Mogilev

This article is about city in Belarus. For the city in Ukraine, see Mohyliv-Podilskyi.

Coordinates: 50°54′N 30°20′E / 50.900°N 30.333°E

Mogilev
Магілёў
Могилёв
Mogilev
Mahilyow

Mogilev in winter

Flag
Coat of arms
Mogilev

Location of Mogilev, shown within the Mogilev Region

Coordinates: 53°55′N 30°21′E / 53.917°N 30.350°E
Country
Subdivision		  Belarus
Mogilev Region
Founded 1267
Government
 • Mayor Stanislaw Baradawka
Area
 • Total 118.50 km2 (45.75 sq mi)
Elevation 192 m (630 ft)
Population (2009)
 • Total 360,918
 • Density 3,000/km2 (7,900/sq mi)
Postal code 212 001
Area code(s) +375 222
License plate 6
Website Official website

Mogilev (officially transliterated as Mahilioŭ?, also spelled Mahiloŭ?, Mahilyow, Mogilyov; Belarusian: Магілёў, pronounced [maɣʲiˈlʲou̯]; Russian: Могилёв, pronounced [məɡʲɪˈlʲof]) is a city in eastern Belarus, about 76 kilometres (47 miles) from the border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and 105 km (65 miles) from the border with Russia's Bryansk Oblast. As of 2011, its population was 360,918.,[1] up from an estimated 106,000 in 1956. It is the administrative centre of Mogilev Region and the third largest city in Belarus.

Outline of history

Illustration from Brockhaus and Efron Jewish Encyclopedia (1906—1913); Russian Imperial Governorate of Mogilev
Mogilev appears on Charles Minard's famous chart illustrating Napoleon’s 1812 Russian campaign

The city is mentioned in historical sources since 1267. From the 14th century it was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, since the Union of Lublin (1569), part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, where it became known as Mohylew or Mogilew. In 16th-17th century the city flourished as one of the main nodes of the east-west and north-south trading routes.

In 1577 Polish King Stefan Batory granted it city rights under Magdeburg law. In 1654, the townsmen negotiated a treaty of surrender to the Russians peacefully, if the Jews were to be expelled and their property divided up among Mogilev's inhabitants. Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovitch agreed. However, instead of expelling the Jews, the Russian troops massacred them after they had led them to the outskirts of the town.[2] After the First Partition of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1772) Mogilev became part of the Russian Empire and became the centre of the Mogilev Governorate.

In the years 1915–1917, during World War I, the Stavka, the headquarters of the Russian Imperial Army was based in the city and the Tsar, Nicholas II, spent long periods there as Commander-in-Chief.

Following the Russian Revolution, in 1918, the city was briefly occupied by Germany and placed under their short-lived Belarusian People's Republic. Then, in 1919 it was captured by the forces of Soviet Russia and incorporated into the Byelorussian SSR. Up to the Second World War and the Holocaust, like many other cities in Europe, Mogilev had a significant Jewish population: according to the Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 41,100, 21,500 were Jews (i.e. around 50 percent).[3]

Between 26 July 1941 and 28 June 1944 the city was under German occupation.[4] During that period, the Jews of Mogilev were ghettoized and systematically murdered.[5]

In 1944, the city returned to Soviet domination.

Since Belarus gained its independence in 1991 Mogilev has remained one of its principal cities.

Street in the centre

Economy

From 1267 thru 1944...

After World War II a huge metallurgy centre with several major steel mills was built. Also, several major factories of cranes, cars, tractors and a chemical plant were established. By the 1950s, tanning was its principal industry, and it was a major trading centre for cereal, leather, salt, sugar, fish, timber and flint: the city has been home to a major inland port on the Dnieper river since (year/period) and a domestic airport since. Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the establishment of Belarus as an independent country, Mogilev has become one of that country's main economic and industrial centres.

Main sights

Mahiliou Town Hall XVII-XX, 2008. Stamp of Belarus, 2012.

