The siege of Leningrad, one of the darkest chapters of World War II, finally came to an end as Soviet forces broke through the German blockade, liberating the city after 900 brutal days. Since September 1941, Leningrad, now St. Petersburg, had been trapped, its 2.5 million inhabitants facing starvation, disease, and relentless bombing. The Soviet counteroffensive, led by Generals Georgy Zhukov and Kirill Meretskov, pushed the Germans back, freeing the city from its exhausting ordeal. The aftermath revealed the devastating toll: over a million casualties, widespread destruction, and an irreparable scar on the city's psyche.