Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in
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 pop ...
, and a major port on the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
. Due to its strategic location and the navigability of the city's harbours, Sevastopol has been an important
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
and
naval base
A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that us ...
throughout its history. Since the city's founding in 1783 it has been a major base for Russia's
Black Sea Fleet
Chernomorskiy flot
, image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet
, dates = May 13, ...
, and it was previously a
closed city
A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied so that specific authorization is required to visit or remain overnight. Such places may be sensitive military establishments or secret research ins ...
during the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
. The total administrative area is and includes a significant amount of rural land. The urban population, largely concentrated around
Sevastopol Bay
Sevastopol Bay ( uk, Севастопольська бухта; russian: Севастопольская бухта) is a city harbor that includes a series of smaller bays carved out its shores. The bay of Sevastopol splits the city of Sevastopo ...
, is 479,394,
[ and the total population is 547,820.]
Sevastopol, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and under the Ukrainian legal framework, it is administratively one of two cities with special status
City with special status ( uk, місто зі спеціальним статусом, misto zi spetsial'nym statusom), formerly "city of republican subordinance", is a type of first-level administrative division of Ukraine. Kyiv and Sevastopol ...
(the other being 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 ...
). However, it has been occupied by Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
since 27 February 2014, before Russia annexed Crimea on 18 March 2014 and gave it the status of a federal city of Russia. Both Ukraine and Russia consider the city administratively separate from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea
The Autonomous Republic of Crimea, commonly known as Crimea, is a de jure autonomous republic of Ukraine encompassing most of Crimea that was annexed by Russia in 2014. The Autonomous Republic of Crimea occupies most of the peninsula, and the Republic of Crimea
The Republic of Crimea, translit. ''Respublika Krym'' ; uk, Республіка Крим, translit. ''Respublika Krym'' ; crh, , is an unrecognized federal subject (republic) of Russia, located in the Crimean Peninsula. Its territory cor ...
. The city's population has an ethnic Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
majority and a substantial minority of Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...
.
Sevastopol's unique naval and maritime features have been the basis for a robust economy. The city enjoys mild winters and moderately warm summers, characteristics that help make it a popular seaside resort
A seaside resort is a resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, suc ...
and tourist destination, mainly for visitors from the former Soviet republics
The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics and in Russia as the near abroad (russian: links=no, ближнее зарубежье, blizhneye zarubezhye), are the 15 sovereign states that wer ...
. The city is also an important centre for marine biology
Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies s ...
research. In particular, the military has studied and trained dolphin
A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...
s in the city for military use since the 1960s.
Etymology
The name of Sevastopolis was originally chosen in the same etymological
Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words and ...
trend as other cities in the Crimean peninsula; it was intended to express its ancient Greek origins. It is a compound of the Greek adjective, ('' sebastós'', ; 'venerable') and the noun (''pólis'', 'city'). is the traditional Greek equivalent (see Sebastian
Sebastian may refer to:
People
* Sebastian (name), including a list of persons with the name
Arts, entertainment, and media
Films and television
* ''Sebastian'' (1968 film), British spy film
* ''Sebastian'' (1995 film), Swedish drama film
...
) of the Roman honorific ''Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
'', originally given to the first emperor of the Roman Empire, Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
and later awarded as a title to his successors.
Despite its Greek origin, the name is not from Ancient Greek times. The city was probably named after Empress (" Augusta") Catherine II
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anha ...
of 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. ...
who founded Sevastopol in 1783. She visited the city in 1787, accompanied by Joseph II
Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 unt ...
, the Emperor of Austria, and other foreign dignitaries.
In the west of the city, there are well-preserved ruins of the ancient Greek port city of Chersonesos
Chersonesus ( grc, Χερσόνησος, Khersónēsos; la, Chersonesus; modern Russian and Ukrainian: Херсоне́с, ''Khersones''; also rendered as ''Chersonese'', ''Chersonesos'', contracted in medieval Greek to Cherson Χερσών; ...
, founded in the 5th century BC by settlers from Heraclea Pontica
__NOTOC__
Heraclea Pontica (; gr, Ἡράκλεια Ποντική, Hērakleia Pontikē), known in Byzantine and later times as Pontoheraclea ( gr, Ποντοηράκλεια, Pontohērakleia), was an ancient city on the coast of Bithynia in Asi ...
. This name means "peninsula", reflecting its immediate location. It is not related to the ancient Greek name for the Crimean Peninsula as a whole: ''Chersonēsos Taurikē'' ("the Tauri
The Tauri (; in Ancient Greek), or Taurians, also Scythotauri, Tauri Scythae, Tauroscythae (Pliny, ''H. N.'' 4.85) were an ancient people settled on the southern coast of the Crimea peninsula, inhabiting the Crimean Mountains in the 1st millenni ...
an Peninsula").
The name of the city is spelled as:
* English: ''Sevastopol'', the current prevalent spelling; the previously common spelling ''Sebastopol'' is still used by some publications, and formerly by ''The Economist
''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...
