Khreschatyk
Encyclopedia
Khreshchatyk is the main street
Main Street
Main Street is the metonym for a generic street name of the primary retail street of a village, town, or small city in many parts of the world...

 of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....

, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

. The street has a length of 1.2 km. It stretches from the European Square through the Maidan
Maidan Nezalezhnosti
Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main city squares, it is located on the Khreschatyk Street...

 and to Bessarabska Square
Bessarabska Square
The Bessarabska Square is a square located at the southwest end of Khreshchatyk, the main thoroughfare of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is located in the city's Shevchenko Raion , at the busy intersection of Khreshchatyk, Taras Shevchenko Boulevard, Chervonoarmiiska Street, and the Krutyi...

 where the Besarabsky Market
Besarabsky Market
The Besarabsky Market , also referred to as the Besarabka , is an indoor market located in the center of Kiev on the Bessarabska Square at the southwest end of the city's main thoroughfare, the Khreshchatyk. Constructed in 1910-1912 to a design of architect H...

 is located.

The name of Khreshchatyk is believed to be derived from the Slavic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...

 word krest or khrest (cross
Cross
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...

). It lies in a valley that is crossed by several ravines. When looked at from above, the valley resembles a cross. A small river, the Khreschatyk River, a tributary of Kiev's Lybid River
Lybid River
Lybid is a small river in Kiev, Ukraine, a right tributary of the Dnieper, flowing within the "Right Bank" part of the city, just to the west of the historic center...

, ran along much of the valley, and still runs underground along much of the street.

The entire street was completely destroyed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 by the retreating Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

 and rebuilt in the neo-classical style of post-war Stalinist architecture
Stalinist architecture
Stalinist architecture , also referred to as Stalinist Gothic, or Socialist Classicism, is a term given to architecture of the Soviet Union between 1933, when Boris Iofan's draft for Palace of the Soviets was officially approved, and 1955, when Nikita Khrushchev condemned "excesses" of the past...

. The street has been significantly renovated during the modern period of Ukraine's independence. Today, the street is the administrative and business center of the city, as well as a popular place for Kievans.

As of 2010, Khreshchatyk is included in the Top 20 of most expensive shopping streets in Europe.

Russian Empire

For a long time, Khreshchatyk remained an undeveloped ravine between several neighborhoods of Kiev: Podil
Podil
The Podil or Podilskyi Raion is a historic neighbourhood and an administrative raion in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods of Kiev, the birthplace of the city's trade, commerce and industry...

 - the commercial neighbourhood, the Upper City - the administrative neighbourhood, and Pechersk
Pechersk
Pechersk Raion is a larger administrative district of the city which lies majorly within the historical neighborhood, while also including some other historical areas. Pechersk neighborhood is located on the hills adjoining the right bank of the Dnieper River. The two geographic entities are...

 neighbourhood built around the Pechersk Lavra
Kiev Pechersk Lavra
Kiev Pechersk Lavra or Kyiv Pechersk Lavra , also known as the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, is a historic Orthodox Christian monastery which gave its name to one of the city districts where it is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine....

 ("Monastery of the Caves").

The development of the area only started in the 19th century. The ravine was filled and accelerating construction quickly followed. By the middle 19th century, Khreshchatyk was developed as Kiev's main thoroughfare in the climate of rapid growth of the city during the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...

 in Imperial Russia. The street soon became the centre of Kiev's commercial life, as the city itself developed into the main commercial centre in the Empire's south-west.

In 1892, the first electric tram line
Kiev tram
The Kiev Tramway is a tram network which serves the Ukrainian capital Kiev. The system was the first electric tramway in the former Russian Empire and the third one in Europe after the Berlin Straßenbahn and the Budapest tramway. The system currently consists of 139.9 km of track, including...

 in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

 ran in Kiev and by 1894, the line was extended to Khreshchatyk. The street was served by the tram for about 40 years.

Revolution

During the period of chaos after the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...

, many buildings on Khreshchatyk were heavily damaged as the city changed hands many times between Ukrainian
Ukrainian People's Republic
The Ukrainian People's Republic or Ukrainian National Republic was a republic that was declared in part of the territory of modern Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, eventually headed by Symon Petliura.-Revolutionary Wave:...

