Alexander Palladin
The 40th US President Ronald Reagan was branded Great Communicator. If the USSR had a national leader who deserved such a title it was, no doubt, Joseph Stalin.
He recognized the power of PR full well and used it with magnificent dexterity. The military parade at Red Square on November 7th, 1941, is just an example.
Four months before that, during a drill at military camp in Moscow suburbs, my father experienced a heart attack, was hospitalized, dismissed from Red Army and sent back to the publishing house run by OSOAVIAKHIM (Society for the Assistance of Defense, Aircraft and Chemical Construction).
What happened next, he described in his memories.
«In the middle of October 1941, when my superiors, falling for the overwhelming panic (“Germans are moments away from taking Moscow!”), dropped all of their duties and joined the thousands of panicked people fleeing the capital, the district committee of the party ordered me to continue my work.
German military machine stood by the walls of Moscow. And who could even think that in such a moment Red Square would serve a place for a traditional parade marking the 24th anniversary of October? But it did take place! And it impressed the entire world.
During the night of November 7, 1941, I was called to attend the district committee of the party, where they were giving out the invitations to the traditional October anniversary parade. My ticket’s number was 328.
I preserved it for the rest of my life like a precious relic… [It’s surprising, but my father was permitted to attend the parade, even though our surname was distorted on the ticket. It should be also noted that these documents were issued on behalf of Nikolai Vlasik. Chief of Stalin’s bodyguards — A. P.].
From the district committee, we headed for Red Square. The streets had snowdrifts, the slippery road made walking difficult. It was dark. But the tribunes were filling in already.
My tribune – the first one from the Mausoleum. The cobblestone square was covered with a crust of ice. What was it going to be like for the infantry to march?
Conductor Vasily Agapking, a heavy tall man, walked towards the military orchestra. He slipped. His assistants rushed to his help – but they couldn’t keep their balance either. Thankfully, soon after, the thick flakes of snow fell, covering the square.
Coming to the tribune of the Mausoleum, Stalin was wearing a simple military coat and a peaked cap. It was freezing, the wind was blowing. The Microphone passed on his barely audible words:
“It’s really windy”.
Exactly at 8 a.m. Semyon Budyonov, the head of the parade, appeared from the gates of the Spasskaya Tower. He rode around the standing troops and walked onto the tribune of the Mausoleum.
Stalin, State Defense Committee Chairman, addressed the Red Army with a call to destroy fascism. The entire country listened to his speech.
– The war you are waging is a liberation war, a just war, – Stalin said. – Let the courageous images of our great ancestors – Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Kuz’ma Minin, Dmitry Pozharsky, Alxander Suvorov, Mikhail Kutuzov – inspire you in this war.
From the Red Square the rifle troops, militias, artillery, anti-aircraft gunners, cavalry went straight to the front line.
As the tanks were passing by, the unexpected thing happened. The second to last tank turned around in front of the Mausoleum – and… moved back, towards the History Museum.
What happened? It remained a mystery to me for a long time. But in 1949, the House of Writers was vitiated by general Kuzma Sinilov, the military commandant of Moscow. He talked about the preparations and the procedure of the Red Square parades, mentioning the strange event of November 1941:
– Iosif Vissarionovich ordered to strictly punish the guilty. Thankfully, there was no need for a punishment. I asked those to blame – and it turned out they were inexperienced boys, who have just finished their tank school courses. After the parade they were supposed to have their first battle. The tank’s driver answered: “In school, we have firmly learnt the law – die, but help your comrades. When we were getting close to the Mausoleum, and the machine in the back gave us a signal: help. It got stuck on the ice. Without thinking, I automatically went to tow the comrades’ tank.”»
– I reported that to Stalin. – Concluded general Sinilov, – and he said: “Good job, driver!”
Egor Sennikov
