Balashikha
Encyclopedia
Balashikha is a city in Moscow Oblast
, Russia, located on the Pekhorka River
1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) east of Moscow. It is known for its unique river and waterway system. The Pekhorka River system covers an area of 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) from north to south and 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) from east to west, and many small lakes and ponds were created by damming to provide water power for the cotton mills in the 19th century. Population: 92,400 (1970).
and can be translated as an inn, i.e, a place of temporary respite for travelers. Another account tells of a wealthy Tatar
, named Balash, a descendant of Genghis Khan
of the Golden Horde
who had his residence on this site. Most usual explanation is that it derived from word balakh, which means caltha palustris
plant. Another version: in finno-ugric
languages Bala-shika means land of celebrations, land of laughter and fun. Before Slavs in this area lived Finno-Ugric peoples.
The city stands on the famous Vladimir Highway, which led out of Moscow to the east. This was the route along which convicted criminals were marched to forced labor camps in Siberia
. The road was renamed Gorky Highway in the Soviet era. The failure of the Decembrist Revolt
against Tsar Nicholas I led to the execution of its ringleaders and the exile of many nobles to Siberia. Soviet-era schoolchildren were told that the prisoners were marched in chains along this road followed by their wives. In truth, the Decembrist prisoners were sent from St. Petersburg
, then the capital of Russia, through Yaroslavl, and not through Moscow and Balashikha, and the story was invented as part of celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the event in 1925.
Between 1830 and 1870, a cotton factory was in operation in the area, with its fabric called Balashikha. A railway station was built at the end of the 19th century, again called Balashikha Station.
As it grew, Balashikha absorbed other villages, including Gorenki, a suburban estate of Count Andreas Razumovsky
, and Pekhra-Yakovlevskoye, an estate of Prince Galitzine
, the latter being in use for 250 years from 1591 to 1828. This is the site of a stone church, built from 1777 to 1782.
Saltykovka, a part of Balashikha, has long been known for its attractions to the artistic community. Isaak Levitan, the famous landscape painter, lived there in 1879. Lev Tolstoy was another frequent visitor.
, including one dedicated to the production of fur.
During the Soviet era, Balashikha became a major industrial center with industries in metallurgy, aviation industry, cryotecnics, machinery, and other fields.
Balashikha sent many of its sons to the front to fight the Germans during World War II. Among those who fought and died was Ivan Fleorov who commanded a Katyusha rocket division and is remembered by several monuments and museums in the area.
Along with many other Russian Orthodox Churches, the Cathedral of Saint Alexander Nevsky
was demolished by the government. The Cathedral was blown up in the 1960s but was rebuilt, on its original site, in 2002 after the collapse of communism.
Balashikha is the site of a large Russian Army
base and was closed to foreigners during the Soviet era, a ban which, in theory, remains to the present day. It was the headquarters of the 1st Corps of the Soviet Air Defense Forces and is now to become the headquarters of the Operational-Strategic Command for Missile-Space Defense.
It is also home to several music schools, including the Sviridov School of Arts.
Although not part of the extensive Moscow subway system, Balashikha is home to many office workers who commute to Moscow each day. It has several thriving markets and retail centers and is quickly modernizing. It is surrounded by attractive woodland and countryside.
Source: "Balashikha in stories" (Балашиха в очерках и зарисовках) - А. Галанин и др.
with: Yangzhou
, China
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...
, Russia, located on the Pekhorka River
Pekhorka River
Pekhórka River is a river in the Moscow Region in Russia, a left tributary of the Moskva River. Total length - 42 km, water catchment area - 513 km²....
1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) east of Moscow. It is known for its unique river and waterway system. The Pekhorka River system covers an area of 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) from north to south and 20 kilometres (12.4 mi) from east to west, and many small lakes and ponds were created by damming to provide water power for the cotton mills in the 19th century. Population: 92,400 (1970).
Name of city
Balashikha is an unusual name in Russian and several legends exist as to why it was chosen as the name of this conurbation. The word balash is TurkicTurkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
and can be translated as an inn, i.e, a place of temporary respite for travelers. Another account tells of a wealthy Tatar
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
, named Balash, a descendant of Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
of the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
who had his residence on this site. Most usual explanation is that it derived from word balakh, which means caltha palustris
Caltha palustris
Caltha palustris is a herbaceous perennial plant of the buttercup family, native to marshes, fens, ditches and wet woodland in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere....
plant. Another version: in finno-ugric
Finno-Ugric peoples
The Finno-Ugric peoples are any of several peoples of Europe who speak languages of the proposed Finno-Ugric language family, such as the Finns, Estonians, Mordvins, and Hungarians...
languages Bala-shika means land of celebrations, land of laughter and fun. Before Slavs in this area lived Finno-Ugric peoples.
