The battle of Rzhev is one of the bloodiest battles of the Second World War, which took part in 1942-1943. The City of Military Glory title was awarded to Rzhev and other 45 settlements for the heroism of soldiers and residents in different periods of history. Rzhev and the neighboring towns were almost destroyed during the 17 months of occupation.
Different peoples of the Union fought for peace in the battles near Rzhev, and many Belarusians died here. Despite busy schedule of Alexander Lukashenko, he could not but attend the opening of the memorial. This is the first working trip since the beginning of the pandemic for Vladimir Putin.
Veterans of the Great Patriotic War took the initiative and addressed the Committee of the Union State to support the project. Now it is the largest bronze monument to Soviet soldiers in Europe. The sculpture took more than two years to be built. 12 veterans attended the opening ceremony today.
This memorial was built on public donations
The names of thousands of soldiers are immortalized near Rzhev. An installation that simulates trenches was created around the monument. Steel and rusty metal are like fragments from explosions and contain more than 17 000 names of those who died in the battle of Rzhev.
Alexander Lukashenko noted that it is important that the initiative came from the veterans. Both Presidents attended the opening of the memorial. Vladimir Putin emphasized that the heroes of that time are a moral role model for the present generations. Alexander Lukashenko reminded that Belarusians and Russians should remember their history.
The Presidents stood at a distance. The opening of the memorial was scheduled for May 9, but due to the epidemic, it was postponed. The authors of the project spent 2 weeks in isolation before this event.
The Presidents took part in the Garden of Memory campaign. The idea is to plant 27 million trees. A living monument to everyone who died in the Great Patriotic war. The volunteers are eager to complete the action next year in Brest, where the war started 80 years ago. Alexander Lukashenko agreed.
Rzhev memorial will be opened to the public on July 1
Rzhev memorial is also a multimedia center. The pavilion has collected photos, front-line letters and stories of the participants of the battle of Rzhev. The monument reminds people of the war and that such events should not happen again in our history.
