Fire Safety Encyclopedia

An interesting fact of military history. Category: Wars and weapons Who and when tried to sail on a submarine

When a grandfather gets a certain mood and begins to tell old war stories, sometimes it is impossible to predict what kind of reaction they might cause. Often these are tears and some absolutely amazing feeling of touching, which you yourself do not expect from yourself ...

And although the war is mostly filled with special cruelty and a lot of not very pleasant twists and turns and moments, but absolutely charming and touching stories also happen, which are completely atypical for this time of troubles.

The US Air Force bombed Berlin ... with candy

For a while, Germany had a hard time. In 1948, after the victors divided the country among themselves, Russia decided to cut off all transport routes to Berlin in the hope that food deprivation would convince the democratic part of the city of all the delights of communism; a turning point that almost led to another war. The United States and other allied nations remembered they had planes when they launched Operation Small Provisions, also known as Berlin Air Bridge, when warplanes dropped sweet democracy in the form of food into the city for about a year.
Berlin got everything it needed, except for one important thing - sweets ...

Utah-based American transport pilot Gail Helvorsen was so shocked by the sight of the Berlin kids left without candy that he gave them a pack of chewing gum, promising to return the next day with sweets they could eat. Helvorsen began to drop the chocolates with handkerchiefs like little parachutes. To make children recognize his plane, he wagged his wings, for which he was nicknamed "Uncle Wiggly Wings", "Uncle Wiggly Wings". Everything was like in a children's book.

Of course, such "magic from a children's book" was not according to the charter, and Helvorsen was ordered to stop amateur activities until his superiors realized how much Germany liked it. The Air Force then deployed several planes whose only mission was to bombard East Berlin with tons of candy donated by the American Confectionery Association.

Even after the end of the air bridge in 1949, when the Soviets finally gave up, today's Berlin kids have not forgotten Uncle's swinging wings. Helvorsen is still known throughout Germany for his candy landing, and several schools were even named after him. And so the legends about Santa began ...

George Washington returns the dog to a British general

If George Washington had his own nemesis, it would surely be British General William Howe. During the American Revolutionary War, Howe's forces defeated Washington several times, forcing the future president to retreat from New York to New Jersey and then to Delaware.

In October 1777, Washington and Howe met again in Germantown, Pennsylvania. Both sides fought diligently, but Howe, who led the British and Hessian forces, destroyed Washington's forces, killing 100 and taking over 400 prisoners, thereby winning the battle.

But, despite the losses, the Americans still managed to take a prisoner ... a dog ... To be more precise, General Howe's terrier escaped during the battle and ended up in a rebel camp. For two whole days Howe worried about what these barbarians could do to his pet.

But, two days later, the dog ran out of the woods with a note attached and straight to General Howe. The note read: “Best wishes to General Howe from General Washington. He is pleased to personally return the dog, which accidentally fell into his hands, and, judging by the inscription on the collar, belongs to General Howe. "

The fact is, Washington was a great dog lover, and although Howe killed hundreds of his men, he didn't have the courage to take advantage of the situation. Washington even ceased fire to bring the dog back to the touching moment of showing love for man's best friend. Then everyone proceeded to kill each other.

England rescued a dog by recruiting her to serve in the navy

Just Nuisance, or Nuisance, is a Great Dane who lived at a British naval base in South Africa during World War II. He got this nickname because of his habit of lying on narrow bridges between ships and berths, where it was not so easy to get around him.

The sailors loved him anyway and took him on local trains. Sometimes Trouble would lead them to base when they got drunk, or intervene in a fight between them. The problem was that the local train workers did not share the sailors' love for the big, noisy sack of fleas. The sailors usually tried to get him on the train unnoticed, but it would have been easier to carry a torpedo there.

Despite the advice of passengers to simply pay for the dog, the train workers categorically demanded that this horse be removed. It got to the point where they threatened to put him to sleep if they caught him again.

To solve this problem, the Royal Navy simply recruited him as a person. This meant that the train workers not only could not kill one of His Majesty's sailors, but also gave him the right to free travel as a member of the service. The nuisance even "signed" the contract with his paw, passed the honey. examination, and slept in a sailor's bed.

Later, during the Falklands War, he served as an admiral and was buried with all military honors.

U.S. Navy opens ice cream fleet

In 1945, the US Navy in the South Pacific faced three big problems: a hot climate, erratic morale, and Japanese soldiers trying to kill them every day. It was then that US Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal found a solution to the first and second problem. The solution was free ice cream. Literally tons of free ice cream.

Forrestal was well aware of the importance of these calories. He once said, "In my opinion, ice cream is one of the most neglected morale boosts" (after pornographic magazines and alcohol). It was so important to the course of the war that Forrestal somehow managed to convince the government to allocate $ 1 million for ice cream.

In developing the barge, the Navy practically made a floating ice cream parlor with huge refrigerated chambers on board, ready to sail anywhere in the South Pacific. The servicemen ate all 40 liters produced every 7 seconds. It became so successful that a whole ice cream fleet soon emerged in the Pacific, like a fast food chain.

The cat received a medal for the extermination of communist rats

Simon, a dachshund cat, lived aboard the British warship Amethyst, a frigate of the Royal Navy, after World War II. Simon was adopted by the kind captain of the ship, who allows him to sleep on his cap when it was not on his head.

But then something terrible happened. On April 20, 1949, a ship was sailing along the Yangtze River in Asia, suddenly caught in the middle of the Chinese Civil War. Communist shells pierced the carcass, killing 22 people, including the captain. "Amethyst" ran aground without the possibility of retreat under communist shelling. The survivors were trapped for more than three months.

On top of all this, the ship saw an invasion of rats when it moored to the shore. Little bastards very quickly spread throughout the ship, trying to eat all the supplies that were there. This was a really serious problem.

