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Native name: Хортиця | |
|---|---|
  Khortytsia  Khortytsia | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Dnieper River |
| Coordinates | 47°49′12″N35°06′00″E / 47.82000°N 35.10000°E /47.82000; 35.10000 |
| Area | 23.59 km2 (9.11 sq mi) |
| Length | 12.5 km (7.77 mi) |
| Width | 2.5 km (1.55 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 30 m (100 ft) |
| Highest point | N/A |
| Administration | |
Ukraine | |
| Oblast | Zaporizhzhia Oblast |
| City | Zaporizhzhia |
| District | Voznesenivskyi District |
Khortytsia (Ukrainian:Хортиця,pronounced[ˈxɔrtɪtsʲɐ]) is the largest island on theDnieper River, and is 12.5 km (7.77 mi) long and up to 2.5 km (1.55 mi) wide.[1] The island forms part of the Khortytsia National Reserve.[1] This historic site is located within the city limits ofZaporizhzhia,[2]Ukraine.
The island has played an important role in the history ofUkraine, especially in the history of theZaporozhian Cossacks. The island has unique flora and fauna, including oak groves, spruce woods, meadows, andsteppe. The northern part of the island is very rocky and high (rising 30 m or 98 ft above the river bed) in comparison to the southern part, which is low, and often flooded by the waters of the Dnieper.
Zaporizhzhia (direct translation is "beyond the rapids") takes its name from a geographic area downstream of the Dnieper river past the ninth rapid (seeDnieper rapids). In the 1930s, when theDnieper Hydroelectric Station was built, these rapids were flooded. Onlygranite cliffs, rising to the height of 50 m (160 ft), testify to the original rocky terrain of the region. To the south of Khortytsia is theGreat Meadow, which was flooded from 1950s until 2023 by theKakhovka Reservoir.
On Khortytsia at Savutyn summit, near a ravine of the same name, are three 74.5-metre-tall (244 ft) electrical transmission towers, calledZaporizhzhia Pylon Triple, which are part of a 150 kV powerline crossing the Dnieper river.[3]
There are a number of theories concerning the origin of the name Khortytsia, one of the more likely one is that the island was named in honour of the ancientSlavic godKhors.[4]
Khortytsia has been continuously inhabited during the last five millennia. Other islands in the immediate vicinity also contain indications of intensive occupation during theProto-Indo-European andScythian periods. The island of Small Khortytsia is known for its Scythian remains and a derelict Cossack fortress. The islet of Sredeny Stih (to the northeast of Khortytsia), excavated during construction of the hydroelectric station in 1927, gave its name to theSredny Stog culture.In theEarly Middle Ages, Khortytsia was a key centre for thetrade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. In his treatiseDe Administrando Imperio, EmperorConstantine VII mentions the island ofSt. George immediately downstream from the rapids.[4] He reports that, while passing through the rapids,the Rus' would be easy prey for the nomadicPechenegs. TheKievan Rus' princeSviatoslav I was attacked and killed during his attempt to cross the rapids in 972.
The earliest record about a stronghold known as asich refers to the one was located on the island of Small Khortytsia (Mala Khortytsia Island) and was established by theVolhynian princeDmytro Vyshnevetsky. The Small Khortytsia Island is 20 times smaller than Khortytsia itself. The first Khortytsia Sich existed six years (1552–1558). There are a few other locations downstream past the rapids (Zaporozhia area) where theZaporizhian Sich was located.
There are eight of them: Bazavluk (1593–1630), Mykytyn (1628–1652),Chortomlyk (1652–1709), Kamianka Sich (1709–11, 1730–34), Oleshkiv (1711–1734), Pidpilnenska (Nova, 1734–1775). All these places were at river crossings. The uprising led byBohdan Khmelnytsky was started at the Mykytyn Sich in 1648. Legends state that Cossacks wrote the notoriousReply of the Zaporozhian Cossacks to Sultan Mehmed IV of the Ottoman Empire on Khortytsia.
In 1775, the Sich was destroyed by the Russian general Tekhely on the order ofCatherine II, resulting in the displacement of Zaporozhian Cossacks, many of whom eventually settled on theKuban river in the Caucasus area. These Cossacks became known asKuban cossacks. A part of the Zaporozhian Cossacks escaped to beyond the Danube to become vassals of the Ottoman Sultan. They dwelt at the mouth of the Danube river.
In 1830, many of these Cossacks moved and established a new sich on the Azov sea shore (betweenMariupol andBerdiansk). The last Koshevoy Ataman (leader) of Zaporozhian Sich,Petro Kalnyshevsky, was imprisoned atSolovetsky Island Monastery aged 85. After 25 years in prison he was released and died almost blind at the monastery, aged 113.
In 1789,Mennonites from theBaltic port city ofGdańsk (Danzig) were invited by the tsar to form settlements on the vast steppes of theRussian Empire. One of these settlements was located on the island of Khortytsia. They farmed on the rich island soil. Some of their profitable business was trade in lumber from the Khortytsia groves and woods. In 1916 the Mennonite colonists sold Khortytsia Island to theAlexandrovsk city council (seeChortitza Colony).
In 1965, Khortytsia Island was "proclaimed a historical and cultural reserve".[1] The Dnieper Rapids state historical and cultural reserve was established in 1974; this included both Khortytsia Island, adjacent islands and rocks, and part of the right bank of the Dnieper.[1] The total area of the reserve is 2,359 ha (5,830.1 acres; 9.1 sq mi).[1] The reserve was given national status in 1993.[1]
The major part of the reserve (historic park) covers the Zaporizhian Cossack Museum that includes the Cossack horse show. The museum building is modern, nestling low in the landscape with dramatic views of theDnieper Hydroelectric Station to the north. The museum was opened in October 1983, as the Museum of Zaporizhzhia History. The museum project was approved by the Ministry of Culture and Derzhbud of Ukraine in December 1970. The expo area of the museum was 1,600 m2 (17,000 sq ft), and portrayed the following themes: Khortytsia in ancient times, the history of the Zaporizhian Cossacks, and the history of Zaporizhzhia at times of construction of socialism.
There were fourdioramas: "Battle of Sviatoslav at rapids" (author M. Oviechkin), "Uprising of the impoverished cossacks at Zaporizhian Sich in 1768" (M. Oviechkin), "Construction of Dnieper HES" (V. Trotsenko), "Night storm of Zaporizhzhia city in October 1943" (M. Oviechkin). Part of the museum became the Zaporizhzhian Oak located at the Upper Khortytsia. In 1992 the exposition of the museum was redesigned.
The museum contains exhibits dating from the Stone Age through theScythian period (c. 750 – c. 250 BCE) down to the 20th century.
Media related toKhortytsia at Wikimedia CommonsNames initalics are settlements whoseNorse names are not recorded | ||
| Volkhov-Volga trade route |  | |
| Dvina-Dnieper trade route | ||
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