Статьи о географии — 6

As discussed in Chapter 7, Gorbachev inherited a deeply entrenched, but increasingly dysfunctional, totalitarian political system and a sickly staterun economy. On the one hand, even the party elite was getting tired of the old-fashioned, inefficient command economy and other methods of running the country. On the other, the economy stopped growing. Much of the country's foreign earnings came from exports of petroleum […]

Russia, like the United States, is a federation of regional units. They are called “subjects of federation,” not “states,” but the idea behind them is similar: Each has its own governor, legislature, flag and seal, borders, and so on. Overall there were 89 subjects of federation in 2000, but only 83 in 2010, including 21 autonomous republics, 4 […]

To give you a better sense of the pace of post-Soviet reforms, we could take a walk through time on any Moscow street and look for clues. One such street, Borisovsky Proezd in southeastern Moscow, is near the flat where I grew up. The district of Orekhovo-Borisovo was founded in 1974, and 10 years later it had a […]

The 1985 election of Mikhail Gorbachev as a new leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (C.P.S.U.) ushered in a new era. The stagnation of the Brezhnev period had ended with his death in 1982. After two successors to Brezhnev died in rapid succession, the Communist elite wanted someone younger and healthier in the lead. Gorbachev was apparently chosen because […]

If you have been to Moscow, you probably have seen the main building of Moscow State University, with a spire soaring to 250 m (Figure 1). The building was completed in 1954, the year after Stalin's death. It looks like a wedding cake, and its neo-Empire design is rather similar to that of some New York skyscrapers of […]

The Soviet period started in October 1917, with the victory of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin's Bolshevik party over the bourgeois Provisional Government in the political revolt later referred to as the “October Revolution.” It ended with the Communist hardliners' coup against Mikhail Gorbachev in August 1991. Thus the period covers 74 years of Russia's recent history. The word “Soviet” means “council” in Russian, and as […]

Russia occupies 11.3% of the world's landmass. The total length of the land border is 20,097 km. The countries Russia borders, and the length of the border with each country, are as follows: Norway, 196 km; Finland, 1,340 km; Estonia, 294 km; Latvia, 217 km; Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast), 280.5 km; Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast), 232 km; Belarus, 959 km; […]

Before the Eastern Slavs were converted to Christianity, they were animists. “Animism” is a belief in spirits as expressed in forces of nature. The ancient Slavs believed in a number of gods, both male and female. Each tribe had one most important god and a variety of others. Wooden totemic statues (idols) were commonly erected at prominent sacrificial […]

The Russian state has a long history, encompassing over 11 centuries. Archeological work in Ukraine points to the existence of settlements north of the Black Sea in the Paleolithic period, placing human presence in the Dnieper basin well over 10,000 years ago. The ancient Slavic tribes that gave rise to the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian people originated in the Dnieper basin shortly before […]

My trip to Siberia in the summer of 2006 started with a long bus ride from the international Tolmachevo Airport in Novosibirsk. After about 2 hours of bumpy road on the national Trans-Siberian Highway (which in places resembles a local access road somewhere in Montana), I was relieved to get off on a curve somewhere in Bolotniki district […]

The Soviet Union was commonly perceived as one of the most polluted places on earth. A list of the major environmental disasters of the 20th century includes many that happened in the U.S.S.R.: the Chernobyl disaster in Ukraine; the less publicized Kyshtym nuclear accident near Chelyabinsk in the Urals; the Aral Sea water loss; the Semipalatinsk and Novaya Zemlya nuclear bombing fallout; and […]

Besides the main five biomes of Northern Eurasia, there are some rarer types, of which four merit mention here: mountainous ecosystems; the subtropical vegetation of the Black and Caspian Sea coasts; the unique forests of the Russian Pacific; and the azonal communities of the floodplains and marine coasts. All mountain ranges have their own zonation of ecosystems from bottom to top. For […]

With its spacious, rainless interior, Eurasia is home to the northernmost deserts in the world. Located entirely outside the tropics, the deserts of Central Asia have all the usual desert features, including sand dunes, desert pavement, rock formations, small saline lakes and playas, and very little vegetation. However, the northern, boreal elements of their flora and fauna are unique. The main deserts in […]

South of Moscow, the forest gradually gives way to the steppe. Across the Oka River, the first patches of steppe begin to appear. The Tula and Orel regions have forest–steppe, while the Kursk and Belgorod regions are primarily in the true steppe zone. The steppe stretches across much of Ukraine to the lower Volga, to northern and central Kazakhstan, and to the […]

