Henichesk ( uk, Гені́чеськ, Heniches’k, ; rus, links=on, Гени́ческ, r=Genichesk, p=ɡʲɪˈnʲit͡ɕɪsk) is a port city along the

Sea of Azov The Sea of Azov ( Crimean Tatar: ''Azaq deñizi''; russian: Азовское море, Azovskoye more; uk, Азовське море, Azovs'ke more) is a sea in Eastern Europe connected to the Black Sea by the narrow (about ) Strait of Ker ...

in the

Kherson Oblast Kherson Oblast ( uk, Херсо́нська о́бласть, translit=Khersónsʹka óblastʹ, ), also known as Khersonshchyna ( uk, Херсо́нщина, ), is an oblast (province) in southern Ukraine, currently claimed and partly occupied ...

of southern Ukraine. It serves as the

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

of Henichesk Raion. Henichesk hosts the administration of the Henichesk urban hromada, one of the

hromada A hromada ( uk, територіальна громада, lit=territorial community, translit=terytorialna hromada) is a basic unit of administrative division in Ukraine, similar to a municipality. It was established by the Government of Ukra ...

s of Ukraine. In 2021, Henichesk had a population of . As of November 2022, the city is under Russian occupation as part of the

Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast The Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast is an ongoing military occupation of Ukraine's Kherson Oblast by Russian forces that began on 2March 2022 during the Russian invasion of Ukraine as part of the southern Ukraine campaign. The Russian-ins ...

. In November 2022, the Ukrainian southern counteroffensive successfully expelled Russian forces from the city of

Kherson Kherson (, ) is a port city of Ukraine that serves as the administrative centre of Kherson Oblast. Located on the Black Sea and on the Dnieper River, Kherson is the home of a major ship-building industry and is a regional economic centre. I ...

. As such, the Russian forces moved their temporary administrative centre to Henichesk, although they still claim Kherson as the official capital in exile.

History

Henichesk was founded as a fort by the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...

in 1784 and from 1812 was also known as Ust-Ozivske. It was a port and a trade center on the salt route that went from

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...

north to Ukraine and Russia. At the turn of the 20th century, it was the location of one of the largest flour mills in southern Ukraine. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the town was occupied by Germany. The Germans operated a Nazi prison in the town.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

On 24 February 2022, Henichesk was seized by the Russian army in the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

. During the Russian capture, a famous incident occurred where an old woman confronted Russian soldiers and said "Put sunflower seeds in your pockets so they grow on Ukraine soil when you die." The city was also the scene of the death of Vitalii Skakun, who died blowing up a bridge to stop the Russian advance. On 3 June

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

decreed the creation of a military administration for the city. On 9 November, separatist leader and deputy head of the military–civilian administration of Russian-occupied Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, died in a crash near Henichesk.

Climate

Under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

, Henichesk has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

that closely borders on a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi ...

with cold winters and warm summers.

Notable people

*Yosyp Abramovych Daits (1897–1954), Ukrainian artist * Iuliia Mendel, Ukrainian journalist

Gallery

Геніческ вокзал.jpg, Train station Будинок першої Ради робочих, солдатських та селянських депутатів, м. Генічеськ.jpg, House of culture Генический пролив (карта 1860-х годов).jpg, Old map of Henichesk Strait

References

External links

Non-official city site
{{Authority control Cities in Kherson Oblast Port cities and towns of the Azov Sea Port cities and towns in Ukraine Cities of district significance in Ukraine Spa towns in Ukraine Populated places established in 1784 Populated places established in the Russian Empire 1784 establishments in the Russian Empire