The Russian Orthodox Church sent a relic containing the remains of a medieval warrior prince to the troops fighting in Ukraine. The reliquary contains part of the right hand of Prince Dmitry Donskoy, from the 14th century, who is revered in Russia for his victory over the Mongol Golden Horde in 1380.
According to the church, the relic would "spiritually strengthen" the soldiers and help them achieve victory. A statement says "the holy commander is going to where the fate of the homeland is being decided today, so that he may, invisibly, take his place in the same battle rows as our defenders".
The relic was first taken to the Saur-Mogila war memorial in the Donetsk region of Russian-occupied Ukraine, where high-ranking Orthodox clergy held a religious ceremony alongside representatives of the Russian armed forces.
After the ceremony, the reliquary began being transported along the front line, bringing the medieval prince to the areas where the fighting in the war between Russia and Ukraine is taking place.
