Volgograd

The city was made famous for its resistance, extensive damage, and loss of life during the Battle of Stalingrad during World War II.

History

Volgograd originated with the foundation in 1589 of Tsaritsyn at the confluence of the Tsaritsa and Volga Rivers. The fortress Sary Su (a local Tatar language name meaning: Yellow Water/River), was established to defend the unstable southern border of Tsarist Russia. It soon became the nucleus of a trading settlement. It was captured twice by Cossack rebels, under Stepan Razin in the rebellion of 1670 and Yemelyan Pugachev in 1774. Tsaritsyn became an important river port and commercial center in the 19th century.

The original name of the city, Tsaritsyn, was first recorded by English explorer Barry in 1579, though he did not refer to the city, but to the island on the Volga. The origin of the name is usually traced back to the Turkic "Sary-Su" (yellow water) or "Sary-Sin" (Yellow Island). The date of the founding of the city is considered to be July 2, 1589, when the fortress Tsaritsyn was first named in a royal charter. The fortress was located slightly above the confluence of the Volga River Queen on the right bank.

Before Tsaritsyn, in the mouth of the river, there was a settlement of the Queen of the Golden Horde.

In 1607, the fortress was in revolt against the king's troops but was suppressed six months later. In 1608, the city had its first stone church, St. John the Baptist.

At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the garrison consisted of 350-400 people.

In 1670 the fortress was taken by troops of Stepan Razin, who left after a month. In 1708, the fortress was held by insurgent Cossacks Kondrati Bulavin. In 1717, Bulavin was sacked by the Crimean Tatars and Kuban. Later, in 1774, the city unsuccessfully stormed Yemelyan Pugachev.

In 1691, Tsaritsyn established customs. In 1708, Tsaritsyn was assigned to the Kazan province; in 1719, to Astrakhan; from 1779, to the Saratov Viceroyalty. In 1773, the city became the provincial and district town. In 1780, the city was under the Saratov governorship (later as a province). According to the census in 1720, the city's population was 408 people.

The population expanded rapidly during the 19th century, increasing from fewer than 3000 people in 1807 to about 84,000 in 1900.

The first railroad came to the town in 1862. The first theater opened in 1872, the first cinema in 1907. In 1913, Tsaritsin's first tram line was built, and the city's first electric lights were installed in the city center.

During the Russian civil war Tsaritsyn was under Soviet control starting from November 1917. In 1918, Tsaritsyn was besieged by White troops under Ataman Krasnov. Three assaults by White troops were repulsed. However, in June 1919 Tsaritsyn was captured by White forces of General Denikin, which left the city in January 1920. This was known as the Battle for Tsaritsyn

The city was renamed Stalingrad after Joseph Stalin on April 10, 1925. This was officially to recognize the city's role in its defense against the Whites in 1918-1920.

In 1931, in the city including the German settlement-colony Sarepta (founded in 1765), subsequently became the largest area of the city — Krasnoarmeysky. The first institute was opened in 1930, a year later was opened and the Pedagogical Institute.

Under Stalin, the city became a center of heavy industry and transshipment by rail and river, and as a result was attacked by Axis forces during World War II. In 1942, the city became the site of one of the pivotal battles of the war. The Battle of Stalingrad saw perhaps the greatest casualty figures of any battle in warfare (estimates are between 1,250,000 and 1,798,619). The battle began on 17 July 1942, and on August 23 the city suffered heavy aerial bombardment that reduced most of it to rubble. By September, the fighting reached the city center. The fighting was of unprecedented intensity; the central station of the city changed hands 13 times, and the famous Mamayev Kurgan (one of the heights of the city) was captured and recaptured 8 times. By the winter of 1942–43, the German forces controlled 90% of the city, and had cornered the Soviets into two narrow pockets. On November 19, Soviet forces launched a massive counterattack. This led to the eventual encirclement of the Sixth German Army. On January 31, 1943 its commander, Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrendered, and on February 2, with the elimination of straggling German troops, the Battle of Stalingrad was over.

Stalingrad was awarded the title Hero City for its heroism in 1945, and King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the citizens of Stalingrad the jeweled "Sword of Stalingrad" in admiration of their bravery. A memorial complex commemorating the battle, dominated by an immense allegorical sculpture of Mother Russia, was erected on the Mamayev Kurgan, the hill that saw some of the most intense fighting during the battle. A number of cities around the world (especially those which had suffered similar wartime devastation) established sister/friendship/twinning links (see list below) in the spirit of solidarity or reconciliation. One of the first "sister city" projects was that established between Stalingrad and Britain's Coventry during World War II (as both suffered extensive devastation from aerial bombardment).

The Panorama Museum sited on the Volga contains artifacts from World War II. These include a panoramic painting of the battlefield from the location of the monument on Mamayev Kurgan. A rifle of the famous sniper Vasily Zaytsev (popularized in Western media in the film Enemy at the Gates) is also on display.

In 1961, the name was changed from Stalingrad to Volgograd ("Volga City") as part of Nikita Khrushchev's programme of de-Stalinization. This was and remains somewhat contentious, given the fame of the name "Stalingrad" and its importance in wartime remembrance. There were serious proposals to revert the name to "Stalingrad" during Konstantin Chernenko's brief administration in 1985. There remains a strong degree of local support for a reversion but intermittent proposals have been not yet accepted by the Russian government.

On May 21, 2007, the CPRF or Communist Party of the Russian Federation obtained an important success in the Volgograd mayoral election. Communist candidate Roman Grebennikov was elected as mayor with 32.47% of the vote. Grebennikov is Russia's youngest mayor of a regional capital.

Economy

Modern Volgograd remains an important industrial city. Industries include shipbuilding, oil refining, steel and aluminium production, manufacture of machinery and vehicles, and chemical production. A large Volgograd Hydroelectric Plant stands a short distance to the north of Volgograd.

Transport

Volgograd International Airport provides air links to major Russian cities as well as Antalya, Yerevan, and Aktau.

Volgograd's public transport system includes a light rail service known as the Volgograd metrotram. Local public transport is provided by buses, trolleybuses and trams.

Climate

Education

Sports

Famous residents

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Gallery

References

External links

Category:Populated places established in 1589 Category:Populated places on the Volga Category:Hero Cities of the Soviet Union