MASTER NOVGOROD THE GREAT
We
are leaving St.Petersburg for Novgorod the Great. On our way to
Novgorod we will be passing the fabulous satellite towns of
St.Petersburg - former main summer residences of all the Russian
Emperors - Peterhof (Petrodvorets), Gatchina, Pavlovsk, Tsarskoye
Selo. All these unique samples of the palace-and-park architecture
managed to preserve the primordial magnificence and luxury up to
nowadays.
If you come to Peterhof you’ll be astonished by the unique complex
of fountains, by the Summer Palace of Peter the Great called the
"Russian Versailles" and by the large collection of rare pieces of
art.
In the Tsarskoye Selo (now it is Pushkin town) there is a famous
Lyceum, the cradle of the large number of Russian outstanding
persons such as the great Russian poet and writer Aleksander
Pushkin. The compositional centre of the Tsarskoselsky ensemble is
the Palace of Catherine II with the famous Amber room, great
stone-cuttering chef-d’oeuvre - the Prussian King Frederick-William
I presented it to the Russian Emperor Peter the Great in 1716.
Unfortunately, the Amber room was stolen during the second World War
and only some separate fragments of it have been found.
Here is Novgorod the Great at last - the motherland of the oldest
Russian democracy. This city definitely deserves its name - Master
Novgorod the Great. In ancient Novgorod all most serious and
complicated issues were discussed by all the citizens, who made the
final decision, at the general meeting called the "Vetche". The
Prince’s power in Novgorod was very shaky unlike other Russian towns
and lands, where the authority of Prince was indisputable. In
Novgorod the Prince didn’t rule but merely served the citizens as a
judge and a commander. If he was not good enough for the city he was
dismissed and another one took his place by the will of the
citizens. According to the tradition it was the citizens of Novgorod
who asked the three Varangian dukes - Ryurik and his brothers,
Sineus and Truvor - to reign over Russia. They founded the dynasty
of the Russian Tsars that preceded the House of Romanov.
Novgorod is known since 750, its lands stretching from the Gulf of
Finland to the Urals and the Middle Volga. The independent republic
of Novgorod was the largest state in Europe from 12th to 15th
century. This gorgeous city consolidated and included in the
Principality of Novgorod such powerful town fortresses as Ladoga,
Velikiye Luki, Torjok and Staraya Russa.
The centre of Novgorod was situated on the left bank of the Volkhov
river, and on the right bank of it the city marketplace and the
Prince’s Court - former residence of Princes of Novgorod - were
located. The most famous historical and architectural memorials in
Novgorod are the Kremlin and the Sofia Cathedral.
Novgorod is situated near the major trade-way of medieval Eastern
Europe - the water-way "from Varangians to Greeks", which tied the
North of Russia with its South and Scandinavia with Byzantia. This
road was also connected with the Voljsky way that led to the Caspian
Sea.
Novgorod the Great is considered a unique historical and
archaelogical memorial also because it is here that the famous birch
bark documents - the samples of the earliest Russian written
language - were discovered. Over 750 documents have been discovered
in Novgorod, and being the biggest collection in Russia it testifies
the extent of literacy among various strata of Russian society.
In 1992 Novgorod was added to the UNESCO World Legacy List for its
attitude to the historical and cultural memorials.
Photo: Rodion Vlassov
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