page_title: Effect of siege on Leningrad
section_title: Urban damage
hierarchical_section_title: Effect of siege on Leningrad / Urban damage
caption_attribution_description: English: “In a street of Leningrad after German air raid”. In a street of Leningrad after German air raid. The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Русский: «На улице Ленинграда после налета фашистской авиации». На улице Ленинграда после налета фашистской авиации. Великая Отечественная война 1941-1945 годов. Россия, Ленинград
context_page_description: The 872-day Siege of Leningrad, Russia, resulted from the failure of the German Army Group North to capture Leningrad in the Eastern Front during World War II. The siege lasted from September 8, 1941, to January 27, 1944, and was one of the longest and most destructive sieges in history, devastating the city of Leningrad.
context_section_description: Severe destruction of homes was caused by the Nazi bombing, as well as by daily artillery bombardments. Major destruction was done during August and September 1941, when artillery bombardments were almost constant for several weeks in a row. Regular bombing continued through 1941, 1942, and 1943. Most heavy artillery bombardments resumed in 1943, and increased six times in comparison with the beginning of the war. Hitler and the Nazi leadership were angered by their failure to take Leningrad by force. Hitler's directive No. 1601 ordered that "St. Petersburg must be erased from the face of the Earth" and "we have no interest in saving lives of the civilian population."
  The Siege of Leningrad's blockade lasted about 900 days. The city sustained damage due to artillery attacks, air raids, and the struggle of famine. Although the city took significant damage, Alexander Werth, a Leningrad native, claims the city took less damage than any other major city affected by the war. Cities like Rotterdam, Warsaw, and Coventry sustained far more damage than Leningrad did. Leningrad suffered less damage than most German occupied USSR cities, such as Stalingrad, which later was burned to ashes. The damages might not be catastrophic, but they were significant, German artillery and bombers destroyed 16% of the city's housing. They also targeted their infrastructure, destroying streets and water and sewage pipes. Nearly half of the schools were wiped out and 78% of the hospitals. Not all houses were destroyed but every single structure had some kind of damage to it that gives each house a historic-artistic value. 
  Since the city was blockaded, nothing can move in or out of the city. The only time people could get food delivered was when Lake Ladoga froze over and soldiers could come in to help the civilians. Public utilities were completely cut off from Leningrad.
caption: In a street of Leningrad after German air raid
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "4509", "Image ImageLength": "3543", "Image BitsPerSample": "[8, 8, 8, 8]", "Image PhotometricInterpretation": "1", "Image ImageDescription": "601181 01.01.1942 \u041d\u0430 \u0443\u043b\u0438\u0446\u0435 \u041b\u0435\u043d\u0438\u043d\u0433\u0440\u0430\u0434\u0430 \u043f\u043e\u0441\u043b\u0435 \u043d\u0430\u043b\u0435\u0442\u0430 \u0444\u0430\u0448\u0438\u0441\u0442\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0439 \u0430\u0432\u0438\u0430\u0446\u0438\u0438. \u0412\u0435\u043b\u0438\u043a\u0430\u044f \u041e\u0442\u0435\u0447\u0435\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0430\u044f \u0432\u043e\u0439\u043d\u0430 1941-1945 \u0433\u043e\u0434\u043e\u0432. \u0411\u043e\u0440\u0438\u0441 \u041a\u0443\u0434\u043e\u044f\u0440\u043e\u0432/\u0420\u0418\u0410 \u041d\u043e\u0432\u043e\u0441\u0442\u0438", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image SamplesPerPixel": "4", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2012:01:19 13:30:53", "Image Artist": "\u0411\u043e\u0440\u0438\u0441 \u041a\u0443\u0434\u043e\u044f\u0440\u043e\u0432", "Image ExifOffset": "528", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "714", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7933", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "1942:01:01 00:00:00+03:00", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1024", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "805"}