Today, on November 26, the Republic educational institution School 4 — Cadet Corps Named After A.V. Zakharchenko hosted a patriotic event dedicated to St. George’s Cross Day. According to a correspondent of the official website of the Donetsk People’s Republic, employees of the DPR Ministry of Information provided significant assistance to the cadets in conducting and arranging for the event.
“The St. George’s Cross and the St. George’s Ribbon are more than an award. They are the symbol of a Russian person, a Russian warrior. And for us they are the symbol of the Russian Spring, which let us defend our independence and win the right to live our own lives,” First Deputy Minister of Information of the DPR Daniil Bezsonov said.
Chief of the Department for Social Support of Retired Military and Patriotic Upbringing under the auspices DPR Head, Hero of the Donetsk People’s Republic, General Lieutenant Vladimir Kononov; Hero of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Full Cavalier of the St. George’s Cross Decoration General Major Sergey Velikorodny, as well as Full Cavalier of the St. George’s Cross Decoration Colonel Andrey Kononov, shared their memories of combat operations of the DPR Armed Forces. They also told the children about the significance of the heroic feat in human life and the importance of patriotic upbringing of the younger generation.
“I’ve said it more than once that history has no subjunctive inclination, and the people who are trying to rewrite their history are doomed to nothingness. We, on the contrary, were brought up by the example of the exploits of our grandfathers and great-grandfathers. And this desire of children to be like the heroes encourages them to heroic deeds. This is an impetus for certain actions that give a way to real life. And this thread of times is not lost, but leads to our future,” Vladimir Kononov noted.
Aleksey Akutin, a journalist from the official website of the Donetsk People’s Republic, spoke about the work on perpetuating the memory of the heroes of the Republic, which is conducted by employees of the DPR Information Ministry on an ongoing basis. This work involves the Golden Stars of Heroes project, the development of the White Cranes website, and many other information activities. And famous singer-songwriter Sergey Lysenko sang several self-penned patriotic songs.
During the event, those present observed a minute of silence in tribute to the memory of the first Head of the DPR, Hero of the Donetsk People’s Republic Alexander Zakharchenko (1976—2018), after whom the cadet corps is named.
St. George’s Cross Day is celebrated annually on November 26. On this day, in 1769, Empress Catherine the Second established the Order of St. George in the system of Russian awards, the highest decoration for the exploits performed on the battlefield. In 1807, Emperor Alexander the First introduced the Decoration of the Military Order for lower ranks, and in 1913 this decoration was named George’s Cross.
In 2014, St. George’s Cross Decoration became the first military decoration of the Donetsk People’s Republic, whose people rose up for their freedom and independence.