The armored train "Zheleznyakov" during the defense of Sevastopol in 1941-42 became a nightmare for the Germans, who called it the "Green Ghost". For the Soviet people, he became a legend, an example of the good luck of the careful calculation of military operations and the desperate heroism of the crew.
Not far from the Sevastopol bus station, on Revyakin Square, there is a monument to the most famous Crimean steam locomotive, the hero of the Great Patriotic War armored train "Zheleznyakov". Not a single tourist passes by without taking a few pictures of this colorful train from the El-2500 steam locomotive with the inscription "Death to fascism!" and gun transporter TM-1-180 equipped with an impressive gun B-1-P. The most uncultured guests of the city immediately begin to climb on the roof and mechanisms of the locomotive, not noticing the signs: “The locomotive is a veteran of war and labor. Transferred forever to the hero-city of Sevastopol by the Crimean railwaymen” and “The steam locomotive of the legendary armored train Zheleznyakov, which received Active participation in the heroic defense of Sevastopol 1941-1942. After all, a veteran of war and labor, even though he is a locomotive, deserves special respect.
It should be clarified that the monument to Zheleznyakov is not the legendary armored train itself, but a steam locomotive with a transporter of the same type, which has nothing to do with the history of the hero train. Historical accuracy in its appearance is not observed, but the monument fulfills its role, being a constant reminder of the legendary "Green Ghost".
In total, during the attack on the Crimea of the 11th army of Manstein, 7 armored trains were put into operation. There was a strong shortage of armored vehicles on the peninsula, and therefore, acquaintances from the time of civil war land armadillos. The remnants of the ship's armor and the weapons that were available were used. Unfortunately, all the Crimean armored trains were quickly liquidated by the Nazis, only Zheleznyakov managed to lead a long period of fighting- from November 7, 1941 to June 28, 1942, having made 140 raids and causing significant damage to the enemy.
Armored train No. 5 of the Coastal Defense of the Main Base of the Black Sea Fleet "Zheleznyakov" was put into operation on November 4 in the already besieged Sevastopol, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet and members of the military Council attended the opening ceremony. The workers of the Sevastopol Marine Plant built the armored train with the active help of the surviving sailors from the crews of other armored vehicles. Platforms for 60-ton wagons were used, on which steel sheets were welded and reinforced with reinforced concrete, receiving composite armor. Of the weapons, 15 machine guns, 5 76 mm caliber guns were installed, and 8 mortars were located on a special platform. A second locomotive was also added, which made it possible to significantly increase the maneuverability of the train.
The Zheleznyakov completed its first combat mission on November 7 near the village of Duvankoy (now Verkhnesadovoye): a battery was suppressed and enemy infantry was fired upon.
The successful survival of the Sevastopol armored train depended on many factors. His team skillfully used the local landscape with many narrow ravines, rocks and tunnels when maneuvering. "Zheleznyakov" struck with lightning speed at targets that were reconnoitered by the marines, and disappeared before enemy artillery could shoot him or hunt down bombers. The Germans nicknamed him the “Green Ghost” for the unusually effective camouflage coloring, which the crew constantly changed, distorting the outlines of the armored train beyond recognition, achieving its visual indistinguishability from the terrain. Also, the success of Zheleznyakov's operations was ensured by the trolley, which checked and repaired the tracks.
During the reflection of the second assault on Sevastopol on December 17, the armored train supported the defenders of the city, driving towards the advancing German troops, firing from mortars and 12 machine guns. The train was covered by submachine gunners from the 8th Marine Brigade. The restoration team, led by the road foreman Nikitin, repaired the canvas around the clock, often under fire.
At the end of 1941, Zheleznyakov visited the Sevastopol rear for repairs and rearmament. Three new machine guns were installed, one old 76 mm gun was replaced with two new automatic cannons, and four 82 mm mortars were replaced with three 130 mm regimental mortars.
The “green ghost” was almost destroyed during the battles for the Mekenziev mountains. Heavy German artillery bombed the track right in front of the armored train, ballast platforms flew off the slope, and one of the armored platforms went off the rails. The main locomotive was disabled by shell fragments, and the second one did not have enough power to drag the armored platform onto the rails. A heroic deed was performed by Yevgeny Matyush, an assistant driver, he climbed into the firebox thrown with raw coal and, poured with evaporating water, made repairs. The composition was saved, and Matyush immediately lost consciousness from numerous burns.
After the Mekenzievy Gory station was captured by the enemy on December 22, the armored train made a daring attack on it. Literally bursting into the station "Zheleznyakov" almost point-blank began to shoot equipment and manpower enemy. Also, the armored train participated in a desperate operation to deliver new barrels to the 30th battery to replace the worn ones.
The Nazis managed to significantly damage the elusive composition on December 29 during an air raid, many crew members were killed, but the survivors were able to shoot back, using machine guns as anti-aircraft guns. In the same way, with the help of 18 machine-gun barrels on January 1, 1942, two enemy fighters were shot down.
