Volodymyrska Hill or Saint Volodymyr Hill ( uk, Володимирська гірка, ''"Volodymyrska hirka"'') is a large park located on the steep right-bank of the

Dnipro River } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...

in central

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, the capital of

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. Its most famous and prominent landmark is the

Monument to Prince Volodymyr Monument to Prince Volodymyr, is a monument in Kyiv, dedicated to the Grand Prince of Kyiv Volodymyr the Great, built in 1853. It is located on Volodymyrska Hill, the steep right bank of the Dnipro. It is the oldest sculptural monument, a dominat ...

. The monument, with its prominent location and overlooking the scenic panorama of the left-bank of Kyiv, has since become one of the symbols of Kyiv, often depicted in paintings and photographic works of the city. The Hill provides an excellent panorama of the Dinpro River, the Left Bank, and Podil.

History

The first historical reference to Volodymyr Hill was in the ''

Primary Chronicle The ''Tale of Bygone Years'' ( orv, Повѣсть времѧньныхъ лѣтъ, translit=Pověstĭ vremęnĭnyxŭ lětŭ; ; ; ; ), often known in English as the ''Rus' Primary Chronicle'', the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', or simply the ...

s'' of

Kyivan Rus Kievan Rusʹ, also known as Kyivan Rusʹ ( orv, , Rusĭ, or , , ; Old Norse: ''Garðaríki''), was a state in Eastern and Northern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of ...

, where it describes

Sviatopolk II of Kyiv Sviatopolk II Iziaslavich ( orv, Свѧтополкъ Изѧславичь; rus, Святополк Изяславич, Svyatopolk Izyaslavich; uk, Святополк Ізяславич; November 8, 1050 – April 16, 1113) was supreme ruler of ...

building the St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral in 1108. The hill, on which the cathedral was built, was a

citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. In ...

within the ancient part of Kyiv, built by and named after

Iziaslav I of Kyiv Iziaslav Yaroslavich ( orv, Изѧславь Ѩрославичь; russian: Изяслав Ярославич; uk, Ізяслав Ярославич; 1024 – 3 October 1078, baptized as ''Demetrius'') was a Kniaz' ( Prince) of Turov and Grand ...

. Volodymyrska Hill park was established in the mid-19th century, its name reflecting the

which was erected in 1853 in the park. Volodymyrska Hill originally only referred to a park located at the highest and middle terraces of the historic St. Michael's Hill, which was named after St. Michael's Golden-Domed Cathedral and Monastery. However, the name "St. Michael's Hill" went into decline after destruction of the cathedral and the renaming of local streets by the Soviet regime in the 1930s. Construction of the terraces as they appear today started in the 1840s. Volodymyrska Hill park became the first free-of-charge public park in Kyiv.

Other landmarks

In 1902 at the upper part of the terrace next to Saint Alexander's Church, a pavilion with a

Golgotha Calvary ( la, Calvariae or ) or Golgotha ( grc-gre, Γολγοθᾶ, ''Golgothâ'') was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where Jesus was said to have been crucified according to the canonical Gospels. Since at least the early mediev ...

panorama was opened, though this was destroyed in 1935 by the Soviet regime. A street which passes through the park's hilly landscape on the eastern side is the

cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fro ...

Saint Volodymyr Descent Saint Volodymyr Descent ( uk, Володимирський узвіз, Volodymyrskyi uzviz) is a street in Kyiv located between the Pechersk and Podil city districts. It stretches from European Square to Postal Square. The city street splits two ...

. At the park's northern end, the

Kyiv Funicular The Kyiv Funicular ( uk, Київський фунікулер) is a steep slope railroad on Kyiv Hills that serves the city of Kyiv, connecting the historic '' Uppertown'', and the lower commercial neighborhood of Podil through the steep Volody ...

serves (mostly for tourists) as a transport connection between Kyiv's Upper Town neighborhood and the historic commercial district of Podil. As an alternative to the funicular, and adjoining it, is a long staircase. Across the funicular tracks to the north a park zone extends onto the Old Kyiv Hill which separates the Upper city (Old Kyiv) from the Lower city (Podil). Ukrainian House is located near the park's southern border by the Three Saints Street (vulytsia Tryokhsvyatytelska). In the same vicinity is located the Institute of Philosophy. A feature of the park is a wrought-iron gazebo which was installed in 1899 through the sponsorship of a rich Moscow merchant and oil magnate

Vasily Kokorev Vasily Aleksandrovich Kokorev (Russian: Василий Александрович Кокорев, 23 April 1817, Soligalich - 22 April 1889, Saint Petersburg) was one of the wealthiest men in Russia. In addition to being a landowner, entreprene ...

, who was very much impressed by Kyiv's beauty. This gazebo soon became the favorite spot of meetings and rendezvous. Since 2019, a glass pedestrian bridge has connected the park with

Khreshchatyi Park Khreshchatyi Park ( uk, Хрещатий парк) is a city park in Kyiv located next to the European Square (Kyiv), European Square, on right bank slopes of Dnipro and along the Volodymyr Descent. It covers area of . Since 2019, a Bridge over Sa ...

Gallery

Kiev - park 01.jpg, The Kokorev gazebo Volodymyrska girka Gazebo.JPG, Gazebo in the central part of Volodymyrska Hill Володимирська гірка - 02.jpg, Вид з Хрещатого парку на пішохідний міст.JPG, 2013. Kiev 055.jpg, Володимирська гірка 03.jpg, Володимирська гірка 02.jpg, Володимирська гірка 38.jpg, Володимирська гірка, вересень.JPG, Володимирська гірка 0.jpg, Парк Володимирська гірка 02.jpg, Володимирська гірка 24.jpg,

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , title=Володимирська гірка , url=http://shev.gov.ua/index.php?Itemid=41&id=615&option=com_content&task=view , publisher= Shevchenko Raion Government Administration , accessdate=26 May 2015 , language=Ukrainian , trans-title=Volodymyr's Hill {{cite web, title=Volodymyr Hill, url=http://www.oldkyiv.org.ua/data/vol_mnmnt.php?lang=ua, work=Kiev History Site, publisher=oldkyiv.org.ua, access-date=26 May 2015, url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140623070719/http://oldkyiv.org.ua/data/vol_mnmnt.php?lang=ua, archive-date=23 June 2014 {{cite encyclopedia , url=http://wek.kiev.ua/uk/Володимирська_гірка , title=Володимирська гірка , encyclopedia=WWW Encyclopedia of Kyiv , accessdate=26 May 2015 , language=Ukrainian , trans-title=Volodymyr's Hill {{cite encyclopedia , url=http://wek.kiev.ua/uk/%D0%86%D0%B7%D1%8F%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B0_%D0%BC%D1%96%D1%81%D1%82%D0%BE , title=Ізяслава місто , encyclopedia=WWW Encyclopedia of Kyiv , accessdate=26 May 2015 , language=Ukrainian , trans-title=The City of Iziaslav {{cite encyclopedia , url=http://wek.kiev.ua/uk/%D0%9C%D0%B8%D1%85%D0%B0%D0%B9%D0%BB%D1%96%D0%B2%D1%81%D1%8C%D0%BA%D0%B0_%D0%B3%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B0 , title=Михайлівська гора , encyclopedia=WWW Encyclopedia of Kyiv , accessdate=26 May 2015 , language=Ukrainian , trans-title=St. Michael's Hill St. Volodymyr's Monument, Volodymyr's Hill
accessdate: July 12, 2022 Tourist attractions in Kyiv Parks in Kyiv Shevchenkivskyi District, Kyiv Vladimir the Great

History

Other landmarks

Gallery

See also

References