Topographic maps of all possible scales. Fire tablets and targeting, sketches (outlines of routes) and many types of cartographic materials as well. Hydrographic and meteorological reports. How to fight against exotic diseases instructions. All that and many other - the contribution of geographers to the Great Victory.
Now it is possible to see all those documents not only in the archives – the Russian Geographical Society jointly with the Ministry of Defense issued «The Military Geographical album 1941-1945», which reflected hard front and rear work of the geographers during the Second World War.
-On the pages of the album you can see the unique materials which had been stored classified as «top secret» for many years and were not available for those who are interested in military history of our country, - the President of the Russian Geographical Society, Minister of Defense of Russia Sergey Shoygu told. – There are secret maps, which had been lying on the tables of the command of the Red Army; the plan of Berlin with marks of Stalin himself, which was created in the blockade Leningrad; the freezing and opening schemes of Lake Ladoga, which served as a basis for the Road of Life plan projecting…
Text explanations occupy a smaller part of the album – the main space is put under reproductions of maps and other documents, the unique archival photos. Approximately half of the album is dedicated to the topographic and cartographic services of the Soviet Union – form the report of Georgy Zhukov about the necessity of organization of new cartographic factories in the rear in July of 1941 to the detailed renewed plans of Berlin of the spring of 1945. There is description of manufacturing technologies of the maps under the front and rear, photos of the printing machines, etc., and the data, which had not been published before.
Many pages of the album are dedicated to the work of the Geographical Society of the USSR and the work of its members during the war. There are expeditions amongst them, including exotic location, for instance, to Iran; and selfless preservation of collections and conducting of continuous observations, that often demanded real heroism.
Especially useful this album will be to those who are already acquainted to the basics of topography, cartography, geobotany and meteorology: the technology of work of military geographers is being fully revealed to the prepared reader.
The album will go to the largest public libraries of the country soon, including the Russian State Library in Moscow and Russian National Library in St. Petersburg.