1941 in the Soviet Union

Events

:"24-hour clock is used."
*January 1: Soviet Armed Forces reach 4,207,000
*February 15-20: 18th Conference of VKP(b)
*February 24: Kramatorsk Plant of Heavy Machine-Tool Construction was commissioned
*March 20: Head of Intelligence Filipp Golikov presented the report, which indicated the possible directions of German invasion to the Soviet Union
*May 13: Head of the Red Army's General Staff issued directives on advancing the 25th Soviet Rifle Corps and the 19th, 21st and 22nd Armies to the line of Western Dvina and Dnepr
*May 14: Narkom of Defence Semyon Timoshenko gave an order on pre-term graduation of cadets, commissioning them to the troops
*May 16: diplomatic relations with Iraq were established
*June 12: Timoshenko ordered the military councils of boundary districts to start the advancing of troops from rear closer to the state frontier
*June 13: Joseph Stalin suspended Timoshenko's request to bring the frontier troops into alertness
*June 14: TASS issued a report, labelling groundless the statements about the forthcoming war with Germany, spread by foreign and particularly British press
*June 21: Georgy Zhukov imparted via HF of waiting for important document to the staff heads of the military districts
*June 22: VKP(b)'s Central Committee issues the decree "On the Organization of Struggle in the Rear of German troops"; diplomatic relations with Germany ceased, relations with Italy, Romania and Denmark were interrupted
**Commander-in-Chief of the Black Sea Fleet Filipp Oktyabrsky reported Zhukov on approaching of the large amount of unknown aircraft at 03:07
**Head of Staff of the Western Military District General Vladimir Klimovskikh reported on German air raids on Byelorussian towns at 03:30
**Western and Baltic Military Districts reported on the onset of German ground hostilities at 04:10
**Brest Fortress was shelled at 04:15
**Timoshenko's directive N2 was delivered to military districts at 07:15
**sixteen German aircraft bombed Grodno at 07:15 from the altitude of 1 km
**Government's public radio report on the declaration of war at 12:00
*June 23: High Command Headquarters (later - Headquarters of Supreme Commander-in-Chief) was formed; mobilization plan on ammunition production was introduced; Soviets leave Grodno
*June 25-28: Kaunas pogrom
*June 26: Daugavpils surrendered
*June 27: Slutsk surrendered
*June 28: Minsk surrendered
*June 29: Operation Silver Fox begins
*June 30: State Defence Committee was formed; diplomatic relations with France were interrupted
*July 3: Stalin gave a broadcast talk
*July 4: directive on economical policy during the forced evacuation of production facilities was issued; State Defence Committee adopted decree "On voluntary mobilization of Moscow and the Moscow Oblast working-people to the divisions of people's militia"
*July 10: Battle of Smolensk breaks out
*July 11-September 26: Battle of Kiev
*July 15: Battle of Uman begins
*July 16: Presidium of the Supreme Soviet establishes the office of military commissar
*July 18: diplomatic relations with Czechoslovakia were resumed
*July 25: Petliura Days
*July 30: Reserve Front was formed; diplomatic relations with Polish government-in-exile were established, while relations with Greece were resumed
*August 1: Boris Shaposhnikov succeeded Zhukov as the Head of the General Staff
*August 5-October 16: Siege of Odessa
*August 5: diplomatic relations with Norway were resumed
*August 7: diplomatic relations with Belgium were resumed
*August 25: Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran begins; Germans took Dnepropetrovsk
*August 30: Yelnya Offensive begins
*September 4: shelling of Leningrad began
*September 8: Encirclement of Leningrad was completed
*September 9: Operation Wotan was started
*September 12: 1st Battle of Rostov begins
*September 18: the 100th, 127th, 153rd and 161st Soviet Rifle Divisions were converted into the Guards Divisions
*September 19: Soviets left Kiev
*September 30: the Battle of Moscow outburst
*October 1: Vsevobuch was re-introduced
*October 4: Germans captured Spas-Demensk
*October 5: Germans captured Yukhnov
*October 6: Bryansk was captured
*October 12: State Defence Committee decides on building the defensive lines near Moscow
*October 13: Battle at Borodino Field takes place; fall of Kaluga
*October 14: Germans took Kalinin
*October 16: fall of Borovsk
*October 18: fall of Mozhaysk and Maloyaroslavets
*October 19: State Defence Committee introduced the state of siege in Moscow and adjacent areas
*October 30: Germans imposed siege on Sevastopol
*December 5: Germans entered Yelets
*December 9: Soviets relieved Rogachyovo, Venyov and Yelets
*December 11: Solnechnogorsk was relieved
*December 15: Soviets relieved Klin at 02:00
*December 16: Kalinin was relieved
*December 20: Volokolamsk was relieved
*December 26: Naro-Fominsk was relieved

Births

*Viktor Ageyev, boxer (in Moscow)
*Viktor Anichkin, football player (in Sverdlovsk)
*Anatoliy Ivanov, film director (in Vyshny Volochyok)
*Andrei Mironov, actor (in Moscow)
*Gennadiy Prashkevich, science fiction writer (in Pirovskoye, Krasnoyarsk Krai)
*Vitaly Solomin, actor (in Chita)
*Vyacheslav Vedenin, skier (in Sloboda, Tula Oblast)

Deaths

*Maria Spiridonova, politician (near Oryol)
*Stepan Suprun, twice Hero of the Soviet Union (in Monastyri, Byelorussian SSR)
*Marina Tsvetayeva, poetess (in Yelabuga)

References

*Анфилов, В.А. Провал "блицкрига". М., Наука, 1974
*Василевский, А. Дело всей жизни. М., 1975
*Жуков, Г.К. Воспоминания и размышления. М., 1972
*Яковлев, А. Цель жизни. М., 1970
*Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 1971, vol. 4; 1977, vol. 24 (II)