Kamianets-Podilskyi
Encyclopedia
Kamyanets-Podilsky or Kamienets-Podolsky ' onMouseout='HidePop("65990")' href="/topics/Polish_language">Polish
: Kamieniec Podolski) (see Nomenclature section below for more names) is a city
located on the Smotrych River
in western Ukraine
, to the north-east of Chernivtsi
. Formerly the administrative center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast
' onMouseout='HidePop("12849")' href="/topics/Romanization_of_Ukrainian">translit.
Khmelnyts’ka oblast’), the city is now the administrative center of the Kamianets-Podilskyi Raion (district
) within the Khmelnytsky Oblast (province
), after the administrative center of the oblast was moved from the city of Kamyanets-Podilsky to the city of Khmelnytskyi
in 1941. The city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast.
The current estimated population is around 103,036 (2011).
The first part of the city's dual name originates from kamin’ or kamen, meaning "stone" in the Old East Slavic language
. The second part of the name relates to the historic region of Podillia
of which Kamianets-Podilskyi is considered to be the historic capital.
Equivalents of the name in other languages are ; ; ; ; ; Yiddish: קאָמענעץ (Komenets)
, located in the western Ukrainian region of Podillia. The Smotrych River
, a tributary of the Dniester
, flows through the city. The total area of the city comprises 27.84 square kilometres (10.7 sq mi). The city is located about 101 kilometres (62.8 mi) from the oblast's administrative center, Khmelnytskyi
.
, who lived in what is now modern Romania
, Moldova
, and portions of Ukraine. Historians claim that the founders named the settlement Petridava or Klepidava, which originate from the Greek
word petra or the Latin lapis meaning "stone
" and the Dacian
dava meaning "city".
state. In 1241, it was destroyed by the Mongol Tatar invaders
. In 1352, it was annexed by the Polish King Casimir III
, and became the capital of Podole Voivodship and the seat of local civil and military administration. The ancient castle
was reconstructed and substantially expanded by the Polish kings to defend Poland from the southwest against Ottoman
and Tatar invasions.
(1648–58), the Jewish community there suffered much from Chmielnicki's Cossacks on the one hand, and from the attacks of the Crimean Tatars
(their main object being the extortion of ransoms) on the other.
After the Treaty of Buchach of 1672, it was briefly part of the Ottoman Empire
and capital of Podolya eyalet. To counter the Turkish threat to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
, King Jan III Sobieski built a fortress nearby, Okopy Świętej Trójcy ("the Entrenchments of the Holy Trinity"). In 1699, the city was given back to Poland under King Augustus II the Strong
according to the Treaty of Karlowitz
. The fortress was continually enlarged and was regarded as the strongest in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
. The preserved ruins of the fortress still contain the iron cannon balls
stuck in them from various sieges.
About the middle of the 18th century, Kamenets-Podilskyi became celebrated as the center of the furious conflict then raging between the Talmudic Jews and the Frankists
; the city was the residence of Bishop Dembowski, who sided with the Frankists and ordered the public burning of the Talmud, a sentence which was carried into effect in the public streets in 1757.
After the Second Partition of Poland
in 1793, the city belonged to the Russian Empire
, where it was the capital of Podolia Governorate
. The Russian Tsar
Peter the Great
, who visited the fortress twice, was impressed by its fortifications. One of the towers was used as a prison cell
for Ustym Karmeliuk, a prominent peasant rebel leader of the early 19th century), who managed to escape from it three times.
Kamenetz-Podolsk was also the residence of the wealthy Joseph Yozel Günzburg. During the latter half of the 19th century, many Jews emigrated from that city to the United States, especially to New York, where they organized a number of societies.
