“To our dear Leonid Illich”

The city authorities and residents of Dniprodzerzhynske, the “small homeland” of Soviet Communist Party General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, recently marked his birth centennial. On Dec. 19, his birthday, flowers were ceremoniously placed at the foot of his bronze bust as part of a program of festivities instituted by Mayor Oleh Zakhorolsky. (A bust was unveiled in downtown Dniprodzerzhynske in Brezhnev’s lifetime.)

Brezhnev’s birthday was also marked by the opening of two exhibits at the municipal history museum, featuring documents and photos that shed light on the path traveled by the former top Soviet political leader, as well as the numerous gifts that were presented to him on various festive occasions. The picture of Brezhnev’s “renascence” is made complete with billboards lining the highway approaching Dniprodzerzhynske. Just like in the times of “developed socialism,” they portray Brezhnev wearing his Kremlin full dress uniform with medals and gold stars pinned to his chest.

THE UNKNOWN BREZHNEV

Some people are amazed to see his portraits and busts; others smile with satisfaction, winking at each other. It is easy to notice that the latter are the majority of the residents of Dniprodzerzhynske. Against the backdrop of the daily hardships afflicting ordinary Ukrainians, the image of Brezhnev, which 25 years ago was associated with stagnation and corruption in the consciousness of our fellow citizens, has undergone a fundamental evolution. Apparently this image has changed in favor of the former Soviet leader.

“There has been an influx of visitors lately,” says Natalia Bulanova, the curator of the city museum. “People come for guided tours — not just local residents, pensioners, students, and schoolchildren but visitors from other cities and CIS countries. Public interest in Brezhnev is not lessening. I would say it is increasing. A traveling exhibit of presents given to Brezhnev has been touring Ukraine for several years, and it has a special place at this museum.”

It is not difficult to notice that the museum building, located on the city’s main avenue, was constructed in Brezhnev’s day on a large scale, implying its special importance. The museum was opened only after his death. Originally there were only five items on display, which related to the late general secretary. At their own risk, museum workers started collecting materials during perestroika, occasionally causing the displeasure of local bureaucrats.

In those days there were still quite a few people in Dniprodzerzhynske who had known Brezhnev personally, and various documents and photos portraying his epoch have been preserved. “The Brezhnev period is part of our history,” says Bulanova, “whether we like it or not, it is here to stay; it cannot be revised. Also, it wasn’t the worst period in the life of our people; homes were built en masse, our living standard was rising, education was available free of charge. No one was afraid of losing their job and their means of existence. It is not coincidental that the exhibit “Brezhnev and His Times” quotes former US State Secretary Henry Kissinger as saying: ‘He wanted to give his country a breather.’”

Some of the museum items force one to view Brezhnev’s biography and his personality differently. Contrary to the widespread idea that he was a narrow-minded individual, documents indicate that as a mechanical engineering student, he defended his diploma work with honors. Later he headed a robitfak, a workers’ school (educational establishments created in the first years after the 1917 Russian Revolution to prepare workers and peasants for higher education — Trans.] and a metallurgical technical school. He was also one of the officials in charge of an institute. His friends say that the future CPSU General Secretary was fond of poetry, especially Sergei Yesenin’s verses.

Brezhnev himself wrote poems. On front line duty during World War II, he repeatedly found himself in dangerous situations and suffered serious injuries, including a jaw wound that eventually caused his pronunciation problems. He received his first Red Combat Banner Order in 1942, when few were awarded such government decorations. In 1953, with gun in hand, he took part in Lavrentii Beria’s arrest.

The museum workers say there are many lacunae in Brezhnev’s life story. For example, the official date of his birth is still being called into question. His certificate, or any other record of birth, cannot be found in the archives. Many documents concerning Brezhnev’s work as a party functionary prior to the Second World War were removed from the Dniprodzerzhynske City Archives. According to certain sources, researchers could find quite a few interesting facts about Brezhnev’s life if they could locate these documents because the young party functionary was known to have received a number of reprimands in retaliation for breaches of party discipline, including sexual affairs.

There are a number of mysterious aspects relating to his birth and early years. Judging by the forms he filled out, he changed his nationality twice, registering as a Ukrainian in Ukraine and as a Russian in Russia. Other sources point to gypsy blood running in his veins. His father, Ilia Yakovich Brezhnev, was anything but an ordinary proletarian, as indicated in Soviet biographies. He was actually a factory management employee: at first he was a warehouse supervisor and was later promoted to commercial director.

Another “blank space” in Comrade Brezhnev’s biography is his land surveyor’s job during the collectivization campaign. After being promoted to deputy head of the Ural oblast land management directorate, he returned to his native city of Dniprodzerzhynske for unknown reasons and got a job as a stoker at the local metallurgical works. Strange as it may seem, the biography of Leonid Brezhnev, the man who for almost two decades ruled a superpower that influenced the destiny of the world, has yet to be written.

