The Russian winter has been cited as a factor which significantly contributed to military failures of several invasions of Russia. Common nicknames to this concept are General Frost, General Winter and General Snow. Another similar factor is "General Mud" (see "rasputitsa"). Significance of these factors has been criticized.
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Famous quotes containing the words russian and/or winter:
“An enormously vast field lies between “God exists” and “there is no God.” The truly wise man traverses it with great difficulty. A Russian knows one or the other of these two extremes, but is not interested in the middle ground. He usually knows nothing, or very little.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“The moles nested in my cellar, nibbling every third potato, and making a snug bed even there of some hair left after plastering and of brown paper; for even the wildest animals love comfort and warmth as well as man, and they survive the winter only because they are so careful to secure them.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)