Memorial complex "Khatsun", Bryansk region

The memorial complex "Khatsun" is a special place for every Russian. The bell hanging under the arches reminds us all of the millions of innocent victims and tortured adults and children who found their death at the hands of the German fascist invaders. Now that the number of participants in the war is getting smaller and smaller every day, the care of preserving the memory of those terrible years falls on the shoulders of young generations.

The usual village of Central Russia

The "Khatsun" memorial complex (Bryansk region) is located on the territory of the modern Verkhopolsky rural settlement, which belongs to the Karachaevsky district of the Bryansk region. It is an unremarkable, gradually dying place, of which there are thousands all over Russia. However, the real story is going on not only in capitals and megacities, but also in such small settlements.

The very name - "Khatsun" - is known since the middle of the nineteenth century. This term at that time denoted a small forest tract with a lodge in it. In the 20 years of the last century, with the establishment of Soviet power, a small village appeared on the site of the tract, the inhabitants of which were engaged mainly in logging operations.

Currently, there are only eight people living here, practically all very old. The memorial complex "Khatsun" became an opportunity for this settlement to preserve not only itself, but also the memory of those terrible events that unfolded here in October 1941.

Black October 1941 ...

"Hatsun" - a memorial complex, a photo of which can be found in almost any album dedicated to the Great Patriotic War. Its creation is connected with the events that took place in this settlement on October 25, 1941.

In the autumn of 1941 the German Wehrmacht, straining all its strength, was eager for Moscow. One of the directions of their offensive passed through Bryansk, around which in September-October fierce fighting unfolded. The city was continuously subjected to powerful bombing, which caused a significant part of its inhabitants to move to the nearest villages. One of these villages was Khatsun.

On October 24 a small group of Red Army soldiers, who made their way to their encirclement, entered into battle with three Germans who escorted prisoners of war. Two guards were killed, but the third, despite the injury, managed to leave. As the residents of Hatsuni recalled in the future, everyone understood that the punitive operation was inevitable, therefore almost all of the village left in the evening. On the morning of October 25, most of them returned to the village to visit the cattle and take the necessary things. Later, the memorial complex "Khatsun" became a monument to them.

Atrocity that can not be forgotten

The German punitive detachment surrounded Khatsun at dawn on October 25, 1941. Everyone wishing to enter was quietly skipped, but no one could go back. The first victim was six-year-old Nina Kondrashova, who was pierced with a bayonet knife right in her crib. Her neighbor Nina Yashina was nailed to the gates of her house after she had found some thing that had belonged to the Red Army soldiers earlier.

But the Germans did not intend to confine themselves to individual terror. With the help of rifle butts and bayonets, all residents, among whom there were not only adults but also children who did not understand anything, were gathered in one place. At first machine gunshots were heard, after which machine guns were fired. 318 people were killed, and all buildings, including sheds and a well, were burned. To edify the inhabitants of neighboring villages, decaying corpses were forbidden to dig in, they lay on the streets for two weeks. Survive (in many ways completely by accident) managed only seven people.

Saving memory

Khatsun is by no means the only village in the Bryansk region, which was awaited by such a terrible fate. In total during the occupation in this region, more than nine hundred rural settlements were destroyed, thousands of residents were shot or stolen to Germany. All over the world they know the fate of the Belarusian Khatyn, but many Russian villages have been waiting for an equally terrible fate.

Talks about the need to perpetuate the memory of those shot in Hatsun began almost immediately after the liberation of the Bryansk region from the German fascist invaders. However, the real embodiment of this idea began only in 1977. The "Khatsun" memorial complex was planned as a number of structures that were supposed to show respect for the dead, on the one hand, and, on the other, to become an educational tool for future generations.

Not all ideas were fully implemented, therefore, until the end of the 2000s, Khatsun was seen by many as not a good copy of Khatyn, especially since their names are very similar. Much has changed since V. Putin came to power.

Memorial complex "Khatsun": the second birth

The restoration work in Hatsuni began in 2009. At the same time, not only were old objects reconstructed, but a number of new ones were created. As a result, at present, the complex includes a small functioning chapel, a museum with an exposition dedicated not only to the memorable events of October 25, 1941, but to other atrocities of the fascists in the occupied land, the mass grave with the remains of the deceased residents.

Especially frustrating feeling for all guests is a visit to the memory wall designed by the famous sculptor A. Romashevsky and an examination of 28 stelae with memorial plaques placed on them . The central place in the complex is the obelisk, dedicated to the Soviet soldiers - the participants of the most bloody in the history of the war.

At the opening of the memorial complex was a very impressive delegation, which included representatives of Russia, Germany, Belarus, Ukraine and some other countries. The Russian delegation was headed by Vladimir Putin, which became an excellent advertisement for this place. If before, many did not know that there is a memorial complex under the name "Khatsun", how to get to it, no one could say, now there is simply no stop from those wishing to visit the complex.

The event in honor of the 70th anniversary of Victory

After the reconstruction, "Hatsun" became one of the most important objects participating in various commemorative events. Usually they are timed to coincide with the Victory Day and the Memorial Day on October 25. So, in the course of preparation for the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Great Victory, another event took place at the memorial complex "Khatsun". On 18.04.15 the governor of Bryansk region A. Bogomaz opened a solemn meeting held within the framework of the action "Immortal Memory of Generations".

In the course of this event, in which almost all heads of the region and the region took part, medals were given to the most worthy residents of the Karachai district. The meeting ended with the laying of flowers and a festive concert.

"Hatsun" (memorial complex): how to get from Bryansk

The increasing popularity of the memorial place led to the fact that special bus tours were organized from Bryansk. At the same time, you can get there by yourself: it's enough to arrive from Moscow by train to Bryansk, and then by bus to the Verkhopolsky settlement. Buses run almost every day from morning to evening.