“I am a soldier and I remain true to my duty. And he forbids me to work for the country that is at war with my Motherland, ”this is how the Nazi plans were shattered by the intransigence of Soviet General Dmitry Karbyshev during the Great Patriotic War.
About the forgotten feat of General Karbyshev and why the German side needed him so much...
In February 1946, a representative of the Soviet mission for repatriation in England was informed that a wounded Canadian officer, who was in a hospital near London, urgently wanted to see him. The officer, a former prisoner of the Mauthausen concentration camp, considered it necessary to inform the Soviet representative of "extremely important information."
The Canadian major's name was Seddon De St. Clair. “I want to tell you about how Lieutenant General Dmitry Karbyshev died,” the officer said when the Soviet representative appeared at the hospital.
The story of the Canadian military became the first news about Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev since 1941 ...
Cadet from an unreliable family
Dmitry Karbyshev was born on October 26, 1880 in a military family. From childhood, he dreamed of continuing the dynasty started by his father and grandfather. Dmitry entered the Siberian Cadet Corps, however, despite the diligence shown in his studies, he was listed among the “unreliable” there.
The fact is that Dmitry's older brother, Vladimir, participated in a revolutionary circle created at Kazan University, along with another young radical, Vladimir Ulyanov. But if the future leader of the revolution escaped with only an exception from the university, then Vladimir Karbyshev ended up in prison, where he later died.
Despite the stigma of "unreliable", Dmitry Karbyshev studied brilliantly, and in 1898, after graduating from the cadet corps, he entered the Nikolaev Engineering School.
Of all the military specialties, Karbyshev was most attracted by the construction of fortifications and defensive structures.
The talent of the young officer was first clearly manifested in the Russian-Japanese campaign - Karbyshev strengthened positions, built bridges across rivers, installed communications equipment and conducted reconnaissance in force.
Despite the unsuccessful outcome of the war for Russia, Karbyshev showed himself to be a great specialist, which was marked by medals and the rank of lieutenant.
From Przemysl to Perekop
But for free thinking in 1906, Lieutenant Karbyshev was fired from the service. True, not for long - the command was smart enough to understand that specialists of this level should not be scattered.
On the eve of the First World War, Staff Captain Dmitry Karbyshev designed the forts of the Brest Fortress - the very ones in which Soviet soldiers would fight the Nazis thirty years later.
Karbyshev went through the First World War as a divisional engineer of the 78th and 69th infantry divisions, and then as the head of the engineering service of the 22nd Finnish Rifle Corps. For courage and courage during the assault on Przemysl and during the Brusilov breakthrough, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and awarded the Order of St. Anna.
During the revolution, Lieutenant Colonel Karbyshev did not rush about, but immediately joined the Red Guard. All his life he was true to his views and beliefs, which he did not renounce.
In November 1920, Dmitry Karbyshev was engaged in engineering support for the assault on Perekop, the success of which finally decided the outcome of the Civil War.
Missing
By the end of the 1930s, Dmitry Karbyshev was considered one of the most prominent specialists in the field of military engineering, not only in the Soviet Union, but throughout the world. In 1940 he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general, and in 1941 - a doctorate in military sciences.
On the eve of the Great Patriotic War, General Karbyshev worked on the creation of defensive structures on the western border. During one of his trips to the border, he was caught by the outbreak of hostilities.
The rapid advance of the Nazis put the Soviet troops in a difficult position. The 60-year-old general of engineering troops is not the most necessary person in units that are threatened with encirclement. However, they failed to evacuate Karbyshev. However, he himself, like a real combat officer, decided to break out of the Nazi "bag" along with our units.
But on August 8, 1941, Lieutenant General Karbyshev was seriously shell-shocked in a battle near the Dnieper River, and was taken prisoner in an unconscious state.
From that moment until 1945, a short phrase would appear in his personal file: "Missing."
The German command was convinced that Karbyshev was an accident among the Bolsheviks. A nobleman, an officer of the tsarist army, he will easily agree to go over to their side. In the end, he and the CPSU (b) joined only in 1940, apparently under duress.
However, very soon the Nazis discovered that Karbyshev was a tough nut to crack. The 60-year-old general refused to serve the Third Reich, expressed confidence in the final victory of the Soviet Union and in no way resembled a man broken by captivity.
