"Helmut von Pannwitz considered it his greatest happiness and honor to be the right to command the Cossack Corps in the Balkans in the days when all of us and his fate had already been sealed at the conference in Yalta; then, when there was no hope or, to put it mildly, the hope for the victory of a sound reason over the madness of the conqueror, when hope and faith in the victory of the white idea over the red nightmare disappeared. And then General von Pannwitz was with us, was ours, loved and appreciated every person, Cossack, fighter, and, having sworn an oath, remained faithful to her and did not leave , refused the right of a German to leave his post and his people, to save, if not freedom, then, in any case, life.

"In order not to betray himself, Helmut von Pannwitz in 1945 voluntarily undertook a sacrificial journey to Moscow. He could have remained in the West, no one forced him to take this step. However, he went to share the fate of his Cossack Corps. We report here, according to the testimonies of survivors, about those tragic days the last capitulation, when thousands of Cossacks who fought on the side of the Germans were handed over to the Soviets. We want to remember only that general, who, amidst death, panic, general decay, showed an example of human greatness.

It was June 10, 1945. At about nine o'clock, a train of about 30 boxcars wrapped in barbed wire arrived at Enns station. He was met by one standing on both sides of the canvas railway a hundred Soviet NKVD soldiers with machine guns at the ready. Their cordon was intended to prevent the escape attempts of two thousand one hundred Cossacks, who had been handed over to the soviets two weeks before.

Inside the NKVD cordon, on a platform, stood surrounded by several English and Soviet officers the commander of the Cossack Corps, who fought until the end of the war on the German side, Lieutenant General Helmut von Pannwitz, a 47-year-old officer who, in addition to the German uniform, wore a fur cap of the Kuban Cossacks.

Glancing at the barbed-wire wagons that stopped in front of him with a roar, General von Pannwitz saw through the windows of the wagons the pale faces of those Cossacks who were in his corps.

There were exactly 2146 of them. After the surprise that instantly struck them, they suddenly began to call out the news:

- Old Pannwitz is standing there, at the station! - and after spontaneous stormy rejoicing, there was an eerie silence.

The Cossacks, who were delighted to see Pannwitz, immediately flashed the thought that the German general decided to share the fate of the Cossacks issued to the Soviets, knowing full well that either a painful death awaited him there, or forced labor for life.

The silence at the Enns station, broken only by commands and the creaking of iron, lasted no more than half a minute, when suddenly a song of the Cossacks was heard from one carriage - it was a song about General von Pannwitz.

Pannwitz had tears in his eyes. He raised his hand, calling for prudence.

After two days, the British commandant told him what had happened to them. Pannwitz was amazed. He has aged many years.

When he asked if it was possible for him to also be handed over to the Soviets, he was told that he, Pannwitz, should be happy that he, as a German officer, was not subject to an extradition agreement. He can take off his Cossack uniform, as he is and will remain a British prisoner of war.

But Pannwitz said briefly:

- Not! He wants to be given away too. Then he explained:

— I shared good time with the Cossacks. Now I want to share the bad with them. I made friendship with them for life and death. Perhaps I can alleviate their terrible fate by taking some of the blame attributed to them on myself.

It so happened that on June 10, 1945, Pannwitz, as we have already described, entered the transport train departing for the USSR. in the carriage in which he set off on his journey into death, he again met with those with whom he had been during the war ...

... Last information: the train in which General von Pannwitz undertook his journey from Enns station to death also disappeared, like his Cossack Corps.

Even today, survivors talk about how, in the face of death, the general showed such sublime greatness, which is rarely seen these days ... "

German military leader, cavalryman, participant in the First and Second World Wars, Supreme Marching Ataman of the Cossack Camp, SS Gruppenfuehrer, Lieutenant General of the SS troops

Biography

Born in the village of Botsanovits in Silesia (now Poland, Olesno Voivodeship) in a family of Prussian nobles. In 1914, with the outbreak of the First World War, he volunteered from the cadet corps for the Western Front. Served in the 1st Lancers of the Emperor Alexander III regiment (German: Ulanen-Regiment Kaiser Alexander III. von Russland).

In 1915 he was promoted to lieutenant (at the age of 16 and a half). He was awarded the Iron Crosses of the 2nd (in 1915) and 1st (in 1917) classes.

After the end of the war in 1920, due to the reduction of German armed forces Under the Treaty of Versailles, he retired with the rank of lieutenant. In 1934 he returned to the army. Participated (with the rank of major, commander of the reconnaissance battalion of the division) in the invasion of Poland (1939) - he was awarded straps to the Iron Crosses of both degrees (re-awarding), in hostilities in France (1940), since 1941 - on the Eastern Front (lieutenant colonel). In June 1941, as part of the 45th Infantry Division, he took part in the assault Brest Fortress. On September 4, 1941, Colonel von Pannwitz was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Head of the Cossack formations

Unlike other projects for the formation of national units from former citizens The USSR, Hitler and his inner circle looked favorably on the idea of ​​forming Cossack units, as they adhered to the theory that the Cossacks were descendants of the Goths, and therefore belonged not to the Slavic, but to the Aryan race. Moreover, at the beginning political career Hitler, he was supported by some Cossack leaders.

Pannwitz successfully commanded troops during the reflection Soviet offensive in the North Caucasus in the winter of 1942-1943, the von Pannwitz Combat Group, which included mounted and foot Cossack units, a tank detachment, a Romanian cavalry brigade, a Romanian battery of motorized heavy artillery, separate rear and baggage units and several anti-aircraft guns, starting from November 15, 1942, it destroyed the 61st Soviet division, which had broken through the front, northeast of Kotelnikov, then the 81st Soviet cavalry division near Kotelniki, and, finally, the Soviet rifle division(under Pimen Cherny/Nebykov). For this operation, Helmut von Pannwitz on December 23, 1942 received the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross (No. 167) and the highest Romanian military order of Mihai the Brave.

Being a consistent supporter of the revival of the Cossacks, in March 1943 in the town of Milau (Mlave) he headed the 1st Cossack Cavalry Division, formed from Cossack units attached to German military units (Cossack regiments of von Renteln, von Jungschulz, von Bezelager, Yaroslav Kotulinsky, Ivan Kononov , 1st Sinegorsk Ataman and so on). In June 1943 he was promoted to major general, in April 1944 - lieutenant general.

