Introduction
City in Kostroma Oblast, Russia
For other uses, see Kostroma (disambiguation).
City in Kostroma Oblast, RussiaKostroma
КостромаCityFire-observation watchtower in Kostroma (1825-1828)
FlagCoat of armsInteractive map of KostromaKostromaLocation of KostromaShow map of Kostroma OblastKostromaKostroma (Russia)Show map of RussiaKostromaKostroma (European Russia)Show map of European RussiaKostromaKostroma (Europe)Show map of EuropeCoordinates: 57°46′05″N 40°55′37″E / 57.76806°N 40.92694°E / 57.76806; 40.92694CountryRussiaFederal subjectKostroma OblastFounded1152Government • HeadYuri ZhurinElevation110 m (360 ft)Population (2010 Census) • Total268,742 • Estimate (2025)264,952 (−1.4%) • Rank69th in 2010Administrative status • Subordinated tocity of oblast significance of Kostroma • Capital ofKostroma Oblast, Kostromskoy DistrictMunicipal status • Urban okrugKostroma Urban Okrug • Capital ofKostroma Urban Okrug, Kostromskoy Municipal DistrictTime zoneUTC+3 (MSK )Postal code156XXXDialing code+7 4942OKTMO ID34701000001Websitegrad.kostroma.gov.ru
Kostroma (Russian: Кострома́, IPA: [kəstrɐˈma]) is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Volga and Kostroma. In the 2021 census, the population is 267,481.
History
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Under the Rurikids[edit]
The official founding year of the city is 1152 by Yury Dolgoruky. Since many scholars believe that early Eastern Slavs tribes arrived in modern-day Belarus, Ukraine and western Russia AD 400 to 600, Kostroma could be much older than previously thought.
The city has the same name as the East Slavic goddess Kostroma.
Like other towns of the Eastern Rus, Kostroma was sacked by the Mongols in 1238. It then constituted a small principality, under leadership of Prince Vasily of Kostroma, a younger brother of the famous Alexander Nevsky. Upon inheriting the grand ducal title in 1271, Vasily didn't leave the town for Vladimir, and his descendants ruled Kostroma for another half a century, until the town was bought by Ivan I of Moscow.[citation needed]
Ipatievsky Monastery, 2009
As one of the northernmost towns of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, Kostroma served for grand dukes as a place of retreat when enemies besieged Moscow in 1382, 1408, and 1433. In 1375, the town was looted by Novgorod pirates (ushkuiniks). The spectacular growth[quantify] of the city in the 16th century may be attributed to the establishment of trade connections with English and Dutch merchants (Muscovy Company) through the northern port of Archangel. Boris Godunov had the Ipatiev and Epiphany monasteries rebuilt in stone. The construction works were finished just in time for the city to witness some of the most dramatic events of the Time of Troubles.[citation needed]
The heroic peasant Ivan Susanin became a symbol of the city's resistance to foreign invaders;[dubious – discuss] several monuments to him may be seen in Kostroma. The future Tsar, Mikhail Romanov, also lived at the monastery. It was here that an embassy from Moscow offered him the Russian crown in 1612.[citation needed]
Under the Romanovs[edit]
A wooden house of Mikhail Romanov is still preserved in the monastery. There are also several old wooden structures transported to the monastery walls from distant districts of the Kostroma Oblast.
Kostroma River, 2011
Plan of Kostroma, 1907
In 1773, Kostroma was devastated by a great fire. Afterwards the city was rebuilt with streets radiating from a single focal point near the river. They[who?] say that Catherine the Great dropped her fan on the city map, and told the architects to follow her design. One of the best preserved examples of the 18th century town planning, Kostroma retains some elegant structures in a "provincial neoclassical" style. These include a governor's palace, a fire tower, a rotunda on the Volga embankment, and an arcaded central market with a merchant church in the center.[citation needed]
During and after the Russian Revolution[edit]
The First Workers' Socialist Club based in Kostroma was one of the best documented workers' clubs run by Proletkult. Organised around the principle of a "public hearth" (obshchestvennyi ochag) this club combined both practical support for workers in need of accommodation, food or furniture, as well as providing a focus for popular education.
Nuclear power referendum[edit]
The Nuclear Power Referendum was arranged in 1990 in the Kostroma area. 90% of the voting population were against nuclear power in the area. A Kostroma Nuclear Power Plant has been proposed.
