Odoyev (Russian: ''Одоев'') is an urban settlement (Russian: ''рабочий посёлок'') since 1959, in the west of
Tula Oblast,
Russia, the administrative center of
Odoyevsky District
Odoyevsky District (russian: Одо́евский райо́н) is an administrative district (''raion''), one of the twenty-three in Tula Oblast, Russia.Law #954-ZTO Within the framework of municipal divisions, it is incorporated as Odoyevsky M ...
. It sits on the left bank of the
Upa river, a right-hand tributary of the
Oka river, 75 km away from
Tula
Tula may refer to:
Geography
Antarctica
*Tula Mountains
*Tula Point
India
*Tulā, a solar month in the traditional Indian calendar
Iran
* Tula, Iran, a village in Hormozgan Province
Italy
* Tula, Sardinia, municipality (''comune'') in the pr ...
. Odoyev had the status of town prior to 1926.
History
Odoyev was first mentioned in 1376, when Prince
Roman Semyonovich of Novosil, relocated his seat from
Novosil to here. However, the fortress of ''Oduyev'', mentioned in 1242, is associated with Odoyev.
In 1380 the town was mentioned in the
Novgorod Chronicle, in regards with the
battle of Kulikovo. However, it is safe to say that a stronghold here should have been since the times the land was occupied by the
Vyatichi. Odoyev, alongside many other places in the basin of the
Oka, was once within the territory of the Vyatichi.
Since 1376, Odoyev was the center of a
principality (or duchy). However, the Princes of Odoyev styled themselves ''dukes of Novosil'', and sometimes ''dukes of Novosil and Odoyev'' up until the late 1400, while the title of ''Princes of Odoyev'' was fully adopted only by the mid-1500s. The seat in Odoyev, as the successor of
Novosil, was considered the senior of the
Upper Oka principalities. The Princely House of Odoyev died out in the 19th century.
Odoyev's history was closely associated with its geopolitical location between the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania,
Moscow and the
Golden Horde. The Duchy of Odoyev managed to maintain independence and be considered relatively sovereign state in the region's international relations up until the late 15th century.
[Беспалов Р. А. Новосильско-Одоевское княжество и Орда в контексте международных отношений в Восточной Европе XIV – начала XVI веков // Средневековая Русь. Вып. 11. Проблемы политической истории и источниковедения / Отв. редактор А. А. Горский. – М.: «Индрик», 2014. – С. 257.] Alongside other Russian duchies, the Duchy of Odoyev received the
jarlig from the Khan of the
Golden Horde. The first jarlig was obtained by the Duchy of Novosil in 1326.
[Беспалов Р. А. Новосильско-Одоевское княжество и Орда в контексте международных отношений в Восточной Европе XIV – начала XVI веков // Средневековая Русь. Вып. 11. Проблемы политической истории и источниковедения / Отв. редактор А. А. Горский. – М.: «Индрик», 2014. – С. 259.] The Duchy of Odoyev had trade relations with the Horde, selling beaver and marten fur and honey and importing pottery, coins and iron caldrons.
On May 20, 1407, Odoyev was captured and burned down by Lithuanian troops.
[Серова Л. Невелик городок Одоев//Наука и жизнь. №8, 1999/https://www.nkj.ru/archive/articles/9564/] By 1427 five princes of the House of Novosil and Odoyev had concluded a treaty with the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Vytautas, that became the basis for the future treaties with Lithuania. The treaty implied that Vytautas would not attack the lands of the Princes of Novosil and Odoyev, while the latter would be his vassals and serve to him, assisting in his foreign policy. Vitautas promised help in case of war without interfering in their relations with Moscow and Ryazan.
[Беспалов Р. А. Литовско-одоевский договор 1459 года: обстоятельства и причины заключения // Istorijos šaltinių tyrimai T. 4. Vilnius: Lietuvos istorijos instituto leidykla, 2012. – P. 47.] The Princes of Novosil and Odoyev had the right to break the treaty in case of no desire to prolong it or violation of its conditions, upon the death of one of the parties.
The Princes of Odoyev were given large lands in the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania under the condition to pay yearly tribute from them.
In 1442, Prince
Fyodor Lvovich of Novosil, the founder of the
Vorotynsk princely house, alleged to
Casimir IV,
King of Poland
Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16t ...
and the
Grand Duke of Lithuania. Prince Fyodor Lvovich was marked by anti-Moscow policy and even planned a plot against
Vasily II. During his reign, junior princes of the House of Odoyev did not serve to the Duke of Moscow.
Since the end of the Lithuanian-Moscow war of 1433 — 1453, the situation had changed for the
Upper Oka principalities. The principality of
Mozhaysk lost its independence and the local prince escaped to Lithuania. Moscow seized lands from
Kaluga
Kaluga ( rus, Калу́га, p=kɐˈɫuɡə), a city and the administrative center of Kaluga Oblast in Russia, stands on the Oka River southwest of Moscow. Population:
Kaluga's most famous resident, the space travel pioneer Konstantin Tsiol ...
to
Aleksin, near Odoyev.
[(Беспалов Р. А. Литовско-одоевский договор 1459 года: обстоятельства и причины заключения // Istorijos šaltinių tyrimai T. 4. Vilnius: Lietuvos istorijos instituto leidykla, 2012. – P. 53.]
In 1459, Prince Fyodor Lvovich concluded a new treaty with Lithuania.