, German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

, Polish
History of Poland (1918–1939)
The History of interwar Poland comprises the period from the re-recreation of the independent Polish state in 1918, until the joint Invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in 1939 at the onset of World War II...

, and Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....

 forces. On May 9, 1920, the Polish army under General Rydz-Smigly celebrated their capture of Kiev
Kiev Offensive
The 1920 Kiev Offensive , sometimes considered to have started the Soviet-Polish War, was an attempt by the newly re-emerged Poland, led by Józef Piłsudski, to seize central and eastern Ukraine, torn in the warring among various factions, both domestic and foreign, from Soviet control.The stated...

 by a ceremonial parade on Khreschatyk. It was driven out by the Bolshevik counter-offensive within weeks.

Interbellum

Between the wars, Khreshchatyk underwent major development and reconstruction. Between 1923 and 1937, the street carried the name of V.V. Vorovsky
V. V. Vorovsky
Vatslav Vatslavovich Vorovsky was a Marxist revolutionary, literary critic, and Soviet Russian diplomat...

, an early Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....

 diplomat assassinated in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

. In the mid-1930s, the tram lines were dismantled, and the trams replaced by trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...

es.

World War II

During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, almost every building on the street was mined with explosives by the retreating Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

. In September 1941, after German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

 troops occupied the city, explosions were set off by radio-controlled fuses from over 400 kilometres away. The demolition of over three hundred buildings on Khreshchatyk became the first operation in history where the long-distance radio-controlled explosions were used for military purposes. Much of the surviving historic centre of Kiev was demolished. This unprecedented method of warfare caused panic and brought heavy casualties among both the occupiers and city's remaining civilian population.

Under German occupation, the street was renamed Eichhornstrasse, after the German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

 World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 Field Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...

 Hermann von Eichhorn
Hermann von Eichhorn
Hermann von Eichhorn was a Prussian general.-Biography:Eichhorn was born in Breslau in the Province of Silesia...

 supreme commander of Army Group Kiev (Heeresgruppe Kiew) and simultaneously military governor of Ukraine during the previous German occupation, who had been assassinated in Kiev in 1918.)

Soviet Ukraine

Following the war,Khreshchatyk was rebuilt in the 1950s and 1960s. The street was widened to between 75 to 100 metres and new buildings were erected in the Neoclassical Stalinist architectural style
Stalinist architecture
Stalinist architecture , also referred to as Stalinist Gothic, or Socialist Classicism, is a term given to architecture of the Soviet Union between 1933, when Boris Iofan's draft for Palace of the Soviets was officially approved, and 1955, when Nikita Khrushchev condemned "excesses" of the past...

. Important buildings of the new ensemble include the City Council House
Kiev City Council
Kiev City Council or Kyivrada is the city council of Kiev municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The members of city council are directly elected by Kievans and the council is chaired by the Mayor of Kiev .The council meets in a 1950s City Council building...

 (Kyivrada), the Central Post Office (Poshtamt) and Trade-Union House (Budynok Profspilok).

The street was one of Kiev's first landmarks that was serviced by the Kiev Metro
Kiev Metro
The Kiev Metro is a metro system that is the mainstay of Kiev's public transport. It was the first rapid transit system in Ukraine and the third one built in the USSR . It now has three lines with a total length of 63.7 kilometres and 49 stations...

 in 1960, (see Khreshchatyk (Kiev Metro)
Khreshchatyk (Kiev Metro)
Khreshchatyk is a station on the Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska Line of the Kiev Metro. The station is named for the Khreshchatyk street, the most central street in Kiev. The station was opened in 1960 along with the first stage of the Metro...

) and was the system's first transfer station when the second line opened in 1976.

On May 1, 1986, a few days after the Chernobyl nuclear accident, Soviet authorities held a traditional May Day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....

 parade on Khreshchatyk, in order to "calm people" and "prevent panic" caused by the disaster. Thousands of Kievans, including many children, were exposed to dangerous doses of radiation.

