Year of foundation of Irkutsk. The foundation of the city of Irkutsk: history, date

Irkutsk is considered not only the main city of Eastern Siberia, but also a museum in which the romanticism of antiquity is miraculously preserved. Here harmoniously intertwined elegance of merchant palaces, classical Russian Empire and solemn baroque. Now it is a dynamically developing city with great potential and a huge scientific and technical base.

Irkutsk: history of foundation

Where did this name come from? The name of this city was given by the Irkut River. Regarding the question: "What year of Irkutsk foundation?" Scientists still have several opinions. Some support the version that this event occurred at the beginning, the rest are sure that in the middle of the XVII century. According to one testimony, the year in which the foundation of Irkutsk occurred was 1652nd, when a Cossack detachment of Ivan Pokhabov arrived in these places and decided to build a winter residence here. It was in an area where two rivers - Angara and Irkut - merged into one. But people here did not stay long, but moved to Baikal in order to impose taxes on all those who had not yet paid to pay taxes.

According to other sources, the date of the foundation of the city of Irkutsk - July 6, 1661. It is considered to be official. Then on the right bank of the Angara River, a jail was founded by another Pohabov - Yakov. The settlement was named Irkutsk. This area was not chosen at all by chance, because here the land was fertile, the water was swarming with fish, and the forests - game. In addition, this place was located at the intersection of the main trade routes between East and West. The settlement was developing rapidly, and already on the 9th year of Irkutsk's foundation through him the first Moscow messenger was going to China. Five years later the Russian ambassador Nikolai Spafary left for the Middle Kingdom.

New status

Up to now, a document has been preserved, compiled on the 23rd year of the foundation of Irkutsk, ie, dated 1684, which described this locality at the end of the 17th century. It says that in the city at that time there was a church, six towers and a sovereign courtyard, where the Irkutsk voevoda lived. In addition, built baths, hotels, huts for single Cossacks, cellars and barns. The towers had loopholes where guns stood, and one of the walls had a so-called powder hut used for storing various weapons and ammunition.

On the 25th year of the foundation of Irkutsk, the latter was given the status of a city. This event occurred in 1686. Then he had his own coat of arms and a seal. Very quickly rumors of a new city flew not only across Siberia, but also throughout Russia. Convenient location and fertile soils have made it the center of the agricultural land, so people from many parts of the country were drawn here. On the 36th year of the foundation of the city of Irkutsk, there were already six hundred families of peasants, who were given mowing and land allotments. According to the old document, these people were given plow, horses, carts, as well as livestock and poultry for their own business from the city treasury. But the basis of the whole economy was bread. They were supplied to the Cossacks, as well as various kinds of businessmen and researchers who were moving into the depths of Siberia in search of new fertile lands.

Practically in the year of the foundation of the city of Irkutsk, the so-called grain department was created under the chancellery, which took into account the deliveries, reception, issue, storage and sale of wheat, rye and oats. To do this, even specially expanded the staff, which included voivods, centurions, secretaries, sub-lieutenants, tenants, etc. It should be noted that the number of townspeople grew significantly after Tsar Peter I began to send here archers who took part in the rebellion against the emperor . Therefore already in the beginning of the XVIII century Irkutsk numbered more than 3400 inhabitants, and this by the standards of those times was a serious figure for the Siberian city.

Further development

By the middle of the 18th century, the famous Moscow tract came here. And about 100 years after the foundation of Irkutsk, there began to hold grandiose fairs every year. These events largely contributed to the rapid development of trade and the city itself, where many factories, breweries and mills began to be built.

Over time, in Irkutsk appeared and its Gostiny Dvor with shops and benches. The project of the trading building was designed by Giacomo Quarenghi, a well-known Italian architect of the 18th century. At the territory of the Gostiny Dvor there were at least two hundred shops, but, unfortunately, it did not survive. Up to the present day, another creation of this master has come - the White House, still standing on the bank of the Angara. It was built with funds allocated by the merchant Sibiryakov. A little later this building became the residence of the Governor-General. Now there is one of the largest book depositories of the country - the Scientific Library at the Irkutsk State University. It consists of many books of the pre-revolutionary era. These include the personal libraries of the Decembrists, as well as a large number of periodicals published in the XIX century.

