Tayshet ( rus, Тайшет, p=tɐjˈʂɛt, lit. ''cold river'' in the Kott language) 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 ...

and 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 Tayshetsky District in

Irkutsk Oblast Irkutsk Oblast (; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in southeastern Siberia in the basins of the Angara River, Angara, Lena River, Lena, and Nizhnyaya Tunguska Rivers. The administrative center is ...

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 northwest of

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and , ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 587,891 Irkutsk is the List of cities and towns in Russ ...

, the administrative center of the

oblast An oblast ( or ) is a type of administrative division in Bulgaria and several post-Soviet states, including Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. Historically, it was used in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. The term ''oblast'' is often translated i ...

. Population:

History

It was founded in 1897 as a supply point and station on the

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...

and was granted town status in 1938. During the 1930s–1950s, Tayshet was the center of administration for

gulag The Gulag was a system of Labor camp, forced labor camps in the Soviet Union. The word ''Gulag'' originally referred only to the division of the Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies, Soviet secret police that was in charge of runnin ...

labor camps

Ozerlag Ozerlag (Озерлаг) was an MVD special camp (''osoblag No. 7'', ''osoby lager No. 7'') in the Soviet GULAG labor camp system for political prisoners. It was established in 1948 near Tayshet and included a chain of camp sites (''lagernye punkty' ...

and

Angarstroy Angarlag, also Angarstroy, Angarsky ITL () was a Gulag labor camp during 1947-1960 headquartered in Bratsk, Irkutsk Oblast, RSFSR. Initially, it was under the control of the Western Directorate of Baikal-Amur Mainline Construction and Camps. In 1 ...

. Construction of the first section of the

Baikal–Amur Mainline The Baikal–Amur Mainline (, , , ) is a broad-gauge railway line in Russia. Traversing Eastern Siberia and the Russian Far East, the -long BAM runs about 610 to 770 km (380 to 480 miles) north of and parallel to the Trans-Siberian Railway. ...

started in 1937 and was managed from here. According to some survivor accounts, between Tayshet and

Bratsk Bratsk (, ; ) is a Types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Irkutsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Angara, Angara River near the vast Bratsk Reservoir. It had population of . Etymology The name of the city, which is from the same ro ...

there is "a dead man under every sleeper." Along with Japanese prisoners from the

Kwantung Army The Kwantung Army (Japanese language, Japanese: 関東軍, ''Kantō-gun'') was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1919 to 1945. The Kwantung Army was formed in 1906 as a security force for th ...

, German

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

formed a large proportion of the forced labor contingent, generally under a 25-year sentence, such as

Dietrich von Saucken Friedrich Wilhelm Eduard Kasimir Dietrich von Saucken (16 May 1892 – 27 September 1980) was a German general during World War II who commanded the 2nd Army and the Army East Prussia. Turning down an offer to escape by air, he surrendered t ...

. Surviving German POWs were repatriated in autumn of 1955, after

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

Konrad Adenauer Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman and politician who served as the first Chancellor of Germany, chancellor of West Germany from 1949 to 1963. From 1946 to 1966, he was the first leader of th ...

's visit to

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 ...

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Tayshet serves as the

of Tayshetsky District,Law #49-OZ to which it is directly subordinated.''Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Formations of Irkutsk Oblast'' As a municipal division, the

of Tayshet is incorporated within Tayshetsky Municipal District as Tayshetskoye Urban Settlement.Law #100-oz

Geography

The town is located northwest of

, the administrative center of the

Climate

Tayshet has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfc'') bordering on a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

with warm, humid summers and severely cold, drier winters. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from in January to . Sunshine is generous and the area receives 2,150 hours of bright sunshine annually.

Transportation

Tayshet railway station is a major railway junction. Here the

begins, branching northeast from the

. This is also where the Abakan-Taishet Railway ends. The town is also on the M53 Highway (Moscow to Irkutsk).

References

Notes

Sources

* * * *
Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Formations of Irkutsk Oblast
'

External links

Official website of Tayshet

Unofficial website of Tayshet
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Irkutsk Oblast Populated places established in 1897