Rylsk
Encyclopedia
Rylsk is a town and the administrative center of Rylsky District
of Kursk Oblast
, Russia
, located on the right bank of the Seym River
(Dnieper
's basin
) 124 kilometres (77.1 mi) southwest of Kursk
. Population: 19,000 (1974).
in 1152 as one of the Severia
n towns. It had become the center of an appanage
principality by the end of the 12th century before coming into the hands of Lithuanian rulers sometime in the 14th century. Casimir IV
made a grant of it to Dmitry Shemyaka
's son Ivan, who had settled in Lithuania. Ivan's son Vasily defected to Muscovy, but Lituanians held the town until 1522. During the Time of Troubles
, it was one of the first towns to welcome False Dmitry as the Tsar. After the Ukraine's integration into Imperial Russia, Rylsk capitalized on the trade between Little Russia
and Great Russia
. A great number of merchants resided in the town, whose population remains almost the same as a century ago.
Soviet
authority in Rylsk was established in November 1917. The town was occupied by the German army
from October 5, 1941 to August 30, 1943.
, was born in the town and has a monument erected to his memory on the central square. The foremost of the town's churches are the Uspensky Cathedral (1811) and the Pokrovsky Cathedral (1822), both designed in a vernacular Neoclassical
idiom and furnished with very lofty belltowers.
In the environs of Rylsk, two manors are of infinite interest to the student of Russian history. The village of Ivanovskoe, 20 km east of Rylsk, has a summer residence of Ukrainian hetman Ivan Mazepa
, while Maryino, slightly to the west, used to be a seat of the princely house of Boryatinsky, who in 1815-16 built a palace and extensive English park
there.
Rylsky District
Rylsky District is an administrative district , one of the 28 in Kursk Oblast, Russia....
of Kursk Oblast
Kursk Oblast
Kursk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Kursk.-Geography:The oblast occupies the southern slopes of the middle-Russian plateau, and its average elevation is from 177 to 225 meters . The surface is hilly, and intersected by ravines...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, located on the right bank of the Seym River
Seym River
Seym is a river in Russia and Ukraine. Its length is 748 km and its basin area about 27,500 km². It is the largest tributary of the Desna....
(Dnieper
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
's basin
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
) 124 kilometres (77.1 mi) southwest of Kursk
Kursk
Kursk is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was site of a turning point in the Russian-German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history...
. Population: 19,000 (1974).
History
Rylsk was first mentioned in a chronicleChronicle
Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...
in 1152 as one of the Severia
Severia
Severia or Siveria is a historical region in present-day northern Ukraine and southwestern Russia, centered around the city of Novhorod-Siverskyi in Ukraine.-Severians:...
n towns. It had become the center of an appanage
Appanage
An apanage or appanage or is the grant of an estate, titles, offices, or other things of value to the younger male children of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture...
principality by the end of the 12th century before coming into the hands of Lithuanian rulers sometime in the 14th century. Casimir IV
Casimir IV
Casimir IV may refer to:*Polish king Casimir IV Jagiellon*Casimir IV, Duke of Pomerania...
made a grant of it to Dmitry Shemyaka
Dmitry Shemyaka
Dmitriy Yurievich Shemyaka was the second son of Yury of Zvenigorod by Anastasia of Smolensk and grandson of Dmitri Donskoi. His hereditary patrimony was the rich Northern town Galich-Mersky...
's son Ivan, who had settled in Lithuania. Ivan's son Vasily defected to Muscovy, but Lituanians held the town until 1522. During the Time of Troubles
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last Russian Tsar of the Rurik Dynasty, Feodor Ivanovich, in 1598, and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. In 1601-1603, Russia suffered a famine that killed one-third...
, it was one of the first towns to welcome False Dmitry as the Tsar. After the Ukraine's integration into Imperial Russia, Rylsk capitalized on the trade between Little Russia
Little Russia
Little Russia , sometimes Little or Lesser Rus’ , is a historical political and geographical term in the Russian language referring to most of the territory of modern-day Ukraine before the 20th century. It is similar to the Polish term Małopolska of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
and Great Russia
Great Russia
Great Russia is an obsolete name formerly applied to the territories of "Russia proper", the land that formed the core of Muscovy and, later, Russia...
. A great number of merchants resided in the town, whose population remains almost the same as a century ago.
Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
authority in Rylsk was established in November 1917. The town was occupied by the German army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
from October 5, 1941 to August 30, 1943.
Attractions
The town does not retain many marks of antiquity. Its oldest buildings are three churches of the monastery of St. Nicholas, all erected in the mid-18th century. Some of the most prominent buildings in the town were commissioned by the Shelikhov merchants, the most famous of which, Grigory ShelikhovGrigory Shelikhov
Grigory Ivanovich Shelekhov Grigory Ivanovich Shelekhov Grigory Ivanovich Shelekhov (Григорий Иванович Шелехов in Russian; (1747–July 20, 1795 (July 31, 1795 N.S.)) was a Russian seafarer and merchant born in Rylsk....
, was born in the town and has a monument erected to his memory on the central square. The foremost of the town's churches are the Uspensky Cathedral (1811) and the Pokrovsky Cathedral (1822), both designed in a vernacular Neoclassical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
idiom and furnished with very lofty belltowers.
In the environs of Rylsk, two manors are of infinite interest to the student of Russian history. The village of Ivanovskoe, 20 km east of Rylsk, has a summer residence of Ukrainian hetman Ivan Mazepa
Ivan Mazepa
Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa , Cossack Hetman of the Hetmanate in Left-bank Ukraine, from 1687–1708. He was famous as a patron of the arts, and also played an important role in the Battle of Poltava where after learning of Peter I's intent to relieve him as acting Hetman of Ukraine and replace him...
, while Maryino, slightly to the west, used to be a seat of the princely house of Boryatinsky, who in 1815-16 built a palace and extensive English park
English Park
English Park is a multi-use stadium in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Canterbury United. The stadium has a capacity of 9,000 people....
there.