- Galich, Russia
Galich ( _ru. Га́лич) is a town in
Kostroma Oblast ,Russia , situated on the southern bank ofLake Galichskoye . It is also a minor railroad node of theTrans-Siberian railway . Population: ru-census|p02=19151|p89=21652History
The town was first chronicled in 1234 as "Grad Mersky" (i.e., the Town of the
Merya ). It gradually developed into one of the greatestsalt -mining centres of Eastern Europe, eclipsing the Southern town ofHalych , from which it takes its name. In the 13th century, the town was ruled by a younger brother ofAlexander Nevsky and remained in his line until 1363, when the Muscovites seized the principality and ousted the ruling family toNovgorod .The 15th and 16th centuries are justly considered the golden age of Galich. At that time the town controlled most of the Russian
trade in salt andfur s.Dmitry Shemyaka and other local princes pressed their claims to the Muscovite crown, and three of them actually took possession of the Kremlin in the course of the Great Feudal War.The early medieval earthen ramparts were further fortified in the early 15th and 16th centuries and have since been known as "Shemyaka Hills". The Poles burnt it to the ground in 1612, Peter the Great had a wooden
kremlin demolished, and the town further declined with the transfer of Russian foreign trade fromArkhangelsk to St. Petersburg.Economy
The Galich Mobile Crane Plant ( _ru. ОАО "Галичский автокрановый завод") manufactures some 20% of Russia's entire mobile crane production.
City's industries also manufacture steel barrels, shoes, and clothing. There is a timber mill in town as well.
Culture
Historic monuments of Galich include various buildings from the imperial period of Russian history. Particularly noteworthy is the Paisiev Monastery, founded in the early 14th century and featuring a 16th-century five-domed
cathedral and a three-domed church from 1642.The
patron saint s of Galich areVenerable Jacob of Galich , VenerableJacob of Zhelezny Borok (Yakov Zheleznoborovsky), VenerableMacarius of Unzha , VenerablePaisius of Galich ,
St. Philip the Metropolitan of Moscow,VenerableGregory of Vologda , VenerableCyril of Novo-Ozero ,
St. Jonah Metropolitan of Moscow, VenerableAbraham of Gorodets , HolyMartyr Peter of Rodniki , Holy Martyr Alexander (Alexander Ivanovich Zarnitsyn ).Since 2004, Galich hosts the annual short
film festival "Russia's Family" ( _ru. Семья России, Semya Rossii), whose stated goals are "to aid spiritual and moral healing of Russian society and to promote traditionalfamily values ".Infrastructure
*350 metres tall guyed mast for FM-/TV-broadcasting
References
External links
* [http://www.admgalich.ru Official website of Galich] ru icon
* [http://www.galich44.ru Unofficial website of Galich] ru icon
* [http://www.galich.com Galich city portal] ru icon
* [http://www.festival.galich.com "Semya Rossii" Film Festival] ru icon
* [http://www.galichanin.ru Galich Mobile Crane Plant] ru icon
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