Defenders of the Soviet Arctic

Despite the fact that the Second World War ended back in 1945, and after a while we will solemnly celebrate the round of this event, the interest in the history of the war and its individual episodes does not fade and not only among our compatriots, but also among foreign tourists and travelers. One of these memorable pages is the events related to the defense of the Soviet Arctic.

This memorial complex is installed in the capital of the Russian Arctic in the city of Murmansk in its Leninsky district, namely on one of the Murmansk hills bearing the name of Cape Verde. Originally, the location of the monument was planned by local authorities for the area of the Five Corners, which is located practically in the center of Murmansk.

However, a group of architects, headed by the Honored Architect of the USSR and Russia IA Pokrovsky, convinced the city authorities and the city public that the best option for placing the monument would be the Green Cape. After all, this small hill rises above the central part of the city and the Kola Bay to a height of more than 170 meters, and placing it on this monument will give it more monumentality and grandeur.

Work on the erection of the monument to the «Defenders of the Soviet Arctic», created according to the sketches of the sculptor I.D. Brodsky, began on October 17, 1969 with the solemn laying of it, which was attended by numerous Murmansk residents, guests of the city and a delegation of veterans of the Second World War, participants in the defense of the Soviet Arctic, as well as military seamen of the Northern Fleet.

The completion of the work and the inauguration of the monument, which took place on October 19, 1974, was timed to coincide with the celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of the defeat of the Nazi troops in the Arctic Circle. To date, this monument is included in all the guides around the Murmansk region and is mandatory for visiting the majority of tourist groups traveling in the Arctic.