Mozhaisk stands on the banks of Moskva River, 4 km asway from the Mozhaisk reservoir, 110 km to the West from Moscow. The total area of the town makes 132 square km. It has a railway station.

History of Mozhaisk

Mozhaisk was first time recorded in the Nikons Chronicle of 1231, was an appanage of Chernigov and then Smolensk principalities. In 1293 the town was burned down by the Mongols.

In 1303 as a part of the Moscow Principality it was an important fortress in the western boundaries of Moscow. In 1389-1493 it was the center of an appanage principality.

In 1368 troops of the Lithuanian prince Olgerd made an unsuccessful attempt to seize Mozhaisk. In 1382 the town was ruined by the army of Khan Tokhtamysh.

In the early 15th century the protective potential was fortified with Luzhetsky (1408) and Kolochsky (1413) Monasteries. In 1541 under the decree of Ivan the Terrible the town was fortified with timbered walls and stone towers.

From the 16th century it became a significant trading and crafts center with a trading quarter and numerous settlements.

In the 16th century it was recorded as the town of Mozhaisk on Mzhaya River. Obviously it was named after the river Mozhay, also known as Mozhaya, and Mozhayka from the 18th century. It comes from the Baltic languages, and the meaning is associated with the Lithuanian word mazhoya meaning small.

During the Time of Troubles of 1608-12 it was occupied by troops of the False Dmitry II. In 1617 and 1618 it was besieged by armies of the Polish king's son Vladislav. In the 1620s the general Dmitry Pozharsky constructed a stone Kremlin in Mozhaisk.

From 1708 Mozhaisk belonged to the Moscow Province 719 - in the Moscow province. From 1781 it became a district town of the Moscow Province.

In the 18th early 19th centuries trading value of the city increased.

During the Patriotic War of 1812 the well-known Borodino Battle between Russian and Napoleonic armies took place on August 26 (on September 17) near the Village of Borodino 12 km to the West of Mozhaisk.

In 1856 in the district town of Mozhaisk of the Moscow Province had 9 churches, 372 houses, and 117 shops.

During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 Mozhaisk was occupied by fascist armies on October 18, 1941. It was released by armies of the Western Front during Rzhev-Vyazemsk operation on January 20, 1942. The town was destroyed.