In March 1942, Karbyshev was transferred to the Hammelburg officer concentration camp. It carried out active psychological processing of high-ranking Soviet officers in order to force them to go over to the side of Germany. For the sake of this, the most humane and benevolent conditions were created. Many who drank dashing in ordinary soldier's camps broke down on this. Karbyshev, however, turned out to be from a completely different text - it was not possible to “reforge” him with any benefits and indulgences.
Soon, Colonel Pelit was assigned to Karbyshev.
Pelit, a subtle psychologist, described to Karbyshev all the advantages of serving great Germany, offered "compromise options for cooperation" - for example, the general is engaged in historical works on the military operations of the Red Army in the current war, and for this he will be allowed to travel to a neutral country in the future.
However, Karbyshev again dismissed all the options for cooperation proposed by the Nazis.
Incorruptible
Then the Nazis made one last attempt. The general was transferred to a solitary cell in one of the Berlin prisons, where he was kept for about three weeks.
After that, a colleague, the famous German fortifier Professor Heinz Raubenheimer, was waiting for him in the investigator's office.
The Nazis knew that Karbyshev and Raubenheimer knew each other, moreover, the Russian general respected the work of the German scientist.
Raubenheimer voiced to Karbyshev the following proposal from the authorities of the Third Reich. The general was offered release from the camp, the possibility of moving to a private apartment, as well as complete material security. He will have access to all libraries and book depositories in Germany, and will be given the opportunity to get acquainted with other materials in the areas of military engineering that interest him. If necessary, any number of assistants was guaranteed to equip the laboratory, carry out development work and provide other research activities. The results of the work should become the property of German specialists.
All ranks of the German army will treat Karbyshev as a lieutenant general of the engineering troops of the German Reich.
An elderly man who had gone through hardships in the camps was offered luxurious conditions while maintaining his position and even his rank. He was not even required to brand Stalin and the Bolshevik regime. The Nazis were interested in the work of Karbyshev in his main specialty.
Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev understood perfectly well that this was most likely the last proposal. He also understood what would follow the refusal.
However, the courageous general said: “My beliefs do not fall out along with my teeth from a lack of vitamins in the camp diet. I am a soldier and I remain true to my duty. And he forbids me to work for the country that is at war with my Motherland.”
The Nazis really counted on Karbyshev, on his influence and authority. It was he, and not General Vlasov, who, according to the original idea, was to lead the Russian Liberation Army.
But all the plans of the Nazis were shattered by the inflexibility of Karbyshev.
Tombstones for fascists
After this refusal, the Nazis put an end to the general, defining him as "a convinced, fanatical Bolshevik, whose use in the service of the Reich is impossible."
Karbyshev was sent to the Flossenbürg concentration camp, where they began to be used in hard labor of particular severity. But here, too, the general surprised his comrades in misfortune with his unbending will, fortitude and confidence in the final victory of the Red Army.
One of the Soviet prisoners later recalled that Karbyshev knew how to cheer up even in the most difficult moments. When the prisoners were working on the manufacture of gravestones, the general remarked: “This is the work that gives me real pleasure. The more tombstones the Germans demand from us, the better, it means, our business is going on at the front.
He was transferred from camp to camp, the conditions became more and more harsh, but they failed to break Karbyshev. In each of the camps where the general found himself, he became a real leader of the spiritual resistance to the enemy. His resilience gave strength to those around him.
The front rolled to the West. Soviet troops entered the territory of Germany. The outcome of the war became obvious even to staunch Nazis. The Nazis had nothing left but hatred and a desire to deal with those who turned out to be stronger than them even in chains and behind barbed wire ...
Major Seddon De St. Clair was one of several dozen prisoners of war who managed to survive the terrible night of February 18, 1945 in the Mauthausen concentration camp.
“As soon as we entered the territory of the camp, the Germans drove us into the shower room, ordered us to undress and let jets of icy water fall on us from above. This went on for a long time. Everyone turned blue. Many fell to the floor and immediately died: the heart could not stand it. Then we were told to put on only underwear and wooden blocks on our feet and were driven out into the yard. General Karbyshev was standing in a group of Russian comrades not far from me. We understood that we were living out the last hours.
A couple of minutes later, the Gestapo men, who were standing behind us with fire hoses in their hands, began to pour streams of cold water on us. Those who tried to evade the jet were beaten with clubs on the head. Hundreds of people fell frozen or with crushed skulls. I saw how General Karbyshev also fell, ”said the Canadian major.
