MOSCOW, November 4. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the traditional flower-laying ceremony at the monument to Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky on Red Square on National Unity Day.
The ceremony was also attended by representatives of religious, public, and youth organizations, including Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, leader of Russia’s traditional Buddhist Sangha Damba Ayusheyev, Grand Mufti of Russia Talgat Tadzhuddin, Russian Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar, and other.
After the ceremony, Putin spoke with representatives of youth organizations.
National Unity Day
National Unity Day is one of the youngest national holidays in Russia. It was established in 2005, replacing the Day of Accord and Reconciliation (formerly Revolution Day), which had been celebrated on November 7 since 1996. The holiday marks Russia’s liberation from Polish invaders in 1612.
The monument to Minin and Pozharsky unveiled in 1818 on Moscow’s Red Square is the work of sculptor Ivan Martos. This was the first monument in Russia’s history not to the tsar or commander, but to national heroes.