Day of the Russian Navy (Russian: День Военно-Морского Флота России) is national holiday in the Russian Federation and a senior holiday in the Russian Armed Forces. The day honors the sailors in units of the Russian Navy and its specialized arms (Naval Aviation and the Coastal Troops consisting of the Naval Infantry and the Coastal Missile and Artillery Troops). It is celebrated annually, on the last Sunday of July.[1]
History
The original version of the Russian Navy was founded in 1696 for the Tsardom of Russia. In the Soviet Union, Navy Day was established by a decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and the Central Committee of the VKPB of June 22, 1939 in June 1939; in connection with the Battle of Gangut. The holiday was canceled on October 1, 1980 by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. By the Decree of the President of Russia Vladimir Putin, Navy Day was reestablished.[2]
Main Naval Parade
Overview
Russia celebrates Navy Day with a 2-hour fleet review in St. Petersburg near the Neva River and the Port of Kronstadt, commonly known as the Main Naval Parade (Russian: Главный военно-морской парад). It was established by order of President Vladimir Putin on July 27, 2017 as the principal anniversary event in connection with Navy Day celebrations.[3] According to Putin, the idea was conceived while he was reading historical literature on his Ilyushinpresidential plane, during which he came across an article about a naval parade in Kronstadt during the Imperial era, after which he called Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu to order him to organize a similar type of event.[4] The parade features ships and marine air force units from the Baltic, Black Sea, Northern and Pacific Fleets as well as the Caspian Flotilla. The naval parade starts at 11:00 AM, with the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy (currently Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov) being the ceremonial commander of the fleet review formation.[5] Holiday commemorative naval parades by ground units and fleet reviews are also held at naval bases all over the country, such as Sevastopol, Kaliningrad, Vladivostok, Severomorsk and Astrakhan.[6] In 2020, a Naval Parade was held in the Dagestani city of Kaspiysk.[7] In 2024 there was no Russian navy parade in Sevastopol.[8]
The Royal Danish Navy often monitors Russian ships moving through Danish territorial waters to get to the parade to prevent incidents at sea.[9]
Order of ceremony
The fleet inspection segment begins when the President leaves the Peter and Paul Fortress aboard a presidential review yacht following the inspection of a guard of honor platoon and the Admiralty Navy Band, together with the Commander in Chief of the Navy and the Minister of Defense, to review a number of stationed vessels representing each of the fleets and the surface and submarine forces of the Navy as a whole docked on the Neva River.
A separate ceremony on Senate Square in the presence of the President of Russia then follows. The ceremony also includes a flag raising ceremony and the presidential holiday address to the nation and the service personnel of the Navy, following which the National Anthem of Russia is played with the firing of a 21-gun salute. The fleet review segment follows, ending with a flypast of naval aviation and in 2021 a marchpast of naval personnel.