Denkmal zu Ehren der Soldaten der Sowjetarmee

Tuesday, 02-July-2024

I didn’t expect to find a monument to the Soviets in Vienna.

I didn’t expect to find a monument to the Soviets… at all, really. I mean, after so many countries that had previously been part of the USSR, and after learning about so many atrocities that were committed by the Soviets, the thought of a monument to them was a bit unthinkable.

Yet here I was, standing in front of a rather beautiful one, in the heart of Vienna.

Reading into it online, I couldn’t find much about why it’s still been maintained into the current era… but that it was originally built back when Vienna was separated into districts run by the different Allied powers after World War 2. Have I mentioned that, yet? Similarly to how Berlin was hacked in half during the Cold War, so too was Vienna… except that it was carved into four quadrants; USA, USSR, UK, and France. This monument was built in the Soviet block, but within easy viewing distance to the other three.

Regardless, it is a beautiful monument. And, I’m happy to add, has been added to recently… the large wall behind the monument, separating it from the Belvedere Gardens, has been repainted into the Ukrainian flag – a fitting way to add new context, in my mind.