And then Simon came into play. Despite serious wounds after the shelling (the whole body was covered with burns and wounds from shrapnel), the death of his friend and the fact that the new captain unceremoniously evicted him from the main cabin, Simon recovered and began tirelessly to destroy all the rats on the ship.
Between the extermination of rodents and the company while the new captain was sick, Simon saved the ship's crew from starvation and won the favor of an unapproachable man.

The captain wrote that Simon "was on top" and raised morale. On the recommendation of the captain, Simon was awarded the Maria Deakin Medal (something like the Medal of Honor for animals) and became a celebrity.

Ganner Learning To Be An Air Siren

In 1942, Australia practically felt Japan's gaze across the Pacific Ocean. In February of this year, Japanese troops began bombing the Australian city of Darwin.

When the Japanese bombed the city for the first time, Ganner, the dog of the lead aircraft soldier, Percy Leslie Westcott, was wounded by one of the explosions, which greatly affected the dog. But no one even suspected that this explosion could give the animal superpower, just like in the comics.

One day, Ganner began to rage for no apparent reason, trying to get Westcott to go with him for cover. On duty, Westcott couldn't just drop everything and take a break until the Japanese showed up and started bombing again. A few days later, the same thing happened. Gunner began to go crazy for no reason, like the last time, and soon overhead Japanese planes appeared again, dropping bombs.

That's when Westcott understood everything. Ganner heard Japanese planes approaching 20 minutes before instruments could detect them. It would be impressive if the dog didn't live in the middle of the airbase. Ganner had an extremely receptive hearing that did not react at all to the non-hostile planes scurrying back and forth. Or the wretch had some kind of psychic powers.

Convinced of the dog's abilities, Westcott told his superiors about them. Ganner proved his skill and Westcott was given a portable alert system that he had to activate when the dog spoke, saving many lives.

In this article, we will talk about the great discoveries of the 20th century. It is not surprising that since ancient times people have tried to make their wildest dreams come true. At the turn of the last century, incredible things were invented that turned the life of the whole world.

X-rays

Let's start the list of great discoveries of the 20th century by looking at electromagnetic radiation, which was actually discovered at the end of the 19th century. The inventor was the German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen. The scientist noticed that when the current is turned on, a small glow begins to appear in the cathode tube covered with barium crystals. There is another version, according to which the wife brought dinner to her husband, and he noticed that he saw her bones visible through the skin. These are all versions, but there are also facts. For example, Wilhelm Roentgen refused to receive a patent for his invention, as he believed that this activity could not bring real income. Thus, we classify X-rays as one of the great discoveries of the 20th century that influenced the development of scientific and technical potential.

TV

More recently, the TV was a thing that testifies to the wealth of its owner, but in the modern world, television has receded into the background. At the same time, the very idea of ​​the invention originated in the 19th century at the same time by the Russian inventor Porfiry Gusev and the professor from Portugal Adriano de Paiva. They were the first to say that a device would soon be invented that would allow the transmission of an image using a wire. The first receiver, the screen size of which was only 3 by 3 cm, was demonstrated to the world by Max Dieckmann. At the same time, Boris Rosing proved that it is possible to use a cathode ray tube in order to be able to convert an electrical signal into an image. In 1908, physicist Hovhannes Adamyan from Armenia patented an apparatus for transmitting signals, consisting of two colors. It is believed that the first television was developed in the early 20th century in America. It was collected by the Russian emigrant Vladimir Zvorykin. It was he who broke the light beam into green, red and blue, thus obtaining a color image. He called such an invention an iconoscope. In the West, the inventor of television is considered John Byrd, who first patented a device that creates an image of 8 lines.

Mobile phones

The first mobile phone appeared in the 70s of the last century. Once an employee of the famous Motorola company, which was engaged in the development of portable devices, Martin Cooper, showed his friends a huge pipe. Then they did not believe that something like this could be invented. Later, walking around Manhattan, Martin called his boss at a competitor's company. Thus, for the first time in practice, he showed the effectiveness of his huge telephone receiver. The Soviet scientist Leonid Kupriyanovich had conducted similar experiments 15 years earlier. That is why it is rather difficult to definitely talk about who is the discoverer of portable devices. In any case, mobile phones are a worthy discovery of the 20th century, without which it is simply impossible to imagine modern life.

A computer

One of the greatest scientific discoveries of the 20th century is the invention of the computer. Agree that today it is impossible to work or have a rest without this device. A few years ago, computers were used only in special laboratories and organizations, but today they are a common thing in every family. How was this supercar invented?

The German Konrad Zuse in 1941 created a computer that, in fact, could perform the same operations as a modern computer. The difference was that the machine was powered by telephone relays. A year later, American physicist John Atanasov and his graduate student Clifford Berry jointly developed an electronic computer. However, this project was not completed, so it cannot be said that they are the real creators of such a device. In 1946, John Mauchly demonstrated what he claimed was the first electronic computer, ENIAC. Much time passed, and huge boxes replaced small and thin devices. By the way, personal computers appeared only at the end of the last century.

Internet

The great technological discovery of the 20th century is the Internet. Agree that without it, even the most powerful computer is not so useful, especially in the modern world. Many people do not like watching TV, but they forget that the Internet has long seized power over human consciousness. Who came up with the idea for such a global international network? She appeared in a group of scientists in the 50s of the last century. They wanted to create a quality network that would be difficult to hack or eavesdrop on. The reason for this thought was the Cold War.

During the Cold War, the US authorities used a certain device that allowed data to be transmitted from a distance without resorting to the help of mail or telephone. This device was called APRA. Later, scientists from research centers in different states began to create the APRANET network. Already in 1969, thanks to this invention, it was possible to connect all the computers of the universities represented by this group of scientists. 4 years later, other research centers joined this network. After e-mail appeared, the number of people wishing to penetrate the World Wide Web began to grow exponentially. As for the current state, at the moment more than 3 billion people use the Internet every day.

