Kostroma

History

Kostroma under the Riourikides

The first chronicles referring to the city go back to 1213, but the historians think that it could be founded by the prince Iouri Dolgorouki more than one half century earlier in 1152. It owes its appearance with its defensive strategic position against the attackers come from the East (Mongolian Tatars and ). Thus, as of other towns of Russia of the east, Kostroma was put at bag by the Mongolian in 1238. Built at the wood origin, the dwellings were destroyed by the fires, as for the current buildings, they date from the 19th century. In the beginning, it was the city centers of a small principality directed by Prince Vasily “the Drinker”, one of the youngest brothers of famous the Alexandre Nevski. Even by inheriting the title of large duke in 1271, Vasily did not leave the city for the princely city Vladimir. Its descendants controlled in Kostroma during more than one half century, before the city is not repurchased by Ivan I {{er}} of Moscow.

As much of cities of the north of the Moskova, Kostroma was used as place of retreat for the large dukes who wished to protect themselves from the enemies who besieged Moscow in 1382, 1408 and 1433. In 1375, the city was plundered by the pirates of Novgorod (the ushkuiniki ). At the 16th century, the city owes its prosperity and its economic growth with the commercial relations established with the merchants English and Dutch (the Company of Moscovia) by the port of the North of Arkhangelsk.

Boris Godounov rebuilds out of stone the monasteries of the Epiphany and Ipatiev. Constructions were completed just at the time when the city was going to be pilot certain the darkest events of the interregnum.

Kostroma was devastated by twice by the Polanes. It resisted six months of seat and ends up expelling them Monastère Ipatiev. At the time of these events, a heroic peasant of the name of Ivan Soussanine was distinguished and become the symbol of the resistance of the city vis-a-vis the foreign invaders; several monuments were dedicated to him.

The future Tsar Michail Romanov lived in this monastery. There was in Kostroma only one embassy of Moscow offered by the Russian crown in 1612.

Kostroma under the Romanov

The Tsar S Romanov always gave to Kostroma a choice place. Indeed, the Monastère Ipatiev accommodated number of them, in particular, Nicolas II, the last tsar of Russia.

The monastery was founded at the beginning of the 14th century by a prince Tatare, the ancestor of the family Godounov. The Romanov tsars rebuilt splendid the Cathédrale of the Trinity in 1652; its frescos and icons are of a great beauty. In the monastery, the wood house of Mikhail Romanov remained preserved.

Many frames wood of the structures of the walls of the monastery come from remote the area from the oblast from Kostroma.

In 1773, Kostroma was devastated by a large fire. Thereafter, the city was rebuilt with streets which converge in a radial way towards the same point near the river. According to a legend, one says that the Catherine empress dropped her range on the chart from the city and that she asked the architects to follow her drawing. One still finds vestiges urban preserved dating from the 18th century.

There exists in Kostroma some buildings elegant of style Néoclassique. Among the latter, one finds the palate of the governor, a tower of guet, a rotunda on a Digue of the the Volga and a central market bordered of arcades with a commercial church in the center.

Population

Monuments

The church of Resurrection (1652) is a splendid example of the Russian art of the 17th century. Built between 1559 and 1565, the Cathédrale of the Epiphany with five Bulbe S was the first stone building of the city; several years ago, its frescos medieval were destroyed by a fire. The cathedral shelters the most invaluable vestige of the city: a Byzantine icon of the 10th century, called Notre Dame of Saint-Theodore (in Russian: ФедоровскаяБогоматерь).

Mikhaïl Romanov was blessed by his/her mother with this icon before leaving for Moscow, in order to claim the throne of Russia. It is told that right before the revolutionary events, the icon blackens so much so that the image had become practically invisible. It was interpreted as ill omen for the dynasty of Romanov.

The Ipatievsky monastery remained intact with, its walls of the 16th century, its turns its bell-tower and its cathedral of the 17th century.

Separately the monasteries, the majority of the churches of the city were rebuilt or demolished during the Soviet era. The only church of the city to have survived since the golden age of the 17th century is the church of Resurrection on the Russian Plains (: церковьВоскресениянаДебре). According to the legend, the church was carried out on the request of a commercial rich person, who had ordered in England ten barrels of dyeing. In the place, it accepted ten gold barrels. He regarded this gold not honestly gained as a gift malefic given by the demon, also he decided to devote it to the construction of a splendid church, as sumptuous inside as outside. Two other churches of the 17th century, with more conventional architecture, can be seen on opposite bank of the the Volga.

Among the vestiges of the rule of Godounov, one can recommend to visit a similar church with a roof in the shape of tent in the village of Krasnoe on the Volga (formerly the field of the brother Boris Godounov).

Twinnings

Hyvinkää (Finland)

External bonds

History and sights off Kostroma (in Russian)
http://www.mykostroma.ru/

Photographs

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