Belozersk

city Belozersk Белозерск flag coat of arms Federal district Northwest Russia Oblast Vologda Rajon Belozersk mayor Alexander Leonidowitsch Scholeninow First mention 862 Earlier names Beloosero City since 862 surface 6  km² population 9616 inhabitants (as of Oct. 14, 2010) Population density 1603 inhabitants / km² Height of the center 130  m Time zone UTC + 3 Telephone code (+7) 81756 Post Code 161200-161201 License Plate 35 OKATO 19 210 501 Website gorodbelozersk.ru Geographical location Coordinates 60 ° 2 '  N , 37 ° 47'  E Coordinates: 60 ° 2 '0 "  N , 37 ° 47' 0"  E

Location in the western part of Russia

Location in Vologda Oblast

List of cities in Russia

Belosersk ( Russian Белозе́рск , scientific transliteration Belozersk ; until 1777 Beloosero ( Белоо́зеро ), German Weißensee ) is a Russian city ​​in the Vologda Oblast , northwestern Russia . It is the administrative center of Belozersk Raion and has 9,616 inhabitants (as of October 14, 2010).

geography

Belozersk is located 214 km northwest of Vologda and 118 km north of Cherepovets between the southern shore of the White Lake and the Volga-Baltic Canal , around 20 km west of the outlet of the Sheksna river .

history

Beloosero appears as the residence of the legendary Varangian prince Sineus in a source from the year 862, which was included in his historical collection The History of the Past by the monk and chronicler Nestor of Kiev from 1112 to 1113 , making it one of the oldest cities the Russian . At that time the place was still on the opposite bank of the White Lake near the present-day village of Kisnema. Initially owned alternately by the principalities of Veliky Novgorod and Rostov - Suzdal , from 1238 Beloosero was the seat of an autonomous domain. In 1352, after a plague epidemic , the city was initially relocated to the outlet of the Scheksna river near the present-day village of Krochino and rebuilt in 1363/64 at the current location. In the 1370s, the formerly independent principality was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Moscow , but at least remained the seat of its own sub-principality .

View of Belozersk in 1909. A photo by Sergei Prokudin-Gorsky

During the Mongol storms , the small state successfully resisted the attackers thanks to its protected location in the densely forested lake landscape of northern Russia and sheltered numerous refugees from the occupied regions in the south. In its heyday in the 15th and 16th centuries, Beloosero became an important trading center, where goods from Tver , Veliky Novgorod , the influential monasteries of the south and the distant settlements of the north were handled. However, with the establishment of Arkhangelsk on the White Sea in 1586, the main trade route shifted further east to the rivers of Suchona and Northern Dvina , so that the city lost much of its importance. In the 17th century Beloosero was badly destroyed by Polish - Lithuanian troops.

In 1777 the place received its current name on the occasion of its elevation to the district town. With the opening of Beloserski- channel ( Белозерский (обводной) канал ) in 1846, of a portion of the Mariinsky Waterway ( Мариинская водная система ) the White Lake to the Lake Onega and the Volga -type region and the Sukhona with the Gulf of Finland combined , Belozersk gained importance again, especially in the field of timber industry and rafting . After the Second World War , the Volga-Baltic Sea Canal succeeded the old canal system, so that today the route no longer leads through the lake, but south of the city.

Population development

year	Residents
1897	5,015
1926	6,990
1939	10,315
1959	10,375
1970	12.097
1979	12,256
1989	12,352
2002	10,975
2010	9,616

Note: census data

economy

In addition to food production , the most important industry in Belozersk is the wood industry . Several sawmills and other wood processing companies are located in the city.

Attractions

The Kremlin ( Кремль ) in the city center was founded in 1487 under Ivan III. and still has an earth wall (once 30 m high) , which was previously crowned by palisades and wooden watchtowers. The Church of the Transfiguration of Christ ( Спасо-Преображенский собор ) , built between 1668 and the end of the 1670s, has been preserved within the Remparts with baroque furnishings . The oldest stone building in the city is the Assumption Church ( Успенский собор ) built by masters from Rostov Veliki from 1553/1554 to around 1570 ; Among other things, it includes the precious icon of Our Lady of Belozersk ( Икона Богоматери Белозерской ) created in the second half of the 13th century . Other important monuments are built in timber church of the Prophet Elias ( Ильинская церковь , 1690-1696), the Church of the Merciful Savior ( Церковь Всемилостивого Спаса , from 1716 to 1723), the Church of Epiphany ( Богоявленская церковь , 18th century) and the Belozersky Canal , which runs between the city and the White Lake and is separated from it by a dam.

Events

Every year in July, the city festival and the festival of arts "Beloosero" ( Фестиваль искусств "Белоозеро" ) take place at the same time with a craft market, folklore performances and historical plays on the Kremlin Wall.

Twin cities

Belozersk's twin town is Skien in Norway . Because of its former importance as a trading partner with the cities of the north, Belozersk was officially admitted to the New Hanseatic League in 2001.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Itogi Vserossijskoj perepisi naselenija 2010 goda. Tom 1. Čislennostʹ i razmeščenie naselenija (Results of the All-Russian Census 2010. Volume 1. Number and distribution of the population). Tables 5 , pp. 12-209; 11 , pp. 312–979 (download from the website of the Federal Service for State Statistics of the Russian Federation)

Web links

Commons : Belozersk  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Official website of the city (Russian)
• Official website of the Rajons (Russian)
• Hanseatic League of the Modern Era
• Page about Belozersk at towns.ru (Russian)