"Post Number One" was set up by presidential decree at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Park on 12 December 1997. It replaced the former "Post Number One" at the Lenin Mausoleum in Red Square, which lasted from 1924 to 1993. President Yeltsin intended the permanent post at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to be an enduring symbol of the victory of the Soviet people in the war against Nazi Germany. The guard performs its ceremonial duties from 8:00 in the morning until 8:00 at night every day for perpetuity.

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