As part of the Year of Historical Memory, the ‘Zvany Pamyatsi’ Festival was held in Vileyka on 8 and 9 October 2022, with the support of the municipal authorities, the Kroki Historical and Cultural Foundation, the Stalin Line Historical and Cultural Complex and the Starynki Equestrian Centre.
The festival marked the anniversary of the death of Boris Borisovich Tsitovich (1948–2021), founder of the First World War reenactment movement in Belarus. Reenactors from Belarus and Ukraine took part in the festival.
On the first day of the festival, a military camp was set up in the town’s lower park beside the River Viliya, with a field kitchen and interactive activity areas. Visitors flocked to them, readily posing for photographs with the reenactors and enjoying horse rides.
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Reenactors portraying the Russian Imperial Army and Imperial Germany ate from the same cooking pot.
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At 12:00 the following day, guests were welcomed to the festival in Vileyka’s main square. Alexander Metla spoke on behalf of our complex, while Andrei Oralin represented the Kroki Foundation. The reenactors then held a ceremonial march from the town square to the reenactment field.
At 13:00, a reenactment of the September 1915 events entitled ‘The Battle for Vileyka’ began. German forces that had broken through from Sventsyany secretly gathered in the woods near Vileyka, where peaceful life continued despite the proximity of the front.
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Imperial German troops suddenly stormed into Vileyka and captured the town. Cavalry and part of the infantry crossed the River Viliya to support our garrison, which had been driven from the town. Following our counterattack, the Germans, assailed from two sides, abandoned Vileyka, with some of them being taken prisoner.
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At the end of the reenactment, Boris Borisovich Tsitovich’s wife, Valentina, addressed those present. She thanked the reenactors and everyone continuing her husband’s work to commemorate the heroes of the First World War.
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