On the Nameless Height (song)

On The Nameless Height (Russian: На безымянной высоте) is a Soviet song about World War II. The text was written by Mikhail Matusovskiy in 1963 and music by Veniamin Basner. The song was based on the real history and is about three soldiers, fifteen friends of whom died in the battlefield. The height concerned the one located near the Rubezhenka settlement in the Kuibyshev Region, Kaluga Oblast while the soldiers, mentioned in song, were a part of Soviet 139th infantry division.

Background

In August 1943 the 139th Rifle Division was reinforced with newly arrived draftees-volunteers. Eighteen newly arrived factory workers from Novosibirsk were given a task to stealthily occupy a height behind enemy lines in the vicinity of today's settlement Rubezhonka in Kaluga Oblast. Headed by the Second Lieutenant Yevgeniy Proshin, they were given the deadline to accomplish their mission by September 14. Their call sign was Luna. Upon completion of the task Luna gave a positive SITREP for a successful mission. However, they were spotted soon by a German patrol, which led to their encirclement and elimination. No real evaluation of the mission was recorded. Despite the lyrics which mention three survivors, there were in fact only two: Sergeant Konstantin Vlasov and Private Gerasim Lapin. Their lives were miraculously spared when they were knocked unconscious. Sergeant Vlasov was captured as a prisoner, but was later able to escape to partisans; Private Lapin was found among the dead by the advancing elements of Soviet Armed Forces.

Nikolai Danilenko, Dmitriy Yaruta, Yemelyan Belokonov, Petr Panin, Dmitriy Shliakhov, Roman Zakomoldin, Nikolai Galenkin, Timofei Kasabiyev, Gavriil Vorobyov, Aleksandr Artamonov, Dmitriy Lipovitser, Boris Kigel, Daniil Denisov, Petr Romanov, and Ivan Kulikov were among the soldiers who died while carrying out the mission.

Translated sample of lyrics

A grove's been smoking under the mountain
And already the sunset was ablaze
There was the three of them remaining
Out of the other eighteen guys
How many of them, good friends of ours
Were left to lie in the darkness there
Nearby the settlement "Unknown"
Atop the height that has no name
There was a rocket up and shinig
Then falling down like a faded star
Who only once has seen it happened
He won't forget till he die
He won't forget it, will not forget it
The fierce attacks that happened there
Nearby the settlement "Unknown"
Atop the height that has no name
Over us the "Messeri" have been circling
They were well seen as in a broad day...
But only closer we have grown
Under the crossing artillery hell.
No matter how difficult it was
You were committed to your dream
Nearby the settlement "Unknown"
Atop the height that has no name

See also

External links