The Cossack division formed by Pannwitz from October 1943 participated in the battles in Croatia against the communist partisans of Tito (awarded the Croatian Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir 1st degree with Star and Swords).

In connection with the reassignment of the corps to the command of the SS troops, on February 11, 1945, he received the rank of SS Gruppenfuehrer and Lieutenant General of the SS troops. The Cossack division under his command was deployed in the XV Cossack Cavalry Corps SS, which on April 20, 1945 was reassigned to KONR.

In 1945, he was unanimously elected by the All-Cossack Circle in Virovititsa as the Supreme Marching Ataman of the "Cossack camp". He perceived his election as a great responsibility and the highest honor - since 1835, the title of Supreme Ataman of the Cossack Troops was borne by the Heir to the Russian Imperial Throne (and the Holy Martyr Tsarevich Alexy was, thus, the immediate Predecessor in this post of Helmut von Pannwitz).

By the end of the war, the Corps, numbering more than 20,000 bayonets and cavalry, occupied positions on the southern bank of the river. Drava. In order to prevent the capture of the Cossacks by the Soviet troops, von Pannwitz organizes a breakthrough of the corps into Carinthia, which was part of the British occupation zone. On May 9, 1945, the Cossack units entered Carinthia in contact with the British 11th tank division. On May 11, 1945, in the presence of British officers, he took over the parade of the Don Cossack regiment, after which the Cossacks laid down their arms.

AT recent times there is a growing tendency to justify, whitewash collaborators and traitors. There is a scientific basis for this justification. There is already a doctoral dissertation, where collaborationism is declared simply a social protest, the names of traitors are perpetuated through commemorative plaques, statues and even street names.

One of the famous figures of the collaborationist movement is Helmut von Pannwitz. "Father Pannwitz". Poems are dedicated to him, legends are told about him.

A German from Silesia, SS Gruppenführer von Pannwitz, commander of the 1st Cavalry Division, which grew to the 15th Cossack Cavalry Corps "SS".

What are the merits of the corps and the “German Cossack”, what glory did the Russian SS men under the command of a German SS man cover themselves with? What do "tears of sorrow and sadness" mean about their extradition by the British command Soviet side, and what can be a conversation about the so-called. "Tragedies of Lienz"?

A tragedy for the Nazis, their current fans and henchmen - yes. For everyone, it is the fulfillment by the allies of their obligations, followed by well-deserved retribution.
Let's consider in more detail.
***

1st Cossack Division was formed on August 4, 1943 under the command of Colonel Helmut von Pannwitz. He participated in the "Russian campaign" from the first day as the commander of a reconnaissance unit. (according to unconfirmed reports, a participant in the siege of the Brest Fortress).

They collected it from the retreating remnants of the Cossack formations as part of the Wehrmacht, emigrants, prisoners of war. Division commanders: Colonel Hans von Wolf, Lieutenant Colonel Wagner, Lieutenant Colonel von Nolken, Lieutenant Colonel von Wolf, Colonel von Bosse, Lieutenant Colonel von Jungshultz, Lieutenant Colonel Kononov, Lieutenant Colonel von Kalben. Similar to the Russian surname - one.

September 17, 1944, signed by the head of the Main Directorate of the Cossack troops, General P.N. Krasnova issued a special order number 15 "On the formation of the Cossack corps and the tasks of the Cossack camp". «

... The first Cossack division - said in the order - G Lieutenant General von Pannwitz elected Fuhrer gathering place for all Cossacks. All Cossacks must unite together and form one Cossack corps ... »
As of February 25, 1945, the Germans were already commanders in the 15th Cavalry Corps of General von Pannwitz:

Colonel Steinsdorf, Major Weil, Colonel von Baat, Colonel Wagner, Colonel Wagner, Colonel von Nolken, Lieutenant Colonel von Klein, Major von Eisenhard-Rothe, Colonel von Schultz,
Lieutenant Colonel Leman, Major Eltz, Lieutenant Colonel Prince Salm-Horstmar, Major Count Kottulinsky.
Many had nothing to do with the Cossacks, especially the officers - Krasnov explained this by the fact that among the Cossacks themselves there were no such trained in military knowledge and disciplined.

Maybe it was for this reason that they were not sent to fight at the front, against the regular units of the Red Army.

Who did you fight?
They fought in Yugoslavia against the partisans and the local population, which supported the partisans. The brothers of the Serbs, who, having heard Russian speech from the punishers, could not believe it.

“Under the command of von Pannwitz, who had already been promoted to general, the main part of the division was thrown against the partisans of Josip Broz Tito in Yugoslavia, in the region of Croatia, and five battalions - 6 thousand people. - To France.

The division turned the places of its operations into a continuous conflagration. Together with the 11th SS Panzer-Grenadier Division "Nordland", in the area northwest of the city of Sisak, they burned down the peasant farms and villages where the partisans were hiding and transferred these places under the control of the Ustashe. After that, the division was transferred to the Zagreb region, where it again committed a merciless robbery.

The German newspaper reported: a short time the Cossacks became a storm of bandits ”(referring to the partisans as such. - A.K.). Local population, Yugoslavs, hated the Cossacks, they were more afraid of the Germans. Significantly, in their eyes, the Cossacks appeared to be non-Russians, contemptuously called "Cherkasy". They said: “can the “Russian brothers” kill and rape”? In the end, the Cossacks opposed the entire population to themselves, lost their allies.
- - -
For these "feats" of Pannwitz's wards, their leader A. Hitler filled up with honey cookies and filled with jam:

"May 1, 1944 Cossacks 1st Cossack division he completely equalized rights with German soldiers, allowed the Cossacks to wear Wehrmacht insignia and at the same time keep the insignia Cossack troops, wear stripes and hats, and outside the combat situation, the traditional Cossack uniform. The division was transferred completely to food and combat supply according to the standards of the German units, as well as allowance at their rates. Vacations were presented to officers and non-commissioned officers. In the absence of relatives in Germany, they were accommodated in special rest homes. The families of military personnel were entitled to cash benefits, and the disabled - pensions. The Cossacks were subject to the regulations in force in the Wehrmacht on military criminal law and disciplinary sanctions.
*
From the materials of the interrogation of von Panwitz after his capture in 1945

Question:What punitive measures did you take against the partisans?
Answer: Parts subordinate to me robbed the inhabitants of these areas, burned their homes, raped women and, at the slightest resistance, killed the population.

