The famous Christmas carol inspiring Ukraine’s defenders

Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine is the birthplace of one of the world’s most beloved carols, Carol of the Bells.

But there are few signs of Christmas in the city this year. Only the crunch of snow on the deserted streets and shell houses – and the constant sound of heavy shells.

Pokrovsk is Russia’s next target. His forces are now less than two miles (three kilometers) from the center of the city.

And it’s not just houses and buildings that are being destroyed. Ukraine accuses Russia of also trying to erase its culture – including its association with the iconic song.

Many Pokrovsk residents have already fled. Gas has been cut off and many houses are without electricity and water. Those who are left, like 59-year-old Ihor, are just resting to get the necessities. He says it’s like sitting on a powder keg – you never know when or where the next bullet will land.

Oksana, 43, says she is too scared to leave her house, but she goes outside when it is quiet to get wood and coal for heating.

He tells me that he hopes that the Ukrainian army will still hold the city, but he thinks it is unlikely. Pokrovsk, he says, will probably fall.

The city is already prepared for disaster. The statue of its famous author, Mykola Leontovych, has already been removed. The music school that was named after him is now dormant and empty.

Leontovych may not be well known in the West. But the song he created is known all over the world – with his voice as a chime. It is believed that Leontovych wrote many of the original compositions, based on Ukrainian folk music, while living and working in Pokrovsk between 1904 and 1908.

In Ukraine it is known as Shchedryk. To most of the world it became known as Carol of the Bells, after the American singer Peter Wilhousky wrote the English version of the song. The use of this song in the Hollywood film Home Alone helped her gain popularity.

Viktoria Ametova calls it “artistically – music signature of Pokrovsk”. He was also until recently teaching music in the city, at a school named after Leontovych.

He has now moved to the safe haven of Dnipro. It is where many residents of Pokrovsk are still trying to remember their old home.

Under Leontovych’s archived photo, Viktoria sees 13-year-old Anna Hasych playing her favorite songs on the piano.

Hasych’s family fled Pokrovsk this summer. But they are determined not to forget the place they still call home. Anna’s mother, Yulia, says that she is happy to see her daughters studying at Shchedryk. “We will never forget the history of our town,” he says.

For Anna, this song reminds her. He said: “When I played at home I just had fun. “Now it’s a very sad song for me because it reminds me of home, and I want to go back.”

But for one Ukrainian army, Shchedryk has become an anthem of resistance. They play in the trenches – using weapons as advanced weapons.

They may be musicians, but their chief reminds me that they are soldiers first. They have all spent time on the front lines. Colonel Bohdan Zadorozhnyy, who is the head of the group and its conductor, says that the song helps to lift up the soldiers. “Hitting those moves excites the guys on the front line and motivates them to fight,” he says.

The 22-year-old from Rome uses a rocket launcher casing, filled with rice, to vibrate vigorously in time with music. Shchedryk, says, “the pride of our country, and freedom, is in our lives, I get goosebumps from this song”.

Colonel Zadorozhnyy says that Shchedryk shows that Ukraine is a developed country, which is now at war, fighting for its identity.

Pokrovsk may fall into Russian hands. But its people are doing everything they can to protect their culture and heritage.

The director of Pokrovsk’s History Museum, Angelina Rozhkova, has already rescued and transferred many of its valuables to a safe place – including the paintings of Leontovych’s life in Pokrovsk.

Russia, he says, doesn’t just want to take part of Ukraine – “It wants to destroy our culture and everything that is precious to us”.

Angelina says that the people of Pokrovsk understand that they cannot return, “but our hearts and souls do not accept that”. So they are doing everything they can to preserve the past. The new motto is “save and save, match and win”.

It’s hard to say you’re winning when your city is being destroyed. But his characters, like Leontovych’s music, show a remarkable resilience.

Leontovych’s life ended suddenly in 1921 when he was shot by a Soviet agent. His writings became a symbol of the struggle for the independence of Ukraine. It’s still like that.

Additional reporting by Hanna Chornous and Anastasiia Levchenko