The memorial space of Novosibirsk in the historical dynamics (1893-2000)

The article is aimed to characterize the changes in the memorial space of Novosibirsk city from its foundation in 1893 to 2000 in the context of the complementarity and confrontation of the development trends of the politics of memory, emanating from the subjects of state and local authorities, as well from initiatives of public organizations and some important commemorators. There is proposed the definition of urban memorial space. The stages of forming the memorial space of Novosibirsk were identified and consistently characterized by their inherent specificity of the social attitude to the local historical heritage and commemorative activity. It was revealed that before the revolution in Novonikolayevsk both systems of memorable places began to take their shape, one glorifying imperial power and, the alternative one, reflecting the memory of the anti-government forces of Siberia, which fought the metropolis for expanding the rights of the population of the region. It was only after the Civil War that the city obtained the system of memorial places, associated with its own recent history of the revolutionary struggle, supplanting the old memorial systems. However, during the rule of I.V. Stalin this old system was obscured by a new system of monuments and memorable places, glorifying Soviet leaders and all-Union heroes. Many pre-revolutionary memorable places were destroyed at that period. Since the second half of the 1960s, the cult of Lenin had a particularly strong influence on the memorial space. Also, starting from this period and up to the collapse of the USSR, the memorial space of the city developed in connection with the concept of glorifying the military and labor feats of Novosibirsk people as Soviet citizens. Before the collapse of the USSR, the humanitarian and creative intellectuals of the city began to actively form an alternative system of memorial sites based on the reevaluation of the city's pre-revolutionary architectural heritage. In the 1990s, this trend was developed on the background of a general decline in attention to the historical and revolutionary heritage. However, the memorable places associated with the Great Patriotic War remained their significance. The memorial space of modern Novosibirsk is more diverse, then in the past. However, in the process of its development, it “feeds” on old historical myths and symbols, which are reinterpreted by each generation, including the new one.

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