There are many legends associated with the history, inhabitants and events that took place in Poltava, as well as with the city as a whole. The administrative center of Poltava Oblast is a truly legendary city. Being one of the oldest cities in the country, it has a very interesting destiny, and its architectural and historical sights are diverse and make an unforgettable impression.
In 1999, Poltava turned 1100 years old — a venerable age. For the first time «Ltava» — this was the original name of the city named in honor of a tributary of the Vorskla River, is mentioned in the Ipatiev Chronicle in 1174. And under its present name the city has been known since the beginning of the XV century
.
When did Poltava’s history really begin? Back in the Stone Age. More than 15 thousand years ago on the territory of the future city stopped ancient people. Their camp was discovered on the outskirts of Poltava in the tract «White Mountain», and the remains of the Scythian settlements of the VI-V centuries BC, who were engaged in farming here, testify about the permanent residents. The excavated artifacts can be seen in the largest in Ukraine Museum of Local Lore of Poltava, located in a building of the early XIX century in a unique style of Ukrainian architectural art nouveau.
Before the beginning of the Tatar-Mongol yoke, the history of Poltava is little known, but much evidence has been found that before being crushed by the invaders, the city was already quite developed. A new stage in the formation of the city begins in the XV century. Poltava, located on the coast between the Wild Field and Russia, and then, the Golden Horde and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Moscow Kingdom and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, was in a favorable trading position, but on the other hand was constantly involved in military conflicts.
One of the traces of that turbulent time is the Poltava Catacombs, which emerged in the times of Kievan Rus on the basis of natural caves. It is a whole underground city created by the inhabitants to hide from the cruel nomads. It was discovered only in the XIX century, when cavities began to form in different parts of the city.
The most significant event for the history of the city was the Battle of Poltava that took place here in 1709, which decided the outcome of the Northern War with Sweden, and which is immortalized in the National Reserve «Poltava Battlefield». Since then Poltava was called the city of Russian glory, and writers and poets began to write poems about it, for example, everyone knows Pushkin’s poem «Poltava». Since the beginning of the XVIII century, the city began to build up and gradually turned into a developed cultural, trade, crafts and spiritual center of Ukraine.
In the beginning and middle of the XVIII century the first sights of Poltava appeared, which can still be seen today — the Church of the Savior, where Peter I himself celebrated the victory over the Swedes, the Monastery of the Exaltation of the Cross — a unique monument of Old Russian architecture with seven domes and the main church of the Poltava fortress — Svyato-Uspensky Cathedral.
The architecture of Poltava will delight even the most demanding tourists. Most of the sights have reached our time from the early XIX century, when the city was actively built up. The city center, its historical part, where in 1806-1811 a unique ensemble of Round Square in classicism style was erected, which is a miniature version of the Palace Square in St. Petersburg. In its center is the «Monument of Glory», erected in honor of the famous victory. The park laid out here in the 30s of the same century is a favorite place of rest for residents and guests of the city. It is said that even Hitler, who visited Poltava, was so enchanted by the city and its inhabitants that he revised his racial theories.
Poltava gave the country and the world many historical personalities. Writers N. Gogol, I. Kotlyarovsky, P. Mirny, playwright M. Staritsky, mathematician M. Ostrogradsky, doctor N. Sklifosovsky — these and many other people lived and worked in Poltava at different times.
Going to Poltava, any tourist can admire its many attractions, visit many museums, including the scientists and writers who worked here, see the place where the legendary battle took place and just stroll along the cozy old streets and enjoy the friendly atmosphere of this amazing city.
City website:
Poltava tourist. All tourist objects of Poltava