Burials of chemical weapons in the Baltic Sea. The Baltic will kill all of Europe. The situation with the organization of cases for the elimination or disposal of chemical weapons

It is known that Catherine II actively corresponded with many prominent Europeans of her time. It was the academician of painting Diderot and Voltaire who advised her a master capable of realizing her dream - to create a monument to the famous reformer tsar Peter I. Officially, the sculptor Etienne-Maurice Falcon was invited to Russia by Prince Golitsyn. The master was already fifty years old at that time. And although Falcone worked at a porcelain factory, he always dreamed of creating a masterpiece in monumental art. The sculptor was very happy with the proposal of the Russian nobleman to erect a monument to the greatest ruler in St. Petersburg. Before Falcone, when signing the contract, they put one condition - the monument to the king should be an equestrian statue of a huge size. The sculptor agreed to complete the order for a very small fee (the payment was halved). Only in one Falcon violated the terms of the contract: the queen believed that the monument should be installed in the center of Senate Square, and the sculptor shifted the entire composition closer to the Neva.

The monument began to be called the “Bronze Horseman” thanks to the famous poem by A.S. Pushkin, in which the poet talks about terrible disaster, which came to the city as a result of the flood of 1824, and about the role of Peter in these events. Pushkin was the first to tell about the legend that allegedly at night the Bronze Horseman circles the sleeping city, and in the morning returns to his pedestal. According to the order existing at the time of Pushkin, the poem was sent for censorship to the emperor, but he did not have time to get acquainted with this work. The poem was handed over to Beckendorf, and the poet's ill-wishers tried to do everything so that the poem would not be published. Only after the death of A. Pushkin, the poem "The Bronze Horseman" was published. It is known that mysticism was present in the life of the poet. Therefore, in his works, the mysterious and mystical often found its reflection. For example, in his poem, he spoke about the meeting of the Bronze Horseman with a passerby who accused the formidable horseman of the death of his bride in a flood, which made the horseman very angry.

Many have said that the ghost of Peter I is often seen on the streets of the city. So they say that once Emperor Paul I was walking with Prince Kurakin along the Neva embankment in the evening. A man approached him and addressed him by name, deploring the unfortunate fate of Paul and predicting them. a new meeting. Looking closely at the interlocutor, Pavel saw the face of Peter I. Surprisingly, Kurakin did not see the person approaching the emperor, and was very surprised at the unexpected fright of the ruler. According to another legend, Emperor Paul saw the ghost of Peter I in the Mikhailovsky Castle.

The ghost of Peter I was visited in a dream by the sculptor Falcone, who at that time was in search of ideas for a monument on Senate Square. Peter I, allegedly, asked the master many questions and, having received answers, was pleased with the conversation, approving the master's plan.

When creating the monument, Falcone commissioned his assistant, Marie Collot, to make the head of the sculpture. When sculpting, the girl used a copy of the death mask of Peter I. The empress treated the artist well and considered her a full-fledged co-author of the monument. Falcone also respected and appreciated his student: after awarding him a gold and silver medal for his work on the monument, he gave the silver one to Collo. She was his daughter-in-law, but the marriage with Falcone's son turned out to be unsuccessful for the girl: her husband drank, played cards and beat his wife. But despite the separation from her hated husband, Kollo touchingly cared for her teacher and looked after him after he was paralyzed after a stroke.

On the monument, the Empress demanded that an inscription be made, which, judicious Catherine, hinted to her descendants that she was the second after the great Russian emperor Peter I.

The pedestal for the monument is made of the famous Thunder-Stone, one of the legends about which was associated with the name of Tsar Peter I. They say that when choosing a place for the construction of a new city on the Neva, Peter I examined the surroundings by climbing the Thunder-Stone.

It is also known that this stone was a sacred place for the ancient Magi. They performed their rituals on it. Therefore, among the inhabitants of the surrounding villages, even the fragments of that stone, which remained after its export to St. Petersburg, were kept in houses, like sacred relics. Falcone, returning to France, also ordered several souvenirs, decorations from the remnants of the Thunder Stone.

Falcone had a hard time in Russia: ill-wishers whispered to the Empress that the sculptor had squandered government money. The offended master urgently left St. Petersburg, and did not participate in the official opening of the monument.