The last words of the general were addressed to those who shared a terrible fate with him: “Cheer up, comrades! Think of the Motherland, and courage will not leave you!
The hero of the USSR
From the story of the Canadian major, the collection of information about the last years of the life of General Karbyshev, spent in German captivity, began. All the collected documents and eyewitness accounts spoke of the exceptional courage and resilience of this man.
On August 16, 1946, for the exceptional stamina and courage shown in the fight against the German invaders in the Great Patriotic War, Lieutenant General Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Monument to General Dmitry Karbyshev in Mauthausen. Photo: RIA Novosti
In 1948, a monument to the general was unveiled on the territory of the former Mauthausen concentration camp. The inscription on it reads: “To Dmitry Karbyshev. To the scientist. Warrior. Communist. His life and death were a feat in the name of life.
In February 1946, a representative of the Soviet mission for repatriation in England was informed that a wounded Canadian officer, who was in a hospital near London, urgently wanted to see him. The officer, a former prisoner of the Mauthausen concentration camp, considered it necessary to inform the Soviet representative of "extremely important information."
The Canadian major's name was Seddon De St. Clair. “I want to tell you about how Lieutenant General Dmitry Karbyshev died,” the officer said when the Soviet representative appeared at the hospital.
The story of the Canadian military became the first news about Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev since 1941 ...
Cadet from an unreliable family
Dmitry Karbyshev was born on October 26, 1880 in a military family. From childhood, he dreamed of continuing the dynasty started by his father and grandfather. Dmitry entered the Siberian Cadet Corps, however, despite the diligence shown in his studies, he was listed among the “unreliable” there.
The fact is that Dmitry's older brother, Vladimir, participated in a revolutionary circle created at Kazan University, along with another young radical, Vladimir Ulyanov. But if the future leader of the revolution escaped with only an exception from the university, then Vladimir Karbyshev ended up in prison, where he later died.
Despite the stigma of "unreliable", Dmitry Karbyshev studied brilliantly, and in 1898, after graduating from the cadet corps, he entered the Nikolaev Engineering School.
Of all the military specialties, Karbyshev was most attracted by the construction of fortifications and defensive structures.
The talent of the young officer was first clearly manifested in the Russian-Japanese campaign - Karbyshev strengthened positions, built bridges across rivers, installed communications equipment and conducted reconnaissance in force.
Despite the unsuccessful outcome of the war for Russia, Karbyshev showed himself to be a great specialist, which was marked by medals and the rank of lieutenant.
From Przemysl to Perekop
But for free thinking in 1906, Lieutenant Karbyshev was fired from the service. True, not for long - the command was smart enough to understand that specialists of this level should not be scattered.
On the eve of the First World War, Staff Captain Dmitry Karbyshev designed the forts of the Brest Fortress - the very ones in which Soviet soldiers would fight the Nazis thirty years later.
Karbyshev went through the First World War as a divisional engineer of the 78th and 69th infantry divisions, and then as the head of the engineering service of the 22nd Finnish Rifle Corps. For courage and courage during the assault on Przemysl and during the Brusilov breakthrough, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and awarded the Order of St. Anna.
During the revolution, Lieutenant Colonel Karbyshev did not rush about, but immediately joined the Red Guard. All his life he was true to his views and beliefs, which he did not renounce.
In November 1920, Dmitry Karbyshev was engaged in engineering support for the assault on Perekop, the success of which finally decided the outcome of the Civil War.
Missing
By the end of the 1930s, Dmitry Karbyshev was considered one of the most prominent specialists in the field of military engineering, not only in the Soviet Union, but throughout the world. In 1940 he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general, and in 1941 - a doctorate in military sciences.
On the eve of the Great Patriotic War, General Karbyshev worked on the creation of defensive structures on the western border. During one of his trips to the border, he was caught by the outbreak of hostilities.
The rapid advance of the Nazis put the Soviet troops in a difficult position. The 60-year-old general of engineering troops is not the most necessary person in units that are threatened with encirclement. However, they failed to evacuate Karbyshev. However, he himself, like a real combat officer, decided to break out of the Nazi "bag" along with our units.
But on August 8, 1941, Lieutenant General Karbyshev was seriously shell-shocked in a battle near the Dnieper River, and was taken prisoner in an unconscious state.
From that moment until 1945, a short phrase would appear in his personal file: "Missing."