''. The current spelling has the pronunciation , while the former spelling has the pronunciation .
* , ; , .
* crh, Aqyar, script=Latn, , or ''Sivastopol''.
History
Ancient Chersonesus
In the 6th century BC, a Greek colony was established in the area of the modern-day city. The Greek city of Chersonesus
Chersonesus ( grc, Χερσόνησος, Khersónēsos; la, Chersonesus; modern Russian and Ukrainian: Херсоне́с, ''Khersones''; also rendered as ''Chersonese'', ''Chersonesos'', contracted in medieval Greek to Cherson Χερσών; ...
existed for almost two thousand years, first as an independent democracy and later as part of the Bosporan Kingdom
The Bosporan Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of the Cimmerian Bosporus (, ''Vasíleio toú Kimmerikoú Vospórou''), was an ancient Greco-Scythian state located in eastern Crimea and the Taman Peninsula on the shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus, ...
. In the 13th and 14th centuries, it was sacked by the Golden Horde
The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fr ...
several times and was finally totally abandoned. The modern day city of Sevastopol has no connection to the ancient and medieval Greek city, but the ruins are a popular tourist attraction located on the outskirts of the city.
Part of the Russian Empire
Sevastopol was founded in June 1783 as a base for a naval squadron under the name Akhtiar (''White Cliff''), by Rear Admiral Thomas MacKenzie
Sir Thomas Mackenzie (10 March 1853 – 14 February 1930) was a Scotland, Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the List of Prime Ministers of New Zealand, 18th prime minister of New Zealand in 1912, and ...
(Foma Fomich Makenzi), a native Scot
The Scots ( sco, Scots Fowk; gd, Albannaich) are an ethnic group and nation native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged in the early Middle Ages from an amalgamation of two Celtic-speaking peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded t ...
in Russian service; soon after Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
annexed the Crimean Khanate
The Crimean Khanate ( crh, , or ), officially the Great Horde and Desht-i Kipchak () and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary ( la, Tartaria Minor), was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to ...
. Five years earlier, Alexander Suvorov
Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy ...
ordered that earthworks be erected along the harbour and Russian troops be placed there.
In February 1784, Catherine the Great
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
ordered Grigory Potemkin
Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tauricheski (, also , ;, rus, Князь Григо́рий Алекса́ндрович Потёмкин-Таври́ческий, Knjaz' Grigórij Aleksándrovich Potjómkin-Tavrícheskij, ɡrʲɪˈɡ ...
to build a fortress there and call it Sevastopol. The realisation of the initial building plans fell to Captain Fyodor Ushakov
Fyodor Fyodorovich Ushakov ( rus, Фёдор Фёдорович Ушако́в, p=ʊʂɐˈkof; – ) was an 18th century Russian naval commander and admiral. He is notable for winning every engagement he participated in as the Admiral of t ...
who in 1788 was named commander of the port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
and of the Black Sea squadron. The city was established on western shore of Southern Bay which branches away from bigger Sevastopol Bay
Sevastopol Bay ( uk, Севастопольська бухта; russian: Севастопольская бухта) is a city harbor that includes a series of smaller bays carved out its shores. The bay of Sevastopol splits the city of Sevastopo ...
. The ruins of the ancient Chersonesus were situated to the west. The newly built settlement became an important naval base
A naval base, navy base, or military port is a military base, where warships and naval ships are docked when they have no mission at sea or need to restock. Ships may also undergo repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that us ...
and later a commercial seaport
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
. In 1797, under an edict issued by Emperor Paul I Paul I may refer to:
*Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch
*Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople
*Pope Paul I (700–767)
*Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia
*Paul ...
, the military stronghold was again renamed Akhtiar. Finally, on 29 April (10 May), 1826, the Senate returned the city's name to Sevastopol. In 1803 to 1864 along with Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv ( uk, Миколаїв, ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Southern Ukraine, the Administrative centre, administrative center of the Mykolaiv Oblast. Mykolaiv city, which provides U ...
the city was part of Nikolayev–Sevastopol Military Governorate.
Crimean War
From 1853 to 1856, the Crimean peninsula's strategic position in controlling the Black Sea caused it to be the site of the principal engagements of the Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
, where Russia lost to a French-led alliance.
After a minor skirmish at Köstence (now Constanța
Constanța (, ; ; rup, Custantsa; bg, Кюстенджа, Kyustendzha, or bg, Констанца, Konstantsa, label=none; el, Κωνστάντζα, Kōnstántza, or el, Κωνστάντια, Kōnstántia, label=none; tr, Köstence), histo ...
