The big Terror

At once after murder of Kirov (01.12.1934) city was overflowed by reprisals. In December, 1934 there were nights in which in cellars Leningrad UNKVD shot to 200 persons. 09.01.1935 the sentence is pronounced to 77 participants Leningrad «zinovevskoj groups» – one have been condemned for different terms, others (Zinovev, Kamenev and the members of opposition approached to them) were subject to immediate destruction. Indicative processes on so-called business of "the Moscow centre» were followed by new courts and sentences. In particular, the court over leaders of the Leningrad Komsomol, from which People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs has issued «the Leningrad centre», ostensibly directing the murderer of Kirov L.Nikolaeva.
27.02.1935 about eviction the circular of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs is made of a city and adjacent areas of a counterrevolutionary element – only within a month from Leningrad 12 000 persons have been moved nearby. Mass deportations (basically representatives of intelligency – mostly radical Petersburgers) which will proceed up to 1941, will destroy opposition of an "imperial" and "proletarian" part of a city.

In business of clarification of the country from representing danger of "alien elements», now called not differently as «enemies of the people», Leningrad has been intended for especially ruthless processing. The big Cleaning has begun with it – Stalin has laid down the aim to eradicate oppositional spirit of this city once and for all. The constant fear becomes a life integral part, as well as visitors at night for arrested persons the ominous black cars which have received a nickname of "black ravens» or «black marus». (The Usual vans used for the same purposes, had camouflage grocery inscriptions: "meat", "milk", "bread"). People avoid to visit, frankly to talk to friends – all are afraid of denunciations. During the same time words of Father Narodov become incessantly quoted statement on which ostensibly there lives the country: «it became better to Live, to live became more cheerful».
From the point of view of degree of prospective danger to the state the persons who are subject to reprisals, shared on 2 categories. The most hostile are carried to 1st (at the discretion of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs) – they should be exposed to immediate arrest and after short, purely formal consequence and court (10-15 days lasting in aggregate no more) – to execution. The others, «less active», but nevertheless hostile elements are subject to arrest and the conclusion in camp or prison for the term from 8 till 10 years. For each category "specifications" were defined – i.e. how many from what it was necessary to arrest. For example, in a copy of one of the orders, directed in Leningrad UNKVD the people's commissar of internal affairs Yezhov specified: «… 2. According to presented by you of the registration data, I confirm to you following quantity subject to reprisals:
1. On the first category – 4 000
2. On the second category – 10 000
… on operation carrying out 4 months »are taken away.
In the order also it is noticed that ordered specifications are rough – their general reduction, transfer from one category in another is supposed. However illegal excess of the specified specifications categorically is forbidden. Thus the sequence of arrests should be observed strictly: at first arrests on 1st category, then 2nd (only after full end of arrests of the first stage) are carried out.

About each suspect gather detailed biographic given and capable to become the compromising evidence materials. Arrest is accompanied by a search the basic objects in which are: the weapon, an ammunition, military equipment, explosive, poisoning and poisonous substances, kotrrevolljutsionnaja the literature, precious metals (in coins, ingots, jewels), a foreign currency, multiplying devices and private correspondence.
Fate of members of a family subjected to repression is or a direction in camp or trudposyolki, or eviction for city boundaries and areas.
For all that that campaign for destruction of "enemies of the people" covers all levels of population, terror wished to remain anonymous. "Enemies of the people" have daily worn and branded by radio, in newspapers, at numerous meetings, but to speak about where they disappear, it was forbidden. Words "terror", "prison", "camp", "arrest" aloud were not said, they as though did not exist in a daily lexicon. In prison turns of the woman stood silently or, being whispered, used only uncertain forms of speech: "have come", "took".

Reprisals have led to almost full change of ruling elite in a city. So, from 154 Leningrad delegates ХХVII of congress only two were present on following ХХVIII congress. Thus grandiose "cleanings" have not changed the general policy on increase of the status of technical intelligency. In spite of the fact that in 1933-1938 as a result of "cleanings" and arrests the number of communists of Leningrad has decreased almost for 100 000 persons (44 %), reception in numbers VKP () representatives of intelligency proceeded.
For example, in 1937 from 1076 communists of Metal factory 170 had the higher and 277 secondary education, i.e. belonged to the technical personnel and administration.

In a Stalin genocide Leningrad became one of the largest victims. It was difficult to find the family which anyhow has been not mentioned by terror. Ten thousand talented, conceiving inhabitants were lost in Gulag prisons. The maximum of reprisals in a city has had on 1938 Judging by statistics of burial places on the Levashovsky heathland serving those years by a place of mass executions, in 1938 20 769 persons (there have been buried at 18 719 in 1937 and 7 283 - with 1939 for 1954). Everything, according to certificates about reduction of sentences in execution, 46 771 persons from whom 40 485 are shot on political grounds here are buried.
Since 1923 (it agree to the data of archive UMB of the Russian Federation across St.-Petersburg and to area) bodies of the shot were transferred for a burial place in a mortuary of Obuhovsky hospital (now this clinical branch of Army medical college). Since August, 1937 when scales of reprisals have demanded a separate place for secret burial places, for this purpose the waste ground in district carefully protected and close to of that time Soviet-finnish border - 28 quarter of the Levashovsky cemetery and a part 27 Pargolovsky summer residences of Pargolovsky timber enterprise has been adapted. On fenced after cemetery territory (11,5 hectares) burial places take a place in the centre of a site a total area of 6,5 hectares. Except the Levashovsky heathland, shot in 2nd half 1930 from time to time buried on city cemeteries - Theological (Preobrazhenskiy) and Memories of victims on January, 9th.
Population growth in a city was sharply slowed down in 1932 owing to residence permit introduction, and after realisation of mass terror has practically stopped. The decrease of townspeople these years quite often exceeded their natural and mechanical gain. If within 1928-1932 the population of Leningrad has increased on 58 % in 1933-1937 she (under the inconsistent data) has grown no more than on 1,4 % (if at all has not decreased on 5,5 %). Nevertheless, census of 1939 has fixed a new gain of urban population with which account the aggregate number of inhabitants of Leningrad has made 3 191 304 persons.