, the city was occupied by Austria-Hungary
in 1915. With the collapse of the Russian Empire
in 1917, the city was briefly incorporated into several short-lived Ukrainian states: the Ukrainian People's Republic
, the Hetmanate
, and the Directoriya
, and ended up as part of the Ukrainian SSR
when Ukraine fell under Bolshevik
power. During the Directorate
period, the city was chosen as de-facto
capital of Ukraine
after the Russian Communist forces occupied Kiev
. During the Polish-Soviet War
, the city was captured by the Polish Army, but it was later ceded to Soviet Russia
in the 1921 Treaty of Riga, which determined the future of the area for the next seven decades as part of the Ukrainian SSR.
and Ukrainians
have always dominated the city's population. However, as a commercial center, Kamianets-Podilskyi has been a multiethnic and multi-religious city with substantial Jewish
and Armenian
minorities. Under Soviet rule it became subject to severe persecutions, and most of the Poles and the Ukrainians were forcibly deported to Siberia
. Massacres such as the Vinnytsia massacre
have taken place throughout the Podillya, the last resort of the independent Ukraine
. Early on, Kamianets-Podilskyi was the administrative center of the Ukrainian SSR's Kamianets-Podilskyi Oblast, but the administrative center was later moved to Proskuriv (now Khmelnytskyi
).
In December 1927, TIME
Magazine reported that there were massive uprisings of peasants and factory workers in southern Ukraine, around the cities of Mohyliv-Podilskyi
, Kamianets-Podilskyi, Tiraspol
and others, against Soviet authorities. The magazine was intrigued when it found numerous reports from the neighboring Romania
that troops from Moscow were sent to the region and suppressed the unrest, causing no less than 4,000 deaths. The magazine sent several of its reporters to confirm those occurrences which, of course, were completely denied by the Kremlin
official press naming them as barefaced lies. The revolt was caused by the collectivization campaign and the lawless environment in the cities caused by the oppressive Soviet government.
events occurred on August 27–28
, 1941 near the city of Kamianets-Podilskyi. In those two days, 23,600 Jews were killed, most of them Hungarian Jews
(14,000-16,000) and the rest mainly local Ukrainian Jews. As the researchers of the Holocaust point out, the Kamianets-Podilskyi massacre was the first mass action in the “final Solution” of the Nazis, and the number of its victims reached 5 figures. Eye-witnesses reported that the perpetrators made no effort to hide their deeds from the local population.
, Ukrainian
and Armenian
markets. Famous tourist attraction
s include the ancient castle, and the numerous architectural attractions in the city's center, including the cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, the city hall building, and the numerous fortifications.
Ballooning
activities in the canyon
of the Smotrych River
have also brought tourists. Since the late 1990s, the city has grown into one of the chief tourist
centers of western Ukraine
. Annual Cossack Games (Kozatski zabavy) and festival
s, which include the open ballooning
championship of Ukraine, car racing and various music, art and drama activities, attract an estimated 140,000 tourists and stimulate the local economy. More than a dozen privately-owned hotels have recently opened, a large number for a provincial Ukrainian city.
with: Kalisz
in Poland
(since 1993)
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
: Kamieniec Podolski) (see Nomenclature section below for more names) is a city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
located on the Smotrych River
Smotrych River
The Smotrych River is a left tributary of the Dniester, flowing through the Podillia upland of western Ukraine. Its length is 169 km , and its drainage basin covers 1,800 km² . The average width of the river is 10-15 meters wide, and at one point exceeds 40 m. The historic city of...
in western Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, to the north-east of Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi is the administrative center of Chernivtsi Oblast in southwestern Ukraine. The city is situated on the upper course of the River Prut, a tributary of the Danube, in the northern part of the historic region of Bukovina, which is currently divided between Romania and Ukraine...
. Formerly the administrative center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast
Khmelnytskyi Oblast
Khmelnytskyi Oblast is an oblast of western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Khmelnytskyi.The current estimated population is around 1,401,140 .-Geography:...
' onMouseout='HidePop("12849")' href="/topics/Romanization_of_Ukrainian">translit.
Romanization of Ukrainian
The romanization or Latinization of Ukrainian is the representation of the Ukrainian language using Latin letters. Ukrainian is natively written in its own Ukrainian alphabet, a variation of Cyrillic....
