Porkhov

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Coordinates: 57°46′N 29°34′E / 57.767°N 29.567°E / 57.767; 29.567

One of the fortress' towers

Porkhov (Russian: Порхов) is a town and the administrative center of Porkhovsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located on the Shelon River, 75 kilometers (47 mi) east of Pskov. Population: 10,608 (2010 Census);[1] 12,263 (2002 Census);[2] 14,170 (1989 Census).[3]

The fortress of Porkhov is believed to have been founded in 1239 by Alexander Nevsky. The timber fortress was sacked by Algirdas (Olgierd) in 1356 and fell in flames in 1387. The Novgorod Republic immediately rebuilt its fortifications in limestone 1300 metres downstream. In 1428, Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas destroyed the western wall by artillery fire and entered Porkhov. Two years later, the Novgorodians augmented the fortress and rebuilt its walls. After the fall of Novgorod to the Muscovites in 1478, the fortress lost its military importance.[4]

Porkhov was the second most important town of Shelon pyatina, after Russa. It was not a significant economical center though; there were only 76 homesteads there in 15th century and almost all of them were peasant ones. [5]

During World War II, Porkhov was occupied by German troops from 11 July 1941 to 26 February 1944.

The fortress consists of a well-preserved encircling wall; two towers, one of which is half-ruined; a diminutive church from 1412, and a museum of local history. Inside the fortress there are a great many trees and plants. The church of the Virgin's Nativity, a remarkable monumental erection of the 14th century, was disfigured during the Soviet period (picture). Other landmarks include the Savior church (1670) and the church of St. Nicholas at Verkhny Most (1450).

Within 17 km from Porkhov, on the bank of the Shelon River, is the Neoclassical manor of Princes Gagarin at Kholomki. In the early 1920s, Kholomki hosted an art colony that was frequented by Korney Chukovsky, Vladislav Khodasevich, Yevgeny Zamyatin, and Mstislav Dobuzhinsky. Volyshevo, the former manor of the Stroganovs, is close at hand.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ "Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1" [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (2010 All-Russia Population Census) (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service. 2011. Retrieved June 29, 2012. 
  2. ↑ "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек" [Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002) (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service. May 21, 2004. Retrieved February 9, 2012. 
  3. ↑ Demoscope Weekly (1989). "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров." [All Union Population Census of 1989. Present population of union and autonomous republics, autonomous oblasts and okrugs, krais, oblasts, districts, urban settlements, and villages serving as district administrative centers]. Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года (All-Union Population Census of 1989) (in Russian). Institute of Demographics of the State University—Higher School of Economics. Retrieved February 9, 2012. 
  4. ↑ Энциклопедия Города России. Moscow: Большая Российская Энциклопедия. 2003. p. 360. ISBN 5-7107-7399-9. 
  5. ↑ Bernadsky, Viktor Nikolayevich (1961). Новгород и новгородская земля в XV веке (Novgorod and the Novgorod Land in the 15th century). Leningrad (Saint Petersburg): published by the USSR Academy of Sciences. pp. 133–134. 

Sources

  • Псковское областное Собрание депутатов. Закон №833-оз от 5 февраля 2009 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Псковской области». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Псковская правда", №20, 10 февраля 2009 г. (Pskov Oblast Council of Deputies. Law #833-oz of February 5, 2009 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Pskov Oblast. Effective as of the official publication date.).
  • Псковское областное Собрание депутатов. Закон №420-оз от 28 февраля 2005 г. «Об установлении границ и статусе вновь образуемых муниципальных образований на территории Псковской области», в ред. Закона №1251-ОЗ от 7 февраля 2013 г. «О внесении изменения в статью 24 Закона Псковской области "Об установлении границ и статусе вновь образуемых муниципальных образований на территории Псковской области"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Псковская правда", №41-43, №44-46, №49-51, 4 марта 2005 г., 5 марта 2005 г., 11 марта 2005 г. (Pskov Oblast Council of Deputies. Law #420-oz of February 28, 2005 On Establishing the Borders and the Status of the Newly Formed Municipal Formations on the Territory of Pskov Oblast, as amended by the Law #1251-oz of February 7, 2013 On Amending Article 24 of the Law of Pskov Oblast "On Establishing the Borders and the Status of the Newly Formed Municipal Formations on the Territory of Pskov Oblast". Effective as of the official publication date.).

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