Days of military glory are special days on the calendar, which today mark the significant victories of the Russian troops, who played a decisive role in the fate of the country. They have existed since 1995. The concept of memorable dates has officially existed since 2010, they include other important events in public life, which should be immortalized in the historical memory of the people.
Adoption of law
The days of military glory are listed in a special law, which provides for ceremonial events in the troops, organize all kinds of public events on Russian memorial days. By order of the Ministry of Defense, fireworks are organized twice a year, necessarily on the Day of Defenders of the Fatherland and on Victory Day. Financing is provided from the federal treasury.
Moreover, the law provides for the creation of appropriate museums, the installation of monuments and commemorative signs, the organization of an information campaign in the media and exhibitions, the appropriation of names for cities, towns, villages, new housing estates and streets. Mandatory is the arrangement of territories associated with a particular feat.
Military history
Days of military glory in Russia are celebrated 17 times. We will dwell on some of them in more detail, but first we will list everything in a calendar order.
February 27 marks the day when Soviet troops were able to break through the blockade of Leningrad, freeing the city from prolonged confinement. This happened in 1944.
February 2 is the day of victory over the Nazi invaders in the Battle of Stalingrad. The day of military glory is dated for 1943.
February 23 - Defender of the Fatherland Day, which is dedicated to the formation of the Red Army on this date in 1918.
On April 18, in 1242, Prince Alexander Nevsky won a landslide victory on Lake Peipsi over the German knights. This battle is also known as the Battle of the Ice.
May 9 - one of the most important holidays of our country - Victory Day in the Great Patriotic War. These are the dates that are celebrated in the first half of the year.
Second half of the year
July 7 marks the iconic naval victory of the Russian fleet. In 1770, in the battle of Chesme, Russian troops defeated Turkish ships.
July 10 - Poltava battle. It was on this day in 1709 that Peter the Great defeated the Swedes.
August 9 is another success of the Petrine army, which took place in 1714. The Russian fleet this time defeated the Swedes at Cape Gangut.
On August 23, Nazi invaders were defeated in the Battle of Kursk, which took place in 1943.
September 8 marks the Day of the Battle of Borodino during the Patriotic War against the French, which occurred in 1812.
On September 11, 1790, a squadron of Russian admiral Ushakov took over the Turkish fleet at Cape Tendra.
On September 21, Prince Dmitry Donskoy defeated the Mongol-Tatar army in the Battle of Kulikovo, which took place in 1380.
November 4 - one of the youngest all-Russian holidays - National Unity Day, this holiday is dedicated to the success of the militia fighters organized by Minin and Pozharsky, who took Kitai Gorod in 1612 , forcing the army of the Commonwealth to retreat from Moscow.
November 7 is a symbolic day dedicated to the confrontation with the Nazis. It was on this day in 1941 that a parade took place on Red Square on the 24th anniversary of the Great October Revolution.
On December 1, 1853, the squadron of Admiral Nakhimov defeated the Turkish fleet in a battle near Cape Sinop.
On December 5, 1941, Soviet troops were able to launch a counterattack for the first time since the start of World War II. This happened in the battles near Moscow, before that the Germans were moving almost unhindered across the territory of the USSR only forward.
December 24, 1790 the army under the command of Suvorov stormed the Turkish fortress of Izmail.
These Days of Military Glory are celebrated in Russia, and commemorative and solemn events are organized.
Leningrad blockade
One of the most heroic pages in the history of Russia is the blockade of Leningrad. In honor of her, Day of Military Glory was also established. The blockade lasted 872 days - from September 8, 1941 to January 27, 1944. It was attended not only by German troops, which formed the basis of the fascist army, but also units of the Spanish, Finnish, Italian troops.
It is noteworthy that during the beginning of the blockade, the city did not have enough fuel and food. The only way to get in touch with the rest of the country and get support from there was that Leningraders could do this only on Lake Ladoga. Moreover, it was in the immediate reach of aviation and artillery, so each such trip was deadly, it was not known whether it would end in success.
In addition, even under ideal conditions, the throughput of this waterway did not meet the needs of city residents. Because of this, famine began in Leningrad, which was especially difficult to endure due to the harsh winter of 1941-1942. There were interruptions in heating, this led to hundreds of thousands of deaths only among the civilian population, who did not have time to evacuate.
Only in 1944, Soviet troops were able to break through the blockade. Since then, the day of military glory has been celebrated on this date.