In the late 1980s, the porch
Porch
A porch is external to the walls of the main building proper, but may be enclosed by screen, latticework, broad windows, or other light frame walls extending from the main structure.There are various styles of porches, all of which depend on the architectural tradition of its location...

 of the Central Post Office building partially collapsed during heavy rain, killing a dozen people and injuring some. The porch was rebuilt in the following years according to its original design.

On July 24, 1990, the first ceremonial raising of the Ukrainian national flag
Flag of Ukraine
The flag of Ukraine is the national flag of Ukraine. The national flag was officially adopted for the first time in 1918 by a short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic. At that time the commonly used yellow–blue flag had already turned into blue and yellow and sported a trident in the upper left...

 took place on Khreschatyk, on the large flagstaff of the Kiev City Council
Kiev City Council
Kiev City Council or Kyivrada is the city council of Kiev municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The members of city council are directly elected by Kievans and the council is chaired by the Mayor of Kiev .The council meets in a 1950s City Council building...

. Due to its central location, the street became the traditional place for political rallies.

Independent Ukraine

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...

 and Ukraine becoming independent, the avenue gained a wider context as the central street of the country. During the late 1990s, a complex reconstruction took place, and most of the buildings were cosmetically cleaned up from elements, structurally upgraded and enhanced with colourful illumination. Modern electronic billboards and screens were also installed.

In 2000–01, Khreshchatyk and Maidan Nezalezhnosti
Maidan Nezalezhnosti
Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main city squares, it is located on the Khreschatyk Street...

, became the centre of the mass protest campaign known as Ukraine without Kuchma
Ukraine without Kuchma
Ukraine without Kuchma! or UbK was a mass protest campaign preceding the Orange Revolution that took place in Ukraine in 2000–2001. Unlike the Orange Revolution the UbK was effectively extinguished by the government enforcement units followed by numerous arrests of the opposition and the...

. Allegedly to keep the protesters out, the city Mayor (Oleksandr Omelchenko
Oleksandr Omelchenko
Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Omelchenko became the mayor of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, in 1999. He lost his re-election bid in March 2006. Omelchenko is now member of the Verkhovna Rada elected on behalf of Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc but expelled from that fraction in September 2011....

 at that time) ordered a major reconstruction of the street, which led to significant rebuilding of Maidan Nezalezhnosti, and construction of two large underground shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...

s.

In the winter of 2004,Khreshchatyk and Maidan Nezalezhnosti became the centre of the main public protests of the Orange Revolution
Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter...

. The protesters' main tent encampment was situated in the street, and many Khreshchatyk buildings served as makeshift feeding and warming sites for the protesters, including the City Council House. At its peak, over a million people from all around Ukraine attended the rally.

Attractions

Khreschatyk is a popular destination for tourists and Kievans. During weekends and public holidays, the street is closed to road traffic and reserved for pedestrians
Car Free Days
A Car Free Day encourages motorists to give up their car for a day. Organized events are held in some cities and countries. September 22 is World Car Free Day...

.

Khreshchatyk contains many up-market stores, cafés, and restaurants.

Points of interest situated along Khreschatyk are the following (south-west to north-east):
  • Bessarabska Square
    Bessarabska Square
    The Bessarabska Square is a square located at the southwest end of Khreshchatyk, the main thoroughfare of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is located in the city's Shevchenko Raion , at the busy intersection of Khreshchatyk, Taras Shevchenko Boulevard, Chervonoarmiiska Street, and the Krutyi...

    , including:
    • Besarabsky indoor Market
      Besarabsky Market
      The Besarabsky Market , also referred to as the Besarabka , is an indoor market located in the center of Kiev on the Bessarabska Square at the southwest end of the city's main thoroughfare, the Khreshchatyk. Constructed in 1910-1912 to a design of architect H...

       (nineteenth century)
    • "Besarabsky Quarter" (shops and offices complex, partly nineteenth century, includes PinchukArtCentre
      PinchukArtCentre
      PinchukArtCentre — the centre of contemporary art, located in Kiev. It was opened on September 16, 2006 by Victor Pinchuk Foundation.PinchukArtCentre is an international centre for contemporary art of the 21st century...

       of contemporary art)
    • Metrohrad, underground shopping centre
  • Central Department Store (TsUM)
  • Kiev Passage
    Kiev Passage
    The Kiev Passage is a small, narrow street located in the centre of the Ukrainian capital city of Kiev, right off the main and best known street in the city, Khreschatyk. The street has many small outdoor cafés and shopping stores on the buildings' first floors and residential apartments on the...

