Kataev is the son of an artilleryman. Konstantin Simonov - Son of an artilleryman: Verse
Artilleryman's son:
Visited Major Deev
Comrade - Major Petrov,
We were still friends with a civilian,
Since the twenties.
They chopped down the whites together
Checkers at a gallop,
We later served together
In an artillery regiment.
And Major Petrov
There was Lenka, beloved son,
Without a mother, at the barracks,
The boy grew up alone.
And if Petrov is away, -
It happened, instead of father
His friend remained
For this tomboy.
Call Deev Lenka:
- Well, let's go for a walk:
To the artilleryman's son
It's time to get used to the horse! -
He and Lenka will go together
At a trot, and then into the quarry.
It happened that Lenka would save,
The barrier can't take it
He will collapse and whine.
- I see, he’s still a kid! -
Deev will lift him up,
Like a second father.
Gets him on the horse again:
- Learn, brother, to take barriers!
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
Another two or three years passed
And it was carried away
Deeva and Petrova
Military craft.
Deev left for the North
And I even forgot the address.
It would be great to see you!
And he didn't like letters.
But that must be why
That he himself was not expecting children,
About Lenka with some sadness
He often remembered.
Ten years have flown by.
The silence is over
Thunder rumbled
There is war over the homeland.
Deev fought in the North;
In the polar wilderness
Sometimes from newspapers
I was looking for the names of friends.
One day I found Petrov:
“So, he’s alive and well!”
The newspaper praised him
Petrov fought in the South.
Then, having arrived from the South,
Someone told him
What Petrov, Nikolai Yegorych,
Died heroically in Crimea.
Deev took out the newspaper,
He asked: “What date?”
And with sadness I realized that the mail
It took me too long to get here...
And soon on one of the cloudy days
Northern evenings
Assigned to Deev's regiment
There was Lieutenant Petrov.
Deev sat over the map
With two smoking candles.
A tall military man came in
Oblique fathoms in the shoulders.
In the first two minutes
The major didn't recognize him.
Only the lieutenant's basso
It reminded me of something.
- Well, turn to the light, -
And he brought the candle to him.
All the same children's lips,
The same snub nose.
And what about a mustache - that’s what it is
Shave! - and the whole conversation.
- Lenka? - That’s right, Lenka,
He is the one, Comrade Major!
- So, I graduated from school,
Let's serve together.
It's a pity, so happy
Father didn’t have to live.-
Lenka's eyes sparkled
An unbidden tear.
He gritted his teeth and silently
He wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
And again the major had to
As in childhood, tell him:
- Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
And in two weeks
There was a heavy battle in the rocks,
To help everyone out, I must
Someone risk themselves.
The major called Lenka to his place,
Looked at him point blank.
- By your order
Comrade Major has appeared.
- Well, it’s good that you showed up.
Leave the documents to me.
You will go alone, without a radio operator,
Walkie-talkie on the back.
And across the front, along the rocks,
At night behind German lines
You will walk along such a path,
Where no one has gone.
You'll be on the radio from there
Fire batteries.
Is it clear? - That’s right, it’s clear.
- Well, then go quickly.
No, wait a little.-
The major stood up for a second,
Like in childhood, with both hands
Lenka pressed him to himself: -
Are you going to do something like this?
It's hard to come back.
As a commander, I love you
I'm not happy to send you there.
But as a father... Answer me:
Am I your father or not?
“Father,” Lenka told him.
And hugged him back.
So, just like a father, it happened
To fight for life and death,
My father's duty and right
Risking your son
Before others I must
Send your son ahead.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
- Do you understand me? - I understand everything.
May I go? - Go! -
The major remained in the dugout,
Shells were exploding ahead.
Somewhere there was a thundering and hooting sound.
The major kept an eye on his watch.
It would be a hundred times easier for him,
If only he had walked himself.
Twelve... Now, probably
He passed through the posts.
An hour... Now he's reached
To the foot of the heights.
Two... He must now
Crawling to the very ridge.
Three... Hurry up so that
Dawn did not catch him.
Deev came out into the air -
How brightly the moon shines
I couldn't wait until tomorrow
Damn her!
All night, walking like a pendulum,
The major did not close his eyes,
Bye on the radio in the morning
The first signal came:
- It's okay, I got there.
