Clevedon's Siege of Leningrad Survivor (1941-44)

Shortly before Victory in Europe (VE) Day earlier this year, a member of staff from the Russian Embassy in London arrived in Clevedon to honour an extraordinary woman. The visit was necessarily low key in a town which has been particularly big-hearted in providing a place of safety for refugees displaced by Putin's illegal war against Ukraine. The purpose of the visit was to honour Ekatrina (Katya) Limasova (nee Stogova) with a medal and a letter from the Russian President acknowledging her status as a Leningrad Siege survivor. 

Last week I had the honour of spending time with Katya and her daughter Zoya, and to hear their fascinating life story. Being familiar with the battlefields of Western Russia and having met many veterans on my travels, it was a pleasure to be meeting another eye-witness to one of the most significant events of World War Two, so close to home. 

Nil & Aleksandra's daughters: Aleksandra, Vera, Zoya and Katya

Katya was born in 1927 to Nil and Aleksandra. She was one of nine children - three of whom died in their infancy. Her father, Nil Nilovitch Stogov, came from a long line of small scale farmers. His father (Katya's grandfather) had worked hard after the Russian Tsar abolished serfdom in the 1860s, building up a cluster of small holdings and establishing a village shop. Katya's mother Aleksandra, the maid of a wealthy landlord, was paired with Nil by a 'matchmaker' and after the marriage the couple enjoyed a relatively comfortable life style - running the shop and the small holdings with hired help and a village girl who looked after the children.  Nil would travel by horse and cart from the family home in the country, to buy stock for his shop in the nearby city of Rzev or further afield in Tver.

Upon the outbreak of the First World War, Nil was called up to serve the Tzar. It is not known when he was captured by the Germans, but after his release he spoke frequently and favourably about his experience as a prisoner-of-war working on a farm near Frankfurt. 

The catalyst for his release, was of course the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 and the subsequent Brest-Litovsk Treaty which was signed on the 3rd March 1918. Nil returned home and picked-up on the family business which continued to thrive despite the communist take-over and the brutalities that were happening throughout Russia. 

Nil is the shorter figure in the picture of the two 1914 recruits. The other image was captured at the time of his release from a German PoW Camp in 1918. 

After Lenin's death in 1924 everything changed for the family. In the early 1930s, wealthy peasants who employed others, were labelled as 'Kulaks' and were classed as enemies of the people. Lenin's heir, the ruthless dictator Joseph Stalin, ordered the 'collectivization' of private farms into state control. Nil and Aleksandra's world was turned upside down.

Katya remembers her mother cooking lunch. She recognised poor villagers who the previous day had ate in that very same kitchen. They had rifles.

"You have one hour to get out of your property, Sacha - take up your brats and get out! The property is being expropriated by the Village Soviet"

"Your Kulak days are over", the mob replied when Aleksandra protested. "We have the power now and you must do as you are told otherwise we will shoot you like mad dogs!".

Nil, Aleksandra - Ekaterina top left.

The family were not only thrown out of their house - they were arrested and locked in a barn. It was only the intervention of Nil's brother that saved them from a fate which does not bear thinking about. One of Katya's strongest recollections was knowing that the family's animals had perished. The mob looted the shop, ransacked the house and left the animals uncared for.

The family, now destitute,  managed to travel north, travelling on the horse and cart that Nil's had used to fech and carry stock for his shop. They eventually settling in Lachta a small village near Leningrad (now St Petersburg), where there was a pressing need for factory workers. Proximity to Finland gave them a potential escape route but as it happens they settled down well. The waters of the nearby Gulf were rich with fish and there was ground to grow a few vegetables. Nil obtained a job managing the local grocery store.

The house in Lachta - part of which was the new Stogovy family home.
Katya's sister Vera, Felix, Katya and Zoya, aged 12. 

The Winter War came and went, but on the 22nd June 1941 Katya remembers hearing Molotov on the radio, announcing that Nazi Germany had attacked the Soviet Union. This was the Barbarossa offensive, a truly immense military undertaking aimed at the destruction of the Soviet Union and the ethnic cleansing of Jews and other 'undesirables'. The Slavs were to be subjugated and the great cities of Russia raised to the ground. Three huge German Army Groups burst across the border, and Army Group North headed straight towards Leningrad - eventually reaching the outskirts in September. With their Finnish Allies holding the northern perimeter the Wehrmacht would lay siege to the city for 900 days. Why, said Adolf Hitler, should we waste men and material in urban fighting when we can simply starve the population to death?".

Katya remembers panic in the village as the Germans approached. Aleksandra started packing clothes in order to travel east with the family. She recalls that nobody knew exactly where the Germans were and whether they would be able to get away by train. Nil, who had a favourable view of the Germans (garnered from his time as a PoW), and a hatred of the Communists ordered his wife to unpack and stop panicking. They would stay at home and weather the storm. 

