Arkhangelsk is the oldest city in the Russian North, an important port and cultural center. There were times when it was rightfully considered one of the most important points in the country. But even now, the Northern Sea Route has not been canceled, and the city continues to play a prominent role in its development. The history of the creation of Arkhangelsk will be told in the article.
Monastery and Kholmogory
The history of the emergence of Arkhangelsk tells that the monastery of Michael the Archangel, located on Cape Pur-Navolok, is officially considered the birthplace of the city. The first mention of it dates back to 1419 (not a funny occasion - the message tells about the defeat of the monastery by the Swedes). Near the walls, as was customary in those days, there were several villages - peasants and kept monks, and in case of which they used the protection of the monastery fortifications. But more noticeable and significant in those days was the village of Kholmogory (known as the birthplace of M.V. Lomonosov), located nearby. Until the middle of the XVI century, it was a local shopping center.
The British, Ivan the Terrible, hemp, forest ...
The history of Arkhangelsk (you see the photo of this glorious city in the article) tells that in 1553, English sailors first arrived in the vicinity of Kholmogor. The British were primarily interested in the possibility of purchasing Russian timber timber, as well as canvas for sails and hemp for ropes - this was an era of rapid development of the British fleet. But the Kholmogory were not suitable for this purpose - the shallow Northern Dvina did not pass large sea vessels.
Therefore, the British took a fancy to the area near the monastery - it could be approached by sea. Demand generated supply - Russian merchants reached for a place of profitable sale of goods. The settlement began to grow; foreign trading posts and merchants' warehouses appeared. The city was called New Kholmogory, at that time it was the only full-fledged Russian seaport.
In view of this, Ivan the Terrible, whose relations with Sweden were not the best, took care to strengthen the new center of trade. Two governors were urgently ordered to “make a city”, that is, to build fortifications in New Kholmogory that could provide protection against possible attacks by the Swedes. It was not recommended to argue with this king - the governors managed for a year, and in 1584 a full-fledged fortress appeared on Cape Pur Navolok with a rampart, moat, towers, gates. Under her protection, foreign trading posts were transferred, and the local Russian population increased (sometimes voluntarily-forcibly). Archery garrison appeared, a full-fledged posad.
Active city life was only during the navigation period, when buyers from England and Holland and sellers from Vologda, Moscow, Kholmogor came here. Trade went briskly - even the legendary Francis Drake, a pirate and admiral, expressed gratitude to the Russian merchants for supplying wonderful equipment for British ships. In 1596, the history of the city of Arkhangelsk began, since for the first time in the documents its name was mentioned (by the name of the monastery that gave the city its foundation). In 1613, this name became official.
Window to Europe
Yes, it existed before Peter I (who, rather, did not make a window into this Europe, but a double-leaf gate), and it was Arkhangelsk that served them. In the 17th century, the city provided up to 60% of Russian foreign trade. Since the country pursued a policy of isolationism, in 1667 the city was declared the only point where foreign merchant ships were allowed to enter. That was before the era of Peter.
The active king twice visited the city and stayed for a long time. In Arkhangelsk, Peter first went to sea, here he initiated the creation of the first Russian trading "camps". The Tsar is also the "father" of the Arkhangelsk shipbuilding - he was annoyed that all Russian exports go abroad on foreign ships. His efforts in the city appeared first state, and then the country's first private shipyard. Ships also became an export item - foreigners willingly and in significant quantities purchased them. They also went to the needs of the young Baltic Fleet.
Through the newly opened "doors to Europe" climbed those who were not invited to Russia - in particular, the Swedes. Starting the Northern War, Peter took care of protecting the northern trading port. So the first stone regular Novodvinsk fortress appeared in these places. In 1708, Peter gave Arkhangelsk the status of a provincial center (and at that time there were 8 provinces throughout the country). However, in 1722, the king sacrificed Arkhangelsk trade for the sake of St. Petersburg - it was forbidden to export a whole series of goods through Arkhangelsk.
North way
But this decision did not end. The history of the city of Arkhangelsk continued. Some goods could still be imported and exported. The Petrovsky Solombala shipyard actively worked, building ships for the country's needs and for sale. In 1762, Catherine II lifted trade restrictions. Along the way, the forest industry and timber processing developed (without this, at that time there was nothing to think about shipbuilding). It was worth thanks also to Napoleon Bonaparte - the “continental blockade” he had undertaken by him also contributed to the development of trade. Arkhangelsk was an important administrative center, a gymnasium, a theater and the country's first local history museum appeared in it.
It was also a research center - sailors went on expeditions from here, looking for opportunities to navigate along the Arctic coast of Russia. Chichagov, Rusanov, Pakhtusov, Sedov - more than 200 expeditions went from Arkhangelsk to study the Russian North. Although the value of the Arkhangelsk port has fallen since 1916 (a new, more convenient ice-free port, Murmansk, has appeared), it was from here in 1932 that the icebreaker “A. Sibiryakov ”, who managed to prove that we pass the Northern Sea Route during one navigation season.
They appreciated Arkhangelsk, the history of which is interesting to its inhabitants, and the allies of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War. For quite a long time, the city was actually the only port (due to the dire situation of Murmansk), capable of receiving "Arctic convoys" - squadrons of cargo and warships that delivered equipment and other military goods to the USSR under Lend-Lease. The famous polar explorer I. D. Papanin was one of the leaders in preparing the port for the reception of convoys.
Arkhangelsk, whose history has become the subject of our review, remains one of the most important centers of the Northern Sea Route to this day. In Soviet times, the city was growing rapidly, replenished with modern buildings adapted to the conditions of the North.
