Radonezh (), formerly known as ''Gorodok'' () is a historic
village
A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...
in
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast (, , informally known as , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census) living in an area of , it is one of the most densely populate ...
,
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, located about from
Sergiyev Posad
Sergiyev Posad ( rus, Сергиев Посад, p=ˈsʲɛrgʲɪ(j)ɪf pɐˈsat) is a city that is the administrative center of Sergiyevo-Posadsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia. Population:
The city contains the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergi ...
.
The old town of Radonezh is known to have existed since the first half of the 14th century, when it belonged to
Ivan Kalita
Ivan I Danilovich Kalita (, ; – 31 March 1340) was Prince of Moscow from 1325 and Grand Prince of Vladimir from 1331 until his death.
Ivan inherited the Moscow principality following the death of his elder brother Yury. In 1327, following a ...
(Prince of Moscow from 1325). In 1328, Ivan Kalita settled there many captives from
Rostov
Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...
, including the future Saint
Sergii Radonezhsky. About twenty years later, Sergii founded the
Trinity Monastery to the north of Radonezh.
The town belonged to
Vladimir of Serpukhov (lived in 1353–1410) and to his descendants until 1426, when the last appanage prince of Radonezh died without naming an heir. There ensued a bitter struggle for the possession of the town, which ended in
Vasily II
Vasily II Vasilyevich (; 10 March 141527 March 1462), nicknamed the Blind or the Dark (), was Grand Prince of Moscow from 1425 until his death in 1462.
He succeeded his father, Vasily I, only to be challenged by his uncle Yuri of Zvenig ...
of
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
's being taken captive in Radonezh by his cousin
Dmitry Shemyaka
Dmitriy Yurievich Shemyaka () (died 1453) 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. When his uncle prince Vasily I of ...
and later blinded in 1446.
The economic and political rise of the nearby Trinity Monastery adversely affected the overall development of Radonezh. In the late 15th to 16th century, the monastery eclipsed the town, which later became a village.
, the remnants of Radonezh are located on an elevated cape, rounded by a curve of the
Pazha River. Traces of
rampart
Rampart may refer to:
* Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement
Rampart may also refer to:
* LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department
** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...
s and a
moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...
remain. A monument to St Sergii was opened in front of the local church in 1988. Designed by
Vyacheslav Klykov, it was the first public statue to be erected in the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
without permission from the authorities. The largest part of the former town is now occupied by a cemetery.
Although any new burials at this archeological site are now illegal, new graves continue to be added; some of them at the expense of the old earth walls being destroyed.
Radonezh at fotowalker.ru (in Russian)
References
External links
Radonezh – tiny village, but very important to Moscow: facts and history
n English
{{Authority control
Rural localities in Moscow Oblast