The German command was convinced that Karbyshev was an accident among the Bolsheviks. A nobleman, an officer of the tsarist army, he will easily agree to go over to their side. In the end, he and the CPSU (b) joined only in 1940, apparently under duress.
However, very soon the Nazis discovered that Karbyshev was a tough nut to crack. The 60-year-old general refused to serve the Third Reich, expressed confidence in the final victory of the Soviet Union and in no way resembled a man broken by captivity.
In March 1942, Karbyshev was transferred to the Hammelburg officer concentration camp. It carried out active psychological processing of high-ranking Soviet officers in order to force them to go over to the side of Germany. For the sake of this, the most humane and benevolent conditions were created. Many who drank dashing in ordinary soldier's camps broke down on this. Karbyshev, however, turned out to be from a completely different text - it was not possible to “reforge” him with any benefits and indulgences.
Soon, Colonel Pelit was assigned to Karbyshev. This Wehrmacht officer was fluent in Russian, as he once served in the tsarist army. Moreover, Pelit was a colleague of Karbyshev while working on the forts of the Brest Fortress.
Pelit, a subtle psychologist, described to Karbyshev all the advantages of serving great Germany, offered "compromise options for cooperation" - for example, the general is engaged in historical works on the military operations of the Red Army in the current war, and for this he will be allowed to travel to a neutral country in the future.
However, Karbyshev again dismissed all the options for cooperation proposed by the Nazis.
Incorruptible
Then the Nazis made one last attempt. The general was transferred to a solitary cell in one of the Berlin prisons, where he was kept for about three weeks.
After that, a colleague, the famous German fortifier Professor Heinz Raubenheimer, was waiting for him in the investigator's office.
The Nazis knew that Karbyshev and Raubenheimer knew each other, moreover, the Russian general respected the work of the German scientist.
Raubenheimer voiced to Karbyshev the following proposal from the authorities of the Third Reich. The general was offered release from the camp, the possibility of moving to a private apartment, as well as complete material security. He will have access to all libraries and book depositories in Germany, and will be given the opportunity to get acquainted with other materials in the areas of military engineering that interest him. If necessary, any number of assistants was guaranteed to equip the laboratory, carry out development work and provide other research activities. The results of the work should become the property of German specialists. All ranks of the German army will treat Karbyshev as a lieutenant general of the engineering troops of the German Reich.
An elderly man who had gone through hardships in the camps was offered luxurious conditions while maintaining his position and even his rank. He was not even required to brand Stalin and the Bolshevik regime. The Nazis were interested in the work of Karbyshev in his main specialty.
Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev understood perfectly well that this was most likely the last proposal. He also understood what would follow the refusal.
However, the courageous general said: “My beliefs do not fall out along with my teeth from a lack of vitamins in the camp diet. I am a soldier and I remain true to my duty. And he forbids me to work for the country that is at war with my Motherland.”
The Nazis really counted on Karbyshev, on his influence and authority. It was he, and not General Vlasov, who, according to the original idea, was to lead the Russian Liberation Army.
But all the plans of the Nazis were shattered by the inflexibility of Karbyshev.
Tombstones for fascists
After this refusal, the Nazis put an end to the general, defining him as "a convinced, fanatical Bolshevik, whose use in the service of the Reich is impossible."
Karbyshev was sent to the Flossenbürg concentration camp, where they began to be used in hard labor of particular severity. But here, too, the general surprised his comrades in misfortune with his unbending will, fortitude and confidence in the final victory of the Red Army.
One of the Soviet prisoners later recalled that Karbyshev knew how to cheer up even in the most difficult moments. When the prisoners were working on the manufacture of gravestones, the general remarked: “This is the work that gives me real pleasure. The more tombstones the Germans demand from us, the better, it means, our business is going on at the front.
He was transferred from camp to camp, the conditions became more and more harsh, but they failed to break Karbyshev. In each of the camps where the general found himself, he became a real leader of the spiritual resistance to the enemy. His resilience gave strength to those around him.
The front rolled to the West. Soviet troops entered the territory of Germany. The outcome of the war became obvious even to staunch Nazis. The Nazis had nothing left but hatred and a desire to deal with those who turned out to be stronger than them even in chains and behind barbed wire ...
Major Seddon De St. Clair was one of several dozen prisoners of war who managed to survive the terrible night of February 18, 1945 in the Mauthausen concentration camp.