Question: Therefore, killings and violence against civilians were carried out by you not only for helping the partisans, but also for resisting the robbery and violence that they committed?
Answer: Yes, it was.
* *

“... The fighters of the Cossack Corps fought in Yugoslavia with cruelty, second only to the thugs from the Ustashe, but they were a little worse than other belligerents. ... "

British historian Basil Davidson, during the occupation of Yugoslavia - a liaison officer between the British "management special operations"and Tito's partisans, believes that
“Pannwitz was a ruthless leader of a gang of bloody marauders. Is it too strong? Is there any language that looks too strong to describe their deeds?(von Pannwitz was the ruthless commander of a horde of murderous wreckers.Too strong? But what language could be too strong for what they did?)

Here is such an interesting touch to the life of the formation given in his book by the English historian and politician N.D. Tolstoy-Miloslavsky (namesake of L.N. Tolstoy):
Not too picky in matters of morality and discipline, Kononov was, one might say, the spiritual son of Shkuro. In his headquarters there was a personal executioner, a hefty guy with gold earrings, half Greek. At the first sign of Kononov, this fellow readily injected 9 grams of lead into anyone who had the misfortune not to please his commander.
Recall - Kononov is one of von Panwitz's subordinates: commander of the 5th Don Regiment.
***

Question: What instructions did you follow in the fight against the partisans?

Answer: A special circular drawn up by the SS-Obergruppenführer Bach-Zelevsky and approved by the General Staff. It was compiled on the basis of experience in the fight against partisans on the Eastern Front. The circular stated that guerrilla war contrary to international rules, and therefore it was proposed to use any means deemed appropriate by the head of the military unit on the spot. Since the partisans enjoy the support of the local population, it was proposed to consider every woman, every old man and even a child as an assistant to the partisans.
<…>The local population, if it is not recognized as an active assistant to the partisans, must be evicted and evacuated, and the village, as a center of partisan struggle - can be burned. It was proposed to identify and destroy partisan bases of weapons and food. The senior head of the punitive expedition was giventhe right to decide on the spot the fate of the captured partisans.
***

One of the division's most heinous crimes, by definition Other, researcher of the suffering of children in Bosnian Krajina during the years wars are the murder by the Cossacks of the 2nd Caucasian brigade of thirteen Yugoslav Komsomol women and three pioneers in the mountains Kozary On January 11, 1944, during the anti-partisan operation "Incendiary Torch" (German. Brandflackel). Komsomol members and pioneers, residents of the village of Grbavtsi (Gradishka community), the eldest of whom was 21 and the youngest 12 years old, were returning from a partisan hospital in the village of Bukovitsa when they stumbled upon an ambush of Cossacks seven kilometers from the village of Gornji Podgradtsi. They were tortured, they were cut out five pointed stars on the body, but I stand Zmiyanyats ( StojaZmijaњats), at which a flag was found, was torn apart by horses while still alive. In the end, after being raped, all thirteen girls and three pioneers were killed.
***
From the transcript of the interrogation of von Panwitz:

Question: What crimes and criminal acts do you plead guilty to?
Answer:... I admit that I am responsible for the fact that, starting from the autumn of 1943, I led the battles of the division subordinate to me against the Yugoslav partisans, allowed the Cossacks to massacre civilians in the zone of action of the division, carried out the criminal orders of the Nazi high command and SS circulars ...
Of the numerous crimes committed by the Cossacks subordinate to me in Yugoslavia, I recall the following facts.

In the winter of 1943-1944, in the Sunja-Zagreb region, on my order, 15 hostages from among the Yugoslav residents were hanged.
In the same area in 1944, three local residents allegedly for espionage, although there were no facts of their espionage activities.
At the end of 1943, in the area of ​​​​Frushka Gora, the Cossacks of the 1st Cavalry Regiment hanged 5 or 6 (I don’t remember exactly) peasants in the village.
Cossacks of the 3rd, 4th and 6th cavalry regiments in the same area committed mass rape Yugoslav women.
In December 1943, similar executions and rapes took place in the area of ​​the city of Brod (Bosnia).
In May 1944 in Croatia, in the area south of the city Zagreb, the Cossacks of the 1st regiment burned one village.
In June 1944, the same regiment committed mass rape of the residents of the city of Metlika.
By order of the commander of the 4th cavalry regiment, lieutenant colonel of the German army Wolf, the village of Chazma, west of the city of Belovar, was burned.
In the same period, that is, in the summer of 1944, the Cossacks of the cavalry regiment burned several houses in the Pozhego-Daruvar region.
I also remember that in December 1944, the Cossacks of the 5th Cavalry Regiment under the command of Colonel Kononov during an operation against partisans in the area of ​​the Drava River, not far from the mountains. Virovititsa, committed the massacre of the population and the rape of women ... "

***
Von Pannwitz on January 16, 1947, by the verdict of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR on January 15-16, 1947, was hanged along with other generals of the Cossack Camp.

In 1998, in Moscow, on the territory of the Church of All Saints, they put (obviously, the Nazis) "Monument to the Leaders white movement and Cossack atamans"- there are mentioned, in particular, SS Gruppenfuehrer Helmut Wilhelm von Pannwitz, ataman Sultan-Klych-Girey, ataman Krasnov.
"To those who fell for the faith and the Fatherland" - that's what it says there.

— You can’t touch any monument - you can’t change history anymore, — said in 2005 Janis Bremzis, deputy public committee"Reconciliation of the peoples of Russia and Germany, who fought in two world wars and the Civil War", after the speech of the initiative group for the demolition of the monument to the Nazis.
— We do not want a "war of monuments" that takes place in the same Baltic countries where both Soviet and national monuments are desecrated.(link)

So cleverly, masquerading as humanism, equating the SS men with Soviet soldiers, punishers with real soldiers. We will remember these words.

What is surprising is this: how can you even pronounce these names aloud - the names of traitors and murderers?