It is not surprising that the Nazis hated Zheleznyakov, because in the winter of 1942 alone, the armored train destroyed about 1,500 enemy soldiers, 3 vehicles, 10 wagons with cargo, 6 dugouts, 9 bunkers, 13 machine gun nests, heavy battery. In mid-June, an armored train disabled 3 German tanks, engaging in battle with a column of armored vehicles.
By the end of June 1942, the Zheleznyakov remained the only powerful artillery unit on the northern side of Sevastopol, the paint literally peeled off its trunks, so they were red-hot from firing. The armored train was hunted with the help of dozens of enemy aircraft.
June 26 " green ghost"gave his last battle - there were 50 bombers against him. One of the entrances to the Trinity tunnel was collapsed by a massive bombardment, the second platform was filled up, but the train escaped from the tunnel and opened fire on the enemies. It was only possible to completely block the armored train the next day, filling the second entrance to the tunnel. The rest of the crew fought until 3 July. Thus ended the history of the Soviet "Zheleznyakov" ...
... And the history of the German armored train "Eugen" began. The Nazis unearthed the legendary composition, repaired it and used it, equipping it with 105 mm howitzers. "Eugen" was blown up by the Germans in 1944 during the offensive of the Soviet troops.
According to legend, the Zheleznyakov-Eugen steam locomotive was repaired after the war and drove trains around the Crimea for a long time. On October 24, 1967, he was delivered from Dzhankoy to Sevastopol by a former front-line brigade, in which there was a machinist M. Galanin, a fireman V. Ivanov and the same assistant machinist E. Matyush.
On November 4, in the already besieged Sevastopol, the construction of the armored train No. 5 of the Coastal Defense of the Zheleznyakov Main Base of the Black Sea Fleet, which was destined to go down in history as the Green Ghost, was completed. Workers of the Sevastopol Marine Plant, together with sailors from the crews of broken armored trains, built up steel sheets on ordinary platforms for 60-ton cars, sewing them together with electric welding and strengthening them with reinforced concrete pouring (a prototype of composite armor). Five 76-mm guns were installed on the armored sites (three universal ship mounts 34-K with 76.2-mm guns, two anti-aircraft guns 76.2-mm mod 1902/1930,), 15 machine guns. The armored train had a special platform with 6, according to other sources with 8 mortars. To increase the speed, in addition to the armored locomotive, the train was given a powerful locomotive. Captain Sahakyan was appointed commander of the armored train.
November 7, 1941 "Zheleznyakov" went on the first combat mission. Advancing beyond the Kamyshlov bridge, the armored train fired on the concentration of enemy infantry near the village of Duvankoy (now Verkhnesadovoye) and suppressed the battery on the opposite slope of the Belbek valley.
In a small area of the besieged Sevastopol, an armored train could "survive" only thanks to speed and stealth. Each Zheleznyakov raid was carefully planned. In front of the armored train, a trolley always went to the position, checking the condition of the railway tracks. After a swift artillery and mortar attack on targets previously reconnoitred by the marines, the train quickly retreated to areas where Railway took place in narrow cuts cut in the rocks, or in tunnels, before the Germans had time to shoot artillery or raise aircraft. The Germans made many attempts to suppress the armored train. The railway track was shot down by heavy artillery, and a spotter aircraft was constantly on duty over the road. But neither artillery nor aviation still managed to inflict serious damage on the armored train. According to the prisoners, German soldiers called the elusive armored train "green ghost".
A month later, due to the injury of Sahakyan, Lieutenant Tchaikovsky took command of the armored train. Later, the engineer-captain M.F. commanded the armored train. Kharchenko.
The commander of the Zheleznyakov, Captain M.F. Kharchenko
On December 17, 1941, the second assault on Sevastopol began. "Zheleznyakov" supported the marines of the 8th brigade and parts of the 95th rifle division. The armored train came out literally towards the advancing German units, firing not only with mortars, but with all machine guns. By order of the commander, fighters with personal small arms and grenades were placed on the converted control sites in front of the armored train.
A special restoration team of the road foreman Nikitin was seconded to the armored train, which almost every day, under enemy fire, restored the damaged railway track. Perfectly understanding the price of Zheleznyakov's attacks, the commander of the 8th brigade marines Vilshansky specifically assigned submachine gunners to cover the firing positions of the armored train.
“The armored train changed its appearance all the time. Under the direction of junior lieutenant Kamornik, the sailors tirelessly painted armored platforms and locomotives with camouflage stripes and patterns so that the train blended indistinguishably with the terrain. The armored train skillfully maneuvered between recesses and tunnels. In order to confuse the enemy, we constantly change parking places. Our mobile rear is also on continuous patrols, ”recalled the foreman of the group of machine gunners of the armored train midshipman N.I. Alexandrov.
