Coat of Arms

Penza (Пе́нза) is a city in Russia, administrative center of Penza Oblast in the Volga Federal District. It stands on the Sura River, 625 km south-east of Moscow, at 53°12′N 45°00′E. Its population, as of 2004, stood at 515,024. A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Image File history File links Penza. ... Penza Oblast (Russian: ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). ... Categories: Russia geography stubs | Federal districts of Russia ... Sura (Сура́) is a river in Russia, right tributary of Volga. ... Moscow (Russian: Москва́, Moskva, IPA: â–¶ (help· info)) is the capital of Russia, located on the river Moskva. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

History

Penza was founded in 1663 as a frontier outpost on the then southeastern border of Russia. During the 18th century Penza became an important trade center. In 1774 Penza was taken by insurgent army Yemelyan Pugachev, citizens of the town themselves opened the gates of Penza to rebellious Cossack. The city of Penza bears the name of the river that it was originally built upon. As it was originally a frontier city, many of the early houses were wooden and emerged without any central plan. The first stone houses were built after 1801 and by 1809 Penza's population grew to more than 13, 000 people. One of the most famous Russian poets Mikhail Lermontov grew up near Penza in the late 1810s and 1820s. During the Russian Civil War, Czechoslovak Legions anti-Bolshevik uprising started in Penza. During the Soviet period Penza developed as a regional industrial center. Natives of Penza include Vsevolod Meyerhold, Andreï Makine, Nikolai Ishutin and Aristarkh Lentulov. // Events Prix de Rome scholarship established for students of the arts. ... 1774 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Emelyan Pugachov Yemelyan Ivanovich Pugachev (Russian: ), born in 1740 or 1742 and executed in 1775, was a pretender to the Russian throne who led a great Cossack insurrection during the reign of Catherine II. Alexander Pushkin wrote a remarkable history of the rebellion; and he recounted some of the events... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with History of the Cossacks. ... The Union Jack, flag of the newly formed United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. ... 1809 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Mikhail Lermontov in 1837 Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov (Михаил Юрьевич Лермонтов), (October 15, 1814–July 27, 1841), a Russian Romantic writer and poet, sometimes called the poet of the Caucasus, was the most important presence in the Russian poetry from Alexander Pushkins death until his own four years later, at the age... Events and Trends End of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe (1803 - 1815). ... Events and Trends Nationalistic independence movements helped reshape the world during this decade: Greece declares independence from the Ottoman Empire (1821). ... The Russian Civil War was fought from 1918 to 1922. ... The Czecho-Slovak Legions, also called Czechoslovak Legions (ÄŒesko(-)slovenské legie in Czech and Slovak, or sometimes improperly called only ÄŒeské legie in Czech) were Czech and Slovak volunteer armed forces fighting together with the Entente powers during World War I. // Origins They were organized since 1915 by Czech and... Vsevolod Emilevich Meyerhold (born Karl Kazimir Theodor Meyerhold) (1874 - 1940) was a Russian theatrical director, actor and theorist. ... Andreï Makine is a Russian-born French author. ... Nikolai Andreyevich Ishutin (Николай Андреевич Ишутин in Russian) (4. ... Saint Basils Cathedral, 1913 Aristarkh Lentulov (Russian: Лентулов, Аристарх Васильевич) (1882 - 1943) was a Russian avant garde artist who also worked for theatre. ...

Modern city

Currently, the city of Penza is seen as a regional center for higher education. It has five universities (The State Technical University, The Pedagogic University, The Academy of Agriculture, The Technology Institute and the Institute of Civil Building), 13 colleges and 77 public schools. Besides this, Penza is home to three theatres, four museums, and three art galleries.

In a topographical sense, Penza greatly differs from the cities around it because of its rolling hills and dense surrounding forests.

External links

• The official website of the City of Penza (in Russian)