The prime minister said that the opening of the 1812 Patriotic War Museum in the State Historical Museum restores justice. “Heritage preservation will be the primary purpose of this new museum – of any museum, for that matter. And that it’s based here, in this building, is great news in itself. I can read some historical parallels here; to me this is about the triumph of historical justice, if you will”, Mr Medvedev said during the opening ceremony.

Noting that Russia experienced a huge upsurge of patriotism during the 1812 Patriotic War, the prime minister said: “In retrospect, we can see that there could have been no other outcome to that war; the Russian army proved its worth, routing the invader.”

The prime minister also mentioned a poem about the Battle of Borodino by Mikhail Lermontov, and said that it was the first poem that he memorised.

In closing, Dmitry Medvedev thanked everyone who was involved in creating the museum.

The prime minister then toured the exhibition.

As he was getting an up-close look at the uniforms of the Russian and French troops, Mr Medvedev expressed surprise at their small sizes. “People changed thanks to the greater quantity and quality of food,” the prime minister noted, adding, “The French were arguably built more delicately.”

The prime minister examined a set of Napoleonic orders that made their way to Russia after the 1812 Patriotic War.

The prime minister lauded the exhibition, noting that the new museum needed audio guides for visitors.

Dmitry Medvedev signed the guest book before leaving the building.

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The 1812 Patriotic War Museum was founded in accordance with the plan for major preparations for the 200^th anniversary of Russia's victory in the Patriotic War of 1812, approved by the federal government executive order dated November 2, 2009. A dedicated two-storey display pavilion with an area of ​​2,000 square metres was built to house the museum.

The museum’s collection includes over 2,000 exhibits, including rare maps and documents, a unique collection of coins, uniforms and weapons of the Russian and French armies. The museum features individual exhibitions devoted to Alexander I, Napoleon Bonaparte and the Russian army commander Mikhail Kutuzov.

The 1801 Treaty of Paris, the first peace treaty between the Russian Empire and the French Republic, is on display for the first time ever. The French ratification instrument of the famous Peace Treaty of Tilsit between Russia and France, signed July 7, 1807, is also on display.

The objects of military life include the world's only surviving army field kitchen of the early 19^th century from the French army’s food convoy, which is sometimes referred to as Napoleon’s field kitchen.

In addition to conventional museum exhibits, the 1812 Patriotic War Museum uses multimedia displays.