Parachute

Despite the fact that the idea of ​​a parachute came to the head of Leonardo da Vinci, this invention in its modern form is referred to as the great discoveries of the 20th century. With the advent of aeronautics, regular jumps from large balloons began, to which half-opened parachutes were attached. Already in 1912, an American decided to jump from an airplane with such a device. He successfully landed on earth and became the most daring inhabitant of America. Later, engineer Gleb Kotelnikov invented a parachute exclusively from silk. He also managed to pack it into a small satchel. The invention was tested on a moving car. Thus, a braking parachute was invented, which would allow the emergency braking system to be activated. So, before the outbreak of the First World War, the scientist received a patent for his invention in France, and thus became the discoverer of the parachute in the 20th century.

Physicists

Now let's talk about the great physicists of the 20th century and their discoveries. Everyone knows that physics is the basis, without which it is, in principle, impossible to imagine the complex development of any other science.

Let us note Planck's quantum theory. In 1900, the German professor Max Planck became the discoverer of a formula that described the distribution of energy in the black body spectrum. Note that before that it was believed that energy is always distributed evenly, but the inventor proved that the distribution is proportional due to quanta. The scientist made a report, which at that time no one believed. However, after 5 years, thanks to the conclusions of Planck, the great scientist Einstein was able to create a quantum theory of the photoelectric effect. Thanks to quantum theory, Niels Bohr was able to build a model of the atom. Thus, Planck created a powerful base for further discoveries.

We must not forget about the greatest discovery of the 20th century - the discovery of the theory of relativity by Albert Einstein. The scientist was able to prove that gravity is a consequence of the curvature of four-dimensional space, namely time. He also explained the effect of time dilation. Thanks to Einstein's discoveries, many astrophysical quantities and distances were calculated.

The greatest discoveries of the 19-20 century include the invention of the transistor. The first working device was created in 1947 by American researchers. Scientists have experimentally confirmed the validity of their ideas. In 1956, they already received the Nobel Prize for their discoveries. Thanks to them, a new era began in electronics.

Medicine

Consideration of the great discoveries in medicine of the 20th and 21st centuries will begin with the invention of penicillin by Alexander Fleming. It is known that this valuable substance was discovered through negligence. Thanks to Fleming's discovery, people ceased to be afraid of the most dangerous diseases. In the same century, the structure of DNA was discovered. Its discoverers are considered Francis Crick and James Watson, who, using cardboard and metal, created the first model of the DNA molecule. Incredible hype was raised by the information that all living organisms have the same principle of DNA structure. For this revolutionary discovery, scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize.

The great discoveries of the 20th and 21st centuries continue with the discovery of the ability to transplant organs. Such actions were perceived as something unreal for a long time, but already in the last century, scientists realized that it was possible to achieve a safe, high-quality transplant. The official discovery of this fact took place in 1954. Then a doctor from America, Joseph Murray, transplanted a kidney to one of his patients from a twin brother. Thus, he showed that it is possible to transplant someone else's organ, and he will live for a long time.

In 1990, the doctor was awarded the Nobel Prize. However, for a long time, specialists transplanted everything except the heart. Finally, in 1967, a young woman's heart was transplanted into an elderly man. Then the patient managed to live only 18 days, but today people with donor organs and hearts live for many years.

Ultrasound

Also one of the important inventions of the last century in the field of medicine is ultrasound, without which it is very difficult to imagine treatment. In the modern world, it is difficult to find a person who would not undergo an ultrasound scan. The invention dates back to 1955. In vitro fertilization is considered an incredible discovery of the last century. British scientists managed to fertilize an egg in laboratory conditions, and then place it in a woman's uterus. As a result, the world famous "test tube girl" Louise Brown was born.

Great geographical discoveries of the 20th century

In the last century, Antarctica was explored in detail. Thanks to this, scientists have obtained the most accurate data on the climatic conditions and fauna of Antarctica. Russian academician Konstantin Markov created the world's first atlas of Antarctica. We will continue the great discoveries of the early 20th century in the field of geography with an expedition that went to the Pacific Ocean. Soviet researchers measured the deepest oceanic trench, which was named the Mariana.

Nautical atlas

Later, a marine atlas was created, which made it possible to study the direction of the current, wind, determine the depth and distribution of temperature. One of the most high-profile discoveries of the last century was the discovery of Lake Vostok under a huge layer of ice in Antarctica.

As we already know, the last century was very rich in various kinds of discoveries. We can say that there has been a real breakthrough in almost all areas. The potential of scientists from all over the world has reached its maximum, thanks to which the world is currently developing by leaps and bounds. Many discoveries have become a turning point in the history of all mankind, especially with regard to research in the field of medicine.

The Danish king Nils, who ruled from 1104-1134, had the smallest army ever in the world. It consisted of 7 people - his personal assistants. With this army, he ruled Denmark for 30 years, and at that time Denmark also included large parts of Sweden and Norway, as well as some parts of Northern Germany.


In England at the time of James I, in order to become a soldier, it was enough to drink a glass of beer at the expense of the king and take an advance from the recruiter - one shilling. Recruiters went to pubs, treated them to beer, and at the bottom of the mug lay the mentioned shilling. After a while, any Briton who was treated to beer first examined the mug for a long time to the light.

In 1896, a war broke out between Britain and Zanzibar, which lasted exactly 38 minutes.

In 1249, a soldier from Bologna fled to Modena, capturing an old oak tub, from which he watered his horse. The authorities of Bologna demanded to give them not a deserter, but a tub. Refused, Bologna began a war against Modena that lasted 22 years and was accompanied by significant destruction. And the tub still remains in Modena and is kept in one of the city's towers.

