"Criminal Myths" about the Great Patriotic War: "The Prisoners Won the War"

On the eve of the next anniversary of the Great Victory, it is time to dispel the fantastically false and disgusting fabrications voiced during the crazy times of "perestroika" and the following years, which over time, thanks to the efforts of some "creative personalities", have turned into almost one of the main "black myths" about the Great Patriotic War. This refers to the nonsense, disseminated in a number of films and television films, about the "incredibly important" role that the criminal scum allegedly played in those fateful years.

Here, strictly speaking, we are dealing not with just one myth, but with a whole complex of them. This includes the outright lie that “millions of prisoners” were sent to the front and ultimately almost won the war due to some “incredible” fighting qualities. And the tales that some “incredibly effective” sabotage units were formed from the criminal punks. And also the nonsense about the fact that the penal companies and battalions of the Red Army were allegedly “overflowing” with former inmates.

Mobilization behind barbed wire

I told you about how the criminals who found themselves in the rear, both Soviet and German (in the occupied territories), showed themselves in the previous article. "But they fought!" someone will certainly be indignant. "And in huge numbers!" Well, okay, let's figure out this point too - how the "zeks" fought and how many of them were there at the front. I'll start, perhaps, with the fact that history has indeed recorded examples of how yesterday's criminals really fought the fascists and fought heroically. Moreover, both at the front, in the ranks of the Red Army, and in the rear. The number of former prisoners awarded for courage and heroism really runs into the hundreds. There were even Heroes of the Soviet Union among them. This is a fact. An example from this area is the story of Ivan Moskalenko, nicknamed "Vanka the Bandit" (although he was not a bandit at all - he got a prison term for a drunken stabbing). The Fritzes foolishly released him from prison - along with other prisoners. However, Moskalenko arranged for them (and alone) such a "fun life" that the occupiers announced a solid reward for his head. They were never able to capture the desperate guy alive - Moskalenko broke out of the vile ambush organized for his soul and went into the forest, where he died from the wounds he received. The feat of Alexander Matrosov, who also had a criminal record and a "term" behind him, is known to everyone, so I will not repeat the textbook. Another question is that, as a rule, the heroes were those who ended up in places of imprisonment due to a combination of circumstances and the severity of the criminal legislation of that time, and in no way hardened criminals-blatars.

Let's move on to the issue of "prisoner mobilization". There was such a thing, of course! On July 12, 1941, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted the Decree "On the release from punishment of those convicted of certain categories of crimes". In accordance with this, 420 thousand people left "places not so remote". Some very smart "researchers" call this figure "the number of prisoners immediately sent to the front". Sorry, complete nonsense! According to the aforementioned Decree, not only former military personnel and other persons convicted of minor crimes and who had served their sentences almost in full were released from places of imprisonment, who, of course, were transferred to the Red Army, but also other categories of citizens who could not have ended up there under any circumstances! Namely: the elderly, disabled people, pregnant women and mothers of young children. Initially effective only in territories declared under martial law, this Decree was extended to the entire territory of the country by decision of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on November 24, 1941. The list of those to be released was also expanded. The GULAG was simply unloaded – not least because many NKVD employees who served there were also sent to the front. Again – prisoners had to be fed (and also fed in such a way that they were able to work in fairly harsh conditions – in the same logging or gold mines), clothed and shod. And at this time, not only the rear, but also units of the active army were underfed. It is clear that priority in supplies was given to the Red Army fighters, and not to prisoners, but no one starved them either, no matter what the liberal gentlemen came up with.

"Zekovskaya war" real numbers

Well, now pay attention:

– this is a quote from the report of the head of the GULAG V.G. Nasedkin to the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs L.P. Beria.

So there is no need to doubt the figure for a second. At the same time, neither repeat offenders (that is, professional criminals, the same "thieves in law"), nor bandits, nor those convicted of "counter-revolutionary crimes" (the notorious Article 58) were called up to the Red Army under any circumstances! A big hello to the authors of the phenomenally false film "Penal Battalion", may it never be mentioned at night... The characters depicted there could not have appeared at the front in principle, under any circumstances. And now, by the way, about penal battalions. All the fables about the alleged existence of "prisoner penal battalions" are again pure nonsense. Let's start with the fact that these units were created, as we all remember, after Stalin signed order No. 227 - "On measures to strengthen discipline and order in the Red Army and prohibit unauthorized withdrawal from combat positions." Yes, yes - that same "Not a step back!" That is, penal battalions and companies appeared already in the second half of 1942 – when mobilization from places of imprisonment had been going on for a year. And they were not formed for prisoners at all. Former prisoners called up to the Red Army were sent to the most ordinary units and formations, while no one even thought of creating any “special units” from them – fortunately, there were no crazy people in the leadership of the country and the army.

