War is not only about heroism and deaths on the battlefield, it's just as well about a life of a child born in the hot summer of 1941, it's about the whole life of a mother who lost her toddler in the bombed train, it's about every day of a wife who is waiting for her husband, of a mother who still hopes for her son to return, waiting through deaths of children and hunger.
Year after year somehow I find more and more details about the World War II. Having moved to Iceland, I discovered Hvalfjörður - a birthplace for at least ten Arctic convoys, seven from which ended in my native city of Arkhangelsk between 1941-1942, bringing food and supplies, giving hope and saving our lives.
on the photo - the most famous and tragic Arctic convoy PQ-17 is being assembled in Hvalförður
It's a Victory Day in Russia today - on the 8th of May, 1941, the World War II officially ended, as Field-Marshal Keitel signed Wehrmacht capitulation papers in Berlin. Interestingly, due to the time difference, it was already the 9th of May in Moscow, since then we keep this date to remember.
World War II is a huge historical field in terms of topics, actions, direction, events, places, people, etc. Arctic convoys is one of them, undoubtedly, influential for the whole course of events. More importantly for me, as it has always been tightly connected with my native city, and now as I have found out, with my new homeland.
A lot has been researched and written about Arctic convoys, but just to make a small picture: in the period between August 1941 to May 1945 there were 78 convoys, sailing from the United Kingdom, Iceland and North America to the two most northern ports of the Soviet Union: Arkhangelsk and Murmansk.
Let respected historians forgive me for the small possible inaccuracies, but as far as most of sources state in 1941-1942 fourteen convoys started from Iceland: ten from Hvalfjörður and four from Reykjavík. Seven out of ten coming out from Hvalfjörður ended in Arkhangelsk. The importance of them is difficult to underestimate: a complete new vein brought blood to the dying, exhausted heart of the country, reviving the huge organism for the victorious fight. The great value of the convoys was not only in terms of supplies or food, but in terms of hope - suddenly the victory seemed closer, possible, soon.
Every year Arkhangelsk becomes a meeting place for those who survived, sadly, less and less of them with every year. Every year we, children, were in the streets to look at those old dignified foreigners, who seemed strangely alike our grandfathers, walking side by side with them; every year, we, students of the language department, were volunteering with translation; every year, marveling at their courage, theirs and our grandfathers´ feat, which gave us possibility to live. We grew up with the knowledge of the convoys, but somehow to my shame Iceland literally has never ranged the ship bell in our heads.
Last year a couple of my very good friends were visiting Iceland. On the road from Borgarnes, approaching the tunnel, my friend asked about convoys. The answer of my moderately handsome husband took me by surprise as he mentioned Hvalfjörður which we were passing by at that moment. How come this peaceful, most breathtakingly beautiful place on Earth was involved in the war. How come there is a direct link between this place and my home. How come the lives of my parents, my life and the lives of my children depended on this particular part of the world. How come I didn't know...
The war, the end of which Russia celebrates today, is exceptionally multifaceted and manifold. There's hardly a person in Russia who has never been touched by it. And it still echoes to us - through the other times, through the other places.
At this moment I want to thank Icelanders who helped us live.
beautiful and peaceful Hvalfjörður almost 70 years later
source of photoCopyright © 2013 by Olga Johannesson
Agree! Many thanks to Icelanders!
ReplyDeleteMy Grandpa was in those convoys, but, unfortunately, he had died before I was born, so he couldn't tell me about those events or Iceland....
many thanks for your comment!
Deleteyes, Ksusha, it was a complete surprise to me as well. We would have definitely benefited so much from the memories of our grandpas - mine was in Kirkenes as a commander of an artillery unit.
Iceland was occupied by the British May 10th 1940. In July 1941, about a month after the Nazi invasion of the USSR, the Americans took over from the Brits and ran the Hvalfjörður facilities. Yes, some Icelanders lost their lives on these convoys. However generally speaking we got off lightly during WW II.
ReplyDeleteI won´t make little of the grim sacrifices made by the Western allies, but the sufferings and fighting spirit of the peoples of the USSR during these times was unimaginable, incomparable.
I understand you speak of WW II as “The Great War for the Fatherland” (föðurlandsstríðið mikla). Apparently, Stalin, during the war, had the good sense to appeal to patriotism rather than, say, the belief in communism.
This same patriotism shows in your writings. I like it.
Valdimar, thank you so much for your valuable comment!
Deleteyes, I refer mostly to so-called Great Patriotic War,and yes, you are completely right of assuming Stalin played well on patriotism. Although communism played a role as well - when soldiers were going to their last attack, often deadly, they shouted "For Motherland, for Stalin!" and they believed in that wholeheartedly.
It would be unfair, shallow and wrong to make any judgement through these years - simply because we don't have any right to judge.
But one thing I agree completely - patriotism has always been a strong part of a national identity, which, sadly to notice, mostly becoming extinct nowadays.