During the Second World War, the Germans in Holland built a model of the airfield in great secrecy. Airplanes, hangars, cars, air defense systems - everything was made of wood. But one day an English bomber flew in and dropped a single bomb on the false airfield, after which the construction of the airfield was stopped. The bomb was wooden.

During the Franco-Prussian War, the French army already had machine guns.

But, despite the obvious advantages, no one used them, because for reasons of secrecy, the developers did not write instructions for the machine gunners !! By the way, Nicholas II did not like automatic weapons. He believed that because of machine guns and machine guns, the army could be left without ammunition.

In Switzerland, the pigeon army mail was canceled only a few years ago, and in Britain, only in 1947, the post of the person who was obliged to fire a cannon at the time of Napoleon's invasion of England was abolished.

According to the Hamburg Institute for Security Studies, over the past half century, the US Air Force has lost 92 atomic bombs that are at the bottom of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans during military exercises, as well as as a result of accidents.

One of the American planes in Vietnam hit itself with its missile.

In the state of Nebraska, you can buy an admiral's diploma for $ 25.

Absolutely real, giving the right to command all warships. True, only in the state. For reference: Nebraska is located in the very center of the United States, and the nearest sea is two thousand kilometers from all sides.

When the writer Arkady Averchenko during the First World War brought a story on a military theme to one of the editorial offices, the censor crossed out the phrase: “IT IS BLUE”. It turns out that from these words, the enemy spies could guess that the case was taking place in the south.

Our Colonel Yermolov, the future hero of the war of 1812, very interestingly received the rank of general. He talked so boldly with his colleagues, who were above his rank, that they asked for the rank of general for him. Still, listening to such nasty things from the general is not so offensive.

One Siamese king, retreating, ordered to fire the enemy from cannons not with cannonballs, but with silver coins. Than disorganized the enemy completely and won the battle.

By the way, do you know how the Greek spy Sinon convinced the Trojans to bring the horse into the city? I told them that the Greeks made the horse so big on purpose so that the Trojans, God forbid, would not bring it into the city. The Trojans, as you know, even dismantled the wall in order to spite the enemy.

During the war of 1812, a mass of Russian officers died for no reason. In the dark, soldiers from the common people were guided by French speech, and some Russian officers did not really know anything other than French, and spoke French purely and competently.

One of the most effective units in the Russian army 200 years ago was the camel cavalry, which our opponents did not like very much. Firstly, the camels are big, and secondly, they spit unpleasantly. It is a pity that they had to be abolished.

As you know, war is considered a very expensive business. So, in November 1923, Germany decided to calculate the amount of military spending in the First World War. It turned out that the war cost the former empire ... 15.4 pfennig - because, due to inflation, the Reichsmark had fallen in price by that time exactly a trillion times!


One of the worst embarrassment in world military history.
At the very beginning of the Spanish-American War (1898), the USS Charleston was ordered to seize the Spanish island of Guam. The operation was given only two days, considering the road - nothing at all.

When the Americans approached the island, expecting desperate resistance, they fired 13 volleys at the Santa Luz fortress and waited.

The Spanish response was highly unexpected. No cannon volleys or selective curses. Instead, they dispatched one small boat with an officer who politely asked permission to board. Intrigued Americans gave permission.

Once on American soil, the Spaniard invited the Charleston to Guam in the most sophisticated terms. Then he thanked for the salute that the American guests had arranged ... and very much apologized that they could not give a return salute, because on the island, as a matter of misfortune, all the gunpowder supplies had run out. But if the Americans are so kind to lend the islanders some gunpowder, they will be happy to greet the foreign ship properly.

It was one of the worst embarrassments in world military history. It turned out that Spain had forgotten to send a message to Guam that they were now at war. Therefore, on the island, by the way, they were not particularly worried about how to replenish their stocks of gunpowder.

Artillery piece: Schwerer Gustav

Gustav is the biggest weapon ever in combat, fact.

The “Heavy Gustav,” as the Germans called it, was 150 feet long and weighed 2.7 million pounds (45.72m and 1224.7t;), or almost 750 full-size sedans. If you find it difficult to imagine the scale of this monster, let's see what he shot:

This is not a toy tank in the shadow of this thing. The shells were 11 feet long and nearly 3 feet wide. They weighed 14,000 pounds. (3.35 m high, 0.91 m wide, weight 6350 kg) Gustav could throw them almost 23 miles (approx. 37 km) It took half an hour just to charge him.

If you are wondering why the war did not end immediately, as these monsters were taken out to the battlefield, then you need to understand how ridiculously impractical they were. It took 250 people to assemble it and prepare it to fire, then another 2,500 people to lay the rails for this damn thing, and thus get with it to Russia, the only country large enough on earth to fight Heavy Gustav. In fact, the Germans were trying to mount an 800mm Gustav on a tank, aptly named Landkreuzer P. 1500 Monster. Fortunately, these developments never left the blueprints for a man who apparently had a very small penis.

Almost 800,000 people. About 3000 tanks. More than 200 aircraft. Nearly 10,000 guns and mortars.

This armada was to become one of the most numerous military formations in the history of mankind, concentrated for an attack. What could have stopped them? How about the largest grouping for defense? The Soviets understood the enemy's intention and regrouped their forces in the following configuration:

About 2 million people. More than 5 thousand tanks. More than 5 thousand heavy guns and almost 3 thousand aircraft.

The Soviet line of defense was over 240 kilometers long and about 150 kilometers deep. They dug about 5 thousand kilometers of trenches and planted a million mines. The denouement came in July 1943, when all the best collected by the Germans came face to face with all the best collected by the Soviets.

Who has won? Well, the Soviets were the first force to stop the blitzkrieg. But damn it, it wasn't easy. By that time, the Nazis decided that they were probably enough, when over 6 thousand German and Soviet tanks were burning on the battlefield. At least 5,000 planes have turned into a heap of twisted metal.

More than a million corpses littered the ground.