History
Balashikha is a comparatively young city, established in the 1820s. Only in 1928 was it granted the status of a town, although several rural hamlets had existed long before on the site of the modern city.The city stands on the famous Vladimir Highway, which led out of Moscow to the east. This was the route along which convicted criminals were marched to forced labor camps in Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. The road was renamed Gorky Highway in the Soviet era. The failure of the Decembrist Revolt
Decembrist revolt
The Decembrist revolt or the Decembrist uprising took place in Imperial Russia on 14 December , 1825. Russian army officers led about 3,000 soldiers in a protest against Nicholas I's assumption of the throne after his elder brother Constantine removed himself from the line of succession...
against Tsar Nicholas I led to the execution of its ringleaders and the exile of many nobles to Siberia. Soviet-era schoolchildren were told that the prisoners were marched in chains along this road followed by their wives. In truth, the Decembrist prisoners were sent from St. Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, then the capital of Russia, through Yaroslavl, and not through Moscow and Balashikha, and the story was invented as part of celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the event in 1925.
Between 1830 and 1870, a cotton factory was in operation in the area, with its fabric called Balashikha. A railway station was built at the end of the 19th century, again called Balashikha Station.
As it grew, Balashikha absorbed other villages, including Gorenki, a suburban estate of Count Andreas Razumovsky
Andreas Razumovsky
Count Andrey Kirillovich Razumovsky was a Russian diplomat who spent many years of his life in Vienna.-Life :Razumovsky was the son of Cyril Razumovsky, the last hetman of Ukraine, and nephew of Aleksey Grigorievich Razumovsky, called the Night Emperor. The elder Rasumovsky's late Baroque palace...
, and Pekhra-Yakovlevskoye, an estate of Prince Galitzine
Galitzine
For Orthodox clergyman and theologian, see Alexander Golitzin.The Galitzines are one of the largest and noblest princely houses of Russia. Since the extinction of the Korecki family in the 17th century, the Golitsyns have claimed dynastic seniority in the House of Gediminas...
, the latter being in use for 250 years from 1591 to 1828. This is the site of a stone church, built from 1777 to 1782.
Saltykovka, a part of Balashikha, has long been known for its attractions to the artistic community. Isaak Levitan, the famous landscape painter, lived there in 1879. Lev Tolstoy was another frequent visitor.
The Soviet era
Several institutions were founded in Balashikha after the October RevolutionOctober Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, including one dedicated to the production of fur.
During the Soviet era, Balashikha became a major industrial center with industries in metallurgy, aviation industry, cryotecnics, machinery, and other fields.
Balashikha sent many of its sons to the front to fight the Germans during World War II. Among those who fought and died was Ivan Fleorov who commanded a Katyusha rocket division and is remembered by several monuments and museums in the area.
Along with many other Russian Orthodox Churches, the Cathedral of Saint Alexander Nevsky
Alexander Nevsky
Alexander Nevsky was the Prince of Novgorod and Grand Prince of Vladimir during some of the most trying times in the city's history. Commonly regarded as the key figure of medieval Rus, Alexander was the grandson of Vsevolod the Big Nest and rose to legendary status on account of his military...
was demolished by the government. The Cathedral was blown up in the 1960s but was rebuilt, on its original site, in 2002 after the collapse of communism.
Balashikha is the site of a large Russian Army
Russian Ground Forces
The Russian Ground Forces are the land forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed from parts of the collapsing Soviet Army in 1992. The formation of these forces posed economic challenges after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and required reforms to professionalize the force...
base and was closed to foreigners during the Soviet era, a ban which, in theory, remains to the present day. It was the headquarters of the 1st Corps of the Soviet Air Defense Forces and is now to become the headquarters of the Operational-Strategic Command for Missile-Space Defense.
It is also home to several music schools, including the Sviridov School of Arts.
Balashikha today
The Balashikha Maternity House was designated on July 1, 2003, to be the Moscow Oblast Perinatal Center. This facility will now function as a regional perinatal care facility for high-risk mothers and infants and a perinatal health education center for Moscow Oblast.Although not part of the extensive Moscow subway system, Balashikha is home to many office workers who commute to Moscow each day. It has several thriving markets and retail centers and is quickly modernizing. It is surrounded by attractive woodland and countryside.
Source: "Balashikha in stories" (Балашиха в очерках и зарисовках) - А. Галанин и др.
Twin towns/sister cities
Balashikha is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Yangzhou
Yangzhou
Yangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China. Sitting on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou to the east, and Zhenjiang across...
, China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
Notable residents
- Yuri LyapkinYuri LyapkinYuri Evgenievich Lyapkin is a retired ice hockey player who played in the Soviet Hockey League as a defenseman. He played for HC Spartak Moscow. He won a gold medal playing for the Soviet Union at the 1976 Olympics, as his team was undefeated. He was inducted into the Russian and Soviet Hockey...
, former Soviet national team hockey player who played in the Summit SeriesSummit SeriesThe Summit Series was the first competition between the Soviet and an NHL-inclusive Canadian national ice hockey teams, an eight-game series held in September 1972... - Nikolay BaskovNikolay BaskovNikolay Victorovich Baskov is a popular Russian tenor singer. He's famous for performing both classical operatic arias and pop music songs.He is meritorious and people's artist of the Russian Federation. He is people's artist of Ukraine...
, a tenorTenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
singer - Vasiliy Utkin, a Russian sport journalist and football commentator, actor
- Petr Krasilov, a Russian actor
External links
- Official website of Balashikha
- Balashikha.info, information portal