Sixty-Fourth Day:
Thursday, 21st February, 1946
[Page 190]
I omit the end of Page 43 and the whole of Page 44 of this
statement, and begin my quotation in the middle of Page 45.
[Page 191]
From the Big, Marly, Monplaisir and Cottage Palaces, they
looted and removed to Germany some 34,000 museum
exhibits, among them 4,950 unique pieces of furniture of
Italian, English, French and Russian workmanship from the
periods of Catherine the Great, Alexander I and Nicholas
I, as well as many rare sets of porcelain, of foreign and
Russian manufacture, of the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries. The German barbarians stripped the walls of
the palace rooms of the silks, Gobelin tapestries and
other decorative materials which adorned them.
In November, 1941, the Germans removed the bronze statue
of Samson, the work of the sculptor Kozlovoky, and sent
it to Germany. Having looted the museum treasures, the
Hitlerites set fire to the Big Palace, created by the
famous and gifted architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli.
"Upon their withdrawal from Petrodvoretz," I have omitted
a paragraph, "the Germans wrecked the Marly Palace by
delayed action mines. This palace contained very delicate
carvings and stucco mouldings, The Germans wrecked the
Monplaisir Palace of Peter the Great. They destroyed all
the wooden parts of the pavilion and galleries, the
interior decorations of the study, the bedroom and the
Chinese room. During their occupation, they turned the
central parts of the palace, i.e., the most valuable from
the historical and artistic viewpoint, into bunkers. They
turned the Western pavilion of the palace into a stable
and a latrine. In the premises of the Assembly Building
the Germans tore up the floor, sawed through the beams,
destroyed the doors and window-frames and stripped the
panelling off the ceiling."
After the occupation of New Petrodvoretz, units of the
291st German Infantry Division, using heavy artillery
fire, completely destroyed the famous English Palace at
Old Petrodvoretz, built on the orders of Catherine II by
the architect Quarengi. The Germans fired 9,000 rounds of
heavy artillery shells; together with the palace they
destroyed the picturesque English park and all the park
pavilions."
That is all for this morning.
(A recess was taken until 14.00 hours.)
LIEUTENANT-GENERAL RAGINSKY: The looting and destruction of
historical and artistic palaces in the town of Pushkino
(Tzarskoe-Selo) was carried out with malice aforethought by
order of the highest German authorities.
[Page 192]
In Pushkino the Hitlerite bandits destroyed the famous
Alexandrovsky Palace, constructed at the end of the
eighteenth century by the famous architect Giacomo
Quarengi."
The famous painted ceiling 'Feast of the Gods on Olympus'
in the main hall of the 'Hermitage' pavilion was, removed
and shipped to Germany."
Destruction of the Pavlovsky Palace in the town of
Pavlovsk.
Ribbentrop's 'Special Purposes Battalion' and the
commandos of 'Staff Rosenberg' shipped to Germany from
the Pavlovsky Palace extremely valuable palace furniture,
designed by Veronikhin and by the greatest masters of the
eighteenth century."
Many large towns were destroyed by the German fascist
invaders in the occupied USSR territories. But they
destroyed with particular ruthlessness the ancient Russian
cities containing monuments of ancient Russian art.
I quote as an example the destruction of the cities of
Novgorod, Pskov and Smolensk.
[Page 193]
By way of proof, I shall read into the record some excerpts
from the document presented to the Tribunal as Exhibit USSR
50. You will, your Honours, find these excerpts on Pages 333
and 334 of the document book. I read:-
The German- fascist vandals destroyed and obliterated, in
Novgorod, the greatest monuments of ancient Russian art.
They destroyed the vaults, walls and towers of the St.
George Cathedral of the Yuryev Monastery. This cathedral
was built in the early part of the twelfth century, and
was decorated by twelfth century frescoes.
The Cathedral of St. Sophia, built in the eleventh
century, was one of the oldest monuments of Russian
architecture and an outstanding monument of world art.
The Germans destroyed the cathedral building. . . . They
robbed it entirely of all its interior decorations; they
carried off all the icons from the iconostasis and the
ancient incense burners, including one which belonged to
Boris Godunov. . . .
The Church of the Annunciation on the Arkage, of twelfth
century foundation, was converted by the Germans into a
fortified position and barracks."
By order of the commanding general of the 18th German
Army, Lieut.-General Lindemann, the German barbarians
dismantled and prepared for removal to Germany the
monument to 'Thousand years of Russia'. This monument was
erected in the Kremlin Square in 1862 and represented, in
artistic images, the main stages of the development of
our native land up to the sixties of the nineteenth
century. . . .