The Germans are to the left of me,
Coordinates three, ten,
Let's fire quickly! -
The guns are loaded
The major calculated everything himself,
And with a roar the first volleys
They hit the mountains.
And again the signal on the radio:
- The Germans are more right than me,
Coordinates five, ten,
More fire soon!
Earth and rocks flew,
Smoke rose in a column,
It seemed that now from there
No one will leave alive.
Third radio signal:
- The Germans are around me,
Strike four, ten,
Don't spare the fire!
The major turned pale when he heard:
Four, ten - just right
The place where his Lenka
Must sit now.
But without showing it,
Forgetting that he was a father,
The major continued to command
With a calm face:
“Fire!” - shells were flying.
“Fire!” - load quickly!
Square four, ten
There were six batteries.
The radio was silent for an hour,
Then came the signal:
- He was silent: he was deafened by the explosion.
Strike as I said.
I believe my shells
They can't touch me.
The Germans are running, click
Give me a sea of fire!
And at the command post,
Having received the last signal,
Major in a deafened radio,
Unable to bear it, he shouted:
- You hear me, I believe:
Death cannot take such people.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
No one in our life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
The infantry went on the attack -
Was clear by noon
From the fleeing Germans
Rocky height.
There were corpses lying everywhere,
Wounded but alive
Was found in the Lenka Gorge
With his head tied.
When the bandage was unwound,
What has he done hastily?
The major looked at Lenka
And suddenly I didn’t recognize him:
It was as if he was the same
Calm and young
All the same boy's eyes,
But only... completely gray.
He hugged the major before
How to go to the hospital:
- Hold on, father: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
Now Lenka had...
That's the story
About these glorious deeds
On the Sredny Peninsula
It was told to me.
And above, above the mountains,
The moon was still floating,
Explosions roared nearby,
The war continued.
The phone was cracking, and, worrying,
The commander walked around the dugout,
And someone just like Lenka,
I went to the Germans' rear today.
Song from the film "Officers"
Words by Leonid Agranovich.
Music Raphael Hozak
Spanish Vladimir Zlatoustovsky
Visited Major Deev
Comrade - Major Petrov,
We were still friends with a civilian,
Since the twenties.
They chopped down the whites together
Checkers at a gallop,
We later served together
In an artillery regiment.
And Major Petrov
There was Lenka, beloved son,
Without a mother, at the barracks,
The boy grew up alone.
And if Petrov is away, -
It happened, instead of father
His friend remained
For this tomboy.
Call Deev Lenka:
- Well, let's go for a walk:
To the artilleryman's son
It's time to get used to the horse! -
He and Lenka will go together
At a trot, and then into the quarry.
It happened that Lenka would save,
The barrier can't take it
He will collapse and whine.
It’s clear, he’s still a kid! -
Deev will lift him up,
Like a second father.
Gets him on the horse again:
- Learn, brother, to take barriers!
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
Another two or three years passed
And it was carried away
Deeva and Petrova
Military craft.
Deev left for the North
And I even forgot the address.
It would be great to see you!
And he didn't like letters.
But that must be why
That he himself was not expecting children,
About Lenka with some sadness
He often remembered.
Ten years have flown by.
The silence is over
Thunder rumbled
There is war over the Motherland.
Deev fought in the North;
In the polar wilderness
Sometimes from newspapers
I was looking for the names of friends.
One day I found Petrov:
“So he’s alive and well!”
The newspaper praised him
Petrov fought in the South.
Then, having arrived from the South,
Someone told him
What Petrov, Nikolai Yegorych,
Died heroically in Crimea.
Deev took out the newspaper,
He asked: “What date?” -
And with sadness I realized that the mail
It took me too long to get here...
And soon on one of the cloudy days
Northern evenings
Assigned to Deev's regiment
There was Lieutenant Petrov.
Deev sat over the map
With two smoking candles.
A tall military man came in
Oblique fathoms in the shoulders.
In the first two minutes
The major didn't recognize him.
Only the lieutenant's basso
It reminded me of something.
Well, turn to the light, -
And he brought the candle to him.
All the same children's lips,
The same snub nose.
And what about a mustache - that’s what it is
Shave! - and the whole conversation.
- Lenka? - That's right, Lenka,
He is the one, Comrade Major!
