Yaroslavl Oblast.

History

Rostov appears in the chronicles under 862 as an already important town. Yaroslavl was founded around 1010 by Yaroslav the Wise, then ruler of the Principality of Rostov, and Pereslavl-Zalessky was laid out in 1152 by Yuri Dolgoruky. In Uglich on 15 May 1591 Tsarevich Dmitry, the last heir of the Rurik line, was found dead, an event that led to the Time of Troubles. In the 17th century Yaroslavl gained richly painted churches, and in 1941–1947 the Rybinsk Reservoir was created on the Volga.

Culture & traditions

Yaroslavl's historic centre was added to the UNESCO list in 2005; among its finest buildings is the Church of Elijah the Prophet of 1650, painted around 1680 by masters from Yaroslavl and Kostroma. The Volkov Theatre opened to the public in 1750 and is officially Russia's first theatre. A Yaroslavl monastery library held the oldest known text of The Tale of Igor's Campaign. Rostov is famous for its finift enamels and the bells of its Assumption Cathedral, and Alexander Nevsky was born in Pereslavl-Zalessky.

Nature

The Volga runs right through the oblast, dammed at Uglich and Rybinsk. The Rybinsk Reservoir is counted among the largest in Europe. Rostov stands on Lake Nero, and Pereslavl-Zalessky on the south-eastern shore of Lake Pleshcheyevo, where the young Peter the Great built his toy flotilla in 1688–1693. The climate is temperate continental, with four distinct seasons.

Sport

Yaroslavl is an ice hockey city and home to Lokomotiv. On 7 September 2011 the team was lost in a plane crash, and the city still keeps their memory. The local football club is Shinnik. Yaroslavl's air club has a place in space history: Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, trained there.

Food & drink

Farming here has long centred on potatoes and dairy cattle, so dairy and potato dishes feature heavily on local tables. The Volga towns of the Golden Ring are good places for an unhurried lunch with a river view.

Practical information

Yaroslavl is served by Tunoshna Airport, but most visitors come by rail or road from Moscow; Pereslavl-Zalessky is about 140 km north-east of the capital. The oblast keeps Moscow time (UTC+3). January averages about −8 °C and July about +19 °C. The best time to visit is late spring to early autumn, though the kremlins are lovely under snow too.

What to see

• Historic centre of Yaroslavl — a UNESCO site with the Church of Elijah the Prophet and its 17th-century frescoes
• Rostov Kremlin — an ensemble of 1667–1694 on the shore of Lake Nero
• Belfry of the Rostov Assumption Cathedral — named bells, the largest of which, Sysoy, weighs 32 tonnes
• Church of St Dmitry on the Blood in Uglich — built on the site of the 1591 tragedy
• Transfiguration Cathedral in Pereslavl-Zalessky — a white-stone church of 1152–1157
• Volkov Theatre — Russia's first theatre, opened in 1750

Cities on the map

• Yaroslavl 577,279