Epistolary legacy of the Moscow militiaman in 1941: the view of participant eyewitness

This publication reflects extracts from the letters of Vladimir Aleksandrovich Melikov, who in July 1941 voluntarily joined the ranks of the 2nd division of the people's militia of the Stalin District of Moscow. Letters are characterized mainly by the events of the pre-combat period from July to September 1941. The documents allow to find out the dates of renaming the division's divisions, changing postal addresses and other details important for the reconstruction of events related to the defense of Moscow. The questions of formation of the militia division are considered, the characteristics of the motives and the emotional mood of the militia are given. The letters describe in some detail the movement of the division both in chronological and territorial aspects. The authors analyze the character and content of the militiaman’s written communication with the family, give some information about the living conditions of his family in the military Moscow.