And yet July 17, 1996 year, General SSfon Pannwitz was rehabilitated as "victim political repression» on the basis of the conclusion of April 22, 1996, Colonel of Justice V. Kruka.
Either from the fact that conscience prevailed, or from the fact that Yeltsin ceased to be president - but June 28, 2001 Crook's opinion was overturned as unfounded, and on June 28, 2001, an opinion was issued concluding:
“... von Panwitz was justly convicted for the committed criminal acts, there are no grounds for protesting and he is not subject to rehabilitation. At the same time, it was recognized that the certificate of rehabilitation of von Panwitz Helmut legal effect does not have, of which the interested persons, as well as the relevant state institutions Germany"

But in Russia there are quite public people who call the SS punisher a “hero”, a “knight of honor”, ​​etc., who approve of the actions of the corps in Yugoslavia. At the same time, they seriously count on the support of the patriotic part of society. You have to be, to put it mildly, a very short-sighted politician and a person with very marginal views for Russia. With a very incomprehensible interpretation of the concept of "patriotism".

_________________________________

Krikunov P. “Cossacks. Between Hitler and Stalin

A. Kozlov "The Great Patriotic War and the Cossacks»

Parrish M. The Lesser Terror: Soviet State Security, 1939-1953 https://books.google.ru/books?id=NDgv5ognePgC&pg=PA125#v=onepage&q&f=false

Basil Davidson. bad habits http://www.lrb.co.uk/v13/n12/basil-davidson/bad-habits

N.D. Tolstoy "Victims of Yalta" http://lib.ru/HISTORY/FELSHTINSKY/tolstoj.txt
Wikipedia with a link to:

DragoKarasijevic. Č ETVRTAKRAJIŠ KANOUDIVIZIJA. — Beograd: Vojnoizdavač kiinovinskicentar, 1988.

DragojeLuki ć. RatidjecaKozare. III. Kozaro, usrcutenosim — Beograd — Prijedor — Jasenovac, 1990.

Danilo Karapetrov. Trinaestskojevki and three pioneers. - DoњаЈurkovitsa: Zavichaјna library, 2015.

Newspaper "Trud" dated 31.01.02 http://www. trud. ru / article /31-01-2002/36073_ delo _ generala - karatelja . html

Alexander Polanuer"Legends and myths of the 132nd separate battalion escort troops of the NKVD of the USSR » http://militaryspez. ru/index. php? topic=1307. msg 269140# msg 269140

You need to start with documents. Here is an excerpt from the transcript of the meeting of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR, held on January 15-16, 1947 in Moscow:

“The preliminary and judicial investigation established:

Von Pannwitz Helmut in 1941, being the commander of the head strike detachment of the 45th German infantry division, took part in treacherous attack Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union in the Brest-Litovsk region. As an inspector of cavalry at the High Command of the Ground Forces, Pannwitz actively contributed to the massacre and violence against Soviet residents in the territory by Nazi soldiers. Soviet Union temporarily occupied by the Germans.

While in the army grouping of the German General Kleist in the North Caucasus, Pannwitz assisted the latter in using the so-called “volunteer” Cossack regiment against the Red Army, created by the Germans from the traitorous Cossacks of the Don and Kuban.

In April 1943, on the instructions of the High Command of the German Army, Pannwitz formed a Cossack "volunteer" division from the White Guards and Cossack prisoners of war, established contact with white guard general Krasnov.

The Pannwitz division, then reorganized into a corps, was in Yugoslavia from September 1943 until the day of Germany's surrender, where it waged an armed struggle against Yugoslav partisans and civilians. The Cossacks of the Pannwitz corps committed reprisals against the civilian population, shot innocent people, raped women, burned settlements. By personal order of Pannwitz, in the winter of 1944, 15 Yugoslav hostages were hanged on poles in the Sunja Zagreb region.

The Supreme Court sentenced von Pannwitz to death penalty through hanging. The verdict was final and not subject to cassation appeal.

And here is a certificate on the rehabilitation of Lieutenant General von Pannwitz Helmut, issued by the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office today, on April 23, 1996:

“Von Pannwitz Helmut Wilhelmovich, born in 1898, arrested on May 9, 1945, convicted on January 16, 1947 by the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR on the basis of Art. 1 of the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of April 19, 1943 to death by hanging, in accordance with paragraph "a" of Art. 3 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On the rehabilitation of victims of political repression" rehabilitated.

Assistant to the Chief Military Prosecutor V.M. Crook."

Let us immediately note that Colonel of Justice Viktor Mikhailovich Kruk, who signed this amazing document, soon after the fateful legal act resigned from the military justice bodies and left the Russian Federation.

But why German general, one of those who brought the war on Soviet land, and with it death, grief and suffering to millions of our compatriots, a military leader of a very high rank, who formed a division and a corps from traitors to the Motherland, suddenly forgiven all sins?

And this was done not by any public human rights organization of its own free will, but by the Main Military Prosecutor's Office itself.

But you are even more surprised when you get acquainted with the following revelation Cossack ataman(and part-time writer, as he himself introduces himself) Boris Almazov: “Helmut von Pannwitz is the national hero of the Cossacks, he accomplished a feat ... of the highest morality (?! - A.V.), he came to a foreign people, understood its history and accepted decision to go with these people."

This amazing passage is from a book published in 1997 called “The Marching Ataman Batko (?!) von Pannwitz”.

Who is he, this “von dad”, who turned out to be a “victim of political repressions” from the bay, and who was behind this amazing legal curbet? And what was his army, now given out by some of the Cossack public for "honest fighters against the communist totalitarian regime"?

Helmut (or Helmut, as they often write) Wilhelm (or Wilhelmovich, as he decided to be called after his appointment as commander of the Russian division) von Pannwitz was born in the village. Bocenowitz in Silesia in the family of a German Junker in 1898. His life path is absolutely typical for the Nazi warriors of the highest rank. At the age of 11, he was sent to the cadet corps in Waldstadt and, upon graduation, with the rank of cadet, was seconded to the 1st Lancers Regiment Western Front. Since 1916, having risen to the rank of lieutenant, he fought with Russian troops in the Carpathians.

After the defeat of Germany in 1918, he was, like many other Kaiser officers, out of work, being dismissed. Since 1934, again in the Reichswehr (then - the Wehrmacht) with the rank of captain. In 1939, he took part in the attack on Poland, commanding the cavalry vanguard of an infantry division, in 1940 he fought in France ...

And now let's read the protocols of interrogations of von Pannwitz, conducted by investigators of the USSR Ministry of State Security in 1946-1947.

“- What crimes and criminal acts do you plead guilty to?

Advancing from Brest-Litovsk to Kursk, the shock and other detachments of the 45th Infantry Division subordinate to me destroyed a number of villages and villages, destroyed Soviet cities, killed a large number of Soviet citizens and also robbed peaceful Soviet people ...

