October 8, 1974: Marshal of the Soviet Union V.I. Chuikov (center), Commander of the 8th Guards Army during the Battle of the Seelow Heights and former commander-in-chief of the Soviet forces in Germany, and Army General P.A. Kurochkin (right, head of the Frunze Military Academy) visited the liberation memorial on the Seelow Heights. Behind Kurochkin is General Fedyuninsky, who was also part of the Soviet delegation visiting the GDR for the 25th anniversary of the birth of the state. The Soviet personalities were greeted by the Central Committee member and 1st Secretary of the Frankfurt (Oder) District Leadership of the SED, Jochen Hertwig (left). The military laid a bouquet of flowers at the final resting place of the fallen Red Army soldiers. After visiting the museum, Marshal Chuikov signed the guest book.
Recently, I discovered an article written by Fyodor Kuzmich Shapovalov in Рубну Мурманск (Rubnu Murmansk) dated January 1975 which provided a detailed account of a special visit. The article focused on the activities of a Soviet delegation headed by Marshal Chuikov on the 25th anniversary of the founding of the German Democratic Republic in October 1974. Interestingly, October 2024 is the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the GDR, and the 50th anniversary of Marshal Chuikov's trip.
Author F.K. Shapovalov was born in the village of Velikoye, Belorechensky District, Krasnodar Territory. In January 1942, he began his military service in the 103rd Separate Cadet Rifle Brigade. By September 1942, he had become a reconnaissance platoon commander, and later a rifle company commander in the 1133rd Rifle Regiment of the 339th Division. In September 1943, he joined the 1050th Rifle Regiment of the 301st Division, 9th Corps, 5th Shock Army, eventually rising to the position of battalion commander.
Shapovalov participated in the storming of Berlin and was among the first to break into the Imperial Chancellery. Alongside Lieutenant General F.E. Bokov (who is referred to in Shapovalov’s article as a member of the delegation), he signed Hitler's last personal operational map, symbolizing the end of hostilities between the USSR and Germany. This historic artifact is preserved in the Central Museum of the Russian Army in Moscow.
Pictured: Fyodor Shapovalov, with the inscription - "I certify the personal signature
and identity of reserve officer F.K. Shapovalov. Murmansk City Military
Commissariat Guards Colonel Ivansky."
Shapovalov was among the Soviet war veterans selected for this trip. The following paragraphs are an excerpt from his article:
“On October 5, 1974, at 9:20 a.m., a delegation of Soviet war veterans, headed by Marshal V.I. Chuikov and Lieutenant General F.E. Bokov, flew from Sheremetyevo Airport to Berlin to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the German Democratic Republic. Each of us had a personal invitation from the Politburo of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) and the GDR government. A special plane was sent for the delegation by the First Secretary of the SED, comrade Erich Honecker. We were accompanied on the flight by responsible officers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense of the GDR.
It was clear that the GDR leadership sought to invite those war veterans who had personally seen Berlin, Germany in April-May 1945, and who could compare the conditions of 1945 with the current situation.
Three hours later, the plane landed at Berlin's Schönefeld Airport. We were warmly welcomed by the residents of Berlin, representatives from other districts of the country, youth, members of the Politburo of the SED, leaders of the "GDR–Soviet Union" society, and the public of the capital…
October 7, 1974.
At 10 o'clock, a parade of the National People's Army troops began to mark the 25th anniversary of the formation of the GDR. It should be noted that the parade made a strong impression, and it can be confidently said that our German friends have something to defend and the means to defend it.
Until 8 PM today, our "Program" allotted time for us to participate in the public festivities and meet with representatives of public organizations and friends.
Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General I.P. Rosly, I.I. Gumerov, Salidjan Alimov, and the author of these lines used this time to visit the sites of former battles. We inspected the building of the Ministry of Aviation, walked along Wilhelmstraße and Voßstraße, and approached the place where the Reich Chancellery building once stood, but the building has long since disappeared. Only a small mound of rubble, bricks, and stones, now overgrown with weeds, marks the site of the Führer’s bunker.
At exactly 8 PM, under a thunder of applause, L.I. Brezhnev, Erich Honecker, Willi Stoph, A.A. Gromyko, Horst Sindermann, and their accompanying persons entered the reception hall. Comrade Erich Honecker thanked all the guests for their attention and for accepting the invitation to come to the GDR for the celebrations marking the 25th anniversary of the Republic. He proposed a toast in honor of the dear Soviet guests, members of the party-government delegation led by L.I. Brezhnev, and in honor of the Soviet war veterans led by Marshal V.I. Chuikov and Lieutenant General F.E. Bokov. The reception was warm and cordial, and the relations between the hosts and guests were brotherly and sincere.
October 8, 1974:
The delegation of Soviet war veterans split into four groups and traveled to different districts of the republic: Dresden, Magdeburg, Erfurt, and Neubrandenburg. The former chief of staff of the 26th Guards Rifle Corps of the 5th Shock Army, Major General N.K. Antipov, Colonel Makhmudov, Colonel Gordienko, Lieutenant Colonel Gumerov, Captain Alimov, and I headed to Neubrandenburg.
