The destiny of some Russian cities was terrible during World War II. One of them, Leningrad, experienced the most destructive siege and blockade in the military history of Europe. The starvation of more than 600,000 city residents in 1942 shocked the nation and the whole world.

Leningrad (a compound of “Lenin,” a nom de plume of the famous leader of Russian communist party, and “grad,” the Old Russian word for “city,” so the whole word means the “city of Lenin”) is a former name of Saint Petersburg. It is the second-largest city in Russia and was founded in 1703 by Emperor Peter the Great. Saint Petersburg became the capital of Russia in 1712 and held this status until 1918. In August 1914, its name was changed ...