Siege Survivors, St Petersburg - Victory Day 2006

The 900 day Siege of Leningrad was a human tragedy on an unprecedented scale. Some 800,000 to 1m civilians died of starvation, cold and disease - many in the first winter when temperatures dropped to below -25 degrees and food supplies were scarce. (To read more about my walks around the Leningrad siege lines see the links below). 

Katya recalls that during the winter of 1941/42 "People were desperate and hunger made them do terrible things. Our next door neighbour locked her two young sons in her apartment and disappeared taking the childrens' ration books with her. At first they were quiet but then the neighbours heard them crying. When the door was forced open they found filthy children in a very cold room. They were starving. My father took them in and they stayed with us for a few months until their mother reappeared". When confronted she said "I am young and I can have more children, but I have only one life and I want to live". 

Son of the Regiment - Felix Vasilvitch Limasov & his father

Meanwhile Felix Vasilevitch Limasov, the man who Katya was to marry in the 1950s, was enduring the hardships of his own in Leningrad. Felix's parents were 'good Communists' and his father Vasili had originally arrived in Leningrad as a Red Army soldier during the revolution, and eventually attained the Naval Rank of Colonel in the Marines during the Second World War. Felix's mother Zoya, paid a heavy price for giving her ration of bread to her son during the first winter of the Siege. Zoya died of malnutrition and her husband, Colonel Limasov had no choice but to take 14 year old Felix to the front line as a 'Son of the Regiment'. 

On the back of the photo above is written the following: 'We are greeting you from a front-line in 1942, near Oranienbaum (near Leningrad), 2nd Naval Brigade.' (To read about my walk around the Oranienbaum Pocket, click here). 

Later Felix would tell Katya that he was used as a courier and that he was very scared when told to run through the woods trying to avoid German gunfire. Sadly, along with everyone else, Felix was given the Red Army's daily ration of '100 grams' - a large shot of vodka. This left him with an addiction which was to blight his family life in later years.

Katya (right) with her daughter, Zoya - Clevedon 2025

Katya's story continues, of course, and as she approaches her 100th birthday safe in the tranquil town of Clevedon, she has plenty of time to reflect on her fascinating life journey. Indeed, the story continues through subsequent generations of her family - including her daughter Zoya who has a dramatic story of her own and who was kind enough to introduce me to her mother. 

My Siege of Leningrad Battlefield Walks

Army Group North - Supply Lines (1941-44) - Here

The Anatomy of a Red Army Bunker (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: The Road of Hope (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: Siniavino & the South East (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: The German Fortified Positions in the South (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: The North (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: The Oranienbaum Pocket (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: The City (1941-44) - Here

Leningrad: A Trip to the Battlefield (1941-44) - Here

Clevedon's Bristol Blitz Hero - Archie Hancock

 On the the night of the 11th to 12th April 1941 one hundred and fifty three German Luftwaffe bombers targeted Bristol and Avonmouth in what has become known as the 'Good Friday Raid'. Over the course of almost four hours the two waves of aircraft dropped 193 tons of high explosive (HE) bombs and 36,888 incendiaries. This was the sixth and final large-scale raid on Bristol, a campaign during which - in totality - caused 1,299 civilian deaths and 3,305 recorded injuries. Underpinning these grim statistics it is worth noting that over 85,000 Bristol homes were damaged, with 3,000 completely destroyed.

Amongst the fatal casualties of the Good Friday raid was a fireman from Clevedon, Archibald Hancock. He was one of eight fireman killed that night. The total loss of life was 180 civilians killed, including 40 Civil defence workers - a category which included Fire Guards, Fire Watchers, Air Raid Precautions (ARP) Wardens and Firemen. 

George A. Campbell - The Blitz: Then & Now Vol. 2

In April 2025, family and friends gathered around Archie's recently refurbished grave in St Andrew's Church cemetery in Clevedon, to reflect on his heroism. This event was the culmination of a project led by local Clevedon firefighter, Andy Farnden. Andy, a career fireman, had stumbled across a press cutting about Archibald Hancock whilst sorting out some archive material at the local fire station. Intrigued, Andy investigated the story and discovered that Archie had been interred locally. After contacting the Hancock family via a lead from the Cricket Club, Andy located the grave which, despite the sterling efforts of relatives, had recently fallen into a state of disrepair. He made it his mission to restore the grave and the results of his endeavour are depicted later in this post - in a sequence of three photographs. 

