From London to the South Pole: ‘Immortal Regiment’ commemorates WWII heroes across globe

People from across the world have taken part in annual Immortal Regiment marches, carrying photos of their relatives and commemorating WWII heroes in emotional Victory Day festivities.

Of course, the biggest Immortal Regiment march is always in Moscow (a record one million people, including President Vladimir Putin, marched in the Russian capital in 2018) — but from New York to London, Tokyo and Melbourne, smaller parades are held across the world every year for the May 9 celebration of Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.

This year, a group of Russians stationed at the Vostok research station in Antarctica even managed to get in on the action, posting photos from the South Pole in fairly chilly -68 degree Celsius weather conditions.

In Berlin, marchers made their way from the Brandenburg Gate to the Soviet War Memorial in the Tiergarten public park.

Immortal Regiment Berlin, Germany © Reuters / Fabrizio Bensch

Londoners also took to rainy streets on Thursday to celebrate, carrying Russian and Soviet flags along with portraits of family members who fought in the war.

Immortal Regiment, London © Facebook / Haneul Na'avi

Memorial marches were also held in Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York, Melbourne, Buenos Aires and Athens, among others.

Russian embassies posted photos of gatherings at the Soviet war memorials in Austria, Malta and Denmark.

Denmark Regiment © Twitter / @RusEmbDK

... while Russian news channel Vesti captured video from Immortal Regiment marches in Tokyo.

The ‘Immortal Regiment’ began as a local event in the Siberian city of Tyumen in 2007 and has since ballooned across Russia and the rest of the world into an annual tradition commemorating those who fought in the war.

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