Russian Orthodox Church sends remains of 13th-century prince to boost army morale on Ukrainian border
The remains have been dispatched to Donetsk, a highly sensitive border region that Putin said he incorporated into Russia in 2022
The Russian Orthodox Church has dispatched bone remains of the 13th-century Russian Prince Dmitry Donskoy to the front lines in Ukraine, specifically to the Donetsk region, with the stated aim of bolstering the morale of Russian troops. Donskoy, a significant figure in Russian nationalism renowned for his military victories, is being presented as a spiritual symbol to strengthen the soldiers' spirits. This religious initiative coincides with heightened public concern over the ongoing conflict and precedes Russia's parliamentary elections, as Russian forces intensify efforts to gain full control of eastern Ukraine.
The Russian Orthodox Church has dispatched bone remains of the 13th-century Russian Prince Dmitry Donskoy to the front lines in Ukraine, specifically to the Donetsk region, with the stated aim of bolstering the morale of Russian troops. Donskoy, a significant figure in Russian nationalism renowned for his military victories, is being presented as a spiritual symbol to strengthen the soldiers' spirits. This religious initiative coincides with heightened public concern over the ongoing conflict and precedes Russia's parliamentary elections, as Russian forces intensify efforts to gain full control of eastern Ukraine.
The Russian Orthodox Church has dispatched bone remains of the 13th-century Russian Prince Dmitry Donskoy to the front lines in Ukraine, specifically to the Donetsk region, with the stated aim of bolstering the morale of Russian troops. Donskoy, a significant figure in Russian nationalism renowned for his military victories, is being presented as a spiritual symbol to strengthen the soldiers' spirits. This religious initiative coincides with heightened public concern over the ongoing conflict and precedes Russia's parliamentary elections, as Russian forces intensify efforts to gain full control of eastern Ukraine.
The Russian Orthodox Church has sent the bone remains of a 13th-century Russian prince to the front in Ukraine in an attempt to boost the Russian army's morale.
The remains have been dispatched to Donetsk, a highly sensitive border region that Putin said he incorporated into Russia in 2022, a move that Kyiv has strongly objected to. A bone fragment from the sarcophagus’s sword hand, carefully preserved in a small ornate casket made of toughened glass, will be shown to Russian troops along the 1,000km front line.
"A fragment of the Grand Prince's right hand – the very same right hand with which he wielded his sword on Kulikovo Field – has been sent to the front to strengthen the soldiers' spirits," the church said in a statement.
A prominent figure for Russian nationalists, Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy, oversaw the construction of the first stone Kremlin fortress and famously defeated the Mongol Golden Horde at the Battle of Kulikovo before dying in 1389.
His sarcophagus was discovered in August during restoration work at the Cathedral of the Archangel, located inside the Moscow Kremlin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the church and inspected the open sarcophagus, calling it “an absolutely unique and marvellous discovery" that reinforces the foundations of Russian history.
Donskoy’s relics were first carried through Moscow’s streets over the weekend in a huge procession.
At a World War Two memorial ceremony in Donetsk on Tuesday, Sergei Kiriyenko, Putin's first deputy Kremlin chief of staff, along with military commanders, kissed the relic and offered prayers.
Russia’s defence ministry on Wednesday released an interview with a commander who talked about the sarcophagus supporting Russia’s victory, alongside footage of soldiers in the Sverdlovsk region attending a church service.
The Russian Orthodox Church, which has supported Putin throughout the conflict, presented the discovery as a find that could help Russian forces conquer the fifth year of the conflict against Ukraine.
The religiously-powered moves come ahead of Russia’s first parliamentary election since the launch of its full-scale war in 2022. Russians have increasingly become unsettled about the war as concerns increase about Ukrainian drone attacks. The tour also comes as Russian forces attempt to gain full control of the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.