"Zheleznyakov" operated not only in the area of the Mekenziev mountains, but also went to the Balaklava railway line, where German troops rushed to Sapun Mountain. The command of the Sevastopol defensive region appreciated the Zhelyaznyakov very much. When, during the withdrawal of the train from the combat position, the path was broken, and the armored train was under attack by German artillery, which was guided by a spotter aircraft, a link of Soviet fighters was sent to the rescue, and it was very risky to lift them from the Khersones airfield with the complete dominance of German aviation in the sky .
At the end of 1941, the armored train was sent to the rear for repairs. Some of the new weapons were placed on the armored sites. One of the old guns was replaced with two new automatic guns (a total of 5 34-K mounts with 76.2 mm caliber guns, and 1 anti-aircraft gun 76 mm mod 1902/1930). Instead of four 82-mm mortars, three regimental 120-mm mortars were installed (7 mortars in total). They also installed 3 new machine guns, bringing their number to 18.
On December 22, when German troops captured the village and station of the Mekenzievy Gory, an armored train broke right into the station and opened fire at a concentration of enemy soldiers and equipment at point-blank range. "Zheleznyakov" also covered the daring operation to deliver new gun barrels to the legendary 30th battery.
“How the Germans hated this armored train, and how many kind, full of gratitude words were spoken to it by our soldiers and commanders,” Colonel I.F. Khomich, a participant in the defense of Sevastopol, later wrote. - Sailors worked on the armored train. The courage of the Black Sea people has long been proverbial. The armored train actually ran into the enemy and fired with such swift surprise, as if it were running not along the rails, but right along the uneven ground of the peninsula.
German aviation was constantly hunting for the last Crimean armored train (a total of 5 armored trains were built in Crimea, but 4 of them were lost in battles during the defense of the peninsula in October-November 1941), which caused them so many problems. On the night of December 28-29, 1941, the crew of the armored train set aside for rest put the train not in the tunnel, but under a sheer cliff at the Inkerman station, fitting passenger cars between the rock and the armored train for rest. The Germans took advantage of this by inflicting an air strike that cost the lives of many Zheleznyakovites.
But in battle, 5 guns and machine guns of an armored train were a serious enemy for aviation as well. So, only on the first day of 1942, Zheleznyakov’s crews shot down two German fighter who decided to fire at the stopped train.
During the battles for the Mekenzievy mountains, German heavy artillery managed to break the railway track in front of a moving armored train. Ballast platforms flew downhill, an armored platform derailed. Fragments of the next projectile disabled the main locomotive, and the power of the second armored locomotive was not enough to lift the armored platform onto the rails. The armored train was saved by the driver's assistant Yevgeny Matyush. To repair the locomotive, he climbed into a furnace filled with raw coal. The water that was poured over the daredevil immediately evaporated. Having finished work, Matyush barely managed to get out and lost consciousness from burns. Thanks to his feat, it was possible to put a steam locomotive into operation, raise an armored platform onto the rails and withdraw the train from the impact of heavy enemy batteries.
Soon coal reserves ran out in Sevastopol. Several times, the Zheleznyakovites managed to take coal literally from under the nose of the enemy - from the Mekenzievy Gory station, which passed from hand to hand. When this coal also ran out, the machinist Galinin suggested making special briquettes from coal dust and tar. This idea turned out to be quite viable, and coal dust was collected on the territory railway station and throughout Sevastopol.
The actions of the Zheleznyakov armored train were very effective. During almost the entire defense of Sevastopol in the conditions of positional defense, Zheleznyakov made more than 140 raids. From the available data, only in the period from January 7 to March 1, 1942, the armored train made 70 combat raids and destroyed: 9 pillboxes, 13 machine-gun nests, 1 heavy battery, 3 cars, 3 aircraft, about 1500 enemy soldiers and officers. And on June 15, 1942, Zheleznyakov entered the battle with a column of German tanks, knocking out at least 3 armored vehicles.
On June 21, the defenders of the city retreating to the Sevastopol Bay blew up all the remaining artillery on the Northern side. Only the armored train, which was now based in the Troitsky tunnel, remained a powerful artillery unit. "Zheleznyakov" fired at the German units on the North side until the paint began to burn on the gun barrels.
German aircraft brought down the entrance to the tunnel several times. On June 26, 1942, more than 50 enemy bombers delivered a powerful blow to the Troitsky tunnel. A multi-ton block hit the 2nd armored platform. Part of the crew managed to be pulled out through the landing hatches in the floor of the car, then the rails burst, and the armored platform, nailed with blocks, was pressed to the bottom of the tunnel.
The second exit from the tunnel remained free, the locomotive brought out the surviving armored platform, which again opened fire on the enemy. Buried under the rock, the Green Ghost delivered its final blow.
The next day, German aircraft brought down the last exit from the tunnel. The armored train was killed, but its crew was still fighting. The surviving Zheleznyakovites, having removed their machine guns, continued to fight the enemy in the Kilen-balka area and installed several mortars in the area of the state district power station.