Not all residents of St. Petersburg reacted well to the monument. For example, the Old Believers were very afraid of the image of a rider. They considered him the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, followed only by the painful death of all life on Earth.

There was a popular legend among the people, called "Major Baturin's dream." It tells about the time of the war with Napoleon. The Russian Emperor Alexander I knew that Napoleon was taking out of the defeated cities the best works arts, including monuments. Therefore, he ordered the monument to Peter I to be taken away from the city. Soon, Prince Golitsyn reported to the tsar about the mystical dream of Major Baturin, who claimed that he dreamed of a horseman descending from the pedestal and galloping to the palace on Kamenny Island (then Emperor Alexander I lived there), accused emperor in the misfortune of Russia. And he also ordered that the monument should not be touched, because while it is in St. Petersburg, the city does not need to be afraid of the enemy. Learning about prophetic dream, Alexander I abandoned the idea of ​​hiding the monument outside the capital. The French did not reach Petersburg. We can say that the rider saved the city!

The Egyptians believed that the soul of a dead person can return to the world of the living and often inhabits its image. So, the soul of the founding emperor of Russia may have moved into the statue of Peter I and looks at his beloved brainchild, protecting it from enemies.

The Bronze Horseman, the defender of the city, was remembered during the Second World War. The Nazis failed to capture the city of Peter, because Peter I kept his city. By the way, the "Bronze Horseman" turned out to be one of the few monuments of St. Petersburg, which was preserved after the attack of the Nazi horde.

Today, few Petersburgers doubt the mystical aura of The Bronze Horseman. The mysterious energy of this monument manifests itself constantly and urban legends about it are constantly replenished with new pages.

The ghost of Peter I - for the first time he appeared in a dream to his widow, Empress Catherine I. It happened just a few days before her death. In the beginning, the empress saw herself at the table, surrounded by courtiers. Everything was as always. But only until the time when the ghost of Peter suddenly appeared, dressed in the clothes of the ancient Romans.

Peter gestured for Catherine to come to him. She approached him without resistance, and together they rose into the sky. From above, the empress looked down and saw her children in the crowd of various tribes and peoples.

Waking up, Catherine ordered the fortuneteller to interpret her dream. It is not known what the interpreter answered the empress, but rumors spread around the palace that her majesty would soon die, and after her death troubled times would begin in the state.

The ghost of Peter I appeared to another imperial person, Paul I. This was reported in the article “Emperor Paul in his deeds and orders”, published in the Russkaya Starina bulletin. Moreover, this note cited the story of Peter I himself about the vision that appeared before him. Here is a verbatim summary of this article:

“One evening, or perhaps already at night, I, accompanied by Kurakin and two servants, walked along the streets of St. Petersburg to freshen up, to take an incognito walk in the moonlight. The conversation was not about religion or anything serious, but, on the contrary, was of a cheerful nature, and Kurakin constantly joked about passers-by. The moonlight was so bright that one could read, and hence the shadows were very thick.

As I turned into one of the streets, I suddenly saw a tall, thin figure at the back of the entrance, wrapped in a cloak like a Spanish one, and wearing a military hat pulled down over his eyes. She seemed to be waiting for someone.

As soon as I passed her, she came out and walked beside me on the left side without saying a word. I couldn't see a single feature of her face. It seemed to me that her feet, stepping on the pavement, produced strange sound like a rock hitting a rock. I was amazed, and the feeling that came over me became even stronger when I felt an icy cold in my left side, from the side of a stranger. I started.

Suddenly, from under the cloak that covered the mouth of the mysterious stranger, a muffled and sad voice was heard:

- Paul!
I was at the mercy of some unknown force and mechanically answered:

- What you need?
- Paul! the voice said again, this time, however, somehow sympathetically, but with an even greater shade of sadness. I couldn't say a word. The voice called my name again, and the stranger stopped. I felt some inner need to do the same.
- Paul! Poor Pavel! Poor Pavel!
I turned to Kurakin, who also stopped.
- Do you hear? I asked him.
“I don’t hear anything,” he answered, “absolutely nothing.”
As for me, this voice still resounds in my ears; I made a desperate effort on myself and asked the stranger: who is he and what does he want?