... I must admit that by participating in the inspection, and later in the formation of military units consisting of prisoners of war of the Red Army, and leading them in battles against the USSR and Yugoslavia, I committed an act that, according to international rules and customs of war, is considered a crime. I am ready to bear responsibility for this crime...

I admit that I am responsible for the fact that, starting from the autumn of 1943, I led the battles of the division subordinate to me against the Yugoslav partisans, allowed the Cossacks to massacre civilians in the zone of action of the division ... I carried out the criminal orders of the Hitlerite high command and the circulars of the SS Obergruppenführer Bach-Zelewski, in which measures were outlined to combat the partisans and to massacre the civilian population ...

... - List the cases when, on your orders, the Cossacks committed acts of robbery, violence and other crimes against humanity in Yugoslavia.

Of the numerous crimes committed by the Cossacks subordinate to me in Yugoslavia, I recall the following facts.

In the winter of 1943-1944, in the Sunja-Zagreb region, on my order, 15 hostages from among the Yugoslav residents were hanged ...

At the end of 1943, in the area of ​​​​Frushka Gora, the Cossacks of the 1st Cavalry Regiment hanged 5 or 6 (I don’t remember exactly) peasants in the village.

Cossacks of the 3rd, 4th and 6th cavalry regiments committed mass rape of Yugoslav women in the same area.

In December 1943, similar executions and rapes took place in the area of ​​the city of Brod (Bosnia)

In May 1944, in Croatia, in the area south of the city of Zagreb, the Cossacks of the 1st regiment burned the village ...

... I also recall that in December 1944, the Cossacks of the 5th Cavalry Regiment under the command of Colonel Kononov, during an operation against partisans in the area of ​​the Drava River, not far from the town of Virovititsa, committed mass murder of the population and rape of women ... ".

Probably enough.

If the army of the “father” von Pannwitz, who, together with his “valiant” ataman, had surrendered to the British in May 1945, had not been transferred by the British command to the Soviet side, the government of Yugoslavia would probably have sought his extradition to carry out well-deserved justice.

And undoubtedly, if not in Moscow, then in Belgrade, the punitive general would have received his death sentence.

And now let's turn to the documents on the rehabilitation of this gentleman. As follows from the conclusion submitted for approval by the assistant to the Chief Military Prosecutor, Colonel of Justice V.M. Kruk to the Deputy Chief Military Prosecutor, Lieutenant General of Justice V.A. Smirnov on April 22, 1996, in the temple of army legality, they began to review the case of the “marching chieftain” because the granddaughter of von Pannwitz, Vanessa von Bassevitz, asked for the rehabilitation of her grandfather.

As can be seen from the certificate signed by the assistant to the Chief Military Prosecutor, the basis for the rehabilitation of von Pannwitz was paragraph "a" of Article 3 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On the rehabilitation of victims of political repression" of October 18, 1991. The text of the law reads:

“Subject to rehabilitation are persons who, for political reasons, were:

a) convicted of state and other crimes.

But what does “political motives” have to do with it when it comes to atrocities, violence, and the killing of innocent people. And Article 3 itself is arbitrarily taken out of the context of the law. For Article 4 of the same legal act states:

“The persons listed in Art. 3 of this Law, justifiably convicted by the courts, as well as punished by the decision of non-judicial bodies, in whose cases there is sufficient evidence on charges of committing the following crimes:

... b) committing violent acts against civilian population and prisoners of war, as well as complicity with traitors to the Motherland and fascist invaders in committing such actions during the Great Patriotic War;

... d) war crimes and crimes against justice.”

It is unlikely that the guardian of law in colonel's uniform did not read Art. 4, referring to art. 3, or considered it possible to selectively interpret a legal act, "without noticing" an inconvenient article. Obviously, Pannwitz's confession during interrogations at the MGB (the above excerpts from the protocols) just seemed to him "insufficient" evidence.

"Didn't notice" V.M. Kruk and frank confessions of von Pannwitz during interrogations. How else to explain such a statement by the colonel of justice in the rehabilitation opinion in the Pannwitz case:

“... it has been established that Lieutenant General von Pannwitz during the Great Patriotic War was a citizen of Germany, a member of the German army and carried out his military duties. There is no evidence that von Pannwitz or units subordinate to him committed atrocities and violence against the civilian Soviet population and captured Red Army soldiers.

Probably, I misunderstood something. Apparently, I was far from the level of legal consciousness that Colonel of Justice V.M. Crook…

But after reading these very eloquent documents, this was the thought that haunted me: are not the victims of political repression and are not subject to rehabilitation on the same basis those sentenced to hanging by the Nuremberg Tribunal in 1946, say, the chief of staff of the Supreme High Command of the Wehrmacht, General -Field Marshal W. Keitel or the head of the Imperial Security Main Office, SS Obergruppenführer Dr. E. Kaltenbrunner? After all, “political motives” in their criminal cases are undoubtedly evident. They also fought Bolshevism to the best of their ability. Those sentenced to death by the international court in Nuremberg were again German citizens and "only" carried out their job responsibilities or orders from the Fuhrer. These people did not kill anyone, did not torture or rob anyone ...

Rhetorical question: did the Main military prosecutor's office headed by Deputy Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, Chief Military Prosecutor V.N. Panichev, before rehabilitating von Pannwitz, how far can this kind of "humanism" take legality?

Isn't this a shameless mockery of the memory of the victims of Nazism, of the suffering and grief of millions of our fellow citizens and representatives of other conquered peoples, who bore the brunt of the fight against the "plague of the 20th century"?

Now about where, as they say, the wind blew in the spring of 1996. Recall that the rehabilitation of the Nazi general coincided with the visit of B.N. Yeltsin in Germany. Boris Nikolayevich at that memorable time imagined Russia to be an ally of the FRG and generously demonstrated his cordial disposition towards Chancellor H. Kohl. To confirm this friendship, of course, evidence was required, some kind of specific steps. So the officials from the GVP fussed: the rehabilitation of von Pannwitz became one of the "gestures of goodwill." True, it was designed entirely for the German audience, and neatly hidden from compatriots. This is not just my guess. The same explanation was given to me by a very knowledgeable member of the Service. foreign intelligence. There is evidence that, following Pannwitz, they were going to rehabilitate Hans Rattenhuber, the head of Hitler's personal guard, who ended his days in a Soviet prison, but did not have time. People in the Kremlin began to change, and with them the prevailing mood.