Tipping battle of war
One of the most important events of World War II is the Battle of Stalingrad. February 2 is the Day of Military Glory of Russia dedicated to this event. It is believed that the Battle of Stalingrad became one of the defining battles in the confrontation with the Nazi invaders. The battle unfolded on the territory of several regions at once, the main events took place in the modern Volgograd region.
The Germans hoped to capture Stalingrad, blocking communication between the Caucasus and the central regions of the USSR, here the Germans would create an important bridgehead that would allow them to launch an offensive in order to capture the Caucasian oil fields and further advance inland.
The Red Army stopped the Germans in defensive battles. The Germans eventually capitulated. Since then, it was February 2 that marks yet another Day of military glory of Russia.
Battle of Peipsi
The oldest event, which is one of the Days of Military Glory, is the Battle of the Ice, which occurred in 1242.
The battle took place on Lake Peipsi, troops led by Prince Alexander Nevsky defeated the army of the Livonian Order.
The Russians surrounded the Teutons, part of the army was destroyed, and part fled. 7 versts Russians still pursued the Teutonic army.
Marine success
Among the memorable days of the military glory of Russia there are many naval battles. One of the most iconic occurred in 1714 at Cape Gangut. In the Baltic Sea, the Russian army met with the Swedish. This was the first in the history of Russia large-scale and significant naval victory of the Russian fleet, which was won under the command of Peter the Great.
It took place as part of the Northern War. The vanguard of the domestic fleet in this battle was commanded by Matvey Zmaevich, who began a swift passage, circling the enemy’s ships, while remaining himself unattainable for them. Following him went another detachment of 15 ships.
The Swedes suggested that the rest of the Russian ships would act in the same way. But instead, Apraksin, with the main forces of the rowing fleet, made a breakthrough along the coastal channel.
As a result, 23 ships attacked the Swedish squad, lining up in a concave line. The Swedes repelled the first few attacks with ship guns. But as a result, they were captured and boarded, while the sailors demonstrated an example of heroism and courage. As a result, 10 Swedish ships were captured, this was a decisive turning point in this battle.
Memorable for many dates
Days of military glory and memorable dates in Russia play an important role in modern society. There are 15 memorable dates in the calendar. Unlike the events dedicated to the domestic military successes, they are in no way connected with military successes and battles. We list all of them.
January 25 is the Day of Russian Students. The date of February 15 is the Day of Remembrance of the Russians who performed their official duty on the territory of foreign states, outside the country.
April 12 - Cosmonautics Day. In 1961, a native of the town of Gzhatsk, Smolensk region named Yuri Gagarin became the first person on planet Earth to go into space.
April 26, liquidators of radiation disasters. It is on this day that they are remembered for a reason. This is due to the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 1986.
April 27 is the Day of Russian Parliamentarism.
June 22 is the only day among the memorable dates of Russia, which is associated with the Great Patriotic War. This is a sad day of memory and sorrow, dedicated to the attack of the Nazi troops in 1941.
June 29 is the Day of partisans and underground workers, and July 28 is the Day of the Baptism of Russia.
August 1 is another memorable day related to the war. This time with the First World War. It is called Memorial Day of Russian soldiers.
September 2 marks the official end of World War II, which actually ended only after the signing of surrender by Japan. September 3 is another date that has become particularly important and relevant in recent years - the Day of Solidarity in the fight against terrorism.
November 7 - October Revolution Day. On December 3, unknown soldiers are remembered all over the world, whose graves are installed in different countries.
December 9 is the Day of Heroes of the Fatherland, and December 12 is the Day of the Russian Constitution.
Man in space
One of the most famous days of military glory and memorable dates in Russia is April 12, when Yuri Gagarin went into space.
It was on this day that the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin went flying around the planet Earth on the Vostok-1 ship. He set off on a journey from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, the first in the world to make an orbital flyby of the Earth. Its total duration was 108 minutes.
The tragedy in Chernobyl
The tragedy at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant occurred due to an accident at the fourth power unit. As a result, the reactor was almost completely destroyed, a huge amount of radioactive substances appeared in the environment. This was the largest of such accidents in terms of the number of victims, economic consequences, and damage.
Already in the first few months, 31 people died, over the next years, several dozens more died directly from the health consequences of accidents. A cloud from a bursting reactor carried substances hazardous to human life and health for most of Europe, but the greatest fallout was observed in the Soviet Union.
This has become an important socio-political event for the whole world, its consequences have changed the perception by mankind of the possibilities of using atomic energy for peaceful purposes. The approach to the interpretation of the circumstances of the accident, as well as the actions of the authorities and those responsible has changed over time, a common opinion has not yet been developed. This has become one of the most significant tragedies in world history.