The city of Vologda is of great interest for sightseeing tourism. The Vologda Kremlin and St. Sophia Cathedral, built by order of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible, have been preserved here. There are interesting museums in the Kremlin where you can see ancient icons. In the center of Vologda, the historical buildings of wooden houses with carved palisades have been preserved, which are vivid examples of ancient Russian wooden architecture.
The historical sights of Vologda in Soviet times were transferred to the museum of local lore, so they have survived to this day. Frescoes of the 17th century have been preserved in St. Sophia Cathedral, including the largest in Russia fresco of the Last Judgment on the western wall.
There are three monasteries in the vicinity of Vologda that are of great value on a nationwide scale. On the northern outskirts of the city (8 km from the Kremlin) is the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery, the oldest monastery in the Russian north. The other two monasteries are much further away, but you definitely need to plan an excursion to them.
The Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery is located 130 kilometers north of Vologda. It is the largest monastery in Russia with the most powerful system of fortified walls and towers. Ferapontov Monastery is located 20 km from it. This monastery is much smaller in area, but in 1502 the monastery`s Nativity Cathedral was painted by Dionysius, one of the most famous Russian icon painters. Thanks to this, the Ferapontov Monastery is included in the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Lists.
History of Vologda
The city of Vologda on the Vologda River of the same name was founded in the 12th century. The official date of foundation is 1147, but perhaps the city was founded later. For a long time Vologda remained on the outskirts of the Novgorod Principality and was mainly used by local merchants as a center for harvesting valuable fur in the northern forests.
With the development of trade, the importance of Vologda increased. Vologda is located 450 kilometers northeast of Moscow and 200 kilometers from Yaroslavl. In the Middle Ages, goods were transported by navigable rivers, and the location of the city on the river allowed Vologda to become an important transit center on the Severodvinsk trade route. Along this route, Russian goods were sent to Europe through the seaport of Arkhangelsk. The same importance of Vologda remained in trade with the northern Siberian territories.
Vologda reached its peak in the time of Ivan the Terrible, who in 1565 made it the capital of his Oprichnina State. He left Moscow and decided to make Vologda the center of Russia. The construction of the Vologda Stone Kremlin began here, and St. Sophia Cathedral was laid in 1568. The cathedral began to be built on the model of the main Russian temple: the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.
In 1571 Ivan the Terrible stopped the policy of the Oprichnina and left Vologda forever. From that moment on, the political importance of the city dropped sharply, but the commercial importance constantly grew until the foundation of St. Petersburg by Peter the Great.
Tsar Peter I visited Vologda five times. He made the city a shipbuilding center. The house of the Dutch merchant Goytman, where Peter the Great stayed during his visits, has been preserved in Vologda. In 1872, the Vologda city authorities bought this house and created there the Peter I House-Museum.
After the end of the Northern War in 1721, Vologda`s importance dropped sharply. The Baltic Sea has become safe for merchant ships, and this has completely changed the geography of Russia`s trade with Europe. Trade flows went through the Baltic Sea. Vologda turned out to be on the very outskirts of the economic and commercial activities of the state, as in the days of the Novgorod Republic.
However, in 1871 a significant event took place in Vologda: the opening of a butter production plant. Its recipe was so good that Vologda butter gained national fame and was even exported.
Vologda attractions
The main attractions of Vologda are concentrated near the Vologda Kremlin. There are several interesting museums inside the Kremlin. St. Sophia Cathedral, built by Ivan the Terrible, is located on the Vologda River Embankment. There you can see a wonderful fresco painting of the 17th century.
On one side of the Kremlin Square is the Southern Wall of the Vologda Kremlin and the Resurrection Cathedral. Opposite it is the building of the Vologda Lace Museum. Be sure to take a walk along the Vologda River embankment. Here you will see the Alexander Nevsky Church and K.Batyushkov Square. Along the bank of the Vologda River stretches Sobornaya Gorka Garden, along which you can walk to the Kremlin Park. Several beautiful churches have been preserved on the opposite bank of the river.
On the northern bank of the Vologda River, many wooden houses with carved palisades have been preserved. The architecture of Vologda is somewhat similar to the Wooden architecture of Tomsk, as well as the Wooden architecture of Novosibirsk. The old wooden houses have preserved beautiful carved platbands, as well as wooden carved cornices on the roofs.
