Velizh (russian: Ве́лиж) is a
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 the
administrative center
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
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or ...
of
Velizhsky District
Velizhsky District (russian: Ве́лижский райо́н) is an administrativeResolution #261 and municipalLaw #88-z district (raion), one of the twenty-five in Smolensk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the northwest of the oblast and borders ...
in
Smolensk Oblast
Smolensk Oblast (russian: Смоле́нская о́бласть, ''Smolenskaya oblast''; informal name — ''Smolenschina'' (russian: Смоле́нщина)) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative centre is the city of ...
,
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 ...
, located on the bank of the
Western Dvina
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
, from
Smolensk
Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest c ...
, the administrative center of the
oblast
An oblast (; ; Cyrillic (in most languages, including Russian and Ukrainian): , Bulgarian: ) is a type of administrative division of Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Ukraine, as well as the Soviet Union and the Kingdom of ...
. Population:
History
In the late 14th century, it used to be a border fortress of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...
. Muscovy recaptured it in 1536, but it was restored to Lithuania in the 1582
Truce of Yam-Zapolsky
The Truce or Treaty of Yam-Zapolsky (Ям-Запольский) or Jam Zapolski, signed on 15 January 1582 between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia, was one of the treaties that ended the Livonian War. It followed t ...
. The town was returned to Russia under the terms of the
First Partition of Poland. The houses of
Nikolay Przhevalsky
Nikolay Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky (or Prjevalsky;; pl, Nikołaj Przewalski, . – ) was a Russian geographer of Polish descent (he was born in a Polish noble family), and a renowned explorer of Central and East Asia.
Although he never reache ...
and
Alexander Rodzyanko
Alexander Pavlovich Rodzyanko (russian: Александр Павлович Родзянко; 26 August 1879 – 6 May 1970) was an officer of the Imperial Russian Army during the World War I and lieutenant-general and a corps commander of the Wh ...
in the proximity to Velizh are open to the public as museums.
After the
First Partition of Poland in 1772 the area was included into newly established
Pskov Governorate
Pskov Governorate (russian: link=no, Псковская губерния, ''Pskovskaya guberniya'') was an administrative division (a '' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and Russian SFSR, which existed from 1772 until 1777 and from 1796 until ...
, a giant administrative unit comprising what is currently Pskov Oblast and a considerable part of Belarus. After 1773, the area belonged to
Velizhsky Uyezd Velizhsky Uyezd (''Велижский уезд'') was one of the eleven subdivisions of the Vitebsk Governorate of the Russian Empire. It was situated in the southeastern part of the governorate. Its administrative centre was Velizh.
Demographics
A ...
of Pskov Governorate. In 1777, it was transferred to
Polotsk Viceroyalty
Polotsk (russian: По́лоцк; be, По́лацк, translit=Polatsk (BGN/PCGN), Polack (official transliteration); lt, Polockas; pl, Połock) is a historical city in Belarus, situated on the Dvina River. It is the center of the Polotsk Distr ...
. In 1796, the viceroyalty was abolished and the area was transferred to
Byelorussia Governorate
Byelorussia may refer to:
* Belarus, a country in Eastern Europe
* Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia or Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus, an early republic in the historical territory of Belarus after the collapse of the Russian Empire
...
; since 1802 to
Vitebsk Governorate
Vitebsk Governorate (russian: Витебская губерния, ) was an administrative unit ( guberniya) of the Russian Empire, with the seat of governorship in Vitebsk. It was established in 1802 by splitting the Byelorussia Governorate and ...
. Between July and October 1812, Velizh was occupied by the army of Napoleon advancing to Moscow. In 1924, Vitebsk Governorate was abolished, and Velizhsky Uyezds was transferred to Pskov Governorate.
In April 1823, Velizh was the site of an infamous
blood libel
Blood libel or ritual murder libel (also blood accusation) is an antisemitic canardTurvey, Brent E. ''Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis'', Academic Press, 2008, p. 3. "Blood libel: An accusation of ritual mur ...
incident, in which local Jews were wrongly accused of the murder of Christian boy who was found dead in a field. Based on the testimony of a drunk prostitute, over forty Jews were arrested and in 1826 the synagogues were closed. Some of the accused were not released until 1835.
On 1 August 1927, governorates were abolished, and Velizhsky District with the center in Velizh was established. It belonged to
Velikiye Luki Okrug Veliky, or similar, may refer to:
*Veliky (rural locality) (''Velikaya'', ''Velikoye''), name of several rural localities in Russia
*Veliky (surname)
*Velikaya, a river in Pskov Oblast, Russia
*Velikaya (Chukotka), a river in Chukotka, Russia
See ...
of
Leningrad Oblast
Leningrad Oblast ( rus, Ленинградская область, Leningradskaya oblast’, lʲɪnʲɪnˈgratskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ, , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It was established on 1 August 1927, a ...
