| Blagoveshchensk (English) Благовещенск (Russian) |
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Night in Blagoveshchensk, with the lights of Heihe glowing in the background |
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Blagoveshchensk
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| Administrative status (as of December 2008) | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Amur Oblast |
| Administratively subordinated to | Blagoveshchensk Urban Okrug[1] |
| Administrative center of | Amur Oblast, Blagoveshchensk Urban Okrug[1] |
| Municipal status (as of March 2005) | |
| Urban okrug | Blagoveshchensk Urban Okrug[2] |
| Administrative center of | Blagoveshchensk Urban Okrug[2] |
| Mayor | Alexander Migulya |
| Statistics | |
| Population (2010 Census, preliminary) |
214,397 inhabitants[3] |
| - Rank in 2010 | 87th |
| Population (2002 Census) | 219,221 inhabitants[4] |
| - Rank in 2002 | 84th |
| Time zone | YAKST (UTC+10:00)[5] |
| Founded | 1856[6] |
| Postal code(s) | 675000–675029 |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 4162 |
| Official website | |
Blagoveshchensk (Russian: Благове́щенск) is a city and the administrative center of Amur Oblast, Russia. Population: 214,397 (2010 Census preliminary results);[3] 219,221 (2002 Census);[4] 205,553 (1989 Census).[7]
Contents |
The early residents of both sides of the Amur in the region of today's Blagoveshchensk were the Daurs and Duchers. An early settlement in the area of today's Blagoveshchensk was the Ducher town whose name was reported by the Russian explorer Yerofey Khabarov as Aytyun (Айтюн) in 1652; it has been identified with what is currently known to the archaeologists as the Grodekovo site (Гродековское городище), after the nearby village of Grodekovo (which is located on the left (western, i.e. presently Russian) bank of the Amur at , some 25–30 km (16–19 mi) south of Blagoveshchensk). The Grodekovo site is thought by archaeologists to have been populated since ca. 1000 CE.[8]
As the Russians tried to assert its control over the region, the Ducher town was probably vacated when the Duchers were evacuated by the Qing to the Sungari or Hurka in the mid-1650s.[8] Since 1673, the Manchus re-used the site for their fort ("Old Aigun", in modern literature),[9] which served in 1683-85 as a base for the Manchus' campaign against the Russian fort of Albazin further north.[10]
After the capture of Albazin in 1685 or 1686, the Manchus relocated their town, to a new site on the right (southwestern, i.e. presently Chinese) bank of the Amur, about 3 miles (4.8 km) downstream from the original site; it later became known as Aigun.[11][12]
The series of conflicts between Russians and Manchus ended with Russia's recognition of the Chinese sovereignty over both sides of the Amur by the Nerchinsk Treaty of 1689.
As the balance of power in the region has changed by the mid-19th century, Russian Empire was able to take over the left (generally northern, but around Blagoveshchensk, eastern) shore of the Amur from China. Since the 1858 Aigun Treaty and the 1860 Treaty of Peking, the river has remained the border between the two countries, although the Qing subjects were allowed to continue to live in the so-called Sixty-Four Villages east of the Amur and the Zeya (i.e., within today's Blagoveshchensk's eatsern suburbs).
Although Russian settlers had lived in the area as early as 1644 as "Hailanpao", the present-day city began in 1856 as the military outpost of Ust-Zeysky, its name meaning settlement at the mouth of the Zeya River in Russian. Tsar Alexander II gave approval for the founding of the city in 1858, with the town to be named Blagoveshchensk, after the parish Church of the Annunciation (Blagoveshcheniye in Russian) and declared to be seat of government for the Amur region.
According to the city authorities, by 1877 the city had some 8,000 residents, with merely fifteen foreigners (presumably, Chinese) among them.[9]
The city was an important river port and trade center during the late 19th century, with growth further fueled by a gold rush early in the 20th century and by its position on the Chinese border, just hundreds of meters across from the city of Heihe.
Local historian note the preeminence of Blagoveshchensk in the economy of the late 19th century Russian Far East, which was reflected by a "small detail": when the heir to Russian throne, HRH Nicholas Alexandrovich (future Tsar Nicholas II) visited the city in 1891 during his grand tour of Asia, the locals presented him with bread and salt on a gold tray, rather than on a silver one, as it was done in other cities of the region.[13]
In the course of the Boxer Rebellion, Chinese insurgents shelled the city in July 1900. According to the Orthodox tradition, the city was saved by a miraculous icon of Our Lady of Albazin, which was prayed to continuously during the shelling which lasted almost two weeks.
On July 3 (Old Style), a decision was made by the city's Police Chief Batarevich and the Military Governor Gribsky to deport the city's entire ethnic Chinese community (which, according to the official statistics, numbered 4,008 in 1898[9]), viewed as potential "fifth columnists". As the cross-river shipping was interrupted by the rebellion, a question arose how to get them from the Russian side of the Amur to the Chinese side. Batarevich suggested that the deportees could be first taken east of the Zeya, where they could try to obtain boats from the local Chinese villagers. The plan, however, was vetoed by the governor, and the decision was made instead to take the deportees to the stanitsa of Verkhneblagoveshchenskaya—the place where the Amur is at its narrowest—and made them to leave the Russian shore. As the local ataman refused to provided the deportees with boats to take them across the river (despite the orders of his superior), few of them made it to the Chinese side. The rest drowned in the Amur, or were shot or axed by the police, Cossacks and local volunteers, when refusing to leave the dry land. According to Chinese sources, about 5,000 people reportedly died during these events of July 4–8, 1900.[14]
The expulsion of local Chinese caused some hardships for Blagoveshchensk consumers. Historians note that during the second half of 1900, it became almost impossible to buy any green vegetables in town; ten eggs would cost 30-50 kopecks (and in winter, as much as a rouble), while before it had been possible to buy ten eggs for 10-15 kopecks.[9]
The city was also the site of conflict during the Russian Civil War, with Japanese troops occupying the city in support of the White Army. From 1920 until 1922, the city was declared part of the Far Eastern Republic, an area which was nominally independent, but in reality a buffer zone under control of the Russian SFSR.
