Korolyov or Korolev ( rus, Королёв, p=kərɐˈlʲɵf) is an industrial

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Moscow Oblast Moscow Oblast (, , informally known as , ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census) living in an area of , it is one of the most densely populate ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, well known as the cradle of

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and Russian space exploration. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 183,402, the largest as a science city. As of 2018, the population was more than 222,000 people. It was known as Kaliningrad () from 1938 to 1996 and served as the leading Soviet center for production of

anti-tank Anti-tank warfare refers to the military strategies, tactics, and weapon systems designed to counter and destroy enemy armored vehicles, particularly tanks. It originated during World War I following the first deployment of tanks in 1916, and ...

and air-defense guns. In 1946, in the aftermath of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

plant was reconstructed for production of

rocket A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...

launch vehicle A launch vehicle is typically a rocket-powered vehicle designed to carry a payload (a crewed spacecraft or satellites) from Earth's surface or lower atmosphere to outer space. The most common form is the ballistic missile-shaped multistage ...

s, and

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle that is designed spaceflight, to fly and operate in outer space. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth observation, Weather s ...

, under the guidance of Soviet scientist and academician

Sergei Korolev Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (14 January 1966) was the lead Soviet Aerospace engineering, rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s. He invented the R-7 Sem ...

, who envisioned, consolidated and guided the activities of many people in the Soviet space-exploration program. The plant later became known as the RKK Energia; when the Vostok space vehicle was being developed, this research center was designated as

NII-88 TsNIIMash () is a Russian rocket and spacecraft scientific center, dealing with all phases of development from conceptual design to flight test. The Institute is the main analytical center of Roskosmos in the field of system-wide studies of the ...

or POB 989. Russian Mission Control Center is also located in Korolyov. Though the real control is decentralized due to security reasons and all space aircraft may be controlled from many different locations across Russia, the historic center of control is still in Korolyov, and is called FCC – Flights Control Center. In July 1996, the city was renamed in commemoration of

, the father of the Soviet/Russian space program, who died in 1966. Since 1997, Korolyov has hosted the International Space Olympics, an annual competition for young people to promote space related research.

History

In the 12th century, a Slavic settlement was located on the site of modern Korolyov. The settlement stood on a junction of trade routes between the

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and

Vladimir-Suzdal The Principality of Suzdal, from 1157 the Grand Principality of Vladimir, commonly known as Vladimir-Suzdal, or simply Suzdalia, was a medieval principality that was established during the disintegration of Kievan Rus'. In historiography, the ...

principalities. After the

Mongol conquests The Mongol invasions and conquests took place during the 13th and 14th centuries, creating history's largest contiguous empire, the Mongol Empire (1206–1368), which by 1260 covered large parts of Eurasia. Historians regard the Mongol devastati ...

in the 13th century, the region was in decline. The village of Podlipki had formed on the site by the 18th century, when one of the first textile factories in Russia was established there. From the late 19 century, Podlipki was also known as a

dacha A dacha (Belarusian, Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and rus, дача, p=ˈdatɕə, a=ru-dacha.ogg) is a seasonal or year-round second home, often located in the exurbs of former Soviet Union, post-Soviet countries, including Russia. A cottage (, ...

village frequented by many literali, as can be witnessed by the name of Podlipki-Dachnye railway station. They later moved their dachas to Peredelkino in

's southwestern suburb, when Podlipki became a

closed city A closed city or town is a settlement where travel or residency restrictions are applied. Historically, the construction of closed cities became increasingly common after the beginning of the Cold War, particularly in the Soviet Union. Since t ...

of the

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

. In 1924, the first

OGPU The Joint State Political Directorate ( rus, Объединённое государственное политическое управление, p=ɐbjɪdʲɪˈnʲɵn(ː)əjə ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əjə pəlʲɪˈtʲitɕɪskəjə ʊprɐˈv ...

working commune in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

was established at Podlipki. In 1938, the Kalininsky settlement near an

plant (which had previously been relocated from

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

to better protect it in case of any future war) was granted town status and named Kaliningrad (meaning Kalinin City, after Bolshevik leader

Mikhail Kalinin Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin (, ; 3 June 1946) was a Soviet politician and Russian Old Bolshevik revolutionary who served as the first chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet (head of state) from 1938 until his resignation in 1946. From ...

; not to be confused with the Baltic port city also renamed Kaliningrad after Mikhail Kalinin in 1946). Over the next three decades the town expanded greatly as a home of

manufacturing for both military

missile A missile is an airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight aided usually by a propellant, jet engine or rocket motor. Historically, 'missile' referred to any projectile that is thrown, shot or propelled towards a target; this ...

s and the

Soviet space program The Soviet space program () was the state space program of the Soviet Union, active from 1951 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Contrary to its competitors (NASA in the United States, the European Space Agency in Western Euro ...

. As such it was a

to foreigners, who could not travel there.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated as Korolyov City Under Oblast Jurisdiction—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the

districts 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 ...

