The Circumbaikal Highway (Around Baikal Highway, Round Baikal Highway, russian: Кругобайкальский тракт, Krugabaikalsky Trakt) was part of the Main Siberian Postal Highway (главный сибирский почтовый тракт). It started from

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat language, Buryat and mn, Эрхүү, ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 617,473 as of the 2010 Census, Irkutsk is ...

, went along the Irkut River, further southwards around

Lake Baikal Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...

(hence the name) to the village of Kultushnoye (now Kultuk). At Kultushnoye the road turned south and went into Mongolia. The initial run of the road (up to Kutlushnoye, 93 verst (~99 km)) was constructed during 1796-1801. In 1803 it was decided to modernize and extend the road. The extension from Kutlushnoye to Posolsky Monastery was started in 1867.Circumbaikal Highway
The latter stretch is associated with the

uprising of Polish political exiles in Siberia The Baikal Insurrection ( pl, Powstanie zabajkalskie or ''Powstanie nad Bajkałem'', russian: Кругобайкальское восстание), also known as the Siberian Uprising, was a short-lived uprising of about 700 Polish political pri ...

of 1866.

References

{{Reflist Roads in Siberia

See also

References