The predecessor fort was named Krasny Yar (Russian:Кра́сный Яр) after the Yarin (a dialect ofKhakas) name of the place where it was built,Kyzyl Char ('red steep-riverbank'),[22] which was translated as Krasny (red) Yar.
The city was founded on 19 August 1628[3] as a Russian border fort when a group ofservice class people fromYeniseysk led by Andrey Dubenskiy arrived at theconfluence of theKacha andYenisei Rivers and constructed fortifications intended to protect the frontier from attacks of native peoples who lived along the Yenisei and its tributaries. Along withKansk to the east, it represented the southern limit of Russian expansion in the Yenisei basin during the seventeenth century. In a letter toTsar Michael I theCossacks reported:
...The town of trunks (log buildings) we have constructed and around the place of fort, we the servants of thee, our Lord, have embedded posts and fastened them with double bindings and the place of fort have strengthened mightily...
The settlement was granted town status in 1690.[23] An intensive growth of Krasnoyarsk began with the arrival of theSiberian Route (the roadM53 nowadays) in 1735 to 1741 which connected the nearby towns ofAchinsk andKansk with Krasnoyarsk and with the rest ofRussia.
In 1749, a meteorite with a mass of about 700 kg (1,500 lb) was found 230 km (140 mi) south of Krasnoyarsk. It was excavated byPeter Simon Pallas in 1772 and transported to Krasnoyarsk and subsequently toSaint Petersburg. TheKrasnoyarsk meteorite was the firstpallasite ever studied and the first meteorite ever etched.
In 1822 Krasnoyarsk became the administrative center ofYeniseysk Governorate.[23] By the end of the 19th century, Krasnoyarsk had several manufacturing facilities and railroad workshops and anengine house. Growth continued with the discovery ofgold and the arrival of arailroad in 1895.
In theRussian Empire, Krasnoyarsk was one of the places to which political exiles were banished. For example, eightDecembrists were deported from St. Petersburg to Krasnoyarsk after the failure of the revolt.
During the periods of centralized planning (Five Year Plans) numerous large plants and factories were constructed in Krasnoyarsk: Sibtyazhmash, thedock yard, the paper factory, thehydroelectric power station (now the fifth largest in the world and the second inRussia), and the river port.
In 1934,Krasnoyarsk Krai was formed, with Krasnoyarsk as its administrative center.
During Stalinist times, Krasnoyarsk was a major center of thegulag system. The most important labor camp was the Kraslag orKrasnoyarsky ITL (1938-c. 1960) with the two units located inKansk and Reshyoty. In the city of Krasnoyarsk itself, the Yeniseylag orYeniseysky ITL labor camp was prominent as well duringWorld War II (c. 1940–41).
During World War II, dozens of factories were evacuated fromUkraine and WesternRussia to Krasnoyarsk and nearby towns, stimulating the industrial growth of the city. After the war, additional large plants were constructed: the aluminum plant, the metallurgic plant, the plant of base metals and many others.
In the late 1970s, theSoviet Union began constructing aphased array radar station at Abalakova, near Krasnoyarsk, which violated theABM Treaty. Beginning in 1983, theUnited States demanded its removal, until the Soviet Union admitted the radar station was a violation in 1989. Equipment was slowly removed from the site and by 1992 it was officially declared to be dismantled, though the equipment from the site was likely relocated to a new site nearKomsomolsk-on-Amur.[citation needed] Krasnoyarsk was also home toKrasnoyarsk Northeast air base, which was turned into living blocks after thedissolution of the Soviet Union.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and beginning ofprivatization, many large plants and factories, such as the Krasnoyarsk Aluminium Plant, became owned by alleged criminal authorities andoligarchs, while others were declaredbankrupt. The economic transition resulted in a dramatic rise inunemployment and numerousstrikes.