Khmelnyts’ka oblast’), the city is now the administrative center of the Kamianets-Podilskyi Raion (district
Raion
A raion is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet countries. The term, which is from French rayon 'honeycomb, department,' describes both a type of a subnational entity and a division of a city, and is commonly translated in English as "district"...
) within the Khmelnytsky Oblast (province
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
), after the administrative center of the oblast was moved from the city of Kamyanets-Podilsky to the city of Khmelnytskyi
Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine
Khmelnytskyi is a city in Ukraine in the region of Podillia. It is located on the Southern Buh River and about from the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. The town's original name was Płoskirów, later Proskurov, but in 1954 was renamed Khmelnytskyi. It is the center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast in western...
in 1941. The city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast.
The current estimated population is around 103,036 (2011).
Nomenclature
Old East Slavic language
Old East Slavic or Old Ruthenian was a language used in 10th-15th centuries by East Slavs in the Kievan Rus' and states which evolved after the collapse of the Kievan Rus...
. The second part of the name relates to the historic region of Podillia
Podolia
The region of Podolia is an historical region in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine, corresponding to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. Northern Transnistria, in Moldova, is also a part of Podolia...
of which Kamianets-Podilskyi is considered to be the historic capital.
Equivalents of the name in other languages are ; ; ; ; ; Yiddish: קאָמענעץ (Komenets)
Geography
Kamyanets-Podilsky is located in the southern portion of the Khmelnytskyi OblastKhmelnytskyi Oblast
Khmelnytskyi Oblast is an oblast of western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Khmelnytskyi.The current estimated population is around 1,401,140 .-Geography:...
, located in the western Ukrainian region of Podillia. The Smotrych River
Smotrych River
The Smotrych River is a left tributary of the Dniester, flowing through the Podillia upland of western Ukraine. Its length is 169 km , and its drainage basin covers 1,800 km² . The average width of the river is 10-15 meters wide, and at one point exceeds 40 m. The historic city of...
, a tributary of the Dniester
Dniester
The Dniester is a river in Eastern Europe. It runs through Ukraine and Moldova and separates most of Moldova's territory from the breakaway de facto state of Transnistria.-Names:...
, flows through the city. The total area of the city comprises 27.84 square kilometres (10.7 sq mi). The city is located about 101 kilometres (62.8 mi) from the oblast's administrative center, Khmelnytskyi
Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine
Khmelnytskyi is a city in Ukraine in the region of Podillia. It is located on the Southern Buh River and about from the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. The town's original name was Płoskirów, later Proskurov, but in 1954 was renamed Khmelnytskyi. It is the center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast in western...
.
Antiquity
Several historians consider that a city on this spot was founded by the ancient DaciansDacians
The Dacians were an Indo-European people, very close or part of the Thracians. Dacians were the ancient inhabitants of Dacia...
, who lived in what is now modern Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
, and portions of Ukraine. Historians claim that the founders named the settlement Petridava or Klepidava, which originate from the Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
word petra or the Latin lapis meaning "stone
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
" and the Dacian
Dacian language
The extinct Dacian language may have developed from proto-Indo-European in the Carpathian region around 2,500 BC and probably died out by AD 600. In the 1st century AD, it was the predominant language of the ancient regions of Dacia and Moesia and, possibly, of some surrounding regions.It belonged...
dava meaning "city".
Middle ages
Modern Kamianets-Podilskyi was first mentioned in 1062 as a town of the Kievan Rus'Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus was a medieval polity in Eastern Europe, from the late 9th to the mid 13th century, when it disintegrated under the pressure of the Mongol invasion of 1237–1240....
state. In 1241, it was destroyed by the Mongol Tatar invaders
Mongol invasion of Rus
The Mongol invasion of Russia was resumed on 21 December 1237 marking the resumption of the Mongol invasion of Europe, during which the Mongols attacked the medieval powers of Poland, Kiev, Hungary, and miscellaneous tribes of less organized peoples...
