Another big statue in Russia is Alyosha (Алёша) in Murmansk. A little bit outside the city standing on a hill with a view of all the city and of the Kola bay you can see this soldier with a big winter coat and a submachine gun on the back. It’s a statue dedicated to the Russian soldiers and sailors during the Second World War. The soldier seems quiet and strict, he is looking on the west in the valley where there were intense fightings. There is also an eternal flame on the platform. It was erected in 1974 and has a height of 35.5 meters. Alyosha is a diminutive forms of the name Alexey. Two anti-aircraft guns are on the bottom of the statue. It’s because during the war some batteries were located on this place to protect the city of Murmansk from attack from the air.
The full name of the statue is Defenders of the Soviet Arctic during the Great Patriotic War or Защитникам Советского Заполярья в годы Великой Отечественной войны in russian. Peter the Great in Moscow or The Motherland Calls in Volgograd are 2 other big statues in Russia