Novgorod Oblast.

History

Novgorod is documented from the 9th century and lay on the trade route from Scandinavia to Byzantium. In 1136 the townspeople expelled their prince and founded the Novgorod Republic, where supreme power belonged to the veche assembly and mayors were elected. Independence ended in 1478, when Ivan III annexed the city. Staraya Russa appears in an 11th-century birch-bark letter and long remained the region's main salt-making centre. The present oblast was created on 5 July 1944, after liberation from occupation.

Culture & traditions

The Historic Monuments of Novgorod and Surroundings have been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1992. St Sophia Cathedral, built in 1045–1050, is one of the best-preserved 11th-century churches in Europe. The kremlin, or Detinets, holds the bronze Millennium of Russia monument of 1862, and Yaroslav's Court survives nearby. Archaeologists have found about a thousand birch-bark letters here, evidence of widespread literacy among townspeople. In Staraya Russa Dostoevsky wrote The Brothers Karamazov and Demons, and his house is now a museum.

Nature

In the west lies Lake Ilmen, shallow at no more than 10 metres but large; the Msta, Lovat, Pola and Shelon flow into it, and only the Volkhov flows out. In the east rise the Valdai Hills, reaching 296 metres. Valdaysky National Park, founded in 1990 and later named a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, protects 76 lakes and forests of birch, spruce and pine that shelter moose, lynx and wolves. The Rdeysky Nature Reserve guards the region's wetlands and lakes.

Sport

Outdoor pursuits here centre on water and forest. Valdaysky National Park is one of the most visited recreation areas in central Russia, with its facilities clustered around the larger lakes, while Lake Ilmen is navigable and fished.

Food & drink

Novgorod food draws on what the land provides. The region's farming rests on cattle raising, Lake Ilmen has long supported a fishery, and for centuries the brine springs of Staraya Russa supplied salt to the whole area.

Practical information

There is no airport with regular flights; the nearest is Pulkovo in Saint Petersburg, about 180 km away. Trains run from Veliky Novgorod to Moscow and Saint Petersburg. The region is on Moscow time. The climate is humid continental, with January around −6 °C and July around 19 °C. Summer is the best time, when walks in the ancient city combine well with lakeside days in Valdai.

What to see

• Novgorod Detinets — the kremlin with the 11th-century St Sophia Cathedral
• Millennium of Russia monument — an 1862 bronze chronicle of the country's history
• Yaroslav's Court — one of the key landmarks of medieval Novgorod
• Vitoslavlitsy — over twenty wooden buildings from the 14th–19th centuries in an open-air museum
• Staraya Russa — a brine-spring spa town and Dostoevsky's house museum
• Valdaysky National Park — 76 lakes among hills and forests

Cities on the map

• Veliky Novgorod 218,681