Forty-two-meter "Alyosha", sternly looking at the bay near the coast of the Barents Sea, snow in June and aurora borealis - this is all Murmansk.
It is rightly called the largest city beyond the Arctic Circle. Among his titles is the title of Hero City. The port is not deprived of a peculiar attraction. In addition, many tourists note the special flavor and friendliness of the locals.
Forward-looking plans and the first stone
The history of Murmansk begins with plans to build a city beyond the Arctic Circle in the 70s of the 19th century. But exploration of these places began only in 1912, after almost forty years. The impetus for the speedy development of the bay was the First World War. In an effort to get access to the Arctic Ocean through the only non-freezing strait at that time, Russia in 1915 identified a site for building a seaport on the right bank of the Kola Bay of the Barents Sea. Its task was to ensure the unhindered delivery of military supplies of the Entente during the blockade of the B altic and Black Seaexits.
And yet, the date of foundation of the port city is documented as October 4, 1916, so there is no dispute about how old Murmansk is. It was on this day that a solemn ceremony was held on the hill, the first stone was laid in the foundation of the church of Nikolai Marlinsky. This is how Murmansk was founded. At this place is now the Palace of Culture and Technology of the Kirov estate. True, the name was somewhat different. The last city founded under the tsar was called Romanov-on-Murman. Only half a year has passed since the communists took power and, according to the history of Murmansk, named it in their own way.
Revolution
1917 could not pass painlessly for the initially military-strategic port city. After the victory of the uprising, the Bolsheviks made Petrograd and Murmansk centers of temporary revolutionary committees. But in March 1918, the intervention of the White Guard troops began from the Entente ships anchored in the Kola Bay. In 1919, the power in the city was established in the hands of the White Guards, under the recognized supreme authority of Admiral Kolchak. After the forced evacuation of the Entente troops, the city soon again passed into the hands of the revolutionaries. On February 21, 1920, the Bolsheviks organized an uprising that established a new government in the city.
Twenties
The history of Murmansk in the first half of the 20s of the last century cannot be described in bright colors. Only about two thousand people lived here. The city was in decline. The fishing industry did not develop, but allindustry was represented by small handicraft artels. In those years, the city got the nickname "Red Village", as the chaotically scattered caravans adapted for housing were red. No more than three streets of one-story houses: workers' barracks, a chaotic pile of primitive houses, like a Brazilian favela, only covered with snow. Some were living in temporary dwellings abandoned by the invaders, which looked like corrugated iron boxes covered with a semicircular roof, called "suitcases", which were essentially locomotive wagons adapted for housing.
The city received a rapid impetus in development in the second half of the 1920s. The proletarian government needed to improve a large port through which transit would be made, bypassing the need to negotiate with neighboring countries.
Thirties
Already in 1933, Murmansk became the base for the supply and repair of ships of the Northern Fleet. The construction of the Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Combine was provided through it. The purpose of the port was not limited only to military-strategic purposes. Istria of Murmansk is inextricably linked with fishing. The increase in production was what the Soviets were worried about. A port was created on the site of the former defense enterprise for fish processing and ship repair. Subsequently, it developed rapidly and in a couple of years supplied the regions of the USSR with marine life annually by two hundred thousand tons.
During the construction of the city in the early days, wooden sidewalks were laid, and the streets were overgrown with one- and two-story log cabins. The first brick high-rise building appeared in 1927, which still stands today. The first regular city bus began to run in 1934, running from the northern part to the southern. And in the same year, the Polar Arrow express train was launched to Leningrad. The first paved street was also named Leningradskaya, on which asph alt appeared in 1939. Before the war, Murmansk could boast of several dozen multi-storey brick houses and a population of one hundred and forty thousand Murmansk residents. From the twenties until the war itself, the city changed several statuses, in view of changes in the state administrative-territorial division: the center of the province, district as part of the Leningrad Region and since 1938 became the center of the region of the same name.
Murmansk in the Great Patriotic War
During the war, Murmansk was used for its original purpose - Lend-Lease cargo was shipped through the port for military supplies to the Soviets and the army. Hitler sent a hundred and fifty thousandth army to the polar region and issued a directive to capture Murmansk. He expected that the city would be taken within three days. The first general offensive of the German troops was carried out in July. The city managed to repel it. The second, and also futile, general offensive was carried out in September. Then the command of the Bundesarmy attacked the city from the air, making up to eighteen raids a day. It is second only to Stalingrad in terms of the level of destruction inflicted. The most difficult was June 18, 1942. The city was ironed with high-explosive bombs and wooden buildings burned out for entire blocks from the center to the northern outskirts. Murmansk was liberated in 1944.
After the Victory
After the liberation, the landscape of the city was in ruins. The port buildings and only three city buildings miraculously survived.
In the late autumn of 1945, Murmansk was included in the list of fifteen priority cities for restoration, like Leningrad and Moscow. The port city was allocated one hundred million rubles from the state treasury for development.
In the early 50s, the city had already been restored:
- berths;
- enterprises;
- infrastructure;
- even a television complex.
Soon the volume of buildings grew to pre-war levels. The house-building plant that started working began to produce panel boxes that were new for that time, from which standard houses appeared in the city. In the 70s, there was a peak in the expansion of the city's territories, which lasted until the early 80s of the last century.
Modern city
With the collapse of the USSR, in 1991, a massive outflow of the young population began. Today Murmansk is going through hard times. In 2002, the population decreased by one hundred and fifty thousand people. The population is only three hundred and seven thousand inhabitants, according to the 2010 census.
Monuments of the history of Murmansk
Like any hero city, and Murmansk was awarded this title in 1985, there are historical monuments here. The most famous is in Murmansk - a monument to Alyosha. According to the passport, the monument is called the Memorial"Defenders…" From the beginning, it was planned to put it in the center of Murmansk, near Five Corners Square, but this idea was abandoned in favor of installing Alyosha on Cape Verde. The hill raises the memorial even more above the city. The stone was laid for its installation in 1969. The official opening was timed to the 30th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazi invaders of the Arctic - October 19, 1974. Its height is forty-two meters. Why the memorial was called the monument to Alyosha in Murmansk, the townspeople explain with a special, warm attitude. And most likely, this was done in honor of a song popular in the Soviet years, which sings of the Bulgarian monument. It is sure to be visited by wedding processions of local newlyweds.
There are more than thirty historical monuments in Murmansk. But if a visitor wants to get acquainted with history without wandering around the city, it is enough to go to the old lighthouse, which no longer has a signal function, but has been given over to the local history museum.
Symbols of the city
Like most cities in the Russian Federation, Murmansk has its own symbolism. The main symbol of Murmansk approved on November 25, 2004 is a rectangular shield with rounded bottom corners. The field is divided into two halves, in a ratio of eight to nine. In the upper azure field is a pennant with multiple vertical stripes, which mean the northern lights. Below it is a golden vessel. In the lower yellow sector is an image of a fish - a symbol of the we alth of the sea that feeds the city. The symbol of Murmansk was first approved in 1968. He differed frommodern by the presence of an inscription in Russian "Murmansk". What about the flag?
Murmansk does not have its own flag at the official level. For festivals and city holidays, an unofficial blue and white banner is often flown with the city's coat of arms in the center. But there is still no decision of the authorities to recognize it as an official symbol. The flag of Murmansk is sometimes mistakenly called the symbol of the region. Perhaps the issue with the banner will be resolved soon.