), the allied commanders decided to attack Sevastopol as Russia's main naval base in the Black Sea. After extended preparations, allied forces landed on the peninsula in September 1854 and marched to a point south of Sevastopol after winning the Battle of the Alma
The Battle of the Alma (short for Battle of the Alma River) was a battle in the Crimean War between an allied expeditionary force (made up of French, British, and Ottoman forces) and Russian forces defending the Crimean Peninsula on 20Septemb ...
on 20 September. The Russians counterattacked on 25 October in what became the Battle of Balaclava
The Battle of Balaclava, fought on 25 October 1854 during the Crimean War, was part of the Siege of Sevastopol (1854–55), an Allied attempt to capture the port and fortress of Sevastopol, Russian Empire, Russia's principal naval base on the Bl ...
and were repulsed, but the British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
's forces were seriously depleted as a result. A second Russian counterattack, at Inkerman in November, ended in a stalemate as well. The front settled into the siege of Sevastopol, involving brutal conditions for troops on both sides.
Sevastopol finally fell after eleven months, after the French had assaulted Fort Malakoff. Isolated and facing a bleak prospect of invasion by the West if the war continued, Russia sued for peace
Suing for peace is an act by a warring party to initiate a peace process.
Rationales
"Suing for", in this older sense of the phrase, means "pleading or petitioning for". Suing for peace is usually initiated by the losing party in an attempt to ...
in March 1856. France and Britain welcomed the development, owing to the conflict's domestic unpopularity. The Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France:
Treaties
1200s and 1300s
* Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade
* Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France
* Trea ...
, signed on 30 March 1856, ended the war and forbade Russia from basing warships in the Black Sea. This hampered the Russians during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 and in the aftermath of that conflict, Russia moved to reconstitute its naval strength and fortifications in the Black Sea.
World War II
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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Sevastopol withstood intensive bombardment by the Germans in 1941–42, supported by their Italian and Romanian allies during the Battle of Sevastopol
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
. German forces used railway artillery
A railway gun, also called a railroad gun, is a large artillery piece, often surplus naval artillery, mounted on, transported by, and fired from a specially designed railway wagon. Many countries have built railway guns, but the best-known are ...
—including history's largest-ever calibre railway artillery piece in battle, the 80-cm calibre ''Schwerer Gustav
Schwerer Gustav (English: ''Heavy Gustav'') was a German railway gun. It was developed in the late 1930s by Krupp in Rügenwalde as siege artillery for the explicit purpose of destroying the main forts of the French Maginot Line, the strongest ...
''—and specialised mobile heavy mortars to destroy Sevastopol's extremely heavy fortifications, such as the Maxim Gorky Fortresses
Armoured Coastal Batteries #30 and #35, commonly known in English as Maxim Gorky I and Maxim Gorky II, were coastal batteries used by the Soviet Union during the Crimean Campaign of World War II. The invading German forces nicknamed them after t ...
. After fierce fighting, which lasted for 250 days, the fortress city finally fell to Axis forces in July 1942. It was intended to be renamed to "''Theodorichshafen''" (in reference to Theodoric the Great
Theodoric (or Theoderic) the Great (454 – 30 August 526), also called Theodoric the Amal ( got, , *Þiudareiks; Greek: , romanized: ; Latin: ), was king of the Ostrogoths (471–526), and ruler of the independent Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy b ...
and the fact that the Crimea had been home to Germanic Goths
The Goths ( got, 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰, translit=''Gutþiuda''; la, Gothi, grc-gre, Γότθοι, Gótthoi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe ...
until the 18th or 19th century) in the event of a German victory against the Soviet Union, and like the rest of the Crimea was designated for future colonisation by the Third Reich. It was liberated by the Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
on 9 May 1944 and was awarded the Hero City title a year later.
Part of Ukrainian SSR
During the Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
era, Sevastopol became a so-called "closed city
A closed city or closed town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied so that specific authorization is required to visit or remain overnight. Such places may be sensitive military establishments or secret research ins ...
". This meant that any non-residents had to apply to the authorities for a temporary permit to visit the city.
On 29 October 1948, the Presidium of Supreme Council of the Russian SFSR issued an ''ukaz'' (order) which confirmed the special status of the city.[ Soviet academic publications since 1954, including the '']Great Soviet Encyclopedia
The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; ) is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Bolshaya rossiyskaya e ...
'', indicated that Sevastopol, Crimean Oblast
During the existence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, different governments existed within the Crimean Peninsula. From 1921 to 1936, the government in the Crimean Peninsula was known as the Crimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic; ...
was part of the Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...
.[
In 1954, under ]Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...
, both Sevastopol and the remainder of the Crimean peninsula were administratively transferred from being territories within the Russian SFSR to being territories administered by the Ukrainian SSR. Administratively, Sevastopol was a municipality excluded from the adjacent Crimean Oblast
During the existence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, different governments existed within the Crimean Peninsula. From 1921 to 1936, the government in the Crimean Peninsula was known as the Crimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic; ...
. The territory of the municipality was 863.5 km2 and it was further subdivided into four raions (districts). Besides the City of Sevastopol proper, it also included two towns—Balaklava (having had no status until 1957), Inkerman, urban-type settlement Kacha, and 29 villages.
For the 1955 Ukrainian parliamentary elections on 27 February, Sevastopol was split into two electoral districts, Stalinsky and Korabelny (initially requested three Stalinsky, Korabelny, and Nakhimovsky).[ Eventually, Sevastopol received two people's deputies of the ]Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...
elected to the Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine ( uk, Верхо́вна Ра́да Украї́ни, translit=, Verkhovna Rada Ukrainy, translation=Supreme Council of Ukraine, Ukrainian abbreviation ''ВРУ''), often simply Verkhovna Rada or just Rada, is the ...
