Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow.
First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of the past millennium, beginning as the capital of an eponymous principality in the 11th-15th centuries, then the Smolensk Voivodeship of Lithuania and Poland, and Smolensk Governorate and Oblast within Russia. It was the main stronghold of the Smolensk Gate, a geostrategically significant pass between the Daugava and Dnieper rivers, and as such was an important point of contention in the struggle for dominance in Eastern Europe, passing at various times between Lithuania, Poland and Russia. In more recent history, it was captured by Napoleon's Franco–Polish forces and Hitler's Germany during their marches towards Moscow, and was the place of the Smolensk air disaster of 2010.
It has a population of
Etymology
The name of the city is derived from the name of the Smolnya River. Smolnya river flows through Karelian and Murmansk areas of north-western Russia.
The origin of the river's name is less clear. One possibility is the old
Slavic languages word смоль (smol') for
chernozem, which might have colored the waters of the Smolnya. An alternative origin could be the
Russian language word смола (smola), which means
resin,
tar, or pitch.
Pine trees grow in the area, and the city was once a center of resin processing and trade. The
Byzantine Empire emperor
Constantine VII (r. 913–959) recorded its name as Μιλινισκα (Miliniska).
Geography
The city is located in
European Russia on the banks of the upper
Dnieper River, which crosses the city within the
Smolensk Upland, which is the western part of the Smolensk–Moscow Upland. The Dnieper River flows through the city from east to west and divides it into two parts: the northern (Zadneprove) and southern (center). Within the city and its surroundings the river takes in several small
Tributary.
In the valleys are stretched streets, high ridges, hills, and headlands form the mountain. Smolensk is situated on seven hills (mountains). The old part of the city occupies the high, rugged left (south) bank of the Dnieper River. The area features undulating terrain, with a large number of tributaries, creeks and ravines.
History
Medieval origins
Smolensk is among the oldest Russian cities. The first recorded mention of the city was 863 AD, two years after the founding of Kievan Rus'. According to Russian Primary Chronicle, Smolensk (probably located slightly downstream, at the archaeological site of
Gnezdovo) was located on the area settled by the East Slavic
Radimichs tribe in 882 when Oleg of Novgorod took it in passing from
Veliky Novgorod to
Kiev. The town was first attested two decades earlier, when the
Varangians chieftains Askold and Dir, while on their way to Kiev, decided against challenging Smolensk on account of its large size and population.
The first foreign writer to mention the city was the Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII. In De Administrando Imperio (c. 950) he described Smolensk as a key station on the trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. The Rus' people sailed from the Baltic region up the Daugava River (Daugava) River as far as they could then they their boats to the upper Dnieper River. It was in Smolensk that they supposedly mended any leaks and small holes that might have appeared in their boats from being dragged on the ground and they used tar to do that, hence the city name.
The Principality of Smolensk was founded in 1054. Due to its central position in Kievan Rus', the city developed rapidly. By the end of the 12th century, the princedom was one of the strongest in Eastern Europe, so that Smolensk princes frequently controlled the Kievan throne. Numerous churches were built in the city at that time, including the church of Sts. Peter and Paul (1146, reconstructed to its presumed original appearance after World War II) and the church of St. John the Baptist (1180, also partly rebuilt). The most remarkable church in the city is called Svirskaya Church (1197, still standing); it was admired by contemporaries as the most beautiful structure east of Kiev.
Smolensk had its own veche since the very beginning of its history. Its power increased after the disintegration of Kievan Rus', and although it was not as strong as the Novgorod veche, the princes had to take its opinion into consideration; several times in 12th and 13th centuries there was an open conflict between them.
Between Lithuania and Russia
Although spared by the Mongol armies in 1240, Smolensk paid tribute to the
Golden Horde, gradually becoming a pawn in the long struggle between Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Grand Principality of Moscow. The last sovereign monarch of Smolensk was Yury of Smolensk; during his reign the city was taken by Vytautas the Great of Lithuania on three occasions: in 1395, 1404, and 1408. After the city's incorporation into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, some of Smolensk's
(e.g., the
Sapieha family) moved to
Vilnius; descendants of the ruling princes (e.g., the Tatishchevs,
, Mussorgskys, Vyazemskys) fled to
Moscow.
Three Lithuanian Smolensk regiments took part in the 1410 Battle of Grunwald against the Teutonic Knights. It was a severe blow to Lithuania when the city was taken by Vasily III of Russia in 1514. To commemorate this event, the Tsar founded the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow and dedicated it to the icon of Hodegetria. The loss of Smolensk to Moscow was the inspiration for Stańczyk, one of the most famous paintings by Polish painter Jan Matejko.