In addition, in 2001, the author of these lines published in two publications - the weekly "Independent Military Review" and the monthly journalistic magazine "Selskaya Nov" - exposing materials about the rehabilitation of Helmut von Pannwitz. After appearances in the press, the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office gave reverse stroke: the rehabilitation of the Nazi punitive general was urgently canceled. In the response received by the editors of the magazine "Selskaya Nov" signed by the head of the Department for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Political Repressions of the State Military Police, Major General of Justice V.K. Kondratov said: “I inform you that the conclusion of April 22, 1996 on the rehabilitation of von Pannwitz Helmut was canceled as unfounded. On June 28 of this year (2001), a conclusion was made that von Pannwitz was justly convicted for the criminal acts committed, there are no grounds for protesting and he is not subject to rehabilitation.

At the same time, it was recognized that the certificate of the rehabilitation of von Pannwitz Helmut has no legal force, of which the interested persons, as well as the relevant state institutions of the Federal Republic of Germany, were notified in writing.

This decision allows us to conclude that corporate solidarity does not dominate GWP lawyers, they are open to public discussion of the problems of human rights activities and sincerely strive to correct the mistakes made.

In a conversation with the editor of the department of history and law of the magazine "Selskaya Nov" (your obedient servant was), Major General of Justice V.K. Kondratov told some details of this case. It turns out that in 1996, contrary to the established long-term practice, the then leadership of the GVP instructed to study the issue of reviewing the von Pannwitz case and prepare an opinion on it not for the Office for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Political Repressions, but personally for the assistant to the Chief Military Prosecutor, Colonel of Justice V.M. Crook. Of course, the secretly drawn up document was not subjected to legal expertise in the aforementioned Department and was approved, in fact, bypassing competent specialists.

If the von Pannwitz case had been considered by us, I think there would have been no mistake, - Valery Konstantinovich emphasized. - After all, our lawyers, when determining the degree of guilt of a person, take into account the totality of circumstances, and not individual formal grounds ...

According to Major General of Justice Kondratov, who has been involved in rehabilitation cases since 1987, Pannwitz's case is unprecedented in its kind.

For example, in the same 1996, when all the sins of the hangman general Pannwitz were “absolved”, the Main Military Prosecutor’s Office considered the cases of Major General G. Remlinger (military commandant of Pskov during the Nazi occupation) and Major General K. Burkhardt ( commandant of the rear of the 6th German army, stationed in 1941 - 1942 in Ukraine). Both were denied rehabilitation: their criminal cases contain similar testimonies about the atrocities they committed as in the interrogation materials of Helmut Pannwitz, with the only difference being that executions and robberies of innocent people were committed on the territory of the USSR.

By the way, in 1997, the GVP considered the cases of Pannwitz's accomplices, sentenced to death by the same sentence passed on January 16, 1947, the leaders of the White Cossacks P.N. and S.N. Krasnov, A.G. Shkuro, Sultan-Gireya Klych, T.I. Domanova. According to Major General of Justice Kondratov, organizations such as the Don Military History Club, the Information Cossack Center of the Union of Cossacks of Russia, and the United Cultural Fund of the Kuban Cossacks insisted on their rehabilitation. However, on December 25, 1997, the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, on the basis of the conclusion of the GVP, issued a final verdict: these persons were punished according to their merits and are not subject to acquittal.

For Helmut von Pannwitz, as we see, an exception was made. Did Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin know what a dubious curtsey was performed in the GVP for the sake of strengthening his personal friendship "with friend Helmut"? Dark water in the clouds ...

The article was published as part of a socially significant project funded by state support allocated as a grant in accordance with the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 11-rp dated January 17, 2014 and on the basis of a competition held by the All-Russian public organization Society "Knowledge" of Russia.

Cossack Helmut von Pannwitz

Helmut von Pannwitz was born on October 14, 1898 in the Botsanovits estate (Rosenberg district, East Silesia). He was the second son of the royal judicial adviser, a retired lieutenant of the 14th Prussian Hussars Wilhelm von Pannwitz and his wife Hertha, née von Ritter.

Silesia (now it is the territory of Poland) - ancient Slavic land, which alternately belonged to Poland, the Czech Republic, the Holy Roman Empire German nation and Austria. In the middle of the 18th century, under Frederick the Great, as a result of the so-called. Silesian wars and the Seven Years' War, this province was finally assigned to the Prussian crown.

The surname von Pannwitz, like many similar representatives of the Prussian service nobility from Silesia (von Seydlitz, von Tirpitz, von Bassewitz, von Yastrzhembsky, von Lewinsky / Manstein / and others), indicates the originally Slavic origin of the founders of the clan. The love for the Cossacks carried by Helmut throughout his life was probably explained by a deep spiritual kinship, which was based, among other things, on these ancestral roots.

Right under the windows of the estate of his parents, a small border river Lisvart flowed - and behind it the territory of the Russian Empire began. From childhood, the future Cossack march chieftain remembered meetings with the Cossacks of the border outpost located on the Russian coast - he was subdued by the art of Cossack horse riding, possession of a saber and a pike.

In 1910, Helmut, at the age of 12, was enrolled in the Walstatt Cadet Corps in Lower Silesia, and in the spring of 1914 he was transferred to the Main Cadet Corps in Lichterfeld near Berlin. When did the 1st World War, the young man obtained permission from his father to volunteer for the army.

On the day of his 16th birthday, Helmut was enrolled as a Fanen Juncker (candidate for the first officer rank) to the reserve squadron of the 1st (West Prussian) His Majesty the Emperor of the All-Russian Alexander III Lancers Regiment in Luben. The regiment was stationed near Liegnitz, where in 1241 the combined Polish-German army of the Silesian duke Henry the Pious and the Teutonic Knights in a bloody battle stopped the movement of Batu Khan's hordes to the West.

For the courage shown in battles, Fenrich (Cornet) von Pannwitz was promoted to lieutenant in March 1915, at the age of 16. 09/16/1915 he was presented to the Iron Cross of the 2nd degree. For valor in the battles of the summer of 1916 and 1917 in the Carpathians, Helmut von Pannwitz was awarded the Iron Cross, 1st class.