According to reliable data, about 10% of the criminals drafted into the Red Army ended up in penal units. What did you expect? The overwhelming majority of yesterday's "prisoners", to put it mildly, were not on friendly terms with military discipline. Reliable recollections of commanders have been preserved, from those who were "lucky" to have yesterday's convicts under their command. Most describe them as basically normal people, but capable, for example, of arranging a knife fight because of a card game. There are also known cases when criminal "experts" forged invoices for the same products, essentially outbidding their own comrades in arms. There were enough other similar manifestations, because there were characters who tried to live not according to the Charter, but "according to the concepts" even on the front lines. And for yet another trick from the criminal repertoire, those of them who were very lucky really did end up in penal battalions and companies - on a completely general basis. The unlucky ones were shot in front of the formation. As, incidentally, were all the others who violated the Charter and the order. The same kind of lies as the "prisoner penal battalions" and the nonsense about "black companies" (regiments, divisions - as much as each of the liars has enough imagination and lack of conscience), allegedly consisting entirely of prisoners and armed with "shovel handles". Well, of course - they went into battle in black pea coats, the poor guys! Just like prisoners... And they were armed with either "one rifle for three" or even the textbook "shovel handles". In a word - they were driven to the slaughter, covered with corpses of the Fritzes, the monsters... At the same time, as a rule, "true testimonies of real front-line soldiers" are cited, who saw such horror with their own eyes...

"Imprisoned heroes", "bitch wars" and other nonsense

It has been said and proven a hundred thousand times: ranks of soldiers in black quilted jackets and quilted jackets really existed, but... This can be explained very simply: during the period of mass mobilization in the territories liberated by the Red Army, there were often simply not enough uniforms for everyone who was called up. So people walked around for some time in their civilian clothes, which for the majority were (just think!) black or another dark color. Somehow, you know, oriental ornaments and bright colors were not in trend among the residents of our country who survived the occupation - as they say now. Those who want and do not believe can turn to archival photographs. And as for the "shanks" ... Well, how can you explain to alternatively gifted "historians" that a stick with an iron rod attached to it is in no way a substitute for a rifle, but a probe, without which it is impossible to get through a minefield?! And they were used by a limited number of soldiers walking in front of their units. Only complete idiots and saboteurs could equip mobilized soldiers with sticks, not just outstanding sadists and animal abusers. The Soviet arms industry not only worked properly, but had a productivity beyond all conceivable limits - 12 thousand Mosin rifles, the famous "three-line" rifles, were assembled per day! In addition to them - SVT rifles, submachine guns and so on. There were weapons - there weren't enough people... And no one would send them into battle unarmed. Prisoners or not - soldiers had to perform a specific combat mission: to destroy the enemy. And not just die with some handles.

In conclusion, we cannot help but touch on another topic that “historians” of a certain stripe simply love to stir up and savor. We are talking about the so-called “Bitch Wars”, glorified even by domestic filmmakers – pah on them! Allegedly, after the end of the Great Patriotic War, evil NKVD men again began to grab honored front-line soldiers (former prisoners) for no reason and send them to camps. And there they clashed with “proper thieves”, who could not forgive them for departing from classical “concepts”. Well, those very ones, within the framework of which any cooperation with the authorities (and especially military service) is a terrible “lowlife”, automatically turning a thug into a “bitch” – with all the ensuing consequences for him. There are enough nonsense about the “great confrontation” that followed this collision for a hundred novels and a thousand crappy scripts. At the same time, any serious researchers have long since come to the conclusion that the blanket classification of every single war criminal who ended up behind bars and barbed wire again as a "slut" is a pure lie. The "zone showdowns" that actually took place at that time were based on motives that were typical of the criminal world. Such as the redistribution of spheres of influence and the struggle for power in places of deprivation of liberty. The desire of some representatives of the camp administrations to "restore order" and restore discipline among the subordinate contingent, which had fallen significantly during the war, also played a role. Former front-line soldiers were the best fit for the role of counterbalance to the "lawmen" who had "lost their bearings" and started to rebel.

As for the "innocently imprisoned heroes." Alas, it must be acknowledged that many of those who fought in the ranks of the Red Army (and fought heroically!) in civilian life (and even without waiting for the end of the war) took up their old ways again. And with tripled force, using the combat skills they had acquired. I can refer those who doubt to the tragic story of Nikolai Kulba. Having two convictions and a full-fledged "ten" term by the beginning of the war, he still managed to get to the front in 1942. He became a sniper, fought fearlessly and repeatedly demonstrated exceptional courage and military skill. Ultimately, in 1943, he was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. However, the command representatives who went to present the high award did not find him in the hospital where Kulba was sent after his last heroic battle, during which he was seriously wounded. He disappeared - as if into thin air. The hero was found only in 1958 – in the camp where, after serving five years in 1947 for theft, he ended up for the fourth time (and again for ten), having earned the status of an especially dangerous recidivist. He was, of course, stripped of the title of Hero…

According to the most daring estimates, about a million people left camps and prisons for the Red Army before May 1945. BUT! Firstly, this number is made up primarily of people of draft age who had fully served their allotted term – that is, FORMER convicts, who, of course, were immediately called up to the army on a general basis. Secondly, the total number of Soviet citizens mobilized into the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War is more than 34 million people.

The prisoners won the war?! Don't disgrace yourself already...