- Vologda
Vologda ( _ru. Во́логда) is a city in
Russia and the administrative center ofVologda Oblast . It is located at coord|59|12|N|39|51|E|, and has a population of 293,046 (2002 Census). Vologda takes its name, of likely Finno-Ugrian origin, from theVologda River which flows through the city.The city is served by
Vologda Airport and is host toFedotovo , a majorRussian Navy air base 44 km to the west.History
Vologda was first mentioned in
Novgorod chronicles for 1147, when Saint Gerasim found a church and village already standing there. Surrounded by impassable woods, the settlement was inhabited by Novgorodians who pulled the ships from a tributary of the Volga to a tributary of theNorthern Dvina , thus making possible navigation from theWhite Sea to the Caspian. In 1273 the city was ravaged by a Mongol raid.It was not until 1412, when the area was ceded by
Novgorod Republic toMuscovy , that the town acquired any measure of importance. The princes of Muscovy made Vologda their outpost in the North. By the end of the century, Vologda eclipsed the ancient centre of that region,Belozersk . Its commercial importance further increased when theMuscovy Company started its operations in Russia.Main sights
Vologda's Saint Sophia, consecrated in 1570 and named after
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod , was one of the largest cathedrals built in Russia up to that time. It had been ordered by Ivan the Terrible to be rebuilt in stone in the 15th century. Its superbfresco es were painted in 1686–1688 by Dmitry Plekhanov fromYaroslavl . A lofty octagonal belltower was added in 1654–1659 and built up in the nineteenth century. A local museum occupies the neighbouring Treasury chambers (1659). The main points of interest outside Kremlin walls are the eighteenth centurybaroque churches and the 19 century Neoclassical mansions.Just two kilometers from the historic centre of Vologda stands the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery, founded in 1371 by one of
Sergii Radonezhsky 's disciples. WithDmitry Donskoy as its patron, the monastery quickly developed into the richest landowner in the neighbourhood. Its five-domed cathedral was erected in 1537–1542. Almost all other structures—arefectory , a winter church, holy gates with a barbican—were also constructed prior to theTime of Troubles , when thecloister was occasionally besieged by the Polish units and gangs of brigands. The time of anarchy over, the monastery's thick walls and towers were renovated. Soviet authorities banished the monks and turned the cloister into a museum. Some remarkable specimens of early wooden architecture were transported here from distant villages of the Vologda region.Culture
Vologda is known all over Russia for its
cheese andbutter , reputedly the best in Russia. The Romantic poetKonstantin Batyushkov was born and died in Vologda. There is also a small museum of Peter the Great.[http://www.ajhg.org/AJHG/abstract/S0002-9297(07)00025-0 Balanovsky 2008] published genetic research data on Vologda and found results connecting it, along with
Krasnoborsk , to a genetic grouping otherwise most common inScandinavia which would be in common with settlements or migrations from that area (i.e.Viking or Varangian) or simply represent an ancient genetic relatedness. According to 11.6% of a sampling of 121 tested at Vologda belong to the I1ahaplogroup (12.1% of 91 tested belonged to said group in Krasnoborsk) these frequencies are higher than elsewhere in Russia and even higher than inPoland .
Infobox Weather
metric_first= Yes
single_line= Yes
location = Vologda
Jan_Hi_°C = -8.8 |Jan_REC_Hi_°C = 5.3
Feb_Hi_°C = -7.1 |Feb_REC_Hi_°C = 5.6
Mar_Hi_°C = -0.9 |Mar_REC_Hi_°C = 16.4
Apr_Hi_°C = 7.4 |Apr_REC_Hi_°C = 27.0
May_Hi_°C = 15.8 |May_REC_Hi_°C = 30.6
Jun_Hi_°C = 20.5 |Jun_REC_Hi_°C = 33.1
Jul_Hi_°C = 22.4 |Jul_REC_Hi_°C = 34.5
Aug_Hi_°C = 20.4 |Aug_REC_Hi_°C = 35.5
Sep_Hi_°C = 13.6 |Sep_REC_Hi_°C = 28.8
Oct_Hi_°C = 5.7 |Oct_REC_Hi_°C = 22.8
Nov_Hi_°C = -1.3 |Nov_REC_Hi_°C = 10.7
Dec_Hi_°C = -5.8 |Dec_REC_Hi_°C = 8.5
Year_Hi_°C = 6.8 |Year_REC_Hi_°C = 35.5Jan_Lo_°C = -16.2 |Jan_REC_Lo_°C = -47.1
Feb_Lo_°C = -15.2 |Feb_REC_Lo_°C = -43.2
Mar_Lo_°C = -9.8 |Mar_REC_Lo_°C = -34.6
Apr_Lo_°C = -1.6 |Apr_REC_Lo_°C = -25.6
May_Lo_°C = 4.5 |May_REC_Lo_°C = -9.1
Jun_Lo_°C = 9.3 |Jun_REC_Lo_°C = -3.1
Jul_Lo_°C = 11.4 |Jul_REC_Lo_°C = 1.1
Aug_Lo_°C = 9.9 |Aug_REC_Lo_°C = -1.4
Sep_Lo_°C = 5.1 |Sep_REC_Lo_°C = -8.6
Oct_Lo_°C = -0.1 |Oct_REC_Lo_°C = -19.6
Nov_Lo_°C = -6.4 |Nov_REC_Lo_°C = -32.8
Dec_Lo_°C = -12.0 |Dec_REC_Lo_°C = -45.2
Year_Lo_°C = -1.8 |Year_REC_Lo_°C = -47.1Jan_Precip_cm = |Jan_Precip_mm = 32
Feb_Precip_cm = |Feb_Precip_mm = 25
Mar_Precip_cm = |Mar_Precip_mm = 26
Apr_Precip_cm = |Apr_Precip_mm = 35
May_Precip_cm = |May_Precip_mm = 46
Jun_Precip_cm = |Jun_Precip_mm = 65
Jul_Precip_cm = |Jul_Precip_mm = 77
Aug_Precip_cm = |Aug_Precip_mm = 74
Sep_Precip_cm = |Sep_Precip_mm = 55
Oct_Precip_cm = |Oct_Precip_mm = 50
Nov_Precip_cm = |Nov_Precip_mm = 42
Dec_Precip_cm = |Dec_Precip_mm = 42
Year_Precip_cm = |Year_Precip_mm = 569
source = Pogoda.ru.netcite web
url = http://pogoda.ru.net/climate/27037.htm | title = Pogoda.ru.net| accessmonthday = September 8| accessyear = 2007
publisher = | language = Russian]
accessdate = 8.09.2007
accessdate2 = -->ister cities
*flagicon|Hungary
Miskolc ,Hungary
*flagicon|NetherlandsZwolle ,Netherlands References
External links
* [http://www.vologda-city.ru Vologda City Administration] ru icon
* [http://wobla.ru Vologda in Internet] ru icon
* [http://www.cultinfo.ru/arts/foto/brumfield/articles/006.htm Tracing Russia's Past and Present in Vologda]
* [http://spas-priluky.narod.ru/ Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery] ru icon
* [http://www.cultinfo.ru/arts/architecture/vologda/000070/report.htm Detailed information on Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery] ru icon
* [http://portal-vologda.ru Portal of Vologda] ru icon
* [http://gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=7374 view from St. Sophia Cathedral bell tower]
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