The Rzhev Memorial to the Soviet Soldier () is a Russian memorial park located in the

Rzhevsky District Rzhevsky District () is an administrative and municipalLaw #4-ZO district (raion), one of the thirty-six in Tver Oblast, Russia. It is located in the south of the oblast and borders with Staritsky District in the north, Zubtsovsky District in th ...

of the

Tver Oblast Tver Oblast (, ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Tver. From 1935 to 1990, it was known as Kalinin Oblast (). Population: Tver Oblast is a region of lakes, such as Seliger and Brosno. Much o ...

. The park is dedicated to the

Battles of Rzhev The Battles of Rzhev () were a series of Red Army offensives against the Wehrmacht between 8 January 1942 and 31 March 1943, on the Eastern Front of World War II. The battles took place in the northeast of Smolensk Oblast and the south of Tve ...

Overview

History

The idea to build the memorial came from veterans of the war who collectively wrote to the Committee of the

Union State of Russia and Belarus The Union State is a supranational union consisting of Belarus and Russia, with the stated aim of deepening the relationship between the two states through integration in economic and defence policy. Originally, the Union State aimed to crea ...

and to scouts of the Russian Military Historical Society (RMHS) in 2017 asking them to create a monument in honor of the

diamond jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th annivers ...

of the victory.

Andrei Korobtsov Andrei Sergeyevich Korobtsov (; born 27 April 1986 in Jezkazgan) is a Russian sculptor, member of the Moscow Union of Artists. He is the author of more than 200 works, including 40 monuments. Biography Born in 1987 in Jezkazgan, Kazakh SSR. His mo ...

and Konstantin Fomin were the respective sculptor and architect for the project, both being chosen following an international competition that looked into the matter. The erection of the monument began in January 2020 and was completed by early May. Despite being completed in time for the anniversary celebrations on 9 May, it was decided, in light of the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

pandemic, that the opening date would be pushed a month later. It was opened in a public ceremony on 30 June attended by Russian President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

, Belarusian President

Alexander Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (also transliterated as Alyaksandr Ryhoravich Lukashenka; born 30 August 1954) is a Belarusian politician who has been the first and only president of Belarus since the office's establishment in 1994, making hi ...

and

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

veterans of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Monument

The monument features a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

25-metre statue of a soldier in the

standing on a 10-metre mound. On the road leading to the mound, there are images of soldiers on broken walls situated on both sides, as well as the names of those who were

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

during the battle. Around 34 million

rubles The ruble or rouble (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is a currency unit. Currently, currencies named ''ruble'' in circulation include the Russian ruble (RUB, ₽) in Russia and the Belarusian ruble (BYN, Rbl) in Belarus. These currencies are su ...

were allocated to the monument from the regional government, alongside the 650 million rubles allocated by the Union States, the budget of the

Russian government The Russian Government () or fully titled the Government of the Russian Federation () is the highest federal executive governmental body of the Russian Federation. It is accountable to the president of the Russian Federation and controlled by ...

, and private donations. The construction of the monument was also financed and supported by organizations such as Lukoil. The image of a soldier dissolving in a flock of birds originates from the poem

Zhuravli "Cranes" (, ), first performed in 1969, is a famous Music of the Soviet Union, Soviet and Music of Russia, Russian song about soldiers who did not come back alive from battles. The song was composed by Yan Frenkel on translation of poem by Rasul Ga ...

Rasul Gamzatov Rasul Gamzatovich Gamzatov (, ; rus, Расу́л Гамза́тович Гамза́тов, p=rɐˈsul ɡɐmˈzatəvʲɪtɕ ɡɐmˈzatəf, a=Rasul Gamzatovich Gamzatov.ru.vorb.oga; 8 September 19233 November 2003) was a Soviet and Russian po ...

, which became iconic thanks to its adaptation to music by

Yan Frenkel Yan Abramovich Frenkel (November 21, 1920August 25, 1989) was a Soviet composer and performer of Jewish descent. Frenkel received the People's Artist of the USSR in 1989 and USSR State Prize in 1982. Biography Yan Frenkel was a Soviet composer ...

"I sometimes feel that the soldiers
Who have not returned from the bloody fields
Never lay down to earth
But turned into white cranes..."

References

External links

* {{coord, 56.2185, 34.2626, type:landmark_region:RU, display=title Parks in Russia World War II memorials in Russia Geography of Tver Oblast Tourist attractions in Tver Oblast Soviet military memorials and cemeteries Monuments and memorials in Russia