“LIONIA’S HOUSE”

This is how residents of Dniprodzerzhynske refer to the small apartment building at 40 Pelin Prospekt. Here the large Brezhnev family occupied a small two-room ground floor flat in the late 1920s. Brezhnev’s mother, Natalia Denysivna, lived there until 1966, when she was taken to Moscow as a very old and ailing woman. There is still a huge chestnut tree in the middle of the miniature patio, which she planted with her own hands. Brezhnev visited this place shortly before his death, although the apartment was occupied by a different family, and he posed for photographs with them.

Maria Reshetniak is the only surviving former tenant of this building. “We lived next door to the Brezhnevs for 14 years. It was a solid family,” she recalls, “and they were cordial and hospitable people. Of course, when Leonid Illich visited his mother, we tried not to bother them. When we met in the courtyard, he would always ask how we were doing, although he was already occupying important posts.

“There was a dovecote here in the 1950s-1960s, and Leonid Illich would climb to the roof of the barn to let them fly around. He was fond of this. He did this when he was a small boy. He was a real pigeon-keeper.”

Reshetniak remembers Brezhnev and his times with affection, for obvious reasons, and not just because she was younger. “People lived better than today,” she explains. “My pension allowed me to afford much more. My nephew is paying my rent, because otherwise I wouldn’t be able to survive. Well, you know how we live. What else is there to say?” She sighed and waved her hands hopelessly.

From her family album she produces photos of Brezhnev, which warm her heart. “Look here,” she said, placing a finger on a photo. “All of us are posing for the camera with Leonid Illich. And look here: Natalia Denysivna is sitting on a bench with us, wearing a simple blouse and shawl like the rest of us. Could you single her out as the mother of the leader of the Soviet Union?”

The fact that the times have changed drastically is evident from the apartment building where Brezhnev and his family once lived. On one side it is propped up by a neon-flashing gas station and on the other, by a small snack bar that serves beer, shaurma, and hotdogs. Across the street is a store selling construction materials and next to it, a privately owned drugstore. Capitalism is besieging the former Brezhnev patrimony. On the left wall of the apartment building at 40 Pelin Prospekt are some apertures, and local tenants insist that a Dniprodzerzhynske businessman, known for his eccentricities, will pay for a memorial plaque to be hung on “Lionia’s House” — to the former General Secretary from his grateful fellow countrymen and descendants. Apparently, even people whose lives became successful after the collapse of socialism have nostalgic feelings for the Brezhnev era.

ANOTHER BRONZE

The administration of Dniprodzerzhynske Technical University, which trains metallurgical personnel, beat the eccentric businessman to the punch. A large bronze tablet portraying the university’s most famous graduate was hung on an old university building in the late 1970s, the period of rampant stagnation. True, it was soon removed after Moscow issued a harsh command, but without enthusiasm. The former university rector ordered the plaque to be stored in the institute’s warehouse, and decades later it was found by the university’s Deputy Rector Oleksandr Dobryk. He consulted with his colleagues and decided to have the time-darkened artifact cleaned and reinstalled on the eve of Brezhnev’s anniversary.

“Our sculptor from Dniprodzerzhynske, Garnik Khachatrian, restored the plaque and made it practically as beautiful as it was originally,” says Dobryk. “We hung it on the same wall, without pomp; it was simply a tribute to our renowned countryman, who had done so much for his hometown. Brezhnev began his career as a party department instructor; the department was headed by my grandmother. My father was a dedicated party member, who also knew Leonid Illich well. I was working at the local metallurgical combine with Brezhnev’s brother Yakiv Illich. I can assure you that they were decent people.”

Dobryk says that the whole left-bank section of Dniprodzerzhynske was built under Brezhnev; a bridge spanning the Dnipro River, a dam, and a number of other industrial facilities were built then. In the 1930s Brezhnev supervised the construction of the city’s first streetcar tracks that are still in use today. In a word, the residents of Dniprodzerzhynske have every reason to respect Brezhnev.

True, city residents have differing attitudes to the unveiling of the memorial plaque. “Normal people treat this event normally and abnormal individuals treat it accordingly,” says the deputy rector. At any rate, the university’s initiative was praised by Mayor Zakhorolsky, who handed out honorary diplomas. He believes that good memories of Brezhnev must forever remain in the hearts of his fellow countrymen.

City Hall is planning to name the central “rest and recreation park” after Brezhnev, especially since it is located in front of the mayor’s office. Judging from the reactions of most of the city residents, at the moment there are no serious objections.