Shebekino () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Belgorod Oblast Belgorod Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Belgorod. , the population is 1,540,486. History During the Princely ...

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 on the Nezhegol River, southeast of

Belgorod Belgorod (, ) is a city that serves as the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Seversky Donets River, approximately north of the border with Ukraine. It has a population of It was founded in 1596 as a defensiv ...

. Population: It is the administrative center, though not part of,

Shebekinsky District Shebekinsky District () is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-one in Belgorod Oblast, Russia.Law #248 As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Shebekinsky Municipal District.Law #159 It is located in the south of the obla ...

. In June 2023, during the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, Shebekino was the site of ground raids by pro-Ukrainian militias, with residents describing it as "destroyed" after heavy shelling.

Geography

Shebekino is located at the confluence of the and rivers, from the oblast center

. Additionally, the Nezhegol river flows through the town, dividing it into two parts. It is located a little over from the

Russia–Ukraine border The Russia–Ukraine border is the international boundary between Russia and Ukraine. Over land, the border spans five Russian Oblast, oblasts and five Ukrainian oblasts. Due to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in early 2014, the bo ...

. Within the framework of administrative divisions, Shebekino serves as the

administrative center An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgiu ...

, even though it is not a part of it. As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as the town of oblast significance of Shebekino—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

.Law #248 As a municipal division, the town of oblast significance of Shebekino is incorporated within Shebekinsky Municipal District as Shebekino Urban Settlement.Law #159

History

Early history

In 1654, near the site of modern Shebekino, the fortress was built, part of the . Since then, the site of Shebekino began to be populated by workers, peasants, and

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

. Shebekino proper first appears in Russian maps in 1713. The name of the settlement originates from the original owner of the land, Ivan Dmitrievich Shibeko. Shibeko was a soldier who fought in the

Battle of Poltava The Battle of Poltava took place 8 July 1709, was the decisive and largest battle of the Great Northern War. The Russian army under the command of Tsar Peter I defeated the Swedish army commanded by Carl Gustaf Rehnskiöld. The battle would l ...

, who bought the land and settled there with his

serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...

s. Shibeko died childless in 1716, leading to protracted ownership disputes over the land.

Industrial development

In 1836, Shebekino was bought by military officer . Rehbinder built several factories in the area, including a sugar factory on the river Nezhegol, which specifically is credited with beginning the industrial development of Shebekino. In 1890, construction began on a railway line from Shebekino to

Kupiansk Kupiansk or Kupyansk (, ; , ) is a city in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kupiansk Raion. It is also an important railroad junction for the oblast. Kupiansk hosts the administration of Kupiansk urban hromada, ...

. In 1905, Alexei Rehbinder's son Alexander Rehbinder built an electric power plant near the sugar factory, which provided the factory as well as residential houses with electricity. In 1928, Shebekino became the center of the newly created

. It received town/city status in 1938. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the town was located on the frontline between opposing forces and was heavily damaged. It was occupied by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

between 14 June 1942 and 9 February 1943. By the end of the occupation, the industry of the town was reduced to ruins. In the postwar period, Shebekino developed a chemical industry. On 6 January 1954, Shebekinsky District was transferred to the newly created

. By 1993, Shebekino had a population of 45,100 inhabitants.

Russian invasion of Ukraine

On June 1, 2023, during the

, Shebekino was reportedly hit by shelling from Ukrainian territory. Shebekino was described by journalists as effectively becoming a "frontline city", with little-to-no help from Russian authorities. Residents of the town described it as "destroyed" by heavy shelling. Mass evacuations took place. The shelling was the prelude to a full ground raid into Russian territory by two pro-Ukrainian militias: the

Russian Volunteer Corps The Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC; ) is a far-right paramilitary unit of Russia, Russian citizens, based in Ukraine. It was formed in August 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, to fight against the Russia under Vladimir Putin, governm ...

(RVC) and the

Freedom of Russia Legion The Freedom of Russia Legion (FRL, ; ; abbr. ''ЛСР'', ''LSR''), also called the Free Russia Legion, is a Ukrainian-based Paramilitary, paramilitary unit of Russian citizens, which Opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia, opposes the Russia u ...

(FRL). According to the

Institute for the Study of War The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) is an American nonprofit research group and advocacy think tank founded in 2007 by military historian Kimberly Kagan and headquartered in Washington, D.C. ISW provides research and analysis of modern arm ...

, the FRL and RVC reached Shebekino and Novaya Tavolzhanka on 1 June. The ISW described the attacks as raids, defining them as "small scale assault operations involving swift entry into hostile territory to secure information, disrupt hostile forces, or destroy installations". Belgorod Oblast Governor

Vyacheslav Gladkov Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Gladkov (; born 15 January 1969) is a Russian politician serving as the governor of Belgorod Oblast since 27 September 2021. He served as the acting governor from 18 November 2020 before his election. He is a member of t ...

said residents were being evacuated from the settlements and claimed that all "Ukrainian" forces had withdrawn from Belgorod Oblast by the end of the day. On 4 June, the FRL posted a video online calling for Governor Gladkov to meet them "to discuss the current situation in the region and the future of Russia," in exchange for releasing two Russian soldiers they had captured. Gladkov said he would be willing to meet the group in Shebekino. The FRL leadership arrived at the checkpoint outside Shebekino at the agreed time, but Gladkov did not, claiming that the POWs had been executed. In response, the FRL said it would send the POWs to Kyiv. As late as 17 June, there were still reports of anti-government forces sporadically operating in Belgorod Oblast, shelling pro-government positions. The number of evacuations of civilians from border regions was estimated at 6,500, with most of the civilians from Shebekino having left.

Notable People

* David Kirakosyan, Armenian football player

References

Sources

* * * {{Use mdy dates, date=March 2012 Cities and towns in Belgorod Oblast Belgorodsky Uyezd Populated places established in 1713 Former urban-type settlements of Belgorod Oblast