Baku Boulevard ( az, Dənizkənarı Milli Park, also known as National Park) is a

promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...

established in 1909 which runs parallel to

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world an ...

's seafront. Its history goes back more than 100 years, to a time when Baku oil barons built their mansions along the Caspian shore and when the seafront was artificially built up inch by inch.

Location

The park stretches along a south-facing bay on the Caspian Sea.Seaside Boulevard: A Glimpse Back Through History
/ref> It traditionally starts at Freedom Square continuing west to the Old City and beyond. Since 2012, the ''Yeni Bulvar'' (new boulevard) has virtually doubled the length to 3.75 km, extending the promenades to National Flag Square. In 2015 White City Boulevard added a further 2 km to the east of Freedom Square and reports have suggested that eventually the boulevard might be as long as 26 km, including Bibiheybət.

History

Imperial Russian and Azerbaijan Democratic Republic Eras

The boulevard was established to connect the oilfields in Bibi Heybet as part of the urban development projects by Municipal Horticultural Commission. In 1900, the Municipal Horticultural Commission decided to plant trees and shrubs along the seafront. Kazimierz Skurewicz, a Polish engineer, designed a 20-meter-wide embankment, using vegetation that would survive Baku's extremely hot, dry and gusty climate. In 1909, Mammad Hassan Hajinski, Head of Baku's Municipal Construction Department improved the park by spending 60,000 rubles after

Duma A duma (russian: дума) is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions. The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were f ...

passed his resolution.Dənizkənarı Milli Biznes-Park
The park was intended to provide for the continued expansion of the city to the north, providing relaxation and recreation opportunities for the new middle class to the west, and an escape from the rapid slumming of the city centre for those left behind. To select the best design for the Boulevard, Hajinski organized a contest among the architects in Baku. However, since most of the city's 30 architects were busy designing mansions for oil barons, only three submitted plans for it. The winning design was titled "Zvezda" (Star) and featured a bathing house, luxurious restaurant and a dozen pavilions. The design specified that wastewater would be collected in a separate manifold instead of being discharged directly into the Caspian (which is the case today). Work was completed in 1911. Until the early 20th century, the avenue had mansions on one side and seafront on the other. There were no trees. Tons and tons of fertile soil were imported to enrich the soil quality. Baku's Mayor, R. R. Hoven, supported by the richest industrialists, passed a decree in the 1880s saying that all ships entering Baku harbors from Iran had to bring fertile soil with them. In reality, this was a kind of "tax" or "duty" imposed for the right to use the harbor and load up with oil. Within a very short time, enough soil was deposited, and the parks that characterize the city's seafront today were developed. At the new Baku Bathing House, visitors could take a swim while visiting the Boulevard. This bathing house was closed in the late 1950s due to poor maintenance and the bay's polluted water. The improved Boulevard stretched from what is now the SOCAR Circle to the luxurious cinema, restaurant and the casino that was called "Phenomenon", designed by Polish architect Józef Plośko in 1912.

Soviet Period

During the Soviet period, the casino was converted to a

Puppet Theater A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods or strings to move ...

, a function it still serves today. Subsequently, the Boulevard was extended up to the

Baku International Sea Trade Port Port of Baku is a sea port located in the Bay of Baku, on the coast of city of Baku, Azerbaijan. The main entrance faces the Neftchiler Avenue. History The Baku port was built in 1902 and claims itself to be the largest and busiest port of the ...

. In 1936, a Parachute tower was built and used for extreme activities. However, the tower stopped functioning after a fatal accident in the 1960s, which led to the ultimate ban of parachuting from the tower. To this day, the tower is considered one of the landmarks of the boulevard. The Boulevard developed further after the construction of ''Bahar'' and ''Mirvari'' cafes, summer cinema and other leisure attractions during 1950-1960s. In 1970, the boulevard was expanded to both eastward and westward. In the 1980s, the area was mismanaged and maintenance was neglected. The situation further deteriorated as the level of the sea began to rise so high that many of the trees and shrubs in the park started dying off due to the salinity of the water. At present, once again, the Caspian sea level is going back down.

Post-Independence

In 1999, the boulevard was proclaimed a

National Park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

Heydar Aliyev Heydar Alirza oghlu Aliyev ( az, Һејдәр Әлирза оғлу Әлијев, italic=no, Heydər Əlirza oğlu Əliyev, ; , ; 10 May 1923 – 12 December 2003) was a Soviet and Azerbaijani politician who served as the third president of Azer ...

, former president of Azerbaijan. This status also helped to mitigate the environmental concerns such as cleanup of oil pollution from Caspian Sea oilfields.Beautifying the Bay: New Environmental Project Launched
/ref> Until 2009, there were 28 entertainment attractions in boulevard's amusement park. However, due to safety reasons, old attractions were replaced by new carousels and rides from Italy and Germany. In 2008 the Parachute Tower was reconstructed and started to display

wind speed In meteorology, wind speed, or wind flow speed, is a fundamental atmospheric quantity caused by air moving from high to low pressure, usually due to changes in temperature. Wind speed is now commonly measured with an anemometer. Wind speed ...

