"Helped to raise morale": how the military parade was held in Moscow on November 7, 1941

The Russian Ministry of Defense in a specialized section on its website published archival documents on the preparation and holding of the parade on November 7, 1941 in honor of the 24th anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution.

The review of the troops was prepared in an atmosphere of strict secrecy.

In the published reference report of Major General Kuzma Sinilov, the parade is designated as "an operation by the troops of the Moscow garrison."

That is what he was called in the official correspondence of the Soviet command.

At the same time, the majority of the participants in the review of the troops did not know until the last moment what event they were preparing for.

The parade was a big surprise for the German army, which these days was trying to break through to Moscow from the western direction.

In total, this event was supposed to involve 28,487 soldiers and officers, including six saber squadrons.

The review was attended by artillery troops, infantry, sailors, NKVD units, volunteers, cavalry and armored vehicles.

"Clear organization and conscientious work"

Despite the difficult situation at the front, the review of the troops was planned in the most careful way, as evidenced by the published documents.

The duration of the parade was strictly limited: the event had to last exactly one hour, one minute and 30 seconds, including the movement of military units and a welcoming speech.

Time was also allocated for fireworks.

From the Moscow Rifle Division, 6,022 servicemen of various types of troops were sent to participate in the parade.

Three days before the inspection, tanks of the 31st tank brigade were transferred to the capital: four KVs, nine BT-7s, ten single-turreted T-26s, as well as seven anti-tank guns and eight anti-aircraft guns, 30 vehicles.

• Painting "Parade on Red Square in Moscow on November 7, 1941".

  Artist Konstantin Fedorovich Yuon (1875-1958).

  1949 year.

  Canvas, oil.

  State Tretyakov Gallery.

• RIA News

The documentation clearly spells out the procedure for the passage of military and equipment through Red Square.

The battalions of the 1st Moscow Artillery School were to be the first to pass, and 160 tanks were planned to end the parade.

In order for the event to go smoothly and smoothly, military units had to move to the assembly point along pre-developed routes.

For example, the sailors were instructed to arrive 25 minutes "before the start of the operation", and they had to move through the Frunzensky parade ground (now the Komsomolsky Prospekt area -

), Lev Tolstoy Street, Mokhovaya Street and Manezhnaya Square.

The gathering place for the detachment of armed workers was designated Tsvetnoy Boulevard, which were to arrive "35 minutes before the start of the operation."

The plan for the withdrawal of military units from Red Square after the completion of the review was developed in the same detail.

At the event, only the persons in charge listed by the commandant of the capital were allowed to attend.

The passage of cars to the square was limited.

During the parade, Stalin made a speech in which he reminded Soviet citizens that they were able to overcome the scourge of the Civil War, when three-quarters of the country was in the hands of foreign invaders.

“The whole world looks at you as a force capable of destroying the bandit hordes of German invaders.

The enslaved peoples of Europe, who have fallen under the yoke of the German invaders, look at you as their liberators.

The great mission of liberation has fallen to your lot.

Be worthy of this mission! "

- said the supreme commander.

On November 7, 1941, a parade in honor of the anniversary of the October Revolution was also held in Kuibyshev (modern Samara. -

), and on November 8, in Voronezh.

If in Moscow the air part of the review had to be canceled due to weather conditions, in Kuibyshev the Air Force took part in the military review.

As stated in the order to the air forces of the Volga Military District of November 9, “by a clear organization and conscientious work of all personnel, the concentration of units for the parade was completed within three days, training flights were carried out, the material part was prepared, communications, material support and services were organized ".

• Muscovites constructing a defensive line of sandbags. A still from the documentary "Muscovites in 1941".

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“The parade was held without flying accidents,” the document says.

The 102nd Guards Rifle Division (in 1941 it was called the 65th Rifle Division) took part in the ground part of the Kuibyshev parade.

To pass in parade formation, the servicemen covered thousands of kilometers by rail in just a few days, getting to Kuibyshev from the Trans-Baikal Territory.

Immediately after participating in the event, the division headed for the location of the Volkhov Front.

