Veliky Novgorod.

History

The city is first mentioned under 859, and tradition holds that in 862 the local tribes invited the Varangian Rurik to rule them. From 1136 to 1478 Novgorod was an independent republic governed by the veche, an assembly that elected the posadnik, or mayor. The Hanseatic merchants kept their easternmost trading post here, and a large fur trade passed through it. In 1478 Ivan III brought the city under Moscow. Occupied from August 1941 to January 1944, Novgorod was almost entirely destroyed, and its monuments were restored over many years.

Culture & traditions

Archaeologists have found about a thousand birch-bark letters from the 11th to 15th centuries here, a sign that literacy was widespread in the city. St Sophia Cathedral, built in 1045–1050, is one of the best-preserved churches of the 11th century and is known for its frescoes and bronze doors. The Kremlin holds the Chamber of Facets of 1433 and the Millennium of Russia monument unveiled in 1862. Yaroslav's Court is crowned by the early-12th-century St Nicholas Cathedral, and the Vitoslavlitsy museum gathers more than twenty wooden churches, houses and mills.

Practical information

The city has no working airport of its own: Yurievo closed in 2006, and the nearest is Pulkovo in Saint Petersburg, about 180 km away. Suburban trains run from Saint Petersburg and overnight trains from Moscow. The M10 highway links the city with Moscow (531 km) and Saint Petersburg (189 km). The city is on Moscow time. The climate is humid continental, with warm summers and frosty winters; May to September is the best time to visit.

What to see

• St Sophia Cathedral — an 11th-century church with frescoes and bronze doors
• Novgorod Kremlin — the Chamber of Facets, the belfry and the clock tower
• Millennium of Russia monument — an 1862 bronze chronicle of Russian history
• Yaroslav's Court — the former main square with St Nicholas Cathedral
• Yuriev Monastery — founded in 1030, with a cathedral of 1119
• Vitoslavlitsy — an open-air museum of wooden architecture