The Minister of Defence Nargus Hanson opened the bronze statue of Julius Kuperjanov, hero of the Estonian Independence War. The ceremony took place at the central square of the Kuperjanov Single Infantry Battalion.
In his speech the Minister recalled the soldiers who particpated in the War of Independence, many of whom lost their lives in the fight for freedom.
“Alhough lieutenant Kuperjanov sacrifieced his life a long time ago we still have to value the symbolic bonding of his actions with the development of the contemporary army in Estonia,” he said. “The army unit named after him is one of the outstanding ones in Estonia.”
The author of the bronze statue is a young artist Janek Arro who went through the conscript service in the Kuperjanov battalion.
Julius Kuperjanov (1894 – 1919) is a legendary Estonian warrior who formed and led a group of 1200 soldiers during the Estonian War of Independence. Kuperjanov was wounded and died during the vital Paju battle.