Toropets: a small town with a big historytranslated

In Toropets, history is not only in museums. She's right on the streets! Several dozen stone churches of the 17th–19th centuries, earthen ramparts of an ancient fortress and merchant mansions. Historians agree that it was here that the holy and blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky and Princess Alexandra of Polotsk were married. The future Saint Tikhon of Moscow, the first patriarch of Russia in the 20th century, also grew up here.

Natalya KHARPALEVA

Korsun-Bogoroditsky Cathedral

This cathedral appeared thanks to a miracle. According to legend, during the Polish-Lithuanian devastation of the early 17th century. residents of Toropets brought the ancient Korsun Icon of the Mother of God to meet the enemies. The enemy unexpectedly retreated, and the memory of the city’s salvation a century later was embodied in one of the most beautiful churches in the Upper Volga region.

One of the oldest cities in Russia

The first chronicle mention of Toropets dates back to 1074. The city arose on the Toropa River, which was part of the ancient route “From the Varangians to the Greeks.” Thanks to this, Toropets quickly became a major trade center.

Photo by Andrey Belavin

In the XII–XIII centuries. here was the Toropetsk principality. Later it was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and then the Moscow State.

During the Time of Troubles...