30 November 1941

"Developments on the front are taking a turn for the better.
Hitler continues to tread water near Moscow. Suffers massive losses.
The general impression is that the Germans are not strong enough to break through to Moscow.

[...] I am going to Moscow. To accompany Eden and take part in the negotiations! Hurrah! ...

__

[There are no further entries in the diary for 1941. Maisky, who was actively involved (at Eden’s request) in the preparatory stages of the conference in London, joined the foreign secretary on his trip to Moscow during 7–30 December. Never sure as to what was in store, he made sure he took along ‘a considerable quantity of Dunhill’s best’ for Stalin. On the whole, Eden shared Molotov’s hopes of concluding the conference with two agreements, one defining the common strategy and relationship during the war, and the other the nature and borders of Europe in the aftermath of the war (though he did not wish the second to be specific and detailed).
At Eden’s instigation, the Foreign Office embarked on the drafting of the so-called ‘Volga Charter’, to be incorporated into the ‘Atlantic Charter’, recognizing the Soviet demand for a buffer zone in the Baltic and East Poland.
This, they insisted, did not reflect expansionist ambitions, but was a ‘legitimate security claim’.

Once again, Churchill considered only the tactical and propaganda value of the visit. To prevent undesirable commitments, he timed the visit for after the launch of the offensive in Libya. This offensive, he knew, would stifle any debate on strategic priorities and would enable Eden to claim that Britain had indeed opened a second front.

Eden’s visit in early December was overshadowed by two major events.
On his way to Russia he was informed of the attack on Pearl Harbor. A day before the attack, Churchill still appeared conciliatory and flexible in his farewell talk with Maisky, embarking in detail on his vision for a post-war Europe in which the Soviet Union was assigned a prominent role.
Churchill’s hasty departure for Washington a few days after the attack, accompanied by all the chiefs of staff, and the discussion on common strategy at the White House stood in sharp contrast to the perfunctory treatment of Russia.

The second event that overshadowed Eden’s visit was the impressive Soviet counter-offensive at the gates of Moscow. While the Russians gained in confidence, Eden lost a great deal of his bargaining power. As anticipated, he was confronted with the issues of frontiers and strategic collaboration. The initial cordial atmosphere, again coloured by Soviet expectations, soon gave way to frustration and conflict. The intensive negotiations reached deadlock, but a final noncommittal joint declaration and an ostentatious farewell reception at the Kremlin served Stalin as a morale booster at home and a display of unity vis-à-vis the Germans.]"

23 November 1941

"Last week (18 November) the British finally started their long-awaited offensive in Libya.

If the British manage a successful Blitzkrieg in Libya, it may have serious consequences for the general course of the war, because this time they will surely not stop at Benghazi but will go on to Tripoli and possibly even Tunisia.

This would be of immense importance for North Africa, would ease the shipping situation in the Mediterranean and would open routes for attacking Sicily, Sardinia and Italy.

A second front in Europe could be opened before spring. But can the British launch a Blitzkrieg? I am not sure. Well, we’ll see."

__

The Strange World Of... Bolt Thrower | The Quietus
https://thequietus.com/interviews/strange-world-of/bolt-thrower/

Into the Eye of Chaos... - Matt Johnsen Dot Com
http://www.mattjohnsen.com/archive/2005/11/into_the_eye_of.php

[Graphic retelling + slurs] Vic's Dungeon: Bolt Thrower vs. neonazi scum - as narrated by Karl Willets
https://vics-dungeon.blogspot.com/2016/01/bolt-thrower-vs-neonazi-scum-as.html

Bar Fights, Brawls, Fires – The Five Most Unusual Concert Experiences
https://bravewords.com/news/bar-fights-brawls-fires-the-five-most-unusual-concert-experiences/

Realm of Chaos 80s: Slaves to Darkness 25th Anniversary: The Other Realm of Chaos: Bolt Thrower's Album and its Legacy
http://realmofchaos80s.blogspot.com/2013/01/slaves-to-darkness-25th-anniversary_18.html

Picture [1] by Gottlieb Bros, further info: "Bolt Thrower early 90s promo pic and an issue of White Dwarf from 1990 promoting the release of Bolt Thrower’s first LP to use GW licensed artwork, Realm Of Chaos." by fortbraggmagazine (@fortbraggmagazine) - imginn.com
https://imginn.com/p/DE-RKzpoTbO/

Picture [2] collage featuring:

Karl Willetts(Bolt Thrower) has a message : rabm
https://old.reddit.com/r/rabm/comments/ldvnkn/karl_willettsbolt_thrower_has_a_message/

"Their Singer did very clearly approve of that sticker and even reposted it." Antifa sticker seen in Gothenburg, Sweden : AntifascistsofReddit
https://old.reddit.com/r/AntifascistsofReddit/comments/nxz52r/antifa_sticker_seen_in_gothenburg_sweden/

23 October 1941

"Today I spent half the day in Parliament. The course of the war was discussed. There were comparatively few people present, but passions ran high.

Aneurin Bevan was particularly harsh, delivering a truly belligerent speech in which, inter alia, he attacked Halifax for the public statement he made in America that an ‘invasion of the Continent’ was now impossible because of the lack of shipping and arms.
Bevan called Halifax’s conduct ‘all but high treason’ (particularly so because he said all that just as Hitler was preparing his full-scale offensive against Moscow).