On June 30, the remains of the crew were blocked in a half-filled tunnel. The Germans, having sent a truce, offered to leave the tunnel, hiding here from the bombing of civilians. The nurses of the armored train were sent with them. The Zheleznyakovites stayed in the tunnel until 3 July. Only a few survivors were captured.
Trinity tunnel, early 20th century
In the early 1990s, a railway artillery installation TM-1-180 was placed next to the locomotive, which actively participated in hostilities, as part of the 16th separate railway artillery battery of the Black Sea Fleet coastal defense. And which is now mistaken for one of the armored platforms of the legendary Zheleznyakov armored train. But this gun was not part of the Zheleznyakov armored train.
Rudenko-Minikh Igor
P.S. In general, Zheleznyakov is a unique armored train. The most ertz to eat, at the same time, it is conceptually an ideal armored train. Cheap and at the same time extremely effective protection made of composite material provided reliable protection. Two trains made it possible to quickly change position and get out of the shelling. But most importantly, it was the only armored train with almost completely universal weapons. Allowing extremely effective fight with ground targets. And at the same time create enough problems for the air enemy. And the presence a large number mortars, did not leave dead zones to the enemy. Not available for defeat from an armored train.
War is hard work! Not only for a living soldier, but also for inanimate technology. For tanks, ships, cannons, planes, which are built only to help the warrior defend his life and Motherland. Even in history lessons, we were told that during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. a huge number of Russian soldiers and ordinary citizens, from a child to an old man, showed their courage, heroism and dedication. But, if you think about it, what are people without weapons and equipment? Technique, throughout the war also served faithfully to the cause of protecting the Motherland from the enemy. It is difficult to count the number of such armored soldiers of that terrible war. Just about one of the "steel heroes" and our conversation will go. This is the Zheleznyakov armored train.
Armored trains proved to be excellent back in the years of the Civil War in Russia. They were a means of transportation for people and transportation of weapons, carried out fire support and escort, served as hospitals and delivered food to the troops. When the Nazis attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, capturing many of our cities on the move, and the deficit military equipment turned out to be an obvious fact, it was decided to re-adopt armored trains into service. In the autumn of 1941, the armored train "Zheleznyakov" was built at the shipyard in Sevastopol, on which the command had high hopes. And I must say that he subsequently fully justified these hopes.
Since Sevastopol is a port city, then on military service a crew of sailors from the Black Sea Fleet was recruited on an armored train. The armored train was based on conventional railway platforms, on which workers welded armored plates with the help of electric welding and additionally reinforced them with concrete. The entire train was pulled by a locomotive of increased power. Armed "Zheleznyakov" was, as they say - "to the teeth": four naval artillery pieces, six mortars, fourteen machine guns. Captain G. Sahakyan was appointed the first commander of the armored train, and on November 7, 1942, the armored train began its first combat mission. Throughout the service "Zheleznyakov" carried out more than one hundred and forty combat raids. He supported our infantry with cannon and machine gun fire, entered into open battle with tanks, suppressed German artillery batteries, and shot down their planes. Always being at the forefront of the attack, the armored train inflicted huge damage on enemy forces, sowing terrible panic in the enemy camp. The Germans had no choice but to start hunting for the armored giant, which they dubbed the "Green Ghost" for its speed and elusiveness. The title was just right. German pilots tried in vain for many months to track down the armored train and destroy it. Each time, the heavy but nimble train took cover in the tunnels, only further angering the enemy.
However, in the summer of 1942, the armored train was ambushed. During the last and most difficult battles for Sevastopol, the Nazis brought down the arches of the Trinity Tunnel over the train, but the surviving sailors of the Green Ghost, taking machine guns from the armored train in their hands, selflessly fought the enemy to the last drop of blood for several more days. Unfortunately, they failed to repulse the attack and the train fell into the hands of the enemy. The Germans brought it into working condition and called it "Ogain". Now the German armored train fought with Soviet army until in 1944, when retreating from the city, the Nazis blew it up on the territory of the station.
When the war ended, the engine that drove the "Green Ghost" was restored and it began to serve peaceful purposes. Now it has been turned into a small museum - one of the attractions of the city of Sevastopol. Memorial plaque with photographs of those distant times, which was installed next to the locomotive, tells us about past exploits and glorious victories of armored heroes.
The armored train "Zheleznyakov" during the defense of Sevastopol in 1941-42 became a nightmare for the Germans, who called it the "Green Ghost". For the Soviet people, he became a legend, an example of the good luck of the careful calculation of military operations and the desperate heroism of the crew.
Not far from the Sevastopol bus station, on Revyakin Square, there is a monument to the most famous Crimean steam locomotive, the hero of the Great Patriotic War, the Zheleznyakov armored train. Not a single tourist passes by without taking a few pictures of this colorful train from the El-2500 steam locomotive with the inscription "Death to fascism!" and gun transporter TM-1-180 equipped with an impressive gun B-1-P. The most uncultured guests of the city immediately begin to climb on the roof and mechanisms of the locomotive, not noticing the signs: “The locomotive is a veteran of war and labor. Transferred forever to the hero city of Sevastopol by the Crimean railway workers” and “The steam locomotive of the legendary armored train Zheleznyakov, which took an active part in the heroic defense of Sevastopol in 1941-1942.” After all, a veteran of war and labor, even though he is a locomotive, deserves special respect.