So, I graduated from school,
Let's serve together.
It's a pity, so happy
My father didn't have to live.
Lenka's eyes sparkled
An unbidden tear.
He gritted his teeth and silently
He wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
And again the major had to
As in childhood, tell him:
- Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
And in two weeks
There was a heavy battle in the rocks,
To help everyone out, I must
Someone risk themselves.
The major called Lenka to his place,
Looked at him point blank.
- By your order
Comrade Major has appeared.
Well, it's good that you showed up.
Leave the documents to me.
You will go alone, without a radio operator,
Walkie-talkie on the back.
And across the front, along the rocks,
At night behind German lines
You will walk along such a path,
Where no one has gone.
You'll be on the radio from there
Fire batteries.
Clear? - Yes, exactly, clearly.
- Well, then go quickly.
No, wait a little. -
The major stood up for a second,
Like in childhood, with both hands
He pulled Lenka close to him.
Are you going to do something like this?
It's hard to come back.
As a commander, I love you
I'm not happy to send you there.
But as a father... Answer me:
Am I your father or not?
“Father,” Lenka told him.
And hugged him back.
So, just like a father, it happened
To fight for life and death,
My father's duty and right
Risking your son.
Before others I must
Send your son ahead.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
Understood me? - Got it.
May I go? - Go! -
The major remained in the dugout,
Shells were exploding ahead.
Somewhere there was a thundering and hooting sound.
The major kept an eye on his watch.
It would be a hundred times easier for him,
If only he had walked himself.
Twelve... Now, probably
He passed through the posts.
An hour... Now he's reached
To the foot of the heights.
Two... He must now
Crawling to the very ridge.
Three... Hurry up so that
Dawn did not catch him.
Deev came out into the air -
How brightly the moon shines
I couldn't wait until tomorrow
Damn her!
All night, walking like a pendulum,
The major did not close his eyes,
Bye on the radio in the morning
The first signal came:
It's okay, I got there.
The Germans are to the left of me,
Coordinates three, ten,
Let's fire quickly!
The guns are loaded
The major calculated everything himself,
And with a roar the first volleys
They hit the mountains.
And again the signal on the radio:
- The Germans are more right than me,
Coordinates five, ten,
More fire soon!
Earth and rocks flew,
Smoke rose in a column,
It seemed that now from there
No one will leave alive.
Third radio signal:
- The Germans are around me,
Strike four, ten,
Don't spare the fire!
The major turned pale when he heard:
Four, ten - just right
The place where his Lenka
Must sit now.
But without showing it,
Forgetting that he was a father,
The major continued to command
With a calm face:
"Fire!" - shells were flying.
"Fire!" - charge quickly!
Square four, ten
There were six batteries.
The radio was silent for an hour,
Then came the signal:
- He was silent: he was deafened by the explosion.
Strike as I said.
I believe my shells
They can't touch me.
The Germans are running, click
Give me a sea of fire!
And at the command post,
Having received the last signal,
Major in a deafened radio,
Unable to bear it, he shouted:
Can you hear me, I believe:
Death cannot take such people.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
No one in our life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
The infantry went on the attack -
Was clear by noon
From the fleeing Germans
Rocky height.
There were corpses lying everywhere,
Wounded but alive
Was found in the Lenka Gorge
With his head tied.
When the bandage was unwound,
What has he done hastily?
The major looked at Lenka
And suddenly I didn’t recognize him:
It was as if he was the same
Calm and young
All the same boy's eyes,
But only... completely gray.
He hugged the major before
How to go to the hospital:
- Hold on, father: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
Now Lenka had...
That's the story
About these glorious deeds
On the Sredny Peninsula
It was told to me.
And above, above the mountains,
The moon was still floating,
Explosions roared nearby,
The war continued.
The phone was cracking, and, worrying,
The commander walked around the dugout,
And someone just like Lenka,
I went to the Germans' rear today.