At the end great war G. von Pannwitz defended eastern borders Germany in the ranks volunteer corps". Veteran of the XVth Cossack Cavalry Corps Helmut Meller recalled:

“Just as the Cossacks fought alongside us shoulder to shoulder against the Reds, fought in the ranks of the “volunteer corps” in 1918-1923. against the "Spartacists" and our fathers, who saved us from the establishment of a communist regime in our country. They didn't fight for Hitler's regime but against the Bolshevik system. They wanted to be free citizens of a free country.

Our fathers were soldiers of the 1st World War. Helmut von Pannwitz fought in the ranks of the “Ehrhardt Brigade” in Berlin and Upper Silesia, and my father in the ranks of the “Steel Helmet” of Franz Seldt. By their heroic struggle they did not allow Germany, like Russia, to fall victim to the Red Army and the world revolution. Shoulder to shoulder with the Reichswehr, they restored order by 1923, prevented the Bolshevik coup and thus saved the future of democracy…”

Because of his injury in March 1920 (after the so-called “Kapp Putsch”), von Pannwitz had to retire. It seemed that the officer's career was over, for several years he served as a manager of estates in Poland. But the love of military craft made Helmut von Pannwitz return to Germany in the summer of 1933.

At first, he trained reservists in the 7th Cavalry Regiment in Breslau (Breslavl), and in 1935 he was enlisted in the 2nd Cavalry Regiment in Angerburg ( East Prussia) as a squadron commander with the rank of captain. On April 9, 1938, he marries Ingeborg Neuland in Konigsberg (a daughter and two sons were born from this marriage).

Already in the rank of major, von Pannwitz was in 1938 after the “Anschluss” (Austria joining Germany) he was transferred to the newly formed 11th Cavalry Regiment in Stockerau near Vienna.

With the outbreak of World War II, he, as commander of the reconnaissance detachment of the 45th division, participated in the Polish, then in French campaign, was awarded the bar-replicas to the Iron Crosses for the 1st World War (09/23/1939 - bar to the Iron Cross 2nd, 10/05/1939 - to the cross of the 1st degree).

From the very beginning of the war against the USSR, the Silesian officer repeatedly confirmed the reputation of a brave and prudent commander. Already on September 4, 1941, von Pannwitz, being a lieutenant colonel, commander of the 45th reconnaissance detachment of the 45th Wehrmacht Infantry Division, which was part of the 2nd Army of Army Group Center, was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. 08.07 von Pannwitz in the Davidgrodek-Turov area near Olszany encountered superior Red forces. Von Pannwitz, immediately realizing the difficult situation in which the German units found themselves east of the Olshansky Canal, not only saved these units by breaking through at the head of a weakened scooter platoon into the burning village and taking it by storm, but also restored the situation that existed before the battle, creating the prerequisite for the subsequent successful offensive divisions.

He always strove for the greatest possible success with minimal losses - he fought not “in Zhukovsky's way”, but “in Suvorov's way”: he beat the enemy “not by number, but by skill”.

In November 1941, after a severe cold complicated by pneumonia and sciatica, von Pannwitz was forced to leave the front. In early 1942 he was transferred to the High Command Ground Forces, where he developed instructions for mobile troops.
Helmut von Pannwitz, who was promoted to colonel in April 1942, used the time allotted to him to implement the idea of ​​creating independent Cossack military units. He knew that the Cossacks during civil war in Russia remained the core of all anti-Bolshevik formations, for which, after the victory of the communists, they were deprived not only of their sweat and blood-deserved privileges, but also of elementary civil rights have been repressed on numerous occasions. He also knew that the entry of German troops into the Cossack lands along the Don, Kuban and Terek was welcomed by a significant part of the population as the arrival of liberators, that many Cossacks (and not only them) were ready to continue the armed struggle against the Bolsheviks.

Croatia, 1944. Before the line of Cossacks

Since childhood, having learned to understand and love the Cossacks, von Pannwitz clearly saw the prospects for the Cossack revival, its importance in the fight against Bolshevism. Despite the fierce resistance - especially Hitler's secretary Martin Bormann (who led his own game that was not fully understood) and the Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler (a fanatical racist who did not even allow the thought of the Cossacks as a full ally of the Axis countries) - von Pannwitz, with the support generals Koestring, Zeitzler, von Kleist and Colonel Schenck von Stauffenberg (the same one who almost liquidated Hitler on July 20, 1944; and after all, with the success of the assassination attempt, the fate of Russia could have turned out differently!) managed to obtain in September 1942 the authority to form large volunteer units in the Cossack regions.

Contrary to the insinuations of modern hack writers, Helmut von Pannwitz never went to Himmler's "favorites". XV KKK veteran Ernst Walther von Mossner recalls how General von Pannwitz saved him from arrest by the Gestapo after July 20, 1944. Von Mossner's father, an honored German general, but an adversary Nazi regime, died in December 1944 in Buchenwald. His son, the commander of a Cossack cavalry squadron, fell into the “sphere of close attention” of the Gestapo, who was looking for “an excuse to get rid of a suspicious officer” (oh naive Germans! imagine, for comparison, Soviet NKVD, forced to “look for an excuse” to get rid of the “suspicious” Soviet commander after the elimination of his father, Soviet general, in Stalin's Gulag!).
Soon the Gestapo found such a "reason". Von Mossner, Jr., like a gentleman, invited the commander of the Tito’s “People’s Liberation Army” captured by the Cossacks to dine with his officers at the command post before being sent to headquarters for interrogation. In the Agram (Zagreb) Gestapo, von Mossner's act was interpreted in a purely Nazi spirit. But when the Gestapo men came for von Mossner, the Cossacks of the life escort of Lieutenant General von Pannwitz, on his orders, refused to extradite the officer. Under the threat of the use of weapons, the “fighters of the invisible front” had to get out without salty slurping ...

With Lieutenant General A.G. Shkuro

During von Pannwitz's trip to the Caucasus, Soviet troops broke through into the Kalmyk steppe. There were no free German troops capable of withstanding the breakthrough. Von Pannwitz was ordered to close the gap with rear units and everything that was available. The colonel managed to recruit a “combat group” of only 1,000 bayonets. The group, which included cavalry and foot Cossack units, a tank detachment, a Romanian cavalry brigade, a Romanian battery of motorized heavy artillery, separate rear and transport units and several anti-aircraft guns, starting from 11/15/1942, destroyed northeast of Kotelnikovo, which broke through the front 61 th Soviet division, then the 81st Soviet cavalry division under Kotelniki and finally the Soviet rifle division (under Pimen Cherny/Nebykov). For this operation, Helmut von Pannwitz on December 23, 1942 received "oak leaves" to the Knight's Cross (N ° 167) and the highest Romanian military order "Michael the Brave".

