Location: West of Lomonosov, Leningrad Oblast Map
More pictures here
Krasnaya Gorka Fort is an old abandoned coastal artillery fortress situated west of town of Lomonosov in Leningrad Oblast in Russia. Its name can be translated as a Red Hill or Beautiful Hill, although the second meaning seem more appropriate given the beauty of the nature that now overtakes ruins of the formidable defense. Krasnaya Gorka Fort was originally constructed in the 18th century on the coast of the Baltic sea to protect capital of the Russian Empire, Saint Petersburg. However it underwent massive reconstruction in the late 19th and early 20th century. Most of the structures dated to 1909- 14. In addition several small outlying defenses and forts like Seraya Loshad (Grey Horse) and Obruchev were added in addition to the main citadel. The site is massive. It has a lot of remains from the original fort, guns from the World War II, remains of the original Soviet cruise missiles and of course miles of underground structures. However, you have to be careful about where you step. Tunnels have not been secured and there are still a lot of ammunition lying around. Some of the lower levels are flooded and judging by the testimonies of some of the divers who dared to explore them, there is still a lot of ammunition hidden below ground. Use your brains, and try to stay safe. There have been a lot of casualties among local explorers who were killed by explosions, cave ins and other surprises. You don't want to became a statistic.
1. Battery 4*12 inch guns in armoured turrets
2. Battery 4*12 inch guns in concrete casemates
3. Light station
4. Headquarters
5. Battery 8*10 inch guns
6. Battery 8*6 inch Canet guns
7. Battery 4*11 howitzers
8. Memorial
9. Railroad guns B- 130
10. Railroad station Krasnoflotsk
A. I line of ground defenses
B. II line of ground defenses
C. Museum (reserve powder store)
Construction under the leadership of Major General Apollo
Alekseevich Shishkin was started in 1909 simultaneously with
Fort Ino (Nikolaevsky) and completed by 1915. It is named after
the village of Krasnaya Gorka (now the village of Fort Krasnaya
Gorka), next to which it was located.
The fort went into
operation in early 1914. By the beginning of the World War, the
fort's garrison was staffed according to wartime staffing (2,000
artillerymen, 2,000 infantrymen and more than 500 servicemen of
other military branches). The fort did not take part in the
hostilities of the World War.
By January 1917, the fort's
garrison had grown to 5,500 men. In 1918, due to the proximity
of the German army, the fort was mined. The explosion was
canceled, but the charges were not removed. On August 19, during
a severe thunderstorm, several charges detonated. The powder
magazines of three Kane guns and four 254-mm guns flew into the
air. Artillery servants were killed, the guns were badly
damaged, and one 254-mm gun was destroyed.
During the
Civil War, the fort was part of the defensive fortifications of
the "red" Petrograd. By this time, the fort had 25 guns of
caliber from 76 to 305 mm. During the hostilities, he opened
fire on the enemy: on November 20, 1918, on the Pummola battery
captured by the Finns, which was previously part of the Fort Ino
fortification system, on June 29, 1919, on the enemy transport
ship.
On June 13, 1919, during the attack on Petrograd by
the Northern Corps of General A.P. Rodzianko, the fort garrison
raised an anti-Bolshevik uprising, which was joined by the Gray
Horse and Obruchev forts. On June 16, the uprising was
suppressed by fire and landing from the ships of the Baltic
Fleet (more than 600 12 "shells were fired at the fort). The
rebels defended themselves by shelling Kronstadt and the ships
of the Red Baltic Fleet. On June 16, the Red Army entered the
fort abandoned by the rebels. The White Army was unable to use
the passage the fort to the side of the whites, since the whites
learned about the uprising only on the third day - the day the
uprising was liquidated.The garrison of the fort went to the
whites.
On October 30, 1919, the fort entered into an
artillery duel with the English Erebus monitor, which carried
out timid and belated fire support by the British fleet for the
offensive of Yudenich's army.
Saint Petersburg or Petrograd was renamed to Leningrad and
military decided that it still needed protection from the possible attacks from
the West. In the 1930's Soviet government invested large amounts of man power
and material to rebuild destroyed military base. Krasnaya Gorka became a key
defense fortification in the protection of the city. New headquarters and living
quarters were added for the soldiers and officers. New rail guns were added to
the defense. It was an important strategic location in the defense of besieged
Leningrad. It help to maintain Oranienbaum Bridgehead and keep German and
Finnish armies away from the Soviet second largest city. The fort was active
until 1960 when it was decommissioned and partially demolished. There are
discussions about turning this location into a military museum, but this has
been going on since the Soviet times and little has been done to actually carry
on with the project.In 1919, the fort was attacked by British aircraft: from
September 29 to November 12, 1919, 13 raids (18 airplanes) were
carried out on the fort's structures, 176 bombs were dropped.
