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Kostroma


If you sail down the Volga from Uglich, you will come to another stronghold of the Golden Ring: Kostroma. Situated at the confluence of two rivers -- the Volga and the namesake Kostroma -- it is as old as Moscow and just as packed with magnificent historical buildings. Kostroma's picturesque surroundings have for centuries inspired Russian poets and artists. 'Rooks Have Returned,' one of the most famous paintings by the 19th century master of Russian landscapes, Isaak Levitan, was created here.

The city was founded in 1152 by Yury Dolgorukiy and became a retreat for the tsars when Moscow was attacked during medieval times. It flourished in the 16th century as Dutch and English merchants traded here from Archangel. It is most famous, though, for its role in the rise of the Romanov tsars, an act that ended the Time of Troubles. This earned it the name “the cradle of the House of Romanovs.” It was also the birthplace of the peasant hero Ivan Susanin, celebrated in Glinka's opera 'A Life for the Tsar'. When asked the way by marauding Polish troops in the 17th century, Susanin pretended to lead them to young Tsar Mikhail, exiled in Kostroma. Instead he led them deep into the surrounding forest where they froze in the winter cold. Susanin became a symbol of loyalty to the tsar and a shining example of resistance to foreign invaders.

The main wooden structure of the city was partially burned in the 18th century, but was rebuilt to its former glory under the inspiration of Catherine the Great. The real magnificence of Kostroma is due to the Monastery of St. Ipaty, founded by the Tartar prince Chet, ancestor of the Godunovs, on the banks of the Volga. According to legend, on his way to Moscow Chet fell ill. In his fever, he had a vision of the Virgin Mary, Apostle Theodore, and the martyr Ipaty. After this vision he miraculously recovered, converted to Christianity, and ordered the construction of the Monastery of St. Ipaty. The sixteenth century walls, towers, and bell tower of the monastery are still mostly intact, as is the 17th century cathedral. The monastery's greatest treasure is a tenth century icon called 'Fiodorovskaya Bogomater' (Our Lady of St. Theodore) with which young Romanov tsar Mikhail was blessed by his mother before he attempted to claim the throne in 1612. It is said that before the Revolution of 1917 the icon turned as black as coal, making the underlying image difficult to see. The Romanovs took this as an omen of things to come…

Within the monastery is the stately five-domed Trinity Cathedral, built in 1590 by the Godunovs and decorated with almost 80 frescoes by famous Russian church decorator Gury Nikitin. The monastery complex also includes the Romanovs' Chambers where Mikhail Romanov and his mother lived in exile. It became a tradition for the Romanov tsars to make a pilgrimage to this place in honor of their exiled ancestors.

The open-air museum behind the monastery is also worth visiting, which holds an array of ancient wooden churches, houses, barns, and windmills brought from all over the Kostroma Region. Among the highlights are the Church of the Synaxis of the Virgin (1552) and the Church of the Transfiguration (1713).

See our Russian Cruise ships that stop in Kostroma.