The 85th Anniversary of the 1941 Red Square Parade

Dragon Media News Desk

Russia has marked the 85th anniversary of the historic military parade held in Moscow’s Red Square on November 7, 1941, during the Second World War. The parade is remembered as a symbol of the courage, unity and determination of the Soviet people to defend their homeland at a time when German forces had advanced close to Moscow.

According to a statement issued on November 7 by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, many of the soldiers who marched in the parade went directly to the front line. At the time, the front was about 50 kilometres from Red Square and approximately 20 kilometres from the northwestern edge of the city, the statement said.

Around 28,000 servicemen took part in the parade, accompanied by 140 artillery pieces, 160 tanks and 232 motor vehicles. After marching across Red Square, the troops headed to the front to defend Moscow. Marshal of the Soviet Union Semyon Budyonny reviewed the parade, while Pavel Artemyev commanded it. Joseph Stalin, then the country’s supreme commander and chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars, addressed the soldiers and officers from the Lenin Mausoleum.

The parade was broadcast by radio around the world and reported by foreign newspapers. According to the Russian statement, it took the German forces by surprise and had a demoralising effect. About a month later, German forces suffered a major defeat near Moscow, bringing Hitler’s plan for a swift victory over the Soviet Union to failure.

The Russian Foreign Ministry also paid tribute to the Panfilov soldiers, Zoya Kosmodemyanskaya, the Podolsk cadets and thousands of other Red Army members who gave their lives in defence of their homeland. The statement recalled that Soviet forces raised the Victory Banner over the Reichstag in Berlin in May 1945.

Russia says a federal law adopted in 2004 designated November 7 as the Day of Military Glory, commemorating the 1941 parade in Red Square.