Berezi︠a︡nka
en
translation: Berezyanka
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All Belarusians know the meaning of the phrase “Khatyn’s sister”. This is the name given to villages that were burned by punitive forces along with their inhabitants during the Great Patriotic War, and after liberation life never returned there. There is such a village in our area. Her name is Berezyanka.
The archival documents contain meager numbers: before the war there were 19 houses, before the war there were 80 people, 19 houses were destroyed, 43 people were killed. In the memoirs of eyewitnesses there are facts that make it possible to reconstruct the last day of Berezyanka’s life.
It was a forest village. Partisans often visited here, either going on a mission or returning to the detachment. Residents helped the people's avengers, although they understood how dangerous it was. Early in the morning, September 6, 1943, punitive forces came to the village and began to drive people into the stables. Some of the villagers managed to hide in the swamp, while others ran across the river to neighboring Bolochanka.
When the punitive forces were convinced that no one was left in the houses, the stable doors were propped open and then set on fire. Flames broke through the wooden walls, and the thatch on the roof blazed. On the back side of the stable there was a small window through which they managed to push out several children, who managed to escape into the forest under the cover of smoke. The people inside broke down the door. But those who rushed through the opening were overtaken by machine-gun fire.