(During this time, Marshal Chuikov and Generals Kurochkin and Fedyuninsky visited the memorial site at Seelow Heights. More on Chuikov and Battle of Seelow Heights is found here.)
October 9, 1974:
We were scheduled to attend two more events in Berlin: at 5 PM, a friendly meeting with the youth of the GDR at the "Friedrichstadt-Palast" hall; and at 7 PM, a dinner in honor of our delegation organized by the Politburo of the Central Committee of the SED in the building of the Central Committee of the SED.
At 4:55 PM, the delegation of Soviet war veterans, led by Marshal V.I. Chuikov and Lieutenant General F.E. Bokov, entered the "Friedrichstadt-Palast" hall. Their procession was accompanied by a thunderous round of applause and shouts of "Peace! Friendship!" from the entrance of the hall to their seats in the stalls. The Soviet guests were assigned seats in the front rows, alongside members of the government, leaders of the SED, and the high command of the GDR People's Army.
The meeting with the youth was opened by the Secretary of the Central Council of the Free German Youth, Comrade Egon Krenz. Then, Comrade Erich Honecker, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the SED, spoke, expressing greetings and gratitude to the veterans for liberating the German people from fascism. Responses were given by Marshal V.I. Chuykov and Lieutenant General F.E. Bokov. Between the speeches of each speaker, songs and dances were performed. Artists from the song and dance ensembles of the GDR People's Army and the Soviet Army performed. Notably, it was not only the high level of execution that stood out, but also the collaboration between the artistic and creative talents of the German soldiers and the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union…
At the dinner [at 7 PM], we heard from Marshal V.I. Chuikov new information, previously unknown to us, about the biographies of Comrades Erich Honecker and Army General Hoffmann. When the Soviet troops encircled the Berlin grouping of fascist forces west of Potsdam in April 1945, our motorized units caught up with a fascist punitive squad that was escorting a large group of German anti-fascists to execution. The soldiers of the Soviet Army defeated the SS troops and freed the prisoners, among whom was Erich Honecker. He had languished for 12 years in Hitler's concentration camps. Army General Hoffmann fought alongside the Soviet Army against the fascists…
The German comrades know the famous Russian proverb, "Better to see something once than to hear about it ten times." That is why they invited to the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Republic those Soviet veterans who had seen Berlin and Germany in 1945. There was much to see and much to compare. We were generously provided with visual aids: albums, slide films, and reference books. Comrades Erich Honecker, Willy Stoph, and Horst Zindermann presented each Soviet veteran an illustrated book titled 25 Years of the GDR.
October 10, 1974:
The last day of our stay in the GDR has arrived. The program is scheduled as follows: the morning is reserved for the guests, and at 12:00, there will be a farewell lunch hosted by a member of the Politburo of the SED Central Committee and Minister of National Defense, Army General Hoffmann…
‘The government has decided to award Marshal Chuikov and Generals Fedyuninsky, Kurochkin, and Bokov with orders, while all the others will receive the medal 'For Strengthening Brotherhood in Arms' in gold,’ said the lieutenant colonel to me.
Five minutes later, the Minister of National Defense, Army General Hoffmann, attached the GDR order to Marshal Chuikov's uniform. He then pinned orders to the uniforms of Generals Bokov, Fedyuninsky, and Kurochkin. The remaining awards were presented by officers of the National Army of the GDR sitting nearby, but the person handing out the award had to hold a rank equal to or higher than that of the awardee.
Marshal Chuikov and General Bokov, on behalf of all the veterans, expressed their gratitude to the Politburo of the SED and the government of the GDR for the high awards, stating that these honors were not only for us, not just for our military labor, but also for all the Soviet people who, alongside us, liberated the German people from fascism.
Wishing us a safe journey and every success, our German friends gave us time to gather our belongings and prepare for departure to the airport. We boarded the buses and cars and soon arrived at the familiar Schönefeld Airport…
Army General Hoffmann embraced each war veteran, kissed them, and shook their hands firmly. He accompanied us to the aircraft's steps, wishing us a safe journey and a quick reunion at the celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of the victory over fascism.
On the way back to Moscow, we were also accompanied by employees from the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the GDR. After three hours, we landed safely at Sheremetyevo Airport. I.F. Senichkin, a responsible worker from the apparatus of the Central Committee of the CPSU, reminded all war veterans to be at the building of the Soviet War Veterans Committee on Gogolevsky Boulevard by 10 a.m. on October 11.
October 11, 1974:
The next day, at the appointed time, all delegates were present at the Soviet War Veterans Committee building. We summarized the results of our visit and assured the Central Committee of the CPSU that upon returning to our ships, enterprises, collective farms, and state farms, we would share our experiences about the GDR and the people of our fraternal country, as well as the significant transformations it had achieved over a quarter of a century in building a developed socialist society.
Honorary Badge of the Soviet War Veterans Committee
All members of the delegation were awarded the Honorary Badge of the Soviet War Veterans Committee. Army General P.I. Batov warmly congratulated the veterans, wishing us good health and happiness.”
***Special thanks to Igor Musienko for his excellent translation of Shapovalov’s article!***