South of the taiga zone, a narrow wedge of mixed and deciduous forests stretches from the Baltic republics to the Urals and beyond, to Novosibirsk and the Mongolian border. This zone is smaller than the taiga, but it has a warmer and generally wetter climate. Moscow is located in the middle of it, with pine and spruce being more common to the […]

“Taiga” is a Siberian word; it has recently become better known through the efforts of the Taiga Rescue Network, doing important conservation work throughout the Northern Hemisphere. In North America, taiga is known as the “boreal coniferous forest,” which is what covers much of Canada. Note that although the West Coast forests of British Columbia, Oregon, and Washington also have conifers, they have […]

Treeless tundra is found in the north of Russia, generally above the Arctic Circle. In European Russia, it occupies limited space on Kola Peninsula and in the Arkhangelsk and Komi regions along the coast. In Siberia, the most extensive tundra is found on Yamal, Taymyr, and Chukotka Peninsulas. In North America, tundra covers much of Alaska's North Slope, as well as about one-quarter […]

The nature of the former Soviet Union (FSU) is diverse and beautiful. It makes the most geographic sense to look at it from the perspective of “biomes,” the largest ecosystem units. The biomes of Northern Eurasia are similar to those of Europe or North America: tundra in the north; taiga and deciduous forests in the middle; steppe and desert in the south. […]

It is July in Almaty, the largest city of Kazakhstan and its former capital. The air is hot (it is 32?C in the shade), but the city feels cool. What's the secret? When you arrive at your hotel, you decide to leave the air-conditioned room behind and explore on foot. All streets are laid out in a […]

“Permafrost” is perennially frozen soil and subsoil material that exists in climates below a certain temperature threshold. Usually it is found everywhere in tundra (ET) and subarctic (Dfc) climates. In North America, it is found in much of northern Canada and Alaska. In Russia, it occupies an astonishing two-thirds of the territory, primarily in the north and in […]

“Climate” refers to the average weather conditions found over large territories. Climate is expressed in terms of daily, monthly, and annual values of air temperature and precipitation, as well as wind speed, moisture, seasonality, and other factors averaged over a standard period of observations, usually 30 years. Climates of the world are differentiated into five broad types, labeled with the letters A through E; […]

The term “relief” refers to all the landforms on the surface of the earth. It is basically the same thing as “topography.” “Hydrography” refers to the water features that produce some of the landforms. Every country has prominent features such as mountains, valleys, plateaus, and basins, which set the stage for climate types and biomes to develop, and these in turn determine to […]

Russia is a country unlike any other. It occupies much of the world's largest landmass, Eurasia; it stretches across 11 time zones and covers over 17 million km2. Its average climate is the coldest of any country on earth. Its land is extremely varied, with large plains and bogs, forests and deserts, rivers and lakes. Underneath its soil are thousands of tons […]

At the end of World War I, distinguished British geographer Sir Halford Mackinder published a volume entitled Democratic Ideals and Reality. In it, he proposed a “Heartland Theory.” He contended that the country that controlled the “world island” (Eurasian continent) could control the world. He stated: “Who rules eastern Europe commands the Heartland. Who rules the Heartland commands the World Island. […]

Starting in the late 1940s, the United States and the Soviet Union clashed in political and economic conflict during the cold war. When the cold war ended, the Soviet Union disbanded. The United States gave token support to the Russian Federation. For 10 or so years, however, the United States paid little attention to Russia's socioeconomic problems. On September 11, […]

Some disorder and conflict has occurred within the Russian Federation.Many ethnic groups want independence from Russia. If that is not possible, they at least want more recognition and autonomy. Consolidation of power in the hands of Vladimir Putin nevertheless prevented major conflicts (other than the seemingly continuous unrest in the Caucasus region). During Boris Yeltsin's regime, many remote regions existed in semi-independence. […]

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) succeeded the Soviet Union. It was founded by Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus in December 1991. The CIS has a population of 280 million and an area of 8.5 million square miles (13.7 million square kilometers). All former Soviet republics except Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia joined the organization. The Baltic republics elected to tie their future […]

The Soviet Union was the successor to the sprawling imperial Russian Empire. Guided by Marxist ideology and the Communist Party, Soviet leaders attempted to remold the economy, cultural life, and settlement. Centralized national planning was their major tool. Soviet planners recognized the problems caused by Russia's size. During the Five-Year Plans, they constructed roads, canals, railroads, and air routes, and built […]

