Defenders of the Motherland - Moscow

Russia is a country that is no stranger to threats of invasion or conflict. Also known as Army Day, Defenders of the Motherland Day is an opportunity for citizens to pay tribute to those present and past who have defended Mother Russia from invaders.

Russians are incredibly proud of their country and in particular its army, which is one of the most powerful in the world. In the newborn Soviet Union, facing both Civil War and countless international threats to its sovereignty, the Bolshevik government was eager to institutionalize a date that would boost the morale of the Soviet troops. And so the Defenders of the Motherland Day was born. Following Allied victory over the Germans in WW2 and a period of prosperity for the Soviets post-war, the day grew in significance to become not just a celebration on the country’s army, but a universal holiday for men – a chance for all men of Russia to be congratulated.