    , a small narrow commercial and residential street
  • City Council Building (Kyivrada)
  • Maidan Nezalezhnosti
    Maidan Nezalezhnosti
    Maidan Nezalezhnosti is the central square of Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the main city squares, it is located on the Khreschatyk Street...

    , including:
    • Central Post Office (Poshtamt)
    • National Musical Academy Concert Hall
    • Globus underground shopping centre, and the preserved ruins of Medieval Liadski Gate beneath the square
    • Hotel Ukrayina
      Hotel Ukrayina
      Hotel Ukrayina is a three-star hotel located in central Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The hotel was built in 1961 as the Hotel "Moscow" in a location which originally was occupied by Kiev's first skyscraper, the Ginzburg House...

       (previously called Moskva)
  • European Square ("Yevropeyska Square"), including:
    • Hotel Dnipro
    • UNIAN news agency building
    • Ukrainian House
      Ukrainian House
      Ukrainian House is a cultural and art center on Khreschatyk street in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.Built in 1982, this monumental building was originally erected as a museum dedicated to Lenin, displaying materials documenting Lenin's life, although he had never visited Kiev...

       (Ukrayinskyi Dim) conference and exhibitions hall
    • Kiev Philarmonic
      National Philharmonic Society of Ukraine
      The National Philharmonic Society of Ukraine , often referred to as Kiev Philharmonic and National Philharmonic, is a concert hall in Kiev, Ukraine....

       building (nineteenth century)
    • People's Friendship Arch
      People's Friendship Arch
      The People’s Friendship Arch dedicated to the unification of Russia and Ukraine, was constructed in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.The Friendship Arch was constructed in 1982 by sculptor A. Skoblikov and architect I. Ivanov and others...

       monument dedicated to the unification of Russia and Ukraine with the signing of the Treaty of Pereyaslav
      Treaty of Pereyaslav
      The Treaty of Pereyaslav is known in history more as the Council of Pereiaslav.Council of Pereyalslav was a meeting between the representative of the Russian Tsar, Prince Vasili Baturlin who presented a royal decree, and Bohdan Khmelnytsky as the leader of Cossack Hetmanate. During the council...



Khreshchatyk is a traditional setting for outdoor concerts and festivals, and is frequented by street musicians. Major parades and celebrations are held on Kiev Day
Kiev Day
Kiev Day or officially the Day of Kyiv is a holiday in the Ukrainian capital Kiev usually celebrated in the last weekend of May. The Kiev Day was established similarly to other holidays celebrated in many cities and towns across Ukraine. Celebrations typically last the two days of the last...

 (the last Sunday of May), Victory Day
Victory Day (Eastern Europe)
Victory Day or 9 May marks the capitulation of Nazi Germany to the Soviet Union in the Second World War...

 (May 9) and Ukrainian Independence Day
Independence Day
An Independence Day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's assumption of independent statehood, usually after ceasing to be a colony or part of another nation or state, and more rarely after the end of a military occupation...

 (August 24).

Addresses

  • No.2 Ukrainian House
    Ukrainian House
    Ukrainian House is a cultural and art center on Khreschatyk street in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.Built in 1982, this monumental building was originally erected as a museum dedicated to Lenin, displaying materials documenting Lenin's life, although he had never visited Kiev...

  • No.4 UNIAN
    Ukrainian Independent Information Agency
    The UNIAN or Ukrainian Independent Information Agency is a Kiev-based Ukrainian news agency. It produces and provides political, business and financial information, as well as a popular photo reporting service....

     building
  • No.15 Pasazh
  • No.36 Kiev City Council
    Kiev City Council
    Kiev City Council or Kyivrada is the city council of Kiev municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The members of city council are directly elected by Kievans and the council is chaired by the Mayor of Kiev .The council meets in a 1950s City Council building...

    /Kiev City State Administration

External links

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