Bone fragments from the hand of a medieval Russian prince who achieved a famous victory over the Mongols have been sent to the front in Ukraine to boost the army's morale, Reuters reports. It is an expression of support from the Russian Orthodox Church for President Vladimir Putin's war.
The sarcophagus of Grand Prince Dmitry Donskoy, who died in 1389 and is revered by Russian nationalists for his victory over the Mongol Golden Horde in the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380, was discovered this summer during restoration work at Moscow's Cathedral of the Archangel Michael, located within the Kremlin.
In August, Putin personally inspected the prince's remains and described them as "an absolutely unique and remarkable discovery" that strengthens the foundations of Russian history. The Russian Orthodox Church, which has supported Putin throughout the conflict, said it had sent a fragment of Donskoy's right hand to Donetsk, one of four Ukrainian regions that Putin declared Russian in 2022.
Calling Donskoy "the holy commander," the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church said part of his remains had been sent to the front to stand shoulder to shoulder with Russian troops. "A fragment of the right hand of the Grand Duke - the same hand with which he brandished his sword on the Kulikovo Field - has been sent to the front to strengthen the spirit of the soldiers," the church said.
The relic, kept in a small, ornate casket under tempered glass, will be displayed to Russian combat units along the more than 1,000-kilometer front line. Donskoy was canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1988.
The carefully orchestrated campaign to use his remains as a PR stunt to boost patriotism and fighting spirit comes on the eve of parliamentary elections in Russia.
Russian military and church officials have presented the discovery as a happy event that could help Russian forces prevail in Ukraine, a country that has been waging a grueling war for five years.