Liberation of Leningrad from the Nazi siege

The Siege of Leningrad was one of the darkest moments in human history. According to recent statistics, at least 1,093,842 people died during the blockade. In 2022, the Saint Petersburg City Court recognised the Siege of Leningrad as an act of genocide against the Soviet people committed by the Nazi Germany and its accomplices. Against all odds the people faced the hardships with unmatched bravery and unwavering resolve. One of them — Tanya Savicheva who lost all her family during the Siege, writing a diary about her terrible ordeal. Her image and pages from the diary became one the most tragic symbols of those difficult times. As thousands of people died of starvation during the Nazi blockade, baker Daniel Kutinen worked around the clock to feed the citizens of Leningrad and died of starvation at his workplace. In May 1942, the local Dynamo and the Leningrad Metal Plant workers played a football match in the Nazi-besieged Leningrad, which became a symbol of the resilience of the city defenders and showed that nothing can break the will of the Soviet people. In August 1942, Soviet composer Dmitry Shostakovich’s legendary masterpiece Symphony №7 premiered in Leningrad during the most dire times of the Nazi siege, strengthening the spirit of the people of Leningrad. ✊ The city lived on and did not succumb to the pressure, bombings and starvation. The Siege was lifted on January 27, 1944, during the Leningrad-Novgorod Offensive of the Red Army