The spread of Communism and economic growth within the Soviet Union after World War II led to a large expansion of foreign trade. Turnover of goods at Soviet seaports increased five times between 1960 and 1975. Development of Siberian and Far Eastern resources also stimulated additional movement of goods on coastal shipping routes and between ports on different seas. The Northern […]

Air transportation played an important role in uniting the farflung and remote areas of the Soviet Union. It began to develop prior to the Russian Revolution. Growth continued during the years between World Wars I and II and it expanded greatly after World War II. In the 1970s, the Soviet Union claimed to have more scheduled airline service than any […]

Development of modern imperial Russia and of the Soviet Union depended almost entirely upon its railroad system. In a modern industrial society, where great distances separate resources from markets, transportation is extremely important. Compared with the problems faced in road construction and in river transportation, railroad construction problems were relatively slight. There were shortages of ballast stone for track beds and trees […]

Muscovite princes recognized that a reliable, all-weather transportation network was crucial for political control and economic development. Although the distances involved were immense, there were few physical impediments to overland transportation routes in the west. On the other hand, climate, permafrost, and relief combined to present major obstacles in Siberia. Initially, roads were constructed to bring goods and products to river ports […]

The Kievan state, Moscow, and Novgorod all became rich and politically powerful because of river trade. Every major city in imperial Russia and in the Soviet Union was initially located on a river or another major body of water. The Volga River system opened the way to the riches of the Middle East, central Asia, and China. It also led […]

Russia is extremely well endowed in mineral resources. It is rich in coal and oil, and in most raw materials required by a modern industrial nation. A determined effort was made in the 1930s to survey and map mineral wealth. Vast deposits of coal, oil, and natural gas were discovered. Soviet geologists reported that the nation contained more than one-half […]

The present pattern of industrial location in Russia was set during the early Five-Year Plans. Distinct industrial regions remain, based on their industrial history. They are old centers of market-oriented, labor-intensive industries; old centers of heavy industry; new energy-based industrial regions; and emerging industrial regions. These regions represent a decision-making struggle. Industrial planners wanted to locate new plants at […]

Russia's Industrial Revolution began during the 1700s. Before this time, manufacturing was done at home by hand, using simple machines.Most pre–Industrial Revolution artisans and skilled laborers worked in rural areas. They made the products needed by their family, friends, and those who lived in their village. The use of complex, expensive, and large power-driven machines took manufacturing out of the home […]

              Russia is a major importer of food. In most years, at least 20 percent of all food consumed is imported. Russia buys food from the United States, western European countries, and the former Soviet republics. Agriculture in Russia faces severe climatic limitations. As a result, average productivity per acre is much lower […]

Boris Yeltsin, who led Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union, directed all state agencies involved to submit suggestions on how to reform Russian agriculture. This was part of his effort to privatize agriculture. His 1991 decree guaranteed Russian farmers the opportunity to become independent of the state agricultural system. This decree led to a decline in agricultural production and […]

Mikhail Gorbachev, who became the Soviet leader in 1985, had a strong background in agriculture. He had served as the Politburo's member in charge of agriculture before he became first secretary of the Communist Party. The Politburo was the highest governing body of the Communist Party. Gorbachev attempted to increase incentives for farmers to produce more food and to improve the […]

Khrushchev was removed from power and replaced by Leonid Brezhnev in 1964. Brezhnev had been secretary of the Central Committee of the Kazakhstan Communist Party during the initial years of the “Virgin Lands Project.” When he came to power, he immediately raised the prices paid to farmers for their products and guaranteed a wage for collective farmers. His main goal […]

Stalin's death in 1953 led to a period in which the members of the Communist Party inner circle decided who would lead the Soviet Union. The man chosen was Nikita Khrushchev, who became the leader of both the Communist Party and the country. Khrushchev had a sincere desire to substantially improve the Soviet people's diet. In order to increase the availability […]

The Communist Party needed capital to finance its plans to industrialize the Soviet Union.Many Bolsheviks favored paying for the new factories and mines by forcibly taking agricultural products from the peasants. After much debate within the party, the method chosen to finance industrial growth was Stalin's policy of all-out socialization of agriculture. An institutional “revolution from above” was initiated in the […]

To gain support of rural dwellers, in November 1917, the urban-based Bolshevik government nationalized all land in Soviet Russia. The expropriated land was not given to the farmers. It remained in the hands of the state. Huge state farms and state-directed cooperative farms were created. From World War I until 1921, successful farmers were discriminated against. Their produce was frequently confiscated. […]

