For the holiday of the city Belgorod
By Catherine Tsyshko | August 5, 2016
On the fifth of August in the City of the first fireworks, the City of Military Glory — Belgorod- celebrates its holiday. Unfortunately, Belgorod is not as well known as Moscow or St. Petersburg. That’s why I decided to tell about the history of my home city.
This year our «White City» celebrates its 420 anniversary. «According to the decree of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich Belgorod was founded on September 11, 1596 as a frontier fortress, the center of the province of Belgorod and Belgorod discharge» — so says the majority of local historians. The city was often captured and almost destroyed, but still Belgorod «survived.»
During the Great Patriotic War there were bloody battles in the suburbs of Belgorod, the city, twice occupied by the Germans, was heavily damaged, it lost almost all historic buildings, only a few dozen buildings have survived. Belgorod was released on August 5, 1943. In its honor, the first fireworks were made in Moscow. Since then, Belgorod is called the «city of the first fireworks,» and on August 5th is celebrated as the day of Belgorod.
But now it is a developed city. In its purity and livability Belgorod repeatedly ranked as the first among Russian cities with populations ranging from 100 to 500 thousand people. Belgorod is also a scientific, cultural, economic and spiritual center of the Central Black Earth region of Russia. By the way, now its population is about 390 thousand people.
Belgorod is a very beautiful and clean city, and even when I grow up I will not move out from it. I think many citizens of Belgorod agree with me.
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