Chernihiv is one of the Ukrainian cities with the most ancient history, sung in legends and bylinas about Ilya Muromets and Solovy Razboynik, about Ivan Godinovich, glorified in the times of the great Kievan Rus as its second capital after Kiev. To visit Chernigov means to see with your own eyes the ancient legendary city, its amazing sights, many of which are almost a thousand years old.
The first settlements appeared on the territory of the future city in the 2nd millennium BC in the tracts of Tatarskaya Gorka and Yalovshchina, and the history of Chernigov AD begins in the VII century, when on the right bank of the Desna River at its confluence with the river Strizhen settled East Slavic tribe called Severa. In 907 Chernigov is already mentioned in the annals as a city conquered by Prince Oleg of Kiev and entered Kievan Rus.
Monuments of the ancient period of the city’s development that have survived to our days are the remains of pagan burial mounds and burial grounds. The most famous of them — Gulbishche, Bezymyannyi and Chernaya Mogila, were discovered in the highest point of the city — on Boldina Gora, where in the pre-Christian period there was a temple of Perun — the main Slavic deity. When the Black Grave was excavated and studied in the early 19th century, it was called the main pagan attraction of pre-Christian Russia because of its amazing rare artifacts. This ancient mound of the 10th century attracts tourists from many countries of the world.
Thanks to its favorable geographical location and the attention of the Kiev princes, Chernigov grew and developed rapidly. In 1024 Mstislav Vladimirovich made it his capital city. At the beginning of the 11th century the first religious buildings were erected here, including the Spassky Cathedral, the oldest church of Kievan Rus, which has survived to our time; the Ilyinsky and Eletsky monasteries, which have survived to our days, were also founded; the Antonievy Caves monastery (the founder of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra) was founded.
Chernigov became the historical center of the Left-Bank Ukraine, one of the largest cities of Rus, and in 1024-1036 — its capital with a population of almost 40 thousand people, which allows to rank it among the largest cities of Europe XI century. But such a glorious history of Chernigov, blossoming more and more lush for five hundred years, is cut short by the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols. However, despite the period of Mongol domination, one-sixth of all monuments of monumental Old Russian architecture have survived in the city!
The further history of the city is connected with its transition to one, then to another state: in 1320 — to the Poles, in 1340 — to the princes of Kiev, in the middle of the XIV century Chernigov went to the Lithuanians, and since 1503 for a whole century became part of the state of Moscow. Under Vasily Ivanovich, the city was strengthened and the castle-fortress Detinets appeared — a landmark that has survived to this day in the form of ramparts and archaeological finds.
In 1618 Chernigov goes to Poland, in 1649 it is subordinated to B. Khmelnitsky, a few years later it again goes to the Moscow Tsar. Despite all this, the XVII century for Chernigov was the second period of prosperity. After being burned by the Poles in 1611, the city, like a Phoenix, rises from the ashes. Such extant sights of Chernigov as the stone House of Mazepa, a magnificent building — Chernigov Collegium, the Peter and Paul Church in the Eletsk Monastery, the Vvedenskaya Church and the architectural complex with the Trinity Cathedral, the Antonievy Caves Monastery were erected. The house of Theodosius Uglitsky, the only surviving wooden building of the Cossack time, is also from this century.
In 1801 Chernigov became the provincial center of the established Chernigov Province, and the XIX century — the third period of prosperity of the city. The Red Square and its magnificent architectural ensemble appeared then, including the buildings that now house the National Bank of Ukraine and the regional administration.
Buildings of great architectural value were also erected in the early XX century: the buildings of the Noble and Peasant Underground Bank, the governor’s mansion and many others.
Undoubtedly, the sights of Chernihiv are priceless treasures. They have reached us from different centuries — from XI to the beginning of XX, and to see them in one place means to get a unique opportunity to contemplate different epochs at the same time, to touch them and feel their peculiar, different atmosphere.
But as a modern developed city, Chernigov can surprise its guests not only with ancient architecture. The fame of such a Chernihiv attraction as the Light and Sound Fountain has also spread far beyond the city limits.
Chernigov should be seen with your own eyes, and it will tell its amazing story to everyone.