For comparison: this is more casualty than the loss of America in all wars combined in its entire history. And remember, although large enough not to be forgotten, this battle was just one battle on the huge Eastern front of World War II.

Keep in mind that about 80 percent of the losses were on the Soviet side. It didn't matter. While the Germans never recovered from the bloody bath near Kursk, the Red Army needed only one call to restore the number of troops.

Big Bang: Messina Mines

The Mines of Messina were nineteen huge mines detonated during World War II in the largest planned explosion in history until the time of the atomic bombs. Back then, there was only one sure-fire way to make a hole in the planet big enough to make a lake: take a bunch of state-sponsored explosives and a gigantomaniac maniac.

British Army General Herbert Plummer was such a maniac. At that time, he was trying to win the Battle of Messina, and realizing that there were some problems that could not be solved with a large enough explosion, he spent 18 months preparing the most powerful non-nuclear explosion in history.

The operation involved the use of 21 large mines, we are now talking about a capacity with a total mass of six hundred tons. All this disgrace had to be located in the tunnels that they dug right under the location of the Germans.

When they finally pressed the big red button, the earthquake was such that it killed 10,000 Germans, won the battle, and rewarded the planet with 19 new holes.

Wait a minute, did we say 19? What happened to the other two?

They didn't work. Then they were forgotten.

Two "forgotten" mines were carefully buried by the British army in the Belgian countryside, until, after being struck by lightning, one of them burst on June 17, 1955, killing a cow. As for the second, it still remains in an unknown place in today's Belgium, about the location of which British generals say, they say, "we have no idea where it is."

German helmets on Soviet soldiers

Probably many have seen on the Internet a funny photo with Red Army soldiers dashingly marching in German helmets.


According to the veteran of this division V.V. Voitsekhovich, in the first days after the Victory the leadership of the regiment decided to hold a review.

And since there were not enough Soviet helmets for all, they were simply thrown out earlier, because they were almost never used at the front, so the regiment's leadership ordered German helmets to be put on. The inspection took place in the forest in the vicinity of Linz, so the local population did not see Soviet soldiers in "this form", and after this inspection the German helmets in the regiment were never used again.


Artillerymen of the 144th Rifle Regiment of the 49th Guards Rifle Division.
In the foreground is the artillery commander of the 144th Rifle Regiment, Alexander Monakhov, and two platoon commanders.


Medics of the 144th Rifle Regiment of the 49th Guards Rifle Division.
On the far left is the chief physician of the Aserzon regiment, in the center is the political officer of the division Miralevich.

Inspection of the 144th Rifle Regiment of the 49th Guards Rifle Division.
At the head of the training company is its commander, a participant in the 1945 Victory parade in Moscow, Vladimir Anfinogenov.

Command of the 144th Regiment of the 49th Guards Rifle Division.
The photo was taken in Austria in the first days after the Victory.

Officers of the 1st Battalion, 144th Regiment, 49th Guards Rifle Division.
Standing from left to right: Chekalov - battalion commander; deputy. on drill; battalion chief of staff; orderly of the battalion commander.
Company and platoon commanders are sitting.


The command staff of the artillery of the 144th regiment of the 49th Guards Rifle Division.
Standing from left to right: howitzer battery platoon leader; Monakhov - commander of a howitzer battery; Zhaglo - chief of artillery regiment.
The commanders of batteries and platoons are sitting.

We offer a fascinating selection of historical facts about Russia and Russian people. Informative and interesting:

The origin of the name of our country is unknown

Since ancient times, our country was called Rus, but where this name came from is not known for certain. But it is known how "Rus" turned into "Russia" - this happened thanks to the Byzantines, who pronounced the word "Rus" in their own way.

After the collapse of Russia, some of its regions began to be called Little Russia, White Russia and Great Russia, or Little Russia, Belarus and Great Russia. It was believed that only all these parts together make up Russia. But after the 1917 revolution and the coming to power of the Bolsheviks, Little Russia began to be called Ukraine, and Great Russia - Russia.

In Russia, grasshoppers were called dragonflies.

A long time ago, in the days of Russia, grasshoppers were really called dragonflies, but this name in no way directly refers to a flying insect dragonfly, the grasshopper was named "dragonfly" because of the sounds it made that sounded like chirping or clicking.

Foreign invaders only once were able to conquer Russia

Many have tried to conquer Russia, and these attempts have repeatedly failed. Only the Mongols were able to conquer Russia, and this happened in the 13th century. The reason for this was that at that time Russia was divided into many principalities, and the Russian princes were unable to unite and jointly repulse the conquerors. Since then and to this day it is precisely the stupidity and greed of the rulers, and internal conflicts that have been and remain the main source of problems for our country.

Corporal punishment in Russia

On August 11, old style (24 new), 1904, corporal punishment for peasants and young artisans was abolished in the Russian Empire. This was the last social group for which various types of physical pressure were still used. Earlier, in June of the same year, corporal punishment was abolished in the navy and in the army.

Corporal punishment fell into three broad categories:

1) self-injuring (mutilating) - depriving a person of any part of the body or damaging it (blindness, cutting out the tongue, cutting off an arm, leg or fingers, cutting off ears, nose or lips, castration);

2) painful - causing physical suffering by inflicting beatings with various tools (whip, whips, batogs (sticks), pins, rods, cats, molts);

3) shameful (disgraceful) - the most important is the disgrace of the punished (for example, showing at the pillory, branding, imposing shackles, shaving the head).

The upper strata of the population were sensitive to the prohibition of corporal punishment. In July 1877, the St. Petersburg mayor Trepov, in violation of the law of 1863, ordered the political prisoner Bogolyubov to be flogged with rods. The educated Bogolyubov went mad and died of such an insult, and the famous Vera Zasulich avenged him, seriously wounding Trepov. The court acquitted Zasulich.

