Luga (; Finnish: ''Ylä-Laukaa'' or ''Laukaa''; ; ) is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and the

administrative center An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgiu ...

Luzhsky District Luzhsky District () is an administrativeOblast Law #32-oz and municipalLaw #65-oz district (raion), one of the seventeen in Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the oblast and borders with Gatchinsky District in the north, T ...

Leningrad Oblast Leningrad Oblast (, ; ; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). The oblast has an area of and a population of 2,000,997 (2021 Russian census, 2021 Census); up from 1,716,868 recorded in the 2010 Russian census ...

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 ...

, located on the

Luga River The Luga () is a river in Novgorodsky and Batetsky Districts of Novgorod Oblast and Luzhsky, Volosovsky, Slantsevsky, and Kingiseppsky Districts of Leningrad Oblast of Russia. The river flows into the Luga Bay of the Gulf of Finland. It free ...

south of St. Petersburg. Population:

History

It was founded on the banks of the river of that name by order of the

Catherine the Great Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

on August 3 (14), 1777. The town developed in following stages: #Initial construction (1777–c. 1800) #Early growth to population of 3,000 (c. 1810–c. 1860) #Intense social and urban development (c. 1870–1910) #Soviet development according to the typical plan for smaller towns (1926–c. 1950) #Reconstruction of the historical town structure (c. 1960–c. 1995) #Transition to free market agro-industrial town (c. 1995–2005) Luga was founded as a town in

Pskov Viceroyalty Pskov Viceroyalty () was an administrative-territorial unit ('' namestnichestvo'') of the Russian Empire, which existed in 1777–1796. The seat of the Viceroyalty was located in Pskov. Both the predecessor and the successor of the viceroyalty ...

, but in March 3 (14), 1782 it was transferred to St. Petersburg Governorate (renamed Petrogradsky in 1913 and Leningradsky in 1924) and became the seat of

Luzhsky Uyezd Luzhsky Uyezd () was one of the eight subdivisions of the Saint Petersburg Governorate of the Russian Empire. Its capital was Luga. Luzhsky Uyezd was located in the southwestern part of the governorate (in the southwestern part of present-day Lenin ...

. In 1918, important events of the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

took place in the area, when the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

unsuccessfully tried to conquer Petrograd. On August 1, 1927, the uyezds were abolished and Luzhsky District, with the administrative center in Luga, was established. The governorates were also abolished and the district became a part of Luga Okrug of

. On July 23, 1930, the okrugs were abolished as well and the districts were directly subordinated to the oblast. On September 19, 1939, Luga became a town of oblast significance and was thus no longer a part of the district. The

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 ...

German advance on Leningrad was temporarily halted by seven regular, militia, and irregular divisions in the Luga area and this delayed the commencement of the

Siege of Leningrad The siege of Leningrad was a Siege, military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the city of Leningrad (present-day Saint Petersburg) in the Soviet Union on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 1941 t ...

by over a month. In recognition of this feat, the town was awarded the title of " Hero City" and listed as one of the World War II Cities of Military Glory by

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

, the

President of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

. German occupation of Luga lasted from August 24, 1941 to February 12, 1944. In 2010, the administrative structure of Leningrad Oblast was harmonized with its municipal structure and Luga became a town of district significance.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Luga serves as the

.Oblast Law #32-oz As an administrative division, it is, together with four rural localities, incorporated within Luzhsky District as Luzhskoye Settlement Municipal Formation. As a municipal division, Luzhskoye Settlement Municipal Formation is incorporated within Luzhsky Municipal District as Luzhskoye Urban Settlement.Law #65-oz

Economy

Industry

There are enterprises of construction, chemical, and food industries in Luga.

Transportation

Luga lies on the railway line connecting the

Baltiysky railway station St. Petersburg–Baltiysky () is a railway station in St. Petersburg, one of the busiest railway stations in Russia by volume of suburban traffic. The station was modelled by architect Alexander Krakau after Gare de l'Est in Paris. Constructi ...

of St. Petersburg with

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=Ru-Псков.oga, p=psˈkof; see also Names of Pskov in different languages, names in other languages) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov O ...

. Another railway line to Batetsky and

Veliky Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the ...

branches off east. Both have suburban service. The M20 Highway, connecting St. Petersburg with Pskov and eventually with

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, passes Luga. In Luga, two more roads branch eastwards: one running to Veliky Novgorod and another one to Lyuban and

Mga Mga () is an types of inhabited localities in Russia, urban locality (an urban-type settlement) in Kirovsky District, Leningrad Oblast, Kirovsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. Population: The name is almost certainly derived from the iden ...

, largely following the border of Leningrad Oblast.

Education

The town has a university (KGU Kirilla and Mefodiya), three Institutes of Technical Education, and six schools.

Military

Luga is home to the 26th Rocket Brigade.

Culture and recreation

Luga contains twenty-five objects classified as cultural and historical heritage of local significance. These include the main sights remaining from the 18th and the 19th century such as the St. Catherine Cathedral (1786) and the Resurrection Cathedral (1872–1877). The Luzhsky District Museum, the only state museum in the district, is located in Luga.

Twin towns and sister cities

Luga is twinned with: *

Mikkeli Mikkeli (; ; ; ) is a List of cities and towns in Finland, city in, and the regional capital of, South Savo, Finland, located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population is approximately , while the Mikkeli sub-region of Southern Savonia has a populat ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

Notable people

Anton von Saltza Anton may refer to: People *Anton (given name), a list of people with the given name *Anton (surname), a list of people with the surname Places *Anton Municipality, Bulgaria **Anton, Sofia Province, a village *Antón District, Panama **Antón, ...

(1843–1916) - general * Walter Polakov (1879–1948) - mechanical engineer *

Gratsian Botev Gratsian Botev (12 December 1928 – 16 August 1981) was a Soviet sprint canoeist who competed in the late 1950s. At the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian ...

(1928–1981) - sprint canoer *

Nina Urgant Nina Nikolayevna Urgant (; 4 September 1929 – 3 December 2021Умер ...

(1929–2021) - film and stage actress *

Boris Marshak Boris Ilich Marshak (; 9 July 1933 – 28 July 2006) was an archeologist who spent more than fifty years excavating the Sogdian ruins at Panjakent, Tajikistan. Biography Boris Ilich Marshak was born in Luga, Leningrad Oblast, Russian SFSR ...

(1933–2006) - archeologist * Gennadi Nilov (1936) - actor * Lyudmila Besrukova (1945) - sprint canoer *

Georgi Zažitski Georgi Zažitski (born 5 February 1946), also known as Georgy Semyonovich Zazhitski (Георгий Семёнович Зажицкий), is a Soviet fencer. He won a bronze medal in the team épée event at the 1972 Summer Olympics The 1 ...

(1949) - fencer *

Vladimir Bystrov Vladimir Sergeyevich Bystrov (, born 31 January 1984) is a Russian former footballer who played as a right winger. Career FC Zenit Saint Petersburg Bystrov began his career in youth club Smena. In 2001, he transferred to Zenit. On 8 May 200 ...

(1984) - footballer

References

Notes

Sources

* * {{Authority control Cities and towns in Leningrad Oblast Luzhsky District Luzhsky Uyezd