Published on: 2026-10-12
Source: Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University –
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For one day, the bright autumn park of Polytech plunged into a real medieval fairy tale — a genuine knightly tournament was organized by the students at the foot of the beautiful Polytech Tower. This is not the first knight festival at the university. The autumn tournament has already become a tradition.
The idea and the leading role in the organization belong to the head of the RC “Alliance” direction. To Daniil Porozov, as well as to the deputy head, the lovely lady Polina Tenitskaya. Both organizers have gone through a long shared path at Polytech and are already studying in the second year of the master’s program at the Institute of Biomedical Systems and Biotechnology.
The role of the main organizer was once again taken by the RC “Alliance” — the Medieval Club of SPbPU at Vik “Our Polytech”. More than 50 activists participated from just one direction of the RC “Alliance”. These included warriors in heavy armor, as well as a large number of participants from various stations who interacted with guests and conducted a variety of master classes.
Our festival is not just an opportunity to have a good day. It is an opportunity for us, our partners, and students to immerse ourselves for one day in the cool yet vibrant autumn of the Middle Ages. We hold these events to distract our guests from the autumn blues and academic routine, and for activists—students from various fields—to unite around such an unusual theme and organize a wonderful festival together,” commented Daniil Porozov.
This year, the organizers attracted many new activists. One of the knights was freshman Alexander Petkevich from the Institute of Computer Science and Cybersecurity. He has already completed all the training, participated in battles, and has now become a full participant in the tournament. His armor was an example of a classic medieval knight, and despite his limited experience, the warrior demonstrated excellent fencing skills and defeated more than one opponent.
The Lonely Tower Tournament gave me a storm of unforgettable impressions. It was an honor for me to duel with experienced knights. The overcast weather noticeably complicated the duels, but it only added to the atmosphere, recreating the conditions of real harsh battles. This is my first tournament, and I am glad that I was able to show myself well, as well as try out in battle a weapon I had never used before. Although I was a knight in heavy armor, besides the knightly contests, I also excelled in archery,
The main theme of the event was the Knight Tournament. Warriors clad in armor — ordinary Polytechnic students — represented various regions: some fought in knight armor, others in the armor of a Russian druzhinnik, and there was even a Mongolian warrior.
The battles took place in the tournament arena. Besides the spectators, the proceedings were observed by a sensitive Court of Ladies — charming ladies who could reward a knight with a rose and a commemorative ribbon, as well as award him a victory if he displayed valiant qualities in the fight. By the way, ordinary spectators could also present a warrior with a commemorative ribbon. By the end of the tournament, some knights were adorned with thanks from the audience for the splendid duels.
The winner of the tournament was a young polytechnic student, a freshman at the Institute of Energy, Yuri Soludanov. He chose to fight in traditional Russian lamellar armor, playing the role of the Russian prince Yuri Dolgoruky.
The fights were tough, especially the final one, where by agreement the two warriors decided to fight until one fell. And time after time both would fall, until in the fourth match, thanks to wrestling skills and endurance, the Russian warrior finally took the lead.
But in history, knightly tournaments were not limited to battles alone — the same happened at the Polytechnic. In the park area, by the Tower, a whole medieval fair unfolded. Visitors could try various medieval amusements: archery, fencing, chainmail weaving, and they could also learn about the history of siege weaponry and try their hand at shooting with a ballista or trebuchet — and that’s far from all.
But one of the festival’s tasks is not only to bring joy but also to unite. Many Polytechnic associations gladly participated in the festival. Even considering such an unusual format, for many associations it is an interesting experiment.
Historical dances gathered spectators around and taught them dances. The board game guild became a place of relaxation where everyone could get acquainted with a real medieval board game and try it out. The wonderful ChemTeam transformed into mysterious alchemists for one day and told everyone about enigmatic medieval magic. The intellectual club once again prepared many history puzzles for visitors. New partners of the festival this year were the guys from the ecological association “ReGreen.”
This time the organizers expanded the venue: new spots for stations appeared, woodworking craft workshops were actively held where kids created wooden canopies, tables, and everything necessary for the comfort of participants and spectators.
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