Liberal historians see one of the reasons for the defeats of the Red Army in the initial period of the Second World War at the instigation of N.S. Khrushchev: in the destruction by Stalin before the war of the “flower of the army,” in particular its outstanding commanders. There are several facts from the biography about one of them.
In 1920 Mr. Yakir and his army met for the first time with a serious enemy - the regular Polish army. The Red Army soldiers suffered a severe defeat and fled for their lives. By the way, Jonah Emmanuilovich does not remember this shameful episode in his memoirs.
The son of his close friend and ally Grigory Kotovsky, Grigory Grigorievich, provided interesting information about Yakir in one of his interviews. He said that in the promotion of Jonah Emmanuilovich during the Civil War, the key role was played not by his military leadership talents (very mediocre), but, first of all, by family ties with Leon Trotsky. The Kotovites even gave Grigory documents stating that Yakir received the first Order of the Red Banner
In Yakir’s biography, in addition to brutal punitive operations, there are many episodes for which he should have been ashamed. IN
1920During clashes with the White Poles, during the latter's successful offensive on Kyiv, the White Church was taken, where the main residence of the Branitsky counts, large landowners, was located. Following the troops, the Branitskys also returned to Bila Tserkva. During the counter-offensive of the Red Army, Kotovsky's brigade was entrusted with the capture of Bila Tserkva. Having carried out this operation brilliantly, Kotovsky and his army moved on. Meanwhile, a convoy of a brigade arrived in the city, which included a dressing detachment from Kotovsky’s wife, Olga Petrovna - she was a doctor in the brigade. The convoy was located in the Branitsky mansion, who left the residence in haste and panic to escape the Reds. In the mansion, Madame Kotovskaya went to look for bed linen to cut it into bandages for the wounded. When she entered one of the bedrooms, she saw a large leather suitcase filled with lace.
Suddenly a cry came from behind her: “Don’t touch it, it’s mine!” Olga Petrovna turned around and saw Yakir’s wife Sara Lazarevna. A few days later, a scandal broke out: the Cheka discovered that the Branitskys’ silverware had been stolen. Sara Lazarevna meanly pointed at Kotovskaya, who was the first to visit the palace with her orderlies. To Olga Petrovna’s credit, it quickly became clear that she was not involved in the loss of the silver.
Years have passed. In 1924 The Kotovsky couple were returning from Moscow to Uman via Kharkov, where the Yakirs then lived. They were invited by Jonah Emmanuilovich to a dinner party, during which Olga Petrovna drew attention to the silverware with the monogram “B”». « So this is where the Branicki silver is», - she exclaimed loudly. An awkward silence reigned, and Yakir turned red like a lobster.
By the way, it later turned out that Sara Lazarevna always had two accompanying people who collected valuables from the houses of wealthy townspeople, large landowners and dispossessed people. All this stuff was transported in suitcases to Odessa.
As already mentioned, Yakir was among the main organizers of first the most brutal collectivization, and then the Holodomor in our country. Thanks to his zeal, the combat detachments of the Red Army confiscated everything that could be considered food and mercilessly destroyed it. And then the army commander gave the order that the Red Army soldiers shoot those convicted of cannibalism. The cannibals were reported by village activists loyal to the authorities, who were given food coupons.
Yakir Iona Emmanuilovich (1896-1937) was born in the city of Chisinau into the family of a pharmacist. At first I tried to study at the University of Basel, then at the Kharkov Institute of Technology. I graduated from none of these educational institutions. When did the first one begin? World War, then his father assigned him to a military plant in Odessa, since such enterprises did not take him to the front.
After February revolution joined the Bolshevik Party. And here an amazing thing immediately catches your eye. Jonah Emmanuilovich had no experience in underground work, none of the authoritative Bolsheviks knew him, and the dropout student immediately began to occupy prominent leadership positions in the Bessarabia provincial council. And in January 1918, he became the commander of the red detachments, without even having a basic military education.
And then his military career became even more rapid. A man completely unfamiliar with tactics and strategy led military operations against the Romanian troops. Then he became a division commissar, and from October 1918 a member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the 8th Army. After this, Yakir was entrusted with a whole group of troops, where he continued to actively engage in military issues. And how could this happen?