The best known financial scandal of the second half of the 1990s happened when ownership of the Krasnoyarsk Aluminium Plant by a known Krasnoyarsk businessmanAnatoliy Bykov had been canceled after he was accused of murdering his partner, Vilor Struganov. The accusation eventually turned out to be false.[25] The Krasnoyarsk plant's ownership problems continue through the early 21st century since nearly all of them are owned either bymonopolistic financial groups or byoligarchs.[citation needed]
Since the election ofPyotr Pimashkov as the mayor of Krasnoyarsk in 1996, the appearance of the city gradually improved: the old historical buildings were restored, the asphalt walkways were replaced with paving-stone, and numerous squares and recreation areas with fountains were either restored or constructed from scratch. Now the majority of the city keeps only a few traces of its former, drab, post-collapse look.[citation needed]
Aerial view of KrasnoyarskChurch in Krasnoyarsk, 1895The panorama of Krasnoyarsk from the Karaulnaya Gora hill, 1910
The total area of the city, including suburbs and the river, is 348 km2 (134 sq mi).[15]
The riverYenisei flows from west to east through the city. Due to theKrasnoyarsk hydroelectric dam 32 km (20 mi) upstream, the Yenisei never freezes in winter and never[citation needed] exceeds +14 °C (57 °F) in summer through the city. Near the city center, its elevation is 136 m (446 ft) abovesea level. There are several islands in the river, the largest of which are Tatyshev and Otdyha Isles, used mainly for recreation.
To the south and west, Krasnoyarsk is surrounded by forested mountains averaging 410 m (1,350 ft) in height above river level. The most prominent of them are Nikolayevskaya Sopka (notable for itsski jumping tracks), Karaulnaya Gora, and Chornaya Sopka, the latter being an extinct volcano.[26] The gigantic rock cliffs of theStolby Nature Reserve rise from the mountains of the southern bank of the Yenisei, the western hills from the Gremyachaya Griva crest extending westwards up to the Sobakina River, the north is generally plain, except for the Drokinskaya Sopka hill, with forests to the northwest and agricultural fields to the north and east.
The major rivers in and near Krasnoyarsk are theYenisei,Mana,Bazaikha, andKacha Rivers, the latter flowing throughout the historical center of the city. Due to the nature of the terrain, a few natural lakes exist in the vicinity of Krasnoyarsk.
The forests close to the city are mostlypine andbirch; further afield,aspen becomes dominant in many areas. The moss-coveredfir andSiberian pine replaces other wood in the mountains westward of the Karaulnaya River, in about 15 km (9.3 mi) to the west from the city, the forests to the south are mostlypine,fir andaspen.[27]
The first version was approved on March 12, 1804. The coat of arms was divided horizontally into two parts, the upper part containing the coat of arms ofTomsk Governorate, and the lower part picturing the Krasny Yar cliff on a silver background. A revised coat of arms, approved on November 23, 1851, had the golden figure of a lion placed on a redheraldic shield with a spade in the right fore paw and a sickle in the left fore paw, both made of the same metal. The shield was topped with the golden crown of theRussian Empire. The current coat of arms (as depicted here) was approved on November 28, 2004. It contains the same red shield as in 1851 but with a slightly changed figure of the lion in the officially approved image. The shield is topped with a form of themural crown, which is the golden five-towercoronet of rank of a federal subject administrative center.[28][29][30]
Krasnoyarsk experiences ahumid continental climate (Köppen climate classificationDfb). Its climate is very similar to that ofNovosibirsk in Russia,Fort McMurray andWinnipeg in Canada, the latter of which is a good deal further south geographically. Compared toThompson, Manitoba, orLabrador City at similar latitudes, Krasnoyarsk's winters are relatively mild. Compared to European cities on a similar latitude, Krasnoyarsk has much warmer summers, but much colder and longer winters (for example,Aalborg,Denmark). The summer is also on average warmer than similar inland latitudes ofScandinavia, owing toSiberia's greatercontinentality. Krasnoyarsk has high differentials between summer and winter temperatures.
Climate data for Krasnoyarsk (1991–2020, extremes 1891–present)
The population of Krasnoyarsk includes a number of peoples, the most numerous areRussians, followed byTajiks,Kyrgyz and otherCentral Asian andCaucasian peoples, whose number has grown extensively because of the vast, often illegalimmigration in search for work.Another populousimmigrant group is theChinese who, unlike otherforeign workers, are employed in much more lucrative areas and often form business partnerships with local companies. Many Chinese trade at thebazaars, and a special large Chinese bazaar namedSodruzhestvo (Russian forfellowship), and theChinese Trading Town (known inRussian as Китайский торговый город) or colloquiallyKitai-gorod on Strelka.