It should be clarified that the monument to Zheleznyakov is not the legendary armored train itself, but a steam locomotive with a transporter of the same type, which has nothing to do with the history of the hero train. Historical accuracy in its appearance is not observed, but the monument fulfills its role, being a constant reminder of the legendary "Green Ghost".
In total, during the attack on the Crimea of the 11th army of Manstein, 7 armored trains were put into operation. There was a severe shortage of armored vehicles on the peninsula, and therefore, in a hurry, land battleships familiar from the time of the Civil War were built in the railway workshops and workshops of ship repair plants. The remnants of the ship's armor and the weapons that were available were used. Unfortunately, all Crimean armored trains were quickly liquidated by the Nazis, only Zheleznyakov managed to conduct military operations for a long period - from November 7, 1941 to June 28, 1942, making 140 raids and causing significant damage to the enemy.
Armored train No. 5 of the Coastal Defense of the Main Base of the Black Sea Fleet "Zheleznyakov" was put into operation on November 4 in the already besieged Sevastopol, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet and members of the military Council attended the opening ceremony. The workers of the Sevastopol Marine Plant built the armored train with the active help of the surviving sailors from the crews of other armored vehicles. Platforms for 60-ton wagons were used, on which steel sheets were welded and reinforced with reinforced concrete, receiving composite armor. Of the weapons, 15 machine guns, 5 76 mm caliber guns were installed, and 8 mortars were located on a special platform. A second locomotive was also added, which made it possible to significantly increase the maneuverability of the train.
The Zheleznyakov completed its first combat mission on November 7 near the village of Duvankoy (now Verkhnesadovoye): a battery was suppressed and enemy infantry was fired upon.
The successful survival of the Sevastopol armored train depended on many factors. His team skillfully used the local landscape with many narrow ravines, rocks and tunnels when maneuvering. "Zheleznyakov" struck with lightning speed at targets that were reconnoitered by the marines, and disappeared before enemy artillery could shoot him or hunt down bombers. The Germans nicknamed him the “Green Ghost” for the unusually effective camouflage coloring, which the crew constantly changed, distorting the outlines of the armored train beyond recognition, achieving its visual indistinguishability from the terrain. Also, the success of Zheleznyakov's operations was ensured by the trolley, which checked and repaired the tracks.
During the reflection of the second assault on Sevastopol on December 17, the armored train supported the defenders of the city, driving towards the advancing German troops, firing from mortars and 12 machine guns. The train was covered by submachine gunners from the 8th Marine Brigade. The restoration team, led by the road foreman Nikitin, repaired the canvas around the clock, often under fire.
At the end of 1941, Zheleznyakov visited the Sevastopol rear for repairs and rearmament. Three new machine guns were installed, one old 76 mm gun was replaced with two new automatic cannons, and four 82 mm mortars were replaced with three 120 mm regimental mortars.
The “green ghost” was almost destroyed during the battles for the Mekenziev mountains. Heavy German artillery bombed the track right in front of the armored train, ballast platforms flew off the slope, and one of the armored platforms went off the rails. The main locomotive was disabled by shell fragments, and the second one did not have enough power to drag the armored platform onto the rails. A heroic deed was performed by Yevgeny Matyush, an assistant driver, he climbed into the firebox thrown with raw coal and, poured with evaporating water, made repairs. The composition was saved, and Matyush immediately lost consciousness from numerous burns.
After the Mekenzievy Gory station was captured by the enemy on December 22, the armored train made a daring attack on it. Literally bursting into the station "Zheleznyakov" almost point-blank began to shoot the equipment and manpower of the enemy. Also, the armored train participated in a desperate operation to deliver new barrels to the 30th battery to replace the worn ones.
The Nazis managed to significantly damage the elusive composition on December 29 during an air raid, many crew members were killed, but the survivors were able to shoot back, using machine guns as anti-aircraft guns. In the same way, with the help of 18 machine-gun barrels on January 1, 1942, two enemy fighters were shot down.
It is not surprising that the Nazis hated Zheleznyakov, because in the winter of 1942 alone, the armored train destroyed about 1,500 enemy soldiers, 3 vehicles, 10 wagons with cargo, 6 dugouts, 9 bunkers, 13 machine gun nests, heavy battery. In mid-June, an armored train disabled 3 German tanks, engaging in battle with a column of armored vehicles.
By the end of June 1942, the Zheleznyakov remained the only powerful artillery unit on the northern side of Sevastopol, the paint literally peeled off its trunks, so they were red-hot from firing. The armored train was hunted with the help of dozens of enemy aircraft.