Everything is explained quite simply. It was Ion Emmanuilovich who first came up with the idea of using Chinese mercenaries in military operations. He formed the first Chinese battalion. At the same time, he did not ask Moscow for money to pay people, but resolved all financial issues on the spot. How did you decide? Here history is silent, so one can only guess that all the necessary funds were obtained through expropriation.
The leaders of the Bolshevik Party were quite happy with this state of affairs, and the newly minted strategist carried out military operations relying on mercenaries. Yakir himself always maintained that he had never been a military man and understood nothing about military affairs. But the Chinese understood everything. Just pay them on time, and they will carry out any operation brilliantly.
And they did, and the authority of the newly minted strategist grew rapidly. Soon Trotsky, Tukhachevsky, and other comrades adopted his experience. The Chinese were noted for their pathological cruelty. They were paid not only for their service, but also for each killed they were given a bonus. So they didn’t spare anyone. And how will you regret it, because then you will lose money.
Their bloody reprisals were especially evident on the Don. Jonah Emmanuilovich brought them there to carry out the secret directive of Ya. Sverdlov. And it read: “Carry out mass terror against the rich Cossacks. Exterminate them without exception. Also exterminate all the Cossacks who took an indirect part in the fight against Soviet power.”
What indirect means was not explained. This was left to the discretion of the punishers. Then our strategist acted simply. In order not to be mistaken in this indirect, he established the percentage destruction of the male population. Therefore, they destroyed everyone indiscriminately until they reached the required percentage. And they were set differently each time depending on the mood of Jonah Emmanuilovich.
In 1919, he received subordination to the 45th Infantry Division. From May to August 1920 he commanded the Fastovskaya and then the Lviv group of forces of the Southwestern Front. But he did not part with the Chinese. They were always with him, helping with tactical advice and providing security. In the same year there was a meeting with the regular Polish army. However, the Poles turned out to be not like men with pitchforks. After the military clash, the entire Lvov group of troops fled.
It is noteworthy that Jonah Emmanuilovich never remembered this shameful defeat. And he didn’t tell me how he shamefully raced ahead of all the retreating troops on his personal armored train with Chinese drivers.
In 1921, our strategist, without military education, firmly settled in Ukraine. At first he commanded the troops of the Kyiv Military District, and then became assistant commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Crimea. In 1935 he became commander of the newly formed Kyiv Military District. And he was the largest and most powerful in the young Soviet republic, as he opposed the entire Western bourgeois world. Yakir also became a member of the Military Council under the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. That is, he ascended to enormous heights and concentrated immense power in his hands.
It should be noted that this was a time of severe repression against the Ukrainian people. The situation was aggravated by the terrible famine of 1933. It was under our strategist that collectivization was carried out, when people were forcibly driven into collective farms. It was under him that the confiscation of bread, grain, livestock, and poultry was carried out from the peasants, and this doomed them to starvation.
Jonah Emmanuilovich also reached great heights along the party line. Since 1934 he has been a member of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. At the plenum of the Central Committee in March 1937, our strategist made a fiery accusatory speech. He leveled his criticism at N. Bukharin and A. Rykov. He demanded that they be expelled from the party, put on trial and shot.
Bukharin and Rykov were shot on March 13, 1938. But Yakir was arrested on May 28, 1937. Before this, he was appointed commander of the Leningrad Military District, but never reached his new duty station. The arrest was made by NKVD workers right on the commander’s personal train.
Our strategist was tried in Tukhachevsky's group. On June 11, 1937, he was sentenced to capital punishment, and the next day he was shot.. But this does not mean at all that Ion Emmanuilovich was given a whole day of life. The verdict began to be read at 23:45. While we were reading, June 12th arrived. After they finished, all the condemned were taken out into the courtyard and immediately shot. The times were harsh and everything was done quickly and efficiently.
This is how Army Commander 1st Rank Yakir ended his life. He was rehabilitated in 1957. But it is unlikely that those who knew the strategist well without military education experienced a feeling of satisfaction from this. Jonah Emmanuilovich received what he deserved, but Bukharin and Rykov could have lived, but the Bolshevik party turned out to be excessively cruel and merciless towards them.
The article was written by Maxim Shipunov
Awards
Ranks
Commander 1st Rank
Positions
division commander
Chief and Commissioner of the 45th Infantry Division
commander and commissar of the 14th Rifle Corps of the UkrVO
assistant commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Crimea 1923 - 1924
Head of the Main Directorate of Military Educational Institutions of the Red Army
Commander of the Kyiv Military District
Biography
Born in Chisinau in the family of pharmacist Mendel (Emmanuel) Yakir and his wife Khaya Meerzon.
