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The First Moscow Conference (Codename: Caviar) of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
took place from September 29, 1941 to October 1, 1941.


Prelude

The initial contact with the
USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
came with Presidential
Envoy Envoy or Envoys may refer to: Diplomacy * Diplomacy, in general * Envoy (title) * Special envoy, a type of diplomatic rank Brands *Airspeed Envoy, a 1930s British light transport aircraft *Envoy (automobile), an automobile brand used to sell Bri ...
and Director of the
Lend-Lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
programme
Harry Hopkins Harry Lloyd Hopkins (August 17, 1890 – January 29, 1946) was an American statesman, public administrator, and presidential advisor. A trusted deputy to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Hopkins directed New Deal relief programs before servi ...
with Soviet leader
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...
in Moscow. On 30 July 1941 Hopkins briefed journalists at
Spaso House Spaso House is a listed Neoclassical Revival building at No. 10 Spasopeskovskaya Square in Moscow. It was originally built in 1913 as the mansion of the textile industrialist Nikolay Vtorov. Since 1933, it has been the residence of the ...
, the US Embassy residence. At 20.00, he was described as looking 'pale and tired' and speaking 'faintly, his voice dwindling away at times to an inaudible mumble'. Hopkins confirmed he had spoken with Stalin and had informed the Soviet leader of President Roosevelt's admiration for the Russian resistance to the
German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
. Hopkins added that he had told Stalin of the United States' resolve to support the USSR with supplies. Stalin thanked Hopkins and told him the confidence in his country would not be misplaced. The pair met again at 18.00 the following day at the
Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty, Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of th ...
. Hopkins once more returned to Spaso House and brief the press. He described how pleasantries were done away with and they got down to specifics. Hopkins added: Hopkins concluded his business and flew back to London on Friday 1 August. The Moscow conference was proposed following the meeting between British
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
and US
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
at
Placentia Bay Placentia Bay (french: Baie de Plaisance) is a body of water on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada. It is formed by Burin Peninsula on the west and Avalon Peninsula on the east. Fishing grounds in the bay were used by native people long ...
. A joint message was sent to from Churchill and Roosevelt to Joseph Stalin with the proposal. It was delivered to Stalin on August 15 at 18.00 by US Ambassador
Laurence Steinhardt Laurence Adolph Steinhardt (October 6, 1892 – March 28, 1950) was an American economist, lawyer, and senior diplomat of the United States Department of State who served as U.S. Ambassador to six countries. He served as U.S. First Minister to Sw ...
and British Ambassador
Sir Stafford Cripps Sir Richard Stafford Cripps (24 April 1889 – 21 April 1952) was a British Labour Party politician, barrister, and diplomat. A wealthy lawyer by background, he first entered Parliament at a by-election in 1931, and was one of a handful of La ...
. They handed over identical copies signed by Roosevelt and Churchill. Stalin immediately dictated a reply for presentation to the ambassadors giving his agreement to the proposal. An announcement on
Radio Moscow Radio Moscow ( rus, Pадио Москва, r=Radio Moskva), also known as Radio Moscow World Service, was the official international broadcasting station of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics until 1993. It was reorganized with a new name ...
said:


The Conference

The delegates flew into Moscow on 28 September. They were greeted by Vice-Commissar
Andrei Vyshinsky Andrey Yanuaryevich Vyshinsky (russian: Андре́й Януа́рьевич Выши́нский; pl, Andrzej Wyszyński) ( – 22 November 1954) was a Soviet politician, jurist and diplomat. He is known as a state prosecutor of Joseph S ...
and the staffs of the British and US embassies. W. Averell Harriman representing the
United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
and
Lord Beaverbrook William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (25 May 1879 – 9 June 1964), generally known as Lord Beaverbrook, was a Canadian-British newspaper publisher and backstage politician who was an influential figure in British media and politics o ...
representing the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
met with
Vyacheslav Molotov Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov. ; (;. 9 March Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O._S._25_February.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O. S. 25 February">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dat ...
(Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs) presiding. Their respective ambassadors took the delegates to meet Stalin on the same evening. Molotov was also present along with
Maxim Litvinov Maxim Maximovich Litvinov (; born Meir Henoch Wallach; 17 July 1876 – 31 December 1951) was a Russian revolutionary and prominent Soviet statesman and diplomat. A strong advocate of diplomatic agreements leading towards disarmament, Litvinov wa ...
who was attending as a delegate acted as
translator Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
. The conference opened on 29 September at the residence of the Foreign Commissariat, the Spiridonovka Palace. Following a closed session an official communique was released, prepared by
Quentin Reynolds Quentin James Reynolds (April 11, 1902 – March 17, 1965) was an American journalist and World War II war correspondent. He also played American football for one season in the National Football League (NFL) with the Brooklyn Lions. Early life a ...
(of
Collier's ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened in 1905 to ''Collie ...
magazine) and
Vernon Bartlett Charles Vernon Oldfield Bartlett, CBE (30 April 1894 – 18 January 1983) was an English journalist, politician and author. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1938 to 1950: first as an Independent Progressive advocating a Popular Fro ...
MP (
News Chronicle The ''News Chronicle'' was a British daily newspaper. Formed by the merger of '' The Daily News'' and the ''Daily Chronicle'' in 1930, it ceased publication on 17 October 1960,''Liberal Democrat News'' 15 October 2010, accessed 15 October 2010 be ...
and
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
). This main session lasted for 30 minutes but delegations appointed members for the committees who went into immediate session. They were instructed to have reports on the Soviet requirements ready by the morning of 3 October. The conference reconvened on 1 October, two days ahead of schedule, for the second and final meeting of the main delegations. The agreement signed, known as the First Protocol, was signed on 1 October 1941. The agreement was set to run until June 1942. It promised the Soviet Union 400 aircraft, 500 tanks and 10,000 trucks a month in addition to other supplies. A joint statement was issued by Lord Beaverbrook and Avril Harriman, separate from the conference communique. The closing paragraph stated: The delegates departed by Douglas passenger planes on 3 October where they boarded HMS Harrier in the White Sea. The Halcyon-class
minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...
took them to meet the County-class
heavy cruiser The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in caliber, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval Tr ...
HMS London to transfer the party at sea. A gangplank was passed between the two ships and American
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
William Standley William Harrison Standley (18 December 1872 – 25 October 1963) was an admiral in the United States Navy, who served as Chief of Naval Operations from 1933 to 1937. He also served as the U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1941 until ...
crossed first. Lord Beaverbrook crossed with a rope around his waist in case he fell. The ships separated and HMS London called via loudspeaker "Well done, Harrier, Well done". In a speech of 6 November 1941 to mark the 24th anniversary of the
October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
Joseph Stalin stated:


