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Just outside Moscow there is a very unusual private collection of armoured vehicles which is not as well known as it deserves. The vehicles are displayed in a fenced enclosure near the Lenino Memorial. This commemorates the ‘high-water mark’ of the German advance towards Moscow during the Second World War.
The Lenino Memorial is located near the village of Snegiri (also known as Snijni), about forty kilometres north west of Moscow, on the M9 road through Krasnogorsk to Riga. The site is marked by a large memorial beside the road consisting of a T-34-85 tank on a stone plinth. The plinth is engraved in Russian “Here during the terrible autumn days, the heroic soldiers of the 16th Army put an end to the enemy advance on 6 December 1941. They started the decisive attack against the German Fascist occupiers”.
Beside the T-34-85 are three large concrete ‘dragons-teeth’ tank obstacles and behind it smaller metal girder obstacles. Opposite the memorial, on the other side of the road, is a large sign commemorating the site and the units which fought there. It is marked “Border line of glory” and “Glory for ever to the defenders of Moscow City”.
Behind the memorial is a small museum building (officially, though not often actually, open daily from 0900 to 1700) and beyond it the vehicle display area (accessible at all times). The vehicles are mounted on low concrete bases and are in a ‘victor versus vanquished’ arrangement with Allied vehicles facing German ones. In contrast to the memorial, the vehicles, bases and enclosing fence are in a state of disrepair. The non-Soviet vehicles appear to have been recovered from ranges and show signs of shell damage.
Although the Snegiri collection is not one of the largest in former Soviet Union it is still well worth a visit. It is very unusual as, like Kubinka, it contains foreign vehicles and not just the usual Soviet hardware. Also, its historical significance and informal display area make it a very interesting site. It is to be hoped that, although it is certainly in need of intervention and maintenance, it is never turned into another dull state museum and its unique fascination lost.
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February 1996
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1: Sherman T23 76mm turret
Taken: February 1996
Contributor: J. Kinnear
Location Photo ID: 828
Added: 7 August 2012
Views: 155
Has Priority: 0
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