In order to repel future Polish–Lithuanian attacks, Boris Godunov made it his priority to heavily fortify the city. The Smolensk Kremlin constructed in 1597–1602 is the largest in Russia. It features thick walls and numerous watchtowers. Heavy fortifications did not prevent the fortress from being taken by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1611 after a long twenty-month siege, during the Time of Troubles and Dimitriads. Weakened Muscovy temporarily ceded Smolensk land to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Truce of Deulino. The city was granted Magdeburg rights in 1611 and was the seat of Smolensk Voivodeship for the next forty-three years.
To recapture the city, the Tsardom of Russia launched the so-called "Smolensk War" against the Commonwealth in 1632. After a defeat at the hands of king Wladislaw IV, the city remained in Polish–Lithuanian hands. In 1632, the Uniate bishop Lew Kreuza built his apartments in Smolensk; they were later converted into the Eastern Orthodox Church of Saint Barbara. The hostilities resumed in 1654 when the Commonwealth was being affected by the Khmelnytsky Uprising and the Swedish deluge. After another siege, on 23 September 1654, Smolensk was recaptured by Russia. In the 1667 Truce of Andrusovo, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth renounced its claims to Smolensk.
Modern history
Smolensk has been a special place to Russians for many reasons, not least for the fact that the local cathedral housed one of the most venerated Orthodox icons, attributed to St. Luke. Building the new Cathedral of the Assumption was a great project which took more than a century to complete. Despite slowly sinking into an economic backwater, Smolensk was still valued by the Tsars as a key fortress defending the route to
Moscow. It was made the seat of Smolensk Governorate in 1708.
In August 1812, two of the largest armies ever assembled clashed in Smolensk. During the hard-fought battle, described by Leo Tolstoy in War and Peace (Book Three Part Two Chapter 4), Napoleon I entered the city. Total losses were estimated at 30,000 men. Apart from other military monuments, central Smolensk features the Eagles monument, unveiled in 1912 to mark the centenary of Napoleon's Russian campaign.
At the beginning of World War I, the 56th Smolensk Infantry Division was first assigned to the First Army of the Imperial Russian Army. They fought at the Battle of Tannenberg. It was subsequently transferred to the 10th Army and fought at the Second Battle of the Masurian Lakes. In March 1918, the Belarusian People's Republic, proclaimed in Minsk under the German occupation, declared Smolensk part of it. In February–December 1918, Smolensk was home to the headquarters of the Western Front, North-West Oblast Bolshevik Committee and Western Oblast Executive Committee. On 1 January 1919, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed in Smolensk,
Soviet period
In 1940, from Smolensk, the
Katyn Massacre occurred, in which some 22,000 Polish
were murdered by the
NKVD. At this time Boris Menshagin was mayor of Smolensk, with his deputy Boris Bazilevsky. Both of them would be key witnesses in the
Nuremberg Trials over the massacre.
[Sanford, George. Katyn and the Soviet Massacre of 1940: Truth, Justice and Memory, Part 804, 2005, p. 140. .]
During World War II, Smolensk once again saw wide-scale fighting during the first Battle of Smolensk when the city was captured by the Germans on 16 July 1941. The first Soviet counteroffensive against the German army was launched in August but failed. However, the limited Soviet victories outside the city halted the German advance for a crucial two months, granting time to Moscow's defenders to prepare in earnest. Over 93% of the city was destroyed during the fighting; the ancient icon of Our Lady of Smolensk was lost. Nevertheless, it escaped total destruction. In late 1943, Hermann Göring had ordered Gotthard Heinrici to destroy Smolensk in accordance with the Nazi "scorched earth" policy. He refused and was punished for it. The city was finally liberated on 25 September 1943, during the second Battle of Smolensk. The rare title of Hero City was bestowed on Smolensk after the war.
After the Germans captured the city in 1941, they found the intact archives of the Smolensk Oblast Committee of the Communist Party, the so-called Smolensk Archive. The archive was moved to Germany, and a significant part of it eventually ended up in the United States, providing Western scholars and intelligence specialists with unique information during the Cold War on the local workings of the Soviet government during its first two decades. The archives were returned to Russia by the United States in 2002.
