What is "stavka"

Stavka is the term used to refer to the high command of the armed forces in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. It was used in Imperial Russia to refer to the administrative staff, and to the General Headquarters in the late 19th Century Imperial Russian armed forces and subsequently in the Soviet Union. In western literature it is sometimes written in uppercase (STAVKA), which is incorrect since the term is not an acronym. The term may be used to refer to its members, as well as to the headquarters location (its original meaning from the old Russian word ставка — Tent).