. In 1352, it was annexed by the Polish King Casimir III
Casimir III of Poland
Casimir III the Great , last King of Poland from the Piast dynasty , was the son of King Władysław I the Elbow-high and Hedwig of Kalisz.-Biography:...
, and became the capital of Podole Voivodship and the seat of local civil and military administration. The ancient castle
Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle
Kamianets-Podilskyi Castle is a former Ruthenian-Lithuanian castle located in the historic city of Kamianets-Podilskyi, Khmelnytskyi Oblast , in the historic region of Podolia in western Ukraine...
was reconstructed and substantially expanded by the Polish kings to defend Poland from the southwest against Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and Tatar invasions.
Modern times
During the Khmelnytsky uprisingKhmelnytsky Uprising
The Khmelnytsky Uprising, was a Cossack rebellion in the Ukraine between the years 1648–1657 which turned into a Ukrainian war of liberation from Poland...
(1648–58), the Jewish community there suffered much from Chmielnicki's Cossacks on the one hand, and from the attacks of the Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
(their main object being the extortion of ransoms) on the other.
After the Treaty of Buchach of 1672, it was briefly part of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and capital of Podolya eyalet. To counter the Turkish threat to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
, King Jan III Sobieski built a fortress nearby, Okopy Świętej Trójcy ("the Entrenchments of the Holy Trinity"). In 1699, the city was given back to Poland under King Augustus II the Strong
Augustus II the Strong
Frederick Augustus I or Augustus II the Strong was Elector of Saxony and King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania ....
according to the Treaty of Karlowitz
Treaty of Karlowitz
The Treaty of Karlowitz was signed on 26 January 1699 in Sremski Karlovci , concluding the Austro-Ottoman War of 1683–1697 in which the Ottoman side had been defeated at the Battle of Zenta...
. The fortress was continually enlarged and was regarded as the strongest in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
. The preserved ruins of the fortress still contain the iron cannon balls
Round shot
Round shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...
stuck in them from various sieges.
Jacob Frank
Jacob Frank was an 18th century Jewish religious leader who claimed to be the reincarnation of the self-proclaimed messiah Sabbatai Zevi and also of the biblical patriarch Jacob...
; the city was the residence of Bishop Dembowski, who sided with the Frankists and ordered the public burning of the Talmud, a sentence which was carried into effect in the public streets in 1757.
After the Second Partition of Poland
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
in 1793, the city belonged to the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, where it was the capital of Podolia Governorate
Podolia Governorate
The Podolia Governorate or Government of Podolia, set up after the Second Partition of Poland, comprised a governorate of the Russian Empire from 1793 to 1917, of the Ukrainian People's Republic from 1917 to 1921, and of the Ukrainian SSR from 1921 to 1925.-Location:The Podolian Governorate...
. The Russian Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Peter the Great
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
, who visited the fortress twice, was impressed by its fortifications. One of the towers was used as a prison cell
Prison cell
A prison cell or holding cell or lock-up is a small room in a prison, or police station where a prisoner is held.Prison cells are usually about 6 by 8 feet in size with steel or brick walls and one solid or barred door that locks from the outside. Many modern prison cells are pre-cast. Solid doors...
for Ustym Karmeliuk, a prominent peasant rebel leader of the early 19th century), who managed to escape from it three times.
Kamenetz-Podolsk was also the residence of the wealthy Joseph Yozel Günzburg. During the latter half of the 19th century, many Jews emigrated from that city to the United States, especially to New York, where they organized a number of societies.
World War I
During the World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the city was occupied by Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
in 1915. With the collapse of the Russian Empire
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
in 1917, the city was briefly incorporated into several short-lived Ukrainian states: the Ukrainian People's Republic
Ukrainian People's Republic
The Ukrainian People's Republic or Ukrainian National Republic was a republic that was declared in part of the territory of modern Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, eventually headed by Symon Petliura.-Revolutionary Wave:...