, A. Korovchenko and M. Kulakov.[
In 1957, the town of ]Balaklava
Balaklava ( uk, Балаклáва, russian: Балаклáва, crh, Balıqlava, ) is a settlement on the Crimean Peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol. It is an administrative center of Balaklava Raion that used to be part of the Crim ...
was incorporated into Sevastopol.
Part of Ukraine
Following 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 ...
's declaration of independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
from the USSR in 1991, Sevastopol became the principal base of the Ukrainian navy
The Military Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Військо́во-морські́ си́ли Збро́йних сил Украї́ни, ВМС ЗСУ) is the maritime forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Arme ...
. As the key naval base of the former Soviet Black Sea Fleet
Chernomorskiy flot
, image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet
, dates = May 13, ...
, it was a source of tensions for Russia–Ukraine relations
There are no diplomatic or bilateral relations between Ukraine and Russia. The two countries have been in a Declaration of war, state of war since 24 February 2022. Following the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity in 2014, Ukraine's Crimea, Crimean ...
until a set-term lease agreement was signed in 1997.
On 10 July 1993, the Russian parliament
The Federal Assembly ( rus, Федера́льное Собра́ние, r=Federalnoye Sobraniye, p=fʲɪdʲɪˈralʲnəjə sɐˈbranʲɪjə) is the national legislature of the Russian Federation, according to the Constitution of the Russian F ...
passed a resolution declaring Sevastopol to be "a federal Russian city".[''Secession as an International Phenomenon: From America's Civil War to Contemporary Separatist Movements'' edited by Don Harrison Doyle (page 284)] At the time, many supporters of President Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
had ceased taking part in the parliament's work. On 20 July 1993, the United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...
denounced the decision of the Russian parliament. According to Anatoliy Zlenko
Anatoliy Maksymovych Zlenko ( uk, Анато́лій Макси́мович Зле́нко; 2 June 1938[Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...]
was ready to supervise a referendum on Crimean independence and include the republic as a separate entity in the CIS
Cis or cis- may refer to:
Places
* Cis, Trentino, in Italy
* In Poland:
** Cis, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, south-central
** Cis, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, north
Math, science and biology
* cis (mathematics) (cis(''θ'')), a trigonome ...
. On 28 July 1993, one of the leaders of the Russian Society of Crimea, Viktor Prusakov, said that his organisation was ready for an armed mutiny and establishment of Russian administration of Sevastopol.
In September, the commander of the joint Russian-Ukrainian Black Sea Fleet, , accused Ukraine of converting some of his fleet and conducting an armed assault on his personnel and threatened to take countermeasures placing the fleet on alert. (In June 1992, the Russian president Yeltsin and the Ukrainian president Leonid Kravchuk
Leonid Makarovych Kravchuk ( uk, Леонід Макарович Кравчук; 10 January 1934 – 10 May 2022) was a Ukrainian politician and the first president of Ukraine, serving from 5 December 1991 until 19 July 1994. In 1992, he signed ...
had agreed to divide the former Soviet Black Sea Fleet between Russia and Ukraine. Eduard Baltin had been appointed commander of the Black Sea Fleet by Yeltsin and Kravchuk on 15 January 1993.)
The Moscow mayor Yuriy Luzhkov
Yury Mikhailovich Luzhkov ( rus, Ю́рий Миха́йлович Лужко́в, p=ˈjʉrʲɪj mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ lʊˈʂkof; 21 September 1936 – 10 December 2019) was a Russian politician who served as mayor of Moscow from 1992 to 2010 ...
campaigned to claim the city, and in December 1996, the Russian Federation Council
The Federation Council (russian: Сове́т Федера́ции – ''Soviet Federatsii'', common abbreviation: Совфед – ''Sovfed''), or Senate (officially, starting from July 1, 2020) ( ru , Сенат , translit = Senat), is th ...
officially endorsed the claim, threatening negotiations. Due to these revanchist claims, Ukraine proposed a "special partnership" with NATO in January 1997.
In May 1997, Russia and Ukraine signed the Russian–Ukrainian Friendship Treaty
The Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between Ukraine and the Russian Federation was an agreement between Ukraine and Russia, signed in 1997, which fixed the principle of strategic partnership, the recognition of the inviolab ...
, ruling out Moscow's territorial claims to Ukraine. This was followed by the on 28 May 1997. A separate agreement established the terms of a long-term lease of land, facilities, and resources in Sevastopol and the Crimea by Russia. Russia kept its naval base, with around 15,000 troops stationed in Sevastopol.
