Arkhangelsk

To begin with I’d like to say a few words about history of Arkhangelsk. In 1584, Ivan IV ordered the founding of New Kholmogory (which would later be renamed after the nearby Archangel Michael Monastery).

In 16 century, establishing of trade between Russia and West European states, as we all know, gave rise to development of Arkhangelsk. Local inhabitants, called Pomors, were the first to explore trade routes to Northern Siberia as far as the trans-Urals city of Mangazeya and beyond. In 1693, Peter I ordered the creation of a state shipyard in Arkhangelsk.

Arkhangelsk Region (oblast) is a federal subject of Russian Federation, part of North-West Federal District. The administrative center and capital city is Arkhangelsk. The region includes large Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya islands. It embraces a vast area of 589,900 sq. km. In terms of territory the Arkhangelsk Region is one of the largest in Russia. Arkhangelsk Region shares land borders with the Komi Republic, Karelian Republic, Kirov Region, Vologda Region, and Tyumen Region. Arkhangelsk oblast has the population of about 1,300,000 (2010).

Administratively, the Arkhangelsk Region comprises 19 districts, 7 towns, 24 urban and 179 rural areas. It also incorporates the Nenets Autonomous Area, and the Solovetski Archipelago. Solovetski Islands located in the White Sea are a World Heritage Site now. The historical centers of Arkhangelsk oblast of Russia are Kargopol, Kholmogory and Solvychegodsk. There are a number of Russian Orthodox monasteries, including the Antoniev Siysky Monastery there. Together with the Vologda and Murmansk Regions, the Komi and Karelian Republics, the Arkhangelsk Region makes up the area known as Northern European Russia which occupies the territory of 1.48 million square km. (8.8% of the whole territory of the Russian Federation). 6 million people live here.

Severodvinsk city located in Arkhangelsk oblast is one of the Russian Navy bases (mostly nuclear submarines). Russian spaceport Plesetsk is situated in Arkhangelsk oblast.

The seas of the Arctic Ocean, rich in biological resources, wash the Region in the North. Four major rivers (Severnaya Dvina, the Pechora, the Onega and the Mezen), all flow into these seas. Broad and deep, Severnaya Dvina creates favorable conditions for navigation and is the main water route. It is the largest river of the European Russian North, though it is not the longest one. The length of Severnaya Dvina is 744 km, while that of the Pechora is 1,809 km.

Seas, rivers, lakes, tundra and taiga are inhabited by various kinds of fish (cod, plaice, herring, salmon, etc.), birds (hazel-hen, wood-grouse, ptarmigan) and animals (seal, deer, elk, polar fox, hare, wolf, bear, etc). Fish, game and sea animals are priceless natural wealth that brought the first settlers to the Northern land centuries ago.

The Arkhangelsk Region is rich not only in natural but in mineral resources too. Commercial deposits of natural gas and oilfields have been discovered in the Nenets tundra, coal-fields, and massive reserves of peat. Arkhangelsk diamonds are better in quality than Australian and equal to South-African ones. There are numerous deposits of building materials, big reserves of gypsum, semiprecious stones, manganese, various abrasives, ceramic raw materials, and minerals.

Over many years Arkhangelsk has accumulated a unique experience of fruitful cooperation with Russian and foreign partners form the Barents Region, European Union, and the USA. Coastal location of the Arkhangelsk region has made it closer to the industrially developed countries. Arkhangelsk has always been international and Russia’s first «window to Europe». Before the Revolution hundreds of foreigners lived there. Consulates-general of six European countries functionated in Arkhangelsk. I think it is to be noted that the capital of the Pomor Land opened Honorary Consulate of Kingdom of Norway in 2010. This is the first Norwegian Honorary Consulate in Russia.

Archangelsk is home to various educational institutions: First of all the Northern Arctic Federal University named after M.V. Lomonosov (founded in 2011) is to be mentioned. NArFU mission is to be a centre to train high qualified specialists for Arkhangelsk and Murmansk Regions, Nenets Autonomous Area and other regions bordering on RF continental Arctic shelf. The shelf has long been a priority for the Russian oil and gas industry. The Shtokman gas condensate field development project is of strategic importance for Russia. The field will become a resource base for supplies of the Russian gas, both pipe gas and LNG, to the Atlantic markets.

I love Arkhangelsk which is full of history. But I think the air is not so clean. It’s quite polluted and I really do miss the fresh country air.

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