Kirov.

History

The town is first recorded in 1374, though various sources place its founding in 1181 or 1199. The Vyatka lands were governed by a popular assembly and, after several Muscovite campaigns in the 1480s, were annexed by Moscow in 1489. In the 17th century Khlynov became a trading centre with the Semyonovskaya Fair, and in 1780 Catherine the Great renamed it Vyatka and made it a provincial capital. It was a place of exile for figures including Alexander Herzen and Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin. In December 1934 it was renamed after Sergey Kirov, and during the war engineering plants were evacuated here from Moscow and Leningrad.

Culture & traditions

Vyatka is famous for its folk crafts: Dymkovo clay toys, burr-wood carving and Vyatka lace. The city has around 38 museums; the leading art collection is the Vasnetsov Vyatka Art Museum (founded in 1910), with works by Aivazovsky, Shishkin and Repin. The drama theatre dates from 1877 and the puppet theatre from 1935, and there is also the Theatre on Spasskaya. The Trifon Monastery was founded in 1580 and the Saviour Cathedral in 1763; the Vasnetsov brothers, writer Alexander Grin and Konstantin Tsiolkovsky are all linked to the Vyatka region.

Sport

Kirov's best-known club is Rodina, a bandy team whose arena holds about 7,500 spectators. The city also has ski jumps, and its best-known athletes include ice dancers, skiers and bandy players.

Practical information

Pobedilovo Airport is 22 km from the city, with flights to Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kazan and Sochi. Kirov is a major junction on the Trans-Siberian Railway, and its station building dates from 1902. The city is on Moscow time. The climate is humid continental, with harsh, snowy winters averaging 149 days of snowfall a year; summer is the best time to visit.

What to see

• Trifon Monastery — founded in 1580
• Vasnetsov Art Museum — Aivazovsky, Shishkin and Repin
• Alexander Garden — a park with white rotundas
• Saviour Cathedral — one of the city's most iconic churches
• Dymkovo toys — Vyatka's famous clay craft
• Drama Theatre — a stage with a history going back to 1877