Zvenyhorodka ( uk, Звенигородка ; pl, Zwinogródka; russian: Звенигородка) is a city located in the

Cherkasy Oblast Cherkasy Oblast ( uk, Черка́ська о́бласть, Cherkaska oblast, ), also referred to as Cherkashchyna ( uk, Черка́щина, ) is an oblast (province) of central Ukraine located along the Dnieper River. The administrative center ...

(

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

) in central

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 ...

on the Hnylyi Tikych river. The town is the administrative center of the

Zvenyhorodka Raion Zvenyhorodka Raion is a raion (district) of Cherkasy Oblast, central Ukraine. Its administrative centre is located at the city of Zvenyhorodka. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions o ...

(

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

). It hosts the administration of

Zvenyhorodka urban hromada Zvenyhorodka ( uk, Звенигородка ; pl, Zwinogródka; russian: Звенигородка) is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast (province) in central Ukraine on the Hnylyi Tikych river. The town is the administrative center of the Z ...

, one of the

hromada A hromada ( uk, територіальна громада, lit=territorial community, translit=terytorialna hromada) is a basic unit of administrative division in Ukraine, similar to a municipality. It was established by the Government of Ukra ...

s of Ukraine. The city has a population of

History

Early history

Zvenyhorodka has its origins in the days of the

Kievan 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 ...

and the first mention of the city dates back to 1394, although its actual origins are likely to be older, as the city was previously destroyed during the

Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus' The Mongol Empire invaded and conquered Kievan Rus' in the 13th century, destroying numerous southern cities, including the largest cities, Kiev (50,000 inhabitants) and Chernihiv (30,000 inhabitants), with the only major cities escaping destr ...

. According to modern legend, the original city was situated 3km further from its current location, encircling a conical mountain. In 1504 Zvenyhorodka became part 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 ...

, after being relinquished by

Meñli I Giray Meñli I Giray ( crh3, I Meñli Geray, ۱منكلى كراى) (1445–1515), also spelled as Mengli I Giray, was a '' khan'' of the Crimean Khanate (1466, 1469–1475, 1478–1515) and the sixth son of Hacı I Giray. Biography Struggle f ...

. It passed to the

Crown of the Kingdom of Poland The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, includ ...

in 1569 following the capture of

Right-bank Ukraine Right-bank Ukraine ( uk , Правобережна Україна, ''Pravoberezhna Ukrayina''; russian: Правобережная Украина, ''Pravoberezhnaya Ukraina''; pl, Prawobrzeżna Ukraina, sk, Pravobrežná Ukrajina, hu, Jobb p ...

. Following this takeover, the population was subject to significant socio-economic oppression from the Polish aristocracy in the forms of various taxes. During the 1648-1654 Khmelnytsky Uprising, the townsfolk revolted and expelled the Polish nobility from the region. Zvenyhorodka then remained part of the Korsun Regiment, a military-territorial unit of the Hetman state, until the Polish crown regained control of Right-bank Ukraine in 1667 as per the Andrusiv Armistice. Under Polish rule, the population suffered under socio-economic oppression again and fell victim to various national and religious hostilities. The

Catholic clergy The sacrament of holy orders in the Catholic Church includes three orders: bishops, priests, and deacons, in decreasing order of rank, collectively comprising the clergy. In the phrase "holy orders", the word "holy" means "set apart for a sa ...

violently pursued a campaign of polarising Ukrainian nationals, which led to several uprisings in the

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

Haydamak The haidamakas, also haidamaky or haidamaks (singular ''haidamaka'', ua, Гайдамаки, ''Haidamaky'') were Ukrainian paramilitary outfits composed of commoners (peasants, craftsmen), and impoverished noblemen in the eastern part of the ...

forces were active in the area, led by the

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

Gnat Goly A gnat () is any of many species of tiny flying insects in the dipterid suborder Nematocera, especially those in the families Mycetophilidae, Anisopodidae and Sciaridae. They can be both biting and non-biting. Most often they fly in large num ...