June 26 "Green Ghost" gave his last battle - against him there were 50 bombers. One of the entrances to the Trinity tunnel was collapsed by a massive bombardment, the second platform was filled up, but the train escaped from the tunnel and opened fire on the enemies. It was only possible to completely block the armored train the next day, filling the second entrance to the tunnel. The rest of the crew fought until 3 July. Thus ended the history of the Soviet "Zheleznyakov" ...
... And the history of the German armored train "Eugen" began. The Nazis unearthed the legendary composition, repaired it and used it, equipping it with 105 mm howitzers. "Eugen" was blown up by the Germans in 1944 during the offensive of the Soviet troops.
According to legend, the Zheleznyakov-Eugen steam locomotive was repaired after the war and drove trains around the Crimea for a long time. On October 24, 1967, he was delivered from Dzhankoy to Sevastopol by a former front-line brigade, in which there was a machinist M. Galanin, a fireman V. Ivanov and the same assistant machinist E. Matyush.
Surroundings of Sevastopol - rocks cut by beams, steep slopes, narrow valleys. During the defense of the city in 1941-1942, this entire piece of land was shot through by dozens of batteries of German heavy and super-heavy artillery and was attacked by the elite air army. According to the testimony of participants in the defense of Sevastopol, enemy aircraft hunted for every vehicle, for every group of soldiers. But on this piece of land that was being shot through, 234 days and nights fought, inflicting considerable damage on the enemy, the Zheleznyakov armored train, called the Green Ghost by the German soldiers. Like a ghost, he, the only armored train in the world, was destined to be buried with his team underground, reappeared from an underground grave and ended his journey not far from the place of the first death.
THE BIRTH OF LAND ARMADORES
Interestingly, the idea of using trains for combat operations first arose precisely in connection with the defense of Sevastopol. During Crimean War In 1853-1856, the Russian merchant N. Repin presented to the head of the military ministry the "Project on the movement of batteries by steam locomotives on rails." But at that time in the area of hostilities - the Crimea, there was not yet a single railway, so the military department put the project "under the cloth".
A year after the end of the Crimean War, a new project of a military engineer, Lieutenant Colonel P. Lebedev, “Application of Railways to Protect the Mainland,” appeared.
One of the first prototypes of armored trains during the war of the North and South in America
But the first improvised armored train entered the battle all the same across the ocean. During the War of the North and the South in America, on June 29, 1862, near Richmond, a 32-pounder gun on a railway platform drawn by a steam locomotive scattered a detachment of southerners resting near the railway embankment.
During the Franco-Prussian War, cannons mounted by German gunners on railway platforms fired on the besieged Paris, moving along its perimeter, and delivering sudden blows from different directions.
During the Anglo-Boer War, trying to protect their railway communications from the Boer commandos, the British began to create blockhouses on wheels - well-armed wagons with reliable shelters for personnel. On the railway platforms, not only artillery pieces and machine guns were installed, but also fortifications were made from sandbags, sleepers, and similar materials for the soldiers. Soon the British launched the construction of standard armored wagons and trains.
THE ERA OF ARMORED TRAINS
In the first war days of August 1914, the construction of the first armored train consisting of an armored locomotive and four armored platforms was completed in Russia, each of which was armed with a 76.2-mm gun and two machine guns. By the end of the year on Eastern Front 15 armored trains were already operating - one each in the North and West, eight in the South-West, four in the Caucasian front and one in Finland. They were built at the famous Putilov factory in Petrograd.
The civil war in Russia became the era of the heyday of armored trains, as the most mobile and powerful weapon at that time. Land battleships were massively used on both sides. During the battles near Petrograd, the armored train first met in battle with its new enemy and competitor - a tank. The tank of the army of the North-Western General Yudenich rammed the armored car of the red armored train, damaging it and forcing it to retreat.
Armored trains were also used during the attack Soviet Union to Finland and Poland in 1939. It is significant that most of them were not in service with the army, but as part of divisions and brigades of the NKVD.
Soviet armored trains entered the battle from the very first days of the German invasion of the USSR in June 1941. Fighting German tanks and aircraft, providing artillery support to the infantry, covering the withdrawal of their troops, the armored trains retreated to the east. A large part of them died in Belarus under bombing attacks by German aircraft or were blown up by their crews.
Remembering the experience of the civil war, improvised armored trains were hastily armed at the railway factories. Kyiv managed to give the front 3 armored trains. Three more were assembled in the railway workshops by the besieged Odessa.
ON THE CRIMEAN BORDERS
When parts of the 11th army of General Manstein broke into the expanses of the Crimea, the lack of armored vehicles forced Soviet command on the peninsula to begin mass construction of armored trains. According to various historians, 7 trains, created in railway workshops and shipyards from stocks of ship armor and naval weapons, managed to enter service. Three of them were born in Kerch, two in Sevastopol.
