The people of St. Petersburg turned their backs on Lenin
go through John Retty Leningrad
June 14, 1991
Yesterday, the citizens of Leningrad gave a clear, if not overwhelming, vote to abandon Lenin’s name and restore St. Petersburg’s former glory. Everyone except their new mayor was surprised. Anatoly Sobchak. Opinion polls show that the proposal to restore the city to its original name will be a little frustrated. As a result, 55% of people voted for returning to the roots, and 43% opposed.
President Gorbachev issued a statement last week stating that abandoning Leningrad “has neither moral nor political reasons”, which may push voters to another path. Public support from Patriarch Alexey may help. Fire engineer Andrei Bobrovsky opposed this idea until the day before. He said: “I thought about it and changed my mind. In my opinion, the old name is more suitable for our city.
It is not surprising that those living in the decline and glory of this large European city center want to reject the past 74 years. It is unexpected that most voters in the bleak industrial suburbs should do the same.
Obviously, people are proud of the greatness of pre-revolutionary history. Perhaps this is also a question of hope.this Dramatic days in 1917 It may be part of history, but they have led to the result that most citizens now symbolically refuse.
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St. Petersburg is ready to realize the ambitions of Tsar Peter
September 9, 1991
Yesterday, people in St. Petersburg, the second largest city in the Soviet Union, welcomed the restoration of its old name, St. Petersburg, and stated that it may now become the historical destiny of Russia’s “Window of the West” according to the plan of Tsar Peter in 1703. time. Getting rid of the (communist) past and returning to the beginning is of great significance to people,” said technician Viktor Sakharov.
Russian leaders cancelled the name Leningrad on Friday, which was the birthplace of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. The city had a dramatic break with communism. The name change came into effect on October 1. Residents hope that the restoration of the pre-revolutionary name will bring new vitality to the city that needs to be renovated. Huge potholes threaten those lucky enough to own a car, bricks are collapsing on large elegant terraces, and the central canal no longer hinders romance.
The daily newspapers have changed their headlines in accordance with the changes, and the flight from Moscow Airport announced a new destination for “St. Petersburg”. At the time of the name change, the city coincided with the 50th anniversary of the 900-day siege of Germany from World War II.