He studied at the University of Basel and the Kharkov Institute of Technology.
In 1915, as a person liable for military service, he was sent as a turner to a military plant in Odessa. In April 1917 he joined the RSDLP(b). Since December 1917 - member of the executive committee of the Bessarabian provincial council, member of the provincial committee and revolutionary committee. From January 1918, he commanded the red detachments in battles with Romanian troops. Then commissar of the brigade, division, Povorinsky combat sector. From September 1918 - head of the political department of the southern section of the veil detachments. In October 1918 - June 1919 - member of the Revolutionary Military Council (RVS) of the 8th Army, commanded a group of troops. While in this position, he took part in terror against the Cossack population of the Don, in particular, he issued an order for the percentage extermination of the male population.
In 1919-1920 he commanded a division and a group of troops. Since October 1920, the chief and commissar of the 45th Infantry Division, simultaneously commanded various groups of troops on the Southwestern Front.
In 1921 he commanded the troops of the Crimean region of the Kyiv military district. Commander of the Kyiv Military District (November 1921 - April 21, 1922). Commander of the Kyiv Military District of the Ukrainian Military District (June 1, 1922 - August 1923). Commander and commissar of the 14th Rifle Corps of the Ukrainian Military District (September 1923 - December 1923). Assistant Commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Crimea (December 1923 - March 1924).
In March 1924 - November 1925 - head of the Main Directorate of Military Educational Institutions of the Red Army. Commander of the troops of the Ukrainian Military District (November 1925 - May 17, 1935). By order People's Commissar Defense of the USSR dated May 17, 1935 No. 079 appointed commander of the Kyiv Military District, member of the Military Council under the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR (May 17, 1935 - 1937). Arrested 05/28/1937
Party career and death in 1937
In 1930-1934 - member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR. Since 1930 - candidate member, since 1934 - member of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b). At the Plenum of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks (February - March 1937), when discussing the issue of N.I. Bukharin and A.I. Rykov, he spoke out “for expulsion, trial and execution.” On May 10, 1937, he was transferred to the post of commander of the Leningrad Military District.
On May 28, 1937 he was arrested. He sent a letter to I.V. Stalin and K.E. Voroshilov with the assurance that he was absolutely innocent:
I am an honest and loyal fighter to the party, the state, and the people... I am honest in every word, and I will die with words of love for you, for the party and the country, with boundless faith in the victory of communism.
According to another version, the text of the appeal was as follows:
Dear, close comrade. Stalin. I dare to turn to you, because I said everything, gave everything, and it seems to me that I am again an honest and devoted fighter to the party, the state, and the people, as I have been for many years. My entire adult life was spent in selfless, honest work in full view of the party and its leaders - then I fell into a nightmare, into the irreparable horror of betrayal... The investigation is over. I was charged with treason, I admitted my guilt, I completely repented. I have unlimited faith in the correctness and expediency of the decision of the court and the government... Now I am honest with every word, and I will die with words of love for you, for the party and the country, with unlimited faith in the victory of communism
Two days before the execution, I wrote a letter to the Central Committee and NGOs, in which I outlined a number of recent thoughts and proposals regarding the organization of the army
On June 11, 1937, the Special Judicial Presence of the Supreme Court of the USSR sentenced him to death. In 1957 he was rehabilitated.
Repression of relatives
Brother - Maurice Emmanuilovich Yakir (1902, Chisinau - October 26, 1937, Moscow). Received higher education. Became a candidate member of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) in 1932. Served as military representative of the Military Supply Directorate of the Red Army Air Force, military engineer of the 3rd rank. On July 23, 1937, he was arrested and sentenced by the USSR High Command on October 26, 1937, on charges of counter-revolutionary terrorist activities. Shot on the same day. He was buried in Moscow at the Donskoye Cemetery. Rehabilitated on June 2, 1956 by the USSR Air Force. Son - Evgeny Morisovich Yakir - lives in Israel;
Sister - Isabella Emmanuilovna Belaya-Yakir (February 20, 1900 - September 13, 1986), the maximum sentence under Article 58 is 10 years in a Magadan camp.
