Maloyaroslavets is located on the right bank of River Luzha (inflow of Protva, the basin of Oka) 61 km to the northeast of Kaluga. It is railway station and a highway junction. The overall area of Maloyaroslavets is 18 sq km.

History of Maloyaroslavets

According to the version of Nikolay Karamzin, the town was founded in the late 14th – early 15th centuries by prince Vladimir Khrabry and named Yaroslavets after his son Yaroslav (his Orthodox name was Athanasius).

In 1485 the town was annexed to the Moscow Principality and came to be called Maloyaroslavets (unlike Yaroslavl on Volga River). In 1508 it was given to possession of Prince Mikhail Glinsky. In the early 17th century, the Time of Troubles, Maloyaroslavets was ruined.

In 1719 it was annexed to the Moscow Province, since 1719 in the Moscow province. From 1776 it was the district town of the Kaluga Province.

During the Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleonic invaders a severe battle took place near Maloyaroslavets on October 12 (24): Russian and French armies struggled to break through to Kaluga, where provision warehouses were concentrated. The town passed from hand to hand 8 times, but by the end of the day it was seized by Frenchmen, and both the parties prepared to continue the fight.

On October 14 (26) Napoleon gave the order to retreat along the ruined Smolenskaya Road (memorial monuments: chapel, 1860; Uspensky church and obelisk, 1912). Thus the battle near Maloyaroslavets was over with a strategic victory of the Russian army.

In 1856 in the district town of Maloyaroslavets of the Kaluga Province there were 3 churches, 732 houses, and 42 shops.

During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 (World War II) fierce fights took place near Maloyaroslavets in the course of the Moscow Battle of 1941-42. The town was occupied by fascist armies on October 18, 1941. It was released on January 2, 1942 by armies of the Western Front during a counterattack near Moscow.