Vladimir: The sitting, standing and sleeping Russian greats

Jacob Icia Moscow Chronicles 

Russia is probably the one of the biggest countries with rich history well conserved for future generations.

As yours truly has told before in the past chronicles, classic statues are one way of honoring men with trailblazer achievements in Russia.

Interestingly, the name Vladimir is one of the names associated with global fame, and Russians have a way to draw the connotation.

They say, there are three Great Vladimirs, the sleeping, sitting and the standing.

The sleeping Vladmir

Yours only had promised to go back to the Kremlin, to the core of the Lenin Mausoleum, to see the sleeping Vladimir Lenin whose body has been kept fresh 94 years after his demise.

On June 30, I had to patiently wait for two hours in the queue to have the rare chance.

The Russians security detail around the celebrated communist revolutionary and political theorist who is remembered for among other milestones, orchestrating the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, is just a whole novel to write about.

Finally I go down the dark tunnel through guidance of the soldiers keeping vigilance and I’m ushered to the resting place of the sleeping Lennin.

Truly, you would think he will wake up. He is clenching his right hand fingers while his left hand fingers are well spread just about his left thigh.

He is in a black suit, a near cream-white shirt and a black white dotted tie. His wears a seemingly a smooth goatee with his legs stretched straight.

As I finished viewing the living dead man, I could tell why every town I’ve stepped into has his statue.

The reverence he is accorded would be called by spiritual father idol worship. Community Ranker placed him 50th of all time most influential people on earth (top being Jesus Christ).

The sitting Vladimir

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has been the President of Russia since May 2012. Putin previously served as President from 2000 to 2008, and as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012.

During his last term as Prime Minister, he was also the Chairman of United Russia, the ruling party. Dmitry Medmedev led just for a term to give Putni a break as the constitution would not have allowed him to run for the third successive term.

For 16 years Putin was an officer in the KGB, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before he retired to enter politics in his native Saint Petersburg in 1991.

He moved to Moscow in 1996 and joined President Boris Yeltsin’s administration where he rose quickly, becoming Acting President on 31 December 1999 when Yeltsin unexpectedly resigned to hand him reigns of leadership.

He is respected for his no nonsense approach to any matter touching Russia’s place in the arena of super powers, and sound economic policies that have shot the economy of the country steadily since he rose to power.

The 22nd edition of the ongoing FIFA World Cup is being staged in his backyard courtesy of his frantic efforts to converge the globe in his vast land.

Besides, there is no sign he could step out of his big seat soon, and most of the Moscow residents are not bothered. He is in power, hence the phrase sitting.

Although a formal statue of the current President has not been erected in Moscow, the City’s Duma Monuments Commission has suggested that would be the responsibility of the future generations.

Several sculptors have done Putni’s statues, although not formally installed, including the widely talked about of “Mind, Strength and Soul.”

This has Putni’s head atop a bear’s body, holding a fish by its paws. The bear has angel’s wings too.

The standing Vladimir

In November 2016, Putin launched a statue to his namesake St. Vladimir in Moscow. Also known Vladimir the Great, the 10 th Century prince was one of the first Eastern Slav proto-state in Kiev.

Since the erection of his 16 metres statue of the man credited for introduction of the dominant Orthodox Church in Russia, he has been labeled the standing Vladimir.

In the day of the statue unveiling, the Orthodox Church Head Partriach Kirill joined Putni in confirming the ‘raising’ of Vladimir amidst criticism by Ukrainians who claim him as their founding father.

St. Vladimir – called St Volodymyr in Ukraine – converted Kievan Rus to Christianity in 988 in Kiev. A monument was built in Ukraine’s capital in the 19th Century to commemorate the event.