Her husband is Semyon Zakharovich Korytny (1900-1937 or 1939), secretary of the Moscow City Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. In 1937 or 1939 he was shot.;
Then all the brothers of Semyon Zakharovich Korytny were shot:
In 1940, Leonid Zakharovich Korytny (1903-1940) was executed;
In 1943, Alexander Zakharovich Korytny (1905-1943) was executed;
In 1944, Yakov Zakharovich Korytny (1894-1944) was executed.
Son-in-law - poet and sound engineer Yakov Evgenievich Kharon. At the end of the 1930s he was arrested (for his relationship with Jonah Yakir), was in the camps for more than 10 years - until 1947, and then another 6 years in exile (in 1948-1954). Rehabilitated in the mid-1950s.
Wife - Sarra Lazarevna Yakir (née Ortenberg, 1900-1971), secretary of the Goslitizdat of the Ukrainian SSR (in 1937-1955 in forced labor camps);
The husband of her sister Emilia Lazarevna is corps commander Ilya Ivanovich Garkavy. In 1937 he was arrested, convicted on July 1 and executed on the same day in Kommunarka. Completely rehabilitated in 1956.
Son - Soviet dissident Pyotr Ionovich Yakir, served 17 years in camps.
Cousin - Yakov Solomonovich Meerzon - a prominent surgeon, transfusiologist, senior assistant to S.I. Spasokukotsky, creator of the first domestic blood substitute. He was arrested as a participant in the impending assassination attempt on Stalin. While in prison, he continued to work as a surgeon at Dalstroy (in the central hospital 29 km from Magadan).
Reviews about the personality of I. E. Yakir
General A.V. Gorbatov, commanding a cavalry regiment in the mid-1920s, recalled I.E. Yakir as follows:
Many times we were involved in military games in the district, and I was always amazed at the ability of the young district commander I.E. Yakir to conduct analyzes in such a way that no one would become dizzy with success and so that the authority of any of the commanders would not be undermined. Speaking about the right decision, he would not only note that it corresponded to the current situation, but would also point out untapped opportunities; when examining solutions that did not satisfy him, he will always try to find at least a grain of positive in them, giving examples of other possible solutions. He always protected his subordinates' faith in themselves. Returning from these games, I felt enriched with new knowledge.
Gorbatov A. V. “Years and Wars”
One of the founders of the partisan movement and the Soviet sabotage school, Colonel I. G. Starinov, recalled very much and with warmth about Yakir’s personality and his commanding and educational abilities:
Jonah Emmanuilovich was a wonderful speaker. He spoke clearly and figuratively. He knew how to expose noticed errors and advise how to get rid of them. And no trash! Only concern is that things go smoothly. Yakir was not considered a good person. He knew the value of being demanding. But when he demanded, everyone felt that he was dealing not just with a “big boss”, that before him was an older, wiser comrade...
Various specialists were selected for the partisan detachments at the direction of I.E. Yakir. In addition to improving in their main specialty, they deeply studied related military professions. Each miner was also a master of camouflage. Comrade Yakir took care of putting together a strong, combat-ready backbone of future partisan detachments and brigades. He demanded that these formations be formed so that they included both experienced partisans, accustomed to campaigning behind enemy lines, and young career commanders. The commander set us the task of improving already known methods guerrilla warfare, find new opportunities, achieve high maneuverability of partisan groups and be able to provide them financially.
Starinov I. G. “Notes of a saboteur”
Semyon Aralov, a participant in the Civil War, a major military leader and organizer at the headquarters of the Red Army, gives the following memories:
Yakir, despite his youthful impetuosity, made an extremely favorable impression on me. I saw in him a man devoted to the working class, to the Communist Party. He spoke thoughtfully, weighing every word. It was felt that this comrade enjoyed great authority among the military.
I invited him to lead the 45th division.
On the same day, without wasting any time, I contacted Kiev by direct wire and outlined our conversation to the commander of the 12th Army, Semyonov, insisting on the appointment of Yakir along with his comrades to the 45th division.
And a few days later, the RVS of the 12th Army decided to appoint I.E. Yakir as chief (commander) of this division. Subsequently, he also headed the 58th and 47th divisions.
