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“On the
night of October 14-15, the situation on the western front
deteriorated,” a Red Army document states. “The German-Fascist
forces pitted large forces of tanks and mobile infantry against our
forces and penetrated our defenses in one sector.” Two entire
Soviet armies, with more than 650,000 soldiers, were neutralized in
the first two weeks of October. Stalin ordered government offices
and some enterprises in the capital to evacuate, although he
remained there to command the defense. German patrols came so close
to the Soviet capital that they could see its water tower 15 miles
away. This marked the Soviets’ lowest point in the military
campaign. |