Family & Firefighters at Archie Hancock's Grave - April, 2025

The press cutting provided the outline of the story. In the Clevedon Mercury and Courier, April 19, 1941 the headline was 'Clevedon AFS Volunteer Killed'. Underneath in bold letters reference was made to 'many tributes by Civil Defence Services' and a gravesite salute by comrades. The Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS) was formed in 1938 in anticipation of the conflict to come. Twenty eight year old Archibald Charles Hancock of 'Medina', Walton Road, was one of the first to volunteer. He had been employed at Hale's Home Bakery since leaving school and was described in his obituary as 'a keen and conscientious worker'. Archie was, apparently, a popular figure and outside of work he was a keen sportsman. Indeed, Archie was Captain of Clevedon Cricket Club for two seasons and was a prominent member of the Bowls Club.

AFS Fireman, Archie Hancock

The sporting interest obviously ran in the family, as his father George Hancock was Clevedon Town's goalkeeper for many seasons. Archie's parents lived in one of the Glebe Cottages on Strode Road in Clevedon.

The funeral at St Andrew's Church was quite an event by all accounts. The coffin was draped in a union jack surmounted with the deceased's helmet, belt and axe. It was carried to St Andrew's on one of Clevedon's fire engines and was borne through a guard of honour at the church entrance. Three members of Archie's crew were on point - Patrol Officer H. King, Leading Fireman J. Selwood and Fireman S.Bray. The entire Clevedon fire station contingent attended along with twenty firemen from Bristol. There was senior representation from Bristol and from the South West Region. Also present were representatives from the St John's Ambulance Brigade, the Home Guard and the Clevedon Special Constabulary. The press reports goes onto list dozens of family members and friends who attended, including Archie's widow, Ella, and his parents. Hales Bakery was closed for the afternoon and many of Archie's co-workers were present.

Archie Hancock's grave before, during and after restoration

The attack on Bristol during which Archie was killed, was perhaps the most sophisticated of the Luftwaffe raids on Bristol. On the map of Avonmouth reproduced below, one can make out the two aiming points in the docks - the Royal Edward Cold Store and the Transit Grain Silo. Both had been marked by X-Verfahren navigational radar beams, although weather conditions on the night allowed the Luftwaffe bomb aimers to target visually. Whilst many of the bombs fell on central Bristol, Avonmouth suffered considerable damage from the second wave part of which arrived over the docks shortly after midnight - the early morning of the 12th April 1941. 

The Fire Liaison Officer reported 174 major incidents across Bristol and Avonmouth - 28 small fires, 144 medium ones and 2 major conflagrations. Fire and ARP services were brought in from areas around Bristol and at the height of the attack 262 fire pumps were in action. When the gasometer at Canons March was hit, German crews of 1/KG 55 noted flame rising to 1500 metres. Luftwaffe losses were mounting at this stage of the bombing campaign and on this particular mission, five aircraft were lost - four from nightfighters - one of which was a Bristol Beaufighter from 604 Sqn operating out of RAF Charmy Down near Bath. Groud defences were active too. The local HAA guns fired 6765 rounds that night and 'Starfish' decoy sites in the surrounding area attracted 34 HE bombs which would otherwise have been dropped on the city.

Luftwaffe Target Map 45 54/55 - Avonmouth

According to the Commonwealth War Graves record, Archibald Charles Hancock died in the High Street, Avonmouth. One can only begin to imagine the drama of that night as the fires caught hold and the firefighters fought to bring the situation under control. 

It is a salutary reminder of the critical role firefighters play in peace time as well. In recognition of this, the project that Andy embarked upon includes not only the firefighters who served during time of war but also all of those who have worked to protect the public and property in peacetime. 

Clevedon Fire Brigade, Clevedon Court, 1883

Whilst the commemoration of Archie Hancock was really important, the scope of the project went beyond the wartime service of Clevedon's firefighters. An area inside the fire station was put aside for various historical artefacts and presentations. The Clevedon Fire Brigade was founded by Sir Arthur Elton and a local businessman, Alonzo Dawes, in 1883 following a major fire at Clevedon Court. The black and white photo above shows the original complement of men with their horse drawn appliance outside the Court. Andy retrieved the original helmets from a store, refurbished them, and arranged for them to be displayed in a custom built cabinet. 

Andy Farnden and his commemoration of the Clevedon Fire Brigade

In recognition of those firefighters who have served in Clevedon more recently, Andy came up with the idea of using replica brass BA Tallys to record when individuals joined the service, and when they left. These are displayed on the large board on the right hand side of the picture above. For those of you who, like me, are unaware of what a BA Tally is I now know that it is a personal identification tag which is handed into an Entry Control Office (ECO) when a firefighter enters a hazardous or toxic environment. It records the name, station and level of air supply for each person - along with the time they entered. How appropriate that a replica tally should be used to mark the beginning and the end of a firefighters service.

The carefully considered words at Clevedon Fire Station

My final thought is that it is so important to recognise those who died in the service of their country, but that we should also remember to express our gratitude to those who work to keep the public safe - day in and day out.

With thanks to the University of the West of England (UWE) and the Avon Fire & Rescue Service for much of the information revealed above.