Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Official website of the State –
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Can holding a military review in the capital of a country at war change history? Our answer: yes. On November 7, 1941, the traditional military parade in honor of the anniversary of the October Revolution took place on Moscow's Red Square. The parade took place during the Battle of Moscow, when the front line was just a few dozen kilometers from the capital. We showed the world: the Red Army and the Soviet Union were determined to defend their homeland under any circumstances.
The situation the day before
In October 1941, the military situation near Moscow was dire. On October 15, the USSR State Defense Committee issued a decree "On the evacuation of the capital of the USSR, Moscow." In the event of an enemy entry into the city, the NKVD was ordered to blow up the remaining factories, warehouses, and institutions, as well as the electrical equipment of the metro. That same day, the USSR government, the Supreme Soviet, the People's Commissariat of Defense, diplomatic missions, and cultural institutions began to be evacuated to Kuibyshev (now Samara).
On October 20, a state of siege was declared in Moscow and the surrounding areas. Panicked rumors spread throughout the city that the country's top leadership—Joseph Stalin and members of the Politburo—had fled the capital.
To stem the panic and boost public morale, on October 24, Joseph Stalin summoned Lieutenant General Pavel Artemyev, commander of the Moscow Military District, and Lieutenant General Pavel Zhigarev, commander of the Red Army Air Forces, and ordered preparations for the parade to be held in complete secrecy. Most of the soldiers and commanders were unaware until the very last minute that they would be marching across the cobblestones of Red Square. At the last minute, the start time of the military review was also moved up from the usual 10:00 a.m. to two hours earlier.
March of the Defenders
On the cloudy and snowy day of November 7, 1941, low clouds covered Moscow. Aircraft overflights were cancelled due to the blizzard, but the Kremlin stars and the mausoleum were unmasked, as enemy aircraft would have been unable to attack the capital in such weather. By eight o'clock in the morning, the Moscow Garrison troops stood in parade formation on Red Square. Lieutenant General Pavel Artemyev, commander of the Moscow Military District, commanded, and the legendary Marshal Semyon Budyonny reviewed the parade.
The entire top leadership of the USSR gathered at the mausoleum's podium. After the traditional parade of parade units and the report to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Joseph Stalin addressed the troops and the nation with a speech in which he emphasized: "The main goals of the German Operation Typhoon were not achieved; the Nazis failed to take the capital with a rapid offensive."
A total of 28,467 people participated in the parade. When the parade concluded, the military units withdrew to their bases, almost immediately heading to the front.
Our troops in the battle for Moscow
Fierce and stubborn fighting raged in the western part of Moscow as part of the defensive phase of the Battle of Moscow. Along with everyone else, the capital was defended by staff and students of the Moscow Engineering and Economics Institute (now the State University of Management).
Two platoons were formed from MIEI volunteers, which swelled the ranks of the 3rd Moscow Communist Division. The division's regiments were stationed along the Leningrad Highway from Khimki to Solnechnogorsk. Many MIEI volunteers also fought on the Rzhev-Vyazma line as part of the 7th People's Militia Division, which suffered heavy losses in these battles.
A harbinger of victory
The parade boosted the morale of the military and the population. For many contemporaries, celebrating the anniversary of October in wartime conditions came as a surprise, while frontline soldiers and home front workers considered it a sign that Moscow would endure. It's especially worth noting that the German command planned to capture the capital by November 7 and, on that day, hold its own celebration on Red Square—a parade of Nazi troops. Therefore, the Soviet army's military parade was particularly significant, emphasizing that the Nazi invaders would not succeed. Less than a month passed, and our soldiers turned the tide of the Battle of Moscow by launching a counteroffensive. Footage of the parade was later included in the documentary "The Defeat of the Nazi Troops near Moscow," which won an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
For 20 years now, November 7th has been celebrated in Russia as Military Glory Day, in honor of the 1941 military parade on Red Square.
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