In battles, Yakir established himself as a talented, brave commander. Indeed, Lenin was pleased with him. Yakir's units fought courageously and steadfastly. It was they, surrounded by Denikin units from the east and Petliurists and White Poles from the west, who marched with continuous battles for 28 days, breaking through the enemy ring. And this ring was broken. Moreover, Yakir’s units then liberated Zhitomir and Kyiv, having recaptured a huge amount of livestock and food from the enemy; during the battles, they were well replenished by peasants who voluntarily joined - the poor and middle peasants.
I. E. Yakir always fulfilled the tasks assigned to him with honor. (We have to very, very regret that he, like some other best representatives of the party in the Red Army, died during the cult of Stalin’s personality.)
Aralov S.I. Lenin led us to victory.
Awards
Three Orders of the Red Banner (1919, 1919, 1930).
Perpetuation of memory
USSR postage stamp dedicated to I. E. Yakir, 1966, 4 kopecks (CFA 3342, Scott 3187)
Streets in Kyiv, Kharkov, Krivoy Rog, Voronezh and a number of other cities, as well as a city microdistrict in Lugansk, are named after Yakir.
In 1966, a USSR postage stamp dedicated to Jonah Emmanuilovich Yakir was issued.
Yakir was a famous Soviet military leader, a hero of the Civil War. He blindly carried out the will of Stalin, for which he paid.
SMART WARRIOR
Yakir Iona EmmanuilovichBorn in Chisinau on August 15, 1896 into a wealthy Jewish family. His father Emmanuel Yakir, a respected pharmacist in the city, managed to give his son a good education.
Jonah graduated from a private secondary school - as a Jew, the path to a state-run school was closed to him, and he could only receive higher education outside of Tsarist Russia. Therefore, in 1913, Yakir entered the Basel University (Switzerland), while working there as a laboratory chemist.
Having not shown a thirst for knowledge at school, within two semesters he achieved significant success in the field of inorganic chemistry. His teacher, Professor Fiechter, spoke of his student as “about the most prepared and erudite among all Russian students”.
Russia was at war at that time, but even then Yakir did not think about a military career and took certificates from the institute to be exempt from military service. And he was listed among the “politically reliable.”
Returning to Chisinau in the spring of 1917, when political life was seething like a volcano, Jonah decided to join the ranks of the All-Union Communist Party. The Bolsheviks of the 5th Zaamur Cavalry Regiment took him there.
Yakir took part in the formation of Soviet power in Bessarabia as a member of the Bessarabia Gubernia Committee.
“I started my career by organizing 2-3 dozen fighters and with them in trucks I chased the Romanians near Chisinau.”, - recalled the future commander.
Whomever the revolution did not uproot from their homes and turn into soldiers: Bessarabian peasants who did not have land, Chinese lumberjacks who fled from their employers, the remnants of the “glorious 5th Zaamur Cavalry Regiment” without a single officer. It was difficult to command the motley Tiraspol detachment.
Yakir ironically called himself and his fighters "smart warriors". Together they learned the science of war, often through their own failures and provocations of anarchists.
Jonah gained experience as a commander in heavy, exhausting battles with Austro-German troops. The detachment made its way to the east. Near Dnepropetrovsk, Yakir was seriously wounded, and they could barely get him out on the ambulance train.
MILITARY CAMPAIGNS
In Voronezh, where the Tiraspol detachment was being reorganized, Jonah Emmanuilovich began organizing strong red units. He was appointed head of the Front Political Directorate, and then a member of the RVS of the 8th Army.
In the battles in the Korotoyak-Liski-Ostrogozhsk region, he proved himself to be a real commander. For organizing a counter-offensive with his own forces, as a result of which Korotoyak and the military-strategic junction of Liski were liberated, Yakir was awarded the Order of the Red Banner No. 2 (No. 1 received Blucher).
In July 1919, Yakir again demonstrated his military talent. In the 45th division, which was formed in the Odessa region, “freedom reigned all over the place”. The enemy did not leave time to strengthen the division, cutting it off from the main forces of the Red Army.
The leadership from the center stopped, there was no communication. Under these conditions, Yakir makes a risky, but the only right decision: his troops go for a breakthrough, inflicting serious damage on the enemy, who believed that the “Reds” had no chance of breaking out.
A 400-kilometer campaign and a month of continuous stubborn fighting forced General Denikin to regroup his forces. This helped the main parts Red Army near Orel, launch a turning point offensive against the White Guards. The second Order of the Red Banner adorned the chest of the 24-year-old commander of the southern group.