- Who am I? Poor Pavel! I am the one who takes part in your destiny and who wants you not to be particularly attached to this world, because you will not stay long in it. Live according to the laws of justice, and your end will be calm. Fear the reproach of conscience: for a noble soul there is no more sensitive punishment.

The figure walked again, looking at me with the same penetrating gaze. I followed her because she was now guiding me. This went on for over an hour. Where we were going, I didn't know. Finally, we came to a large square... The figure went straight to one, as if marked in advance, the place where at that time stood the monument to Peter the Great. I followed her, of course, and then stopped.

Farewell, Pavel! - she said. “You will see me again here and somewhere else.
At the same time, the hat of the figure rose as if by itself, and my eyes presented an eagle look, a swarthy forehead and a stern smile of my great-grandfather Peter the Great. When I came to my senses from fear and surprise, he was no longer there ... "...

As for our time, the ghost of the first Russian emperor was allegedly seen in the building in which the Institute of Culture is located. And although this mansion was built much later than the reign of Peter, but according to unknown reasons the ghost of the emperor appears in it quite often. Eyewitnesses claim that in company with the ghost of Peter I, there is often a disembodied young woman whom the emperor loudly scolds, accusing of perjury.

But a greater number of ghosts are associated with Emperor Paul I, because both he and his entourage had a penchant for mysticism. But even this is not the main thing. Most likely, the frequent appearance of the ghost of Paul I may be due to his tragic death: as you know, the emperor was first hit on the head with a massive snuffbox, and then strangled with a scarf.

This tragic event, which took place in the Mikhailovsky Castle, led to the appearance a large number scary stories, main actors which were the emperor and his entourage. It is said that the ghost of the emperor still slowly passes through the corridors of the castle at night, while sighing sadly.

During the Soviet era, different organizations were alternately housed in the Mikhailovsky Castle. But regardless of departmental affiliation, ghosts were always present in the castle.

Most often, ghosts appeared in front of the guards. But these cases, as a rule, no one advertised. And only close people knew that in the corridors of the castle, sometimes after midnight, a blurry figure of a short man with a candle in his hand walks. Often a snow-white scarf is wound around his neck. There were cases when the ghost of the late emperor played music on a flageolet - an old musical instrument like a flute...

But, as you know, you can’t hide an awl in a bag. And soon a fairly large number of people became aware of the oddities in the Mikhailovsky Castle.

In the end, to explain the appearance of a strange phenomenon, a special commission arrived from Moscow. It was in the 70s of the XX century. Trying to fix the ghost of Emperor Paul I, the experts worked at night.

For obvious reasons, the general public was not acquainted with the results obtained. But there were even more rumors about a ghost.
After the studies of Muscovites, interest in anomalous phenomena in the castle did not fade away. Parapsychologists and other specialists in the field anomalous phenomena repeatedly tried to record the appearance of a ghost in subsequent years, using a variety of modern devices for this ...

However, even today in the echoing rooms of the castle you can hear the mysterious creak of parquet and inexplicable knocks on the door. And sometimes, with complete calm, the windows suddenly open with noise.

According to eyewitnesses, the ghost of Emperor Paul I often appears in the Gatchina Palace. Talk about the fact that the ghost of a strangled emperor roams the palace halls at night has been around for a long time. But, from time to time, he appears in front of the current employees of the palace-museum.
In addition, many people heard the barely perceptible rustling of skirts in the corridors of the museum at night. It is believed that this slips through the invisible image of the emperor's beloved - the maid of honor Ekaterina Nelidova.

Anatoly Bernatsky

Chemical weapons flooded after the war threaten the north of Europe with an ecological catastrophe

March 22 - Baltic Sea Day. The decision to celebrate it was made in 1986 at the 17th meeting of the Helsinki Commission. Celebrated in Germany, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Finland and Sweden.
On this day, events are held, the purpose of which is to attract public attention to environmental issues the Baltic Sea. There are several factors that negatively affect the life of the Baltic. One of the most serious problems- burial at the bottom of the German sea chemical weapons.

Quick disposal

The US Army, having occupied the Western Sector of Germany in 1945, discovered huge stockpiles of ammunition filled with poisonous gases. The occupation administration faced a host of urgent military, social and economic problems. Therefore, they decided to get rid of deadly bombs and shells, as they say, quickly, without any special problems.

