after the death of Joseph Stalin. In the mid-1960s, a number of Soviet historians began to highlight its importance, as well as that of Bash Abaran and Karakilisa. The Soviet military historian Evgenii F. Ludshuvet, for example, emphasized that these battles, fought by the "Armenian Dashnak forces", helped slow down the Turkish advance on Baku and helped relieve some pressure against that city. Notable Soviet Armenian literary figures such as Hovhannes Shiraz and Paruyr Sevak, whose work "Sardarapat" was turned into a popular song, composed songs and wrote poems that lionized the Armenian fighters. Ivan Bagramyan, a Marshal of the Soviet Union and himself a participant of the battle, described its importance in the following manner: After the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide's fiftieth anniversary in 1965, Soviet authorities agreed to the construction of a monument and park dedicated to the Armenian victory near the site of the battle. Architect Rafayel Israyelian was commissioned to design the monument, which was completed in 1968. The battles of Sardarabad, Bash Abaran and Karakilisa are collectively known as the "Heroic battles of May" in Armenian historiography (Մայիսյան հերոսամարտեր Mayisyan herosamarter). Each year, the President of Armenia, visits the memorial on 28 May. During that day, many cultural and military events and parades take place. See also First Republic of Armenia Sardarapat Memorial References Notes References Further reading Afanasyan, Serge. La victoire de Sardarabad: Arménie, mai 1918. Paris: L'Harmattan, 1985. Allen, William E. D. and Paul Muratoff. Caucasian Battlefields. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1953. Aghayan, Tsatur P. Հոկտեմբերը և Հայ Ժողովրդի Ազատագրական Պայքարը (October and the Liberation Struggle of the Armenian People). Yerevan: Yerevan State University Press, 1982. Kayaloff, Jacques. The Battle of Sardarabad. The Hague: Mouton, 1973. Hovannisian, Richard G. Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967. Poidebard, Antoine. "Rôle militaire des Arméniens sur le front du Caucase après la defection de l'armée russe (décembre 1917-novembre 1918)". Revue des Études Arméniennes, I, pt. 2, 1920. 1918 in Armenia 1918 in the Ottoman Empire Battles involving Armenia Battles of the Caucasus Campaign Battles of World War I involving the Ottoman Empire Conflicts in 1918 May 1918 events Invasions of Armenia