After a short respite in December 1920, Yakir with his 45th division took part in the battles for Yekaterinoslav and Aleksandrovsk (Zaporozhye) against Makhno’s army. Then there were campaigns against Odessa, the Polish campaign and the third Order of the Red Banner.
SILVER BRANICKI
In Yakir’s biography, in addition to military campaigns, there are many episodes for which he should have been ashamed.
In 1920, the army of Grigory Kotovsky took the White Church, where the main residence of the Branitsky counts, large landowners, was located. Having carried out this operation brilliantly, Kotovsky and his army moved on.
Meanwhile, a convoy of a brigade arrived in the city, which included a dressing detachment from Kotovsky’s wife, Olga Petrovna - she was a doctor here. The convoy was housed in a mansion Branickikh, who left the residence in haste and panic, fleeing the Reds.
In the mansion, Madame Kotovskaya went to look for bed linen to cut it into bandages for the wounded. When she entered one of the bedrooms, she saw a large leather suitcase filled with lace.
Suddenly a cry came from behind her: “Don’t touch it, it’s mine!” Olga Petrovna turned around and saw Yakir’s wife Sara Lazarevna. A few days later, a scandal broke out: the Cheka discovered that the Branitskys’ silverware had been stolen.
Sarah meanly pointed to Kotovskaya, who was the first to visit the palace with her orderlies. To Olga Petrovna’s credit, it quickly became clear that she was not involved in the loss of the silver.
Years have passed. In 1924, the Kotovsky couple returned from Moscow to Uman via Kharkov, where the Yakirs then lived. They were invited by Jonah Emmanuilovich to a dinner party, during which Olga Petrovna drew attention to the silverware with the monogram “B”. “So that’s where the Branicki’s silver is!”, - she exclaimed loudly. An awkward silence reigned, and Yakir turned red like a lobster.
By the way, it later turned out that Sara Lazarevna always had two accompanying people who collected valuables from the houses of wealthy townspeople, large landowners and dispossessed people. All this stuff was transported in suitcases to Odessa.
TWO SIDES OF A COIN
After the Civil War, Yakir was entrusted with one of the largest military districts - Kiev (KVO), and in 1924 he received the post of commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Crimea.
Experienced Frunze he was not afraid to entrust such a responsible area to a 29-year-old young man and made no mistake about his successor.
Yakir always tried to keep abreast of the latest achievements of military art in the West. Fluent in several European languages, he carefully re-read a lot of specialized literature. The military leader made the right conclusion: “the future war will become a war of engines.”
If only he had known that a few years later at his trial he would be accused of preparing a tank unit for an armed uprising.
During a large-scale exercise of all types of troops at the Brovary station near Kiev in 1935, under the command of Yakir, a mass airborne assault was carried out for the first time. The military operation was appreciated by foreign experts, and Iona Emmanuilovich was awarded the rank of Army Commander 1st Rank (higher at that time - only Marshal).
On the initiative of the commander of the KVO, the Kiev, Korostenets, Central Ukrainian, Tiraspol and Kamenets-Podolsk fortified areas were built. Marshal Bagramyan, who at that time served under the command of Yakir, testified that “these areas at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War could have played a big role if the fortifications had not been disarmed and dismantled.”
At the same time, Yakir first had a hand in the most brutal collectivization, and then Holodomor in Ukraine. After all, he was the commander-in-chief of the Red Army in our country, whose forces confiscated all the available food in the countryside.
Thanks to the zeal of the commander, the fighting troops Red Army They confiscated everything that could be considered food and mercilessly destroyed it. And then the army commander gave the order that the Red Army soldiers shoot those convicted of cannibalism. The cannibals were reported by village activists loyal to the authorities, who were given food coupons.
"SCOUNDREL"
Soon Yakir's career went sharply downhill. He blindly believed in the existence of mythical conspiracies against the leader and, for example, supported the most brutal punitive measures against Bukharin and Rykov. But he became Stalin's next victim.
Neither Yezhov nor Stalin dared to take the extraordinary commander into custody in Kyiv, and even during the XIII Congress of the Communist Party of Ukraine. Voroshilov lured him to Moscow. On the way to his “new place of work,” Yakir was arrested. On the way from the station to the Kremlin, in the car, his orders and insignia were torn off.
