Rank: Red Army soldier Type of troops: Ground Forces, Air Force (except naval aviation), coastal service, NKVD troops, border troops Subdivision: 16th Guards Rifle Karachev Order of Lenin Red Banner Order of Suvorov Division "I was killed near Rzhev, in an unmarked swamp, in an unnamed company , on the left, with a cruel raid. I did not hear the gap and did not see that flash, - Exactly into the abyss from the cliff - And neither the bottom, nor the tire. And throughout this world until the end of his days - Neither buttonhole nor stripe from my tunic ... "Author: А.Т. Tvardovsky. Until 2015, the fate of my great-grandfather was not known. On May 9, 2015, 70 years after the victory of the Soviet Army over the fascist invaders, thanks to the Memorial DB website, I learned that my great-grandfather Mikhail Fedorovich Gorelov died in the Rzhev meat grinder on July 31, 1942 at the age of 40. At that time, at home in the village of Kremenki, Diveevsky district of the Gorky region, he had wife, Gorelova Eprosinya Ivanovna, and three children: Ekaterina, Nikolai and Ivan, who were not destined to meet their father and husband from the war and the most important thing was to come to his grave. However, 73 years after the death of Mikhail Fedorovich, his great-grandchildren learned that he was buried in the village of Deshevki, Rzhevsky district, Tver region, on the southern side, 200 meters from the road in mass grave No. 3. Later, his remains were transferred to a mass grave in the village of Polunino, where, in addition to him, over 12 thousand Soviet soldiers were buried. We all studied the Battle of Stalingrad, the blockade of Leningrad in schools, but nothing was said about the Battle of Rzhev in school textbooks. The city of Rzhev by the decree of the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin was awarded the honorary title "City of Military Glory"only in 2007. Official sources claim that there has never been a battle in Rzhev, there were only local battles. Rzhev historians, bit by bit, have kept information for all these years, so that our descendants would know the truth. "Battle of Rzhevskaya - military operations of Soviet and German troops during the Great Patriotic War, which took place in the region of the Rzhev salient from January 5, 1942 to March 21, 1943, with intervals from one and a half to three months. Includes four offensive operations of the Soviet troops of the Western and Kalinin fronts against the German Army Group "Center", which had the goal of defeating the main forces of "Center", liberating the cities of Rzhev, Sychevka, Vyazma and thereby liquidating the Rzhev salient. It ended with the liquidation of the Rzhev salient. " "According to the statistical research of the historian G.F. Krivosheev" Russia and the USSR in the wars of the twentieth century ", irrecoverable losses (killed, died of wounds and missing, including those taken prisoner) in 1942-1943 in operations in the western direction amounted to 433,037 people, including: 1) Rzhev-Vyazemsk strategic offensive operation (January 8 - April 20, 1942) - 272 320 people. 2) The first Rzhev-Sychevsk offensive operation (July 30 - August 23, 1942) - 51 482 3) The second Rzhev-Sychevsk offensive operation (November 25 - December 20, 1942) - 70 373 people. 4) Rzhev-Vyazemsk offensive operation (March 2 - 31, 1943) - 38 862 people. " The Battle of Rzhev is the unknown battle lost by the "Marshal of Victory" G.K. Zhukov. There is an opinion that the Germans were informed in advance about the preparation of the offensive operation of the Red Army near Rzhev, the Soviet spy A. Demyanov did this at the behest of the chief of state security Lavrentiy Beria to increase confidence in himself as a reliable informant. It is no coincidence that on June 26, 1953, G.K. Zhukov volunteered to personally arrest L. Beria. During the entire Great Patriotic War I.V. Stalin went to the front only once: near Rzhev, in the village of Horoshevo, all over after the Germans were driven out of the city. It was in the village of Khoroshevo that I.V. Stalin gave a decree to hold the first fireworks in the Great Patriotic War after the liberation of the cities of Orel and Belgorod. The battle of Rzhev was also of great importance for Adolf Hitler, not in vain, when the Germans were already leaving Rzhev and blew up the bridge connecting 2 parts of the city, Hitler personally listened to the sound of the explosion by phone. In addition, the battles near Rzhev weakened the Germans, which made it possible to win the Battle of Stalingrad. "We do not wear orders of our own. All this is for you, alive. We are only glad that we fought for our motherland for a reason. Let our voice not be heard, you must know it." Author: A.T. Tvardovsky.