In October 1941, the poet and war correspondent Konstantin Simonov was sent to the Murmansk region, to the Northern Front, where Soviet units held the borders of our Motherland in heavy battles near the Arctic Ocean. The 104th Artillery Regiment defended the Sredniy and Rybachy peninsulas from the Nazis. Regiment commander Efim Ryklis told Simonov a story, which later became the basis for the poem “The Artilleryman’s Son.” In the summer of 1941, the Germans began a fierce bombardment of Soviet positions from guns hidden behind the rocks. Major Ryklis sent his son behind enemy lines close friend- commander of a topographic reconnaissance platoon, Lieutenant Ivan Loskutov, with two radio operators. For six days the soldiers adjusted the fire of our artillery batteries by radio. When the Germans discovered and surrounded the gunners, they called their own artillery fire on themselves. Loskutov and the radio operators were able to survive, the enemies were defeated.
Visited Major Deev
Comrade - Major Petrov,
We were still friends with a civilian,
Since the twenties.
They chopped down the whites together
Checkers at a gallop,
We later served together
In an artillery regiment.
And Major Petrov
There was Lenka, beloved son,
Without a mother, at the barracks,
The boy grew up alone.
And if Petrov is away, -
It happened, instead of father
His friend remained
For this tomboy.
Call Deev Lenka:
- Well, let's go for a walk:
To the artilleryman's son
It's time to get used to the horse! -
He and Lenka will go together
At a trot, and then into the quarry.
It happened that Lenka would save,
The barrier can't take it
He will collapse and whine.
- I see, he’s still a kid! -
Deev will lift him up,
Like a second father.
Gets him on the horse again:
- Learn, brother, to take barriers!
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
Another two or three years passed
And it was carried away
Deeva and Petrova
Military craft.
Deev left for the North
And I even forgot the address.
It would be great to see you!
And he didn't like letters.
But that must be why
That he himself was not expecting children,
About Lenka with some sadness
He often remembered.
Ten years have flown by.
The silence is over
Thunder rumbled
There is war over the homeland.
Deev fought in the North;
In the polar wilderness
Sometimes from newspapers
I was looking for the names of friends.
One day I found Petrov:
“So, he’s alive and well!”
The newspaper praised him
Petrov fought in the South.
Then, having arrived from the South,
Someone told him
What Petrov, Nikolai Yegorych,
Died heroically in Crimea.
Deev took out the newspaper,
He asked: “What date?”
And with sadness I realized that the mail
It took me too long to get here...
And soon on one of the cloudy days
Northern evenings
Assigned to Deev's regiment
There was Lieutenant Petrov.
Deev sat over the map
With two smoking candles.
A tall military man came in
Oblique fathoms in the shoulders.
In the first two minutes
The major didn't recognize him.
Only the lieutenant's basso
It reminded me of something.
- Well, turn to the light, -
And he brought the candle to him.
All the same children's lips,
The same snub nose.
And what about a mustache - that’s what it is
Shave! - and the whole conversation.
- Lenka? - That's right, Lenka,
He is the one, Comrade Major!
So, I graduated from school,
Let's serve together.
It's a pity, so happy
My father didn't have to live. -
Lenka's eyes sparkled
An unbidden tear.
He gritted his teeth and silently
He wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
And again the major had to
As in childhood, tell him:
- Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
And in two weeks
There was a heavy battle in the rocks,
To help everyone out, I must
Someone risk themselves.
The major called Lenka to his place,
Looked at him point blank.
- By your order
Comrade Major has appeared.
- Well, it’s good that you showed up.
Leave the documents to me.
You will go alone, without a radio operator,
Walkie-talkie on the back.
And across the front, along the rocks,
At night behind German lines
You will walk along such a path,
Where no one has gone.
You'll be on the radio from there
Fire batteries.
Clear? - Yes, exactly, clearly.
- Well, then go quickly.
No, wait a little. -
The major stood up for a second,
Like in childhood, with both hands
Lenka pressed him to himself: -
Are you going to do something like this?
It's hard to come back.
As a commander, I’m not happy to send you there.
But as a father... Answer me:
Am I your father or not?
“Father,” Lenka told him.
And hugged him back.
So, just like a father, it happened
To fight for life and death,
My father's duty and right
Risking your son
Before others I must
Send your son ahead.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
- Understood me? - Got it.
May I go? - Go! -
The major remained in the dugout,
Shells were exploding ahead.
Somewhere there was a thundering and hooting sound.
The major kept an eye on his watch.
It would be a hundred times easier for him,
If only he had walked himself.
Twelve... Now, probably
He passed through the posts.
