Novhorod-Siverskyi
Encyclopedia
Novhorod-Siversky is a historic city in the Chernihiv Oblast
(province
) of Ukraine
. It is the administrative center
of the Novhorod-Siversky Raion, and is situated on the bank of the Desna River
, 330 km from the capital, Kiev
, and 45 km south of the Russia
n border. Current estimated population: 15,000.
(Polovtsy) and other steppe
peoples. One of numerous campaigns of local princes against Cumans gave birth to the great monument of early East Slavic literature
, the Tale of Igor's Campaign.
After the town's destruction by Mongols in 1239, it passed to the princes of Bryansk
and then to the Grand Dukes of Lithuania
. He was ruled by Dymitr Korybut
(Kaributas), son of Algirdas
. Muscovy obtained the area following the Battle of Vedrosha
in 1503, but had to return it back to Poland
after the Time of Troubles
. The town finally passed to Russia as a result of the Russo-Polish War (1654-1667). During Cossack epoch the town got status of sotenny (means hundred) and later polkovoi (regimental) town. Such was military and administrative division in Cossack army and country. Also Novgorod-Siversky became a notional cultural center on the Left-Bank Ukraine. It was made a capital of a separate namestnichestvo in 1782–97. Thereafter its importance steadily declined.
The main point of interest in the town is the former residence of the Chernihiv
metropolitan
s, the monastery of the Saviour's Transfiguration. It features a ponderous Neoclassical
cathedral (1791–96, design by Giacomo Quarenghi
), seventeenth-century stone walls, and several ecclesiastic foundations, dating from the sixteenth century. Other landmarks include the Cossack Baroque Assumption cathedral, a triumphal arch
(1787), and the wooden church of St. Nicholas (1760).
Chernihiv Oblast
Chernihiv Oblast is an oblast of northern Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Chernihiv.-Geography:The total area of the province is around 31,900 km²....
(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"...
) 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...
. It is the administrative center
Capital City
Capital City was a television show produced by Euston Films which focused on the lives of investment bankers in London living and working on the corporate trading floor for the fictional international bank Shane-Longman....
of the Novhorod-Siversky Raion, and is situated on the bank of the Desna River
Desna River
Desna is a river in Russia and Ukraine, left tributary of the Dnieper. The word means "right hand" in the Old East Slavic language. Its length is , and its drainage basin covers ....
, 330 km from the capital, 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....
, and 45 km south of the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n border. Current estimated population: 15,000.
History
The town was first chronicled in 1044. Since 1098 it is the capital of Siverian Principality, which served as a buffer zone against incursions of the CumansCumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...
(Polovtsy) and other steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
peoples. One of numerous campaigns of local princes against Cumans gave birth to the great monument of early East Slavic literature
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 Tale of Igor's Campaign.
After the town's destruction by Mongols in 1239, it passed to the princes of Bryansk
Bryansk
Bryansk is a city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Moscow. Population: -History:The first written mention of Bryansk was in 1146, in the Hypatian Codex, as Debryansk...
and then to the Grand Dukes of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
. He was ruled by Dymitr Korybut
Dymitr Korybut
Kaributas was a son of Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and reigned in Severian Novgorod until 1393....
(Kaributas), son of Algirdas
Algirdas
Algirdas was a monarch of medieval Lithuania. Algirdas ruled the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377, which chiefly meant monarch of Lithuanians and Ruthenians...
. Muscovy obtained the area following the Battle of Vedrosha
Battle of Vedrosha
The battle on the Vedrosha River was a battle in the course of the Russo-Lithuanian war of 1500-1503 which ended with a decisive Russian victory and proved to be of strategic significance...
in 1503, but had to return it back to 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...
after the Time of Troubles
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last Russian Tsar of the Rurik Dynasty, Feodor Ivanovich, in 1598, and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. In 1601-1603, Russia suffered a famine that killed one-third...
. The town finally passed to Russia as a result of the Russo-Polish War (1654-1667). During Cossack epoch the town got status of sotenny (means hundred) and later polkovoi (regimental) town. Such was military and administrative division in Cossack army and country. Also Novgorod-Siversky became a notional cultural center on the Left-Bank Ukraine. It was made a capital of a separate namestnichestvo in 1782–97. Thereafter its importance steadily declined.
Architecture
Despite historic disasters the town preserved a lot of architectural monuments and Branch of Chernihiv State Historical and Architectural Preserve was established here. The town has been managed to keep unchanged its landscape random planning. The boundary of the town historical center is vague. The tourists attractions are located on two high capes divided by ravines and which are Ensemble of Our Savior and Transfiguration Monastery and downtown. The architectural monuments of State significance are scattered on five separate areas which compose the territory of the preserve. The biggest area is the territory of Our Savior and Transfiguration Monastery. The other areas are Uspensky (Dormition) Cathedral, wooden St. Nicolas church, Triumphal arch and shopping arcades. There are constructions and residential buildings dated 18-19th centuries in the downtown while one fails to see big modern ones.The main point of interest in the town is the former residence of the Chernihiv
Chernihiv
Chernihiv or Chernigov is a historic city in northern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chernihiv Oblast , as well as of the surrounding Chernihivskyi Raion within the oblast...
metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
s, the monastery of the Saviour's Transfiguration. It features a ponderous Neoclassical
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
cathedral (1791–96, design by Giacomo Quarenghi
Giacomo Quarenghi
Giacomo Quarenghi was the foremost and most prolific practitioner of Palladian architecture in Imperial Russia, particularly in Saint Petersburg.- Career in Italy :...
), seventeenth-century stone walls, and several ecclesiastic foundations, dating from the sixteenth century. Other landmarks include the Cossack Baroque Assumption cathedral, a triumphal arch
Triumphal arch
A triumphal arch is a monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road. In its simplest form a triumphal arch consists of two massive piers connected by an arch, crowned with a flat entablature or attic on which a statue might be...
(1787), and the wooden church of St. Nicholas (1760).
External links
- Novhorod-Siverskyi on the Official Tourism website of Chernihiv Region (in Ukrainian, nice photographs)
- Some of the sites at Podorozh Ukraïnoyu (in UkrainianUkrainian languageUkrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
, with pictures) - Novgorod-Siverskyi on Sivershchyna Travel Guide (mostly in RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, with a history of the city in EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) - Forum (in Russian, city info basically copied from the Wikipedia in Russian)