Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Eighty-three years ago, on January 18, 1943, the offensive operation "Iskra" came to a victorious conclusion. Troops from the Leningrad and Volkhov Fronts liberated the city of Shlisselburg and the southern shore of Lake Ladoga. The siege of Leningrad was broken, and land connections between the besieged city and the mainland were restored, saving hundreds of lives. The first food train arrived in Leningrad on February 7.
Although the city remained under siege for another year, the lifting of the siege gave millions of citizens hope of salvation and instilled confidence in the enemy's imminent defeat. The situation along the entire Leningrad Front significantly improved—the initiative in combat operations shifted completely to the Soviet troops, and by February 1943, Leningrad's food supplies had risen to the level of other Soviet cities.
Students and staff of the Polytechnic Institute dedicated their lives to defending their homeland from the first days of the Great Patriotic War. More than 3,000 Polytechnic students joined the active army, the people's militia, and partisan units.
The siege of Leningrad began on September 8, 1941, and famine set in. All the city's residents were saved by an ice road across Lake Ladoga. The construction of the Road of Life involved the participation of Polytechnicians. Sergei Golushkevich was one of the organizers of the ice road across the lake. He calculated the minimum permissible ice thickness and was the first to cross the Road of Life in the lead vehicle.
The institute's main building was converted into a hospital. 150 employees volunteered to take on the new duties. The second academic building housed the medical staff, and the student campus became an evacuation hospital.
The Polytechnic Institute's workshops began to fulfill military orders for the needs of the front, and scientists went to work at defense enterprises.
Even before the war, there was a gardening area between the Chemical and Hydrotechnical Buildings. Flowers were grown year-round in greenhouses there. During the siege of the city, it was converted into a subsidiary farm for growing vegetables. In April 1942, the Vyborg District allocated an additional plot of land to the institute for these needs. By July of that year, the first harvest had already arrived at the kindergarten and cafeteria. The established harvest quota was almost 25,000 kilograms of vegetables.
In February 1942, LPI students and staff were evacuated to Pyatigorsk, where they experienced the hardships of the German occupation. They then moved to Tashkent. There, the institute was able to begin its academic and research work in January 1943, and in August, the first year of studies was admitted. In November, classes resumed in Leningrad. In June 1943, the Polytechnic Institute, the only one in Leningrad, was authorized to accept dissertations for defense. Before the siege was completely lifted, the academic council reviewed 19 doctoral and candidate dissertations. In August 1944, 442 polytechnic students returned from Tashkent. The Leningrad Polytechnic Institute resumed classes at full capacity.
The Siege of Leningrad lasted 872 days. During this time, several hundred Polytechnic students died from exhaustion and shelling. And today, we remember all those who lived, worked, and fought in the besieged city, those who gave their lives to save Leningrad.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source. It represents an accurate account of the source's assertions and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.