, and they twice stormed the local castle, in 1737 and then 1743. Following these attacks, the Polish government built fortifications around the castle, including new towers and barracks. During the

Koliivshchyna The Koliivshchyna ( uk, Коліївщина, pl, koliszczyzna) was a major haidamaky rebellion that broke out in Right-bank Ukraine in June 1768, caused by money (Dutch ducats coined in Saint Petersburg) sent by Russia to Ukraine to pay for th ...

rebellion in 1768, many residents of the city joined the insurgents in fighting against the Catholic church and Polish nobility, amongst others, due to the treatment of peasants and their serfdom. The rebellion was unsuccessful and the city remained under Polish control. In 1792 King

Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarch ...

granted Zwinogródka city rights under

Magdeburg law Magdeburg rights (german: Magdeburger Recht; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within c ...

and it became a

royal city Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ...

of Poland. In the following year it was annexed 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 ...

after the Second Partition of Poland.

Russian Empire

From 1798 Zvenyhorodka became an administrative centre of uyezd in Kiev Governorate 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. ...

. The intensive development of trade owing to the inclusion of Zvenyhorodka in the Russian market allowed for rapid development of industries, in particularly

dairy A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...

and

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

, as well as

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...

and handicrafts. The city became one of the centres of the dairy industry alongside Chyhyryn and

Bila Tserkva Bila Tserkva ( uk, Бі́ла Це́рква ; ) is a city in the center of Ukraine, the largest city in Kyiv Oblast (after Kyiv, which is the administrative center, but not part of the oblast), and part of the Right Bank. It serves as the admi ...

. In the 1830s the city saw considerable development including the construction of a local hospital, post office, telegraph communications, and a bridge over the river Hnylyi Tikich. Classes began at the

parish school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The ...

in 1833 with just over 20 students being educated and most of the population being illiterate at the time.

Post-war

Around the turn to the 20th century the town had a train station, three

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...

churches and one

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church.''Meyers Konversations-Lexikon''. 6th edition, vol. 19, Leipzig and Vienna 1909, p. 227 (in German). A local newspaper has been published here since March 14, 1919.

Number of inhabitants in years

* 1850: 7, 501 * 1897: 16, 972 * 1926: 18, 020, 61%

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 ...

, 37%

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, 1%

ns and 1%

Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...

. * 1989: 22, 740 * 2013: 17, 958Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2013 року. Державна служба статистики України. Київ, 2013. стор.106
/ref>

Climate

Notable residents

* Ahatanhel Krymsky (1871–1942), Ukrainian philologist and orientalist. * David Günzburg (1857–1910), Russian orientalist and Jewish communal leader. *

Horace Günzburg Horace Günzburg (Goratsii Evzelevich Gintsburg, Гораций Евзелевич Гинцбург, (''Naftali-Gerts Evzelevich Gintsburg'') 8 February 1833 in Zvenigorodka, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire – 2 March 1909 in Saint Petersburg), ...

(1833–1909), Russian

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

. *

Grigory Petrovich Nikulin Grigory Petrovich Nikulin (Russian: Григо́рий Петро́вич Нику́лин; 10 January 1895 .S. 27 December 1894– 22 September 1965) was a Russian Bolshevik revolutionary best known for taking part in the execution of the Emp ...

(1895–1965), Russian

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

and Chekist.

Gallery

File:71-212-0034 Zvenigrodka Shevchenko SAM 2478.jpg,

Taras Shevchenko Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko ( uk, Тарас Григорович Шевченко , pronounced without the middle name; – ), also known as Kobzar Taras, or simply Kobzar (a kobzar is a bard in Ukrainian culture), was a Ukraine, Ukrainian p ...

monument File:Звенигородка, Черкащина. будинок, у якому народився А.Кримський - вчений, письменник. Нині - музей.TIF, Ahatanhel Krymsky Museum in Zvenyhorodka File:Zvenyhorodka Conglomerate.JPG , Nature in Zvenyhorodka

References

Notes

Sources

* (1972) ''Історіа міст і сіл Української CCP - Черкаська область (History of Towns and Villages of the Ukrainian SSR - Cherkasy Oblast)'',

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 ...

. {{Authority control Cities in Cherkasy Oblast Zvenigorodsky Uyezd (Kiev Governorate) Kiev Voivodeship Bratslav Voivodeship Cities of district significance in Ukraine