Yaroslavl

The 19th century poet Apollon Grigoryev said of it, "Yaroslavl is a town of unsurpassed beauty; everywhere is the Volga and everywhere is history."

Yaroslavl is one of the oldest cities of Russia, as well as the biggest and most modern of the Golden Ring cities. It dates back to 1010 and was originally an outpost of the powerful principality of Rostov Veliky, but it became an independent principality in 1218. In the 17th century, Yaroslavl was the second largest city, but today, it's just a mid-sized city, with just 600,000 inhabitants.

Eight hundred years ago, no one would have believed that Yaroslavl would lose all of its political power. At that time, Yaroslavl, not Moscow, was Russia’s political, economic, cultural, and scientific center. But it was Yaroslavl’s immense importance that predetermined its fall. More than once, the Mongols invaded the city and burned it to the ground -- destroying most of its unique architecture, art, and science. Because of these invasions, many refugees moved north, settling in Moscow, Tver, and Nizhny Novgorod.

During the 17th century, it was in Yaroslavl that the national resistance to Polish-Lithuanian invaders was formed. The monument to Minin and Pozharsky -- the two people who led this resistance -- is located in front of St. Basil's Cathedral, on the Red Square, in Moscow. .

Fortunately, despite its ancient history, much of the city, with its countless spired churches, still remains intact. The oldest and the most appealing part of the city is at the junction of the two beautiful rivers: the Volga and the Kotorosl. One of the most famous sights is Yaroslavlskiy Art Museum which was recognized as Russian "Museum of the Year" in 1998. Its collection includes about 60 thousand pieces of icon painting, graphics, sculpture, painting, and handcrafts, dating from the XIII to XXI century. The most picturesque of the churches are Church of Iliya Prophet, Church of Mikhail Archangel, and the Aleksander Nevsky Chapel. It was also the birthplace of the first woman astronaut Valentina Tereshkova.

*You can observe the statues to Minin and Pozharsky in front of St. Basil's Cathedral on the Red Square in Moscow.