The city of Kaluga is the regional center and is located 190 kilometers southwest of Moscow. There are many historical sights preserved in the city center, but all of them date no earlier than the middle of the 18th century. This is due to the most of the buildings in Kaluga were wooden. Under Catherine II, they were demolished and the city center began to be built up with stone buildings.
Kaluga is home to Russia`s largest Museum of the History of Cosmonautics. It was founded on June 13, 1961, 2 months after Yuri Gagarin`s first space flight. Sergey Korolev and Yuri Gagarin took part in the foundation of the museum. The choice of Kaluga for the construction of this museum is due to the outstanding scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky lived and worked here. His work on aerodynamics formed the basis of the rocket science. Engineer Sergey Korolev put his theories into practice and launched a man into space. The Tsiolkovsky Memorial House-Museum, where he lived for 30 years, is located near the Cosmonautics Museum.
The surroundings of Kaluga are of no less interest. The territory along the Ugra and Oka Rivers is part of the protected area of the Ugra National Park. The most famous place of the national park is the Nikola-Lenivets Art Park. On the territory of 140 hectares, among the picturesque landscapes of the Ugra River, you can see dozens of art objects built in fields and in the forest. Every year, the Arkhstanding festival takes place in the Nikola-Lenivets Art Park. In the Kaluga region there are many monasteries and the Linen Factory estate, where the Alexander Pushkin Museum was created.
The history of Kaluga
Kaluga was first mentioned in the chronicle in 1371. This is the official date of the foundation of the city. However, excavations of old settlements prove that Kaluga was founded earlier. It is impossible to establish the exact date, since the city was located on the border between the possessions of Russians, Lithuanians and nomadic tribes. Its wooden fortifications were often destroyed.
In the 14th-16th century, the city was in turn owned by the Moscow Principality and the Lithuanian Principality. In 1480, 20 kilometers northwest of Kaluga, one of the most important events in the history of Russia took place: Standing on the Ugra River. Throughout October 1480, the troops of Prince Ivan III of Moscow and Khan Akhmat of the Horde stood on different banks of the Ugra River. The khan did not dare to give battle and went back to the Golden Horde.
Thus ended the 250-year-old vassalage of Russia from the khans of the Golden Horde. In Russian history, this period is called the Mongol-Tatar yoke. After these events, St. Tikhon of Kaluga founded the monastery of St. Tikhon`s Deserts in 1492, 3 km from the Ugra River. Directly on the site of the Standing on the Ugra River, on the initiative of the abbot of the monastery, the Vladimir Skete was built. It has a Museum and a Diorama "The Great Standing on the Ugra River".
There were several settlements in Kaluga, but the Kaluga Kremlin on the high bank of the Oka River and the Berezuisky ravine was built in 1512. He was often attacked by nomads. After the annexation of Ukraine to Russia during the Pereyaslav Rada in 1654, the defensive significance of the Kaluga Fortress disappeared. The wooden walls of the Kaluga Kremlin were preserved until the fire of 1700, after they were dismantled.
In 1776 Kaluga became the capital of a separate province. The first governor Krechetnikov decided to build a modern city in a classical style with a convenient layout on the site of wastelands left over from wooden buildings of Kaluga. The general plan of the city was prepared by architect Peter Nikitin.
Kaluga was once divided into two parts. The Kaluga Kremlin was located on the high bank of the Oka River and the Berezuisky ravine. The 160-meter Berezuisky ravine divided the city into two parts: the Historical center and the Far End. The ravine had to be driven around the end, so the area of the city behind the ravine was called "The Far End". It was a poor area where artisans settled. The Cathedral of St. George in the Far End has been preserved in this area. In 1785, a Stone Bridge was built over the Berezuisky ravine, which connected the two parts of the city.
Sights of Kaluga
The most interesting sights are located on the high bank of the Oka River. There is a Central Park on the site of the Kaluga Kremlin. It is surrounded by buildings of Public Authorities. They were built in the period from 1780 to 1809. Now these buildings are occupied by a research institute and the Kaluga Diocese. Above Pushkin Street, the Eastern Gates of Public Authorities are preserved. This is a large arch, which is a historical landmark of Kaluga.
In 1786, the Trinity Cathedral was founded, which became the main cathedral of Kaluga. At the end of the 18th century, a Shopping Mall was built on the site of the chaotic development of merchant shops on the Old Torg Square. Next to it are located the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin and the Museum of Fine Arts of Kaluga. A beautiful Zolotarev mansion was built near the Stone Bridge in the early 19th century. Now it houses the Kaluga Museum of Local Lore.
There are many interesting sights in the vicinity of Kaluga. There are several famous monasteries here: Optina Deserts, Shamordinsky Monastery, St. Tikhon`s Deserts and Paphnutiev Borovsky Monastery. Near Obninsk there is the largest in Russia Ethnographic Park Etnomir. Its territory covers 140 hectares. There are many museums and hotels there, so it`s better to go to the Ethnomir for 2 days.
