Astrakhan coat of arms features the Khan's crown and a sabre

Astrakhan (А́страхань; Tatar: Ästerxan), a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the Volga river, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea, at 46°22′N 48°05′E. Population (1.1.2004): 502,800. Coat of arms, Astrakhan. ... Coat of arms, Astrakhan. ... The Tatar language (Tatar tele, Tatarça, Татар теле, Татарча) is a Turkic language belonging to the Altaic branch of the Ural-Altaic family of languages. ... Categories: Stub | Oblasts of Russia ... For other meanings of the word Volga see Volga (disambiguation) Волга Length 3,690 km Elevation of the source 225 m Average discharge  ? m³/s Area watershed 1. ... Caspian Sea viewed from orbit Caspian redirects here. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Medieval history

Astrakhan is situated in the Volga Delta, rich in sturgeons and exotic plants. The fertile area formerly contained the capitals of Khazaria and the Golden Horde. Astrakhan itself was first mentioned by travellers in the early 13th century as Xacitarxan. Tamerlane burnt it to the ground. From 1459 to 1556, Xacitarxan was the capital of Astrakhan Khanate. The ruins of this medieval settlement were found by archaeologists 12 km upstream from the modern-day city. Volga Delta and northwestern Caspian Sea Lotus plant—The Volga Delta is the only place in Russia where pelicans, flamingoes, and lotuses may be found. ... Species See text Sturgeon (Acipenser) is a genus of fishes, of which some twenty different species are known, from European, Asiatic and North American rivers. ... The Khazars were a Turkic semi-nomadic people from Central Asia who adopted Judaism. ... This article refers to the Mongol state in what is now Russia. ... Xacitarxan or Khadjitarkhan (Actarxan), also known as Astrakhan in Russian sources, was a medieval 13th-16th century city at the right bank of Volga, upper in 12 km than modern Astrakhan. ... For the chess engine Tamerlane, see Tamerlane. ... Events September 23 - Battle of Blore Heath. ... Events January 16 - Abdication of Emperor Charles V. His son, Philip II becomes King of Spain, while his brother Ferdinand becomes Holy Roman Emperor January 23 - The Shaanxi earthquake, the deadliest earthquake in history, occurs with its epicenter in Shaanxi province, China. ... The Astrakhan Khanate was a predominantly Turkic state which existed in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in the area adjacent to the mouth of the Volga, where the contemporary city of Astrakhan is now located. ...

In 1556 the khanate was conquered by Ivan the Terrible, who had a new fortress built on a steep hill overlooking the Volga. In 1569, Astrakhan was besieged by the Ottoman army, which had to retreat in disarray. A year later, the Sultan renounced his claims to Astrakhan, thus opening the entire Volga River to Russian traffic. In the 17th century, the city was developed as a Russian gates to the Orient. Many merchants from Armenia, Persia, and Khiva settled in the downtown, giving it a multinational and variegated character. Events January 16 - Abdication of Emperor Charles V. His son, Philip II becomes King of Spain, while his brother Ferdinand becomes Holy Roman Emperor January 23 - The Shaanxi earthquake, the deadliest earthquake in history, occurs with its epicenter in Shaanxi province, China. ... Ivan IV (August 25, 1530–March 18, 1584) was the first ruler of Russia to assume the title of tsar. ... Events January 11 - First recorded lottery in England. ... Imperial motto (Ottoman Turkish) Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (the Eternal State) The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital Bursa (1335 - 1365), Edirne (1365-1453), Ä°stanbul (Constantinople) (1453-1922) Imperial anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Sovereigns Padishah of the Osmanli Dynasty Population ca 40... For other meanings of the word Volga see Volga (disambiguation) Волга Length 3,690 km Elevation of the source 225 m Average discharge  ? m³/s Area watershed 1. ... The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). ... Khiva (alternative names include Khorasam, Khoresm, Khwarezm, Khwarizm, Khwarazm, Chiwa and Chorezm) is the former capital of Khwarezmia, which lies in the present-day Khorezm Province of Uzbekistan. ...

Astrakhan in the 17th century.

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1609x1075, 827 KB) Description: ASTRAKHAN IN RUSSIA. Source: 300 ppi scan of Rambauds Russia, volume 2 (1898), opposite page 168. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1609x1075, 827 KB) Description: ASTRAKHAN IN RUSSIA. Source: 300 ppi scan of Rambauds Russia, volume 2 (1898), opposite page 168. ...

Modern history

For 17 months in 1670-71 Astrakhan was held by Stenka Razin and his Cossacks. Early in the following century Peter the Great constructed here a shipbuilding yard and made Astrakhan the base for his hostilities against Persia, and later in the same century Catherine II accorded the city important industrial privileges. Stepan (Stenka) Timofeyevich Razin (Степан (Стенька) Тимофеевич Разин in Russian) (1630 - 6. ... The Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmed IV of Turkey. ... Portrait of Peter by Paul Delaroche Peter I (Russian: ) (10 June 1672–8 February 1725 [30 May 1672– 28 January 1725 O.S.] ) ruled Russia from 7 May (27 April O.S.) 1682 until his death. ... The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). ... H.I.M. Yekaterina II Alexeyevna the Great, Empress and Autocrat of all the Russias Catherine II (Russian: , tr. ...

