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Volgograd
If you look at a map of Russia and find the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea, you’ll find Volgograd, right in between, on the Volga River.
Volgograd has some things in common with other Russian cities. First, it’s very old, as you can see from the monument with the date of the beginning of the city on it—1569. Second, it’s also had several names. It was first called Tsaritsyn (the Tsar’s city) until 1925 when it was named Stalingrad in honor of Joseph Stalin. He led Russia for many years but he was a brutal dictator. Stalingrad was renamed Volgograd in 1961, eight years after his death.
The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the great battles of World War Two and a terrible defeat for Hitler’s Nazi Germany. Stalingrad had important strategic value. But even after German losses became very heavy from the combat and the Russian winter Hitler insisted that there be no retreat. Perhaps this was because it was named after Stalin, his rival. Finally, after months of siege by the Nazis, the Russians surrounded and defeated the Germans in February 1943. It’s been estimated that 200,000 Germans and 1,000,000 Russians died. This was the beginning of the end for Hitler’s Germany but what a cost!
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The Volga River
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Volgograd was founded in 1569
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The most important memorial is on a large hill called Mamaev Kurgan. At the top is the huge statue of Mother Russia. On the way up the hill there are other monuments, including the one called "Fight to the Death". This is a sculpture of a soldier emerging from solid rock. There are scenes of heroism in the sculpture of the city’s Ruined Walls where faces of soldiers appear in the stone. Mother Russia is 52 meters high and is made out of nearly 8,000 tons of metal and concrete. The sword alone is 29 meters long and weighs 14 tons. There is an opening in it to reduce wind resistance so it doesn’t sway in the wind. Nearby is the building with the eternal flame and honor guard.
Also nearby on the hill is the sculpture called "A Mother’s Tears." Find a picture of Michaelangelo’s sculpture Pieta to see how similar these two pieces of sculpture are.
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Statue of Mother Russia
To give you an idea of how large this statue is, look at the person standing next to it inside the blue circle.
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In front of "Mother Russia" stands another important monument, "Fight to the Death"
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Ruins can be seen up the stairs to "Mother Russia"
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Most buildings were just piles of rubble after World War II. The Battle of Stalingrad museum was built next to this flour mill.
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The Eternal Flame
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"A Mother's Tears"
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