With the German retreat in early 1943, thousands of Cossacks moved to the West with their families, fleeing the inevitable Soviet repressions. And only here (although the favorable moment was long lost!) German leadership Finally, it was decided to give the go-ahead to the formation of a Cossack cavalry division.

In March 1943, the 1st Cossack Army was formed in Milau (Mlava). Cavalry division- the first large "white" Cossack unit in the 2nd World War. This division was headed by Helmut von Pannwitz, promoted in June 1943 to Major General of the Wehrmacht.

With ataman P.N. Krasnov

The Cossacks rushed to Eastern front- everyone had their own scores with the communists. However, already in the autumn of 1943, the division was transferred to Croatia to fight the communist partisans. The Cossacks coped with the task within 4 months - and this is in the center of the Balkans, the “powder keg of Europe” (where today all kinds of “peacekeepers” cannot stop the bloodshed for a whole decade!).

In January 1945, promoted to lieutenant general Helmut von Pannwitz was unanimously elected by the All-Cossack Circle in Virovititsa as the “Supreme Field Ataman of all Cossack troops”. He took this election as a great responsibility and the highest honor. After all, since 1835, the title of Supreme Ataman of the Cossack Troops was borne by the Heir to the Russian Throne (and the Holy Martyr Tsarevich Alexy was, thus, the direct Predecessor in this post of Helmut von Pannwitz - who was soon destined to suffer a martyr's death from the same hands). The fact of such an election German general spoke about the trust that the Cossacks had in the commander. It is worth mentioning here that even in the most harsh days fighting, he cared not only about the state of the Cossacks of the corps, but also about the future of the Cossacks. So, on his initiative, the School of Young Cossacks was created at the corps, primarily for orphans. The general himself adopted the "son of the regiment" Boris Nabokov, assigning him to this school.

At the end of the war, he was elected Cossack chieftain
G. von Pannwitz defiantly wore a Cossack uniform

From February 1, 1945, “Old Man Pannwitz” was under the command of the XV Cossack Cavalry Corps, which was in the process of formation (consisting of two divisions and one brigade). By the end of the war, the Corps, numbering more than 20,000 bayonets and cavalry, occupied positions on the southern bank of the river. Drava. Von Pannwitz understood what fate awaited the Cossacks if they were captured by Soviet troops, and decided to make his way to Carinthia - that part of Austria that was part of the British occupation zone.

With the children of the Cossack Corps and adopted son Boris

On May 9, 1945, Cossack units entered Carinthia in contact with the British 11th Panzer Division. Two days later, “Old Pannwitz” in last time, already in the presence of British officers, accepted the parade of the Don Cossack regiment, after which the Cossacks laid down their arms - believing the word of honor of the British "gentlemen" that under no circumstances would they extradite them to the Bolshevik executioners. In the days that followed, the general visited one Cossack camp after another to provide moral support to his Cossacks and defend their interests before the British military authorities. On May 24, a repeated solemn assurance was received from the British that none of the Cossacks would be handed over to the Reds. Meanwhile, on May 23, an agreement was reached between the British and the Bolsheviks on the “repatriation” of the Cossacks ...

After the isolation and extradition of the Cossack generals and officers in Spital, on May 27, British soldiers began to surround camp after camp, taking the Cossacks to Graz, where the latter, with the use of cruel violence, were handed over to the clutches of the Bolsheviks. At the same time, near Lienz, about 20,000 Cossacks of reserve units (Cossack Stan) and almost the same civilians who fled to Tyrol from their settlements in Northern Italy. The heartbreaking scenes played out at the same time have already been described many times. The British army will never wash this shameful stain from their uniform!

General von Pannwitz, as a German citizen, was not subject to extradition. The British invited him to take refuge in their camp for German prisoners of war - although they did not think of giving such a choice to other Cossack generals, officers and Cossacks, who had also never been Soviet citizens (and General Shkuro, as a holder of the highest British military order of the Bath, was even a member of the House of Lords and peer British Empire!). Be that as it may, “Old Pannwitz,” as Philipp von Scheller, a veteran of the corps, recalls, gathered his German officers and declared that he shared the good with the Cossacks and intends to share the bad with them, to be with them to the end.

As a sign of readiness to share the fate of his Cossacks, Helmut von Pannwitz ripped off the cap and uniform of the German eagles with a swastika - this is how he is depicted on latest photos before issuance. German officers he offered to "think about your own head." To the credit of the latter, they followed the example of their commander and went along with the Cossacks along the stage to Siberia - from where few returned.

"Old Man Pannwitz" was delivered to Moscow, where Military Board Supreme Court The USSR recognized him and five generals - the leaders of the Cossack Camp (Peter Krasnov, Andrey Shkuro, Sultan Kelech-Girey, Semyon Krasnov and Timofey Domanov) - guilty of espionage, sabotage and terrorist activities against the Soviet Union, sentenced to death by hanging. The verdict of the unjust court was carried out on January 16, 1947.

Photo January 16, 1947 -
during the reading of the verdict

Thus ended the life of the last Supreme Ataman of all the Cossack troops, the honorary Kuban, Terek, Siberian and Don Cossack, a brave officer, a staunch anti-communist. All his life he was faithful to the ancient motto of the Teutonic Knights, attested by a medieval chronicler: "When our hour comes, we will die, as befits knights, for the sake of our brethren, so that our honor would not be crushed." Which fully corresponds to the Cossack rule repeated by Suvorov: "Die yourself, but help your comrade!", And the testament of Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich: "The dead have no shame!"

Thanks to his rare qualities of character, Helmut von Pannwitz won the hearts of his villagers, remaining faithful to them to the grave. Having made friends with the Cossack border guards at the beginning of his life, he sacrificed himself to the German-Cossack brotherhood in arms, imprinting it forever at the cost of his own life. And no “rehabilitation” is needed for someone whose good name has remained unsullied, who has lived his life like a knight without fear and reproach. And the court… Well, two millennia ago Christ was also sentenced to a shameful death (“cursed is everyone hanging on a tree”)!..

Wolfgang Akunov