The city rebelled against the tsar once again in 1705, when it was held by the Cossacks under Kondraty Bulavin. A Kalmuck khan laid an abortive siege to the kremlin several years prior to that. In 1711, it was made a capital of a guberniya, whose first governors included Artemy Petrovich Volynsky and Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev. Six years later, Astrakhan served as a base for the first Russian venture into Central Asia. In 1702, 1718 and 1767, it suffered severely from fires; in 1719 was plundered by the Persians; and in 1830 the cholera swept away a large number of its people. Events Construction begins on Blenheim Palace, in Oxfordshire, England. ... Kondraty Afanisievich Bulavin (Кондратий Афанасьевич Булавин) (1660-1708) was a Don Cossack, the leader of a Cossack-serf rebellion of commonly known as the Bulavin RebellionБулавинское восстание1707-1709. ... The Republic of Kalmykia (Russian: Респу́блика Калмы́кия; Kalmyk: Хальм Тангч) is a federal subject of the Russian Federation (a republic). ... // Events February 24 - The London premiere of Rinaldo by George Friderich Handel, the first Italian opera written for the London stage. ... Artemy Petrovich Volynsky (Арте́мий Петро́вич Волы́нский in Russian) (1689 – 1740) was a Russian statesman and diplomat. ... Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev (1686-1750) was a prominent Russian statesman, historian and ethnographer. ... Prince Alexander Bekovich-Cherkassky, the commander of a Russian army sent by Peter the Great in 1716 to Khanate Khiva, but was killed by the Khivan army. ...

Astrakhan's kremlin was built from 1580s to 1620s from bricks pillaged at the site of Sarai Berke. Its two impressive cathedrals were consecrated in 1700 and 1710, respectively. Built by masters from Yaroslavl, they retain many traditional features of Russian church architecture, while their exterior decoration is definitely baroque. Kremlin (Кремль) is the Russian word for citadel or castle and refers to any major fortified central complex found in historical Russian cities. ... Sarai Batu (Old Sarai, Sarai-al-Maqrus) was a capital city of the Golden Horde. ... Events January 1 - Russia accepts Julian calendar. ... // Events April 10 - The worlds first copyright legislation became effective, Britains Statute of Anne Ongoing events Great Northern War (1700-1721) War of the Spanish Succession (1702-1713) Births January 3 - Richard Gridley, American Revolutionary soldier (d. ... Yaroslavl (Russian: ) is a city in Russia, an administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, located 250 km NE of Moscow at 57°37′ N 39°51′ E The historical part of the city is located at confluence of Volga and Kotorosl. ... Adoration, by Peter Paul Rubens: dynamic figures spiral down around a void: draperies blow: a whirl of movement lit in a shaft of light, rendered in a free bravura handling of paint In arts, the Baroque (or baroque) is both a period and the style that dominated it. ...

Notable people

• Joseph Deniker, French naturalist and anthropologist
• Ilya Nikolaevich Ulyanov, public figure in the field of public education, father of Aleksandr Ulyanov and Vladimir Lenin
• Vasily Kirillovich Trediakovsky, Russian poet

Joseph Deniker (March 6, 1852–March 18, 1918) was a French naturalist and anthropologist, known primarily for his attempts to develop highly-detailed maps of race in Europe. ... Ilya Nikolayevich Ulyanov (Ульянов, Илья Николаевич in Russian) (31 July 1831 (OS 19 July), Astrakhan — 24 January 1886 (OS 12 January), Simbirsk) was a Russian public figure in the field of public education and a teacher. ... Public education is schooling provided for the general public rather than the privileged few. ... Alexander Ulyanov Mugshot Aleksandr Ilyich Ulyanov (Александр Ильич Ульянов in Russian) (1866-May 8, 1887) was a Russian revolutionary, one of the leaders of Pervomartovtsi, older brother of V.I. Lenin. ... Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (Russian: Влади́мир Ильи́ч Ле́нин â–¶(?)), original surname Ulyanov (Улья́нов) (April 22 (April 10 (O.S.)), 1870 – January 21, 1924), was a Russian revolutionary, the leader of the Bolshevik party, the first Premier of the Soviet Union, and the main theorist of Leninism, which he described as an adaptation of Marxism to the... Vasily Kirillovich Trediakovsky (March 5 (O.S. February 22) 1703 in Astrakhan — August 17 (O.S. August 6) 1768 in Sankt Petersburg) a Russian poet, who laid foundations of classical Russian literature. ...

External links

• Satellite picture by Google Maps

Astrakhan Kremlin dates back to the 1580s.

One of the Astrakhan Kremlin cathedrals.