Smolensk
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A view of Smolensk in 1912. |
Smolensk () is a
city in western
Russia, located on the
Dnieper River, the administrative centre of
Smolensk Oblast. Its population in
2003 was estimated as 351,100 (325,137 as of
2002 Census). Situated some 225 miles west-southwest of
Moscow, this walled city was destroyed several times throughout its long history. It was on the invasion routes of both
Napoleon and
Hitler. Today, Smolensk is noted for electronics, textiles, and food processing.
Origins of the name
The name of the city is derived from the name of the Smolnya Rivulet. The origin of the
hydronym is less clear. One possibility is the old Slavic word for
black soil, which might have coloured the waters of the long-derelict Smolnya. An alternative origin could be the
Russian word
smola that means both
tar and
resin.
Pine trees grow in the area, and city was once a center of resin processing and trade.
Medieval origins
Smolensk is among the oldest of Russian cities. The first recorded mention of the city was 863 AD, two years after the founding of ancient Russia. According to
Russian Primary Chronicle, Smolensk (then located slightly downstream) was the capital of the Slavic
Krivichs tribe in
882 when
Oleg of Novgorod took it in passing from Novgorod to Kiev. The town was first attested two decades earlier, when the
Varangian chieftains
Askold and Dir, while on their way to
Kiev, decided against messing with Smolensk on account of its large size and population.
The first foreign writer to mention the city was the Emperor
Constantine Porphyrogenitus. In
De Administrando Imperio (c.
950) he described Smolensk as a key station on the
Road from Varangians to Greeks. The
Rus sailed from the
Baltics up the
Western Dvina as far as they could then they
pulled their boats out onto the ground and dragged them along to the upper
Dnieper. It was in Smolensk that they supposedly mended any leaks and small holes that might have appeared in their boats from being dragged on the ground and they used
tar to do that, hence the city name.
The princedom of Smolensk was founded in
1054. Due to its central position amid Russian lands, the city developed rapidly. By the end of the 12th century the princedom was one of the strongest in
Eastern Europe, so that
Smolensk dynasty frequently controlled the
Kievan throne. Numerous
churches were built in the city at that time, including the church of Sts Peter and Paul (1146, mostly a post-war
reconstruction) and church of
St John the Baptist (1180, also partly rebuilt). The most remarkable church in the city is called
Svirskaya (1197, still standing); it was admired by contemporaries as the most beautiful structure to the east of
Kiev.
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Our Lady of Smolensk (11th century). |
Between Russia, Lithuania, and Poland
Although spared by the
Mongol armies in
1240, Smolensk paid tribute to the
Golden Horde, gradually becoming a pawn in the long struggle between
Lithuania and
Muscovy. The last sovereign monarch of Smolensk was
George of Smolensk; during his disastrous reign the city was taken by
Vytautas of Lithuania on three occasions, in
1395,
1404 and
1408. After the city's incorporation into the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania, some Smolensk
boyars (e.g., the
Sapiehas) moved to
Vilnius; descendants of the ruling princes (e.g., the
Tatischevs,
Kropotkins,
Mussorgskis,
Viazemskis) fled to
Moscow.
With a population of tens of thousands of people, Smolensk was probably the largest city in 15th-century Lithuania. Three Smolensk regiments proved decisive during the
Battle of Grunwald against the
Teutonic knights. It was a severe blow to Lithuania when the city was retaken by
Vasili III of Russia in
1514. To commemorate this event, the
tsar founded the
Novodevichy Convent in Moscow and dedicated it to the
icon of
Our Lady of Smolensk.
In order to repel future
Polish-Lithuanian attacks,
Boris Godunov made it his priority to heavily fortify the city. The stone
kremlin constructed in
1597–
1602 is the largest in Russia. It features remarkably thick walls and numerous watch-towers. Heavy fortifications didn't prevent the fortress from being taken by the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in
1611 after
a long 20-month siege, during the
Time of Troubles and
Dimitriads. Weakened Muscovy ceded temporarily Smolensk land to the Commonwealth in the
Truce of Deulino and for the next forty three years it was the capital of the
Smoleńsk Voivodship. To recapture the city,
Muscovy launched the so-called "
Smolensk War" against the Commonwealth in
1632. After a heavy defeat at the hands of king
Wladislaw IV, the city remained in Polish-Lithuanian hands. The hostilities resumed in
1654 when the Commonwealth was being rocked by the
Uprising of Ukrainian Cossacks and
Swedish invasion. After another siege, on
September 23,
1654 Smolensk was recaptured by Russia as the Polish garrison left the city. In the
1667 Treaty of Andrusovo the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth finally renounced its claims to the Smolensk.
Modern history
Smolensk has been a special place to Russians for many reasons, not least for the fact that the local
cathedral housed one of the most venerated
Orthodox icons, attributed to
St Luke. Building the new
Cathedral of the Assumption was a great project which took more than a century to complete. Despite slowly sinking into economic backwater, Smolensk was still valued by tsars as a key
fortress defending the route to
Moscow. It was made the capital of
Guberniya in
1708.
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Smolensk's coat of arms |
In August
1812 two of the largest
armies ever assembled clashed in Smolensk. During the
hard-fought battle, described by
Leo Tolstoy in
War and Peace,
Napoleon entered the city. Total losses were estimated at 30,000 men. Apart from other military monuments, downtown Smolensk features the Eagles monument, unveiled in 1912 to mark the centenary of
Napoleon's Russian campaign.
Immediately after the
October Revolution, when Belarus proper was still occupied by German forces, Smolensk () became a notable centre of Belarusian political life, although remaining administratively a part of Russia. In
1918, German occupational forces declared
Smolensk Governorate a constituent of the
Belarusian People's Republic, which only lasted less than a year. On
January 2,
1919 the
Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed in Smolensk, but its government moved to
Minsk as soon as the Polish interventionists, had been driven out of the Belarusian capital several months later.
During
World War II Smolensk was again chosen by history as a stage for one of its greater battles, the
Battle of Smolensk. The first
Soviet counteroffensive against the German army was launched here in August
1941. Over 93% of the city was destroyed during the fighting. The ancient icon was lost forever. It is no surprise that the title of
Hero City was bestowed on Smolensk after the war.
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The Smolensk Train Station |
After the Germans captured the city in
1941, they found the intact archives of Smolensk Oblast Committee of the Communist Party, the so-called
Smolensk Archive. The archive was moved to Germany, and a significant part of it eventually ended up in the United States, providing Western scholars and intelligence specialists with unique information on the local workings of the Soviet government during its first two decades.The archives were returned to Russia by the United States in
2002 [
1][
2]
*
Sister cities of Smolensk include
Colorado Springs, Colorado (1993).
*
A wall of Smolensk Kremlin in 1912*
2-rouble coin dedicated to Smolensk, 2000*
Smolensk Youth information portal *
Travel to Smolensk *
Smolensk Wiki *
Homepage of the Smolensk fortress *
Some photos of the Smolensk fortress*
More photos*
Historic images of Smolensk*
Smolensk on Wikimapia
