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Irkutsk
*** Shopping-Tip: Irkutsk
Image:Irkutskmap.png thumb|Irkutsk's location
'''Irkutsk''' ({{lang-ru|Ирку́Ñ‚Ñ?к}}) is the administrative center of
Irkutsk Oblast, one of the most important places in
Siberia, being not only the principal commercial depot north of
Tashkent, but also a fortified military post, an
archbishopric of the
Russian Orthodox Church and the seat of several learned societies. It is situated at {{coor dm.html">Moscow. Population: 593,604 (
2002 Census.html">Russian_Census (2002)|Census); 500,000 (
1975); 49,106 (
1900); 32,512 (
1875).
Layout
Image:Irkutskcoa.gif left|125px|Irkutsk's coat of arms
Image:Irkutsk architecture.jpg thumb|A Decembrist house, with distinctive hand-carved trim.
Image:Orthodox Church Irkutsk.jpg thumb|275px|Epiphany Minster (1718-46)
Image:Irkutsk City Hall.jpg thumb|Soviet Era City Hall
The town proper lies at the mouth of the
Irkut River (this river gived name to town) in the
Angara, a tributary of the
Yenisei River Yenisei, 45 miles below its outflow from
Lake Baikal, and on the opposite bank is the
suburb of Glaskovsk. The river, which has a breadth of 1900 ft. (579 m), is crossed by a flying bridge. The Irkut, from which the town takes its name, is a small river which joins the Angara directly opposite the town, the main portion of which is separated from the
monastery, the
fort, the
port and the suburbs by another tributary, the Ida or Ushakovka.
Irkutsk has long been reputed to be a remarkably fine city — its streets being straight, broad, well paved and well lighted; but in
1879, on
July 4 and
July 6 6, the palace of the (then) Governor General, the principal administrative and municipal offices and many of the other public buildings were destroyed by fire; and the government
archives, the
library and
museum of the Siberian section of the
Russian Geographical Society were utterly ruined.
On
July 27,
2004, Irkutsk's synagogue built in
1881 suffered an
electrical fire. A
cathedral (built of wood in
1693 and rebuilt of stone in
1718), the governor's palace, a school of medicine, a museum, a military hospital, and the crown factories are among the public institutions and buildings. The illustrious natives of Irkutsk include
Nikolay Okhlopkov.
History
Irkutsk grew out of the winter quarters established (
1652) by
Ivan Pokhabov for the collection of the fur tax from the
Buryats. Its existence as a town dates from
1686.
The most significant person in the religious life of Irkutsk is
Saint Innocent of Alaska Saint Innocent of Irkutsk (
1797–
1879, born Ivan Veniaminov) who was born near Irkutsk, and later entered into the Orthodox
priesthood. He did
missionary travels with his family to the
Aleutians. He learned local languages and translated the
Gospels and the
hymns. Later, after his wife died, Veniaminov became a
monk, Innocent. He was raised to
bishop, and then
archbishop of Irkutsk (till
1867 when he was appointed to the metropolitan Moscow). His title as a
saint is "Miracleworker Innocent of Irkutsk".
In the early
nineteenth century, many Russian
artists, officers and
nobility nobles were sent into
exile to Siberia for their part in the
Decembrist revolt against
Tsar Nicholas I of Russia Nicholas I. Irkutsk became the major center of intellectual and social life for these exiles, and much of the city's cultural heritage comes from them; also, many of their wooden houses, adorned with ornate, hand-carved decorations, survive today in stark contrast with the standard
Soviet apartment blocks that surround them.
During the
Russian Civil War civil war that broke out after the
Bolshevik Revolution, Irkutsk became the site of many furious, bloody clashes between the "
White movement Whites" and the "
Bolsheviks Reds". In
1920,
Aleksandr Kolchak Kolchak, the once-feared commander of the largest contingent of anti-Bolshevik forces, was executed there, effectively destroying the anti-Bolshevik resistance.
Transport
Important roads and railway stations connect Irkutsk to other regions in Russia and
Mongolia. Also, the city is served by the
Irkutsk International Airport.
References
*{{1911}}
Photographs
{{Commonscat|Irkutsk}}
-
Epiphany Cathedral (1718-46)
-
Our Lady of Kazan Church (1885-92)
-
Ascension Church (1747-51)
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Saviour Church (1706-13)
-
Wooden chapel (1678)
External links
-
Satellite picture by Google Maps
-
Flickr photos tagged irkutsk
-
Irkutsk State University
Category:Cities and towns in Irkutsk Oblast
cv:ИркутÑ?к
cs:Irkutsk
da:Irkutsk
de:Irkutsk
el:ΙÏ?κοÏ?τσκ
es:Irkutsk
eo:Irkutsk
fr:Irkoutsk
ko:ì?´ë¥´ì¿ ì¸ í?¬
hr:Irkutsk
io:Irkutsk
os:ИркутÑ?к
it:Irkutsk
he:×?ירקוצק
lt:Irkutskas
nl:Irkoetsk
ja:イルクーツク
pl:Irkuck
pt:Irkutsk
ru:ИркутÑ?к
sr:ИркутÑ?к
fi:Irkutsk
sv:Irkutsk
*** Shopping-Tip: Irkutsk