The town's most striking landmark is the late 17th-century town hall. The grand tower of the town hall sustained serious damage during the Great Northern War and the Great Patriotic War. It was eventually demolished in 1957. The town hall was rebuilt in its pre-war form in 2008.

Another important landmark of Mogilev is the six-pillared St. Stanislav's Cathedral, built in the Baroque style in 1738–52 and distinguished by its energetic murals. The convent of St. Nicholas preserves its magnificent cathedral of 1668, as well as the original iconostasis, bell tower, walls, and gates. It is currently under consideration to become a UNESCO World Heritage site.[6]

Minor landmarks include the archiepiscopal palace and memorial arch, both dating from the 1780s, and the enormous theatre in a blend of the Neo-Renaissance and Russian Revival styles.

At Polykovichi, an urban part of Mogilev, there is a 350 metre tall guyed TV mast, one of the tallest structures in Belarus.

Climate data for Mogilev, Belarus
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) −3.0
(26.6)		 −2.5
(27.5)		 3.0
(37.4)		 12.0
(53.6)		 18.6
(65.5)		 21.5
(70.7)		 23.6
(74.5)		 22.7
(72.9)		 16.7
(62.1)		 9.9
(49.8)		 2.3
(36.1)		 −2.0
(28.4)		 10.2
(50.4)
Average low °C (°F) −7.8
(18)		 −8.5
(16.7)		 −4.2
(24.4)		 2
(36)		 7.3
(45.1)		 10.8
(51.4)		 12.7
(54.9)		 11.6
(52.9)		 7.1
(44.8)		 2.6
(36.7)		 −2.3
(27.9)		 −6.6
(20.1)		 2.1
(35.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 43
(1.69)		 35
(1.38)		 39
(1.54)		 47
(1.85)		 59
(2.32)		 81
(3.19)		 86
(3.39)		 75
(2.95)		 57
(2.24)		 54
(2.13)		 51
(2.01)		 49
(1.93)		 676
(26.61)
Avg. precipitation days 22 17 15 14 12 14 15 11 14 17 22 26 199
Average relative humidity (%) 86 84 81 74 68 71 74 75 80 84 88 89 80
Source: [7]

Notable citizens

Twin towns – sister cities

Mahilyow is twinned with:

References

  1. ↑ Ярковец, А.И. (2011). "Численность населения на 1 января 2011 года и среднегодовая численность населения за 2010 год по Республике Беларусь в разрезе областей, районов, городов, поселков городского типа". Официальный сайт Национального статистического комитета Республики Беларусь (in Russian). Национальный статистический комитет Республики Беларусь. p. 21. Archived from the original (Статистический бюллетень) on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 2012-01-13.
  2. ↑ Russia's First Modern Jews, NYU Press 1995, David Fishman, p.2
  3. ↑ Joshua D. Zimmerman, Poles, Jews, and the politics of nationality, Univ of Wisconsin Press, 2004, ISBN 0-299-19464-7, Google Print, p.16
  4. ↑ "Mogilev The fate of the Jews under the German Invasion & Occupation". Holocaustresearchproject.org. Retrieved 2014-08-09.
  5. ↑ "Jewish Heritage Research Group in Belarus". Jhrgbelarus.org. Retrieved 2014-08-09.
  6. ↑ UNESCO World Heritage Centre (2004-01-30). "St. Nicholas Monastery Complex in the city of Mahilyou – UNESCO World Heritage Centre". Whc.unesco.org. Retrieved 2014-08-09.
  7. ↑ "Weatherbase". Weatherbase. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Kragujevac Twin Cities". ©2009 Information service of Kragujevac City. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
  9. ↑ "Sumqayıt şəhər icra hakimiyyəti. Beynəlxalq Əlaqələr" [Sumgayit Executive Power. International Relations]. Retrieved 2010-12-29.
  10. ↑ "Mogilev and Ar Rayyan signed an agreement of contact". 11 October 2010. Retrieved 12 January 2015.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mahilyow.
Look up mogilev in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
City and regional maps of Mogilev