When the World Split Apart: Commemorative Event for Youth Marks Day of Remembrance and ... — 22 июня 2026 г. в 14:10:45.247
When the World Split Apart: Commemorative Event for Youth Marks Day of Remembrance and Sorrow in Pomorye Educational outreach event dedicated to the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow was held in Pomorye for young people. Among the attendees were students of the Northern State Medical University. In Arkhangelsk, historian, political scientist and federal expert Sergey Sopelev (Moscow) delivered a lecture at the invitation of the Russian Society “Znanie” (Knowledge). He met with university and vocational college students from Pomorye as part of the “Znanie.Lektoriy” (Knowledge.Lecture Hall) project. 🔹 The open lecture marked the 85th anniversary of the start of the Great Patriotic War. Thanks to a livestream, more than a thousand young people from various municipalities across Arkhangelsk Oblast were able to join the discussion. June 22, 1941, became a watershed moment that divided the lives of millions into “before” and “after”, shattering the peaceful plans of a vast country. Without a declaration of war, the forces of Nazi Germany and its allies crossed the border of the Soviet Union. In the very first hours of the aggression, our border guards showed mass courage. For instance, the unparalleled heroism of the defenders of the Brest Fortress has gone down in history. According to the Barbarossa Plan — which listed Arkhangelsk among its strategic targets — the Red Army was expected to capitulate within a few months. But the blitzkrieg turned into a large‑scale war that ultimately led to the collapse of Nazism. The Great Victory came at an incredibly heavy cost for our people: according to historians’ estimates, around 27 million Soviet citizens perished in battles, from hunger and bombings, and in concentration camps. It is worth recalling that some 300 thousand northerners joined the Red Army during the war, and 113 thousand never returned home. “We must remember that France held out against the German war machine for just over 40 days, and Denmark for a few hours. The Soviet Union, of course, was preparing for the invasion, the expected start date of which kept changing in intelligence reports — this confused the country’s leadership. In effect, we had to learn the science of war under bombardment. But united in the name of Victory, our people did everything possible — and even the impossible — to liberate the world from Nazism,” said Sergey Sopelev. The open lecture was organised with the support of the Arkhangelsk Oblast Ministry of Education, as well as the leadership of the Lomonosov Northern (Arctic) Federal University (SAFU) and the Northern State Medical University (NSMU). 🔹 We add that the Russian Society “Znanie”, with the support of the National Centre for Historical Memory under the President of the Russian Federation, is holding lectures, thematic discussions and quizzes in commemoration of the Day of Remembrance and Sorrow. Participants will learn about the historical events of June 22, 1941 and their significance for the fate of the country, and hear about the heroism of the Soviet people and the heroes of the Great Victory.