Murmansk can be proud of the fact that it is the largest settlement in the world, which is located beyond the Arctic Circle. But the history of Murmansk knows other records, no less important facts and events.
Murmansk has been awarded several orders and medals, has the loud title of “hero city”. Today it is a beautiful port city, economic and cultural center. It all started with a small settlement on the shores of the Barents Sea.
Age of Discovery
Murmansk is a relatively young city; the establishment of a settlement in the Arctic Circle was planned by the authorities of the Russian Empire in the second half of the 19th century. But the first heroes arrived here only in 1912 to find a convenient location for the city.
The events of the First World War pushed for the earliest possible construction of a port in the Kola Bay. Naturally, the village of Semenovsky was born nearby, in which the workers of the port and their families lived. The settlement got its name in honor of the nearest bay. The port's mission is to provide Russia with cargoes from the allies during the war in the event of a blockade of other naval possessions of the empire (the Black and Baltic Seas).
And although the first prospectors appeared in 1912, the date of foundation is considered to be 1916, when an important event for the settlement took place on the hill - the laying of the first stone in the foundation of the temple. Later it was consecrated in honor of Nicholas of Mirlikisky, who is considered the patron saint of seafarers.
Another interesting fact is Murmansk, the last city that was founded in the Russian Empire. Subsequent settlements are the result of the activities of the authorities of the councils. The port city received the name Romanov-on-Murman, it is clear that after the revolution of the first part of the name, "Romanov", there was no place, the name was transformed into Murmansk. This is how the history of Murmansk is briefly described until 1917.
The years of Soviet power
It was not immediately that the power of the Soviets won in this northern city. After the revolution in Petrograd and Murmansk, a revolutionary committee was created. But already in March 1918, the Entente warships arrived at the port, and Kolchak's supreme power was recognized in the city. This continued until March 1920, when the Soviet regime won the final victory.
Now a new countdown in the history of Murmansk has begun, in the 1920s there is an economic rise, the city begins to play an important role as a military and commercial port, and industrial fishing is growing significantly.
With the outbreak of World War II, the city was under the threat of occupation, the Germans planned to capture this important strategic point. Their goals were not destined to come true, the city remained Soviet, although it suffered greatly from the bombing.