Since 1917, official Soviet pedagogy has considered corporal punishment of children unacceptable. They were banned in all types of educational institutions, but they remained a common occurrence in the family. In 1988, journalist Filippov conducted an anonymous survey of 7,500 children from 9 to 15 years old in 15 cities of the USSR, 60% admitted that their parents used corporal punishment against them.

Cuban Missile Crisis and Black Saturday

What we call the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Americans call the Cuban Crisis, and the Cubans themselves, the October Crisis. But the whole world calls the most important day in the Cuban missile crisis by one name - "Black Saturday" (October 27, 1962) - the day when the world was closest to a global nuclear war.

Russia has repeatedly helped the United States in their formation and strengthening

If it were not for Russia, the United States would not have emerged at all, much less would have become a superpower. During the War of Independence with England, the English king repeatedly turned to Russia for help in suppressing the uprising. Russia, however, not only did not help, but also founded a league of armed neutrality, which was soon joined by other countries that traded with the United States despite the protests of England. During the civil war in the United States, Russia actively supported the northerners by sending squadrons to New York and San Francisco, while England and France wanted the United States to disintegrate and took the side of the southerners. Finally, Russia ceded California and Hawaii, where it had colonies, to the United States, and then sold the United States and Alaska for a ridiculous price. However, in the 20th century, the United States, having become a world power, responded to Russia with black ingratitude.

The USSR could have easily won the Cold War

After the end of World War II, two superpowers remained in the world, clashing in a global confrontation - the USA and the USSR. Despite the worst starting conditions, the USSR in the 60s pulled ahead in many respects, and many believed that it would win the fight against the capitalists. In the 70s, the capitalist world was struck by a severe crisis provoked by the rise in oil prices, and the US economy was on the verge of collapse. However, the Soviet leadership not only did not take advantage of the situation, but, on the contrary, actually saved its adversary by concluding agreements on disarmament and agreeing to sell oil for dollars. The United States, on the other hand, relied on the collapse of the USSR and victory in the Cold War, which, in the end, they were able to achieve 20 years later, with the complicity of traitors among the Soviet leadership.

First Japanese in Russia

The first Japanese to come to Russia was Denbey, the son of a merchant from Osaka. His ship was nailed to the shores of Kamchatka in 1695. In 1701 he reached Moscow.

In the winter of 1702, after an audience on January 8 with Peter I in the village of Preobrazhenskoye, Denbey received an order to become a translator and teacher of the Japanese language in the Artillery Order. Denbey personally told Peter I what he could about Japan and thereby gave impetus to Russian efforts to explore Kamchatka and the Kuriles and attempts to open trade with Japan.

Since 1707, Denbey lived at the palace of the prince and at one time the governor of the Siberian province, Matvey Gagarin. It is known that at the insistence of an associate of Peter I, Jacob Bruce, Denbay was baptized and took the name Gabriel Bogdanov (which closed his way back to Japan, where Christianity was forbidden). The school of translators from Japanese founded by him operated in Moscow until 1739, after which it was transferred to Irkutsk, where it existed until 1816.

Before Denbey, only one Japanese was known in Russia. During the reign of Boris Godunov, a Japanese of the Christian faith visited Russia. He was a young Catholic from Manila who, together with his spiritual mentor Nicholas Melo of the Order of St. Augustine, traveled to Rome along the route Manila - India - Persia - Russia. But the Time of Troubles turned out to be tragic for them: as foreign Catholics they were seized, and Tsar Boris Godunov exiled them to the Solovetsky monastery. After six years of exile, he was executed as a supporter of False Dmitry I in 1611 in Nizhny Novgorod. In Russia he was considered Indian, not Japanese.

Favorite commander of Catherine II

Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov was the favorite of Empress Catherine. She celebrated and showered awards on the Russian Macedonian, and he happened to allow himself what others were not allowed, knowing in advance that Catherine would always forgive any trick or eccentricity of the great commander. Here are some interesting cases:

Once at a court ball, Catherine decided to pay attention to Suvorov and asked him:
- How to treat your dear guest? - Bless, Queen, with vodka! - But what will my ladies-in-waiting say when they talk to you? - They will feel that the soldier is talking to them!

Once in a conversation, the empress said that she was planning to send Suvorov to serve in Finland in the future. Suvorov bowed to the empress, kissed her hand and returned home. Then he got into the post carriage and left for Vyborg, from where he sent Catherine a message: "I am waiting, mother, for your further orders."

It is known that Suvorov dressed very lightly even in severe frosts. Catherine II presented Suvorov with a fur coat and ordered him to wear it. What to do? Suvorov began to carry the given fur coat with him everywhere, but he kept it on his knees.

After the pacification of the Poles in 1794, Suvorov sent a messenger with a message. The message is as follows: Hurray! Warsaw is ours! " Catherine's answer: “Hurray! Field Marshal Suvorov! " And this at the time of lengthy reports about the capture of cities. As a text message sent. But, nevertheless, he did not succeed in surpassing Field Marshal Saltykov in lapidarity, who, after a battle with the Prussians at Kunersdorf during the Seven Years War, simply sent the Prussian king's hat found on the battlefield to St. Petersburg.

Kutuzov is not a pirate, he doesn't need an eye patch!

In recent years, images of the commander-in-chief of the Russian army in 1812, General-Field Marshal, His Serene Highness Prince M.I. The "one-eyed" Kutuzov can be seen on the covers of books and magazines, in paintings by contemporary artists and on various souvenirs, as well as on busts and monuments.

Such images do not correspond to historical accuracy, since Kutuzov never wore an eye patch. There is not a single memoir or epistolary evidence of Kutuzov's contemporaries describing a field marshal with a patch on his right eye. Moreover, Kutuzov had no reason to hide his eye under a bandage, since he saw with this eye, although not as well as with his left.

