In Gorodok, the 76th anniversary of the district's liberation from the Nazi invaders was celebrated
A solemn rally, as is tradition, gathered residents of Gorodok and guests of the district center at Victory Square. The Chairman of the District Executive Committee, Petr Korobach, addressed everyone with a congratulatory speech:
– Moscow saluted the liberation of the Gorodok district with artillery volleys from 124 guns. This date is joyful and bright. But today it is also important to pay tribute to the victims of that war – our people killed and tortured by the fascists, those who did not survive the occupation, the soldiers who gave us a peaceful sky. As long as we remember the price at which Victory was forged, we have a future, an opportunity to live happily and peacefully!
Tamara Ivanova, director of the local museum of local lore, told sb.by about the offensive operation known in military history as the Gorodok Operation:
– The Gorodok Operation, launched by the 1st Baltic Front on December 13, 1943, lasted more than 10 days. It was this front line that Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Bagramyan called the most difficult in his biography in his memoirs. Moreover, for Ivan Khristoforovich, the operation was the first in his post as front commander. Initially, it was planned for October, but the completely non-winter weather hindered our soldiers. In the conditions of swampy terrain, fog, and constant rain, every maneuver could have turned into a failure.
The conditions under which Soviet soldiers had to achieve victory were extremely difficult. The very first day of the operation showed that a swift success would not be possible: the fascist defense lines were of a complex, continuous profile. If our troops captured the first line, an equally strong second line immediately took its place. Both Soviet and enemy command perfectly understood the significance of the battle. Gorodok itself represented an impregnable fortress on the approaches to Vitebsk. But all the technical power and efforts of the fascists proved to be in vain. The third stage of the operation was the liberation of the district center. On the night of December 24, the city finally became free. Fierce battles raged in the area of the railway station until the very end…
In total, over the years of the Great Patriotic War, about 28,000 liberator soldiers gave their lives for the liberation of the Gorodok region. On the eve of the war, there were more than 8,000 people in Gorodok, and after liberation, only 3,500 remained. During the Gorodok operation, Red Army soldiers liberated 1,220 settlements. Data on fallen soldiers are still being established. For example, over the past two years, about a thousand names of fallen liberators have been returned from oblivion in the Gorodok region. In 2019, soldiers of the 52nd search battalion conducted excavations in 11 settlements. As a result, the remains of 23 soldiers were discovered, who were reburied with full honors. In addition, monuments to partisans "Master of the Forest" have been restored in the region, which stands in the Shchelkovsky forests, and monuments at burials in Virovle and Ulishitsy have been replaced.
As part of the "In Glory of the Common Victory!" memorial event, soil was collected from 91 burial sites of soldiers and civilians in the Gorodok region whose lives were taken by the war. Today, the capsule with the soil was handed over to the central church of the city, where a memorial service for the fallen will be held. Then, the capsule will be delivered to Vitebsk, and then to Minsk, where it will be placed in a niche of the Memorial Church in honor of All Saints.