The regimental holiday, which has become traditional in modern Pridnestrovie, was held in Bendery. The 55th Podolsk Infantry Regiment soldiers are honored every year on August 29. The initiative to revive this tradition belongs to Vadim Krasnoselsky. It was celebrated at first at the departmental level, the holiday has become more large-scale since 2017.
The PMR President recalled the history of the creation of the military unit. He said that today there is hardly another point on the world map where such a celebration is organized at the state level, emphasizing that oblivion is a serious mistake fraught with negative consequences. Vadim Krasnoselsky called for remembering and honoring the exploits of heroic ancestors.
The main part of the event took place on the territory of the Bendery Military Historical Memorial Complex, where soldiers and officers of the Russian Imperial Army are buried. They said on the day of the 226th anniversary of the 55th Podolsk Regiment, that the date of the regimental holiday August 29 was not chosen by chance. This is the day when the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands – the patron saint of the field church of the 55th Podolsk Regiment – is venerated.
The history of the regiment began on January 5, 1798, when the Rochensalm Garrison Regiment was formed. The Podolsk Infantry Regiment was created on its basis during the reorganization of the Russian army, which was repeatedly deployed on the banks of the Dniester Later, on January 17, 1811. Pridnestrovians served in its ranks. The last commander of the Podolsk people was Isai Parfelyuk from the village of Kitskany. The Russian Emperor Nicholas II personally reviewed the 14th division during the Russo-Japanese War, which included the Podolsk Regiment, at positions near Tiraspol. The most striking, fateful, decisive battles over more than a hundred years of its existence, the 55th Podolsk Infantry Regiment has fought in more than one war, participated in historical military campaigns. The Podolsk people in the war of 1812 were part of the corps of Peter Wittgenstein, who defeated Napoleon's marshals heading for St. Petersburg. They played a huge role in the defense of the Shipka Pass in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78. In the Russo-Japanese War, the Podolsk Regiment became famous in the Battle of Sandepu. Many units of the Russian army were staffed by its units at various times. The descendants of the Podolsk people are today's peacekeepers.
Archbishop Sawa of Tiraspol and Dubossary held a prayer service in memory of the fallen soldiers of different historical periods who defended the Pridnestrovian land. The service was held at the church, which bears the name of the Image of Jesus Christ Not Made by Hands, as once the regimental church of the 55th Podolsk Regiment.
Participants in the regimental holiday laid flowers at the Orthodox cross installed in the center of the memorial complex. Then the procession went to the Cossack Cross and the monument to the defenders of Pridnestrovie who died in 1992 as a result of the military aggression of Moldova. The ceremonial events continued at the monument to Russian military glory. Litiya and the laying of flowers at the obelisk erected in 1912, which Vadim Krasnoselsky mentioned in his speech, took place there. The monument, popularly known as "Eagle", was erected using funds from soldiers and officers of the imperial army: the obelisk bears the inscription "To valiant ancestors from descendants. From the 55th Podolsk Infantry Regiment". The honoring of the 55th Podolsk Regiment ended with a liturgy at the Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky.