The development of crafts and the emergence of industry

The foundation of Irkutsk (a photo of what he looked like in those days is presented in the review), and then the appropriation of the status of the city attracted a significant flow of settlers to the banks of the Angara. This led to the rapid development of crafts in these lands and the emergence of industry. Local carpenters built here shishops - small flat-bottomed wooden vessels with a deck and a mast, which were widely used on most large Russian rivers and were used mainly for transportation of various cargoes weighing from 7 to 200 tons.

Merchants and just travelers who visited Irkutsk, all as one noted that the city is famous for its master cabinetmakers, who make beautiful furniture. It is worth noting that their products were in demand even in St. Petersburg. The material for its production was special species of trees that grow only in the Siberian taiga. In addition, the city had good icon painters, whose works were decorated with rich silver salaries. Back in Irkutsk, the rich carriages, as well as the usual light droshky, specially adapted for the Siberian roads, made amazing beauty.

The settlement was growing rapidly. To build new stone buildings needed a brick, so soon there was built a small brick factory. Since the foundation of Irkutsk, the date of which still causes discussion among scientists, occurred at the intersection of important trade routes, it is not surprising that there were a lot of products from not only Mongolia and China, but also from Central Asia and even Europe. Over time, the city turned into the main commodity distribution center of the country with a fairly impressive source of income, largely filling the state treasury.

Thus, we can say with certainty that the foundation of the city of Irkutsk was the rapid development of trade, crafts and industry, which positively affected not only the economy of Eastern Siberia, but the entire Russian state. In addition, various diplomatic meetings were often held here, at which important interstate relations were discussed.

Appearance

The foundation of Irkutsk (we briefly mentioned this above) became a truly significant event for the Russian state. As the economy developed, the city gradually changed. Two churches were built - Krestovozdvizhenskaya and Spasskaya, which can be admired today. They are one of the oldest stone buildings in Eastern Siberia. In addition, there were built a large triumphal gate.

Unfortunately, most of the houses built in the year of the founding of the city of Irkutsk were destroyed by numerous devastating fires, which were constantly arising for various reasons. The first of them burned the fortress buildings together with the wooden Spassky church. It was rebuilt, but already made of stone. The most destructive is the fire that broke out in 1679, when more than 3,000 wooden and about 100 stone houses were destroyed by flames. Then almost all the city center burned out. Only 10 years after the tragedy, streets were created here again. In addition, residents of Irkutsk suffered from earthquakes, since the city is located in a seismically active zone.

Scientific expeditions

It can be said that almost in the first year of the foundation of Irkutsk researchers were extremely interested in these places. Especially many scientific expeditions were equipped during the entire XVIII century, beginning with the reign of Peter the Great and the reign of Empress Catherine II. The object of study was not only Lake Baikal and the rich Siberian region, but also the East as a whole. The ultimate goal of these expeditions was the desire to pave the Russian state road to the Pacific Ocean.

The government financed trips to Mongolia, Yakutia, China, and preparations for them were held in Irkutsk. It was from here that the settling and development of the Amur coast began. Here was located the famous office of the Russian-American Company, which in the XIX century was engaged not only in trade, but also in the development of new lands, beginning from Alaska and ending with the Japanese islands. The way of the first embassy, which went to Beijing, also ran through Irkutsk. Here, the main trade routes leading to China and Mongolia also passed. Almost all wholesale commerce on the lands of Eastern Siberia was in the hands of local merchants.

It was in Irkutsk that the first two expeditions, headed by Vitus Bering , were prepared . He added prestige to the city and the fact that it was organized a base for supplying these trips with equipment and food. In addition, the construction of ships for the sea part of the expedition was entrusted to local craftsmen-shipbuilders.

Place for reference

In the XIX century, Eastern Siberia became the place of serving punishment for politically unreliable citizens of the Russian Empire. So, during this period in Irkutsk, two exiles had one exile. In the city at different times lived Decembrists, Polish rebels and Narodnaya Volya. Each of them had a certain influence on the fate of this region. This is especially true of the Decembrists, who opened schools here for both boys and girls, ahead of the European part of the country.