Agriculture under the tsars in the mid-1800s was exceedingly backward and very inefficient. A Russian farmer produced enough food for himself, his family, and two other people in a good year. An American farmer at that time produced enough food for himself, his family, and 10 other people. The freeing of serfs in 1861 failed to improve the quality of […]

Vladimir Putin became the acting president of Russia on December 31, 1999, and president on May 7, 2000. His election sidelined proposals to reduce the president's power. The people supported the new constitution. They wanted to eliminate the decision-making stalemate between the president and Parliament. Conflicts between the executive and legislative branches of government had paralyzed the nation's economy to […]

Most of Russia's people were skeptical about adopting a Westernstyle democracy in 1991. Russian president Boris Yeltsin warned the people that the country had more problems than a parliamentary democracy could resolve.He advocated instead a “presidential government.”Keeping the old Soviet government model, Yeltsin attempted to reform Russian society. (The Russian Constitution, which had been rewritten in 1977, was amended in 1991 to […]

Massive general strikes, hunger, and a loss of faith in Nicholas II led up to the Bolsheviks seizing control of Russia. Vladimir Lenin, the Communist Party leader, was a brilliant revolutionary. His leadership of the highly disciplined Communist Party, combined with the country-destroying events of 1917, enabled the Bolsheviks to overthrow the tsarist system. Immediately following their seizure of power, they […]

The peoples of Russia have been governed by some of history's most oppressive and authoritarian political regimes. One family—the Romanovs—governed Russia's diverse ethnic and linguistic groups for more than 300 years. Initially elected by the noble gentry during the “Time of Troubles,” the Romanovs developed a form of government called tsarism. The male who inherited the throne of imperial Russia was […]

Prior to the breakup, the Soviet Union had one of the fastestgrowing populations among the world's developed countries. Its annual population growth rate was approximately 0.9 percent, slightly lower than that of the United States. However, by the early 1990s, Russia's population began to decrease at a rate that alarmed government officials and economic planners. Low birthrates and higher death rates […]

Throughout the history of the Soviet Union, and particularly during the first Five-Year Plan, Russians migrated from rural areas to urban areas in search of jobs and better lives. Today, Russians in large urban areas have a higher standard of living than those from rural regions. They also have better medical and social services, better schools, more interesting jobs, and pay […]

Russia's population began to decline shortly after the breakup of the Soviet Union, even though it had been growing since World War II. The current socioeconomic transition Russia is experiencing accounts for most of this decline. Russian leaders are worried that the slow population growth could create labor shortages in areas of economic growth. It also could lead to uncontrolled internal […]

Russian society has always depended upon a common set of beliefs to blend together its diverse members. These beliefs had a place of origin and entry into Russia, routes of diffusion, and patterns of distribution. Religions of Russia vary greatly, and include beliefs in one God, many gods, ancestor worship, forest glade spirits, magic, and idol worship. The majority of those […]

Beginning at the pivotal point of Moscow, Russian influence expanded continuously outward. In just more than 500 years (from 1462 to 1991), it spread to cover more than one-third of Europe and nearly half of Asia. The tsars and then the Soviet commissars brought much territory and many ethnic groups under their control. They governed large numbers of people from diverse […]

Population distribution and redistribution in Russia has been managed by the government. Recently, it has been modified by the economic restructuring associated with the breakup of the Soviet Union. The population hub of imperial Russia was Moscow, which was the largest city in the Soviet Union. In 1724, Peter the Great ordered the first census taken in tsarist Russia. It covered […]

In the first half of the twentieth century, imperial Russia was transformed from a backward but powerful multiethnic nation into a major world superpower. Yet, from October 1917 until the death of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in 1953, the people of the Soviet Union experienced one catastrophe after another. Millions of Russian soldiers died during World War I. At least […]

The Russian Revolution of 1917 launched the largest political and social experiment ever undertaken—the formation of the Soviet Union. Under the direction of the Communist Party, there was tremendous economic growth in the 1930s.With victory over the German Army in World War II, the Soviet Union became second in power only to the United States. Following World War II, the […]

Internal unrest and national strikes presented great challenges for the tsars. The people wanted a stronger voice in national government. Between 1877 and 1917, the tsarist government battled a succession of progressive and revolutionary parties. Eventually, extremists overpowered the moderates and murdered Tsar Nicholas II. Then, empire builders pushed back the frontier in southeastern Siberia and in central Asia. Still, […]