Jonah Yakir, Semyon Budyonny and Mikhail Tukhachevsky - The Last MeetingOn June 11, 1937, Yakir was shot. Three days earlier, on June 8, 1937, Pravda reported that the editor had received a letter from ex-wife Yakira, in which she renounced her husband and cursed him.
Sarah Yakir and their 14-year-old son Peter were first deported to Astrakhan, and then arrested and spent 17 years in prison. At 33 years old Petr Ionovich returned to Moscow, graduated from the Institute of History and Archives, defended his dissertation and worked at the Institute of History of the USSR of the USSR Academy of Sciences. He was firmly convinced of his father's innocence and was proud of him.
It must have been painful for my son to realize that the last words of the legendary commander were: “Long live the party! Long live Stalin!”
Jonah Emmanuilovich Yakir(August 3, Chisinau, Bessarabian province - June 12, Moscow) - Soviet military leader, 1st rank army commander (1935). Prominent military leader during the Civil War. Convicted and executed in the Tukhachevsky case (1937). Posthumously rehabilitated (1957).
Biography
House in Simferopol, which in 1921 was occupied by the commander of the Crimean troops, Ion Emmanuilovich Yakir
In 1915, as a person liable for military service, he was sent as a turner to a military plant in Odessa. In April 1917 he joined the RSDLP(b). Since December 1917 - member of the executive committee of the Bessarabian provincial council, member of the provincial committee and revolutionary committee. From January 1918, he commanded the red detachments in battles with Romanian troops. Then commissar of the brigade, division, Povorinsky combat sector. From September 1918 - head of the political department of the Southern Section of the Veil Detachments. In October 1918 - June 1919 - member of the Revolutionary Military Council (RVS) of the 8th Army, commanded a group of troops.
In 1919-1920 he commanded a division and a group of troops. Since October 1920, the chief and commissar of the 45th Infantry Division, simultaneously commanded various groups of troops on the Southwestern Front.
In 1921 he commanded the troops of the Crimean region of the Kyiv Military District. Commander of the Kyiv Military District (November 1921 - April 21, 1922) (7-p.53;p.59). Commander of the Kyiv Military District of the Ukrainian Military District (June 1, 1922 - August 1923) (7-p.59). Commander and commissar of the 14th Rifle Corps of the Ukrainian Military District (September 1923 - December 1923). Assistant Commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Crimea (December 1923 - March 1924). (4c)
In March 1924 - November 1925 - head of the Main Directorate of Military Educational Institutions of the Red Army. Commander of the troops of the Ukrainian Military District (November 1925 - May 17, 1935) (7-p.64; p.86;8-p.763). By order of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR dated May 17, 1935 No. 079, he was appointed commander of the troops of the Kyiv Military District, member of the Military Council under the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR (May 17, 1935-1937) (7-p.64; 4c). Arrested 05/28/1937 (4c)
Video on the topic
Party career and death in 1937
I am an honest and loyal fighter to the party, the state, the people... I am honest in every word, and I will die with words of love for you, for the party and the country, with boundless faith in the victory of communism.
There is a version that the text presented above is an abbreviated and distorted original. Here is another version of the letter:
Dear, close comrade. Stalin. I dare to turn to you, because I said everything, gave everything, and it seems to me that I am again an honest and devoted fighter to the party, the state, and the people, as I have been for many years. My entire adult life was spent in selfless, honest work in full view of the party and its leaders - then I fell into a nightmare, into the irreparable horror of betrayal... The investigation is over. I was charged with treason, I admitted my guilt, I completely repented. I have unlimited faith in the correctness and expediency of the decision of the court and the government... Now I am honest with every word, and I will die with words of love for you, for the party and the country, with unlimited faith in the victory of communism.
Two days before the execution, I wrote a letter to the Central Committee and NGOs, in which I outlined some final thoughts and suggestions concerning the organization of the army.
On June 11, 1937, the Special Judicial Presence of the Supreme Court of the USSR sentenced him to death. In 1957 he was rehabilitated.
Repression of relatives
Photo of Maurice Yakir from the investigation file
- Then all the brothers of Semyon Zakharovich Korytny were shot:
- Wife - Sarra Lazarevna Yakir(nee Ortenberg, 1900, Odessa - 1971), secretary of the Goslitizdat of the Ukrainian SSR. Arrested on November 16, 1938, convicted on September 28, 1939 under Article 58-02 as a member of the family of a traitor to the motherland. The sentence is 9 years in labor camps and plus 2 years of loss of rights (in 1939-1955 in forced labor camps). Rehabilitated in August 1956.
