Four pages 8" x 11", front only. Zhukov's signature is on page 2 in bold black pencil. The document is an official decree, marked "Secret" and serial numbered, ordering transfer of five officers to different posts within the same unit.

The decree is also signed by a member of the military council of the district Borisov, Chief of Staff of the district Purkayev and a senior commissar Sergeyev. There is, however, an "extra" signature on the verso of p. 2 which is not accompanied by the rank and position of the signatory.

In very good overall condition. Staple holes in the left

Four pages 8" x 11", front only. Zhukov's signature is on page 2 in bold black pencil. The document is an official decree, marked "Secret" and serial numbered, ordering transfer of five officers to different posts within the same unit.

The decree is also signed by a member of the military council of the district Borisov, Chief of Staff of the district Purkayev and a senior commissar Sergeyev. There is, however, an "extra" signature on the verso of p. 2 which is not accompanied by the rank and position of the signatory.

In very good overall condition. Staple holes in the left filing margin do not reach the typed text or any of the signatures. All the typed text and signatures are clear of any wear and perfectly legible. The paper is slightly wrinkled. Mild discoloration along the right edge is due to exposure to sunlight, not too obvious.

This decree is from an important stage in Zhukov's career. During the previous year, he had led the Soviet troops in the Far East in the Battle of Khalkhin Gol which turned out to be his first major victory. Now, having acquired a reputation for both ruthlessness and effectiveness, Zhukov was entrusted by Stalin to command the all-important Kiev Special Military District. The special status of the district was not only due to its location on the Soviet western frontier and its role in attacking Poland, but also because it was in the process of secretly amassing an unprecedented amount of armor and air power in anticipation of the upcoming war with Germany.

Immediately after the war, Zhukov, proudly wearing the recent popularly awarded moniker "the Victory Marshal", gained a level of popularity and influence which Stalin and his closest cohort perceived as threatening, and it began to show shortly after. Zhukov was accused of "Bonapartism" and was gradually but efficiently "squeezed" out of military command and, eventually, from the political scene altogether. One of the last nails in the coffin of Zhukov's military career was an article, published in 1957 over the signature of Marshal Konev (Zhukov's long-time competitor for the top spot on the military Olympus), giving chapter and verse about Zhukov's failures as a military commander and administrator.
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