The gardens between Ulitsa Dzerzhinskogo and the section of kremlin walls are known as Skver Pamyati Geroev (Heroes Remembrance Gardens). The gardens were first developed as 1812 Remembrance Square in 1912 to mark the centenary of Russia's Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon. As part of this a bust of Kutuzov and the City Academy were opened on the square. After the Second World War the area was renamed the Heroes Remembrance Gardens as it also became a site of remembrance of this war as the remains of Soviet soldiers were interred here. An eternal flame and 38 memorial granite flagstones were installed in 1968. In 1987 five new busts of heroes of the War of 1812 were added as well as a memorial to the partisans of the Second World War.

Donets Tower and Kremlin Wall

Donets Tower and the surrounding section the wall is Smolensk's answer to Moscow's Kremlin Wall Necropolis. In 1912 Emperor Nicholas II visited the square and opened the 1812 Boulevard which included 19 cast iron plaques on the kremlin wall commemorating various regiments (only 10 survive today). Opposite to the tower is an eternal flame which was lit in 1968. To the right of the tower is the grave of Mikhail Yegorov, a Hero of the Soviet Union from the Smolensk Region who was one of the soldiers who raised the Soviet flag on top of the Reichstag. Further on are plinths representing each of the Hero Cities of the Soviet Union, starting of course with Smolensk.

Grateful Russia to the Heroes of 1812 Monument

Also located in the square are several busts of Russian war heroes and the Grateful Russia to the Heroes of 1812 Monument which is better known as the Eagle Monument. The monument is the centre piece of Heroes Remembrance Square and was put in place on the 100th anniversary of the 1812 war. It features a large boulder on top of which there are two eagles, representing the armies of Barclay-de-Tolly and Bagration, defending their nest, representing Russia, against an armoured Gaul who symbolises Napoleon's Grand Armée. This monument has since become one of the most famous symbols of Smolensk.