Vysotsk (russian: Высо́цк; fi, Uuras; sv, Trångsund) is a coastal

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and a seaport in

Vyborgsky District Vyborgsky District is the name of several administrative and municipal districts in Russia. *Vyborgsky District, Leningrad Oblast, an administrative and municipal district of Leningrad Oblast *Vyborgsky District, Saint Petersburg, an administrati ...

Leningrad Oblast Leningrad Oblast ( rus, Ленинградская область, Leningradskaya oblast’, lʲɪnʲɪnˈgratskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ, , ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It was established on 1 August 1927, although it was not until 194 ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, located on the

Karelian Isthmus The Karelian Isthmus (russian: Карельский перешеек, Karelsky peresheyek; fi, Karjalankannas; sv, Karelska näset) is the approximately stretch of land, situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern ...

, on the eastern shore of the

Vyborg Bay Vyborg Bay (, , ) is a deep inlet running northeastward near the eastern end of Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea. The city of Vyborg is located near the head of the gulf. The Monrepos Park is considered a jewel of the bay and a major draw f ...

, southwest of

Vyborg Vyborg (; rus, Вы́борг, links=1, r=Výborg, p=ˈvɨbərk; fi, Viipuri ; sv, Viborg ; german: Wiborg ) is a town in, and the administrative center of, Vyborgsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Karelian Isthmus n ...

and northwest of St. Petersburg. It hosts a base of the Russian Baltic Fleet and, since 2004, an oil terminal. Population: In terms of population, it remains one of the smallest towns in Russia.

History

The

Trångsund Fortress Trångsund Fortress (russian: Крепость Тронгзунд, fi, Uuraan linnoitus) is a naval fort by the Vyborg Bay in the town of Vysotsk, Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It was established by Peter the Great in 1710 to secure the town of Vyb ...

(lit. ''narrow strait'') was built by the order of Peter the Great in the beginning of the 18th century after the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia or Tsardom of Rus' also externally referenced as the Tsardom of Muscovy, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of Tsar by Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter I ...

had captured the area from Sweden during the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swed ...

. In 1812, Trongzund was included by Alexander I into the newly created

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland ( fi, Suomen suuriruhtinaskunta; sv, Storfurstendömet Finland; russian: Великое княжество Финляндское, , all of which literally translate as Grand Principality of Finland) was the predecess ...

. Between 1918 and 1940, the town was part of

Viipuri Province Viipuri Province ( fi, Viipurin lääni'', commonly abbreviated'' Vpl, sv, Viborgs län or Wiborgs län, russian: Выборгская губерния) was a historical province of Finland from 1812 to 1945. History The predecessor of the ...

of independent

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

under the name ''Uuras''. As a result of the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

and subsequent

Moscow Peace Treaty The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on 12 March 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on 21 March. It marked the end of the 105-day Winter War, upon which Finland ceded border areas to the Soviet Union. The ...

, it was occupied by the

Soviet Union 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, ...

in 1940 and became a part of

of the Karelo-Finnish SSR. In 1941, during the

Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet-Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, as part of World War II.; sv, fortsättningskriget; german: Fortsetzungskrieg. A ...

, it was liberated by Finnish troops and returned to Finland. In June 1944, the town was occupied 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, afte ...

and was annexed to the Soviet Union according to the

Moscow Armistice The Moscow Armistice was signed between Finland on one side and the Soviet Union and United Kingdom on the other side on 19 September 1944, ending the Continuation War. The Armistice restored the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940, with a number of mo ...

and

Paris Peace Treaty The Paris Peace Treaties (french: Traités de Paris) were signed on 10 February 1947 following the end of World War II in 1945. The Paris Peace Conference lasted from 29 July until 15 October 1946. The victorious wartime Allied powers (princi ...

. On November 24, 1944, it was transferred to

. In July 1948, the town was renamed Vysotsk in honor of the Soviet machine gunner Kuzma Demidovich Vysotsky, who was killed in the area on March 4, 1940 during the final days of the Winter War. Vysotsk may be considered one of the cradles of

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

, as it was there that Alexander Popov conducted his pioneering experiments in 1897 and 1902.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated within

as Vysotskoye Settlement Municipal Formation.Oblast Law #32-oz As a municipal division, Vysotskoye Settlement Municipal Formation is incorporated within Vyborgsky Municipal District as Vysotskoye Urban Settlement.Law #17-oz

Economy

Vysotsk, along with

and Primorsk, is one of the three most important Russian ports in the Gulf of Finland. All three towns are connected by roads. There is a railway station in Vysotsk, the end station of a railway line branching off at Popovo railway station; however, there is no passenger service.

References

Notes

Sources

* * {{Use mdy dates, date=August 2012 Cities and towns in Leningrad Oblast Populated coastal places in Russia Forts in Russia Karelian Isthmus Russian and Soviet Navy bases Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Finland–Soviet Union relations