Novocherkassk in 3 Russian words
For two centuries, this city was the capital of the Don Cossacks. Here are three of its main symbols.
1. ДОНСКОЕ КАЗАЧЕСТВО (Don Cossacks)
This was the largest Cossack group in the Russian Empire. The Don Cossacks guarded the state's southern borders and proved a formidable force in wars against the Swedes, the Turks and the French. During the Civil War, the Cossacks primarily sided with the Bolsheviks' opponents and were later subjected to repression. Today, they are actively reviving.
2. ВОЗНЕСЕНСКИЙ СОБОР (Ascension Cathedral)
Built in the neo-Byzantine style, the Patriarchal Ascension Military All-Cossack Cathedral is the main church of the Don Cossacks. It was consecrated and opened in 1905. The remains of leading Cossack military leaders are buried in it, including Ataman Matvey Platov, the founder of Novocherkassk.
3. ТРИУМФАЛЬНЫЕ АРКИ (Triumphal Arches)
In 1817, on the fifth anniversary of the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon, two triumphal arches were erected in Novocherkassk. They’re designed in the late classical style and celebrate the contribution of the Don Cossacks in the fight against the French. After the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, all royal attributes were removed from the arches, but they were returned in 1985.
