Employees of the State Archives of the Vitebsk Region took part in a requiem meeting in honor of the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Vitebsk from the Nazi invaders

On June 26, 1944, Vitebsk was completely cleared of the occupiers.

At the ceremonial meeting, the chairman of the Vitebsk City Executive Committee Alexei Geroev said: «In the year of the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory, at this sacred place for every Vitebsk resident, we pay tribute, memory and gratitude to all who died 81 years ago in fierce battles for the liberation of the city on the Dvina, who heroically fought for every line of our land – Soviet soldiers, partisans, underground fighters, to whom we owe our lives, the opportunity to work peacefully, raise children under the peaceful sky of our beloved city, create a free, independent and prosperous Belarus! Blessed memory to those who did not live to see this day, whose hearts stopped already in peacetime».

The liberation of Vitebsk allowed the Soviet troops to develop a rapid offensive on Minsk and the Baltics. The victory march began, ending in May 1945 in Berlin.

1. Employees of the State Archives of the Vitebsk Region before the start of the requiem meeting in honor of the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Vitebsk from the Nazi invaders

2. Employees of the State Archives of the Vitebsk Region lay flowers at the Eternal Flame at the memorial complex in honor of the Soviet soldiers-liberators, partisans and underground fighters of the Vitebsk region