Participants in the Moscow parade also immediately went to the front, where the battle for Moscow was going on these days.

"Do not succumb to aggression"

Recall that the first parade in honor of the anniversary of the October Revolution took place on November 7, 1918.

After that, military reviews were held regularly.

However, as historians point out, in November 1941, few could have imagined that the Soviet leadership would decide to hold a military celebration - Hitler's troops were only 50-100 km from Moscow.

However, Joseph Stalin still gave the order to conduct an inspection.

This decision was made literally ten days before the 24th anniversary of the revolution.

When Stalin raised the issue of preparing for the parade at a meeting of the country's military and political leadership, many were amazed - this idea was so unexpected.

• Joseph Stalin delivers a speech at a military parade on Red Square on November 7, 1941.

• RIA News

As military historian Boris Yulin noted in an interview with RT, the Soviet leadership decided to hold the parade in very difficult conditions, because they understood that this would raise the morale of the Red Army.

“The parade in honor of the anniversary of the October Revolution, when the enemy was on the outskirts of Moscow, showed the strength of faith in victory, inspired both the people and the army.

In addition, it was known that Hitler first wanted to hold his own victory parade on Red Square on that very day - he thought he would quickly take Moscow, ”Yulin said.

According to the historian of the Victory Museum, Alexander Mikhailov, holding the parade in the midst of hostilities was a unique experience - at least for the first half of the 20th century.

“The situation was complicated, Moscow was in a state of siege.

The country's leadership had to show both its people and the whole world that it did not intend to surrender.

The parade helped to raise morale and showed that the USSR will resist and does not intend to succumb to Nazi Germany, "the expert explained in an interview with RT.

These days the Nazis were actively trying to break through to Moscow, and the Red Army with heroic efforts held back this pressure. 

At the end of September, the German Army Group "Center" completed preparations for an offensive operation - in his appeal to the troops, Hitler announced the beginning of a "decisive battle".

At the same time, at the time of the start of the operation, Moscow was defended by a group of troops that was significantly inferior to the enemy's forces.

Despite this, the defenders of the capital were able to slow down and stop the advance of the Nazis.

It was not possible to break through the defenses of Moscow and the Air Force of the Third Reich - the attacks of the bombers were repelled by air defense systems and Soviet fighter pilots.

In mid-November, the German command launched a decisive attack on Moscow.

But the plans to seize the capital of the USSR failed - already on December 5-6, the Red Army launched a counteroffensive.

This came as a surprise to the German troops, who quickly began to retreat.

"The most important psychological stimulus"

According to historians, Hitler was furious when he learned that the Soviet command held a military parade in the midst of fierce battles for Moscow.

The USSR managed to hide from the enemy all the preparations for the review, which Hitler learned about on the radio, and not from the reports of Nazi intelligence.

The fact that the USSR was able to successfully classify preparations for the parade undermined faith in the leadership of the Third Reich in the power of the Abwehr, says Alexander Mikhailov.

• Soviet anti-aircraft gunners on the roof of the Moskva hotel.

  The Great Patriotic War (1941-1945).

• RIA News

• © Oleg Knorring

“The parade on Red Square came as a complete surprise to the German military command, which greatly depressed Hitler and his entourage,” the historian noted.

As Boris Yulin noted, secrecy has become the most important condition for the parade.

“If German bombers were able to break through to Moscow and drop at least one shell on Red Square during the parade, his task of maintaining morale in the troops would be thwarted.

Although the air defense of the capital worked very well, not allowing massive air attacks, it was necessary to exclude even a possible single enemy breakthrough, ”the expert emphasized.

According to historians, the parade, which took place on November 7 in the capital of the Soviet Union, became one of the components of the victory of the Red Army in the battle for Moscow.

“It is known that initially solemn parades were part of military operations.

The ancient Greeks, starting the offensive, sang songs that raised the fighting spirit.

And the parade on November 7, having become the most important psychological stimulus for the Soviet army, definitely contributed to the victory, "summed up Boris Yulin.