The ex-Soviet Black Sea Fleet and its facilities were divided between Russia's Black Sea Fleet and the Ukrainian Naval Forces. The two navies co-used some of the city's harbours and piers, while others were demilitarised or used by either country. Sevastopol remained the location of the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquarters, and the Ukrainian Naval Forces Headquarters were also located in the city. A judicial row periodically continued over the naval hydrographic infrastructure both in Sevastopol and on the Crimean coast (especially lighthouses
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mark ...
historically maintained by the Soviet and Russian Navy and also used for civil navigation support).
As in the rest of Crimea, Russian remained the predominant language of the city, although following the independence of Ukraine there were some attempts at Ukrainisation
Ukrainization (also spelled Ukrainisation), sometimes referred to as Ukrainianization (or Ukrainianisation) is a policy or practice of increasing the usage and facilitating the development of the Ukrainian language and promoting other elements of ...
, with very little success. Russian society in general and even some outspoken government representatives never accepted the loss of Sevastopol and tended to regard it as temporarily separated from Russia.
In July 2009, the chairman of the Sevastopol city council, Valeriy Saratov (Party of Regions
The Party of Regions ( uk, Партія регіонів, Partiia rehioniv, ; russian: Партия регионов, Partiya regionov) was a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine formed in late 1997 that then grew to be the biggest party of Uk ...
), said that Ukraine should increase the amount of compensation it is paying to the city of Sevastopol for hosting the foreign Russian Black Sea Fleet, instead of requesting such compensation from the Russian government and the Russian Ministry of Defense in particular.
On 27 April 2010, Russia and Ukraine ratified the Russian Ukrainian Naval Base for Gas treaty
The Agreement between Ukraine and Russia on the Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine, widely referred to as the Kharkiv Pact ( ua, Харківський пакт) or Kharkov Accords (russian: Харьковские соглашения), was a treaty betw ...
, which extended the Russian Navy's lease of Crimean facilities for 25 years after 2017 (through 2042) with the option to prolong the lease in five-year extensions. The ratification process in the Ukrainian parliament
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine ( uk, Верхо́вна Ра́да Украї́ни, translit=, Verkhovna Rada Ukrainy, translation=Supreme Council of Ukraine, Ukrainian abbreviation ''ВРУ''), often simply Verkhovna Rada or just Rada, is the ...
encountered stiff opposition and even resulted in a brawl in the parliament chamber. Eventually, the treaty was ratified by a 52% majority vote—236 of 450. The Russian Duma
The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper house ...
ratified the treaty by a 98% majority.
Occupation and annexation by Russia
On 23 February 2014, a pro-Russian rally took place in Nakhimov Square declaring allegiance to Russia and protesting against the new government in 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 ...
following the overthrow of the president, Viktor Yanukovych
Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych ( uk, Віктор Федорович Янукович, ; ; born 9 July 1950) is a former politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the Revolution of Di ...
. On 27 February, pro-Russian militia, including Russian troops, seized control of government buildings in Crimea, and by 28 February, controlled other strategic locations such as the military airport in Sevastopol.
On 16 March 2014, an internationally unrecognized referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
was held in Sevastopol with official results claiming an 89.51% turnout and 95.6% of voters choosing to join Russia. Ukraine and almost all other countries of the United Nations General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...
consider the referendum illegal and illegitimate.
On 18 March, Russia annexed Crimea, incorporating the Republic of Crimea
The Republic of Crimea, translit. ''Respublika Krym'' ; uk, Республіка Крим, translit. ''Respublika Krym'' ; crh, , is an unrecognized federal subject (republic) of Russia, located in the Crimean Peninsula. Its territory cor ...
and federal city
The term federal city is a title for certain cities in Germany, Switzerland, and Russia.
Germany
In Germany, the former West German capital Bonn has been designated with the unique title of federal city (''Bundesstadt''). Since 28 April 1994, it ...
of Sevastopol as federal subjects of Russia
The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation (russian: субъекты Российской Федерации, subyekty Rossiyskoy Federatsii) or simply as the subjects of the federation (russian ...
. However, the annexation remains internationally unrecognized, with most countries recognizing Sevastopol as a city with special status
City with special status ( uk, місто зі спеціальним статусом, misto zi spetsial'nym statusom), formerly "city of republican subordinance", is a type of first-level administrative division of Ukraine. Kyiv and Sevastopol ...
within Ukraine. While Russia has taken defacto control of Sevastopol and Crimea, the international community considers the area part of Ukraine.
Geography
The city of Sevastopol is located at the southwestern tip of the Crimean peninsula in a headland known as Heracles peninsula on a coast of the Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
. The city is designated a special city-region of Ukraine which besides the city itself includes several of its outlying settlements. The city itself is concentrated mostly in the western portion of the region and around the long Bay of Sevastopol
Sevastopol Bay ( uk, Севастопольська бухта; russian: Севастопольская бухта) is a city harbor that includes a series of smaller bays carved out its shores. The bay of Sevastopol splits the city of Sevastopo ...
. This bay is a ria
A ria (; gl, ría) is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea.
Definitions
Typically rias have a Drainage system (geomorphology)#Dendritic dr ...
