This painting was written in 1878, it can be attributed to the Balkan cycle of painted paintings. In it, the artist shows us the value of the victory of the Russian army over the enemy in the Russian-Turkish war in the mountains of Bulgaria.
The painting depicts a parade at the settlements of Sheinovo and Shipka in 1877, this parade was organized in honor of the victory of the Russians over the Turks. Vereshchagin was an eyewitness of this event. The canvas depicts a long column of Russian soldiers, along which riders rush. He leads the retinue on a white horse. General Skobelev. His hand is lifted upwards, this gesture seems to congratulate the soldiers on victory. In response to the gesture, the army shouts a long “hurray,” and throws up his soldier’s caps.
The foreground of the picture is shown to us by a snow-covered field on which the bodies of the dead soldiers lie. In my opinion, the artist specially shows us the dead, that we could feel the whole tragedy of the atmosphere. It is through this contrast of happiness from victory, and the corpses of dead soldiers, that we must comprehend the value of human life. Or maybe Vereshchagin wanted to show us the patriotism of the killed soldiers, that they fought for their homeland and stood against the enemy to death. The picture very realistically conveys the whole event. Very vivid image of war.
I want to note that Vereshchagin does not glorify the survivors’ warriors, but shows in general common soldiers, their dedication and heroism, as if reminds us that thanks to them we have all our spaces and gave. I really liked the picture of this artist. She forced to become proud of our army, of ordinary people, and to sympathize and empathize with those who died in this war. No war, there are no such sacrifices and deaths. Every loss for the Russian army is a great tragedy, because every soldier, every soldier is valuable, and equal to the others.
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