Molotov Line

Molotov Line and its fortified districts, on a map showing the borders in the 1939–1941 period

The so-called Molotov Line was a system of border fortified regions built by the Soviet Union in the years 1940–1941 along its new western borders. These borders were the result of the Occupation of the Baltic States, Eastern Poland and Bessarabia in 1940.

The line stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathian Mountains. It was made up of thirteen fortified regions, most covering about 100 km of the border. It was a part of the larger Soviet defence network along its western borders, stretching from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea.

Each fortified region (in Russian ukreplennyi raion, or UR) consisted of a large number of concrete bunkers (pillboxes) armed with machineguns, antitank guns and artillery. The bunkers were built in groups for mutual support, each group forming a centre of resistance. A dedicated military unit was permanently assigned to man each region.

When Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941 during the course of Operation Barbarossa, most of the line was not yet finished, and hence posed a negligible obstacle to the invading forces. Only the four southernmost regions, partly completed, were able to hamper the advance of the Wehrmacht for a few days. (The Brest Fortress resisted much longer, but it was an older fortification technically not part of the Molotov line).

Children play in the rubble of a destroyed soviet bunker past Slovak-German offensive on the Molotov Line, summer 1941, Sanok (on the right little Zdzisław Beksiński)

The ruins of these fortifications, many of them well preserved, can be found today in Lithuania, Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. The modern borders are somewhat different from the borders in 1941, and hence some sections of the line do not lie in border zones and are easily accessible. On the other hand, other sections do lie right along the modern Polish-Ukrainian, Polish-Belarusian and Lithuanian-Russian borders, so access to them may still be restricted for reasons of border security.

In Lithuania the line consisted of four fortified regions:

Overall 101 bunkers were built in Lithuania but many were not fully completed. They were significantly vulnerable and could be neutralised quickly by throwing grenades or burning fuel into periscope shafts, which were absolutely unprotected.

Continuing south, the other regions, today located along the eastern border of Poland with Belarus and Ukraine, were:

The name Molotov Line is informal and has come into use relatively recently. It was popularised by the writings of Viktor Suvorov, notably by his book Icebreaker.

See also

Bibliography

External links

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Molotov line bunkers visible in Google Street View

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