The book reveals the role and significance of the State Defense Committee under the leadership of I.V. Stalin during the Great Patriotic War. It is based on rare documents, such as the previously closed personal archives of I.V. Stalin, G.K. Zhukov, A. . M. Vasilevsky, A. I. Mikoyan, archives of the President of the Russian Federation, the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense, Journal of J. V. Stalin’s visits to his Kremlin office. The author’s assessments of some events and personalities do not always coincide with those already established, which indicates a new approach. to the study of our history.