Kineshma

Kineshma. View from the Volga

Kineshma (Russian: Кинешма) is the second largest town in Ivanovo Oblast, Russia, which sprawls for 15 kilometers (9.3 mi) along the Volga River. Population: 88,113 (2010 Census preliminary results); 95,233 (2002 Census); 105,037 (1989 Census).

History

Kineshma before 1917

Kineshma was first noticed as a posad in 1429. In 1504, Ivan III gave it to Prince Feodor Belsky, who escaped to Moscow from Lithuania and married Ivan's niece. Later on, Ivan the Terrible gave Kineshma to Ivan Petrovich Shuisky, but after the latter's death it was returned to the tsar in 1587. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Kineshma was a major fishing centre, which supplied sturgeons for the tsar's table. In 1608, it was twice ravaged by the Poles. Throughout its history, Kineshma belonged to different Russian regions, including Arkhangelsk province, Yaroslavl province, and Kostroma guberniya. Since the 18th century, the town's main industry has been textile manufacturing. Like all the textile centres in Russia, the town's prosperity declined after the perestroika.

Kineshma's principal landmark is the Trinity Cathedral, built in 1838–1845 to a typical Neoclassical design. There are also several 18th-century churches in the town. The neighbourhoods of Kineshma contain estates and museums of Alexander Ostrovsky, Alexander Borodin, and Fyodor Bredikhin.

In 2010, Kineshma was granted status of a town of historical significance.

Religion

Currently there are eleven churches, nine of which are active, and three chapels:

• Troitsko-Uspensky_Sobor (Troitski church and Uspensky church);
• Vozneseniya Gospodnya church and Zlatoustovski church;.
• Uspeniya Presvyatoi Bogorodici church and Rogdestva Hristova church/
• Spaso-Preobragenskaya church;
• Blagoveshenskaya church;
• St.Aleksander Nevski church;
• Sergi Radonegski church;
• Sreteniya Gospodnya church;
• Krestovozdvigenskaya chapel, in memory of the defenders of the city against the Polish-Lithuanian invaders in 1609;
• Chapel on the site of the battle with the Polish invaders in 1609;
• St.Vasili Kineshemski chapel.

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  Krestovozdvigenskaya chapel

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  Troitsko-Uspensky_Sobor. View from the Volga

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  Blagoveshenskaya church

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  Sreteniya Gospodnya church

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  Uspeniya Presvyatoi Bogorodici church

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  Vozneseniya Gospodnya church

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  St.Vasili Kineshemski chapel

Notable people

• Alexandr Borodin - composer and chemist
• Fyodor Bredikhin - astronomer
• Sergey Klyugin - sportsman-high jumper. Champion of Summer Olympic games (Sydney, Australia, 2000)
• Alexandr Ostrovsky - writer
• Andrei Semenov - mixed martial artist

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Russia

Twin towns and sister cities

Kineshma is twinned with:

• Baranovichi, Belarus
• Gudauta, Abkhazia
• Vantaa, Finland

See also

• Kineshemsky Bridge

External links

• City ​​Newspaper "168 chasov"
• City Web Portal