Russia sends bones of medieval warrior prince to Ukraine front to boost morale
The Church said the relic would be shown to troops along the 1,000-km front line to strengthen soldiers’ spirits, officials said.
- The Russian Orthodox Church sent a fragment of Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy's right hand to the Ukraine front to bolster morale, with officials calling the relic "the holy commander" to support President Vladimir Putin's war effort.
- Restoration work at the Kremlin's Cathedral uncovered the Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy sarcophagus this summer, prompting Putin to inspect the remains and hail them as "an absolutely unique and marvellous discovery" reinforcing Russian history of the 1380 Battle of Kulikovo Field against the Mongols.
- On Tuesday, Sergei Kiriyenko, Putin's first deputy Kremlin chief of staff, joined military commanders in Donetsk to venerate the relic, while the Defence Ministry reported troops in Sverdlovsk carrying icons along the more than 1,000-km front line.
- Alexander Zanemonets, an Orthodox priest and historian, wrote that by the fifth year of war, the state seeks to compel religious institutions to support its "special military operation," drawing criticism the Church uses the relic to boost morale ahead of parliamentary elections later this month.
- Critics question why the Church recovered and venerated Donskoy's remains only now, 38 years after he was declared a saint, suggesting the move serves as a public relations exercise rather than traditional religious observance despite the Church's backing of the Kremlin.
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54 Articles
To raise the morale of the troops, the Russian Orthodox Church sent on the Ukrainian front the right hand of the "prince-guerrier" Dimitri Donskoi, canonized for defending Moscow against the invasion of the Mongols in the 14th century. A way for the Kremlin to give a new life to the relics of the past by putting them at the service of his war and religious propaganda.
der Standard AT
der Standard DEBone fragments of Dmitri Donskoi should "spiritually strengthen" the troops and help them win. Critics see a violation of religious practices
A fragment of the right hand of Prince Dmitry Donskoy, considered a symbol of the Russian victory over the Mongols in the 14th century, has been transferred to Russian army units in occupied Donetsk.
Russia mobilizes a dead Grand Prince for the war against Ukraine. His bone fragments are intended to strengthen the fighting spirit of Putin's army. The Orthodox Church does not save on staging.
The Russian Orthodox Church has sent a portion of the remains of a Russian medieval warrior and prince to soldiers fighting in Ukraine, hoping the relic will "spiritually strengthen the soldiers and help them achieve victory." The remains of Alexander Nevsky are already on the front lines in Ukraine.
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