To Stalin's listeners (see above) it was good to know that Kiev was free again.
For to the Russians Kiev was the "mother of cities," Russia's ancient capital, a venerated center of history and lore, a beloved and lovely spot. From Kiev, Slav buccaneers sailed on their raids to ancient Byzantium, down the Dnieper and across the turbulent Black Sea. A thousand years ago, Kiev's ruler, Prince Vladimir, was baptized in the sluggish Dnieper, made Kiev the heart of Russia's Greek Orthodox faith. When Berlin was still a muddy village, Kiev's famed Petchersky Monastery was green with age.
Arrogant Field Marshal Walter von...