The Capital of Ukraine

Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine. The city lies in north-central Ukraine on the Dnieper River in a rich agricultural and industrial region.

The central area of Kyiv is on a high cliff along the western bank of the Dnieper. There are medieval buildings and modern structures standing side by side. Industrial districts and rows of modern apartment blocks extend in all directions from the centre of the city.

As one takes a bus ride through Kreshchatyk or strolls in the shade of trees it is difficult to believe that age ago this was the sight of a deep valley covered with primeval forests and numerous ravins. Actually, it was the valley called Kreshchataya, which later became Kreshchatyk, the main street of the capital. In 1037 St. Sophia Cathedral, an outstanding monument of ancient Rus and world culture, was built on the site of the battle against the Pechenigs, in which the Kyiv warriors were victorious. It was founded during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise. Leaving St. Sophia Cathedral through the gateway one comes out into Sophiyivska Square. It is bordered to the right by a strip of trees and shrubs while in the centre of the square there is the monument to Bohdan Khmelnytskyi, the 17^th century outstanding Ukrainian statesman and military leader. The monument to Bohdan Khmelnytskyi was built by sculptor Myhailo Mikeshyn.

Landmarks of Kyiv include St. Sophia’s Cathedral and the Golden Gates of Yaroslav the Wise, both built in the 1000s. The Monastery of the Caves, which has the network of catacombs, also dates from medieval times. The Mariyinskyi Palace and the Church of St. Andrew were built during the 1700s. There are many institutions of higher learning, schools, colleges, the National Academy of Sciences, the Taras Shevchenko National University, etc.

Kyiv is a major manufacturing and transportation centre. Its factories produce aircrafts, cameras, chemicals, clothing, precision tools, watches and other products. The city is a rail junction and a river port.

Slavic people established a settlement in Kyiv; perhaps as early as the AD 600s Kyiv prospered as a traditional centre. By the 1100s Kyiv was one of European’s greatest centers of commerce and culture. Mongol invaders destroyed most of the city in 1240. Kyiv was rebuilt in the 1300s.

As Kyiv’s history is full of dramatic events and heroic deeds, there are many other places of interest such as the monument to Volodymyr, Kyiv-Pecherskyi Monastery, Askold’s grave and others.

In 1991 Kyiv became the capital of an independent state for the first time.

Ukraine

Ukraine is the country of great antiquity and womb of Slavonic nationhood. The history of Ukraine began in the 7^th century BC. In the 9^th-10^th centuries AD it unified the surrounding territories and thereby the Slavonic peoples. That is why the Ukrainian capital is nowadays called “Mother of Russian Cities”.

In 988, the Kievan Rus leader Volodymyr accepted Christianity from Constantinople and forced its expansion among the Slavonic nations. The Sophia Cathedral in Kiev (the 11th century) is the oldest Christian church of the eastern Slavs.

Near the small town of Kanev the monument to the Ukrainian national genius Taras Shevchenko is situated. The museum, where books, drawings and manuscripts of Shevchenko are kept, is situated near village not far from Kanev. Even the house where he was born is preserved.

It is breathtaking to wander about the streets of old town, to feel the breath of history. For example, one may go to Zaporizhzhya, to the island of Khortitsa, where the Ukrainian cossacks’ organization was born. One can go to Odessa and walk along the boulevards, where Pushkin walked a long time ago, and touch the trees, which Pushkin touched. It is also possible to visit the last house of Chekhov, now the museum in Yalta, where he lived, where he wrote his last works, and where he died. It is possible to go through Gogol places in Poltava region, see Dickanika, Sorochintsy.

The Crimea is the pearl of Ukraine. Every year from 5 up to 6 million tourists come to this oasis on the Black Sea. A unique area where prehistoric constructions are hidden among palaces of ancient and contemporary nobles.

There is a lot to see in Ukraine and to be proud of it. I’m glad to live in such a country.

Milestones of Ukraine's History

Human beings have lived in the region of Ukraine for about 300,000 years. One of the earliest cultures was that of the Trypillians, who lived in southwestern Ukraine from about 4000 to 200 BC. The Trypillians grew crops for a living, decorated pottery, and made drills for boring holes in wood and stone.

By about 1500 BC, nomadic herds occupied the region. They included a warlike, horse-riding people called the Cimmerians. The Scythians, people from central Asia, conquered the Cimmerians about 700 BC. Between 700 and 600 BC, Greeks started to set up colonies on the northern coast of the Black Sea. But the Scythians controlled most of the region until about 200 BC, when they fell to a group called the Sarmatians. The region was invaded by Germanic tribes from the west in AD 270 and by the Huns, Asian people, in 375.

Kyivan Rus. During the AD. 800s, a Slavic civilization called Rus grew up in Kyiv and in other points along river routes between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. Kyiv became the first of the East Slavic states and was known as Kyivan Rus. Scandinavian merchant-warriors called Varangians (also known as Vikings) played a part in organizing the East Slavic tribes into Kyivan Rus. Oleg, a Varangian, became its first ruler in 882. During the 900s, other states recognized Kyiv’s leadership. Vladimir I, the ruler of the Russian city Novgorod, conquered Kyivan Rus in 980. In 1240, Mongol tribes known as Tatars conquered the region.

Halych-Volyn Rus.After the fall of Kyivan Rus the principalities of Halych and Volodymyr-Volynsky grew and prospered in Western Ukraine. In 1199, they were united by Prince Roman Mstyslavovych, a gifted military leader. Thus, the ethnically homogenous Halych-Volyn Principality was created. Prince Roman curbed the arbitrary rule of the local secular and church feudals, and did his best to establish good order in his domain.

Prince Daniel (Danylo) of Halych (1228-1264) continued his father’s work, further strengthening his state. He defended his independence against the Hungarians, Teutonic knights, and Tatars. He was a subtle and cautious diplomat in dealing with Western Europe and the Golden Horde, and he promoted culture and developed the new cities of Lviv and Kholm.

After the death of the last Prince, Yuri II (1340) this state also fell apart. Polish King Casimir seized Lviv, the capital of Halychyna. In 1387, Halychyna was incorporated into the Polish Kingdom. In the mid-fourteenth century the Eastern Ukrainian territories fell to Lithuania (Kyiv followed suit in 1362).

With the Union of Lublin (1569) the Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania were joined in a single Commonwealth in which Poland was dominant and Lithuania's Ukrainian territories were transferred to Poland. The long period of struggle of the Ukrainian people for their national and social liberation began.

Date: 2016-01-03; view: 1707