Letters of a Siberian soldier - a source on the history of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945

The subject of the study is 1941-1944 letters of participant of the Great Patriotic War, Novosibirsk historian Fyodor Sergeyevich Merkuryev. The object of research is frontline letters as a historical source. The purpose of the work is to determine the scientific and cognitive value of F. S. Merkuryev's letters as a source on the history of the Great Patriotic War. In the course of the research, the comparative historical method, the method of causal analysis between events, as well as the method of source studies were used. The informational component of F. S. Merkuryev's letters was determined using the method of textual analysis, and the problem-chronological method allowed to identify the features of letters depending on the time of their writing. As a result of the analysis of almost 300 front-line letters that were not previously introduced into scientific circulation, valuable information was obtained that reveals various aspects of life at the front and in the rear, as well as allowing to trace the combat path of the 49th Cavalry Division formed in Siberia, as well as to get an idea of the specifics of military field living conditions and other details of front-line everyday life. Conclusions are drawn about the significant informational value of the presented epistolary source for the study of certain aspects of the history of the Great Patriotic War, as well as the need for further work on the introduction of such ego documents into scientific circulation.

ego documents, sources of personal origin, epistolary legacy, The Great Patriotic War, frontline letters, family correspondence, Siberian warriors, everyday life of wartime, 49th cavalry division, Merkuryev Fedor Sergeevich