“As soon as we entered the territory of the camp, the Germans drove us into the shower room, ordered us to undress and let jets of icy water fall on us from above. This went on for a long time. Everyone turned blue. Many fell to the floor and immediately died: the heart could not stand it. Then we were told to put on only underwear and wooden blocks on our feet and were driven out into the yard. General Karbyshev was standing in a group of Russian comrades not far from me. We understood that we were living out the last hours. A couple of minutes later, the Gestapo men, who were standing behind us with fire hoses in their hands, began to pour streams of cold water on us. Those who tried to evade the jet were beaten with clubs on the head. Hundreds of people fell frozen or with crushed skulls. I saw how General Karbyshev also fell, ”said the Canadian major.
The last words of the general were addressed to those who shared a terrible fate with him: “Cheer up, comrades! Think of the Motherland, and courage will not leave you!
The hero of the USSR
From the story of the Canadian major, the collection of information about the last years of the life of General Karbyshev, spent in German captivity, began. All the collected documents and eyewitness accounts spoke of the exceptional courage and resilience of this man.
On August 16, 1946, for the exceptional stamina and courage shown in the fight against the German invaders in the Great Patriotic War, Lieutenant General Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
In 1948, a monument to the general was unveiled on the territory of the former Mauthausen concentration camp. The inscription on it reads: “To Dmitry Karbyshev. To the scientist. Warrior. Communist. His life and death were a feat in the name of life.
In February 1946, a representative of the Soviet mission for repatriation in England was informed that a wounded Canadian officer, who was in a hospital near London, urgently wanted to see him. The officer, a former prisoner of the Mauthausen concentration camp, considered it necessary to inform the Soviet representative of "extremely important information."
The name of the Canadian Major Seddon De St. Clair. "I want to tell you about how I died Lieutenant General Dmitry Karbyshev”, the officer said when the Soviet representative appeared at the hospital.
The story of the Canadian military became the first news about Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev since 1941 ...
Cadet from an unreliable family
Dmitry Karbyshev was born on October 26, 1880 in a military family. From childhood, he dreamed of continuing the dynasty started by his father and grandfather. Dmitry entered the Siberian Cadet Corps, however, despite the diligence shown in his studies, he was listed among the “unreliable” there.
The fact is that Dmitry's older brother, Vladimir, participated in a revolutionary circle created at Kazan University, together with another young radical - Vladimir Ulyanov. But if the future leader of the revolution escaped with only an exception from the university, then Vladimir Karbyshev ended up in prison, where he later died.
The building of the Omsk Cadet Corps, which graduated from Dmitry Karbyshev. Photo: www.russianlook.com
Despite the stigma of "unreliable", Dmitry Karbyshev studied brilliantly, and in 1898, after graduating from the cadet corps, he entered the Nikolaev Engineering School.
Of all the military specialties, Karbyshev was most attracted by the construction of fortifications and defensive structures.
The talent of a young officer was first clearly manifested in the Russian-Japanese campaign - Karbyshev strengthened positions, built bridges across rivers, installed communications equipment and conducted reconnaissance in force.
Despite the unsuccessful outcome of the war for Russia, Karbyshev showed himself to be a great specialist, which was marked by medals and the rank of lieutenant.
From Przemysl to Perekop
But for free thinking in 1906, Lieutenant Karbyshev was fired from the service. True, not for long - the command was smart enough to understand that specialists of this level should not be scattered.
On the eve of the First World War, Staff Captain Dmitry Karbyshev designed the forts of the Brest Fortress - the very ones in which Soviet soldiers would fight the Nazis thirty years later.
Karbyshev went through the First World War as a divisional engineer of the 78th and 69th infantry divisions, and then as the head of the engineering service of the 22nd Finnish Rifle Corps. For courage and courage during the assault on Przemysl and during the Brusilov breakthrough, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and awarded the Order of St. Anna.
General Dmitry Karbyshev. Photo: Public Domain
During the revolution, Lieutenant Colonel Karbyshev did not rush about, but immediately joined the Red Guard. All his life he was true to his views and beliefs, which he did not renounce.
In November 1920, Dmitry Karbyshev was engaged in engineering support for the assault on Perekop, the success of which finally decided the outcome of the Civil War.
