II in Berlin (Karlshorst). Victory Day (День Победы, Den Pobedy) is by far one of the biggest Russian holidays. It commemorates those who died in World War II and pays tribute to survivors and veterans. Flowers and wreaths are laid on wartime graves and special parties and concerts are organized for veterans. In the evening there is a firework display. A large ground and air military parade, hosted by the President of the Russian Federation, is annually organized in Moscow on Red Square. Similar ground, air and marine (if possible) parades are organized in several other Russian cities (which are Hero Cities or have military districts or fleet headquarters primarily). Russia Day Russia Day (День России, Den Rossii) is celebrated on June 12. On this day, in 1991, the Russian parliament formally declared Russian sovereignty from the Soviet Union. The holiday was officially established in 1992. Initially it was named Day of the Adoption of the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Russian Federation, then on 1 February 2002 it was officially renamed to Russia Day (in 1998 Boris Yeltsin offered this name socially). In Russian society there is a misconception that this holiday is also called "Russia's Independence Day", but it never has had such a name in official documents. According to a survey by Levada Center in May 2009, 44% of respondents named the holiday as "Independence Day of Russia". Unity Day Unity Day (День народного единства, Den narodnogo edinstva) was first celebrated on 4 November 2005, commemorating the popular uprising led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky which ejected Polish invaders from Moscow in November 1612, and more generally the end of Time of Troubles and foreign intervention in Russia. The event was marked by a public holiday which was held in Russia on 22 October (Old Style) from 1649 till 1917. Its name alludes to the idea that all the classes of Russian society willingly united to preserve Russian statehood when its demise seemed inevitable, even though there was neither a Tsar nor Patriarch to guide them. Most observers view this as an attempted replacement to counter Communist demonstrations on 7 November, which mark the anniversary of the October Revolution. National Unity Day is also known as Consolidation Day (as an alternative translation), which people in Russia celebrate between 3-4 November. List of other public holidays, commemorative and professional days Popular holidays which are not public holidays