The Strategic Prize: Why Leningrad?

Perched on the Baltic coast, Leningrad (modern-day St. Petersburg) was far more than a cultural jewel—it was the Soviet Union’s industrial powerhouse and second capital. By 1941, the city produced 11% of the USSR’s industrial output and served as a critical transport hub with ten major rail lines, including the vital October Railway linking it to Moscow. Adolf Hitler recognized its value early, declaring its capture a prerequisite for defeating the USSR. “Only after Leningrad is erased,” he proclaimed, “can Moscow’s fall follow.”

Operation Barbarossa, launched on June 22, 1941, saw Army Group North—commanded by Field Marshal Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb—advance with 700,000 troops, 1,500 tanks, and 12,000 artillery pieces. Their orders were clear: seize Leningrad by July 21. The Nazis’ confidence was staggering; Hitler even planned a victory banquet at the Astoria Hotel.

The Noose Tightens: Summer 1941

The German blitzkrieg initially seemed unstoppable. By June 26, General Erich von Manstein’s 56th Motorized Corps had penetrated 300 km into Soviet territory, capturing key bridges near Daugavpils through audacious deception—German commandos disguised as Red Army soldiers. By September 8, the Nazis severed Leningrad’s last land connection at Shlisselburg, completing the blockade.

Yet Soviet resistance stiffened. Marshal Kliment Voroshilov and political commissar Andrei Zhdanov mobilized civilians to build the 300-km Luga Line, a defensive belt that delayed the Germans for critical weeks. A daring Soviet counterattack at Soltsy in July destroyed 120 German tanks, buying precious time.

The Hunger Winter: A City’s Agony

With direct assault failing, Hitler switched tactics: starvation. “Let famine be our ally,” wrote Chief of Staff Franz Halder. By November, daily bread rations plummeted to 125 grams (4.4 oz) for civilians—barely a slice. Temperatures hit -30°C (-22°F) as frozen pipes burst. Over 1 million would die, including factory workers collapsing at their machines.

The only lifeline was Lake Ladoga. When ice thickened to 180 mm by November 20, the “Road of Life” opened—a perilous ice highway braving German bombs and wafer-thin ice. Drivers, doors ajar for escape, hauled 500,000 tons of supplies that winter. One survivor recalled, “Each truckload meant 10,000 lives saved.”

Breaking the Siege: Operation Spark

On January 12, 1943, Soviet artillery erupted near Shlisselburg. In “Operation Spark,” 2,000 guns pounded German lines for seven days until the blockade was pierced. A narrow land corridor allowed trains to deliver flour within weeks. The final liberation came on January 27, 1944, after 872 days—marked by fireworks over the Neva River.

Legacy of Unyielding Courage

The siege’s toll was horrific: 642,000 civilians perished from hunger, 21,000 from bombs. Yet Leningrad’s defiance tied down 18% of Nazi forces, aiding victories at Stalingrad and Kursk. The British Evening Standard hailed it as “humanity’s greatest testament to endurance.” Today, the city’s memorials and the Road of Life’s surviving trucks stand as eternal reminders: no tyranny can extinguish the human spirit.

The Siege of Leningrad remains a masterclass in resilience—where a city’s heartbeat outlasted even the darkest winter.