The clock in the Kremlin Spassky tower chimed 10 as Defense Minister Nikolai Bulganin, resplendent in gold-braided dress uniform, arrived in Moscow's Red Square. He came not astride the usual cavalry charger, but perched on the back seat of a dove-hued ZIS sports car. After briefly touring the crack units up for review, he joined Georgy Malenkov and the eight other Presidium members atop the Lenin-Stalin tomb. As 150 massed bugles unloosed a mighty blast, he advanced to the microphones and began the traditional address on Soviet Russia's 36th May Day.*
Gone were the familiar gibes at warmongers and capitalists....
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
