The Monument to the Unknown Sailor () is a city memorial located at
Shevchenko Park Shevchenko Park may refer to several city parks in Ukraine, named after Taras Shevchenko:
* Svevchenko Park, in Nizhyn, Chernihiv Oblast
* Taras Shevchenko Park, in Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast; see FC Dynamo Dnipropetrovsk
* Shevchenko Park, in ...
in the
Southern Ukrainian city of
Odesa. It is part of the park's Alley of Glory, with the graves of fallen sailors on each side. An
eternal flame is burning at foot of the monument.
History
Construction of the monument began in the monument in 1957. The monument was erected on 9 May 1960 in honour of all Soviet sailors who died during the defence of the city in the Odesa Operation of the
Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive. The memorial consists of a 21-meter high obelisk of red granite. At the foot of the obelisk burns an eternal flame, immortalizing the memory of sailors of the
Soviet Navy. In the alley are the graves of
Heroes of the Soviet Union Mikhail Astashkin and Vitaliy Topolsky.
Presidents of Ukraine
The modern Ukrainian presidency was formed when the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic passed a law on 5 July 1991 establishing the office of the "President of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic." Upon the proclamati ...
such as
Petro Poroshenko have visited the memorial to honour the Liberation of Odesa. Navy delegations from countries like
Italy and
Russia have also visited the memorial as well. An
honour guard composed of local cadets stands guard at the memorial mainly on public holidays and on ceremonial occasions. It has been in recent years been the focal point for nationalist and pro-Russian tensions, with a nationalist burning a
Ribbon of Saint George at the monument in 2018 and in April 2019, a boy being found guilty of damaging the monument by breaking off a part of the bronze soldier.
Gallery
File:Украина, Одесса - Монумент Неизвестному матросу 01.jpg, The memorial in May 2006
File:Пам'ятник невідомому матросу DSC 0050.jpg, The eternal flame at the memorial in the night time
File:Словно колесо истории.png, A closeup of the eternal flame
File:Украина, Одесса - Монумент Неизвестному матросу 04.jpg, Male and female cadets bowing their heads in respect while guarding the monument
File:Odessa may 2014 05.jpg, Victory Day celebrations at the monument in 2014
See also
*
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Kyiv)
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier () is a war memorial located in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, dedicated to the soldiers of the Red Army killed in the Second World War. It is situated at the Memorial of Eternal Glory inside the Park of Eternal Gl ...
*
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Moscow)
*
Memorial of Glory (Tiraspol)
*
Bronze Soldier of Tallinn
*
Unknown Sailor Monument
References
{{reflist
Monuments and memorials in Odesa
Buildings and structures completed in 1960
1960 establishments in Ukraine