Irkutsk was lucky to have the authorities allowed to settle in it two families - Trubetskoi and Volkonsky. Their homes have become literally the heart and cultural center of this city. All the Irkutsk youth aspired to go there, since it often organized performances and concerts in which both St. Petersburg and French and Italian visiting singers and musicians took part.

Development of industry and science

Since the middle of the XIX century the city has become the capital of the gold mining industry. From everywhere in Irkutsk began to flow the capitals of large industrialists, traders and even foreign companies. They actively engaged in the development of gold mining areas. Due to this, they significantly increased their capital and became the richest people not only of Siberia, but of all Russia. Their role in the development of the city can not be overestimated. They were engaged in the erection of their own mansions and public buildings - children's shelters, hospitals, various educational institutions. Significant funds were also allocated for the development of science. At the same time, printing and the first newspapers appear in the city.

In 1851, the first scientific institution in Eastern Siberia, the Siberian Branch of the Russian Geographical Society, was opened in Irkutsk, which was later renamed into East Siberian. Many prominent scientists, such as AL Chekanovskii, VI Dybovsky and ID Chersky, studied the Lena River and Lake Baikal in its walls. Here also worked well-known geographer, geologist and researcher of Siberian lands VA Obruchev.

In 1898, during the reign of Emperor Alexander III, through the city paved the Trans-Siberian Railway. The first train arrived in Irkutsk on August 16, and this event was greeted with great joy by its residents, since it was possible to reach Moscow in just 9 days. The laying of the railway contributed to an even more intensive development of industry in this region.

Early 20th century

By this time, Irkutsk has become the most beautiful of all Siberian cities. In it there were already more than three hundred stone buildings, while the streets were clean, wide and well lit. It was during this period that the center of the city began to radically change - large buildings were built, roads were paved with stone and pavements were paved for the first time. In addition, power plants and plumbing began to operate.

In 1918, the first higher educational institution - Irkutsk State University was opened in Eastern Siberia. And at the end of May, a civil war came to these places. The city briefly became the residence of the Supreme Ruler of Russia - Admiral Kolchak, and from December 28, continuous fighting began here. January 5, 1920 Irkutsk was occupied by the Bolsheviks. The power of Kolchak was overthrown, and the Admiral himself was executed. His corpse was thrown into the Ushakovka river. This event is reminiscent of a wooden cross, installed on the site of those events. In the same place where the general was shot, near the Znamensky Monastery, in November 2004 a monument was erected.

Military and post-war years

When the war with fascist Germany began, Irkutsk, despite its huge distance from the front line, played a significant role in strengthening the country's defense capability. Over the years of the war, more than 200 thousand Irkutskians went to fight for their Motherland. Those who remained in the city, selflessly worked, producing aircraft and ammunition, as well as supplying the front with food.

After the war, Irkutsk developed rapidly, gradually assuming the shape of an industrial city. In 1958, they completed the construction of the first large hydroelectric power station in Eastern Siberia. After flooding the reservoir, the level of the Angara River rose by about 30, while Lake Baikal - by 1 meter.

Modernity

Irkutsk is considered a city of students. There are more than 40 universities in which hundreds of doctors of sciences and thousands of candidates of sciences teach in more than 250 specialties. This is where applicants come not only from all over Irkutsk, but also from areas adjacent to it. The local scientific complex is one of the largest in the Russian Federation.

Modern Irkutsk is the economic center of Eastern Siberia. There are more than 70 industrial enterprises here. Machine building, production of reinforced concrete products, building materials, etc. are highly developed. Extremely rich natural, industrial and energy resources, as well as the possibility of buying municipal municipal property and long-term lease of land - all these factors created a very favorable environment for attracting investors.

The historical, cultural and scientific traditions that have developed over several centuries of Irkutsk's existence and its openness have made the city a very important and attractive place for Russia, as well as a center that brought together the vast territory of the Angara region.