Kursk
| Kursk (English) Курск (Russian) |
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| - City[citation needed] - | |
 Kursk Cathedral |
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.svg) Location of Kursk Oblast in Russia |
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 Kursk
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| Coordinates: 51°43′N 36°11′E / 51.717°N 36.183°ECoordinates: 51°43′N 36°11′E / 51.717°N 36.183°E | |
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| City Day | September 25[citation needed] |
| Administrative status | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Kursk Oblast |
| Administrative center of | Kursk Oblast[citation needed] |
| Municipal status | |
| Urban okrug | Kursk Urban Okrug[citation needed] |
| Mayor[citation needed] | Nikolay Ovcharov[citation needed] |
| Representative body | City Duma[citation needed] |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 190 km2 (73 sq mi)[citation needed] |
| Population (2010 Census, preliminary) |
414,595 inhabitants[1] |
| - Rank in 2010 | 42nd |
| Population (2002 Census) | 409,450 inhabitants[2] |
| - Rank in 2002 | 44th |
| Density | 2,182 /km2 (5,650 /sq mi)[3] |
| Time zone | MSD (UTC+04:00)[4] |
| Founded | 1032[citation needed] |
| Postal code(s) | 305000[5] |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 4712[citation needed] |
| Official website | |
Kursk (Russian: Курск, IPA: [ˈkursk]) is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was site of a turning point in the Russian-German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history. Population: 414,595 (2010 Census preliminary results);[1] 412,442 (2002 Census);[2] 424,239 (1989 Census).[6]
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[edit] History
Archaeology indicates that the site of Kursk was settled in the 5th or 4th century BCE.[citation needed] The settlement was fortified and included Slavs at least as early as the eighth century CE.[citation needed]
The first written record of Kursk is dated 1032. It was mentioned as one of Severian towns by Prince Igor in The Tale of Igor's Campaign: "As to my Kurskers, they are famous knights—swaddled under war-horns, nursed under helmets, fed from the point of the lance; to them the trails are familiar, to them the ravines are known, the bows they have are strung tight, the quivers, unclosed, the sabers, sharpened; themselves, like gray wolves, they lope in the field, seeking for themselves honor, and for their prince, glory."
The seat of a minor principality, Kursk was raided by the Polovtsians in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries and destroyed by Batu Khan around 1237. The city was rebuilt no later than 1283. It was ruled by Grand Duchy of Lithuania between 1360-1508. Kursk joined the centralized Russian state in 1508, becoming its southern border province. It was an important center of the corn trade with Ukraine and hosted an important fair, which took place annually under the walls of the monastery of Our Lady of Kursk. It was raided freuaently by Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Crimean Khanate until late of 17th century and was ruled Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1611-1634. It was bounded to successively Kiev Governorate (1708–1727), Belgorod Governorate (1727–1779) and Kursk Viceroyality (1779–1797). It was finally become center of Kursk Governorate in 1797.
Town status was granted to Kursk in 1779.
The Soviet government prized Kursk for rich deposits of iron ore and developed it into one of the major railroad hubs in the Russian Southwest. During World War II, Kursk was occupied by Germans between 4 November 1941 and 8 February 1943. Again in World War II, the village of Prokhorovka near Kursk was the center of the Battle of Kursk, a major engagement between Soviet and German forces which is widely believed by historians to have been the largest tank battle in history and was the last major German offensive mounted against the Soviet Union.
[edit] Attractions
The oldest building in Kursk is the upper church of the Trinity Monastery, a good example of the transition style characteristic for Peter the Great's early reign. The oldest lay building is the so-called Romodanovsky Chamber, although it was erected in all probability in the mid-18th century, when the Romodanovsky family had ceased to exist.
The city cathedral was built between 1752 and 1778 in the splendid Baroque style and was decorated so sumptuously that many art historians attributed it to Bartolomeo Rastrelli. Although Rastrelli's authorship is out of the question, the cathedral is indeed the most impressive monument of Elizabethan Baroque not to be commissioned by the imperial family or built in the imperial capital.
The cathedral has two stories, with the lower church consecrated to St. Sergius of Radonezh and the upper one — to the Theotokos of Kazan. The upper church is noted for an intricate icon screen which took 16 years to complete. The three-storey cathedral bell tower derives peculiar interest from the fact that Seraphim of Sarov, whose father took part in construction works, survived an accidental fall from its top floor at the age of 7. The Resurrection Church is also shown where St. Seraphim was baptized.
The monastery cathedral of the Sign (1816–26) is another imposing edifice, rigorously formulated in the purest Neoclassical style, with a cupola measuring 20 meters in diameter and rising 48 meters high. The interior was formerly as rich as coloured marbles, gilding, and frescoes could make it. During the Soviet period, the cathedral was desecrated, four lateral domes and twin belltowers over the entrance pulled down. There are plans to restore the church to its former glory.
