Memory of Russia abroad: A Memorial Obelisk to Soviet Soldiers to be discovered in Vienna

On June 22, 2017, on the day of the anniversary of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, at the gates №10 of the Central Cemetery in Vienna (Zentralfriedhof) will be held a solemn opening of a commemorative obelisk for Soviet soldiers who died in the Austrian capital.

In 2016, a previously unknown burial site was found on the territory of the Central Cemetery in Vienna, where 198 citizens of the USSR, including prisoners of war (dead in German captivity), are buried. The laying of this burial began in April 1945, during the battles for the liberation of Vienna. In August 1945, during the rebuilding of the cemetery, soldiers buried in Himberg and other parts of Greater Vienna were buried here. The names of most of the reburied were not marked on tombstones. Thanks to the search works of the activists of the IC "Pamyat", 183 names were found.

In order to perpetuate the memory of the Soviet fighters who fell in the fight against Nazism in Austria, the Russian Military Historical Society offered to install a commemorative obelisk near the gate №10 of the Central Cemetery of Vienna.

The concrete obelisk in height of 3,6 meters was created by the Russian Military-Historical Society in Moscow, the sculptor - Denis Stritovich. The Ministry of the Interior Affairs of Austria made a foundation and assisted in the erection of the monument.