An hour... Now he's reached
To the foot of the heights.
Two... He must now
Crawling to the very ridge.
Three... Hurry up so that
Dawn did not catch him.
Deev came out into the air -
How brightly the moon shines
I couldn't wait until tomorrow
Damn her!
All night, walking like a pendulum,
The major did not close his eyes,
Bye on the radio in the morning
The first signal came:
- It's okay, I got there.
The Germans are to the left of me,
Coordinates three, ten,
Let's fire quickly! -
The guns are loaded
The major calculated everything himself,
And with a roar the first volleys
They hit the mountains.
And again the signal on the radio:
- The Germans are more right than me,
Coordinates five, ten,
More fire soon!
Earth and rocks flew,
Smoke rose in a column,
It seemed that now from there
No one will leave alive.
Third radio signal:
- The Germans are around me,
Strike four, ten,
Don't spare the fire!
The major turned pale when he heard:
Four, ten - just right
The place where his Lenka
Must sit now.
But without showing it,
Forgetting that he was a father,
The major continued to command
With a calm face:
“Fire!” - shells were flying.
“Fire!” - load quickly!
Square four, ten
There were six batteries.
The radio was silent for an hour,
Then came the signal:
- He was silent: he was deafened by the explosion.
Strike as I said.
I believe my shells
They can't touch me.
The Germans are running, click
Give me a sea of fire!
And at the command post,
Having received the last signal,
Major in a deafened radio,
Unable to bear it, he shouted:
- You hear me, I believe:
Death cannot take such people.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
No one in our life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
The major had it.
The infantry went on the attack -
Was clear by noon
From the fleeing Germans
Rocky height.
There were corpses lying everywhere,
Wounded but alive
Was found in the Lenka Gorge
With his head tied.
When the bandage was unwound,
What has he done hastily?
The major looked at Lenka
And suddenly I didn’t recognize him:
It was as if he was the same
Calm and young
All the same boy's eyes,
But only... completely gray.
He hugged the major before
How to go to the hospital:
- Hold on, father: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Kick you out of the saddle! -
Such a saying
Now Lenka had...
That's the story
About these glorious deeds
On the Sredny Peninsula
It was told to me.
And above, above the mountains,
The moon was still floating,
Explosions roared nearby,
The war continued.
The phone was cracking, and, worrying,
The commander walked around the dugout,
And someone just like Lenka,
I went to the Germans' rear today.
Poems about love and about love
Visited Major Deev
Comrade - Major Petrov,
We were still friends with a civilian,
Since the twenties.
They chopped down the whites together
Checkers at a gallop,
We later served together
In an artillery regiment.
And Major Petrov
There was Lenka, beloved son,
Without a mother, at the barracks,
The boy grew up alone.
And if Petrov is away, -
It happened, instead of father
His friend remained
For this tomboy.
Call Deev Lenka:
- Well, let's go for a walk:
To the artilleryman's son
It's time to get used to the horse! -
He and Lenka will go together
At a trot, and then into the quarry.
It happened that Lenka would save,
The barrier can't take it
He will collapse and whine.
- I see, he’s still a kid! -
Deev will lift him up,
Like a second father.
Gets him on the horse again:
- Learn, brother, to take barriers!
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
Another two or three years passed
And it was carried away
Deeva and Petrova
Military craft.
Deev left for the North
And I even forgot the address.
It would be great to see you!
And he didn't like letters.
But that must be why
That he himself was not expecting children,
About Lenka with some sadness
He often remembered.
Ten years have flown by.
The silence is over
Thunder rumbled
There is war over the homeland.
Deev fought in the North;
In the polar wilderness
Sometimes from newspapers
I was looking for the names of friends.
One day I found Petrov:
“So, he’s alive and well!”
The newspaper praised him
Petrov fought in the South.
Then, having arrived from the South,
Someone told him
What Petrov, Nikolai Yegorych,
Died heroically in Crimea.
Deev took out the newspaper,
He asked: “What date?”
And with sadness I realized that the mail
It took me too long to get here...
And soon on one of the cloudy days
Northern evenings
Assigned to Deev's regiment
There was Lieutenant Petrov.
Deev sat over the map
With two smoking candles.
A tall military man came in
Oblique fathoms in the shoulders.
