Skadovsk (, , ) is a

port city A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...

on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

coast in

Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast (, ; ), also known as Khersonshchyna (, ), is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) in southern Ukraine. It is located just north of Crimea. Its administrative center is Kherson, on the northern or right bank ...

, southern

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. It 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 ...

of Skadovsk Raion and also hosts the administration of Skadovsk urban hromada, one of the

hromada In Ukraine, a hromada () is the main type of municipality and the third level Administrative divisions of Ukraine, local self-government in Ukraine. The current hromadas were established by the Cabinet of ministers of Ukraine, Government of Uk ...

s of Ukraine. The city had a population of It is located from

Kherson Kherson (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and , , ) is a port city in southern Ukraine that serves as the administrative centre of Kherson Oblast. Located by the Black Sea and on the Dnieper, Dnieper River, Kherson is the home to a major ship-bui ...

. Skadovsk has a seaport. The closest railway station is Kalanchak, from Skadovsk. As of 2025, the city is occupied by

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 ...

History

The town was founded in 1894 by Sergey B. Skadovsky, a hydrobiologist and

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

who was also a member of the State Council of the

Taurida Governorate Taurida Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire. It included the territory of the Crimean Peninsula and the mainland between the lower Dnieper River with the coasts of the Black Sea and Sea o ...

during the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. The town was originally a seaport for sending wheat, wool and furs to France, Germany and other European countries. The initial territory consisted of the Crimean Tatar

fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world have coastlines totalling around 356,000 kilometres (221,000 ...

Ali-Agok ( Crimean Tatar for "quiet harbor") and the lands owned by Skadovsky. He and his wife are buried in Skadovsk. 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 occupied by Germany. The Germans operated a Nazi prison in the town.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

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 ...

, Russian armed forces entered Skadovksk on March 9, 2022. Within minutes after Russian equipment had entered the city, residents of the city came out to a rally with Ukrainian flags and called on the occupying forces to get out. On 12 March, the city's mayor declared that the Russian invaders had left the city. On 13 March, Russian troops again entered the city and deployed at a children camp on the outskirts of the city. On 16 March 2022, Skadovsk's mayor, Oleksandr Yakovlev, was detained by the

Russian military The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military of Russia. They are organized into three service branches—the Ground Forces, Navy, and Aerospace Forces—two independent comba ...

. According to the Ukrainian news outlet ''

Ukrayinska Pravda ''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...

,'' on the same day of Yakovlev's detention, a peaceful rally demanding his release was held. It was claimed that Russian troops used tear gas and opened fire to disperse the rally. ''Ukrayinska Pravda'' had no information about victims. On 15 April, 2022, Russian forces removed the flag of Ukraine from the Skadovsk town hall and replaced it with a Russian flag. On 15 March 2024, Ukrainian partisans claimed to have carried out a bombing near a polling station in Skadovsk that was being used for the 2024 Russian presidential election. 5 Russian soldiers were wounded.

Tourism

Skadovsk is a tourist destination for people in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and Poland. It is located on the Dazharylhach Bay across from Dzharylhach Island. In 2009, leading up to the

Ukrainian presidential election Ukrainian presidential elections determine who will serve as the President of Ukraine for the next five years. Since the establishment of the position of the President of Ukraine in 1991, presidential elections have taken place seven times: in 1 ...

, organizers of the Black Sea Games in Skadovsk presented

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Yulia Tymoshenko Yulia Volodymyrivna Tymoshenko ( Hrihyan born 27 November 1960) is a Ukrainian politician, who served as Prime Minister of Ukraine in 2005, and again from 2007 until 2010; the first and only woman in Ukraine to hold that position. She has been ...

with a Bengal albino tigress named Tiger-Yulia. Tymoshenko eventually lost the elections.

Transport

The city has a small port with a few piers. Additionally there are more piers located in the village of Khorly in the eastern portion of the Dzharylhach Bay. However, the piers of Khorly are not in an operational condition. The port of Skadovsk also administers a smaller port in Henichesk, located by the

Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov is an inland Continental shelf#Shelf seas, shelf sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Kerch, and sometimes regarded as a northern extension of the Black Sea. The sea is bounded by Ru ...

Demographics

Distribution of the population by ethnic groups according to the 2001 Ukrainian census:

Gallery

ТигрЮля.jpg, Tiger-Yulia Skadovsk sunset.jpg, Sunset in Skadovsk Skadovsk-01.jpg, Public beach Skadovsk-2013-3.JPG, Boat pier Skadovsk-21072010(025).jpg, Administration building Скадовський районний краєзнавчий музей.JPG, Museum of local history Православна церква Скадовськ.JPG, Cathedral

Notable people

* Dmytro Chumak (born 1990), Ukrainian weightlifter

Notes

References

External links

{{Authority control Cities in Kherson Oblast Seaside resorts in Ukraine Port cities and towns in Ukraine Port cities of the Black Sea Cities of district significance in Ukraine Populated places established in 1894 Populated places established in the Russian Empire Spa towns in Ukraine