Stalin's bunker with a 17-kilometer tunnel and headquarters

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

In the capital of Russia, underground there is not only the metro and numerous communication tunnels. Back in Soviet times, a bunker-class underground complex was built there. In the post-war years, this shelter began to be called "Stalin's Bunker". It's time to figure out why this shelter was actually built, what it is today and what functions it performed

In the 1930s, a large-scale campaign was carried out in the Soviet Union to prepare the country in case of a future war. Among other things, reserve command posts were created in the country, which the leadership of the country, the army and the navy could use in the event that the situation became critical. There was one such facility in Moscow, on the territory of Izmailovo. Today, many simply call it "Stalin's Bunker", but such a simplified name does not reflect the whole essence of the object.

In fact, the brutal and pretentious "Stalin's Bunker" is called only "The reserve command post of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Red Army." This is a fairly "typical" building. Similar facilities were built in all countries in case the meeting place of the country's leadership and army command is under immediate threat. In the underground shelter there were offices, including the leader's cabin, the General Headquarters meeting room, a radio communication room, warehouses with everything you need (weapons, ammunition, fuel, food, medicine), a hall with diesel generators in case of loss of central power supply. In addition, a 17-kilometer tunnel was made from the bunker to evacuate top officials in case Moscow falls.

What is really remarkable about the bunker is the secrecy under which it was created. At the end of the 1930s, in order to divert one's eyes from the construction site of an important facility, the construction of a stadium for the future Olympics for 120 thousand people began in Izmailovo. The bunker was commissioned in 1940, but the stadium was never completed - the war began. However, such tricks are also common practice. Simple and efficient.

Did Stalin take advantage of the shelter? Judging by the book of visits to the Kremlin, Joseph Vissarionovich was in the bunker during the most difficult, first days of the Battle of Moscow from the end of November to the first days of December 1941. He was not there alone. The entire top of the Soviet command was in the bunker, as well as officers of the Red Army and the NKVD, who guarded and dealt with communications. The shelter allowed the headquarters to be located in Moscow and not become a victim of the bombing, which was extremely important for the entire country. When the critical moment passed, the Headquarters returned to the Kremlin walls.

Within the framework of the topic of bunkers for governments, it is worth mentioning how, in principle, the evacuation of the Soviet government took place. Back on October 15, 1941, the State Defense Committee issued a decree GKO-801 on the evacuation of the capitals of the USSR. Within the framework of this resolution, the Minister of Foreign Affairs - Molotov Vyacheslav Mikhailovich, together with all missions of foreign states in the USSR, departed for the city of Kuibyshev. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, the Government of the USSR and the People's Commissariat of Defense were also evacuated there. The main group of the General Staff was evacuated to Arzamas. As for the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, it did not leave Moscow throughout the war.

As for the bunker, today it has been turned into a museum, which has been operating since 1996. Anyone can visit it. True, from the real bunker, except for the meeting room, there is almost nothing left. Most of the premises are decorated with thematic items that were not there during the war.