Virtually every city in the former USSR has Victory Square - a place of sorrow and blessed memory of soldiers who died in the harsh years of the Second World War. Every year on May 9, ceremonies are held here in honor of people who fought for the freedom of the Soviet people.
Victory Square in Minsk is located on Independence Avenue. In former times, it was called Round. And only in 1954 (with the erection of the monument) received a new symbolic name, which is used to this day. Victory Square is one of the most beautiful memorable places in Minsk, built according to a single architectural plan. A thirty-meter obelisk, enveloped on both sides of the roadway and located near two picturesque squares, was erected in July 1954. Its top is decorated with the Order of Victory. The famous Belarusian architect G. Zaborsky, believing in the solid spirit of the Soviet people, began work on the monument back in 1942. At the base of the monument on a pedestal lies a sword decorated with a laurel branch. On four faces of the obelisk are high reliefs cast from bronze - the work of eminent sculptors A. Bembel, S. Selikhanov, Z. Azgur and A. Glebov. The architects did not forget about the national color - the granite stele is decorated with "belts" with Belarusian ornaments.
Wreaths of bronze, located around the monument, symbolize the four fronts that participated in the bloody liberation of the country from Nazi occupiers. Granite for facing was brought to Belarus from Zhytomyr and Dnepropetrovsk, mosaic for the order from Leningrad, Ukrainian craftsmen, high reliefs, a sword and other elements of the composition were cast in
stone , were cast in St. Petersburg. At the foot of the monument on July 3, 1961, a memorable
eternal flame was solemnly lit.
In connection with the construction of the subway (in 1984), Victory Square (Minsk) was re-planned.
The reconstruction project was undertaken by architects B. Shkolnikov, B. Larchenko, K. Vyazgin. From round she turned into an oval. The renewed Victory Square was decorated with granite blocks that personify Soviet hero cities. A ring gallery appeared under the monument, passing into the memorial hall in memory of the heroes of the Second World War. In its center is a glass wreath illuminated from the inside, created by the artist V. Poznyak. Plates with the names of 566 Soviet soldiers who participated in the liberation of the Republic of Belarus and awarded the honorary title "Hero" are fixed on the walls, as well as the main award - the Star.
Since 1984, stone pedestals have been installed on the square, inside of which are capsules with the ground of all Soviet hero cities: Volgograd, Moscow, Odessa, Leningrad, Kiev, Kerch, Sevastopol, Tula, Novorossiysk, Brest, Murmansk and Smolensk.
Annually, in honor of the soldiers-liberators, the Victory Parade on Red Square is held in the Russian capital . Back in 1945, this heroic event was hosted by the hero of the Second World War, the famous Marshal - Georgy Zhukov. The parade was held under the command of K. Rokossovsky in the presence of Stalin, Voroshilov, Molotov, Kalinin and other famous politicians of that time. Today, the Victory Parade is a sign of memory and great gratitude to all the soldiers who defended the freedom of our country.