Tsar Alexander I, leader of the European response against French dictator Napoleon Bonaparte, has been called the “savior of Europe” and the “reformer of Russia.” Alexander's reign began with the great hope of providing relief for the common Russian people. It ended in frustration and revolt. His sincere early efforts to resolve Russia's internal problems were diverted so he could work […]

With the ascension of Catherine II (“The Great”), a true leader came to the throne. Catherine considered herself the executor of Peter the Great's reforms.Her greatest achievements were in adding territory and people of different cultural groups to Russia's empire. She directed two wars against the Turks, extending the Russian border to the Black Sea. Her troops occupied the Crimean Peninsula […]

From 1726 to 1762, the succession to the Russian throne was hopelessly confused. Peter the Great's decision to allow the current ruler to choose his or her own heir had brought many poor rulers to power. This period includes the reigns of Catherine I, Peter II, Anna, Ivan VI, Elizabeth, and Peter III. With the exception of Empress Elizabeth, many […]

Peter the Great developed a deep interest in boats from the Dutch sea captains he hired to handle Russian commercial interests. He became determined to give Russia a port on the Gulf of Finland and a port on the Black Sea. As part of this plan, Peter captured the Turkish stronghold of Azov at the mouth of the Dnieper River […]

Russia had just passed through the most difficult period in its history. It had been more painful than the 1917 revolution, the civil war, and the breakup of the Soviet Union would be centuries later. Plundering Cossacks had ravaged the lands. Native armies pillaged the countryside. Whole regions had been depopulated. Year after year, crops were destroyed. Towns were deserted. Men, […]

In 1463, the principality of Moscow was almost a solid block of territory. It included the upper Volga River, the Moskva River, the Oka River, portions of the Northern Dvina River in the north, and the Don River to the south. It extended to the Tatar city of Kazan in the east. Ivan III, the Great (1462–1505), captured the city-state […]

At the beginning of the Christian era, the Slavic people were divided into three large cultural groups in three distinct portions of eastern Europe. The West Slavs lived in what is now central and southern Poland; the Middle Slavs lived between the east slopes of the Carpathian Mountains and the Dnieper River; and the East Slavs lived in the Don […]

The need to preserve the natural environment is not equally recognized by all people. In some countries, tall chimneys belching choking black smoke are regarded as symbols of progress, rather than contributors to environmental degradation. Economic well-being is important to every country and its people. Simply stated, people need to feed families on a dayto-day basis, rather than concerning themselves […]

As might be expected for a country of such vast size, Russian water resources are enormous. Its territory contains some of the world's longest rivers and largest lakes.Hydrological potentials, however, are not equally distributed.While more than two million rivers flow through Russia, some areas remain parched during summer months when water is needed for agricultural purposes in particular.When lakes are included, […]

Because of its vast size, Russia contains rocks and minerals from almost every geologic period. Lev Berg, born in Russia in 1876, was an outstanding physical geographer. He was the most respected physiographic scientist in both imperial Russia and the Soviet Union. Berg believed that Russia's physiographic regions had formed over millions of years. They resulted from involved processes that took […]

Agriculture and food production were very important to Russian tsars. Russian scientists were encouraged to study soils and classify them according to food productivity. The “father of soil science” was Vasily Dokuchaev. He was born in Russia in 1846. In 1883, he wrote a book called Russian Chernozem.Dokuchaev believed that chernozem (which means “black earth”) soils were created by the mutual […]

Vladimir Koppen believed that the natural vegetation native to an area reflects the total physical environment of that place. There are nine vegetation regions in the huge Russian cultural realm. Seven are major east-west vegetal belts. Two are formed by a unique combination of special physical conditions. The total forest area is estimated at 2.9 million square miles (4.7 million square […]

The landscape of Russia is impacted greatly by its climate. In particular, temperature extremes characterize Russia's weather. Low winter temperatures have a tremendous impact on basic physical processes and human activities. Extremes in temperature and low annual precipitation are a direct result of Russia's high latitudinal position and of its location in the northern part of Asia, the world's largest landmass. […]

I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. — Winston Churchill Throughout the past century, Russia and the United States have been at the center of world political and economic events. In 1904–05, Russia fought Japan in the Russo-Japanese War. The president of the United States, Theodore […]

