.

12:15

Molotov made a speech on the radio about the beginning of the war, where he first called it patriotic. Also in this speech, for the first time, the phrase that became the main slogan of the war is heard: “Our cause is just. The enemy will be defeated. Victory will be ours".

From Molotov's address:“This unprecedented attack on our country is an unparalleled perfidy in the history of civilized peoples... This war was imposed on us not by the German people, not by the German workers, peasants and intelligentsia, whose suffering we understand well, but by a clique of bloodthirsty fascist rulers of Germany who enslaved the French, Czechs , Poles, Serbs, Norway, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Greece and other peoples ... This is not the first time our people have to deal with an attacking arrogant enemy. At one time, our people responded to Napoleon's campaign in Russia with a Patriotic War, and Napoleon was defeated and came to his own collapse. The same will happen to the arrogant Hitler, who has announced a new campaign against our country. The Red Army and all our people will again wage a victorious patriotic war for the Motherland, for honor, for freedom.

The working people of Leningrad listen to the message about the attack of fascist Germany on the Soviet Union

From the memoirs of Dmitry Savelyev, Novokuznetsk: “We gathered at the poles with loudspeakers. We listened carefully to Molotov's speech. For many, there was a feeling of some kind of wariness. After that, the streets began to empty, after a while food disappeared from the shops. They weren’t bought up – just the supply was reduced… People weren’t scared, but rather focused, doing everything the government told them to do.”

After some time, the text of Molotov's speech was repeated by the famous announcer Yuri Levitan. Thanks to his soulful voice and the fact that Levitan read the front-line reports of the Soviet Information Bureau throughout the war, it is believed that he was the first to read the message about the beginning of the war on the radio. Even marshals Zhukov and Rokossovsky thought so, as they wrote about in their memoirs.

Moscow. Announcer Yuri Levitan during filming in the studio

From the memoirs of announcer Yuri Levitan:“When we, the announcers, were called to the radio early in the morning, the calls had already begun to ring out. They call from Minsk: “Enemy planes over the city”, they call from Kaunas: “The city is on fire, why are you not transmitting anything on the radio?”, “Enemy planes are over Kyiv.” Women's crying, excitement - "is it really a war"? .. And now I remember - I turned on the microphone. In all cases, I remember myself that I only worried internally, only experienced internally. But here, when I uttered the word “Moscow is speaking”, I feel that I can’t continue to speak - a lump stuck in my throat. They are already knocking from the control room - “Why are you silent? Go on! He clenched his fists and continued: "Citizens and citizens of the Soviet Union ..."

Stalin delivered a speech to the Soviet people only on July 3, 12 days after the start of the war. Historians are still arguing why he was silent for so long. Here is how Vyacheslav Molotov explained this fact:“Why me and not Stalin? He didn't want to go first. It is necessary that there be a clearer picture, what tone and what approach ... He said that he would wait a few days and speak when the situation on the fronts cleared up.

And here is what Marshal Zhukov wrote about this:"AND. V. Stalin was a strong-willed man and, as they say, "not from a cowardly dozen." Confused, I saw him only once. It was at dawn on June 22, 1941, when Nazi Germany attacked our country. During the first day, he could not really pull himself together and firmly direct events. The shock produced on I. V. Stalin by the attack of the enemy was so strong that his voice even dropped, and his orders for organizing armed struggle did not always correspond to the situation.

From a speech by Stalin on the radio on July 3, 1941:“The war with fascist Germany cannot be considered an ordinary war... Our war for the freedom of our Fatherland will merge with the struggle of the peoples of Europe and America for their independence, for democratic freedoms.”

12:30

At the same time, German troops entered Grodno. A few minutes later, the bombardment of Minsk, Kyiv, Sevastopol and other cities began again.

From the memoirs of Ninel Karpova, born in 1931 (Kharovsk, Vologda region):“We listened to the message about the beginning of the war from the loudspeaker at the House of Defense. There were a lot of people there. I was not upset, on the contrary, I became proud: my father will defend the Motherland ... In general, people were not afraid. Yes, women, of course, were upset, crying. But there was no panic. Everyone was sure that we would quickly defeat the Germans. The men said: "Yes, the Germans will drape from us!"

Recruiting stations were opened in the military registration and enlistment offices. Queues lined up in Moscow, Leningrad and other cities.

From the memoirs of Dina Belykh, born in 1936 (Kushva, Sverdlovsk region):“All men immediately began to call, including my dad. Dad hugged mom, they both cried, kissed ... I remember how I grabbed him by the tarpaulin boots and shouted: “Daddy, don’t go! They'll kill you there, they'll kill you!" When he got on the train, my mother took me in her arms, we both sobbed, she whispered through her tears: “Wave to dad ...” What is there, I sobbed so much, I could not move my hand. We never saw him again, our breadwinner."