The Nazi barbarians dismantled the monument and smashed
the statuary. They did not, however, succeed in shipping
it off and melting down the metal."
He began the study of the historical monuments of Novgorod
and Pskov in 1926. As a great expert in this particular
sphere of art, he was asked by the Extraordinary State
Commission to participate in the investigation of the crimes
of the German fascist invaders.
[Page 194]
In submitting his affidavit, I will omit facts already known
to the Tribunal from the report of the Extraordinary State
Commission previously read into the record. I quote only a
few short excerpts which will be found on Pages 336 and 339.
Dimitriev stated as follows (I read):-
At the same time the German troops profaned and
desecrated many ecclesiastical monuments of historic and
artistic value in Novgorod and Pskov."
The Soviet prosecution has presented to the Tribunal a
document as Exhibit USSR 56, containing the Report of the
Extraordinary State Commission.
I shall not quote this document, but shall only refer to it
and endeavour, in my own words, to emphasise the fundamental
points of this document, dealing with the related theme now.
In Smolensk, the German fascist invaders plundered and
destroyed the most valuable collections in the museums They
desecrated and burned down ancient monuments. They destroyed
schools and institutes, libraries, and sanatoriums. The
report also mentions the fact that in April, 1943, the
Germans needed gravel and bricks to pave the roads. For this
purpose, they blew up the building of one of the high
schools.
The Germans burned down all the libraries of the city and
twenty-two schools. 646,000 volumes perished in the library
fires.
I now pass on to Page 57 of the report.
The museum of Art, built up since 1898, possessed one of
the most extensive collections, primarily of Russian
historo -artistic, historo -sociological, ethnographic
and other valuables: paintings, icons, bronzes,
porcelains, metal castings and textiles. These
collections were of international value and had been
exhibited in France. The invaders destroyed the museums
and took the most valuable exhibits to Germany." [
Previous |
Index |
Next ]
Home ·
Site Map ·
What's New? ·
Search
Nizkor
© The Nizkor Project, 1991-2012
This site is intended for educational purposes to teach about the Holocaust and
to combat hatred.
Any statements or excerpts found on this site are for educational purposes only.
As part of these educational purposes, Nizkor may
include on this website materials, such as excerpts from the writings of racists and antisemites. Far from approving these writings, Nizkor condemns them and
provides them so that its readers can learn the nature and extent of hate and antisemitic discourse. Nizkor urges the readers of these pages to condemn racist
and hate speech in all of its forms and manifestations.
(Part 5 of 8)
[LIEUTENANT-GENERAL RAGINSKY continues]
"At the time the German invaders broke into Petrodvoretz
(in Peterhof) there still remained, after the evacuation,
34,214 museum exhibits (pictures, works of art and
sculptures), as well as 11,700 extremely valuable books
from the palace libraries. The ground floor rooms of the
Ekaterinsky and Alexandrovsky palaces in the town of
Pushkin (Tzarskoe-Selo), contained various suites of
furniture, of Russian and French workmanship, of the
middle of the eighteenth century, 600 pieces of porcelain
of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as well
as a large number of marble busts, small sculptures and
about 35,000 volumes from the palace libraries.
I omit one paragraph and quote the last one on this page.
"In the Northern part of the park, in the so-called
Alexander Park, they blew up the villa of Nicholas II,
completely destroyed the frame cottage which served as
billets for officers, the Alexander gates, the pavilions
of the Adam fountain, the pylons of the main gates of the
Upper Park and the Rose pavilion."
I omit one paragraph on Page 47.
"The Germans wrecked the fountain system of the
Petrodvoretz Parks. They damaged the entire pipeline
system for feeding the fountains, a system extending from
the dam of the Rose pavilion to the Upper Park ....
THE PRESIDENT: The Tribunal has appreciated the successful
efforts which the other members of the Soviet Delegation
have made to shorten their addresses, and they would be glad
if you could possibly summarise some of the details with
which you have to deal in the matter of destruction and
spoliation and perhaps omit some of the details.
"A considerable part of the Ekaterinsky Palace was burnt
down by the Germans. The famous Ceremonial Hall, 300
metres long and designed by Rastrelli, perished in the
flames. The famous antechambers decorated by Rastrelli
were likewise ruined."
