List of Soviet war memorials explained

Soviet war memorials are memorials commemorating the activities of Soviet Armed Forces in any of the wars involving Soviet Union, but most notably World War II. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, many of the memorials, especially the ones dedicated to the activities of Soviet Armed Forces in former Soviet Bloc countries during World War II, have been removed, relocated, altered or have had their meaning reinterpreted (such as the Liberty Statue in Budapest).

Austria

• Soviet War Memorial (Vienna)

Belarus

• Minsk Hero City Obelisk
• Victory Square, Minsk
• Mound of Glory, Minsk
• Victory Square (Vitebsk)

Bulgaria

• Alyosha Monument, Plovdiv
• Monument to the Soviet Army, Sofia
• , Byala Slatina

China

• • • , Shengyang
• Monument to the Soviet Army Martyrs in the

Czech Republic

• Monument to Soviet Tank Crews (first painted, later removed)
• Statue of Ivan Konev (removed in 2020)
• (removed in 1991)

Germany

• Soviet War Memorial (Treptower Park), a memorial in Treptower Park, Berlin
• Soviet War Memorial (Tiergarten), a memorial in Tiergarten, Berlin
• Soviet War Memorial (Schönholzer Heide), a memorial in Schönholzer Heide, Berlin

Estonia

• Bronze Soldier of Tallinn (relocated to Tallinn Military Cemetery in 2007)
• (removed in 2022)
• (removed in 2022^{[1] [2]})
• (removed in 2022)

Hungary

• Liberty Statue (Budapest), the Soviet inscription has been replaced
• Liberty Square (Budapest)
• Hungarian-Soviet Friendship Memorial, now in Memento Park

Lithuania

Memorial of Red Army soldiers in Antakalnis Cemetery, Vilnius (removed in 2022)

Latvia

• Monument to the Liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from the German Fascist Invaders (removed in 2022^{[3] [4] [5]})

North Korea

• Liberation Monument, Pyongyang

Norway

• Monument to Red Army Liberators, Roald Amundsens gate, Kirkenes

Poland

After 2017, Poland's Law and Justice (PiS) government destroyed most of the Soviet War Memorials in Poland.^{[6] [7]}

• • Monument to Brotherhood in Arms, Warsaw (removed in 2011)
• (removed in 2018)
• (removed in 2018)
• (removed in 2022)
• (removed in 2019)
• (removed in 2022)
• (removed in 2014)
• (removed in 2018)
• (removed in 2017)
• Soviet Military Cemetery, Warsaw

Romania

See main article: Soviet War Memorials in Romania.

Tajikistan

• Victory Square, Bishkek
• Victory Park, Dushanbe

Ukraine

• Mother Ukraine, Kyiv (modified in 2023)
• Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Kyiv
• Hero City monument, Kyiv (modified in 2023)
• Afghanistan War Memorial, Kyiv
• Nikolai Vatutin monument, Kyiv (removed in 2023)
• Monument to the Liberator Soldier, Kharkiv (destroyed in 2022)
• Monument to the Unknown Sailor, Odesa
• Monument to Soldiers Liberators, Chernihiv
• To Donbas Liberators, Donetsk

Other

Joseph Stalin is still quoted in stone in German and Russian at least in Treptow^[8] and Vienna.^[9] Such inscriptions have been generally removed in Soviet Union and Soviet block countries as part of de-Stalinization.

A Soviet war memorial was erected in Plummer Park, West Hollywood, California in 2005.^[10] The memorial depicts cranes in flight, a reference to a popular Russian-language song by Rasul Gamzatov. A refrain from the song is shown in both English and Russian. A granite slab bares the inscription "dedicated in honor of and in tribute to the World War II veterans from the former Soviet Union" in English. West Hollywood is the center of a large Russian-speaking community from the former Soviet Union.

Notes and References

1. News: Estonian government relocates Narva tank monument . 16 August 2022 . . 16 August 2022.
2. News: Work has started to remove a controversial Soviet–era monument in Narva . 16 August 2022 . . 16 August 2022.
3. News: Demolition of Soviet Victory monument in Rīga . 25 August 2022 . . 25 August 2022.
4. News: 79 m tall obelisk of Soviet Victory Monument toppled in Pārdaugava . 26 August 2022 . . 26 August 2022.
5. News: Largest Soviet monument in Baltics dismantled in Riga . 26 August 2022 . . 26 August 2022.
6. News: Poland plans to tear down hundreds of Soviet memorials . Deutsche Welle . 13 April 2016.
7. News: Then And Now: Soviet Monuments Disappear Across Poland . Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty . 23 October 2020.
8. https://stalinsmoustache.org/2013/07/28/soviet-war-memorial-treptower-park-berlin/ Soviet War Memorial – Treptower Park, Berlin
9. Kriza, Elisa. (2018). The Stalin plaque in Vienna: hiding and showing history. European Review of History. 26. 1-19. 10.1080/13507486.2018.1505832.
10. Web site: Only U.S. Monument to Soviet Soldiers, West Hollywood, California . 2024-07-23 . RoadsideAmerica.com . en.