Murom

Murom (English) Му́ром (Russian)
—  Inhabited locality  —
Pre-Petrine architecture at the Annunciation Monastery.
Location of Vladimir Oblast on the map of Russia
Location of Murom on the map of Vladimir Oblast
Coordinates: 55°34′N 42°02′E / 55.567°N 42.033°E / 55.567; 42.033Coordinates: 55°34′N 42°02′E / 55.567°N 42.033°E / 55.567; 42.033
Coat of arms
Administrative status
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Vladimir Oblast
In administrative jurisdiction of	Vladimir Oblast[citation needed]
Municipal status
Mayor[citation needed]	Valentin Afanasyevich Kachevan[citation needed]
Statistics
Area	43.78 km2 (16.9 sq mi)[citation needed]
Population (2002 Census)	126,901 inhabitants[1]
- Rank	130
- Density	2,899 /km2 (7,500/sq mi)[2]
Time zone	MSK/MSD (UTC+3/+4)
Founded	862[citation needed]
Postal code(s)	602250[citation needed]
Dialing code(s)	+7 49234[citation needed]
Official website	http://www.murom.info/

Murom (Russian: Му́ром; Finnish: Muromi, Old Norse: Moramar) is a historic city in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which sprawls majestically along the left bank of Oka River, about 300 km east of Moscow. Population: 126,901 (2002 Census).

History

In the 9th century, the city marked the easternmost settlement of the Eastern Slavs in the land of Finno-Ugric people called Muromi, muroma. The Russian Primary Chronicle mentions it as early as 862. It is thus one of the oldest cities in Russia. It was in c.900 an important trading post from Volga Bolgaria to the Baltic Sea and inhabited by Mordvin Muromis.

Between 1010 and 1393, it was a capital of a separate principality, whose rulers included Saint Gleb, assassinated in 1015 and canonized in 1071, Saint Prince Konstantin the Blessed, and Saints Peter and Theuronia, subjects of an opera by Rimsky-Korsakov. It was the home town of the most celebrated East Slavic epic hero, Ilya Muromets. The town has a statue which shows Ilya holding the hilt of his sword in the left hand and a cross in the right.

Among other famous natives are the father of colour photography, Sergey Prokudin-Gorskiy (1863), and the father of television, Vladimir Zworykin (1889).

Sights

Three historic abbeys grace the city centre.

Despite ravages of the Bolshevik rule, Murom still retains many marks of antiquity. The Saviour monastery, one of the most ancient in Russia, was first chronicled in 1096, when Oleg of Chernigov besieged it and killed Vladimir Monomakh's son Izyaslav, who is buried there. In 1552, the monastery was visited by Ivan the Terrible who commissioned a stone cathedral, which was followed by other churches.

The main church of the Trinity convent (1642-43).

The Trinity convent, where the relics of Sts Peter and Theuronia are displayed, features a fine cathedral (1642-43), Kazan church (1652), a bell-tower (1652), a wooden church of St Sergius, and stone walls. It is rivalled by the Annunciation Monastery, founded in the reign of Ivan the Terrible to house the relics of local princes and containing a cathedral from 1664. Two last-mentioned cathedrals, being probably the works of the same masters, have much in common with the Resurrection Church (1658) in the downtown. Quite different is the tent-like church of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, built in 1565 on the bank of the Oka to commemorate the Russian conquest of Kazan.

Some 25 km south-east of Murom, on the eastern (Nizhny Novgorod Oblast) side of the Oka River, Savasleyka airfield is located. During the Cold War it was a key Soviet Anti-Air Defense base.

v • d • e Cities and towns in Vladimir Oblast Administrative center: Vladimir Alexandrov · Gorokhovets · Gus-Khrustalny · Kameshkovo · Karabanovo · Kirzhach · Kolchugino · Kosteryovo · Kovrov · Kurlovo · Lakinsk · Melenki · Murom · Petushki · Pokrov · Raduzhny · Sobinka · Strunino · Sudogda · Suzdal · Vyazniki · Yuryev-Polsky

References