The fate of most of the Crimean armored trains was short-lived. On one day only, October 28, 1941, two armored trains were destroyed. German sappers managed to mine the railway track and blow up the Ordzhonikidzevets armored train near the Kurmany station. Another armored train - "Voykovets" blew up the crew after the tracks were broken by German bombers. The armored trains “Death to fascism!”, “Gornyak” and No. 74 died in battles on the Crimean railways.
SEVASTOPOL ARMORED TRAIN
On November 4, in the already besieged Sevastopol, the construction of the armored train No. 5 of the Coastal Defense of the Zheleznyakov Main Base of the Black Sea Fleet, which was destined to go down in history as the Green Ghost, was completed. Workers of the Sevastopol Marine Plant, together with sailors from the crews of broken armored trains, built up steel sheets on ordinary platforms for 60-ton cars, sewing them together with electric welding and strengthening them with reinforced concrete pouring (a prototype of composite armor). Five 76-mm guns and 15 machine guns were installed on the armored sites. The armored train had a special platform with 8 mortars. To increase the speed, in addition to the armored locomotive, the train was given a powerful locomotive. Captain Sahakyan was appointed commander of the armored train.
The importance attached to the armored train is underscored by the fact that the Commander Black Sea Fleet with members of the military council.
"Zheleznyakov" goes into position
November 7, 1941 "Zheleznyakov" went on the first combat mission.
Advancing beyond the Kamyshlov bridge, the armored train fired on the concentration of enemy infantry near the village of Duvankoy (now Verkhnesadovoye) and suppressed the battery on the opposite slope of the Belbek valley.
In a small area of the besieged Sevastopol, an armored train could "survive" only thanks to speed and stealth. Each Zheleznyakov raid was carefully planned. In front of the armored train, a trolley always went to the position, checking the condition of the railway tracks. After a swift artillery and mortar attack on targets previously reconnoitred by the Marines, the train quickly retreated to areas where the railway passed in narrow cuts cut in the rocks, or into tunnels, before the Germans had time to shoot artillery or raise aircraft. The Germans made many attempts to suppress the armored train. The railway track was shot down by heavy artillery, and a spotter aircraft was constantly on duty over the road. But neither artillery nor aviation still managed to inflict serious damage on the armored train. According to the testimonies of the prisoners, the German soldiers called the elusive armored train "the green ghost".
A month later, due to the injury of Sahakyan, Lieutenant Tchaikovsky took command of the armored train. Later, the engineer-captain M.F. commanded the armored train. Kharchenko.
On December 17, 1941, the second assault on Sevastopol began. "Zheleznyakov" supported the marines of the 8th brigade and parts of the 95th rifle division. The armored train came out literally towards the advancing German units, firing not only with mortars, but with all 12 machine guns. By order of the commander, fighters with personal small arms and grenades were placed on the converted control sites in front of the armored train.
A special restoration team of the road foreman Nikitin was seconded to the armored train, which almost every day, under enemy fire, restored the damaged railway track.
Understanding perfectly well the price of Zheleznyakov’s attacks, the commander of the 8th Marine Brigade, Vilshansky, specially assigned submachine gunners to cover the firing positions of the armored train.
"GREEN GHOST"
“The armored train changed its appearance all the time. Under the direction of junior lieutenant Kamornik, the sailors tirelessly painted armored platforms and locomotives with camouflage stripes and patterns so that the train blended indistinguishably with the terrain. The armored train skillfully maneuvered between recesses and tunnels. In order to confuse the enemy, we constantly change parking places. Our mobile rear is also on continuous patrols, ”recalled the foreman of the group of machine gunners of the armored train midshipman N.I. Alexandrov.
Sevastopol armored train goes into the tunnel
"Zheleznyakov" operated not only in the area of the Mekenziev mountains, but also went to the Balaklava railway line, where German troops rushed to Sapun Mountain.
The command of the Sevastopol defensive region appreciated the Zhelyaznyakov very much. When, during the withdrawal of the train from the combat position, the path was broken, and the armored train was under attack by German artillery, which was guided by a spotter aircraft, a link of Soviet fighters was sent to the rescue, and it was very problematic to raise them from the Khersones airfield with the complete dominance of German aviation in the sky .
At the end of 1941, the armored train was sent to the rear for repairs. Some of the new weapons were placed on the armored sites. One of the old guns was replaced with two new automatic guns. Instead of four 82-mm mortars, three regimental 130-mm mortars were installed. Installed and 3 new machine guns.
On December 22, when German troops captured the village and station of the Mekenzievy Gory, an armored train broke right into the station and opened fire at a concentration of enemy soldiers and equipment at point-blank range.
"Zheleznyakov" also covered the daring operation to deliver new gun barrels to the legendary 30th battery.
“How the Germans hated this armored train, and how many kind words, full of gratitude, were spoken to it by our fighters and commanders,” Colonel I.F. Khomich, a participant in the defense of Sevastopol, later wrote. - Sailors worked on the armored train. The courage of the Black Sea people has long been proverbial. The armored train actually ran into the enemy and fired with such swift surprise, as if it were running not along the rails, but right along the uneven ground of the peninsula.
