Slavín – a memorial to Soviet soldiers killed in the territory of western Slovakia during the Second World War – was built between 1957 and 1960. The memorial was unveiled on the 15th anniversary of Bratislava’s liberation by the Red Army of the former Soviet Union. It was constructed during the rise of the communist regime with its harsh propaganda, a period characterised by the building of Slovakia’s largest memorial complexes dedicated to the Red (Soviet) Army (in Svidník and Liptovský Mikuláš). 

     Author of the architectural concept was Ján Svetlík, a Slovak sculptor and architect whose project won the third round of the competition for design of the memorial. An elaborate sculptural showpiece was envisaged from the outset, so the architect collaborated with various renowned sculptors – Tibor Bartfay, Jozef Kostka, Rudolf Pribiš, Ján Kulich, Ladislav Snopek, Alexander Trizuljak, Juraj Krén, and Dezider Castiglione.    

The memorial architecture comprises three compositionally interconnected sections – a southern entrance with monumental staircase, a central cemetery, and the memorial itself to the north. The front wall of the staircase is adorned with L. Snopek’s granite relief Oath on the Battle Flag, and the area leading to the graves features two sculptures by J. Kostka – Gratitude and Passing of the Wreaths.  

Slavín’s dominant element is a memorial built on an elevated platform. Accessible via the staircase, it features two statues – T. Bartfay’s At the Grave of a Comrade to the left_,_ and J. Kulich’s After the Battle to the right. Entry to the ceremonial hall is through a double door adorned with figural reliefs by R. Pribiš. A tall, tapering, prismatic obelisk rises from the hall, topped by the statue Victory by A. Trizuljak. 

Sculptural embellishment complements and supports the core objective of the memorial –celebration of the heroism of the Soviet army and gratitude of the Slovak people. The sculptures depict the violence of combat and hardships of war while also celebrating victory. 

Victory is embodied by a proud young soldier raising in his upstretched right hand a flagpole crowned with a five-point star. The hand also clutches a bouquet of flowers, and a submachine gun hangs from his shoulder. Reaching back with his left hand, he grasps the draping flag, forming with it an arc. He stares into the distance, his helmeted head held high, as he steps forward to crush a swastika under his left foot. 

Victory, by A. Trizuljak, is rendered with the pathos of the monumental creations of socialist realism. It represents the ideological and artistic culmination of the Slavín memorial and its spirit. Every architectural, artistic, and compositional aspect of the memorial aligns towards it and unites in it. 

Note: The star atop the work is a communist symbol, and as such there are justifiable considerations for its removal.

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Research status as of 30 June 2023.