Churchill's Caviar

Aside from the main events of the conference there was an incident regarding the purchase of
caviar Caviar (also known as caviare; from fa, خاویار, khâvyâr, egg-bearing) is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or a spread. Traditionally, the ter ...
for Prime Minister Churchill. Philip Jordan, reporting for the News Chronicle from the news conference. However, his despatches were also carried by ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and Lord Beaverbrook's own ''
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
''. Jordan learned from an undisclosed source that Lord Beaverbrook had sent an employee to buy £25
GBP Sterling (abbreviation: stg; Other spelling styles, such as STG and Stg, are also seen. ISO code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound ( sign: £) is the main unit of sterling, and t ...
(approximately $100
USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
) for the Prime Minister. Churchill read the report and
telegraphed Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
Lord Beaverbrook, who in turn asked Jordan about the matter. Jordan refused to name his source and Beaverbrook accused younger officials from the
British Embassy This is a list of diplomatic missions of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, excluding honorary consulates. The UK has one of the largest global networks of diplomatic missions. UK diplomatic missions to capitals of other Com ...
of leaking information. Ultimately, while it turned out to be true that Churchill had ordered the caviar the amount was exaggerated. However, it was feared that it would reflect badly that such a large quantity of caviar was purchased at a time of
rationing Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...
.


See also

*
Anglo-Soviet Agreement The Anglo-Soviet Agreement was a formal military alliance that was signed by the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union against Nazi Germany on July 12, 1941, shortly after the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Unio ...
*
Anglo-Soviet Treaty of 1942 The Anglo-Soviet Treaty, formally the Twenty-Year Mutual Assistance Agreement Between the United Kingdom and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, established a military and political alliance between the Soviet Union and the British Empire. ...
*
Declaration by United Nations The Declaration by United Nations was the main treaty that formalized the Allies of World War II and was signed by 47 national governments between 1942 and 1945. On 1 January 1942, during the Arcadia Conference, the Allied "Four Policemen, Big Fo ...
* Russia–United Kingdom relations#Second World War * Diplomatic history of World War II * Second
Moscow Conference (1942) The Second Moscow Conference (Codename: BRACELET) between the major Allies of World War II took place from August 12, 1942, to August 17, 1942. Prelude On July 30, 1942, Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden passed a message to Prime Minister Winst ...
* Third
Moscow Conference (1943) The Third Moscow Conference between the major Allies of World War II took place during October 18 to November 11, 1943, at the Moscow Kremlin and Spiridonovka Palace. It was composed of major diplomats, ministers and generals, who discussed coopera ...
* Fourth
Moscow Conference (1944) The Fourth Moscow Conference, also known as the Tolstoy Conference for its code name ''Tolstoy'', was a meeting in Moscow between Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin from 9 October to 19 October 1944. Procedures Churchill made a secret proposa ...
(TOLSTOY) *
List of World War II conferences This is a list of World War II conferences of the Allies of World War II. Conference names in boldface indicate the conferences at which the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union were all present. For the historica ...


References


External links


YouTube
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Report of the Conference {{Joseph Stalin, state=collapsed World War II conferences Soviet Union–United Kingdom relations Soviet Union–United States diplomatic conferences Diplomatic conferences in the Soviet Union 1941 in the Soviet Union 1941 conferences 1941 in international relations 1941 in Moscow