Museum-apartment of Maxim Gorky, Russia

Nizhny Novgorod was founded upon the order of Vladimir Duke Yuri Vsevodolovich in 1221. The city had long been an important defense point of the Russian land. Throughout its history, it was renamed twice. Its first name, Nizhny Novgorod, is still relevant. From 1932 to 1990, it was named Gorky after the Soviet writer Maxim Gorky. In 2000, Nizhny Novgorod became a capital of the Volga Federal District.

In the middle of the 12th century, a small Slavic fortified settlement was formed on the territory of the modern city at the mouth of the Oka River. It was called the Old Town. In the period between 1228 and 1239, the white stone Cathedral of Archangel Michael and Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior were built here, followed by the building of the cathedrals of the Grand Duchy of Vladimir.

At the end of the 1370s, Nizhny Novgorod was ravaged by the Mordovians and the Mongol Tatars. Almost all the Russian regiments died during that terrible massacre on the Pyana River. Some residents of the destroyed city hid in the dense forests of the trans-Volga region. In the 15th century, Nizhny Novgorod was repeatedly ravaged by Nogai and Horde tribes. In the period between 1508 and 1513, the stone Kremlin was built in Nizhny Novgorod. It was an important defense point of the country. In the second half of the 16th century, Nizhny Novgorod became the largest trade and industrial center of the whole country. During the first Azov Campaign in 1695, Nizhny Novgorod was visited by Peter the Great. The first gymnasium was opened in the city in 1808. Later, in 1864, the first Noble (Alexandrovsky) university and the Nikolaev Bank were opened here. The revolutionary actions in the industrial districts of Nizhny Novgorod took place in 1905.
Read further...