Kineshma

Kineshma ( _ru. Кинешма) is the second largest town in Ivanovo Oblast, Russia. The town had 95,233 inhabitants as of the 2002 Census. It sprawls for some fifteen kilometres along the Volga River.

Kineshma was first noticed as a "posad" in 1429. In 1504, Ivan III gave it to Prince Feodor Belsky, who escaped to Moscow from Lithuania and married Ivan's niece. Later on, Ivan the Terrible gave Kineshma to Ivan Petrovich Shuisky, but after the latter's death it was returned to the tsar in 1587. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Kineshma was a major fishing centre, which supplied sturgeons for the tsar's table. In 1608, it was twice ravaged by the Poles. Throughout its history, Kineshma belonged to different Russian regions, including Arkhangelsk province, Yaroslavl province, and Kostroma guberniya. Since the 18th century, the town's main industry has been textile manufacturing. Like all the textile centres in Russia, the town's prosperity declined after the perestroika.

Kineshma's principal landmark is the Trinity Cathedral, built in 1838–1845 to a typical Neoclassical design. There are also several 18th-century churches in the town. The neighbourhoods of Kineshma contain estates and museums of Alexander Ostrovsky, Alexander Borodin, and Fyodor Bredikhin.

ister City

*flagicon|Finland Vantaa, Finland.

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