Shuya (, ) is the third largest

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 ...

Ivanovo Oblast Ivanovo Oblast () is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It had a population of 927,828 as of the Russian Census (2021), 2021 Russian Census. Its three largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, cities are Ivanovo (the administrat ...

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 ...

. The town is built on the high left bank of the navigable Teza river, a tributary of the

Klyazma river The Klyazma (, ''Klyaz'ma'' or ''Kliazma''), a river in the Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Ivanovo and Vladimir Oblasts in Russia, forms a left tributary of the Oka.

, with two suburbs on the right bank. Shuya is one of the chief centers of the cotton and linen industries in

central Russia Central Russia is, broadly, the various areas in European Russia. Historically, the area of Central Russia varied based on the purpose for which it is being used. It may, for example, refer to European Russia (except the North Caucasus and ...

History

Middle Ages

The first record of Shuya is dated by 1393. Annalists mention princes of Shuya in 1403. Since 1403, the area was held by a branch of the House of

Suzdal Suzdal (, ) is a Types of inhabited localities in Russia, town that serves as the administrative center of Suzdalsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which is located along the Kamenka tributary of the Nerl (Klyazma), Nerl River, north o ...

, which got their name "

Shuysky The House of Shuysky (Shuisky; ) was a Russian family of boyars and tsars, a cadet branch of the Rurikids. The surname is derived from the town of Shuya, of which the Shuiskys gained ownership in 1403. From 1606 to 1610, Vasili Shuisky ...

" after the town. In 1539, the town was sacked by Safa Giray of Kazan. In 1566, it was taken by

Ivan the Terrible Ivan IV Vasilyevich (; – ), commonly known as Ivan the Terrible,; ; monastic name: Jonah. was Grand Prince of Moscow, Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1533 to 1547, and the first Tsar of all Russia, Tsar and Grand Prince of all R ...

as his personal property into

Oprichnina The oprichnina (, ; ) was a state policy implemented by Tsar Ivan the Terrible in Russia between 1565 and 1572. The policy included mass repression of the boyars (Russian aristocrats), including public executions and confiscation of their land ...

. In 1722, Shuya was visited by

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

, who launched textile manufacturing there. The town's first linen manufactures were established in 1755. Town status was granted to it in 1778.

Modern era

By the 19th century, Shuya was developed into a major

flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. In 2022, France produced 75% of t ...

-processing center, although it has been since superseded in importance by the neighboring town of

Ivanovo Ivanovo (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Russia and the administrative center and largest city of Ivanovo Oblast, located northeast of Moscow and approximately from Yaroslavl, Vladimir, Russia, Vladimir and Kostroma. ...

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Shuya 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 ...

Shuysky District Shuysky District () is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the twenty-one in Ivanovo Oblast, Russia.According to Law #145-OZ, the borders of the administrative and municipal districts are identical. Law #52-OZ lists the inhabi ...

,Law #145-OZ even though it is not a part of it.Law #145-OZ stipulates that the borders of the administrative districts are identical to the borders of the municipal districts. The Law #52-OZ, which describes the borders and the composition of Shuysky District, does not list the town of Shuya as a part of that district. As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as the

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 ...

of Shuya—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 ...

. As a municipal division, the Town of Shuya is incorporated as Shuya Urban Okrug.Law #124-OZ

Architecture

Nikolo-Shartomsky Monastery, situated from Shuya, has one of the largest monastic communities in Russia. It was first mentioned in 1425. It has a

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

from 1652 and a

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monastery, monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminary, seminaries. The name ...

church from 1678. The

belltower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church (building), church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many ...

of the Resurrection Cathedral in Shuya is the tallest freestanding bell tower in the world.

Notable people

Notable people from Shuya include peasant Feodor Vassilyev, whose first wife still holds the world record for most children ever born (sixty-nine).

Mikhail Frunze Mikhail Vasilyevich Frunze (; ; 2 February 1885 – 31 October 1925) was a Soviet revolutionary, politician, army officer and military theory, military theorist. Born to a Bessarabian father and a Russian mother in Russian Turkestan, Frunze at ...

led textile workers in the town in a strike action during the

Revolution of 1905 The Russian Revolution of 1905, also known as the First Russian Revolution, was a revolution in the Russian Empire which began on 22 January 1905 and led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy under the Russian Constitution of 1906, t ...

Economy

According to the '' 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica'', tanneries, especially for the preparation of sheepskins—widely renowned throughout Russia—still maintain their importance, although this industry has migrated to a great extent to the country districts. The cathedral (1799) is a large building, with five gilt

cupolas In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

. Nearly every village in the vicinity has a specialty of its own—bricks, pottery, wheels, toys, packing-boxes, looms and other weaving implements, house furniture, sieves, combs, boots, gloves, felt goods, candles, and so on. As of 1911, the manufacture of linen and cotton in the villages, as well as the preparation and manufacture of sheepskins and rough gloves, occupied about 40,000 peasants. The Shuya merchants carry on an active trade in these products all over Russia, and in corn, spirits, salt and other food stuffs, imported.

International cooperation

Shuya is twinned with the following cities and municipalities: * Istočna Ilidža,

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

(2021)

References

Notes

Sources

* *

External links

Official website of Shuya

Museum of Mikhail Frunze
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Ivanovo Oblast Shuysky Uyezd Golden Ring of Russia