, the Hetmanate
Hetmanate
The Ukrainian State or The Hetmanate was a short-lived polity in Ukraine, installed by Ukrainian Cossacks and military organizations under the support of the Central Powers, after disbanding the Central Rada of the Ukrainian National Republic on 28 April 1918.-History:On April 29, 1918 the head...
, and the Directoriya
Directorate of Ukraine
The Directorate, or Directory was a provisional revolutionary state committee of the Ukrainian National Republic, formed in 1918 by the Ukrainian National Union in rebellion against Skoropadsky's regime....
, and ended up as part of the Ukrainian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
when Ukraine fell under Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
power. During the Directorate
Directorate of Ukraine
The Directorate, or Directory was a provisional revolutionary state committee of the Ukrainian National Republic, formed in 1918 by the Ukrainian National Union in rebellion against Skoropadsky's regime....
period, the city was chosen as de-facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
capital of Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
after the Russian Communist forces occupied Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
. During the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
, the city was captured by the Polish Army, but it was later ceded to Soviet Russia
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
in the 1921 Treaty of Riga, which determined the future of the area for the next seven decades as part of the Ukrainian SSR.
Soviet times
PolesPoles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
and Ukrainians
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
have always dominated the city's population. However, as a commercial center, Kamianets-Podilskyi has been a multiethnic and multi-religious city with substantial Jewish
History of the Jews in Ukraine
Jewish communities have existed in the territory of Ukraine from the time of Kievan Rus' and developed many of the most distinctive modern Jewish theological and cultural traditions. While at times they flourished, at other times they faced periods of persecution and antisemitic discriminatory...
and Armenian
Armenians in Ukraine
Armenians in Ukraine are ethnic Armenians who live in Ukraine. They number 99,894 according to the 2001 Ukrainian census. However, the country is also host to a number of Armenian guest workers which has yet to be ascertained. The Armenian population in Ukraine has nearly doubled since the...
minorities. Under Soviet rule it became subject to severe persecutions, and most of the Poles and the Ukrainians were forcibly deported to Siberia
Polish minority in the Soviet Union
The Polish minority in the Soviet Union refers to people of Polish descent who resided in the Soviet Union before its dissolution, and might remain in post-Soviet, sovereign countries as their significant minorities.-1917–1920:...
. Massacres such as the Vinnytsia massacre
Vinnytsia massacre
The Vinnytsia massacre was a mass execution of people in the Ukrainian town of Vinnytsia by the Soviet secret police NKVD during Joseph Stalin's Great Purge in 1937–1938. Mass graves in Vinnytsia were discovered during the German occupation of Ukraine in 1943...
have taken place throughout the Podillya, the last resort of the independent Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. Early on, Kamianets-Podilskyi was the administrative center of the Ukrainian SSR's Kamianets-Podilskyi Oblast, but the administrative center was later moved to Proskuriv (now Khmelnytskyi
Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine
Khmelnytskyi is a city in Ukraine in the region of Podillia. It is located on the Southern Buh River and about from the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. The town's original name was Płoskirów, later Proskurov, but in 1954 was renamed Khmelnytskyi. It is the center of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast in western...
).
In December 1927, TIME
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
Magazine reported that there were massive uprisings of peasants and factory workers in southern Ukraine, around the cities of Mohyliv-Podilskyi
Mohyliv-Podilskyi
Mohyliv-Podilskyi is a city in the Mohyliv-Podilskyi Raion of the Vinnytsia Oblast , Ukraine. It is located at , on the border with Bessarabia, Moldova.-History:The first mention of the town dates from 1595...