I omit one paragraph and continue:-
"The Great Hall - outstanding creation of the genius of
Rastrelli - presented a terrible spectacle. The unique
ceilings, work of Torelli, Giordano, Brullov and other
famous Italian and Russian masters, were destroyed."
I omit another paragraph.
"Equally ruined and pillaged was the Palace Church, one
of Rastrelli's masterpieces, famous for the exquisite
workmanship of the interior decorations."
I omit one more paragraph.
"In January, 1944, the retreating German invaders
prepared the complete destruction of all that was left of
the Catherine Palace and adjoining buildings. For this
purpose, on the ground floor of the remaining part of the
palace, as well as under the Cameron Gallery, eleven
large delayed-action aerial bombs were laid, weighing
from one to three tons.
I omit a paragraph:
"All the museum furniture, stored in the basements of the
Ekaterinsky and Alexandrovsky palaces, porcelain pieces
and books from the palace libraries were sent to Germany.
I omit two paragraphs.
"Great destruction was caused by the Hitlerites in the
magnificent Pushkino Parks, where thousands of age-old
trees were cut down.
I omit the end of Page 49 and the beginning of Page 50 of
the report:-
"During their retreat the fascist invaders set fire to
the Pavlovsky Palace. The greater part of the palace
building was entirely burned down."
I omit the next two paragraphs and quote the last paragraph
which concludes this document.
"The Extraordinary State Commission established that the
destruction of art monuments in Petrodvoretz, Pushkino
and Pavlovsk was carried out by the officers and soldiers
of the German Army on the direct instructions of the
German Government and the Military High Command."
Destruction of Historical Monuments in the Ancient Russian
Cities.
"Novgorod and Pskov belong to those historical centres
where the Russian people laid the foundation of their
State; here, in the course of centuries flourished a
highly developed and individual culture. It left a rich
heritage which constitutes a valuable possession of our
people. Thanks to the survival of numerous monuments of
ecclesiastic and civil architecture, murals, paintings,
The Hitlerite barbarians destroyed, in Novgorod City, many
valuable monuments of Russian and foreign art of the
eleventh and twelfth centuries. They not only destroyed the
monuments but they reduced the entire city to a heap of
ruins.
". . . . The ancient Russian city of Novgorod was reduced
to a heap of ruins by the German fascist invaders. They
destroyed the historical monuments and dismantled some of
them for use in the construction of defence
fortifications ...
I omit one paragraph:-
"The Church of the Assumption on Volotov Field, a
monument of Novgorod architecture of the fourteenth to
fifteenth centuries, was turned by the Germans into a
heap of stones and bricks."
I omit one paragraph:-
"The Church of the Transfiguration of our Lord, in the
Ifyin Street, was destroyed. It was one of the finest
specimens of Novgorod architecture of the fourteenth
century, particularly famed for its frescoes, painted in
the same period by the great Byzantine master, Theofan
the Greek."
I omit the rest of this page and pass on to Page 54 of the
report.
"Over two years of Hitlerite misrule in Novgorod brought
about the ruin of many other wonderful ancient Russian
monuments....
Citizen Dimitriev, Youri Nikolaevich, in his affidavit,
gives a very detailed account of the barbarous destruction
by the Germans of the monuments of ancient Russian art in
the cities of Novgorod and Pskov. Dimitriev, since 1937, was
the custodian of the Ancient-Russian Art section of the
Russian State Museum in Leningrad.
"The greater part of Novgorod is razed to the ground;
only a few districts were left in existence by the
Germans, and even these were in ruins. Pskov was also
left in ruins by the Germans; during their retreat they
blew up the buildings and monuments. Of eighty-eight
buildings of historical and artistic value in Novgorod,
two buildings alone are merely slightly damaged. . . .
Only a few isolated monuments in Pskov were left
undamaged. In Novgorod and Pskov the Germans
deliberately destroyed monuments of historical and
artistic value."
And further:-
"The German Army, while destroying and damaging monuments
of historical and artistic value, plundered and carried
off many works of art and valuable objects which formed
part of, or were contained in, these monuments.
Day by day, for twenty-six months, the Hitlerites
systematically destroyed one of the most ancient Russian
cities - Smolensk.
"Prior to the German occupation, Smolensk contained four
museums with extremely valuable collections.
I shall quote only one last paragraph on page 57.
"General Staff Rosenberg" for the confiscation and export
of valuables from the occupied regions of the East, had a
special branch in Smolensk, headed by Dr. Norling, the
organiser for the plunder of museums and historical
monuments."