Белая скала — совершенно фантастической зрелище: белоснежная гора с отвесными склонами возвышается на 100 м над окрестностями. Местную натуру очень любят кинорежиссеры — она появлялась в популярных советских фильмах «Всадник без головы», «Мустанг-иноходец», «Чипполино» и еще в десятке менее известных. Ак-Кая, которую местные жители называют Белой скалой, состоит из известняка и мергеля, что и объясняет ее яркий белый цвет. Когда-то она находилась […]

Казантип расположен на северо-востоке Крыма, с крымско-татарского его название переводится как «дно котла». Очертаниями он действительно похож на котелок, выступающий в Азовское море. Большинство местных земель считаются заповедными — уникальную степную растительность тщательно охраняют. На Казантипе тянет медитировать и гулять до полного изнеможения даже тех, кто обычно этим не увлекается. Благодаря особенностям местного климата вода здесь прогревается быстрее, чем […]

Мыс Опук выдается в Чёрное море на юге Керченского полуострова. Это край скалистых уступов, глубоких трещин и суровой горной растительности, над которым реют степные чайки и сычи. Он не поражает сразу и наповал, однако его сдержанная красота проникает в сердце исподволь. Прогулки по мысу, овеянные запахом йода и скрашенные стрекотом птиц, навевают задумчивое настроение. Эти земли находятся в ведении Опукского заповедника, […]

Пантикапей, главный город древнего Боспорского царства, стоял на горе Митридат. Места, где сегодня расположена Керчь, были заселены еще в XV в. до н. э., однако как город Пантикапей возник при греческих колонизаторах (VIII-IV вв. до н. э.). Этот полис считается одним из самых старых и могущественных на крымском побережье. В Пантикапее процветала торговля, чеканилась своя монета. Позже город попал под власть династии Спартокидов и стал столицей Боспорского […]

Существование на землях Крыма античного Боспорского царства с V в. до н. э по IV в. н. э. было тесно связано с именем Митридата VI, царя Понта. Он присоединил к своим владениям Феодосию и Пантикапей (сегодня — Керчь) и непрерывно конфликтовал с Римом. Митридат не смог победить эту державу и в конце концов предпочел умереть, но не сдаться римлянам в плен. Сегодня имя […]

На побережье Крыма с VII в. до н. э. проникали греческие колонисты. Пока на степных территориях полуострова хозяйничали скифы, греки на берегу основывали города: Пантикапей (нынешняя Керчь), Феодосию, Херсонес. В Пантикапее находилась столица Боспорского царства, правящей династией которого были Спартокиды. Одним из свидетельств тех времен стал Царский курган, расположенный неподалеку от Керчи. Он был возведен в IV в. до н. э. для захоронения одного […]

Близ поселка Аджи-Мушкай, который сегодня стал пригородом Керчи, издавна добывали известняк. Перед Великой Отечественной войной около него действовали два забоя — Большие и Малые Аджимушкайские каменоломни. В 1942 г. после поражения на Крымском фронте советские войска оставили Керчь. Отход от города прикрывали несколько отрядов. Они не успели покинуть территорию и были вынуждены остаться в каменоломнях. Сначала появлявшиеся буквально из-под земли солдаты заставали немцев врасплох, но […]

После Русско-турецкой войны 1768-1774 гг. территории Крыма были освобождены от османского правления, а Керчь и крепость Ени-Кале признали собственностью Российской империи (другие крымские земли вошли в ее состав в 1783 г.). Русское командование решило разместить в Керченском проливе батарею орудий. Позже Парижский мирный договор, подписанный в конце Крымской войны 1853-1856 гг., объявил Чёрное море нейтральной зоной, и возводить укрепления продолжили в районе залива — он […]

Крепость Ени-Кале (что с турецкого переводится как «новая крепость») была построена после захвата Керчи Османской империей. Для османов Керченский пролив, на котором стоял город, обладал огромным значением — сквозь него корабли Российской империи могли попасть из Азовского в Чёрное море. Турки не желали видеть русские суда в своих водах, поэтому в начале XVIII в. возвели крепость Ени-Кале. Стены ее стояли на разных уровнях из-за гористого рельефа. В […]

Божий дом, который сегодня украшает центр Керчи, возвели в VIII—IX вв. на месте древнего святилища. Он построен в византийском стиле, кроме того, древние зодчие чередовали ряды белого камня с красным кирпичом. Полосатая кладка придавала зданию особую устойчивость во время землетрясений. Во времена Крымского ханства церковь превратили в мечеть. В XVIII в. Керчь вновь стала российским городом, а в храм вернулись […]