Missing
By the end of the 1930s, Dmitry Karbyshev was considered one of the most prominent specialists in the field of military engineering, not only in the Soviet Union, but throughout the world. In 1940 he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general, and in 1941 - the degree of doctor of military sciences.
On the eve of the Great Patriotic War, General Karbyshev worked on the creation of defensive structures on the western border. During one of his trips to the border, he was caught by the outbreak of hostilities.
The rapid advance of the Nazis put the Soviet troops in a difficult position. The 60-year-old general of engineering troops is not the most necessary person in units that are threatened with encirclement. However, they failed to evacuate Karbyshev. However, he himself, like a real combat officer, decided to break out of the Nazi "bag" along with our units.
But on August 8, 1941, Lieutenant General Karbyshev was seriously shell-shocked in a battle near the Dnieper River, and was taken prisoner in an unconscious state.
From that moment until 1945, a short phrase would appear in his personal file: "Missing."
Valuable Specialist
The German command was convinced that Karbyshev was an accident among the Bolsheviks. A nobleman, an officer of the tsarist army, he will easily agree to go over to their side. In the end, he and the CPSU (b) joined only in 1940, apparently under duress.
However, very soon the Nazis discovered that Karbyshev was a tough nut to crack. The 60-year-old general refused to serve the Third Reich, expressed confidence in the final victory of the Soviet Union and in no way resembled a man broken by captivity.
In March 1942, Karbyshev was transferred to the Hammelburg officer concentration camp. It carried out active psychological processing of high-ranking Soviet officers in order to force them to go over to the side of Germany. For the sake of this, the most humane and benevolent conditions were created. Many who drank dashing in ordinary soldier's camps broke down on this. Karbyshev, however, turned out to be from a completely different test - it was not possible to “reforge” him with any benefits and indulgences.
Soon Karbyshev was assigned colonel Pelita. This Wehrmacht officer was fluent in Russian, as he once served in the tsarist army. Moreover, Pelit was a colleague of Karbyshev while working on the forts of the Brest Fortress.
Pelit, a subtle psychologist, described to Karbyshev all the advantages of serving great Germany, offered "compromise options for cooperation" - for example, the general is engaged in historical works on the military operations of the Red Army in the current war, and for this he will be allowed to travel to a neutral country in the future.
However, Karbyshev again dismissed all the options for cooperation proposed by the Nazis.
Incorruptible
Then the Nazis made one last attempt. The general was transferred to a solitary cell in one of the Berlin prisons, where he was kept for about three weeks.
After that, a colleague, a well-known German fortifier Professor Heinz Raubenheimer.
The Nazis knew that Karbyshev and Raubenheimer knew each other, moreover, the Russian general respected the work of the German scientist.
Raubenheimer voiced to Karbyshev the following proposal from the authorities of the Third Reich. The general was offered release from the camp, the possibility of moving to a private apartment, as well as complete material security. He will have access to all libraries and book depositories in Germany, and will be given the opportunity to get acquainted with other materials in the areas of military engineering that interest him. If necessary, any number of assistants was guaranteed to equip the laboratory, carry out development work and provide other research activities. The results of the work should become the property of German specialists. All ranks of the German army will treat Karbyshev as a lieutenant general of the engineering troops of the German Reich.
An elderly man who had gone through hardships in the camps was offered luxurious conditions while maintaining his position and even his rank. He was not even required to stigmatize Stalin and the Bolshevik regime. The Nazis were interested in the work of Karbyshev in his main specialty.
Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev understood perfectly well that this was most likely the last proposal. He also understood what would follow the refusal.
However, the courageous general said: “My beliefs do not fall out along with my teeth from a lack of vitamins in the camp diet. I am a soldier and I remain true to my duty. And he forbids me to work for the country that is at war with my Motherland.”
The Nazis really counted on Karbyshev, on his influence and authority. It is he, not general Vlasov, according to the original idea, was to lead the Russian Liberation Army.
But all the plans of the Nazis were shattered by the inflexibility of Karbyshev.
Tombstones for fascists
After this refusal, the Nazis put an end to the general, defining him as "a convinced, fanatical Bolshevik, whose use in the service of the Reich is impossible."
Karbyshev was sent to the Flossenbürg concentration camp, where they began to be used in hard labor of particular severity. But here, too, the general surprised his comrades in misfortune with his unbending will, fortitude and confidence in the final victory of the Red Army.
