The Stephen the Great Monument () is a prominent

monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ; formerly known as Kishinev) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Moldova, largest city of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial centre, and is located in the middle of the coun ...

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

Description

The monument to

Stephen the Great Stephen III, better known as Stephen the Great (; ; died 2 July 1504), was List of rulers of Moldavia, Voivode (or Prince) of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504. He was the son of and co-ruler with Bogdan II of Moldavia, Bogdan II, who was murdered in ...

was designed by architect

Alexandru Plămădeală Alexandru Plamădeală (9 October 1888 – 15 April 1940) was a Moldovan sculptor. He was the artist responsible for the creation of the Stephen the Great Monument in Chișinău (1927). He graduated from the Moscow School of Painting, Sculptu ...

in 1923. It was erected near the main entrance of the Stephen the Great Park in

Central Chișinău Sectorul Centru () is one of the five sectors in Chișinău, the capital of Moldova. The local administration is managed by a pretor appointed by the city administration. It governs over a portion of the city of Chișinău itself (central and wes ...

. The monument was completed in 1927 and opened on 29 April 1928 (to replace the monument to

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Grand Du ...

, destroyed by the Romanian authorities in 1918). The total cost of the monument was 4.000.000 lei. A few days before the 1940

Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and northern Bukovina Between 28 June and 3 July 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, following an ultimatum made to Romania on 26 June 1940 that threatened the use of force. Those regions, with a total area of and a population of 3,776 ...

, the monument was relocated to

Vaslui Vaslui (), a city in eastern Romania, is the seat of Vaslui County, in the historical region of Western Moldavia. The city administers five villages: Bahnari, Brodoc, Moara Grecilor, Rediu, and Viișoara. History Archaeological surveys indicate t ...

, and its pedestal was blown up. On August 25, 1942, the monument was returned to

and taken back to

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

in 1944. In 1945, the Soviet authorities ordered the restoration of the monument to Chișinău. On 31 August 1989 the monument to Stephen the Great was returned to its original location, chosen by Alexandru Plămădeală in the 1920s. The initial inscriptions were restored. Flower-laying ceremonies are regularly performed at the pedestal of this monument on each national holiday and on days of official top- and high-level visits.

External links

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The Monument to Stephen the Great

The Monuments of Kishinev
1927 sculptures Monuments and memorials in Chișinău 1928 in Romania Tourist attractions in Moldova Bronze sculptures in Moldova {{Sculpture-stub