Khortytsya is closely connected with the history of the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks. This is the largest river island not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Man settled here from time immemorial: the first traces of his stay date back to the III millennium BC.
Today, every Ukrainian schoolchild knows what river Khortytsya Island is on. The Dnieper is the largest and most significant waterway of Ukraine. This is the main shipping channel; it has a cascade of six hydroelectric power stations. But still, the main local attraction is the stronghold of the Ukrainian Cossacks. Until today, traditions and architectural monuments that can bring us back several hundred years ago and demonstrate how registrars lived on Khortitsa have been preserved.
North Khortitsa
The oldest of the six hydroelectric power stations - Zaporizhzhya DneproGES - was built in 1932, and launched at full capacity in 1939. From the northern slopes of the island of Khortitsa, a stunning view of the dam opens. Here the landscape is mostly steep: granite rocks sometimes rise 40-50 meters above the water.
In this part of the island there are many grottoes, caves, large and small boulders through which you can hardly go down to the water. In the northern part - the Museum of Zaporizhzhya Cossacks, the exposition "Zaporizhzhya Sich", which opened in 2009, Sanctuaries, "Tarasova Stitch" and the hiking trail "Over the Thresholds".
South Khortitsa
In the south, the area is marshy, smooth, created by the millennium-long labor of the course of the Dnieper. Here the coast is indented with numerous bays and backwaters. The fertile soils inflicted by the river became a real paradise for various representatives of flora and fauna. Previously, thickets of shrubs, trees, reeds and grass stretched from the island of Khortytsya to Kherson and were called the Great Zaporizhzhya Meadow.
In these places there was the famous Protolchy ford, along which one could cross from shore to shore on horseback without soaking his feet, or waist-deep in water. All this splendor turned out to be buried at the bottom of the Kakhovka reservoir during the construction of another hydroelectric power station. Hydroelectric power plants jointly produce only 8% of the country's electricity and are a source of constant environmental threat.
Nature reserve
Today, the southern edge of the island of Khortytsia is of great importance in preserving the wildlife of the Dnieper. Five ancient lakes and one and a half to two dozen small ponds and bays serve as a safe haven for many types of plants: lilies, water lilies, water chestnuts, irises, reeds, etc. There is the smallest fern in the world - floating salvina.
In the hospitable waters of southern Khortytsya, more than 50 species of fish spawn, more than 120 species of birds nest (despite the fact that in Ukraine there are just over 300 species), about 30 species of small mammals thrive.
The island of Khortytsia received the status of a state reserve back in 1965. Before that, it was considered a monument of local (since 1958) and republican (since 1963) significance. After independence, the Ukrainian government assigned the island the status of a national park (1993).
From the point of view of the environmental function, the reserve is of great importance: more than 560 species of wild plants grow here. For the limited space of the island, such an amount is huge.
Zaporizhzhya Cossacks
Of great interest is the history of the island of Khortytsya, associated mainly with the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks. Prince Vishnevetsky, sung in folklore under the name of Baida, in the 16th century united disparate Cossack units and built a fortress on an island nearby (Malaya Khortitsa), designed to defend the borders of the Polish-Lithuanian state. It is considered to be the prototype of the Zaporizhzhya Sich, which appeared only in 1593. In 1557, the fortress fell - Khan Devlet-Girey, who approached its walls in January, failed: the 24-day siege did not bring victory. Then he came in the fall with reinforcements and completely destroyed the fortress.
Before the liquidation of the Zaporizhzhya Sich, the island of Khortitsa belonged to its possessions. From here Taras Shook, Ivan Sirko, Sulima, Bogdan Khmelnitsky began their campaigns.
Dnieper flotilla
The military formation on the outskirts of the empire did not like the central authorities too much. When part of the foreman supported the hetman Mazepa in his anti-Russian speech on the side of the Swedes, in 1709 the whole Zaporizhzhya Sich was declared a nest of traitors and destroyed, which did not prevent the Cossacks from speaking on the side of the Russian crown in the war with the Turks.
In 1737, it was decided to build a new shipyard: the war is in full swing, and Russian ships cannot overcome the Dnieper rapids. By 1739, the Russian navy, numbering about four hundred ships, was already standing near the island of Khortytsya.
In 1998, a cossack gull case was found near the shore, which was removed from the Dnieper a year later. In 2007, the brigantine found there was raised to the surface. Two ancient ships became the basis for the organization of an informal museum of the Dnieper Flotilla, located in the southern part of the island.
Museum of the History of Zaporizhzhya Cossacks
The history of the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks is mainly devoted to the museum opened in 1983 on the island of Khortytsya. The room, which occupies about 1600 square meters, is decorated rather gloomy. Lined with granite walls create the effect of being in an underground cave. Along them hung various relics of ancient times. The general lighting is not bright, only tables with exhibits are highlighted, most of which are found on the island itself and in the immediate vicinity.
Here are collected the remains of stone tools of antiquity, pottery, fragments of ancient ships, icons, household items and interior. The museum displays a bog oak trunk that has lain on the bottom of the Dnieper for several thousand years. Of interest are the dioramas that reveal the main milestones in the history of the Zaporizhzhya Territory: “The Last Battle of Svyatoslav” (according to some reports, the Kiev prince was killed on the island), “Military Council in Sich”, “Night assault by the Soviet army in Zaporozhye (10/14/1943 .) ”,“ Construction of DneproGES ”.
