Activities of the Rostov Regional Branch of All-Russian Society for the Protection of Monuments of History and Culture to preserve the memory of the Great Patriotic War in the second half of the 1960s

The fi rst monuments commemorating the Great Patriotic War appeared in areas that had been liberated from occupation. The state, including the regional authorities, set itself the task of recording, protecting and installing new monuments commemorating
the events of the Great Patriotic War. Already the first post-war inspections in the Rostov region showed that most of the monuments are in poor condition.
Methods: The author used source analysis of archival and published documents. Many archival materials are being researched for the first time.
Results: The establishment of the All-Russian Society for the Protection of Monuments of History and Culture coincided with a new stage in the Soviet government's approach to the memory of the Great Patriotic War. In the second half of 1960s the Rostov Regional Branch of All-Russian Society for the Protection of Monuments of History and Culture had developed a system of accounting and protection of monuments dedicated to the Great Patriotic War. For this purpose, the society has developed mechanisms for patronage of monuments, a system of accounting and certifi cation of memorials. The Rostov Regional Branch of All-Russian Society for the Protection of Monuments of History and Culture has become an intermediary between the state and society, as well as an interdepartmental institution, which has taken responsibility for a wide range of issues related to war memorials.