They were simply loaded onto British and American ships and sunk in the Baltic Sea. The sinking took place at the Skagerrak, near the Swedish port of Lyusechil, in the Norwegian deep water near Arendal, between the mainland and the Danish island of Funen, and near Skagen, Denmark's northernmost point. There are also burials in the waters of Poland - at the bottom of the Gdansk depression and the Slupsk Rynna.

Initially, it was clear that this barbaric method of “utilization” would backfire in the foreseeable future. Since the shells are subject to corrosion, and the gas must eventually penetrate into the waters of the Baltic Sea. That is why the US and UK long time concealed this secret operation, which was akin to a time bomb.

Participated in secret burials and Soviet Union. However, its contribution to the poisoning of the Baltic Sea is not so great - 25 thousand tons against 300 thousand "Anglo-American" tons. At the same time, it should be taken into account that this is the weight of ammunition, while the share of directly poisonous substances accounts for a sixth.

Mutants go online

That's what was flooded by the Soviet Navy. Multiplying all this by 12, we get the British-American contribution.

408565 artillery shells from 75 to 150 mm filled with mustard gas;

14258 250-kg and 500-kg aviation bombs, which were equipped with diphenylchlorarsine, chloracetophen and arsine oil, as well as 50-kg bombs, which were equipped with adamsite;

71469 250 kg aviation bombs, which were equipped with mustard gas;

34592 chemical bombs from 20 to 50 kg, equipped with mustard gas;

10420 smoke 100-mm chemical mines;

8429 barrels containing 1030 tons of diphenylchlorarsine and adamsite;

7860 cans of Zyklon-B gas, which the Nazis widely used in the death camps for the mass extermination of people in gas chambers;

1004 technological tanks containing 1506 tons of mustard gas;

169 tons of technological containers with various toxic substances, which contained cyanarsine, cyanide salt, axelarsine and chlorarsine.

most great danger for environment represents mustard gas, most of which will eventually end up at the bottom in the form of clots of poisonous jelly. Mustard gas, like lewisite, hydrolyzes quite well; when combined with water, they form toxic substances that will retain their properties for decades. The share of mustard gas located at the bottom of the Baltic Sea is 80% in relation to the total volume of toxic substances.

At the same time, the properties of lewisite are similar to mustard gas, but lewisite is an organoarsenic substance, so almost all products of its possible transformation are dangerous for the environment.

At the beginning of the century, corrosion had already begun to gnaw through the casings of shells and bombs, and poisons began to flow into the water. This process should increase in leaps and bounds by the end of this decade. And it will continue for several decades. But already now one can observe traces of the ecological catastrophe that has begun.

Currently, fish with genetic abnormalities have already appeared in the burial sites of chemical weapons of the Third Reich. The first reports of this began to appear 15 years ago, as scientists from Germany and Denmark began to talk about. The alarming statistics are now on the rise. The mutation is noted not only in fish, but also in birds. Scientists also say that the fish that swim in the burial sites of chemical weapons have more diseases than those that live in other areas of the Baltic.

In some regions of the Baltic Sea, fishing is prohibited.

What to do?

There is no consensus among environmentalists about what happened to the dangerous legacy of the Second World War and the subsequent bungling. It is only clear that it is extremely dangerous to raise rusted bombs to the surface for their disposal. Now they have reached such a level of deterioration that they may well break. And this is even more dangerous than their depressurization at the bottom.

One of the methods of suppression negative impact poisons to the Baltic, which is now being considered - the burial of chemical weapons right at the bottom. That is, pouring ammunition with concrete or some kind of neutral chemicals, which, when hardened, will create a strong shell. Only in this way can the leakage of toxic substances be guaranteed to be prevented.

It is clear that this is an expensive and time-consuming method. However, the fate of the Baltic Sea is at stake. According to experts' forecasts, if the same rate of pollution is maintained, in 10 years the water will no longer be used for food purposes, and the fauna is in danger of disappearing forever.

The environmental problem of the Baltic Sea is exacerbated by its shallow water and difficult water exchange with the North Sea. The average time for a complete replacement of water in it is about half a century. This and a number of other factors lead to an extremely low ability to self-cleanse and sensitivity to negative influences.