Travelers Note
In the summer, the museum is open from 9-00 to 19-00, in the winter - from 9-00 to 16-00. It doesn’t work on Mondays, this should be borne in mind when planning a trip to the island of Khortytsya. The excursions offered by the national reserve are interesting and varied. Today, there are about a dozen walking thematic tours around the island, dedicated to different pages of its history.
If you do not want to walk for a guide for 45-90 minutes, you can order a bus tour lasting 2.5 hours to the southern part of the island. The reserve promises a pleasant and informative pastime in the society of highly qualified specialists. The island is also popular with children, for which special matinees have been developed. During them, the little one not only has fun, but also gets acquainted with the history of her native land.
"Zaporizhzhya Sich"
A significant place among the sights of the island is the historical and cultural complex Zaporizhzhya Sich, which began to be built in 2004. Part of the buildings was used during the filming of the film "Taras Bulba". In 2009, the complex opened for tourist visits.
The center of the exposition is a small wooden church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which is crowned with three domes. In total, the complex has twenty-three buildings that familiarize visitors with the interiors of Cossack housing, official and educational institutions, a traditional inn, and an armory. The entire exposition is divided into an internal kosh and a suburb, which, unfortunately, turned out to be plundered by modern vandals. The village is surrounded by a picket fence with three watchtowers, a moat and an earthen rampart.
Holy keeps Cossack customs and the local Equestrian Theater (located in the southern part of the island of Khortytsya). A smithy works here, souvenirs are sold, interesting theatrical events regularly take place: dances, stylized fights with sabers, talented riders demonstrate their art. The theater gives regular performances at the Zaporizhzhya Sich ICK.
Not a single Cossacks
It should be noted separately that the Cossacks do not exhaust the historical wealth of these places - the island of Khortytsya, whose sights are very numerous, was inhabited by people in earlier times.
In 1976-1980, archaeological excavations were carried out on the island, during which a military settlement of the 10th-14th centuries was discovered in the southern part. Separate finds - weapons, ceramics - allow us to think that the settlement is even more ancient. Today at the excavation site a memorial and tourist complex "Protovce settlement" is opened.
Scythian mounds
Scythians also left their mark on the island. At the beginning of the twentieth century there were 129 mounds. The oldest of them dates back to the Bronze Age (III millennium BC). Mounds are located along the so-called Scythian path, which once ran along the elevated part of the island of Khortitsa. Today eleven mounds are reconstructed, decorated with stone women and bronze steles. One of them is located right next to the Museum of the History of the Cossacks.
The Zorova Mogila memorial and tourist complex (Scythian camp), dedicated to the Scythian page of history, occupies about five hectares of the square and includes another interesting exposition, which attracts the island of Khortytsya, the Museum of Stone Statues. Here you can see the creations of human hands that are more than a thousand years old. So to speak, touch the homon of centuries embodied in stone.
Taras Shevchenko
In the summer of 1843, 29-year-old Taras Shevchenko visited Khortitsa. With the help of local historians, the route of his walk was determined and identified by seven granite boulders on which lines from the works of Great Kobzar are carved, which mention the island of Khortytsya and the Great Zaporizhzhya Meadow. Those who wish can follow the poet's footsteps and admire the surroundings from the Ecological Path “Above the Thresholds”.
Today, Khortytsya is an island whose vacation is popular not only among local residents. It is very beautiful, quiet, even peaceful. From the north-eastern coasts you can see the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station, and the Zaporizhzhya Sich exposition is located nearby, which imitates a typical Cossack fortress of the 16th-18th centuries. There is an almost mystical feeling that you are on the border between the past and the future.
Legends and myths of the island of Khortitsa
Almost every rock or cave of the island has its own legend. It would take a lot of time to talk about each of them. An interesting story with the Serpent Cave, which Herodotus describes. Say, in the magical land of Gelei (historians are inclined to believe that this is the Great Zaporizhzhya Meadow) Hercules met the beautiful Snake Maiden. They had love in that very cave, the narrow entrance to which can be seen in the photos of the island of Khortytsya made by extreme lovers. Getting to her is very difficult.
Only one of the three children of the Greek hero from a local beauty managed to bend his father’s heroic bow, and his name was Scythian. It is interesting that the images of the Maid-Serpent are indeed found on the stone boulders of the island, and their origin is rather foggy.
Later, the people settled in the famous cave of the Serpent Gorynych - he, throwing stones at the warriors who did not want to leave him alone, and created many Dnieper islets and even famous rapids.
Magical mysteries of the island
There is also an object on Khortitsa that interests esoteric supporters - a huge stone weighing five to six centners, either brought by a glacier, or brought from somewhere by people. In any case, this breed is not typical for this area: the closest region where it occurs is Donetsk region. The boulder is dotted with carved lines, clearly drawn by the hand of man. What these letters mean and whether they make sense, no one knows for sure. It is believed that the stone with the picture represents a fish (carp) and served the ancient people as a cult object. Human rumor has already endowed the stone with magical power, capable of "pulling" illness from a person.
Thus, the island of Khortytsya is very interesting, rich in sights and legends. To date, his popularity is far from deserved. I want to believe that time will fix it. If possible, be sure to visit this place. Good luck