Wonderful Photos Of Everyday Life In Postwar Leningrad, The City That Refused To Starve In WWII – Design You Trust

Wonderful Photos Of Everyday Life In Postwar Leningrad, The City That Refused To Starve In WWII

It was Leningrad, not Stalingrad that was the Eastern Front’s real World War II humanitarian disaster. Nazi Germany sent hundreds of thousands of civilians to their deaths through starvation and hypothermia.

At first, the dogs and cats disappeared. Then there were no birds anymore. They were eaten. It was done out of pure desperation, in order to survive and not go crazy. The menu in Leningrad during this period of the war included wallpaper, window putty and soup made of boiled leather.

These photographs of Leningrad, or present-day St. Petersburg, depict life for everyday Soviet citizens in 1946-1948: from builders working at St. Isaac’s Cathedral to a woman wiping a showpiece in the Hermitage museum and a seaman holding the hand of his beloved.

By looking at these photos, taken from the Harvard University archive, one would hardly guess that the Siege of Leningrad had ended just two years earlier.

Lasting 871 days (Sept. 8, 1941-Jan. 27, 1944), the siege killed at least 630,000 people and left the city in ruins after relentless bombings by Nazi forces.

Here’s a look at Leningrad’s resurgence after two years of unspeakable hardship.

h/t: themoscowtimes

Many buildings in the city were destroyed during the siege. After the siege ended, a large-scale restoration effort was launched.

Huge damage was done to valuable historical and cultural monuments like the Hermitage and the Russian Museum.

Boating on the pond of Kirov Park.

Leningrad Naval Training School crews stage a lifeboat race on the Neva River.

Restored after the blockade, the architectural monuments of Russia’s northern capital reappeared in all their beauty.

Freshmen at the newly reopened Leningrad Transport Institute.

A lesson at the Leningrad Conservatory.

The Narva Triumphal Arch also wasn’t protected from artillery bombardments. It was eventually restored in 1951.

If you want more awesome content, subscribe to 'Oh, Design You Trust,' our brand new Facebook page! Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

More Inspiring Stories

Bizarre Beauty Pageants: Vintage Photos Of Hot Dog Queens From The Mid-Century
Photographer Steven Burton Photoshops Out Ex-Gang Members Tattoos
Squirrel That Wished To Live With A Human Friend
Auto Mechanics Strike A Pose With Hilarious Renaissance-Style Paintings
Typhoon Guchol Hits Across Japan
Stunning Photos Capture Bicycles From Underneath In Rarely Seen Angles
Hottest And Most Grooviest Photos From The Past That Will Redefine Your Style Statement
Rerouted: Photography Series by Justin Dingwall & Roman Handt
The Captivating Underwater Photographs of Enric Adrian Gener
Out Of This World: Magnificent Entries For The UK Astronomy Photographer Of The Year 2017
"Hong Kong On Fire": Local Photographer Captured Stunning Images Of The Days In Fight For Civil Rights
"Women of The Future" According to The French Artist Albert Bergeret, 1902
Photographer Radosław Kaźmierczak Captures The Urban Surrealism Of Poland In Great Details
Remember Hong Kong: Relive The Sights And Smells Of Old Hong Kong
2018 National Geographic Travel Photographer Of The Year Winners
Photographer Vitaly Sokolovsky Captures Professional Ballet Dancers On The Streets Of Saint-Petersburg
Black Mothers Act Out What Might Be The Future Of Their Sons In The US
Before the Photoshop Era, Here Are What Manipulated Photos Looked Like in the Early 20th Century
2016 CWAS “David Malin” Awards Finalists
The Badass Sean Connery In Zardoz, The Most Insane Must-See Cult Classic
Winning Images from The 2020 Street Photography Competition By Independent Photographer
Russian Photographer Imagines What If Barbie And Ken Were Slavs?
Rogues' Gallery: Hundred Year Old Rare Scrapbook of Criminals Up For Sale
Magical Macro Worlds of Georgi Georgiev