Single page newspaper-sized, 12" x 14 ½", front only, entitled "Speech of People's Commissar of Defense Comrade Stalin at the Red Army Parade on 7 November 1941in Red Square, Moscow." Published in Ivanovo, a textile industry center about 250 miles north-east of Moscow, circulation 5,000. Evidently, all local printing workshops country-wide were instructed to issue a relatively small number of copies to deliver the speech to the population as quickly as possible.

It is a masterful speech: simple short phrases, comparison of the current situation to the Russian Civil War, when the young fledgling Soviet Republic, surrounded by a crowd of brutes, foreign and domestic, stood their ground and won; assurance that now the country is much stronger, its human resources immeasurable. And finally, the appeal to be worthy of their great ancestors - Alexander Nevsky, Dmitry Donskoy, Suvorov and Kutuzov. Long live our great Motherland! Forward to victory!

After the parade Stalin left Moscow and hid in Kuibyshev (Samara) on the Volga, a safe distance away from Hitler's hordes.

In very good to excellent condition. The edges are slightly wrinkled, and there is a rip to the top margin, not reaching the header. The text and Stalin's portrait are crisp and clear.

Please note that the pen in our photo is for size reference.