Leningrad, Siege of

In World War II, German siege of the Soviet city of Leningrad (now St Petersburg, Russia) 1 September 1941–27 January 1944. Some 1 million inhabitants of the city are believed to have died during the 900 days of the siege, either from disease, starvation, or enemy action. Leningrad was awarded the title of ‘Hero City’ for withstanding the siege.

The German army reached Leningrad in the initial stages of the invasion of the USSR, Operation Barbarossa, and were prepared to take it but Hitler ordered them to besiege the city in order to achieve a bloodless occupation. Within a week, all land communication was cut off and the city subjected to air and artillery bombardment. Before the year was out, starvation was causing 300 deaths a day although this was partially eased when Lake Ladoga froze so that a truck route could be established to bring in food over the ice. Meanwhile the population laboured in munitions factories, dug defences, and served in the front line.