The city became the administrative center of Amur Oblast in 1932.
During the Cultural revolution the city was subject to the Maoist propaganda blasted from loudspeakers across the river 24 hours a day.
On August 1, 2011 Blagoveshchensk became the first city in Russia to be hit by a tornado. The tornado claimed one life and injured twenty-eight people. Damage costs are estimated at 80 million rubles.
Administratively, along with six rural localities, it is incorporated as Blagoveshchensk Urban Okrug—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.[1] Municipally, this administrative unit also has urban okrug status.[2]
The city is located at the confluence of the Amur and Zeya Rivers, opposite to the Chinese city of Heihe.
The Amur has formed Russia's border with China since the 1858 Aigun Treaty and 1860 Treaty of Peking. The area north of the Amur had previously belonged to Imperial China.
The Trans-Siberian railroad passes some 110 kilometers (68 mi) to the northeast of Blagoveshchensk; the city is connected with the mainline by a branch line. It is also served by Ignatyevo Airport.
Blagoveschensk experiences a monsoon influenced humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dwb, though verging on Dwa as the July temperature is only a fraction below 22˚C) with very cold, dry winters and warm, wet summers. On August 1, 2011 it became the first Russian city ever to be hit by a tornado.[15]
| Climate data for Blagoveshchensk | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 0.2 (32.4) |
7.0 (44.6) |
20.3 (68.5) |
27.9 (82.2) |
34.7 (94.5) |
37.5 (99.5) |
37.7 (99.9) |
36.9 (98.4) |
33.5 (92.3) |
28.0 (82.4) |
13.4 (56.1) |
3.6 (38.5) |
37.7 (99.9) |
| Average high °C (°F) | −16.6 (2.1) |
−10.1 (13.8) |
−0.9 (30.4) |
10.4 (50.7) |
19.2 (66.6) |
25.1 (77.2) |
27.1 (80.8) |
24.7 (76.5) |
18.7 (65.7) |
8.6 (47.5) |
−5.1 (22.8) |
−15 (5) |
7.2 (45.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −22.7 (−8.9) |
−16.9 (1.6) |
−7.2 (19.0) |
4.1 (39.4) |
12.4 (54.3) |
18.8 (65.8) |
21.5 (70.7) |
19.2 (66.6) |
12.4 (54.3) |
2.7 (36.9) |
−10.3 (13.5) |
−20.3 (−4.5) |
1.2 (34.2) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −27.4 (−17.3) |
−22.5 (−8.5) |
−13 (9) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
6.1 (43.0) |
13.2 (55.8) |
16.8 (62.2) |
14.6 (58.3) |
7.3 (45.1) |
−2 (28) |
−14.6 (5.7) |
−24.6 (−12.3) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −44.5 (−48.1) |
−45.4 (−49.7) |
−35.7 (−32.3) |
−17.7 (0.1) |
−7.5 (18.5) |
0.1 (32.2) |
8.2 (46.8) |
4.4 (39.9) |
−4.3 (24.3) |
−24.8 (−12.6) |
−32.9 (−27.2) |
−41.2 (−42.2) |
−45.4 (−49.7) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 6 (0.24) |
5 (0.2) |
10 (0.39) |
31 (1.22) |
42 (1.65) |
91 (3.58) |
131 (5.16) |
125 (4.92) |
73 (2.87) |
26 (1.02) |
14 (0.55) |
9 (0.35) |
563 (22.17) |
| % humidity | 73 | 68 | 62 | 55 | 55 | 69 | 76 | 78 | 72 | 61 | 67 | 74 | 67.5 |
| Avg. rainy days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 0.09 | 0.03 | 0.5 | 8 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 14 | 7 | 0.3 | 0 | 89 |
| Avg. snowy days | 11 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 12 | 60 |
| Sunshine hours | 139.5 | 194.9 | 226.3 | 222.0 | 251.1 | 255.0 | 226.3 | 226.3 | 168.0 | 189.1 | 156.0 | 124.0 | 2,378.5 |
| Source no. 1: Погода и Климат[16] | |||||||||||||
| Source no. 2: Hong Kong Observatory (sunshine only)[17] | |||||||||||||
Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the city's economic focus has turned to border trade with China, the town is now home to a large Chinese expatriate community. Blagoveshchensk is part of a free trade zone which includes the Chinese city of Heihe, located on the other side of the Amur River.[18]
Main industries in the town include metal and timber processing, as well as paper production.
The city is served by a branch highway and railway connecting it to Belogorsk on the Trans-Siberian Railway and Trans-Siberian Highway. It is also served by Ignatyevo Airport and a river port. On the other side of the Amur River is Heihe, Heilongjiang Province, China, which is the starting point of China National Highway 202 that goes south to Harbin and Dalian. Ignatyevo Airport, located 20 kilometers northwest of the city center, serves domestic destinations.
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