One of the Soviet prisoners later recalled that Karbyshev knew how to cheer up even in the most difficult moments. When the prisoners were working on the manufacture of gravestones, the general remarked: “This is the work that gives me real pleasure. The more tombstones the Germans demand from us, the better, it means, our business is going on at the front.
He was transferred from camp to camp, the conditions became more and more harsh, but they failed to break Karbyshev. In each of the camps where the general found himself, he became a real leader of the spiritual resistance to the enemy. His resilience gave strength to those around him.
The front rolled to the West. Soviet troops entered the territory of Germany. The outcome of the war became obvious even to staunch Nazis. The Nazis had nothing left but hatred and a desire to deal with those who turned out to be stronger than them even in chains and behind barbed wire ...
execution
Major Seddon De St. Clair was one of several dozen prisoners of war who managed to survive the terrible night of February 18, 1945 in the Mauthausen concentration camp.
Mauthausen Museum (current state): Appelplatz (Roll Call Square) and barracks. Photo: Public Domain
“As soon as we entered the territory of the camp, the Germans drove us into the shower room, ordered us to undress and let jets of icy water fall on us from above. This went on for a long time. Everyone turned blue. Many fell to the floor and immediately died: the heart could not stand it. Then we were told to put on only underwear and wooden blocks on our feet and were driven out into the yard. General Karbyshev was standing in a group of Russian comrades not far from me. We understood that we were living out the last hours. A couple of minutes later, the Gestapo men, who were standing behind us with fire hoses in their hands, began to pour streams of cold water on us. Those who tried to evade the jet were beaten with clubs on the head. Hundreds of people fell frozen or with crushed skulls. I saw how General Karbyshev also fell, ”said the Canadian major.
The last words of the general were addressed to those who shared a terrible fate with him: “Cheer up, comrades! Think of the Motherland, and courage will not leave you!
From the story of the Canadian major, the collection of information about the last years of the life of General Karbyshev, spent in German captivity, began. All the collected documents and eyewitness accounts spoke of the exceptional courage and resilience of this man.
On August 16, 1946, for the exceptional stamina and courage shown in the fight against the German invaders in the Great Patriotic War, Lieutenant General Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Monument to General Dmitry Karbyshev in Mauthausen. Photo: RIA Novosti
In 1948, a monument to the general was unveiled on the territory of the former Mauthausen concentration camp. The inscription on it reads: “To Dmitry Karbyshev. To the scientist. Warrior. Communist. His life and death were a feat in the name of life.
October 21, 1961 in Omsk was inaugurated monument to the general Karbyshev D.M. The monument was erected in the center of Omsk in the public garden named after General Karbyshev.
The sculptural composition is a high granite base, on which is a bust of General Karbyshev and eight concrete slabs are installed behind the back (of the bust of the general), on which it is written: “General Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev, a native of the city of Omsk, during the Great Patriotic War showed exceptional courage and steadfastness in fight against enemies. Being in fascist prisons and camps, he preserved the honor and dignity of a Soviet citizen, scientist, communist. Faithful to the oath, the patriot preferred death to betrayal. Eternal glory to the heroes who fell in the battles for the freedom and independence of our country.
Such an unusual monument was made by the sculptor V. Fedorov and the architect Yu. Krivushchenko. I must admit the sculptural composition is really unusual. There are enough busts on the pedestals, but to have concrete slabs so that you can clearly read the message - this has never happened before. On most monuments, they try to write something in small print, but few people read it. And here in large letters - a great idea, even despite the rudeness of execution (after all, concrete slabs are not quite the architecture of the square).
Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev evokes only respect after getting acquainted with the history of his life. I think even such titles as a general and a patriot, as well as a professor, cannot fully convey all the power of the spirit and the will to knowledge of this person. He was a great man, so many thanks to the Omsk people for keeping the memory of him.
Some information about D.M. Karbyshev.
Dmitry Mikhailovich was born in Omsk on October 26, 1880. After 18 years, he graduated from the Omsk Cadet Corps. Then the Nikolaev Military Engineering School and the Nikolaev Military Engineering Academy.
He was a member of the Russo-Japanese War, also the First World War. He was not a simple performer, but a man with a lively mind, so even then he realized himself as an excellent fortifier.
But in his merits, not only participation and leadership in the construction of wars, the craving for knowledge also did not cool down in him. Therefore, despite the ongoing wars, he is also the author of more than a hundred scientific papers on military engineering and military history. He also passed on knowledge to the next generations, conducted teaching activities.
