- Kiliya, Ukraine
Kiliya ( _uk. Кілія, translit. "Kiliya", _ru. Килия, translit. "Kiliya", _ro. Chilia (-Nouă), _pl. Kilia; also referred to as Kiliya or Novo Kilia/Kiliya, _tr. Kilya) is a small
city in theOdessa Oblast (province) of south-westernUkraine . It is the administrative center of theKiliysky Raion (district), and is located in theDanube Delta , in theBessarabia n historic district ofBudjak . TheChilia branch of theDanube river, which separates Ukraine fromRomania , is named after Kilia.History
A town on the Romanian side of the Chilia branch, known as "
Chilia Veche " ( _uk. Cтapa Кілія, translit. "Stara Kiliya") or "Older Chilia", was founded by the Byzantines - κελλίa, "kellia" being the equivalent of "granaries", a name first recorded in 1241, in the works of the Persianchronicler Rashid al-Din .Kilia is therefore sometimes referred to as "Nova Kilia" ( _ru. Hoво Килия, _uk. Hoва Кілія, translit. "Novo Kiliya", Romanian: Chilia Nouă), or "New Chilia". It was founded by
Stephen the Great ofMoldavia , in order to counteract theOttoman Empire which had taken control over the former town in the 15th century. It was a major Moldavian port. However, this site too was eventually conquered by Ottomans in 1484, who kept it until 1790, when it was taken by Russian Army under the command of the generalIvan Gudovich duringRusso-Turkish War (1787–1792) .After being bombarded by the Anglo-French fleet in July 1854, it was given to Romania on the conclusion of the war
Crimean War - seeTreaty of Paris (1856) . In 1878, Kilia was transferred to Russia together with the Budjak. Between 1918 and 1940 it was again part Romania, then occupied by theSoviet Union and theUkrainian SSR (it was briefly held yet again by Romania, from 1941 to 1944/1945, duringWorld War II ), and passed on to Ukraine after the Soviet downfall.The oldest building in Kilia is the semi-subterranean church of St. Nicholas, which may go back to 1485, although an old inscription in the church claims that it was founded on
10 May ,1647 .
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