, time, date, air and sea water temperature. The boulevard contains an

amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

yacht club A yacht club is a sports club specifically related to yachting. Description Yacht clubs are mostly located by the sea, although there some that have been established at a lake or riverside locations. Yacht or sailing clubs have either a mar ...

and musical fountain, and various statues and monuments. The park is popular with dog-walkers and joggers, and is convenient for tourists, being adjacent to newly built International Center of Mugham and musical fountain. The boulevard marked it is 100th anniversary in 2009 as the specific date of it is creation is still unknown.

Landmarks

In 2010, a multi-story

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually Anchor tenant, anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant pedestrian zone, a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that ...

Park Bulvar, Baku Business Centre and 5D cinema were opened in this promenade as part of Government's regeneration policy to boost shopping and leisure in Baku. In 2012, after Azerbaijan's victory in

Eurovision Song Contest 2011 The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 was the 56th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Düsseldorf, Germany, following the country's victory at the with the song " Satellite" by Lena. Organised by the European Broadcasting U ...

, the boulevard extended towards Bayil settlement, where National Flag Square unveiled. Confirmed by the

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing worl ...

, the flag flies on a pole 162 meters high and measures 70 by 35 meters which makes it the world's highest flag.

Baku Crystal Hall Baku Crystal Hall ( Azerbaijani: ''Bakı Kristal Zalı'') is an indoor arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Located on the coast of Baku near National Flag Square, construction of the arena began in August 2011 and finished in April 2012in time for it to ho ...

, which hosted

Eurovision Song Contest 2012 The Eurovision Song Contest 2012 was the 57th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, following the country's victory at the with the song " Running Scared" by the duo Ell & Nikki. It was the first time Azerb ...

, is located next to it. In 2014, the tall Baku Ferris Wheel opened in the new section of the Boulevard. In 2014, the new building of the

Azerbaijan Carpet Museum Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum ( az, Azərbaycan Milli Xalça Muzeyi, formerly called the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum) is a museum located in Baku that displays Azerbaijani carpets and rugs with historical and modern weaving techniques and materi ...

was constructed at the Boulevard. In 2015, Stone Chronicle Museum, “XX-XXI Century Azerbaijani painting” Museum and "Yarat" Contemporary Art Center were opened at the Boulevard. Additionally, opening ceremonies of Water Sports Palace and White City Boulevard were held in 2015. In 2016, the new section of the Boulevard saw the opening of Baku's first open-air cinema.

Seaside Boulevard Office

Seaside Boulevard Office was established under the Cabinet of Ministers according to the Decree of the President of Azerbaijan on January 10, 2008 in order to restore the natural landscape of the boulevard, maintain its historical appearance, develop the area's rich flora, protect the boulevard, and ensure the implementation of social and cultural events. The Chairman Of the Seaside Boulevard Office is Ilgar Mustafayev since January 2016.

Social history

The square has often been the scene of public meetings, cultural gatherings, celebrations, ceremonies, parades, concerts and has lately become the venue for the city's extensive

New Year New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system ...

celebrations.

Gallery

File:Carousels in Baku, 2010.jpg, Kids attraction File:Night Baku Boulevard, 2010.jpg, Boulevard at night File:Baku 9821.JPG, Caspian Coast File:Bulvar-1.JPG, Fountains in boulevard File:Pleasure boat in the bay of Baku, Azerbaijan.jpg, Pleasure boat in the bay of Baku, Azerbaijan File:A view of the Baku bay, Azerbaijan.jpg, A view of the Baku bay, Azerbaijan File:Azerbaijani, Turkish presidents posed for photographs together with parade participants 01.jpg,

Ilham Aliyev Ilham Heydar oghlu Aliyev ( az, İlham Heydər oğlu Əliyev, ; born 24 December 1961) is the fourth president of Azerbaijan, serving in the post since 31 October 2003. The son and second child of the former Azerbaijani leader Heydar Aliyev, ...

and Recep Tayyip Erdogan posing with soldiers on the boulevard in 2018

References

External links

Azerbaijan International, (8.2), Summer 2000. Seaside Boulevard: A Glimpse Back Through History

Новая жизнь старого бульвара
Nash Vek, Суббота, 20 Апрель 2007 года №14 (409)
Возвращение «Венеции» на бакинский бульвар
Vesti.az, 16-07-2009

Day.az, 11 января 2009 {{coord, 40.3600, N, 49.8371, E, source:wikidata, display=title Parks in Baku Parks in Azerbaijan Tourist attractions in Baku 1909 establishments in Azerbaijan