In the first two minutes
The major didn't recognize him.
Only the lieutenant's basso
It reminded me of something.
- Well, turn to the light, -
And he brought the candle to him.
All the same children's lips,
The same snub nose.
And what about a mustache - that’s what it is
Shave! - and the whole conversation.
- Lenka? - That’s right, Lenka,
He is the one, Comrade Major!
So, I graduated from school,
Let's serve together.
It's a pity, so happy
Father didn’t have to live.-
Lenka's eyes sparkled
An unbidden tear.
He gritted his teeth and silently
He wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
And again the major had to
As in childhood, tell him:
- Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
And in two weeks
There was a heavy battle in the rocks,
To help everyone out, I must
Someone risk themselves.
The major called Lenka to his place,
Looked at him point blank.
- By your order
Comrade Major has appeared.
- Well, it’s good that you showed up.
Leave the documents to me.
You will go alone, without a radio operator,
Walkie-talkie on the back.
And across the front, along the rocks,
At night behind German lines
You will walk along such a path,
Where no one has gone.
You'll be on the radio from there
Fire batteries.
Is it clear? - That’s right, it’s clear.
- Well, then go quickly.
No, wait a little.-
The major stood up for a second,
Like in childhood, with both hands
Lenka pressed him to himself: -
Are you going to do something like this?
It's hard to come back.
As a commander, I love you
I'm not happy to send you there.
But as a father... Answer me:
Am I your father or not?
“Father,” Lenka told him.
And hugged him back.
So, just like a father, it happened
To fight for life and death,
My father's duty and right
Risking your son
Before others I must
Send your son ahead.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
- Do you understand me? - I understand everything.
May I go? - Go! -
The major remained in the dugout,
Shells were exploding ahead.
Somewhere there was a thundering and hooting sound.
The major kept an eye on his watch.
It would be a hundred times easier for him,
If only he had walked himself.
Twelve... Now, probably
He passed through the posts.
An hour... Now he's reached
To the foot of the heights.
Two... He must now
Crawling to the very ridge.
Three... Hurry up so that
Dawn did not catch him.
Deev came out into the air -
How brightly the moon shines
I couldn't wait until tomorrow
Damn her!
All night, walking like a pendulum,
The major did not close his eyes,
Bye on the radio in the morning
The first signal came:
- It's okay, I got there.
The Germans are to the left of me,
Coordinates three, ten,
Let's fire quickly! -
The guns are loaded
The major calculated everything himself,
And with a roar the first volleys
They hit the mountains.
And again the signal on the radio:
- The Germans are more right than me,
Coordinates five, ten,
More fire soon!
Earth and rocks flew,
Smoke rose in a column,
It seemed that now from there
No one will leave alive.
Third radio signal:
- The Germans are around me,
Strike four, ten,
Don't spare the fire!
The major turned pale when he heard:
Four, ten - just right
The place where his Lenka
Must sit now.
But without showing it,
Forgetting that he was a father,
The major continued to command
With a calm face:
“Fire!” - shells were flying.
“Fire!” - load quickly!
Square four, ten
There were six batteries.
The radio was silent for an hour,
Then came the signal:
- He was silent: he was deafened by the explosion.
Strike as I said.
I believe my shells
They can't touch me.
The Germans are running, click
Give me a sea of fire!
And at the command post,
Having received the last signal,
Major in a deafened radio,
Unable to bear it, he shouted:
- You hear me, I believe:
Death cannot take such people.
Hold on, my boy: in the world
Don't die twice.
No one in our life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
The major had it.
The infantry went on the attack -
Was clear by noon
From the fleeing Germans
Rocky height.
There were corpses lying everywhere,
Wounded but alive
Was found in the Lenka Gorge
With his head tied.
When the bandage was unwound,
What has he done hastily?
The major looked at Lenka
And suddenly I didn’t recognize him:
It was as if he was the same
Calm and young
All the same boy's eyes,
But only... completely gray.
He hugged the major before
How to go to the hospital:
- Hold on, father: in the world
Don't die twice.
Nothing in life can
Knocked out of the saddle!-
Such a saying
Now Lenka had...
That's the story
About these glorious deeds
On the Sredny Peninsula
It was told to me.
