Mamayev Kurgan

Mamayev Kurgan is a prominent hill and war memorial complex in Volgograd, Russia, created to commemorate the Battle of Stalingrad of 1942-1943. The site is dominated by a large allegorical statue and extensive sculptural groups that form a formal memorial landscape.

The complex’s best-known element is the colossal statue often called the Motherland Calls, which stands above terraces, stairways and sculptural ensembles that honour the soldiers who fought in the battle. Visitors follow a processional route up the hill past memorials, burial sites and an eternal flame.

The hill itself was the scene of intense, sustained fighting during the Battle of Stalingrad; after the war Soviet authorities developed the site into a large commemorative complex to memorialise the battle’s defenders and victims. The monument complex was constructed in the Soviet period and remains a central focus of war remembrance in the city.

Mamayev Kurgan sits within Volgograd on the banks of the Volga River and is clearly visible from many parts of the city, forming a dominant element of the urban skyline.

• Commemoration: The site marks the location of fierce fighting during the Battle of Stalingrad and is the principal war memorial in Volgograd, visited on major commemorative dates.

What to See #

• Motherland Calls statue: The central feature is the monumental statue known as the Motherland Calls, a towering figure commemorating the defenders of Stalingrad and forming the focal point of the complex.
• Memorial complex: The memorial complex includes terraces, sculptural groups, an eternal flame and burial sites for Soviet soldiers from the Battle of Stalingrad.