Shchastia ( uk, Ща́стя, lit=Happiness, translit=Shchastia, ; russian: Сча́стье) is a city in the Shchastia Raion of the

Luhansk Oblast Luhansk Oblast ( uk, Луга́нська о́бласть, translit=Luhanska oblast; russian: Луганская область, translit=Luganskaya oblast; also referred to as Luhanshchyna, uk, Луга́нщина) is the easternmost oblast ...

(

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

) in

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 ...

. Population: The Luhansk power station, a large powerplant built in the 1950s, is located north of Shchastia. The town of Shchastia is situated on the Donets river. During the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, the city became a key site of fighting.

History

The village of Shchastia was founded in 1754. In 1953, construction began on the Luhansk power station. Shchastia received town status in 1963. In 2014 Shchastia was controlled by the separatist

Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk or Lugansk People's Republic (russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, ; abbreviated as LPR or LNR, rus, ЛНР) is a disputed entity created by Russian-backed ...

from late April 2014 till the

Ukrainian army The Ukrainian Ground Forces ( uk, Сухопу́тні військá Збрóйних сил Украї́ни), also known as the Ukrainian Army, are the land forces of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They w ...

retook the city on 14 June 2014. It was mainly retaken by the volunteer fighters of the

Aidar battalion 24th Separate Assault Battalion "Aidar", also known as the Aidar Battalion, is an assault battalion of the Ukrainian Ground Forces. The unit took part in the war in Eastern Ukraine and had roughly 300-400 members in 2014. It was named after the ...

who according to Amnesty International then with “virtually no oversight or control” committed war crimes in Shchastia and nearby cities. According to Shchastia residents this behaviour continued until Aidar was incorporated into the Ukrainian army in spring 2015. On 5 August 2014, a monument of

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...

was removed from the city of Shchastia. To facilitate the governance of Luhansk Oblast during the

War in Donbas War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, 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 ...

on 7 October 2014 made some changes in the administrative divisions, so that the localities in the government-controlled areas were grouped into districts. In particular, Shchastia was transferred from Luhansk Municipality to Novoaidar Raion. On 9 February 2016

112 Ukraine 112 Ukraine ( uk, 112 Україна) was a private Ukrainian TV channel which provided 24-hour news coverage. 112 Ukraine was available on satellites AMOS 2/3, via the DVB-T2 network, and was also available in packages of all major Ukrainian ca ...

reported that part of the settlement was under control of Ukrainian forces. On February 24, 2022, the first day of the

2022 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. ...

, Shchastia came under attack by Russian forces and was quickly occupied. 80% of the town has been destroyed in the invasion. According to locals 90% of all houses were destroyed by shelling.

Demographics

Native language as of the Ukrainian Census of 2001: *

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 ...

88.0% * Ukrainian 11.2%

Picture gallery

File:Shchastia Hram.jpg, Shchastia cathedral File:Shchastia Leleka.jpg, Cranes monument File:Shchastia Loshady.jpg, Horse monument File:Shchastia Pamyatnsk.jpg, WW2 monument in Shchastia File:Mertvy Donets near Lugansk.jpg, Mertvy Donets River near Shchastia File:Shchastia LTES.jpg, Luhansk thermal power plant

References

External links

Map of the town.
{{Authority control Cities in Luhansk Oblast Shchastia Raion Populated places established in the Russian Empire