Recent events
On 10 April 2010, a Tu-154 military jet carrying Polish president Lech Kaczyński, his wife, and many notable political and military figures crashed in a wooded area near Smolensk while approaching the local military airport. All ninety-six passengers died immediately on impact. The purpose of the visit was to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the
Katyn massacre.
In June 2013, archaeologists of the Russian Academy of Sciences discovered and unearthed ancient temples in Smolensk dated to the middle to second half of the 12th century, built on the left bank of the Dnieper River. At the time the city was the capital of Smolensk principality.
In September 2013, Smolensk widely celebrated its 1,150th anniversary with funds spent on different construction and renovation projects in the city.
Demographics
Attractions
Owing to its long and rich history, Smolensk is home to many examples of Russian architecture ranging from the
Kievan Rus period to post-WWII Stalinist style. Although the city was destroyed several times over, many historically and culturally significant buildings remain, including a large number of churches and cathedrals. The most famous of these are the Cathedral of the Assumption, the Immaculate Conception Church, and the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, which is one of the few structures from before the Mongol invasion remaining in Russia.
File:Смоленск. Дом Энгельгардта..JPG|House Engelhardt
File:Смоленск. Дом Будникова..JPG|House Budnikova
File:Смоленск. Сбербанк..JPG|Sberbank Building
File:Смоленск. Здание 1930-х годов..JPG|Editorial office of the newspaper Krasnoarmeyskaya Pravda
File:Смоленск. Концертный зал филармонии..JPG|Smolensk Philharmonic Concert Hall
File:Smolensk train station.jpg|Smolensk railway station
File:Смоленск. Здание универмага..JPG|Department Store building
File:Смоленский драматический театр.JPG|The A. Griboedov Smolensk Drama Theater
The Smolensk Kremlin
The
Smolensk Kremlin, built at the end of the 16th century during the reign of Tsars Fyodor I Ioannovich and
Boris Godunov, under the supervision of the architect
Fyodor Kon, is one of the greatest achievements of Russian medieval architecture and military engineering.
File:BD090090(2).jpg|The walls of Smolensk
File:Федор Конь.jpg|Monument to Fyodor Kon
File:Bub.jpg|Bubleika Tower
File:Надвратная церковь Одигитрии задний вид.jpg|Dnieper Gate
File:Башня Орел вечером.jpg|Oryol Tower
Churches and cathedrals
File:Вид вечером.jpg|Cathedral of the Assumption
File:Smolensk Catholic Church 2.JPG|Immaculate Conception Church
File:Свирская Церковь.jpg|Church of St. Michael the Archangel
File:Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul on Gorodyanka in Smolensk (2013-11-08) 06.JPG|Church of St. Peter and St. Paul on Gorodyanska
File:Церковь Иоанна Богослова.JPG|Temple of St. John the Divine
File:Смоленск. Церковь Николая Чудотворца..JPG|Church of St. Nicholas
File:Смоленск. Вознесенский собор..JPG|Ascension Cathedral
File:Смоленск. Богоявленский собор..JPG|Epiphany Cathedral
File:Avraamiev monastery in Smolensk - the view from the tower Zaaltarnoy.JPG|Savior-Transfiguration Avraamiev Monastery
File:Smolensk Trinity Monastery Holy Trinity Cathedral IMG 1913 2175.jpg|Holy Trinity Cathedral
Monuments
Being the site of many great battles in Russian history, Smolensk is home to many monuments commemorating its rich military history.
File:Opalennyiy tsvetok, Scorched Flower.jpg|The Scorched Flower, a monument to child prisoners of Nazi concentration camps
File:Tvardovsky Monument Smolensk.JPG|Monument to Alexander Tvardovsky and Vasily Terkin
Lopatinsky garden
File:Памятник Софийскому полку в Смоленске.JPG|Monument to the 2nd Sofia Infantry Regiment
File:Смоленск. Пушка в Лопатинском саду..JPG|Cannon in Lopatinsky garden
File:Смоленск. Лопатинский сад..JPG|Monument to the defenders of Smolensk
Square of Memory of Heroes
File:Smolensk skver pamyati geroyev.jpg|View of the Heroes' Square
File:Смоленск. Памятник Благодарная Россия..JPG|The "Grateful Russia" Monument, commemorating the centenary of the Russian victory over Napoleon
File:Смоленск. Бюст Кутузова в Сквере Памяти Героев.JPG|The bust of Mikhail Kutuzov
Education buildings
File:Смоленск. Университет..JPG|Smolensk State University building
File:Russia sgtep april2007.jpg|Smolensk Polytechnic College building
File:Смоленск. Академия физической культуры..JPG|Smolensk Academy of Physical Culture, Sports and Tourism building
File:Смоленск. Колледж телекоммуникаций..JPG|Smolensk College of Telecommunications building
Post-war Stalinist buildings
File:Смоленск. Здание советского периода..JPG
File:Смоленск. Жилой дом..JPG
File:Смоленск. Сталинка..JPG
Administrative and municipal status
Smolensk serves as the administrative center of the
oblast and, within the framework of administrative divisions, it also serves as the administrative center of Smolensky District, even though it is not a part of it.
