The old Russian town of Tutaev (Romanov-Borisoglebsk till 1918) situated 50 kilometers away from Yaroslavl is divided by the Volga River into two parts. Its left part on a high and steep bank used to locate Romanov town, while the right part used to be Borisoglebsk. Tutaev still has no bridge connecting the two parts of one of the most poetic old Russian towns. Instead of the bridge there are a ferry passage and a number of private boatmen constantly plying from one bank to the other.

The town’s population is around 42 thousand people.

History

In winter of 1238 Yaroslavl was seized by Tatar-Mongols. Some of the town dwellers escaped and settled down in the scary Cherny (Black) Forest on the right bank of Volga. In a year already the settlement was called Borisoglebsk after the St. Boris and Gleb Church built there. In the second half of the 13 century the settlement grew populous and produced the town of Romanov on the left bank of the river.

At the beginning of the 17th century Romanov was usurped by Polish invaders and suffered terrible devastation. In 1612 Romanov’s squads participated in the levy en masse headed by Minin and Pozharsky that liberated Moscow from invaders.

The 17th century saw the appearance of stone buildings in the town: Krestovozdvizhensky Cathedral (1658), Blagoveshvchenskaya (Annunciation) Church (1660), Pokrovsky (Protection) Temple (1674), and Voskresensky (Resurrection) Cathedral (1652-1678). Later, in the 18th century, Kazansko-Preobrazhenskaya (Kazan Transfiguration) Church (1758) was built.

In 1822 for the purpose of administrative economy Romanov and Borisoglebsk were united into one town named Romanov-Borisoglebsk and got the emblem based on the emblems of the two old towns.

In the years of revolution the town was renamed into Tutaev in memory of a Red Army soldier who perished there in the fight during the Yaroslavl rebellion of 1918.

Sights

Churches:

Voskresensky (Resurrection) Cathedral (1652-1678) is the major pearl of the town. Built on the high right bank of Volga, it towers above the town and can be seen from all sides. The spacious interiors of the cathedral are decorated with splendid frescos painted by the best Yaroslavl artist Sevastyan Dmitriev and his fellows in 1675 - 1680.

Kazansko-Preobrazhenskaya (Kazan Transfiguration) Church (1758) is well fitting into the town’s scenery: as if running down from the steep bank of Volga it forms and original ensemble marking the centre of the town’s left-bank panorama.

Voznesenskaya (Leontyevskaya) Church (1795) is located on a spacious square in the southern part of the town.

Krestovozdvizhensky Cathedral (XV century) - its construction started in the times of Ivan Grozny and lasted for almost a hundred years. The cathedral also boasts unique frescos painted by gifted artists from Kostroma: Vasili Ilyin and his disciple Guriy Nikitin who became the recognized leader of Kostroma art school, one of the foremost schools of Russian painting of that period.

Spaso-Arkhangelskaya (The Saviour Archangel) Church (1746) was built on the spot of two wooden churches that had burnt down.

Pokrovskaya (Protection) Church (1654) is one of the oldest temples.

Trinity Church (1783) was built on the spot of a wooden church, in the northern part of Romanov.

Museums:

“House in Novinskaya Street” is a unique museum combining historic and artistic realities with literary images and reminiscences and enriching them with local legends, myths and stories.

“Cosmos” museum is located in Nikulskoe settlement. Its main exposition is dedicated to life and activities of the famous astronaut woman Valentina Tereshkova, and also features this country’s achievements in space exploration.