. On June 17, 1929, Velizhsky District was transferred to
Western Oblast
Western Oblast (russian: Западная область, ''Zapadnaya oblast'') was an ''oblast'' (a first-level administrative and municipal unit) of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1929 to 1937. Its seat was in the city ...
. On 23 July 1930, the okrugs were also abolished and the districts were directly subordinated to the oblast. On 17 September 1937, Western Oblast was abolished, and the district was transferred to
Smolensk Oblast
Smolensk Oblast (russian: Смоле́нская о́бласть, ''Smolenskaya oblast''; informal name — ''Smolenschina'' (russian: Смоле́нщина)) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative centre is the city of ...
.
During World War II, between July 1941 and September 1943, Velizhsky District was occupied by German troops.
Much of the town was destroyed 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 ...
. During the war, Velizh was occupied by the
German Army
The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
from July 14, 1941 to September 20, 1943. In September 1942, German occupation forces murdered all but 17 of the town's 1,440 Jewish residents.
On 1 February 1963, during the abortive Khrushchyov administrative reform, Velizhsky District was merged into Demidovsky District, but on 12 January 1965 it was re-established.
Administrative and municipal status
Within the
framework of administrative divisions, Velizh serves as the
administrative center
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
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or ...
of
Velizhsky District
Velizhsky District (russian: Ве́лижский райо́н) is an administrativeResolution #261 and municipalLaw #88-z district (raion), one of the twenty-five in Smolensk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the northwest of the oblast and borders ...
.
[Resolution #261] As an administrative division, it is, together with seventeen
rural localities, incorporated within Velizhsky District as Velizhskoye
Urban Settlement
An Urban settlement is a concentrated settlement that is part of an urban area. It is an area with high density of human-created structures.
*Municipal urban settlement, a type of subdivision such as Cape town in Western Cape
*Urban settlement, ...
.
As a
municipal division, this administrative unit also has urban settlement status and is a part of Velizhsky Municipal District.
[Law #88-z]
Economy
Industry
In 2013, 35% of the industrial output of Velizhsky district was made by enterprises of textile industry, 17% by timber industry, and 10% by food industry. Most of these enterprises are located in Velizh.
Transportation
Paved roads connect Velizh with
Smolensk
Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest c ...
,
Nevel via
Usvyaty, and
Vitebsk
Vitebsk or Viciebsk (russian: Витебск, ; be, Ві́цебск, ; , ''Vitebsk'', lt, Vitebskas, pl, Witebsk), is a city in Belarus. The capital of the Vitebsk Region, it has 366,299 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-largest ci ...
. There are also local roads with bus traffic originating from Velizh.
The closest railway station is in
Rudnya, on the railway connecting Smolensk with Vitebsk.
Culture and recreation
There is a local museum in Velizh.
Notable people
*
Vladimir Gorev
Vladimir Efimovich Gorev (1900 - 20 June 1938), known as Vladimir Gorev, was a Belarusian soldier known to have participated in the defense of Madrid as a Soviet military advisor during the Spanish Civil War. He was born in 1900 in Velizh, Vitebsk ...
, Belarusian Soviet military
*
Max Penson
Max Zakharovich Penson (russian: Макс Захарович Пенсон; 1893–1959) was a Russian-Jewish photojournalist and photographer of the Soviet Union noted for his photographs of Uzbekistan. Max Penson is one of the most prominent re ...
, Russian photographer and photojournalist
*
Baruch Poupko, Jewish American multi-lingual scholar and Orthodox Rabbi
*
Jurka Vićbič, Belarusian writer, publicist and a prominent member of the Belarusian diaspora
[Арлоў, Уладзімер (2020). ]
ІМЁНЫ СВАБОДЫ (Бібліятэка Свабоды. ХХІ стагодзьдзе.)
' 'Uładzimir Arłou. The Names of Freedom (The Library of Freedom. ХХІ century).''">Uładzimir_Arłou.html" ;"title="'Uładzimir Arłou">'Uładzimir Arłou. The Names of Freedom (The Library of Freedom. ХХІ century).''(PDF) (in Belarusian) (4-е выд., дап. ed.). Радыё Свабодная Эўропа / Радыё Свабода - Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. pp. 304–305.
References
Notes
Sources
*
*
External links
*
Entry on Velizhat Mojgorod.ru
*
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Smolensk Oblast
Vitebsk Voivodeship
Velizhsky Uyezd
Holocaust locations in Russia