Penza.

History

Penza was founded in 1663 under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich as a frontier fortress town. In 1774 it was taken by Yemelyan Pugachev's rebels, and in 1785, under Catherine the Great, its first general plan was approved. From 1801 Penza was again a provincial capital, the railway arrived in 1874, and the city became a major junction. It grew as an industrial centre in the Soviet era and has been the capital of Penza Oblast since 1939.

Culture & traditions

The main stage is the Lunacharsky Regional Drama Theatre, and the Doctor Dapertutto Theatre works in the house where director Vsevolod Meyerhold once lived. Museums include the Savitsky Art Gallery, the Belinsky Museum, the Meyerhold Museum and the unusual Myasnikov Museum of One Painting. Mikhail Lermontov spent his childhood nearby, in Penza Governorate. The Saviour Cathedral, demolished in 1934, was rebuilt in 2010–2022.

Sport

Penza's best-known club is the ice hockey team Dizel. The football club Zenit traces its history to 1918, and Lokomotiv represents the city in rugby union. Penza hosted rounds of the sidecarcross Grand Prix in 2009 and 2010. Rhythmic gymnast Natalia Lavrova and artistic gymnast Denis Ablyazin are from Penza.

Practical information

Penza's airport is named after V. G. Belinsky and handles domestic flights, including from Moscow and Saint Petersburg. The city is a major rail junction and lies on the M5 highway. It is on Moscow time. The climate is humid continental, with February averaging about −9 °C and July about +20 °C; May to September is the best time to visit.

What to see

• Museum of One Painting — a museum built around showing a single painting
• Savitsky Art Gallery — Penza's main art collection
• Saviour Cathedral — the cathedral rebuilt in 2010–2022
• Doctor Dapertutto Theatre — a stage in Meyerhold's former home
• Lunacharsky Drama Theatre — the city's main playhouse
• Belinsky Museum — dedicated to the famous literary critic