The modern city is a home for several universities: Kursk State Medical University, State Technical University, Kursk State University (former Pedagogical University) and Agricultural Academy, as well as the private Regional Open Social Institute (ROSI). There are also modern shrines and memorials commemorating the Battle of Kursk, both in the city and in Prokhorovka.
The Command Station Bunker & Museum [7][not in citation given]was built specifically in memorial of the courageous Russian T-34 tank units that fought in the Battle of Kursk, where a T-34 tank is on display. Over 6,000 armored vehicles fought in close range over the open territory near Kursk in 1943. This battle stopped the German advance into the Kursk Salient, and was a turning point in WWII on the Eastern Front.
Kursk played a role in the Cold War as host to Khalino air base.
Nearby is Tsentralno-Chernozemny Zapovednik, a large section of steppe soil that has never been plowed. It is used for a variety of research purposes.
[edit] Transport
Kursk is located on a major railway line between Moscow and Kharkov, with trains also linking the city to Voronezh and Kiev. Kursk Vostochny Airport provides domestic flights. Public transport includes busses trolleybuses and trams.
[edit] Culture and sports
Kursk State University is home to the Russian Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of conductor and trumpet soloist Sergei Proskourin. The orchestra performs regularly, tours internationally and has produced multiple CDs.[8]
Pushkin Theater located in the center of the city. It has permanent company as well as visiting shows.
[edit] International relations
[edit] Twin towns/sister cities
Kursk is twinned with:
[edit] Honors
- A minor planet 3073 Kursk discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1979 is named after the city.[10]
- The Russian submarine Kursk was named after the city.
[edit] Prominent residents
- Georgy Sviridov, composer
- Alexander Deyneka, painter, sculptor
- Aleksandr Rutskoy, politician
- Seraphim of Sarov, monk and mystic
- The Tolmachevy Twins, singers
- Aleksandr Povetkin, Olympic Super-Heavyweight Boxing Champion
- Alexey Ivanovich Borozdin, musical therapist
- Vyacheslav Klykov, sculptor
- Nikita Khrushchev, born nearby
[edit] See also
- Our Lady of Kursk, holy protectress of the city
- Battle of Kursk
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2011). "Предварительные итоги Всероссийской переписи населения 2010 года (Preliminary results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2010). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis-2010.ru/results_of_the_census/results-inform.php. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ^ a b Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2004-05-21). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек (Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis2002.ru/ct/doc/1_TOM_01_04.xls. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
- ^ The value of density was calculated automatically by dividing the 2010 Census population by the area specified in the infobox. Please note that this value may not be accurate as the area specified in the infobox does not necessarily correspond to the area of the entity proper or is reported for the same year as the population.
- ^ Правительство Российской Федерации. Постановление №725 от 31 августа 2011 г. «О составе территорий, образующих каждую часовую зону, и порядке исчисления времени в часовых зонах, а также о признании утратившими силу отдельных Постановлений Правительства Российской Федерации». Вступил в силу по истечении 7 дней после дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Российская Газета", №197, 6 сентября 2011 г. (Government of the Russian Federation. Resolution #725 of August 31, 2011 On the Composition of the Territories Included into Each Time Zone and on the Procedures of Timekeeping in the Time Zones, as Well as on Abrogation of Several Resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation. Effective as of after 7 days following the day of the official publication).
- ^ Local post office info - http://www.russianpost.ru/PostOfficeFindInterface/FindOPSByPostOfficeID.aspx?index=305000
- ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров. (All Union Population Census of 1989. Present population of union and autonomous republics, autonomous oblasts and okrugs, krais, oblasts, districts, urban settlements, and villages serving as district administrative centers.)" (in Russian). Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года (All-Union Population Census of 1989). Demoscope Weekly (website of the Institute of Demographics of the State University—Higher School of Economics. 1989. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus89_reg.php. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
- ^ "Dr. Ed Norris, World Indigenous Missions, 2007". Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. http://web.archive.org/web/20070930203643/http://mysite.verizon.net/nt5b/wcci.html. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
- ^ "Russian Chamber Orchestra". http://rco.k46.ru/index.htm.
- ^ "List of Twin Towns in the Ruhr District". © 2009 Twins2010.com. http://www.twins2010.com/fileadmin/user_upload/pic/Dokumente/List_of_Twin_Towns_01.pdf?PHPSESSID=2edd34819db21e450d3bb625549ce4fd. Retrieved 2009-10-28.
- ^ Dictionary of Minor Planet Names - p.253
[edit] Websites
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kursk |
- http://www.kurskmed.com/en/ about Kursk State Medical University
- http://www.kursk-uni.ru/pdf/ksu.pdf about Kursk State University
- http://kurskmusic.ru/ about Kursk music events
- http://gai46.ru/ Kursk road police dept
- http://kursk2.ru/ Kursk social network / online community
- http://www.wild-russia.org/bioregion3/tsent-chern/3_tsen-chern.htm about Biosphere reserve
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