, a river canyon drowned by Holocene
The Holocene ( ) is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years Before Present (), after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene togethe ...
sea-level rise, and the outlet of Chorna River
The Chorna, Chyornaya or Chorhun (, ''Chorna'', , ''Chyornaya'', ), which translates from the Ukrainian and Russian as "Black River", is a small river in southern Crimea. It is 34.5 km long.
The Chorna River begins in the Baydar Valley northea ...
. Away in a remote location southeast of Sevastopol is located the former city of Balaklava
Balaklava ( uk, Балаклáва, russian: Балаклáва, crh, Balıqlava, ) is a settlement on the Crimean Peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol. It is an administrative center of Balaklava Raion that used to be part of the Crim ...
(since 1957 incorporated within Sevastopol), the bay of which in Soviet times served as a main port for the Soviet diesel-powered submarines.
The coastline of the region is mostly rocky, in a series of smaller bays, a great number of which are located within the Bay of Sevastopol. The biggest of them are Southern Bay (within the Bay of Sevastopol), Archer Bay, a gulf complex that consists of Deergrass Bay, the Bay of Cossack, Salty Bay, and many others. There are over thirty bays in the immediate region.
Through the region flow three rivers: the Belbek, Chorna, and Kacha. All three mountain chains of Crimean mountains
The Crimean Mountains ( uk, Кримські гори, translit. ''Krymski hory''; russian: Крымские горы, translit. ''Krymskie gory''; crh, Qırım dağları) are a range of mountains running parallel to the south-eastern coast o ...
are represented in Sevastopol, the southern chain by the Balaklava Highlands, the inner chain by the Mekenziev Mountains, and the outer chain by the Kara-Tau Upland (Black Mountain).
Climate
Sevastopol has a mediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
(Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: ''Csa''), closely bordering on a humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
. Due to the summer mean straddling it is also bordering on a four-season oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...
, with cool winters and warm to hot summers.
The average yearly temperature is during the day and around at night. In the coldest months, January and February, the average temperature is during the day and around at night. In the warmest months, July and August, the average temperature is around during the day and around at night. Generally, summer/holiday season lasts 5 months, from around mid-May and into September, with the temperature often reaching or more in the first half of October.
The average annual temperature of the sea is , ranging from in February to in August. From June to September, the average sea temperature is greater than . In the second half of May and the first half of October; the average sea temperature is about . The average rainfall is about per year. There are about 2,345 hours of sunshine duration per year.
Politics and government
Ukrainian administration
According to the Constitution of Ukraine
The Constitution of Ukraine ( uk, Конституція України, translit=Konstytutsiia Ukrainy) is the fundamental law of Ukraine. The constitution was adopted and ratified at the 5th session of the ''Verkhovna Rada'', the parliament ...
, Sevastopol is administered as a City with special status. Executive power in Sevastopol is exercised by the Sevastopol City State Administration, led by a chairman (also known as mayor) appointed by the Ukrainian president. The Sevastopol City Council is the legislature of Sevastopol.
Sevastopol is administratively divided into four districts:
*Gagarin Raion
*Lenin Raion, Sevastopol, Lenin Raion
*Nakhimov Raion
*Balaklava Raion
Russian occupation
On 18 March 2014, Russia Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, claimed to have annexed Crimea with Sevastopol being administered as a federal city
The term federal city is a title for certain cities in Germany, Switzerland, and Russia.
Germany
In Germany, the former West German capital Bonn has been designated with the unique title of federal city (''Bundesstadt''). Since 28 April 1994, it ...
of Russia, the others being Moscow and St. Petersburg.
;Executive
The head of the executive branch in the city is the Governor of Sevastopol (Russia), Governor of Sevastopol. According to the city charter, amended on 29 November 2016, the governor is elected in a direct election for a term of five years and no more than two consecutive terms. The current governor is Mikhail Razvozhayev.
;Legislature
During the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexation of Ukrainian Crimea by Russia, the pro-Russian City Council threw its support behind Russian citizen Alexei Chaly as a "people's mayor" and said it would not recognise orders from 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 ...
. After Russia annexed Crimea, the Legislative Assembly of Sevastopol replaced the City Council.
;Administrative and municipal divisions
Within the Russian subdivisions of Russia#Municipal divisions, municipal framework, the territory of the federal city of Sevastopol is divided into nine Administrative okrug, municipal okrugs and the town of Inkerman. While individual municipal divisions are contained within the borders of the administrative districts, they are not otherwise related to the administrative districts.
Economy
Apart from navy-related civil facilities, Sevastopol hosts some other notable industries. An example is Stroitel, one of the leading plastic manufacturers in Russia.
Industry
* Sevastopol Aircraft Plant, Sevastopol Shipyard, SMZ Sevastopol Shipyards (main at Naval Bay) & Inkerman Shipyards, Balaklava Bay Shipyard
* Impuls 2 SMZ
* Chornomornaftogaz § Chernomorneftegaz (Chjornomor), oil/gas extraction, petrochemical, jack rigs and oil platforms, LNG and oil tankers.