, Kamianets-Podilskyi, Tiraspol
Tiraspol
Tiraspol is the second largest city in Moldova and is the capital and administrative centre of the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic . The city is located on the eastern bank of the Dniester River...
and others, against Soviet authorities. The magazine was intrigued when it found numerous reports from the neighboring Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
that troops from Moscow were sent to the region and suppressed the unrest, causing no less than 4,000 deaths. The magazine sent several of its reporters to confirm those occurrences which, of course, were completely denied by the Kremlin
Kremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...
official press naming them as barefaced lies. The revolt was caused by the collectivization campaign and the lawless environment in the cities caused by the oppressive Soviet government.
World War II
One of the first and largest Holocaust mass-murderMass murder
Mass murder is the act of murdering a large number of people , typically at the same time or over a relatively short period of time. According to the FBI, mass murder is defined as four or more murders occurring during a particular event with no cooling-off period between the murders...
events occurred on August 27–28
Kamianets-Podilskyi Massacre
Kamianets-Podilskyi , a city in the western Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union, was occupied by German forces during the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941....
, 1941 near the city of Kamianets-Podilskyi. In those two days, 23,600 Jews were killed, most of them Hungarian Jews
History of the Jews in Hungary
Hungarian Jews have existed since at least the 11th century. After struggling against discrimination throughout the Middle Ages, by the early 20th century the community grew to be 5% of Hungary's population , and were prominent in science, the arts and business...
(14,000-16,000) and the rest mainly local Ukrainian Jews. As the researchers of the Holocaust point out, the Kamianets-Podilskyi massacre was the first mass action in the “final Solution” of the Nazis, and the number of its victims reached 5 figures. Eye-witnesses reported that the perpetrators made no effort to hide their deeds from the local population.
Culture
Main sights
The different peoples and cultures that have lived in the city have each brought their own culture and architecture. Examples include the PolishPoles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
, Ukrainian
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
and Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
markets. Famous tourist attraction
Tourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
s include the ancient castle, and the numerous architectural attractions in the city's center, including the cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, the city hall building, and the numerous fortifications.
Ballooning
Balloon (aircraft)
A balloon is a type of aircraft that remains aloft due to its buoyancy. A balloon travels by moving with the wind. It is distinct from an airship, which is a buoyant aircraft that can be propelled through the air in a controlled manner....
activities in the canyon
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...
of the Smotrych River
Smotrych River
The Smotrych River is a left tributary of the Dniester, flowing through the Podillia upland of western Ukraine. Its length is 169 km , and its drainage basin covers 1,800 km² . The average width of the river is 10-15 meters wide, and at one point exceeds 40 m. The historic city of...
have also brought tourists. Since the late 1990s, the city has grown into one of the chief tourist
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
centers of western Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. Annual Cossack Games (Kozatski zabavy) and festival
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
s, which include the open ballooning
Ballooning
Ballooning may refer to:* Hot air ballooning* Balloon * Ballooning * Ballooning degeneration...
championship of Ukraine, car racing and various music, art and drama activities, attract an estimated 140,000 tourists and stimulate the local economy. More than a dozen privately-owned hotels have recently opened, a large number for a provincial Ukrainian city.
Famous people
- Stanisław Koniecpolski fought here.
- Ferdynand Antoni OssendowskiFerdynand Antoni OssendowskiAntoni Ferdynand Ossendowski was a Polish writer, journalist, traveler, globetrotter, explorer and university professor...
lived here. - Michał Wołodyjowski the historical prototype for one of Henryk SienkiewiczHenryk SienkiewiczHenryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz was a Polish journalist and Nobel Prize-winning novelist. A Polish szlachcic of the Oszyk coat of arms, he was one of the most popular Polish writers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905 for his...
's most loved characters was killed here. - Mendele Mocher SforimMendele Mocher SforimMendele Mocher Sforim , December 21, 1835 = January 2, 1836 , Kapyl — November 25, 1917 = December 8, 1917...
lived here. - Maurice ZbrigerMaurice ZbrigerMaurice Zbriger was a Canadian violinist, composer and conductor. He began learning violin as a child, and continued his studies at the conservatory in St...
was born here. - David GünzburgDavid GünzburgBaron David Goratsiyevich Günzburg , 4th Baron de Günzburg, was a Russian orientalist and Jewish communal leader. He was the son of Baron Horace de Günzburg...
was born here. - Zvee ScoolerZvee ScoolerZvee Scooler was an American actor and radio commentator. He was born in Kamenets-Podolsky . He performed in both Yiddish and English, on the stage, television, and film. He is probably best known for his roles in Fiddler on the Roof, playing the innkeeper in the Broadway play and the rabbi in the...