Знаменитый маринист И. К. Айвазовский родился в Феодосии, жил рядом с морем и постоянно слышал его рокот. Неудивительно, что главным своим объектом он выбрал морскую стихию. Айвазовский много путешествовал по Европе, однако обретя славу и статус, вернулся в родной город, где и умер. Картонную галерею художник открыл в одной из частей своего дома еще при жизни. После его смерти она перешла в ведение города. […]

По заказу купца Иосифа Стамболи на набережной Феодосии построили летнюю резиденцию в стиле модерн с пышными мавританскими деталями: минаретами, башнями, террасами, фонтанами, затейливой резьбой и росписью на стенах. Дачу закончили накануне 1914 г., а спустя два года купец продал свою фабрику и уехал в Турцию, оставив роскошный дворец на произвол судьбы. В советские времена дачу использовали то в качестве госпиталя, то как санаторий. В 1990-х гг. […]

Генуэзская республика появилась на Апеннинском полуострове еще в XI в. В Средние века она активно расширяла свои владения — ее колонии были разбросаны по всему побережью Чёрного моря. Одной из них стала Кафа (нынешняя Феодосия), которую генуэзцы превратили в процветающий портовый город. Для его зашиты было возведено укрепление, известное сегодня как крепость Кафа. Она возвышается на берегу Феодосийского залива и представляет собой замечательный памятник […]

В самом древнем районе Феодосии стоит необычный храм. Точная дата его постройки неизвестна, однако старинная архитектура указывает что его возвели не позднее XIV в. Внутри древнего культового сооружения в человеческий рост возвышались каменные изваяния Иоанна Крестителя и Николая Чудотворца. Верхнюю часть зала украшало изображение Христа и 12 апостолов. В середине XIX в. обветшавший храм отремонтировали и обновили старые росписи. Церковь освятили в […]

Будущий храм заложили в апреле 1892 г., приурочив строительство ко дню рождения Екатерины II, а позже посвятили святой великомученице Екатерине. Средства на возведение церкви собирали жители города, а строители по выходным трудились бесплатно. Великолепное здание в русском стиле богато украсили, пять его куполов покрыли золотыми звездами. Дальнейшая судьба храма тесно связана с Андреем Косовским. Он 20 лет был священником церкви Святой Екатерины, но при Советах его расстреляли. […]

На востоке Крым омывают воды Азовского моря, а на севере и северо-востоке — залива Сиваш, который почти полностью отрезал полуостров от материка. Единственная природная преграда, отделяющая Сиваш от Азовского моря, — это песчаная коса под названием Арабатская стрелка (или, как ее прозвали местные жители, Арабатка). Она тянется вдоль полуострова более 100 км. Сточки зрения геологии, Арабатская стрелка юна — появилась не раньше XVII в. […]

В море близ коктебельского побережья стоит высокая скала арочной формы с отверстием посередине. Древние люди считали, что это проход в преисподнюю, поэтому назвали гору чертовыми Воротами. Со временем она покрылась желтым лишайником, поэтому скалу переименовали в Золотые Ворота. Более того, возникло поверье, что Они исполняют желания, нужно лишь проехать между «створками». Для «закрепления эффекта» люди бросают в воду монетки — все дно вокруг […]

Массив Кара-Даг стоит на берегу Чёрного моря близ Коктебеля. Раньше это был действующий вулкан, поэтому всю поверхность горы избороздили следы старых извержений. Кара-Даг давно потух, и теперь вместо горячей лавы его склоны покрыты редкими видами крымской флоры, которые тщательно охраняют работники Карадагского заповедника. По горе водят организованные экскурсии (ходить здесь самостоятельно запрещено). Любители пеших походов выбирают сухопутный маршрут и несколько часов гуляют по свежему воздуху, […]

По легенде, монастырь Сурб-Хач (в переводе с армянского — «монастырь Святого Креста») основали на месте, где предводитель армян увидел огненный крест. Обитель укрыта лесами, растущими на склоне горы Грыця. Невысокое каменное здание издали почти незаметно, и лишь на последнем отрезке тропы от Старого Крыма богомольцы замечают верхушки монастырских зданий. Весь комплекс насчитывает несколько строений: церковь Сурб-Ншан (главная постройка), трапезную, здание с кельями, гостиницу для паломников и […]