Conquering evil
Unfortunately, there is very little left of the ancient buildings of the city. The reason is that they built here mainly of wood. The subject of trade, first of all, was also wood, as well as linen and hemp - things are very combustible. Therefore, devastating fires in Arkhangelsk were commonplace. In particular, in 1667 the monastery, which gave the name to the city, was completely burnt down. As an institution, it was later restored, but in a new place, away from the historical city center (now there is only a commemorative stele on the cape, recalling the place of origin of the city).
Nevertheless, the monastery gave the city not only a name, the history of the coat of arms of Arkhangelsk began with this . The monastery was dedicated to Michael the Archangel, famous for his victory over the devil. This plot is depicted on the coat of arms. For the first time such a picture is found in the personal records of Peter - he had it was a sketch of the standard of the Arkhangelsk regiment. Since 1722, such a coat of arms was used by the city, but without official approval (at first Mikhail was depicted as a horse, but later he was “in a hurry”). The official approval took place as part of the Catherine provincial reform in 1780.
In Soviet times, Arkhangelsk had a coat of arms depicting a ship - the saints were not good here. But in 1989, the original coat of arms was restored. Michael in blue clothes and a black defeated devil are depicted on a yellow field. The emblem symbolizes the triumph of good over evil.
Scientist and Carpenter
The most famous monuments of Arkhangelsk are the images of M.V. Lomonosov and Tsar Peter. Both are the works of famous authors (I. Martos and M. Antokolsky, respectively). They were established before the revolution (in 1832 and 1914). Mikhail Vasilyevich is depicted in a classic spirit, almost a Roman poet. But the Arkhangelsk Peter is strikingly different from his "brothers." This is not an autocrat, not a winner, not an emperor who “raised Russia on its hind legs”, but “Peter, a Zaandamsky carpenter”, who personally knocks out supports from under a ready-made new ship.
Guests from the past
The history of the buildings of Arkhangelsk also goes back to the Petrine era. The oldest of them is a wooden church in Zaostrovye (late 17th century) of an unusual cubic design. Now this object is under restoration; by summer, work must be completed. You can see the remains of the Novodvinsk fortress, where in 1701 the garrison under the command of the young steward Sylvester Ievlev survived the attack of the Swedes. In Soviet times, the multi-part television movie “Young Russia” was dedicated to this event.
Several interesting buildings of a later time have survived - the Trinity Church (middle of the 18th century), the Admiralty building (1820), the Church of Martin the Confessor on Solombala Island (1803). There are several old wooden houses in the city in which people continue to live. Among the historical monuments of Arkhangelsk are the Sursky Compound, the building of the Lutheran Church and the wooden house of the merchant Shavrin, where the Youth Theater is now located. The cultural elite of Arkhangelsk reveres these buildings as an adornment of their city.
Visitors from the future
Modern buildings are less likely to receive compliments, but in vain. Yes, many citizens are dissatisfied with the dominance of shopping centers of "flashy" appearance. But the wide streets with residential ensembles of the Soviet era have already turned into the same symbol of the city as the old buildings. In particular, we are talking about the ensemble of Voskresenskaya Street. Locals say that one should not criticize Soviet architecture (white houses- “candles” were already called “city angels”), but re-lay the sidewalks, renovate squares, clean the facades and throw unnesthetic advertising banners into the trash. Then the Soviet buildings will again turn into the pride of the townspeople.
The structure of the marine station also attracts attention - a modern white building in traditional blue and white tones for this purpose. But the most famous modern building of Arkhangelsk is a “skyscraper” with 24 floors. For New York or Chicago, this is ridiculously small, but they were not built on complex northern soils. They built a “skyscraper” in 1984 with advertising rather than practical purposes. Nevertheless, it housed several design organizations, and now the building is used as an office center and the headquarters of the Arkhangelsk radio stations.
Three names each
An interesting history of the streets of Arkhangelsk. Some of them (or rather their names) had a difficult fate. The historical names reflected either the state imperial and religious ideology, or the peculiarities of local life. Accordingly, in the city were Voskresenskaya, Troitskaya, Police, Khlebnaya streets. There were also French, Scottish, Lutheran, Norwegian, Kirochnaya (from the word "church") - these names recorded the existence of foreign merchant districts in the city.
Many streets of the city boast a whole list of 4-5 names. They changed not only for ideological reasons (Voskresenskaya in the Soviet era was named after Engels, and Troitskaya was named after P. Vinogradov, a participant in the Zimny Storm, commander of the Severodvinsk River Flotilla), but also in connection with perestroika and reconstruction (it is clear that the appearance of the Kuznechevskaya-Perm chain - Suvorov cannot be explained by communist considerations).
After the collapse of the USSR, some streets got their historical names back. Often even now in Arkhangelsk voices are heard of those who demand a complete “decommunization” of the city, elimination of Karl Marx, Rosa Luxemburg, Chelyuskintsev and Uritsky from the map. But most citizens are against it. For a long time there are no longer those for whom the old names are native, and modern archangel-town residents who are used to Chumbarov-Luchinsky Avenue (by the way, this is a walking, pedestrian street) no longer understand why it should turn into Bolshaya Meshchanskaya or Sredny Prospect. And this is not to mention the fact that renaming confuses transport routes and the document processing system (in particular, housing rights and registration documents of enterprises and organizations).
Smart initiative
In these conditions, the Arkhangelsk local historians showed a worthy respect and imitation initiative. On some buildings on historical streets, they affixed additional nameplates that these streets wore at different times. These tablets do not require any administrative reaction, but they help to preserve and bring to the attention of the townspeople the memory of the old Arkhangelsk place names.
And the bronze Pavlin Vinogradov is standing on Troitskaya Street ... Well, this is a smart modern street, and a revolutionary sailor would have liked it ...
So you learned the history of the city of Arkhangelsk (briefly). And now you know that in all ages this glorious city has known both troubles and great luck ...