- The husband of her sister Emilia Lazarevna is corps commander Ilya Ivanovich Garkavy. In 1937 he was arrested, convicted on July 1 and executed on the same day in Kommunarka. Completely rehabilitated in 1956.
- Son - Soviet dissident Pyotr Ionovich Yakir (1923-1982), served 17 years in camps.
- Granddaughter - Soviet dissident Irina Petrovna Yakir (1948 - 1999), participant in the human rights movement of the 1960-1970s.
Reviews about the personality of I. E. Yakir
General A.V. Gorbatov, commanding a cavalry regiment in the mid-1920s, recalled I.E. Yakir as follows:
Many times we were involved in military games in the district, and I was always amazed at the ability of the young district commander I.E. Yakir to conduct analyzes in such a way that no one would become dizzy with success and so that the authority of any of the commanders would not be undermined. Speaking about the right decision, he would not only note that it corresponded to the current situation, but would also point out untapped opportunities; when examining solutions that did not satisfy him, he will always try to find at least a grain of positive in them, giving examples of other possible solutions. He always protected his subordinates' faith in themselves. Returning from these games, I felt enriched with new knowledge.
Gorbatov A. V. “Years and Wars”
One of the founders of the partisan movement and the Soviet sabotage school, Colonel I. G. Starinov, recalled very much and with warmth about Yakir’s personality and his commanding and educational abilities:
Jonah Emmanuilovich was a wonderful speaker. He spoke clearly and figuratively. He knew how to expose noticed errors and advise how to get rid of them. And no trash! Only concern is that things go smoothly.
Yakir was not considered a good person. He knew the value of being demanding. But when he demanded, everyone felt that he was dealing not just with a “big boss”, that before him was an older, wiser comrade...
Various specialists were selected for the partisan detachments at the direction of I.E. Yakir. In addition to improving in their main specialty, they deeply studied related military professions. Each miner was also a master of camouflage.
Comrade Yakir took care of putting together a strong, combat-ready backbone of future partisan detachments and brigades. He demanded that these formations be formed so that they included both experienced partisans, accustomed to campaigning behind enemy lines, and young career commanders. The commander set us the task of improving the already known methods of guerrilla warfare, finding new opportunities, achieving high maneuverability of partisan groups and being able to provide them financially.
Starinov I. G. “Notes of a saboteur”
Semyon Aralov, a participant in the Civil War, a major military leader and organizer at the headquarters of the Red Army, gives the following memories:
Yakir, despite his youthful impetuosity, made an extremely favorable impression on me. I saw in him a man devoted to the working class, to the Communist Party. He spoke thoughtfully, weighing every word. It was felt that this comrade enjoyed great authority among the military.
I invited him to lead the 45th division.
On the same day, without wasting any time, I contacted Kiev by direct wire and outlined our conversation to the commander of the 12th Army, Semyonov, insisting on the appointment of Yakir along with his comrades to the 45th division.
And a few days later, the RVS of the 12th Army decided to appoint I.E. Yakir as chief (commander) of this division. Subsequently, he also headed the 58th and 47th divisions.
In battles, Yakir established himself as a talented, brave commander. Indeed, Lenin was pleased with him. Yakir's units fought courageously and steadfastly. It was they, surrounded by Denikin units from the east and Petliurists and White Poles from the west, who marched with continuous battles for 28 days, breaking through the enemy ring. And this ring was broken. Moreover, Yakir’s units then liberated Zhitomir and Kyiv, having recaptured a huge amount of livestock and food from the enemy; during the battles, they were well replenished by peasants who voluntarily joined - the poor and middle peasants.
I. E. Yakir always fulfilled the tasks assigned to him with honor.
Awards
- Three Orders of the Red Banner (1919, 1919, 1930).
see also
- List of three-time holders of the Order of the Red Banner before 1930
Perpetuation of memory
Memories
- Yakir I. E. Memories of Civil War. - M.: Military Publishing House, 1957.
Notes
- In birth records available on the Jewish genealogy website JewishGen.org, the father is recorded as Mendel Imanuil Abramovich Yakir, in the lists of electors in State Duma - Emmanuel Abramovich Yakir, in the birth record - Mendel Abramovich Yaker.
- Military objects - Radio compass / [under general. ed.