Military-Technical and Economic Importance of the Upper Volga Hydroelectric Power Plants During the Great Patriotic War

Introduction. The article deals with the work of the Upper Volga hydroelectric power plants during the Great Patriotic War, when they were almost the only sources of power supply to Moscow and the Moscow region. In the historiography, this issue was touched upon, but in general, the publications are characterized by a fragmentary and descriptive nature. Methods and materials. The source base of the research is the published and unpublished normative-legal acts, scientific and technical documentation, reference and statistical data, memoir literature, and oral recollections. The work used historical-genetic, historical-comparative, and problem-chronological methods, as well as methods of grouping statistical data and interviewing. Analysis. It is shown that the USSR leadership gave the hydroelectric power plants on the Volga River an important defense significance, first of all, as uninterrupted sources of electricity. The statistical data on hydroelectric power generation by Ivankovskaya, Uglichskaya, and Rybinskaya HPPs in 1941–1945 are analyzed, taking into account the general indicators of electricity generation in the USSR. In 1941–1942, the Upper Volga hydroelectric power plants were located in the front line zone and operated under the most difficult conditions. The threat of seizure of the Ivankovsky hydroelectric power plant was especially acute. The Germans tried to cross the Ivankovskoye reservoir, but the hydraulic engineers released the water, and the enemy’s offensive was thwarted. An effective system of protection and camouflage prevented the enemy from stopping the hydroelectric power plants. Results. It is concluded that the Upper Volga hydroelectric power plants in 1941–1945 were primarily reliable sources of electricity for the population and military enterprises of Moscow and the Moscow region. In addition, they were important elements of defense lines during the Battle of Moscow. Thus, the Upper Volga hydroelectric plants became an important factor in the USSR’s victory in the Great Patriotic War.