Insignificant destruction of the internal structures of the fort
was noted, hits on the guns or their damage could not be
achieved, 2 people were killed in the garrison, 24 were injured.
In 1921, the guns of the Krasnaya Gorka fired on Kronstadt,
suppressing the anti-Bolshevik uprising.
During the Winter War, in 1939, the guns of Krasnaya Gorka fired on
Finnish positions located on the opposite shore of the bay. On
February 26, 1940, the Finnish Blenheim bomber bombed Krasnaya
Gorka.
By the end of the summer of 1941, German troops
entered the effective fire zone of Krasnaya Gorka's main caliber
artillery, and on August 31, 12-inch batteries opened fire on enemy
troop concentrations in the Koporye area. In September, the Germans
reached the shores of the Gulf of Finland in the Strelna region,
forming the Oranienbaum bridgehead. The range of the fort's
artillery was about 25 kilometers, the borders of the bridgehead
were about 30 kilometers from the fort. On the shoulders of the
Krasnogorsk gunners was to ensure the safety of the fairway - the
fight against the batteries of the Finns, who could fire on Soviet
ships and submarines leaving on a mission. So, two years of war
passed in constant combat work. Also, armored trains "Baltiets" and
"For the Motherland" ran along the railway tracks around Krasnaya
Gorka.
In the autumn of 1943, the concentration of troops
began on the bridgehead to completely lift the blockade of
Leningrad. On January 14, 1944, the Krasnaya Gorka batteries opened
fire on the centers of resistance in the village. Gostilitsy and
Dyatlitsy. The hard work ended only by January 27, when the
encircled Strelna-Peterhof enemy grouping ceased to exist, and the
Nazi troops were driven back 65-100 km from Leningrad.
With
the elimination of the threat in the south, the center of the
struggle moved to the north - against the enemy troops on the
Karelian Isthmus. The artillery preparation for breaking through the
Line of fortifications on the isthmus continued from June 9 to June
16, 1944, in addition to batteries, the TM-1-14 and TM-1-180 railway
transporters, who came here from Leningrad, also fired at the Finns
from the fort. The combat activity at the fort ended with these
volleys.
After the war
The first post-war years were spent
in the restoration of the fort's economy, the replacement of fleet
veterans - 6-inch Kane guns with modern 130-mm B-13 graph papers,
and the installation of a radar station at the fort. And in 1950,
Krasnaya Gorka received a new fire control system.
After the
war, the fort was kept in combat readiness for some time, then its
premises were used as warehouses. All weapons of the fort were
dismantled.
Battery 8 × 11 ″ (280 mm) howitzers;
Battery 8 × 10 ″ (254 mm)
Brink guns;
Battery 6 × 6 ″ (152 mm) Kane guns;
Battery 4 × 12
″ (305 mm) guns in open installations;
Battery 4 × 12 ″ (305 mm)
guns in two-gun turrets designed by A. G. Dukelsky.
The
project was based on the project of the "Russian fort" by K. I.
Velichko. Gun positions are connected to each other by posterns and
surrounded by underground structures. The vaults of concrete
structures reached a thickness of 183 cm and were equipped with an
anti-spall coating of corrugated iron and I-beams. The supply of
ammunition was carried out by rail. From the rear, the fort was
protected by a powerful belt of field and permanent fortifications,
a minefield, barbed wire and a moat. Much attention during
construction was paid to camouflage - the gun positions were covered
with a belt of iron "bushes", painted to match the color of the
vegetation.
Railroad 305 mm gun from the World War II in Krasnaya Gorka
Gun is pulled by TM-3-12 in front and transporter TM-1-180 behind. It was constructed in the late 30's on Leningrad Metallurgy plant. It was mobile and used railroads to move its locations. Germans couldn't figure out the exact location of the fire point and couldn't take it out. Gun barrel is 16 meters long and could fire at a range of 40 km.
Railroad 180 mm Gun (1935) in Krasnaya Gorka
Flying rocket KS 1 Komet in Krasnaya Gorka
Trenches for soldiers. It also had metal shields that protected the shooters, but most of them were stolen after the for was decommissioned.