Zaisan Memorial
Encyclopedia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
n capital of Ulaanbaatar
Ulaanbaatar
Ulan Bator or Ulaanbaatar is the capital and largest city of Mongolia. An independent municipality, the city is not part of any province, and its population as of 2008 is over one million....
that honors Soviet soldiers killed in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Located on a hill south of the city, the memorial features a circular memorial painting that depicts scenes of friendship between the peoples of the USSR and Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
. The mural depicts scenes such as Soviet support for Mongolia's independence declaration in 1921, the defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army by the Soviets at Khalhkin Gol
Battle of Khalkhin Gol
The Battles of Khalkhyn Gol was the decisive engagement of the undeclared Soviet–Japanese Border Wars fought among the Soviet Union, Mongolia and the Empire of Japan in 1939. The conflict was named after the river Khalkhyn Gol, which passes through the battlefield...
on the Mongolian border in 1939, victory over Nazi Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and peacetime achievements such as Soviet space flights.
After driving to the uppermost parking lot on the hill, visitors must make a climb of three hundred steps before reaching the monument and mural. Those who make the climb are rewarded with a panoramic view of the entire city of Ulaanbaatar in the valley below, as well as the Tuul River
Tuul River
Tuul River is a river in central and northern Mongolia considered sacred by the Mongols. It is 704 km long and drains an area 49,840 square km. The river is called the "Duluo river" in the Suishu, a Chinese historical work completed in 636 AD...
flowing past the city.
In 2003, a tank memorial, which previously had been located on a crossroads between Zaisan and the city center, was moved to the foot of the hill. It features a Soviet tank from a brigade paid for by the Mongolian people. The tank memorial includes a map showing the route the brigade took from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
in 1943 to its participation in the fall of Berlin in 1945.
Zaisan is a popular meeting point for school outings and graduation festivities.