Parade of the Vanquished



The Parade of the Vanquished (Парад побеждëнных), also known as The Defeat Parade (Парад поражения), was a march of German prisoners of war on 17 July 1944 in Moscow. The parade was a result of the ongoing Operation Bagration on the Eastern Front, during World War II. Large numbers of German troops were held captive by the Soviets, and the operation was considered a turning point in the war and represented the largest losses of German troops. Approximately 57,000 captured troops were chosen, organized and paraded in Moscow. These men were among the most healthy to make the march as close to half of the total losses for Germany during the operation came from 160,000 troops dying on the march to Soviet prison camps. The parade was used by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin to demonstrate the success of the operation.