Josef Stalin assassinated....

[bobbysocks]

i think a lot would have depended on how the SU saw its position and what was to its benefit....i doubt who was at the helm would have made much difference. had he been taken out of office before the purge...the military would have had more experienced officers but that doesnt guarentee any more success or lack thereof at the beginning stages of an invasion.

 

[The Basket]

Most important ..... the rest are just details .... Zhukov was given a "free hand" by Stalin.

Free hand...ie wasnt shot.

Shtern and Smushkevitch were.

Stalin learnt how to execute his generals.

 

[bobbysocks]

or did generals learn how not to get executed?

 

[michaelmaltby]

"...Free hand...ie wasnt shot."

No. Much more than that ... the Political officer for the region was ordered to vacate the territory until the fighting was over and Zhukov was free to call the shots without worrying about his back. My source is Alvin D Coox' definitive book "Nomonhan"

"...or did generals learn how not to get executed?"

Steep learning curve.

MM

 

[tyrodtom]

"...Free hand...ie wasnt shot."

No. Much more than that ... the Political officer for the region was ordered to vacate the territory until the fighting was over and Zhukov was free to call the shots without worrying about his back. My source is Alvin D Coox' definitive book "Nomonhan"

"...or did generals learn how not to get executed?"

Steep learning curve.

MM

But apparently Stalin learned nothing from that.

Two years later during the Battle of Kiev, when Stalin refused his advice on how to proceed, Zhukov asked to be relieved of his position as chief of the general staff.
And he was, moved to commander of the reserve front, a demotion.
From this and other experiences, Stalin did gradually begin to leave more decision making in the hands of his generals, but that came about several years, and millions of deaths after Nomonhan.

 

[michaelmaltby]

"...But apparently Stalin learned nothing from that."

Correct. He was a compulsive paranoid among other 'disorders'.

I mean really .... he turned on his personal doctors .... because they were jews ..... Hitler and Fat Herman were ***** cats beside this psycho.