The air reeked of death, the unpleasant wave of uncertainty stagnated on the city streets, not a single soul to be seen that day...just bodies.
Alexiy was just 14 years old, the steel helmet on his head was covering his eyes and the clothes were way bigger than he could carry. He used to play with his friends a few days back, shooting at each other with play guns, this time he had a real one hanging over his shoulder and he didn't even want it.
He sneaked around on the once lively street, quietly trying to maneuver himself to somewhere it would be safe. He was a tiny boy now, malnourished and the life sucked out of his eyes. Every step was heavier to take, but he did it as softly as possible so as not to alert the enemies by the sound of splashing. Alexiy wanted to look up at the sky and pray to God, but he was too scared to do. There were bodies hanging from the balconies and it felt as if God didn't want Alexiy to look up to Him. Alexiy kept pushing to find his comrades, his black leather boot now turned red from the rivers of blood.
1941, Kharkiv was subjected to the first Nazi occupation. Alexiy was one of the brave Kharkivites who took a stand against the occupation. Some lost their partner, some their mothers, some their friends, but everyone had lost a part of themselves.
Alexiy wasn't even a part of any battalion. He just picked up everything he could from his late dad's body to avenge the capture and hanging of his mother. More than a 100 people, mostly Jews, were captured and many were hanged from the buildings to terrorize the people and warn them.
Many people chose to flee, there was chaos everywhere. German troops were ordered to kill anybody associated with the communist ideals. Buildings were blown up by the red army, but still around a 1000 were captured and were victims to the war crimes committed by the SS troops.
Architecture turned into ruble, starvation hit the citizens, many died from freezing.
"I saw Kharkov. As if it were Rome in the 5th century. A huge cemetery”.
-Aleksey Nikolayevich
I lived here for around 2 years. The "soldat" as a lot of locals call it. A single, most attractive place in the heart of Kharkiv.
I used to go down here and sit under the shade of this glorious monument. There was always a cheerful bunch of kids playing around, family picnics, even rap and breakdance battles.
It is hard to believe that this spot was once subjected to such a horror and disaster. It is hard to believe that so many Alexiys and loved ones went through such a wave of cruelty. It is hard to believe that this monument, raised by the same red army that protected Kharkiv, was subjected to negligence and wasn't maintained after it's erection for years.
Today, Kharkiv and the "Soldat" is a beautiful place to spend time in with family and friends. Today, it is just a reminder to the sacrifices that had to be made to over come tyranny and celebrate freedom. It is a gesture to the forever living tales of all the Alexiys that stood their ground and protected Kharkiv and the citizen's freedom till their last breath.
The Monument to the Liberator Soldier erected in Kharkiv, Ukraine to commemorate the Soviet troops that fell to liberate the city in 1943 from the German occupation.
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