“Fate appoints Kutuzov to something great,” said the chief surgeon of the Russian army Masso, who examined Kutuzov’s “fatal wound” in the head in 1788 near Ochakov. The bullet went through from temple to temple behind both eyes. The doctors' verdict was unambiguous - death, but Kutuzov not only did not die, but did not even lose his sight, although his right eye was slightly distorted. The surprise of doctors and the whole world that Kutuzov remained to live and after 6 months was again in the ranks, was boundless, just like 14 years before, when he was first "mortally wounded". In 1774, near Alushta, as well as near Ochakov, Kutuzov was wounded in the head, and the bullet passed practically in the same place. At that time, doctors from all over Europe considered Kutuzov's recovery a miracle, and many believed that the news of the general's injury and healing was a fairy tale, because it was impossible to survive after such a wound.

Actually, at the beginning of the 19th century. wearing an eye patch after the wound healed was not accepted (even if the eye was completely absent). For the first time, the "one-eyed" Kutuzov appeared in 1944 in the feature film "Kutuzov". Then the directors of the musical comedy film "The Hussar Ballad" (1962) and the performance of the same name (1964) and ballet (1979) put on a blindfold on Kutuzov's right eye.

The image of Kutuzov, brilliantly played by Igor Ilyinsky, gave rise to a stable legend that Kutuzov wore a bandage over his injured eye. The replication of this legend in recent years has become so massive that it has led to a distortion of historical reality.

Jesters of Empress Anna Ioannovna

The niece of Peter I ruled the Russian Empire for 10 years. The harsh disposition of the Russian landowner did not prevent her from having fun.

It is known that Empress Anna Ioannovna was very fond of jesters and dwarfs. There were six of them at her court. Three of them were demoted aristocrats. So, she forced princes Mikhail Golitsyn and Nikita Volkonsky, as well as Count Alexei Apraksin, to play the role of a jester. Radiant clowns were supposed to grimace in the presence of the Empress, sit on top of each other and beat their fists until they bleed, or pretend hens and cluck. In the last year of her reign, the empress arranged the wedding of her jesters - 50-year-old prince Golitsyn and the ugly Kalmyk Anna Buzheninova, who received her surname in honor of the empress's favorite dish. Representatives of different nationalities of both sexes were discharged from all over the country to participate in wedding celebrations: Russians, Tatars, Mordvins, Chuvash, etc. They were supposed to dress up in their national clothes and have musical instruments. It was winter. By order of Anna Ioannovna, an ice house was built on the Neva, in which everything - walls, doors, windows, furniture, dishes - was made of ice. Here the wedding celebration was celebrated. Many candles were burning in ice candlesticks, and even the marriage bed for the "young" was arranged on an ice bed.

Peter I and the sentries

In winter, slingshots were placed on the Neva, so that after dark, no one would be allowed into the city or from the city. Once Emperor Peter I decided to check the guards himself. He drove up to one of the sentries, pretended to be a partying merchant and asked to let him through, offering money for the pass. The sentry refused to let him through, although Peter had already reached 10 rubles, the amount at that time was very significant. The sentry, seeing such persistence, threatened that he would be forced to shoot him.

Peter left and went to another sentry. The same one missed Peter for 2 rubles.

The next day, an order was announced for the regiment: hang the corrupt sentry, and drill the rubles he received and hang him around his neck.

Promote a conscientious sentry to corporal and welcome him with ten rubles.

Thai national anthem

The Thai national anthem was written in 1902 by the Russian composer Pyotr Shchurovsky.

Nicholas I gave his officers a choice between a guardhouse and listening to Glinka's operas as punishment.

On November 27, 1842, the first performance of Mikhail Glinka's opera "Ruslan and Lyudmila" took place, which brought the author a number of sensitive griefs. The public and high society did not like the opera; after Act IV, Emperor Nicholas I defiantly left without waiting for the end. He did not like the music of the opera so much that he ordered, as punishment, the fined officers of the capital to choose between the guardhouse and listening to Glinka's music. So the emperor additionally expressed his displeasure with the work of the composer. Such were the morals, alas. Thank God that Nikolai himself did not send the composer to the guardhouse.

"Thank God that you are Russian"

In 1826, a "Russian contemporary" described the appearance of the sovereign - Emperor Nicholas I: "Tall, lean, had a wide chest ... a quick glance, a sonorous voice, suitable to the tenor, but spoke a little patter ... Some genuine severity was visible in his movements." ...

"Genuine severity" ... When he commanded the troops, he never shouted. There was no need for this - the king's voice could be heard a mile away; the tall grenadiers looked just like children next to him. Nikolai led an ascetic lifestyle, but if we talk about the luxury of the courtyard, the magnificent receptions, they stunned everyone, especially foreigners. This was done in order to emphasize the status of Russia, which the sovereign cared about incessantly.

General Pyotr Daragan recalled how, in the presence of Nikolai Pavlovich, he spoke French, grazing. Nikolay, suddenly making an exaggeratedly serious face, began to repeat every word after him, thus bringing his wife to a fit of laughter. Daragan, crimson with shame, rushed into the waiting room, where Nikolai caught up with him and, kissing him, explained: “Why are you bursting? Nobody will take you for a Frenchman; thank God that you are Russian, and monkeying is no good. "

Great secrets that a person still cannot explain. With what this is connected, no one can confirm, although almost everything is connected with a person. Who are they, the chosen ones or just random people ?! " There is a great power dormant in the mind of every person until it is awakened by a burning desire and determination to act. " Edgard Roberts

1900 - Eileen More Lighthouse on Flannan Island. The entire watch of the lighthouse keepers disappeared without a trace.

1902 - "Parisian glitch". On the night of December 29-30, at 1:00 05 minutes, clocks stopped in many places in Paris.

1908 - The fall of the Tunguska bolide (meteorite).

1911 - On July 14, a pleasure train departed from the Roma railway station for the "cruise" arranged by the "Sanetti" company for wealthy Italians. 106 passengers visited the sights surrounding the new section of the road. The train was approaching a super-long tunnel. And suddenly something terrible began to happen. According to the testimony of two passengers who managed to jump out on the move, everything suddenly became covered with a milky-white fog, which thickened as they approached the tunnel, turning into a viscous liquid. The train entered the tunnel and ... disappeared.

1911 - The birth of the fortune teller Vanga, who received the gift of prophecy after she was carried away by a tornado.

1912 - The giant ocean liner Titanic collided with an iceberg and sank. In this case, more than 1,300 people died. But this tragedy was predicted by several people.

1913 - A sailing ship "Marlboro" with reefed sails was discovered off the coast of Tierra del Fuego. The remains of 20 people were found on the bridge and in the premises. According to the records in the logbook, the ship left New Zealand at the beginning of 1890, but did not call at any port.

1916 - In the summer, during the melting of glaciers on Ararat, the pilot Lieutenant Roskovitsky and his co-pilot on a reconnaissance aircraft of the Imperial Air Force found an ark on Ararat.

1918 - Execution of the family of the last emperor Nicholas II. Until now, the remains of all family members have not been found, which led to the appearance of several Anastasias and heirs.

1920 - Alleged find of an ancient Slavic monument - "Veles Book", the authenticity of which is disputed in our time.

1922 - On the Paint River (USA), a huge animal with a snake-like neck and a large head was seen, resembling a relict lizard.

1924 - Not far from the village of Taung (South Africa), a "skull of the Taung child" was found, the age of which is estimated at 2.5 million years. Hypotheses attribute it to extraterrestrial origin.

1925 - In the quarry of a brick factory in the city of Odintsovo, a fossilized "human brain" was found, perfectly conveying all the details. But the find dates back to the Paleozoic era (about 300 million years ago), when there were no mammals yet ...

1928 - Above the village of Shuknavolok near Vedlozero (Karelia), we observed a flight of a cylindrical ten-meter body, from the tail of which a flame emerged.

1933 - First sighting of a monster in the Scottish Loch Ness (Nessie). To date, there have been about 4000 observations and meetings with him. A sonar survey of the entire volume of the lake in 1992 found 5 giant dinosaurs.

1943 - In October of this year in the United States, in an atmosphere of special secrecy, an experiment unparalleled in history was carried out to create an invisible warship.

1945 - Massive UFO invasion in Queensland (Australia).

1945 - The mysterious disappearance of the leaders of the Third Reich (Müller, Bormann and others).

1946 - In Bridport, Australia, on the ocean, the corpse of a giant hairy animal was found.

1946 - An unknown aircraft crashed in the United States (New Mexico). Among the rubble were found six corpses of creatures similar to humans. To investigate the incident on September 18, a commission was formed, headed by CIA Director Admiral Hilencooter. The moment of the official birth of ufology.

1948 - On September 8, a "river monster" - a "large, bluish-black, with two triangular growths on the back" animal was seen on Lake Bays (Ontario, Canada).

1955 - In Hopkinsville, Kentucky, USA, after a UFO explosion, a small glowing man with huge eyes was seen for a while.

1955 - Death of the battleship Novorossiysk. An explosion that struck under its bottom on the night of October 29, 1955, claimed the lives of 608 sailors and officers. The huge ship capsized and sank in the Northern Bay of Sevastopol - in front of thousands of townspeople.

1956 - In August, at a British airbase, a UFO chased a fighter for 20 minutes, after which it disappeared.

1958 - On December 14, the newspaper "Youth of Yakutia" wrote about a giant monster that lives in Lake Labynkyr.

1963 - During the maneuvers of the US naval forces off the coast of Puerto Rico, a mobile object was seen, developing an unprecedented speed for a ship - about 280 km / h.

1964 - On August 29, in the Pacific Ocean, a 4200-meter section of the bottom was photographed from a research vessel. A complex configuration object resembling a radio antenna was discovered above the silt.

1967 - In Bluff Creek Valley, a female "Bigfoot" (filmed by Roger Patterson) was captured on film.

1968 - The official date of Gagarin's death. In fact, few believed in his death. The soothsayer Vanga claimed that the first cosmonaut did not die, but "was taken."

1969 - The landing of the Americans on the moon. The very fact is still disputed.

1977 - "Petrozavodsk Marvel". On September 20, at 4:00 am, a UFO in the form of a bright star (then - a luminous jellyfish), from which rays of red color departed, was seen above the main street of the city - Lenin Street. Later, large holes with very sharp edges were found in the glass of the upper floors.

1979 - On July 27 at 23.00 a very bright "star" was observed in the sky over Baikonur, making a chaotic motion across the sky. A persistent trail remained behind her. The observation lasted almost 40 minutes.

1982 - In Tsemesskaya Bay, on one of the ships of the Black Sea Fleet, all the watches stopped on board.

1987 - Suicide of 2000 dolphins - they threw themselves on the coast of Brazil.

1989 - 140 whales died off the southern coast of Chile. Mass suicide occurs for the fourth time.

1991 - An explosion on April 12 in Sasovo (Ryazan region), when UFOs were observed over the city. Anomalies near the funnel are still recorded - reprogramming of calculators and failure of electronic devices.

1993 - For 10 months in the so-called "Pacific triangle" near Western Micronesia, 48 ships and more than 200 sailors disappeared.

1994 - Near the Czech town of Chelyakovitsy, a "vampire cemetery" was found - the corpses of ritually murdered men of the same age.

1994 - A-310 passenger airliner crashed near Mezhdurechensk. There are many versions of what happened, and the results of the official investigation have not yet been announced.

1996 - In Movile Cave (Romania), for the first time, a closed ecosystem, not related to the terrestrial one, was discovered. Found 30 species of plants and animals living in isolation for 5 million years.

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