Scientific Activities of the V.I. Lenin State Library of the USSR During the Great Patriotic War

The topic of the Great Patriotic War of 1941—1945 remains important and relevant for Russian scholarship. The article aims to present a brief overview of the research activities of the V.I. Lenin State Library of the USSR (GBL, now the Russian State Library) during the war, comparing them with pre-war achievements, identifying the main areas of research, and evaluating its results. On the eve of the war, the GBL was the largest scientific information base in the USSR and was part of the network of research institutions of the RSFSR. Possession of vast collections determined the priorities of its research activities: the study, scientific description, systematization, and introduction into scientific circulation of monuments of book culture, archives of outstanding historical figures, scientists, and cultural figures; development of current and retrospective bibliography; study of problems of cataloging and systematization of documents; conservation and restoration of library documents; study of issues of librarianship organization. With the onset of the Great Patriotic War, the efforts of the GBL staff, regardless of their location, were redirected to tasks primarily related to the preservation and evacuation of collections and defense measures. In June 1941, the personnel situation worsened, and structural changes were made, including within the research departments. Despite the serious adjustments and problems entailed by the Great Patriotic War, scholarly activity at the library did not cease: it took on other forms and addressed issues supporting Victory, not only on the information and library fronts. The primary indicator for assessing the GBL’s scholarly activity was the practical significance of the results obtained. Bibliographical work took first place in terms of thematic breadth and results. At the same time, the study, bibliographical, and scholarly description of archival documents, handwritten and early printed books continued; empirical data for the further development of Soviet library science and book science was actively accumulated, and the theoretical foundations of bibliographical science, collection management, readership (reading guidance), and library management were formed. For their work under difficult wartime conditions, many GBL researchers were awarded government awards.

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