In the winter of 1918, he saved the Baltic Fleet. Withdrew from the ports of Revel and Helsingfors 236 warships, including 6 battleships, 5 cruisers and 54 destroyers, from under the noses of the rapidly advancing Germans and took them through the ice to Kronstadt. The "reward" for the feat was unexpected - on Trotsky's personal order, the hero was arrested and hastily shot, allegedly for "treason." This was the first execution officially carried out by the Bolsheviks.
We are talking about Alexei Shchastny, an officer of the tsarist fleet, whose name was strictly prohibited in Soviet times. Alexei Mikhailovich was born in the family of an artillery officer, but he became a sailor - he graduated from the Marine Corps in St. Petersburg and devoted his life to the Navy. For his courage during the Russo-Japanese War, he was awarded the Order of St. Anne. During the First World War, he rose to the rank of captain of the 1st rank, commanded destroyers and battleships. After the seizure of power by the Bolsheviks, he continued to faithfully serve Russia, defending it from the Germans. He was officially appointed Namorsi - Chief of the Baltic Sea Naval Forces. But everyone called him simply "the red admiral."
Secret order
After the conclusion of the "obscene" Brest Peace Treaty, Shchastny received a secret order from Trotsky and Lenin to prepare the ships of the Baltic Fleet for the explosion. Trotsky even promised to pay the "demolitionists" a monetary reward, ordering them to deposit special amounts for this in banks, realizing that otherwise it would be difficult to force the sailors to destroy their native ships. The Baltic Fleet squadron was then based in ports on the territory of present-day Finland, to which the Germans were already approaching. However, Shchastny did not mine the warships, deciding to save them. It was incredibly difficult to do this, among the "revolutionary" carriages, decomposed by the propaganda of the Bolsheviks and anarchists, complete confusion and vacillation reigned. With great difficulty, showing great energy, Namorsi managed to find reliable sailors and officers. Icebreakers laid the way for ships through hummocks. Soon all battleships and cruisers, as well as all other ships of the Baltic Fleet, were already in Kronstadt. Thanks to Shchastny, only they were saved: the Black Sea Fleet, as you know, was flooded, and all the ships of the Northern and Pacific fleets went to the invaders. And the squadron rescued in the Baltic Sea then faithfully served Russia, defending it during the Great Patriotic War. The battleship Marat (formerly Petropavlovsk), for example, defended besieged Leningrad, crushing the Nazis with its powerful guns.
What was Trotsky so afraid of? Why was he in a hurry to destroy the first "red admiral"? Moreover, he tried to make sure that he would not be found later? We will never know exactly about this. We can only guess that the briefcase with which Shchastny arrived in Moscow contained such documents, the publication of which the Bolsheviks were mortally afraid of.
The Germans were enraged
When the Germans entered Revel and did not find Russian ships there, they were enraged. The German command immediately sent a secret note of protest to the Kremlin. Indeed, according to the terms of the Brest-Litovsk Peace, Russia had to destroy all types of weapons. In addition, modern historians believe that some secret agreements were concluded between the Bolsheviks and the Germans, providing for the transfer of Russian cruisers and battleships to them.
Officially, Lenin and Trotsky have always denied secret ties with the German General Staff. But now it is no longer a secret to anyone that the "sealed carriage" in which Lenin and his accomplices drove through the entire war-torn Europe to Petrograd was actually paid for by the Germans. On this account, documents were found. It is known that once Hitler himself said that the most brilliant operation of the German General Staff consisted in sending Lenin to Russia.
There are serious reasons to believe that there were such secret agreements about the "neutralization" of the Russian combat fleet by the Bolsheviks. It is likely that some of the documents fell into the possession of Shchastny.
Trotsky let it slip
At the meeting of the Revolutionary Tribunal, at which the savior of the Baltic Fleet was tried, Lev Davydovich said: “You know, comrades judges, that Shchastny, who came to Moscow at our call, got out of the car not at the passenger station, but outside it, in a remote place, like relies on a conspirator. And he did not say a single word about the documents in his portfolio, which were supposed to testify to the secret connection of the Soviet government with the German headquarters."
Immediately realizing that he had let slip, Trotsky said that this was a "gross falsification." However, let us remember that in exactly the same way the Bolsheviks constantly repeated about "slander", refuting the accusations related to the "sealed carriage", which were then irrefutably confirmed by documents.
Officially, Shchastny was accused of "counter-revolution", of not preparing the ships for destruction. No one could protect the sailor. Trotsky was the only witness at the trial, others were simply not allowed in. And Shchastny was sentenced to death. This was the first death sentence officially imposed by the Bolsheviks, although the death penalty was abolished at that time..
In order not to be found …
The Savior of the Baltic Fleet was executed in the courtyard of the Alexander Military School. Moreover, the firing squad consisted of Chinese, who did not care who to kill. But the mercenaries were commanded by a Russian named Andreevsky. Subsequently, his shocking story about the execution was published: “I approached him:“Admiral, I have a Mauser. You see, the tool is reliable. Do you want me to shoot you myself? " He took off his white navy cap and wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. "No! Your hand may tremble and you only hurt me. Better to let the Chinese shoot. It's dark here, I will hold my cap near my heart to aim at it. " The Chinese loaded their guns. Come closer. Shchastny pressed his cap to his heart. Only a shadow and a white cap were visible … A volley burst out. Happy, like a bird, waved his arms, his cap flew off, and he collapsed heavily to the ground."
Trotsky ordered to bury the body so that it would not be found. In the building of the school, where Shchastny was shot, then Trotsky's office was located, and repairs were underway in it. According to some reports, the Chinese put the body of the murdered admiral in a sack and, without thinking twice, walled it up right under the floor of this particular office. In any case, the corpse disappeared without a trace.
Petersburg film director Viktor Pravdyuk, who made a documentary about the tragedy of the "Red Admiral", turned several years ago to the former Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Rodionov (the school building still belongs to the military) with a request to remove the parquet floor in order to test this terrible hypothesis, but he did not allow …
What then was the almighty Trotsky so afraid of? Why was he in a hurry to destroy the first "red admiral"? We will never know exactly about this. We can only guess that the briefcase with which Shchastny arrived in Moscow contained such documents, the publication of which the Bolsheviks were mortally afraid of.
