“The Fond Stone”

It is a great song of Black Sea’s seamen of WWII.

Listening this song it is possible to feel mind of Black Sea’s sailors who had to leave their 
dear land and who promised to return at any price. This song shows very well the soul of Soviet 
Black Sea’s seamen, their unbending spirit.

It is necessary to say a few words about the history of the creation of this song.

In 1943 Boris Mokrousov, a composer, who was in Sevastopol' in 1941 and who was familiar with a lot of Sevastopol's 
seamen, read in 1943 the article "The Sevastopol's Stone" in the newspaper "The Red Fleet".

In the last hours of the Sevastopol defense the German artillery fired embankment of Sevastopol in the region 
of monument "To the lost ships". One of the last defenders of Sevastopol, a seaman, picked up a small granite 
stone which was cut of from the parapet by an enemy shell. And the retreating seaman swore to return and to 
bring the stone back in Sevastopol.

Later seaman got a mortal wound and passed the stone to his friends when he was dying. He said: "You must to 
return the stone in its homeland - in Sevastopol."

A soldier-sniper, who took the stone, was killed in an ambush but he had time to pass the stone to his friend-scout. 
Later the stone was passed to a signaler, then - to an artilleryman, then - to a machinegunner and so on. 
And everywhere the stone was in the reliable hands of the men who swore to carry out the legacy of an unknown seaman. 

Mokrousov was impressed by the legend about "the Sevasopol's stone", which was spoken in the article of 
Leonid Sobolev, and began to make the song about it. And the song became the great....

And the legend about "the Sevastopol's stone" was not only a legend. Retreating from Sevastopol according the 
order of the Command, many Soviet defenders of Sevastopol took a hollow of the hand of the Sevastopol's land or 
a piece of Sevastopol's granite and swore to return it back, to return in Sevastopol with a victory. 

And they did it in 1944.

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“The Fond Stone”

(Translated by Andrey)

The wide Black Sea is raising
Cold waves like an avalanche.
Last sailor [1] left Sevastopol’,
He is going out through the resistance of waves,
And threatening wide blusterous billow
Was breaking one a wave after other one against ship's boat,
And a land is not seen
In a hazy expanse,
Ships went out far away.
And a land is not seen
In a hazy expanse,
Ships went out far away.

Friends-seamen found and took the hero,
Stormy water was boiling.
He compressed a stone by his becoming blue hand
And said quietly, dying:
“When I was leaving the dear cliff
I took away a piece of granite with me.
I do it because I want 
That people who are far from the Crimean land
Could not forget about this land.
I do it because I want 
That people who are far from the Crimean land
Could not forget about this land…”

This stone went through storms and strong gales
And it was placed worthy on its original place.
Familiar sea gull waved by its wings,
And the heart became to beat calmly.
Black Sea’s sailor went up on the cliff,
This sailor brought new glory for the Motherland.
And some ships are going
In a peaceful expanse,
They are going under the sun of the native land.
And some ships are going
In a peaceful expanse,
They are going under the sun of the native land…

1943-44


Remarks of Andrey:
[1] “sailor” means and “sailor from ship”, and “Marine” here, during Sevastopol’s defense 
many ordinary sailors fought as a Marines.

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The Russian version (translit):

"Zavetnyi kamen'"

Kholodnye volny vzdymaet lavinoi 
Shirokoe Chiornoe more. 
Poslednii matros Sevastopol' pokinul, 
Ukhodit on, s volnami sporia. 
I groznyi, shirokii, bushuiushchii val 
O shliupku volnu za volnoi razbival,
V tumannoi dali 
Ne vidno zemli, 
Ushli daleko korabli. 
V tumannoi dali 
Ne vidno zemli, 
Ushli daleko korabli. 

Druz'ia-moriaki podobrali geroia,
Kipela voda shtormovaia. 
On kamen' szhimal posinevshei rukoiu
I tikho skazal, umiraia: 
"Kogda pokidal ia rodimyi utes, 
S soboiu kusochek granita unios... 
I tak, chtob vdali 
Ot krymskoi zemli, 
O nei my zabyt' ne mogli. 
I tak, chtob vdali 
Ot krymskoi zemli, 
O nei my zabyt' ne mogli…"

Skvoz' buri i shtormy proshiol etot kamen', 
I stal on na mesto dostoino. 
Znakomaia chaika vzmakhnula krylami, 
I serdtse zabilos' spokoino. 
Vzoshiol na utes chernomorskii matros, 
Kto Rodine novuiu slavu prinios, 
I v mirnoi dali 
Idut korabli 
Pod solntsem rodimoi zemli. 
I v mirnoi dali 
Idut korabli 
Pod solntsem rodimoi zemli…

1943-44