Город Старый Крым был заложен в XIII в., когда Золотая Орда заняла северные земли полуострова. В то время он назывался Кырым (или Солхат) и был административным центром Орды. В начале XIV в. тут решили заложить мечеть. Ее строили под присмотром хана Узбека и назвали в его честь. Сегодня это самая древняя из сохранившихся мечетей Крыма. Здание не раз перестраивали, но старинная колоннада, входной портал […]

Генуэзская крепость — древнее сооружение, созданное более 600 лет тому назад. Точная дата постройки неизвестна. Историки считают, что первые укрепления возвели византийцы или хазары в конце VII в. Сохранившиеся башни и стены сложили генуэзцы на рубеже XIV и XV вв. При них крепость была опорным пунктом в колонизации окрестных земель. В целом в цитадели сохранилось около 20 башен. Судя по наиболее уцелевшим […]

Черепашья бухта расположена между Новым Светом и Судаком, а названа так из-за валуна близ берега, который напоминает формой черепаху. Сегодня сюда приезжают любители спокойного отдыха, которых привлекает уединенность и труднодоступность пляжа и его живописный вид. Однако в начале XX в. в бухте собирались дикари и нудисты, самым известным из них был знаменитый поэт М. А. Волошин, восторженный поклонник крымской природы, который долгое время […]

Синяя бухта близ поселка Новый Свет зажата между горой Коба-Кая и мысом Капчик. В отличие от соседних — Зеленой и Голубой, — она не слишком приветлива к путешественникам. Ее берег —это сплошь большие камни, отвесно уходящие в воду. По легенде, сюда заводили суда пираты, так как были уверены, что никто не найдет их тайное убежище. Бухту до сих пор иногда называют Разбойничьей (Пиратской). Дно здесь покрыто камнями […]

Гора Сокол издали похожа на большую птицу, готовящуюся взлететь. В древности ее называли Куш-Кая (в переводе с тюркского — «птичья cкала»). Высота Куш-Каи — менее 500 м, тем не менее она уникальна, ведь в действительности является самым большим в Европе коралловым рифом. Большинство путешественников предпочитают подниматься на Сокол по простым горным тропам с проводником. Однако Куш-Кая может похвастаться и отвесными скальными стенами, […]

Поселок Новый Свет в Крыму основал деятельный князь А. С. Голицын, который очень любил местную природу и вина. Сначала он открыл завод по производству шампанского, а рядом заложил поселок, первоначально названный Парадиз. В Новый Свет его переименовали после посещения императора Николая II (сохранились свидетельства, что после прогулки по тропе Голицына и дегустации вина тот воскликнул: «Я вижу мир в новом свете». Неподалеку […]

Грот Шаляпина в крымском поселке Новый Свет — природный исторический музей. В Средние века здесь предположительно были пещерные храмы, росписи которых сохранялись до XIX в. В начале XX в. граф Л. С. Голицын облюбовал это место для хранения игристых вин и приказал оборудовать специальные ниши для бутылок (их можно увидеть и сегодня). Говорят, винотека привлекала в Крым многих известных персон, включая императора […]

Вначале XX в., ожидая визита царя Николая II, князь Л. С. Голицын приказал вырубить в склоне горы Коба-Кая тропу, гуляя по которой можно было бы всей красе лицезреть крымскую природу. Путь тянется над кромкой моря более 3 км и местами превращается то в едва заметную каменную дорожку, то в широкий тракт. Тропа приводит пилигримов в грот. Последний, в отличие от тропы, образовался естественным путем, […]

Очертания мыса Капчик напоминают ящерицу иди дракона, утоляющих жажду водами Чёрного моря. Удивительно, как природа создала риф такой причудливой формы! Кстати, это именно коралловый риф, как и его близкая соседка — гора Сокол. Капчик — природная граница между двумя бухтами, Синей и Голубой (оттенок воды в них действительно отличается). Мыс прекрасно виден стропы Голицына: гуляя по ней, можно во всех подробностях рассмотреть причудливые […]

Удивительный маяк освещает в ночи путь кораблям, проплывающим у берегов Крыма. Здесь, недалеко от Алушты, в поселке Малореченское недавно возвели необычное сооружение. Храм в память обо всех, кто погиб в море, рыл заложен в 2004 г. на праздник Покрова Пресвятой Богородицы. Два года спустя его освятили в честь покровителя моряков и путешественников — Николая-Чудотворца. Церковь, сооруженная на отвесной скале, видна за много километров, ведь […]