The exhibition "Thanks for the Victory" presents photos of the war years, letters from the front lines, archival documents and maps depicting the war routes of the divisions established in Kazakhstan. Many historical facts are brought to the attention of visitors for the first time and may be considered as unique.
"Together with my mother Zinaida Berniyazova (during the Great Patriotic War she was a gunner) we were invited to this event. I believe that the exhibition is of great importance for the education of the growing generation. Everything is organised on a very high level and the expositions help us to recall those Kazakhstan people who went to the war."
Zinaida Berniyazova
The exhibition includes stands telling about Kazakhstan’s contribution to the victory over fascism, including "The Beginning of the War. Establishment of the Divisions", "Kazakhstan People in the Battles of the Great Patriotic War", "Kazakhstan — Arsenal of the Front", "Contribution of the Workers on the Home Front to the Victory", "Constellation of the Glory", "Eternal Glory to the Heroes! That is not for dead men! That is for those who are alive!"
Millions of workers, farmers and intellectuals of our republic worked on the home front contributing to the common victory over the enemy.
Soldiers and officers from Kazakhstan fought bravely in the battle of Kursk and near Leningrad. 123 Kazakhstan people were awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union for the crossing of the Dnieper river. The youngest of the heroes was 18-year-old Zhanibek Yeleusov. Lieutenant Koshkarbayev was the person who raised the Soviet flag over the Reichstag.
1 200 000 people went to the front from Kazakhstan. 650 000 of them didn’t return back. 498 people were awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union. There are 110 Full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory.
The exhibition also presents personal belongings of the heroes of the war, letters from the front lines, medals and orders, weapons of the years of the Great Patriotic War, and so on.
Some stands at the exhibition were organised by the veterans of their children.
"My father Magyzym Tuktarov fought on the front of the Great Patriotic War and reached Berlin. He never told us about the war. My father passed away in 1972 when he was 47 years old. And not so long ago we learned that he was awarded the Order of Glory for his feat on the Sapun mountain. He broke the defence of the enemy and thereby opened the way for his platoon," his daughter said with tears in her eyes. At the exhibition, everyone can see the hero’s document and order.
"Our museum has a very short history and the collection related to the Great Patriotic war is not so rich. Thanks to the donation of these people it was enriched and became more interesting," Togzhan Adilbekova, researcher of the National Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan said.
The exhibition "Thanks for the Victory" will remain in the National Museum until December 2015.
