A memorial to the garrison of a pillbox destroyed during the war is being created in the Polotsk region

In the summer of 2020, near the village of Mateikovo, searchers found the remains of 14 Red Army soldiers – fighters of pillbox (long-term firing point) No. 43 of the Polotsk fortified region. It was decided to create a memorial to the garrison of the fortification structure at this site. This year, searchers and volunteers have begun the planned work and carried out a lot of preparatory work. Tomorrow, June 22, on the 80th anniversary of the start of the Great Patriotic War, the remains of the soldiers of pillbox No. 43 garrison will be reburied at the site of the future complex. Correspondents of BELTA observed the work of enthusiasts at the memorial site and talked with them.

The Polotsk fortified region consisted of pillboxes covering Polotsk from the west. In the USSR, they were built in this area in 1927-1932 along the border with Poland. The fortified region stretched 56 km along the front. More than 200 pillboxes were built. One of them was located on the western outskirts of the village of Mateikovo.

The garrison engaged in battle with the Hitlerites on July 13, 1941. On that day, the Germans stormed dozens of pillboxes of the Polotsk fortified region. The battle at long-term firing point No. 43 lasted all day, the Hitlerites suffered heavy losses. During the battle, German sappers managed to approach from the rear, deliver a large amount of explosives to the concrete walls and blow up the structure. "The garrison of a "B" type pillbox, which pillbox No. 43 was, usually consisted of 18 people. It is possible that the remains of four Red Army soldiers are among the debris. They could have died during the first explosion during the July battle, being on the upper floor at the moment of the explosion," - said researcher Vladimir Komissarov.

The Red Army soldiers who survived the pillbox explosion, concussed and wounded, met a martyr's death. The bodies of some were wrapped in barbed wire, one of the soldiers had two bullet holes in his shoulder blade, the skulls have bullet holes, their faces are smashed, probably by rifle butts. At the burial site, a spoon with scratched letters VA was found - possibly the first letters of a name and surname. On one helmet - Krivyaz F.D.

An interesting find was the upper bronze

a periscope part, pierced by a bullet and deformed by an explosion during the assault. "Even earlier, I noticed the absence of a periscope casing pipe in the pillbox, although it was mandatory. The discovery of a periscope part with characteristic damage illuminates another important nuance of the garrison's last hours of defense. When, during a bloody battle, the Germans managed to reach the walls of the structure and block it to force the garrison to surrender, their sappers not only blew up the embrasures of the firing point but also destroyed the periscope, placed explosives in its casing pipe, and blew up the ceilings (roofs). In those conditions, there was no one left to drive the enemy away from pillbox No. 43 with a counterattack, and the surviving Red Army soldiers of the garrison, having exhausted all defensive possibilities, were forced to abandon it, after which they were shot," clarifies Vladimir Komissarov.

Searchers also found a mess tin with a drawing. Judging by the scratched inscription, it belonged to soldier Railyan F.V., who was very likely among the garrison of the pillbox killed in battle. The inscriptions make it possible to identify the Red Army soldiers who fell in battle on July 13, 1941.

The pillbox was two-story, its armament consisted of three Maxim 7.62 mm machine guns and two Degtyarev 7.62 mm machine guns. The entrance to the structure was closed by a 10 mm thick armored door and was protected from the blast wave by a vestibule with two grated doors, which were fired upon from the embrasures defending the entrance.

On the lower floor of the pillbox, there was a shelter with two-tiered bunks for rest. Also located downstairs were a well, a ammunition depot, and a food storage. A communication post, equipped with a telephone and a radio station, was also allocated. The thickness of the pillbox's ceiling was 1 m, and the thickness of the walls facing the battlefield was 1.48 m.

In 1942, German sappers thoroughly blew up the pillbox to prevent its reuse by Red Army units in case of possible Wehrmacht setbacks at the front. Therefore, it is much more destroyed than after its assault by German infantry in 1941. During the clearing operations

found several burnt stones. It is likely that the Nazis used flamethrowers against the garrison.

Local old-timers knew about this battle, and they told their relatives and neighbors about it. Residents of the village of Mateikovo informed the participants of the military-patriotic search party "Scouts of Military Glory" about the possible location of the remains of the Red Army soldiers. In the summer of 2020, the remains of the garrison soldiers were discovered and exhumed from a crater from a German shell near the pillbox.

It was decided to rebury them with honors near the pillbox and create a memorial here. Numerous clean-up events began to be held.

People from different cities came here, and dozens of organizations and volunteers participated. Among them were schoolchildren, pensioners, enterprise workers, officials, military personnel, residents of the village of Mateikovo, and many others.

Over several months, thickets of trees and shrubs were cleared, the territory around and inside the pillbox was cleaned, and an access road to the future memorial was made. Volunteers collected mountains of garbage during this time, and equipment is also working here.

Volunteers come here to clear the pillbox, the adjacent territory, and for other work, both on weekends and weekdays. Among them are a couple from Polotsk, Lyudmila and Mikhail Pilats. They are now retired.

My husband is a former test pilot, so the history of the war is close to us. Moreover, we need to see and explore everything ourselves, not just read about it or see it on a TV screen. My husband has been studying the Polotsk fortified region for a long time, and we have visited almost all the pillboxes together. If I am interested in the historical component, he knows the engineering part and other details well," Lyudmila shared.

Mikhail said that in April they read online that the remains of 14 soldiers had been found near a pillbox, and they decided to come here. "We arrived and heard that work was in progress, we met people and realized that we were like-minded. Since then, we have been coming here as volunteers several times a week. It has become our cause, we are drawn here. Locals also help. We are pleased with their sincere participation and attitude towards the history of the pillbox; it is preserved in people's memory," Mikhail Pilats reflected.

According to local residents, a fierce battle raged near the pillbox all day. It is said that Muscovites died here. Now, searchers and archivists are looking for information about the garrison. Alla Molodezhkina, a resident of Mateikovo, said that she heard the story of the battle from the village elders.

Alexander Borisov, a participant in the military-patriotic search team "Scouts of Military Glory" and the head of the search team "Patriot" from Latvia, works near the pillbox every day. He was born in Riga and has lived in Novopolotsk for the past few years. For Alexander, searching for the remains of those who died during the war is a lifelong endeavor. He is currently working at pillbox No. 43.

"There will be a memorial here, monuments to the soldiers. On Tuesday, June 22, the remains will be reburied, and the items found here will also be brought on this day. But there is still a large volume of work ahead, although we have done a lot. We still need to lift fragments of the concrete ceiling to be able to enter the pillbox. We might build a canopy, and there will be a trench nearby. The preserved armored door will be installed near the pillbox. There will be a marble plaque from 1987 nearby," explained Alexander Borisov. He added that the local residents' version that the garrison consisted of Muscovites has been confirmed by archives.

The construction of the memorial will not be completed this year. It is planned to open it in 2022. Searchers and other concerned individuals intend to see the project through to the end.

Andrei SHCHERBITSKY, photos by Alexander KHITROV, BELTA.