Calculations and experience of the mobilization carried out showed that in order to transfer the army and navy to wartime, 4.9 million people were required to be called up. However, when mobilization was announced, 14 ages of conscripts were called up, the total number of which was about 10 million people, that is, almost 5.1 million people more than what was required.

The first day of mobilization in the Red Army. Volunteers in the Oktyabrsky military registration and enlistment office

The conscription of such a mass of people was not caused by military necessity and introduced disorganization into the national economy and anxiety among the masses. Without realizing this, Marshal of the Soviet Union G. I. Kulik suggested that the government additionally call on older ages (1895-1904), the total number of which was 6.8 million people.

13:15

To capture the Brest Fortress, the Germans brought into action new forces of the 133rd Infantry Regiment on the Southern and Western Islands, but this "did not bring changes in the situation." The Brest Fortress continued to hold the line. Fritz Schlieper's 45th Infantry Division was thrown into this sector of the front. It was decided that only infantry would take the Brest Fortress - without tanks. No more than eight hours were allotted for the capture of the fortress.

From a report to the headquarters of the 45th Infantry Division Fritz Schlieper:“The Russians are fiercely resisting, especially behind our attacking companies. In the Citadel, the enemy organized defense with infantry units supported by 35-40 tanks and armored vehicles. The fire of Russian snipers led to heavy losses among officers and non-commissioned officers.

14:30

Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano told the Soviet ambassador in Rome, Gorelkin, that Italy had declared war on the USSR "from the moment German troops entered Soviet territory."

From Ciano's diaries:“He perceives my message with rather great indifference, but this is in his nature. The message is very short, without unnecessary words. The conversation lasted two minutes.

15:00

The pilots of the German bombers reported that they had nothing more to bomb, all airfields, barracks and concentrations of armored vehicles were destroyed.

From the memoirs of Air Marshal, Hero of the Soviet Union G.V. Zimina:“On June 22, 1941, large groups of fascist bombers attacked 66 of our airfields, on which the main aviation forces of the western border districts were based. First of all, airfields were subjected to air strikes, on which aviation regiments were based, armed with aircraft of new designs ... As a result of attacks on airfields and in fierce air battles, the enemy managed to destroy up to 1,200 aircraft, including 800 at airfields.

16:30

Stalin left the Kremlin for the Near Dacha. Until the end of the day, even members of the Politburo are not allowed to see the leader.

From the memoirs of Politburo member Nikita Khrushchev:
“Beria told the following: when the war began, members of the Politburo gathered at Stalin's. I don’t know, all or only a certain group, which most often met with Stalin. Stalin was morally completely depressed and made the following statement: “The war has begun, it is developing catastrophically. Lenin left us the proletarian Soviet state, and we pissed it off.” Literally said so.
“I,” he says, “refuse leadership,” and left. He left, got into the car and drove to a nearby dacha.

Some historians, referring to the memories of other participants in the events, argue that this conversation took place a day later. But the fact that in the first days of the war Stalin was confused and did not know how to act is confirmed by many witnesses.

18:30

The commander of the 4th Army, Ludwig Kubler, gives the order to "pull his own forces" at the Brest Fortress. This is one of the first orders for the retreat of German troops.

19:00

The commander of Army Group Center, General Fedor von Bock, gives the order to stop the execution of Soviet prisoners of war. After that, they were kept in hastily fenced fields with barbed wire. This is how the first camps for prisoners of war appeared.

From the notes of SS Brigadeführer G. Keppler, commander of the "Der Fuhrer" regiment from the SS division "Das Reich":“In the hands of our regiment were rich trophies and a large number of prisoners, among whom were many civilians, even women and girls, the Russians forced them to defend themselves with weapons in their hands, and they bravely fought along with the Red Army.”

23:00

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivers a radio address in which he stated that England "will give Russia and the Russian people all the help it can."

Winston Churchill's speech on the air of the BBC radio station:“Over the past 25 years, no one has been a more consistent opponent of communism than me. I won't take back a single word I said about him. But all this pales before the spectacle now unfolding. The past with its crimes, follies and tragedies is disappearing... I see Russian soldiers standing on the threshold of their native land, guarding the fields that their fathers have cultivated since time immemorial... I see how the vile Nazi war machine is approaching all this.

23:50

The Main Military Council of the Red Army sent out Directive No. 3, ordering June 23 to launch counterattacks against enemy groups.

Text: Information Center of the Kommersant Publishing House, Tatiana Mishanina, Artem Galustyan
Video: Dmitry Shelkovnikov, Alexey Koshel
A photo: TASS, RIA Novosti, Ogonyok, Dmitry Kuchev
Design, programming and layout: Anton Zhukov, Alexey Shabrov
Kim Voronin
Commissioning Editor: Artem Galustyan