Great Britain Gave the Soviet Union the Sword of Stalingrad, Inscribed by King George VI, and Delivered by Churchill at the Tehran Conference
One of the biggest and most significant battles in human history was the Battle of Stalingrad. The victorious Red Army lost roughly 500,000 soldiers, while the entire German army was decimated with 750,000 losses. It put a halt to German offensive operations on the Eastern Front and marked a sea change in the conflict. Winston Churchill proposed the British prepare a gift for the Soviet people in 1943 as he got ready to attend the Tehran Conference with President Roosevelt and Soviet Premier Stalin. This was done to recognize the Soviet people's success and their immense suffering up until that point in the war.
The Wilkinson Weapon Company was given a special order by King George VI to create the Sword of Stalingrad, a distinctive commemorative sword. The hilt of the sword was bound with 18 karat gold. Silver served as the crossguard, while the pommel was fashioned of crystal. The words "To the steel-hearted citizen of Stalingrad - the Gift of King George VI - in mark of homage of the British people" were inscribed down each side of its blade, which was made of the best Sheffield steel. Churchill's party transported the two-handed sword to Tehran in November 1943.
During a conference break, Churchill gave Stalin the Sword of Stalingrad in front of Roosevelt, who approved of its message and significance. Stalin recognized it as a gift between allies during the war, but he also used the summit to press for more Lend-Lease funding and the opening of a second front in Europe right once. The sword, a Soviet gift from Britain, was abandoned in a museum in Volgograd by the turn of the twenty-first century. It visited Britain three times during the post-war years for tours before being sent back to the Soviet Union and relative obscurity.