And above, above the mountains,
The moon was still floating,
Explosions roared nearby,
The war continued.
The phone was cracking, and, worrying,
The commander walked around the dugout,
And someone just like Lenka,
I went to the Germans' rear today.
From D. Ortenberg’s book “June-December '41”:
Although this issue lacks materials about the Battle of Moscow, it still cannot be called drab. Our writers are widely represented in it - Ilya Erenburg, Fyodor Panferov, Konstantin Simonov... Simonov only returned from the Northern Front yesterday. We met in the evening. He began to talk about what he saw there, about his experiences, but suddenly interrupted his story:
Do you want me to read you poetry?..
I didn’t have time to answer - he had already grabbed a pack of scribbled leaves from his field bag and began reading. Loudly, as if in front of a large audience. It was the poem "The Artilleryman's Son." Having listened to everything to the end, I silently took the manuscript from him and wrote on the corner of the first page: “To the room.” Simonov was delighted, even his eyes sparkled. I was also happy - we haven’t had Simonov’s poems for a long time..... 
ARTILLERIST'S SON
| Visited Major Deev Comrade - Major Petrov, We were still friends with a civilian, Since the twenties. They chopped down the whites together Checkers at a gallop, We later served together In an artillery regiment. And Major Petrov Call Deev Lenka: It’s clear, he’s still a kid! Another two or three years passed Ten years have flown by. And soon on one of the cloudy days So, I graduated from school, And in two weeks | As a commander, I love you I'm not happy to send you there. But as a father... Answer me: Am I your father or not? “Father,” Lenka told him. And hugged him back. So, just like a father, it happened All night, walking like a pendulum, Earth and rocks flew, The major turned pale when he heard: And at the command post, The infantry went on the attack - He hugged the major before That's the story |
Our conversation dragged on until late at night. Simonov told me a lot of interesting things about his two-month stay in the North, but I later learned even more from his diaries, which were kept in my safe. This probably requires a little clarification. During the war everything personnel Active army members were prohibited from keeping diaries. The reasons are clear. Both Simonov and I understood them. But a writer, obviously, cannot do without some kind of records of his impressions and observations. One day Simonov brought me a whole stack of such recordings. I read them and liked them. Most of all - for the honesty of judgment, for frankness. According to all the rules of military discipline, I would have to punish him for violating the ban and take away the diaries. I took them away, but... at the request of Simonov himself. He asked me to keep them “as secret documents”; this, they say, will be safer both for him and for the diaries. I hid them in my safe, and since then, upon returning from each of his business trips, Simonov brought me new and new records, and I put them in the safe next to the old ones.
They were published only in the 70s in the form of a two-volume book under the general title “Different Days of the War.” On the copy of this two-volume book given to me, the author made the following inscription: “To David Ortenberg, the first Lord Guardian of these then unprinted diaries, with love and friendship. Your Kostya...
* * *
And now I’ll get back to where I left off.
Deep night on December 7, 1941. All the troubles with the next issue of the newspaper are over. A signal copy is about to be brought from the printing house. I'm waiting for him out of duty. And Simonov, of course, because his poem is in this issue...
* * *
So, in the newspaper of December 7, Simonov’s poem “The Artilleryman’s Son” was published. She took up almost half the strip. Not often have we been so generous to poets. I remember that only one other poem occupied two basements in the “Red Star” - this is “Maria” by Valentin Kataev.
Simonov himself did not at all overestimate the artistic merits of that poem. I even wondered why after the war it became one of his most popular works, especially among schoolchildren. “The Artilleryman’s Son” was included in school textbooks, and a flood of letters poured in to Simonov. Most of them asked the question: is Lenka alive? main character ballads? Many years later, Simonov found Lenka and learned that he was still serving in the artillery, already with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
I note, by the way, that in subsequent editions of the poem the author excluded the lines:
By candlelight in the dugout
That night we raised a toast
For those who did not flinch in battle,
Who is courageous and simple.
For this story
There was a happy ending
For Lenka to survive,
So that his father is proud of him,
For the fighters who defended
The borders of your country,
For the fathers who raised
Worthy of their sons!
So it was that evening, in a dugout on the Sredny Peninsula, where the commander of the artillery regiment told Simonov this story; That’s when they raised their glass to the “happy ending.”
* * *