.Law #11/2013-OZ As a municipal division, Korolyov City Under Oblast Jurisdiction is incorporated as Korolyov Urban Okrug.Law #53/2014-OZ In June 2014, Yubileyny, Moscow Oblast Town Under Oblast Jurisdiction was merged into Korolyov City Under Oblast JurisdictionLaw #54/2014-OZ. Additionally, the town of Yubileyny was struck from the ''Inventory Data of the Administrative-Territorial and Territorial Units of Moscow Oblast'' in August 2014. and on the municipal side, Yubileyny Urban Okrug was merged into Korolyov Urban Okrug. The town of Yubileyny ceased to exist as an independent entity.

Demographics

As of 1 January 2016, Korolyov was in 93 place out of 1112 cities in Russia based on demographics. On 2 June 2014, the city of Yubileniy officially became a part of Korolyov. With a total population of 220 thousand people, Korolyov became the third largest city in Moscow Oblast based on population after

Balashikha Balashikha ( rus, Балашиха, p=bəlɐˈʂɨxə) is a city in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Pekhorka River east of the Moscow Ring Road. Population: Etymology In Finno-Ugric languages, ''Bala-shika'' means ''land of celebration ...

(428,400) and Khimki (239 967).

Politics

During the implementation of the municipal reform, by 1 January 2006, Korolyov was granted the status of the Korolyov urban district as the only settlement within it.

Authorities

On 14 September 2014, the candidate from the

United Russia The All-Russian Political Party United Russia (, ) is the Ruling party, ruling List of political parties in Russia, political party of Russia. As the largest party in the Russian Federation, it holds 325 (or 72.22%) of the 450 seats in the St ...

party, Alexander Khodyrev, was elected head of Korolyov.

Economy

The main enterprise of the city is the RKK Energia, but there are several kinds of industry in the city. This naukograd (science city) is the place in which the first Youth Residential Complex in the Soviet Union was built. Another notable company located in the city is OAO

Kompozit OAO "Кompozit" (Open Joint Stock Company "Kompozit") () is a company in the field of materials science, famous for its role in several spacecraft and rocket projects. It is based in Korolyov (city), Korolyov, Moscow Oblast. Overview OAO Kompozit ...

, which is engaged in the field of materials science. Today the city is prosperous overall. But in the Soviet-era economy, the city typified the wide contrasts and ironic juxtapositions that arose as some aspects of life were heavily funded by the government while others remained chronically underfunded. Yuri Krotkov described in his 1967 memoir. how, at the same time that advanced technology was being built for space rockets, the textile plants of old Podlipki went on for decades with nearly no improvement on their 1920s equipment, and starkly impoverished workers in various hard and glamourless jobs of prerevolutionary days crossed paths, sometimes resentfully, with the skilled technicians and scientists, who were substantially better paid despite the slogans of

Soviet ideology Before the perestroika reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev that promoted a more liberal form of socialism, the formal ideology of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) was Marxism–Leninism, a form of socialism consisting of a Centralisa ...

around the equal dignity of

manual labour Manual labour (in Commonwealth English, manual labor in American English) or manual work is physical work done by humans, in contrast to labour by machines and working animals. It is most literally work done with the hands (the word ''manual ...

ers.

Sports

The

bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two team sport, teams wearing Ice skates#Bandy skates, ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The playin ...

club Vympel has played in the Russian Bandy Supreme League, which is the second-highest division. Their home arena has a capacity of 10 000. A plan existed to equip the stadium with artificial ice, but the project has been abandoned. Although an indoor ice hockey-sized arena entered the plans instead, the official reason given was financial problems. Now Vympel only plays in the amateur league of

. In 2014 a bandy federation for the city was founded.

Notable people

The area was a place of elite

s at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century. Many famous people, such as Konstantin Stanislavsky,

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

, Valery Bryusov,

Boris Pasternak Boris Leonidovich Pasternak (30 May 1960) was a Russian and Soviet poet, novelist, composer, and literary translator. Composed in 1917, Pasternak's first book of poems, ''My Sister, Life'', was published in Berlin in 1922 and soon became an imp ...

Anna Akhmatova Anna Andreyevna Gorenko rus, А́нна Андре́евна Горе́нко, p=ˈanːə ɐnˈdrʲe(j)ɪvnə ɡɐˈrʲɛnkə, a=Anna Andreyevna Gorenko.ru.oga, links=yes; , . ( – 5 March 1966), better known by the pen name Anna Akhmatova,. ...

, Isaac Levitan, Pavel Tretyakov,

Marina Tsvetaeva Marina Ivanovna Tsvetaeva ( rus, Марина Ивановна Цветаева, p=mɐˈrʲinə ɪˈvanəvnə tsvʲɪˈta(j)ɪvə, links=yes; 31 August 1941) was a Russian poet. Her work is some of the most well-known in twentieth-century Russ ...

and

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

, lived here.

Twin towns and sister cities

Korolyov is twinned with: * Zhukovsky, Russia *

, Russia * Khimki, Russia *

Baikonur Baikonur ( ; ) is a city in Kazakhstan on the northern bank of the Syr Darya river. It is currently leased and administered by the Russian Federation as an enclave until 2050. It was constructed to serve the Baikonur Cosmodrome with adminis ...

, Kazakhstan

References

Notes

↑ Population of Russian Federation by municipality from 1 January 2016. Численность населения Российской Федерации по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2016 года. Таблица «31. Численность населения городов и пгт по федеральным округам и субъектам Российской Федерации на 1 января 2016 года». RAR-архив (1,0 Mб

Sources

* * * * *