Surrounded by dozens of men in chainmail and helmets playing dead in a field, an impersonator of mediaeval Russian prince Alexander Nevsky raises his sword and roars. "This land is Russian, always has been, and always will be!" It was on this spot near Lake Peipus on Russia's border with Estonia that eight centuries ago Nevsky repelled a force of Teutonic Knights who wanted to convert Russia to Catholicism. For the hundreds of history enthusiasts re-enacting the battle on a recent August day, that victory is especially resonant today, as Russian forces wage an offensive in Ukraine framed by the Kremlin as part of an enduring conflict with the West. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES