Tomb of a Hero: Little-Known Facts About Russia’s Most Famous WWII Memorial

Fifty years ago a burial ceremony held near the Kremlin wall marked the creation of one of the most famous WWII memorials in all of Russia – the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The remains of the Unknown Soldier were interred in Alexandrovsky Sad (Alexander Garden) in 1966, in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Nazi German forces defeat during the Battle of Moscow.

Reinterment ceremony of the Unknown Soldier's remains. Funerary motorcade.

© Sputnik / A. Polikashin

/

Go to the mediabank

The soldier’s remains were retrieved from a mass burial site located near the 41 kilometer mark of the Leningradskoye highway.

Reinterment ceremony of the Unknown Soldier's remains. Funeral procession moving along Gorky street.

© Sputnik / A. Polikashin

/

Go to the mediabank

Little is known about the Unknown Soldier, save for his rank – private. The man’s identity has never been established.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow's Alexander Garden

© Photo : Archive

The Bayonets memorial complex was established at the Unknown Soldier’s original burial site. It serves as a resting place for over 760 men slain in the early years of WWII in the vicinity of Moscow.

Bayonets memorial complex.

© Sputnik / Vyasheslav Runov

/

Go to the mediabank

The reinterment of the soldier’s remains was held on December 3.

People attend the reinterment ceremony of the Unknown Soldier's remains.

© Sputnik / A. Polikashin

/

Go to the mediabank

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier memorial was opened in the year after the reinterment, on May 8, 1967.

CPSU General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev lights up the Eternal Flame during the Dedication Ceremony for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

© Sputnik / Mikhail Kuleshov

/

Go to the mediabank