Dear Allies: A Story of Women in Monklands and Besieged Leningrad

In 1942, when the city of Leningrad was under siege from the invading German army, the women's section of the Anglo-Soviet Aid Committee in Airdrie and Coatbridge, Scotland, decided to send messages of support and solidarity to the women of Leningrad. The ‘Scottish Album' was taken to London and given to Madame Maisky, the wife of the Soviet ambassador. Against all odds, the album made its way to Leningrad. To say thank you for this gesture of solidarity, a group of women in Leningrad compiled a beautiful and moving album containing paintings, drawings, photographs, hand-written letters and messages. The fact that this album was produced by women enduring extremes of cold and hunger and when thousands were dying every day in the city makes it even more remarkable. The Leningrad Album arrived in Scotland in 1943 when the people of Leningrad were entering the third year of the longest siege in modern history. This volume tells the story of the exchange of these two albums as a tribute to the memory of the victims and survivors of the Siege.