* AO FNGUP Granit subsidiary of Almaz Antej, assembly, overhaul, and maintenance of SAM and radar EW complexes, ADS services.
* Sevastopol (Parus SPriborMZ, Mayak, NPO Elektron, NPP Kvant, Tavrida Elektronik, Musson, and other industrial plants)
* Sevastopol Economic Industrial Zone SevPZ (SE area)
* Persej SMZ ship repair and floating dock yard plant (South Bay, Sevastopol)
* Sevastopol ship repair and floating docks yards (various)
* Metallurgy, Chemical Plants, and other industries.
* Agriculture: rice, wheat, grapes, tea, fruits, and tobacco (lesser).
* Mining: iron, titanium, manganese, aluminum, calcite silicates, and amethyst.
* Kerch bridge, Taurida highway, Sevastopol GasTES plus solar FV plants, gas and petrol depots, and coal derivatives.
Infrastructure
There are different types of transport in Sevastopol:
* Bus – 101 lines
* Trolley bus – 14 lines
* Minibus – 52 lines
* Cutter – 6 lines
* Ferry – 1 line
* Express bus – 15 lines
* HEV train (local, suburban route) – 1 route
* Airport – 1
Sevastopol Shipyard comprises three facilities that together repair, modernise, and re-equip Russian Naval ships and submarines. The Sevastopol International Airport is used as a military aerodrome at the moment and being reconstructed to be used by international airlines.
Sevastopol maintains a large port facility in the Bay of Sevastopol
Sevastopol Bay ( uk, Севастопольська бухта; russian: Севастопольская бухта) is a city harbor that includes a series of smaller bays carved out its shores. The bay of Sevastopol splits the city of Sevastopo ...
and in smaller bays around the Heracles peninsula. The port handles traffic from passengers (local transportation and cruise), cargo, and commercial fishing. The port infrastructure is fully integrated with the city of Sevastopol and the naval bases of the Black Sea Fleet
Chernomorskiy flot
, image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet
, dates = May 13, ...
.
Tourism
Due to its military history, most streets in the city are named after Russian and Soviet military heroes. There are hundreds of monuments and plaques in various parts of Sevastopol commemorating its military past.
Attractions include:
File:Sevastopol Crimea-5243.jpg, Sevastopol Artillery Bay view.
File:Sevastopol Crimea-4856.jpg, The seaside of Sevastopol.
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img09 Vladimir Cathedral.jpg, St. Vladimir's Cathedral at 'the city hill'.
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img06 Peter and Paul Cathedral.jpg, Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral.
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img17 View to Northern Side.jpg, View of the Northern side.
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img14 PozharovaStreet Old Cemetery.jpg, Old city cemetery.
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img01 railway station.jpg, Main railway station.
File:Musee Sevastopol.jpg, The Panorama Museum (The Heroic Defence of Sevastopol during the Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...
).
File:Building of Diorama Storm of Sapun Mountain on May 7, 1944 in Sevastopol.jpg, The Storming of Sapun-gora of 7 May 1944, the Diorama Museum (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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
).
File:Balaklava, Sevastopol.jpg, Entrance to Balaklava
Balaklava ( uk, Балаклáва, russian: Балаклáва, crh, Balıqlava, ) is a settlement on the Crimean Peninsula and part of the city of Sevastopol. It is an administrative center of Balaklava Raion that used to be part of the Crim ...
bay, 2010.
Demographics
The population of Sevastopol is 509,992, consisting of 479,394 urban residents and 30,598 rural (January 2021), making it the most populous city of the Crimean Peninsula.
The city has retained an ethnic Russian majority throughout its history. In 1989 the proportion of Russians living in the city was 74.4%, and by the time of the Ukrainian Census (2001), Ukrainian National Census, 2001, the ethnic groups of Sevastopol included Russians (71.6%), Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...
(22.4%), Belarusians (1.6%), Tatars (0.7%), Crimean Tatars (0.5%), Armenians (0.3%), Jews (0.3%), Moldovans (0.2%), and Azerbaijani people, Azerbaijanis (0.2%).
Vital statistics for 2015:
*Births: 5 471 (13.7 per 1000)
*Deaths: 6 072 (15.2 per 1000)
Life expectancy
In 2015, Sevastopol had the largest decrease in life expectancy at birth among all regions of Russia.
In 2020, after beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sevastopol became the only region of Russia where there was increase of life expectancy.
In 2021, average life expectancy at birth in Sevastopol was 72.25 years (67.87 for males and 76.43 for females).
File:Life expectancy in Russian subject -Sevastopol.png, Life expectancy in Sevastopol
File:Life expectancy in Russian subject -Sevastopol -diff.png, Life expectancy with calculated differences
File:Life expectancy in Russia -Crimea.png, Life expectancy in Sevastopol in comparison with Crimea on average and neighboring regions of the country
File:Life expectancy in Russian subject -Crimea and its parts.png, Life expectancy in Sevastopol in comparison with Crimea on average (in detail)
Culture
There are many historical buildings in the central and eastern parts of the city and Balaklava, some of which are architectural monuments. The Western districts have modern architecture. More recently, numerous skyscrapers have been built. Balaklava Bayfront Plaza (on hold), currently under construction, will be one of the tallest buildings in Ukraine, at with 43 floors.
