History and Historians in the Context of the Time

22-35

Authors: Aleksandr A. Cherkasov

The paper attempts to describe the combat path of Petr Pavlovich Cherkasov (1912–1942) during the Second World War. The archival documents (Russian and Finnish archives) are used as sources, most of which are being introduced into scientific circulation for the first time, as well as materials of personal origin. The author comes to the conclusion that the fighting path of Pyotr Pavlovich Cherkasov during the Second World War was associated with the partisan detachment “Battle Cry”, which was part of the Karelian Front. Petr Cherkasov was mobilized to this unit on July 23, 1941. From August to December 1941 Petr Pavlovich Cherkasov took part in five reconnaissance and sabotage operations behind the front line. During the fifth operation, a group of partisans on December 12, 1941, behind the front line, near the Karelian village of Kiisjoki, ran into a Finnish patrol and hastily retreated. For most of the partisan group, the task was over, and it headed to the place of permanent deployment. However, due to the urgency of the retreat from the group, partisan Petr Pavlovich Cherkasov lagged behind, for whom his main service on December 12, 1941 was just beginning. Not finding his group's ski tracks (it had been snowing all day), he took advantage of the expedition rule not to go far from the place of the last meeting and began to hope for the return of the partisan group. Without food and fire, alone, in a snow-covered forest, at extremely low temperatures, Petr Cherkasov carried out his service for a long 12 days. It was a confrontation between man and nature in the harsh conditions of the Far North. Every such day required superhuman efforts and high morale, and this despite the fact that the village occupied by the enemy was in close proximity. Overcoming hunger, Petr Cherkasov continued to hope for help, for fellow soldiers, but they never came. On the 9th – 11th days, a thaw began, which was replaced by severe frosts. In all probability, it was after the thaw that Petr Cherkasov got frostbite on his hands, which deprived him of the opportunity to get food. In such conditions, further confrontation with nature has become impossible. On the 13th day, in a state of moderate injury, Petr Cherkasov came out of the forest and was captured. His further fate was predictable. According to the norms of international law, the partisans were not soldiers of the Red Army and the Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War did not apply to them. As a result, Petr Cherkasov was accused of espionage and shot on January 20, 1942.

48-63

Authors: Aleksandr A. Cherkasov

The paper attempts to restore the military path of Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov (1910–1969), a representative of the Cherkasov family from Kereti. The research source base is represented by the materials of the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense (Podolsk, Russian Federation), the National Archive of the Republic of Karelia (Petrozavodsk, Russian Federation) and the State Archive of the Murmansk Region (Murmansk, Russian Federation). The collections of published documents and materials of personal origin were also involved in the study. In conclusion, the author states that the combat path of Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov during the Great Patriotic War was formed taking into account the specific combat situation at the front. So, in the initial period of the war, when all available human resources were sent to the front line in order to stop the enemy's advance, Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov in 1941 got to the front. At first, he fights as part of a consolidated fighter battalion, and later as part of the 24th Motorized Rifle Regiment. In these units, as a squad commander, he participates, among other things, in the defense of Petrozavodsk and receives the first wound. After the front was stabilized in early 1942, Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov received an officer's rank in the quartermaster service and was transferred to the head of the divisional (114th Rifle Division) bakery, and in December 1942, the head of the administrative and economic part of the same division. In June 1944, in connection with the transition of the Red Army to a counteroffensive in Karelia, Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov was transferred to the headquarters of the 7th Separate Army and on July 1, 1944, while in the combat zone, he was seriously wounded in the leg. After 3 months of hospital treatment, the quartermaster technician of the 1st rank Aleksei Pavlovich Cherkasov was demobilized from the Red Army and returned to civil service in the People's Commissariat of the Fishing Industry of the Karelo-Finnish SSR.