Video: How the "meowing division" saved Leningrad, or Why there is no beast more valuable than a cat
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
Imagine modern St. Petersburg it's almost impossible without cats, purrs are everywhere. There are even several cat monuments erected in the city, and this is no accident: during the Great Patriotic War "meowing division" saved the northern capital from hunger and epidemics. Why there is no beast more valuable than a cat for Petersburgers - read on.
In besieged Leningrad, one could easily see a situation when a cat walked around the city under the protection of a policeman. It would seem strange, but Petersburgers had their own reasons for this. The threat of an invasion of rats hung over the starving city, carriers of the infection were everywhere and destroyed any food supplies at a catastrophic speed. People tried to control pests, but all methods were ineffective: they had to shoot rats, making many hours of exhausting raids.
The solution to the problem was obvious: by all means, the cats had to be returned to the city exhausted by the blockade. As soon as the communication was established in 1943, a train with cats from Yaroslavl arrived in Leningrad. The animals were bought up willingly, sparing no money, although the price was enormous: they asked for about 500 rubles for a kitten. For comparison, this money could buy about 10 kg of bread. Many blockademen were malnourished rations of bread, setting aside the necessary amount for the purchase.
Cats were brought to Leningrad in two stages: the task of the Yaroslavl "division" was to clear the warehouses from rodents. The second "party" of four-footed people came from Siberia, these "settlers" settled in the Hermitage, Peterhof, numerous museums and palaces of the city. Rats have already encroached on works of art, books and paintings, so the purrs also helped preserve the cultural funds of Russia.
Modern Petersburgers remember and honor the feline feat. In honor of the four-legged, a series of deluxe postcards was recently created. " Hermitage cats".
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