German aviation was constantly hunting for the last Crimean armored train, which caused them so many problems.
On the night of December 28-29, 1941, the crew of the armored train set aside for rest put the train not in the tunnel, but under a sheer cliff at the Inkerman station, fitting passenger cars between the rock and the armored train for rest. The Germans took advantage of this by inflicting an air strike that cost the lives of many Zheleznyakovites.
But in battle, 18 machine guns of an armored train were a serious enemy for aviation as well. So, only on the first day of 1942, Zheleznyakov’s machine-gun crews shot down two German fighters who decided to fire at the stopped train.
During the battles for the Mekenzievy mountains, German heavy artillery managed to break the railway track in front of a moving armored train. Ballast platforms flew downhill, an armored platform derailed. Fragments of the next projectile disabled the main locomotive, and the power of the second armored locomotive was not enough to lift the armored platform onto the rails. The armored train was saved by the driver's assistant Yevgeny Matyush. To repair the locomotive, he climbed into a furnace filled with raw coal. The water that was poured over the daredevil immediately evaporated. Having finished work, Matyush barely managed to get out and lost consciousness from burns. Thanks to his feat, it was possible to put a steam locomotive into operation, raise an armored platform onto the rails and withdraw the train from the impact of heavy enemy batteries.
Soon coal reserves ran out in Sevastopol. Several times, the Zheleznyakovites managed to take coal literally from under the nose of the enemy - from the Mekenzievy Gory station, which passed from hand to hand. When this coal also ran out, the machinist Galinin suggested making special briquettes from coal dust and tar. This idea turned out to be quite viable, and coal dust was collected on the territory of the railway station and throughout Sevastopol.
"Zheleznyakov" is preparing to join the battle
In 1941-1942, the armored train made more than 140 combat exits. Only from January 7 to March 1, 1942, Zheleznyakov, according to the command of the Sevastopol defensive regions, destroyed nine bunkers, thirteen machine-gun nests, six dugouts, one heavy battery, three aircraft, three vehicles, ten wagons with cargo, up to one and a half thousand soldiers and enemy officers.
On June 15, 1942, Zheleznyakov entered the battle with a column of German tanks, knocking out at least 3 armored vehicles.
IN THE STONE GRAVE
On June 21, the defenders of the city retreating to the Sevastopol Bay blew up all the remaining artillery on the Northern side. Only the armored train, which was now based in the Troitsky tunnel, remained a powerful artillery unit. "Zheleznyakov" fired at the German units on the North side until the paint began to burn on the gun barrels.
German aircraft brought down the entrance to the tunnel several times. On June 26, 1942, more than 50 enemy bombers delivered a powerful blow to the Troitsky tunnel. A multi-ton block hit the 2nd armored platform. Part of the crew managed to be pulled out through the landing hatches in the floor of the car, then the rails burst, and the armored platform, nailed with blocks, was pressed to the bottom of the tunnel.
The second exit from the tunnel remained free, the locomotive brought out the surviving armored platform, which again opened fire on the enemy. Buried under the rock, the Green Ghost delivered its final blow.
The next day, German aircraft brought down the last exit from the tunnel. The armored train was killed, but its crew was still fighting, having installed several mortars in the area of the state district power station.
On June 30, the remains of the crew were blocked in a half-filled tunnel. The Germans, having sent a truce, offered to leave the tunnel, hiding here from the bombing of civilians. The nurses of the armored train were sent with them. The Zheleznyakovites stayed in the tunnel until 3 July. Only a few survivors were captured.
THE SECOND PHENOMENON OF THE "GREEN GHOST"
The Germans who occupied Sevastopol in August 1942 managed to clear the Trinity Tunnel for the movement of their trains. Having restored part of the Zheleznyakov armored vehicles, the Germans created the Eugen armored personnel carrier from them, arming it with 105-mm howitzers with converted gun carriages. In a place with an armored train "Mikhel" of German production, armed with 88-mm anti-aircraft guns, "Eugen" participated in the hostilities in the Perekop area, as well as in the Ishun positions.
German armored train in the Crimea, which some historians identify as based on the Zheleznyakov sites
When Soviet troops broke through the German defenses of Sevastopol on Sapun Mountain, the Eugen armored car was blown up by its crew. Thus ended the fate of the most famous Crimean armored train.
In the 70s, an OV-type steam locomotive was installed near the Sevastopol railway station - the same type as the Zheleznyakov steam locomotive, on which the inscription "Death to fascism" was reproduced, which adorned the sides of the armored train. Unfortunately, the camouflage coloring that gave Zheleznyakov the name of the Green Ghost was not applied to the locomotive, painting it with black varnish.
In the early 90s, a large-caliber gun was placed next to the locomotive on a railway platform, which tourists ignorant of history now mistake for one of the armored platforms of the legendary Zheleznyakov armored train.
Igor Rudenko-Minikh
