More than five hundred years ago at the very end of a very troubled fifteenth century, the ruling, then Prince Ivan III commanded to establish a fortress at the very border with a restless neighbor of the Livonia. Thus, in the front turns, the current Ivangorod appeared. At first it was a very small settlement, but later it turned into a real city by the middle of the last century. In principle, it is now a modest provincial town, standing on the very border with Estonia. Therefore, in order to visit it, you must at least get a pass here.
Of course, the very famous fortress with which he began and began to be the very largest landmark of Ivangorod. This fortress was significantly different from other previously constructed the fact that during its construction it was used a pre-clear plan. That is, the natural terrain has not been repeated, as was done in the device of other fortification structures.
The fortress was built over the River River on the maiden hill in 1492. Unfortunately, literally a few years after the end of its construction, she was attacked by the enemy and was easily captured by him. This unpleasant circumstance served two reasons - too small sizes of the fortress itself, because of which it was impossible to place a large garrison. And the second reason was that the fortress was built distant from the river, which did not become a natural barrier on the approaches to it.
Of course after such an unpleasant confusion, the fortress decided to increase and strengthen. The boyars city was completed - a new part of the fortress with six-meter powerful walls and built well fortified front city. It was also built another fortress wall around those structures that were erected earlier. Thus, it turned out a peculiar "fortress in the fortress."
Here in such a formidable and impregnable form, she has already caused much more dangerous from the invaders. Nevertheless, she was still able to capture the Swedes in the sixteenth century, and only during the Northern War, the troops under the command of Peter I managed to return the fortress back. Unfortunately, during the Great Patriotic War, the fortress was significantly injured, and therefore restoration work is underway for many years. But nevertheless there is something to see and inspires great respect for the builders and to defenders of the fortress.
Also worth it to look into the Ivangorodsky Art Museum. There is a very interesting exposition that tells about the past of this city, the objects of the life of the gorges living in it are presented, as well as the materials of archaeological excavations. It is noteworthy the museum building itself, built in the middle of the nineteenth century a merchant Panteleyev. Also here you can see the work of local artists.
Museum of military-defensive architecture is in not too attractive at first view of the building. His even at the beginning of the last century was held by the customs, and now there are wooden layouts that exactly reproduce all eight fortresses built at different times in the northwestern part of the Russian state. Also here are manuscripts and books in which the fortress facilities of antiquity are described, and you can also see objects found by archaeologists in the places of ancient fortresses.
Assumption Cathedral was built from the very beginning on the territory of the Ivangorod fortress, he was built in the sixteenth century, just when work was held on its strengthening. When the city was captured by the Swedes, the church was turned into Lutheran. And only after returning the city to Russia by decree Catherine II in 1744 the temple was returned to the Lohn of the Orthodox Church.
A very small Nikolsky church was also built on the territory of the fortress, but after the Livonian war. It was originally dedicated to the icon of Nicholas of the Harehouse. There is a legend that the Germans threw this holy icon into the fire, why wooden houses caught fire and then Russian troops taking a panic of the enemy managed to capture Narva. Here in memory of the great victory by Novgorod masters and the church was erected at this place.
Do not forget to walk along a very unusual area of Ivangorod, which is called a canas. It is separate because it is separated from the main part of the city by the River Narva River. To date, this village is divided into two parts by the state border. Its remarkable is that in the nineteenth century, a canvasian spinning factory was built here at Baron Stiglitz. Subsequently, a working settlement appeared near her, fully resembling factory English settlements. She was called Kregolm at the time.
Nowadays, this place seems to be as soon as the pages of Dickens novels. Here you can see the most real factory barracks, which were built at the very beginning of the twentieth century, then the building of the manufactory itself, the round building of the working dining room, which was built in the same period, Stalin's houses and still built by Estonians in the past century. So this urban area with full right can be considered an architectural reserve.