In 1483 Prince Ivan Yuryevich of Novosil and Odoyev concluded yet another treaty with Lithuania.
[Беспалов Р. А. Литовско-одоевский договор 1459 года: обстоятельства и причины заключения // Istorijos šaltinių tyrimai T. 4. Vilnius: Lietuvos istorijos instituto leidykla, 2012. – P. 51.]
In the late 1400s — early 1500s, the Principality of Odoyev was torn between the
Crimean Khanate, the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the
Duchy of Moscow.
Odoyev went through multiple
attacks from the Tatars: 1422, 1423, 1512, and 1562.
In 1494, under the treaty between Moscow and Lithuania, the Principality of Odoyev became vassal to Moscow.
In the early 1500s,
Vasily III of Russia freed Odoyev of the Crimean tribute.
Since that time the Princes of Odoyev served at the Moscow court as
boyars. Odoyev started to decline.
In the 16th century Odoyev was a typical stronghold on the southern frontier of Muscovy, when
Ivan the Terrible
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
took the town over from the House of Odoyev.
But as early as in 1645, Odoyev was neglected, the towers of the fortress lost their roofs, the bridge had decayed, while the water well was empty.
In the first half of the 18th century Odoyev was part of the
Kiev
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe.
Ky ...
,
Smoleynsk and
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
Governorates, up until 1777, when it ended up in
Tula Governorate.
In 1777
Catherine the Great confirmed a coat-of-arms for the town, which was based on the coat-of-arms of
Chernigov.
In 1779 Catherine the Great confirmed the general city plan for Odoyev.
By the early 1800s, the population of Odoyev was two thousand; the town had seven churches, seven taverns, and six plants, while in 1838 the first girls' boarding school in
Tula Governorate was opened here.
During the 1800s Odoyev was a trading town using the navigation on the
Upa river.
Then Odoyev had a
racetrack
A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also us ...
holding regular horse races.
Odoyev was famed for its gardens; almost every resident of the town owned one and it was covered in vegetation. The legend has it that the
pastila
__NOTOC__
Pastila (russian: пастила́) is a traditional Russian fruit confectionery ('' pâte de fruits''). It has been described as "small squares of pressed fruit paste" and "light, airy puffs with a delicate apple flavor". In Imperial ...
from
Antonovka apples from Odoyev was served at the dinner of
Ivan the Terrible
Ivan IV Vasilyevich (russian: Ива́н Васи́льевич; 25 August 1530 – ), commonly known in English as Ivan the Terrible, was the grand prince of Moscow from 1533 to 1547 and the first Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584.
Ivan ...
.
In the early 16th century
Princes of Vorotynsk built the Monastery of the Nativity of the Holy Mother, closed down in the 1700s and ruined in the Soviet times.
Now its successor is the Anastasovo Monastery, located in the village of Anastasovo, near Odoyev. By the late 1800s, Odoyev had had six churches, but now only one is surviving, i.e. the Church of the Holy Trinity.
In 1842 the local gentry initiated the opening of an amateur philanthropy theater.
In 1912 there was founded an amateur wind band that still exists.
In 1919 a musical school was founded in the town.
In 1926 Odoyev was made a rural settlement, and in 1959 — a '"workers' settlement" ().
[Макаренко Т. А. Экономический анализ промышленности муниципального образования Одоев // Научно-методический электронный журнал «Концепт». – 2016. – Т. 6. – С. 176–180. – URL: http://e-koncept.ru/2016/56071.htm]
Now Odoyev is listed with the heritage settlements of Russia.
Economy
The economy of Odoyev, as well as
Odoyevsky District
Odoyevsky District (russian: Одо́евский райо́н) is an administrative district (''raion''), one of the twenty-three in Tula Oblast, Russia.Law #954-ZTO Within the framework of municipal divisions, it is incorporated as Odoyevsky M ...
, in general, is primarily agricultural. The main focus of the local industry is dairy, fruit processing and baking.
The district has two major plants: a butter dairy and a vegetable and fruit cannery.
57% of the district's population works in agriculture.
Most of the district's output goes to
Tula
Tula may refer to:
Geography
Antarctica
*Tula Mountains
*Tula Point
India
*Tulā, a solar month in the traditional Indian calendar
Iran
* Tula, Iran, a village in Hormozgan Province
Italy
* Tula, Sardinia, municipality (''comune'') in the pr ...
or is distributed in the
Tula Oblast.
Culture and Tourism

Odoyev is a small township that is continuously declining. The touristic potential of the place and the area is still to develop. The district is famed for its
Filimonovo toys originating in the village of Filimonovo, 8 km away from Odoyev. The
Filimonovo toys museum is located here. Odoyev also has a museum of local history.
Notable people born in Odoyev
*
Vladimir Uspensky (1927—2000), a Russian writer.
*
Alexander Uvarov (1922—1994), a Soviet ice hockey player.
*
Ivan Rodionov (1852—1881), a Russian poet.
*
Konstantin Bogolepov (1913—1983), a Soviet scientist.
See also
*
Odoyevsky family
The House of Odoyev ( Russian: Одоевские, Polish: Odojewscy) was a princely Rurikid family descended from the sovereign Princes/Dukes of Odoyev and Novosil. Their ancestors were the Upper Oka sovereigns who ruled the tiny Principality ...
References
{{Tula Oblast
Urban-type settlements in Tula Oblast
Odoyevsky Uyezd