He ended his journey as a hero, a military man. Or, as they used to say, "a man must die on the go on the road, or even better in battle."
In August 1941, Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev was captured by the Nazis. For more than three and a half years, the Germans tried to find a way to win him over to their side. But Karbyshev was adamant. During the captivity, he was in the camps of Breslau, Zamostye, Hammelsburg, Flossenbürg and Mauthausen, maybe the Germans tried to show that their side is the side of the winners, because. there were millions of Russians in these camps. The Nazis knew who they had in captivity and what experience he had, so they used every opportunity. But when all the psychological onslaughts and trials failed, then they turned to cruel torture.
But his death is worth telling separately.
The chronicles preserved the conclusion of the overseers specially assigned to Karbyshev “This largest Soviet fortifier, a regular officer of the old Russian army, a man who was over sixty years old, turned out to be thoroughly infected with the Bolshevik spirit, fanatically devoted to the idea of fidelity to military duty and patriotism. Karbyshev can be considered hopeless in the sense of being able to use him with us as a specialist in military engineering.”
Major of the Canadian Army Seddon de St. Clair spoke about the death of Dmitry Mikhailovich. Being on his deathbed, the major asked to witness the story, because. he possessed knowledge that, in his opinion, had no right to be buried with him.
The priest and representatives of the Soviet committee recorded the following testimony: “I ask you to write down my testimony and send it to Russia. I consider it my sacred duty to impartially testify to what I know about General Karbyshev. I am doing my duty as an ordinary person. I have very little time left to live, and I am worried about the thought that the facts of the heroic life and tragic death of the Soviet general, known to me, and the grateful memory of which should live among people, should not go to the grave with me. On the evening of February 17, 1945, we, a large party, were herded into a shower room, ordered to strip naked, and then they let jets of icy water fall on us from above. This went on for a long time. We all turned blue. Many could not stand it, fell, died of a broken heart. Then we were allowed to put on only our underwear and wooden blocks on our feet and were driven out into the cold. We understood that we were living out the last hours.
The old general, as always, was calm, he was only beaten by a strong chill, like each of us. He said something passionately and convincingly to the Russians around him. They listened to him carefully. In his phrases, I caught the words "Soviet Union" repeated several times and understandable to me. Then, looking in our direction, he said in French: “Cheer up, comrades. Think about your homeland, and courage will not leave you.” At this time, the Gestapo, standing behind us with fire hoses in their hands, began to pour streams of ice water on us. Those who tried to evade the jet were beaten with clubs on the head. Hundreds of people fell with crushed skulls. I saw how General Karbyshev also fell. After this execution, by some miracle, several people survived, including me ...
The memory of General Karbyshev is sacred to me. I remember him as the greatest patriot, the most honest soldier and the most noble and courageous person I have ever met in my life.”
I think that after such words, everyone will agree that Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev is a symbol of perseverance, loyalty to one and all. He is an example both in civilian life, in wartime, but even in the face of death.
If it were not for the difference in the political views of the present time and that era, then I think every schoolchild would know about the personality of Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev. I would think about him, make films and set him up as an example.
The monument was erected in 1980 at the intersection of the boulevard named after him and Marshal Zhukov Avenue.
From the history
D. M. Karbyshev was a Soviet general and engineer. At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he was taken prisoner.
He was offered to cooperate, but he refused. Karbyshev was kept in German concentration camps: Zamosc, Hammelburg, Flossenbürg, Majdanek, Auschwitz, Sachsenhausen and Mauthausen. Repeatedly from the administration of the camps received offers to cooperate.
Despite his age, he was one of the active leaders of the camp resistance movement.
On the night of February 18, 1945, in the Mauthausen concentration camp (Austria), among other prisoners (about 500 people), he was doused with water in the cold and died. It became a symbol of unbending will and perseverance.
Description
The monument to General Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev was opened on May 7, 1980 on General Karbyshev Boulevard.
Doomych, CC BY-SA 3.0The monument is cast entirely of bronze, in the form of 8-meter-high forms directed upwards, symbolizing blocks of ice, on which a cube with a portrait of the hero is fixed.
On the memorial sign is carved:
"Dmitry Mikhailovich Karbyshev, Hero of the Soviet Union, lieutenant general of the engineering troops, doctor of military sciences."