, who is best known as the Rabbi in Fiddler on the RoofFiddler on the RoofFiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
, was born here. - Szymon OkolskiSzymon OkolskiSzymon Okolski , also known as Simon Okolski, was a well-known Polish-Lithuanian historian, theologian, and specialist in heraldry. His own clan and coat of arms were that of Rawicz. Born in Kamieniec Podolski, died in Lviv. He headed chairs of theology in Lviv and Bologna...
lived here. - Krzysztof Radziwiłłowski was a town official in 1768.
- Leonid SteinLeonid SteinLeonid Zakharovich Stein was a Soviet chess Grandmaster from Ukraine. He won three USSR Chess Championships in the 1960s , and was among the world's top ten players during that era.- Early life :...
was born here. He was а Soviet Grandmaster chess player. - Nikolai ChebotaryovNikolai ChebotaryovNikolai Chebotaryov was a noted Russian and Soviet mathematician. He is best known for the Chebotaryov density theorem....
was a noted Russian and Soviet mathematician. He is best known for the Chebotaryov density theorem. - Aleksander Michałowski was born here.
- José Antonio SaraviaJosé Antonio SaraviaJosé Antonio Saravia, José Antonio Sarabia, , was General Inspector of the Russian Military Academies under the Tsars Nikolai I and Alexander II...
, Spanish born Russian General, (1785 - Military Napoleonic actions from 1808 to 1812 in Europe - At the Service of the Tsars 1812 - Russian General 1843 under Tsar Nikolai I- General Inspector of the Russian MilitaryArmed Forces of the Russian FederationThe Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are the military services of Russia, established after the break-up of the Soviet Union. On 7 May 1992 Boris Yeltsin signed a decree establishing the Russian Ministry of Defence and placing all Soviet Armed Forces troops on the territory of the RSFSR...
Academies - 1871), married and lived here. - Russian writer Mikhail VellerMikhail VellerMikhail Iosifovich Veller is a Russian writer.Mikhail Veller was born in Kamianets-Podilskyi, Ukrainian SSR, USSR in 1948. In 1972 he graduated with a degree in linguistics from Leningrad University...
was born here in 1948. - Mihail StarenkiMihail StarenkiMihail Starenki was a Bessarabian politician.- Bibliography :*Gheorghe E. Cojocaru, Sfatul ţării: itinerar, Civitas, Chişinău, 1998, ISBN 9975-936-20-2...
was born here. - Ukrainian composer Mykola LeontovychMykola LeontovychMykola Dmytrovych Leontovych was a Ukrainian composer, choral conductor, priest, and teacher of international renown. His music was inspired by Mykola Lysenko and the Ukrainian nationalist music school, along with Kyrylo Stetsenko, Alexander Koshetz, and Yakiv Stepovy...
studied and graduated from the city's Theological Seminary - Jan de WitteJan de WitteJan de Witte was a Polish military engineer, professional officer and architect of Dutch descent. The author of, among others, the Dominican church in Lwów and the Carmelite monastery in Berdyczów , he was also the military commandant of the fortress at Kamieniec Podolski .-Personal...
, famous Polish architect and also commander of the local fortress.
Twin towns - Sister cities
Kamianets-Podilskyi is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Kalisz
Kalisz
Kalisz is a city in central Poland with 106,857 inhabitants , the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of the Greater Poland Voivodeship, the city forms a conurbation with the nearby towns of Ostrów Wielkopolski and Nowe Skalmierzyce...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
(since 1993)