After the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea the city's monument to Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny was removed and handed over to Kharkiv.
Education
*Crimean Federal University, Economics and Humanities Institute (Branch), Crimean Federal University
*Sevastopol National Technical University
*Sevastopol National University of Nuclear Energy and Industry
Notable people
* Arkady Averchenko (1881–1925) a Russian playwright and satirist.
* Oleksiy Bessarabov (born 1976) a Ukrainian journalist
* Igor Cassini (1915–2002) a Russian-American syndicated gossip columnist for the Hearst newspaper chain.
* Aleksei Chaly (born 1961) a businessman and former de facto mayor of Sevastopol.
* Alexander Galich (writer), Alexander Galich (1918–1977) a Soviet poet, playwright, singer-songwriter and dissident.
* Dimal, Gulyayev Dmitry Igorevich (born 1986), stage name ''Dimal'', rapper, songwriter and entertainer, based in Malta.
* Lola Gjoka (1910–1985) an Albanian pianist
* Tatiana Godovalnikova (born 1962) a Russian contemporary artist.
* Rimma Kazakova (1932–2008) a Soviet/Russian poet who wrote popular songs.
* Sasha Krasny (1882– 1995), a Russian poet and songwriter.
* Aleksandr Kuznetsov (actor), Aleksandr Kuznetsov (born 1992) a Ukrainian-Russian actor in Russian films and TV
* Ileana Leonidoff (1893–1968) emigrée actress in silent films; then dancer and choreographer.
* Kseniya Mishyna (born 1989) a Ukrainian film and stage actress.
* Mikhail Samoilovich Neiman (1905–1975) a Soviet physicist and academic professor.
* Aleksandr Nosatov (born 1963) an admiral in the Russian Navy.
* Ivan Papanin (1894–1986) a Soviet polar explorer, scientist and Counter Admiral
* Sergei Pinchuk (born 1971) a vice-admiral in the Russian Navy.
* Olga von Root (1902–1967), Russian noblewoman, singer, and stage actress
* Mikhail Sablin (1869–1920), an admiral in the Imperial Russian Navy
* Anton Shkaplerov (born 1972) a Russian cosmonaut with four spaceflights.
* Antonina Shuranova (1936–2003) a Russian stage, TV and film actress.
* Alexandra Voronin (1905—1993) the Russian wife of Norwegian fascist Vidkun Quisling
Sport
* Lyudmila Aksyonova (born 1947) 400 metre athlete, team bronze medallist at the 1976 Summer Olympics
* Aleksandr Fyodorov (water polo), Aleksandr Fyodorov (born 1981) water polo player and team bronze medallist at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
* Svitlana Matevusheva (born 1981) a sailor and team silver medallist at the 2004 Summer Olympics
* Alexander Onischuk (born 1975) a Ukrainian-American chess Grandmaster (chess), Grandmaster
* Galina Prozumenshchikova (1948–2015) a Soviet breaststroke swimmer; five Olympic medals in 1964, 1968 and 1972
Gallery
File:Sevastopol 04-14 img04 view from Suvorov Square.jpg, View of Sevastopol
File:Soviet and Russian Black Sea Fleet.jpg, Ships of the Black Sea Fleet
Chernomorskiy flot
, image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet
, dates = May 13, ...
docked in Sevastopol
File:Sevastopol. Nakhimov square.JPG, Nakhimov Square
File:Sevastopol Nahimova 4-1.jpg, Palace of Culture
File:SevaTeatr.jpg, Lunacharsky Theater
File:Sevastopol Nahimova 4-2.jpg, Artillery Bay
File:Navy Day Sevastopol 2012 G03.jpg, 2012 Navy Day joint celebration (Russian AF)
File:Navy Day Sevastopol 2012 G04.jpg, 2012 Navy Day joint celebration (Ukrainian AF)
File:Boat U170 Skadovsk 2012 G1.jpg, Ukrainian Navy artillery boat U170 in the Bay of Sevastopol
Sevastopol Bay ( uk, Севастопольська бухта; russian: Севастопольская бухта) is a city harbor that includes a series of smaller bays carved out its shores. The bay of Sevastopol splits the city of Sevastopo ...
File:Celebrating Victory Day and the 70th anniversary of Sevastopol’s liberation (2493-07).jpg, Victory Day in Sevastopol, 9 May 2014
See also
*2121 Sevastopol – asteroid discovered in 1971 by Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
astronomer Tamara Mikhailovna Smirnova and named after the city.
* Sebastopol, Victoria
* Novorossiysk (new planned headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet)
Notes
References
External links
*
* (Russian administration)
* (Ukrainian administration)
Satellite picture by Google Maps
The murder of the Jews of Sevastopol
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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, at Yad Vashem website.
{{Authority control
Sevastopol,
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