Smolensk received a Sword of Victory

Today, on the eve of the 70th anniversary of the Great Victory, in the Federation Council there was a ceremony of presenting Victory Swords to the Hero-Cities of Russia. The Governor of Smolensk region Alexey Ostrovskiy attended this event.

The federal project "Sword of Victory. We remember, and keep sacred the memory of the past" is implemented with the support of the Public Chamber of Russia and the "Zlatoust Armory Company". The exclusive blades for cities having the honorary title of the "Hero-City" were made in the southern Urals specifically for the 70th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Today, the Victory Swords were handed for permanent keeping to each of the nine Hero-Cities of Russia: Moscow, St. Petersburg (Leningrad), Volgograd (Stalingrad), Novorossiisk, Tula, Murmansk, Smolensk, Sevastopol and Kerch. The ceremony of handing the Swords to the delegations from the Hero-Cities was attended by the Chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Valentina Matvienko, veterans of the Great Patriotic War, the Heads of the Hero-Cities and the subjects of the Federation, in which they belong.

Talking about the heroism of the Smolensk people, Valentina Matvienko stressed: "The defense of Smolensk in July-September, 1941 was the largest battle of the initial stage of the war. It resulted in 2.5-month delay in the enemy’s advance on Moscow. That's when it became clear that the notorious Nazi Blitzkrieg on Russian land wouldn’t take place. Tens of thousands of Smolensk region residents took part in the partisan movement. Smolensk – the sword of Russia – went through this hardest test”.

At the end of her speech, Valentina Matvienko addressed all the veterans with the words of gratitude.

Awarding the Sword to the Hero-Cities symbolizes respect for the common history, social recognition of the feat of the peoples in the Great Patriotic War.

Each sword is hand-made by the known specialists from the southern Urals and meets the state standard for the bladed weapons. Its length is 120 sm, its weight is more than five kilograms. The blade of the famous Zlatoust steel is decorated with the floral ornaments and an inscription for each city: for example, on the Smolensk sword it reads "the Hero-City of Smolensk". A quotation by Alexander Nevsky "Who with a sword will come to us, he will die by the sword" is carved on the other side. On the all-metal sheath of the sword the portraits of the great Russian generals are skillfully engraved.

According to the organizers of the project, the Sword as a gift to the heroic people was not a random choice. Throughout the history of our country, it has symbolized the unshakable courage and strength of the Russian spirit. The Swords of Victory, today handed the Hero-Cities, are to become another symbol of public recognition of the feat, power, and dedication of the people in the Great Patriotic War.