Addressing the Government, Bevan shouted several times: ‘If you can’t change your policy, then step down!’ It all had a powerful effect: such words had not been heard in the Commons since the time of the crisis which brought about Chamberlain’s resignation in May 1940."

20 October 1941

"Agniya and I saw Sorochintsy Fair at the Savoy theatre. The play is performed by a company of Whites under the direction of ‘the King of the Black Exchange’ – a certain Pomeroy, a clever Jew from Kharkov. All the revenue from the show goes to the Red Cross for the needs of the USSR.

We were given seats in a special box. With us in the box were Churchill’s wife, and Baron Iliffe and his wife. ‘God Save the King’ and the ‘Internationale’ were played before the beginning of the performance. All stood. Mrs Churchill was standing, too, even though it was her husband who forbade the ‘Internationale’ from being played over the radio, together with the other anthems of the Allies.

The audience clapped the prime minister’s spouse, but Agniya and I received even more applause. How this war has jumbled things up! The Soviet ambassador attends a performance by a White company, the White company gathers money for the Red Army [sic], and the wife of the British prime minister blesses this undertaking.

We had tea during the interval, and Mrs Churchill disclosed a few interesting details about her husband’s way of life.
Before the war, in peacetime, he used to go to bed at midnight and get up at eight. But now there’s no chance for him to sleep his usual eight hours. He almost always goes to bed at two or three in the morning and has to get up at eight, as before.
Which means no more than 5–6 hours of sleep. It’s not enough. The prime minister makes up for it after lunch: he undresses, lies down in bed in complete darkness, and sleeps for an hour or an hour and a half.
Experience has shown that this short daytime rest gives him a lot of strength, and he values it highly. If Churchill does not have any meetings or more or less official engagements in the morning, he stays in bed until lunch, summons his secretary and works with him.

As I was leaving Parliament, some young man in soldier’s uniform approached me and said with pain in his voice: ‘Mr Maisky, I would just like to tell you I’m ashamed of my country, of its conduct at this time.’ I gave the youth a firm handshake."

19 October 1941

"One more week has passed. It has not proved to be decisive. But the situation has not improved; if anything, it has deteriorated.

In the south we have evacuated Odessa. This did not come as a surprise to me. Beaverbrook told me that Stalin was weighing up the possibility of abandoning Odessa if the Crimea needed strengthening.
However, I consider the main deterioration of our position to lie not so much in events at the front as in events in international politics.

I saw Eden several times on the 16th and 17th and enquired about the possibility of England and the USA ‘warning’ Japan that any attempt to attack the USSR would mean war between Japan and the English-speaking democracies. Eden sent a telegraphic message to this effect to Washington and spoke with Winant.
I have no idea what the outcome will be, but I am not very optimistic.

The Soviet Government moved from Moscow to Kuibyshev. This event is both positive and negative at the same time. Positive as an indicator of firm belief in final victory and negative as an indicator of the fact that Moscow is in great danger.

On the morning of the 17th I received a telegram from Molotov in Moscow in which he informed me that on the night of 15–16 October most of the government departments and the diplomatic corps had left for Kuibyshev, but he himself was remaining in Moscow. Molotov also promised that an official statement about the evacuation of the Soviet Government would ‘probably’ appear on the 17th."

22 September 1941

"At the factories. Rallies.
From platform in front of the tanks. ‘Stalin’ is the 1st to roll out. The crowd’s mood like at our meetings in the years of the revolution.
Shop stewards’ meeting – all promise ‘not to let us down’. Crafty Beaverbrook. He organized everything, including shop stewards’ meeting. He’s not afraid.

Is it worth helping increase production in England? On condition that a firm % goes our way.

My broadcast on 27 Sept. ‘Russian tank week’ brought a 20% rise in production."

08 September 1940

"It seems that the Germans themselves have realized the futility of their former tactics, because just yesterday they switched to new techniques of air warfare.

The Germans undertook a massive and intensive air raid of London yesterday afternoon. It was the first raid conducted on such a scale and with such intensity since the beginning of the war. The British were evidently shocked by the surprise attack and responded rather weakly. As a result the Germans succeeded in setting the dockyards on fire and demolishing many buildings and workers’ houses in the East End. The fire is still raging today.

I drove around the East End and stood on the hill in Greenwich Park from where I could clearly see columns of fire and clouds of smoke rising from various locations in the port. They say as many as 400 have been killed and 1,500 wounded. Raids continued throughout the night of the 7th to the 8th. German planes went on pounding the city, taking their bearings from the tongues of fire.

The workers’ districts – the East End and Kilburn – suffered most of all. Many proletarian shacks have been destroyed. Industrial facilities, power stations, gas plants and so on have escaped serious damage. The Finnish embassy, though, has been wrecked.

I don’t know whether or not the Germans are targeting military objects; if they are, they are doing a bad job of it.

It’s hardly surprising: yesterday and today the German planes have been flying at an altitude of about 7 kilometres. British resistance last night was very feeble. The sky was ablaze with searchlights, but they rarely picked out the enemy planes. The antiaircraft guns were mostly silent. Strange.

The people are greatly alarmed at the absence of any proper retaliation. The Government will face serious difficulties if this continues."