[Resolution #261] As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as
Smolensk Urban Okrug—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.
As a municipal division, this administrative unit also has urban okrug status.
[Decision #164]
Politics
Chairman of the City Council of the VI convocation (since 24 December 2021) – Anatoly Ovsyankin (
United Russia).
The Smolensk City Council of the VI convocation was elected on 13 September 2020. The party composition of the current city council is as follows: United Russia – 23 deputies, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation – 4 deputies, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia – 1 deputy, A Just Russia – 1 deputy, Party of Pensioners – 1 deputy.
Climate
Smolensk has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification
Dfb). By European standards, the climate is quite cold for its latitude on 54°N. The far inland position warms springs up relatively quickly, with May being quite a bit milder than September.
Economy
Smolensk has several factories including the Smolensk Aviation Plant and several electronics and agricultural machinery factories.
Transportation
Smolensk is located on the M1 main highway and Moscow–Brest Railway. Since 1870, there is a railway connection between Smolensk and Moscow.
Local public transport includes buses and trolleybuses.
Public transportation network includes buses, trolleybuses, trams, and
.
There are two airports located in the outskirts of the city; Smolensk South (civilian) and Smolensk North (military); however, there are no regular flights scheduled to Smolensk South Airport.
Education
Smolensk is home to the Smolensk State University (SMOLGU) and the Smolensk State Medical University (affiliated as university in 2015) (SSMU); together with colleges of further education and other educational institutes.
Twin towns – sister cities
Smolensk is
Sister city with:
-
Colorado Springs, United States (1993– suspended 2022)
-
Hagen, Germany (1985)
-
Kerch, Ukraine (2000)
-
Kragujevac, Serbia (2009)
-
Targovishte, Bulgaria (2002)
-
Tulle, France (1981)
-
Vitebsk, Belarus
Notable people
-
Ivan Ivanovich Baryatinsky (1772–1825), Russian Rurikid Prince; father of Prince Aleksandr Baryatinsky.
[ Leonilla Baryatinskaya My Heritage]
-
Yuri Gagarin (1934–1968), cosmonaut
-
Timofey Mikhaylov (1859–1881), revolutionary, one of the assassins of Tsar Alexander II
-
Grigorii Maksimov (1893–1950), politician
-
Fyodor Glinka (1786–1880) a Russian poet and author.
-
Mikhail Glinka (1804 in Novospasskoye – 1857), composer.
-
Sergey Glinka (1774–1847) a minor Russian author of the Romantic period.
-
Anatoly Kharlampiyev (1906–1979), founder of Sambo
-
Eduard Khil (1934–2012), singer
-
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow (born 1946), religious leader
-
Sergey Konenkov (1874–1971), sculptor
-
Semyon Lavochkin (1900–1960), aircraft designer
-
Morris Markin (1893–1970), businessman and founder of Checker Motors Corporation
-
Viktor Nemytskii (1900–1967), mathematician
-
Grigory Potyomkin (1739 at Chizheva – 1791), statesman.
-
Andrey Starovoytov, (1915–1997), IIHF Hall of Fame inductee
-
Aleksandr Tvardovsky (1910–1971), writer
Honors
Smolensk Strait between Livingston Island and
Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands,
Antarctica is named after the city.
[ Smolensk Strait. SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer.][Ivanov, L. General Geography and History of Livingston Island. In: Bulgarian Antarctic Research: A Synthesis. Eds. C. Pimpirev and N. Chipev. Sofia: St. Kliment Ohridski University Press, 2015. pp. 17–28. ]
A Soviet post World War II project planned the creation of a light cruiser vessel named Smolensk. It was never constructed.
See also
-
Battle of Orsha
-
Immaculate Conception Church, Smolensk
-
Coat of arms of Smolensk
Notes
Sources
-
"Była notatka o opcjach prawnych śledztwa". Były dyplomata o katastrofie smoleńskiej –
Bibliography
External links