As of the2021 Census, the ethnic composition of Krasnoyarsk was:[35]
TheIntercession church in KrasnoyarskStalinist architecture in Krasnoyarsk
There are a number of historical buildings in Krasnoyarsk, the oldest of them being the Intercession Cathedral (Russian:Покровский собор, 1785 to 1795, restored in 1977 to 1978). Other locally significant samples ofRussian Orthodox architecture are the Annunciation Cathedral (Russian:Благовещенский собор, 1802–12), the Holy Trinity Cathedral (Russian:Свято-Троицкий собор, 1802–12), John the Baptist Church (Russian:Церковь Иоанна Предтечи, 1899, former episcopal residence), and the new Michael the Archangel Church (Russian:Церковь Архистратига Михаила, 1998 to 2003).
On the top of the Karaulnaya Hill, originally a pagan shrine, later occupied by the Krasnoyarsk fort watchtower, theParaskeva Pyatnitsa Chapel (1804, rebuilt 1854–55) still stands. The chapel, displayed on the 10-ruble note, is one of the iconic images of the city. The chapel was abandoned and fell into disrepair during theSoviet era and only whenPerestroyka came was it regained by the Yeniseibishopric.
Shopping center "Optima"
Another unofficial symbol of Krasnoyarsk is the incomplete 24-story tower located at Strelka. Construction of the tower had been started just beforePerestroyka and then frozen due to the administrative crisis. The outline of the tower is clearly seen from many places in the city.
Abridge near Krasnoyarsk carries theTrans-Siberian Railway across theYenisei. The original structure, one of the longest at the time, was constructed between 1893 and 1896 to an award-winning design byLavr Proskuryakov. In 2003 it was rejected for emergency inscription on theWorld Heritage List.[36] It was described at the time byICOMOS "an early representation of a typical parabolic polygonaltruss bridge in Russia" which became "a testing ground for the application of engineering theories and the development of new innovative solutions, which had numerous successors".[37] The bridge was dismantled between 2002 and 2007.[38][39]
Among other notable buildings are the mansions of the merchant Nikolay Gadalov (beginning of the 20th century), the Roman Catholic Transfiguration Chapel (Russian:Преображенский собор, 1911, also known as the Krasnoyarsk Organ Hall), the Krasnoyarsk Krai Museum stylized as anAncient Egyptian temple, the Krasnoyarsk Cultural/Historical Center and the triumphal arch at the Spit (2003), theregional administration building flanked with two towers known as the "Donkey Ears".
There are a number of two-story wooden houses in the city built mostly in the middle of the 20th century as temporary habitations. Many urbanized villages located inside the city keep the remnants of the traditional Russian village architecture: wooden houses with backyards, many somewhat dilapidated now but still inhabited.
There are a number of local holidays celebrated annually in Krasnoyarsk. The most significant holiday is the Day of the City celebrated in June, usually with acarnival. Other holidays and cultural events are the Mana Festival (Russian:Манский фестиваль. The celebrations take place on the outside of town, on the bank of river Mana) usually held on the last weekend in June with the traditionalbard contest, the International Museum Biennale traditionally held in the Krasnoyarsk Cultural/Historical Center, theavant-gardeMuseum Night festival dedicated to theInternational Museum Day (May 18), the Jazz on Yenisey festival, the Stolbist Day held many times a year celebrating the traditions ofmountain climbing in theStolby national reserve, and theBikers' Rally.
Krasnoyarsk has a number of localtelevision companies and the highly developedtelecommunications, many districts of the city haveLAN-based broadbandInternet access.
The city is also home to the Krasnoyarsk Children's Choir, a world-renowned choir that tours in many countries as The Little Eagles of Siberia.
Siberian State Technological University (Russian abbreviation is SibGTU), the oldest in the city, founded in 1930 as the Siberian Institute of ForestSiberian Arts institute
LikeNovosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk has a special city district calledAkademgorodok ("Academic Town"), where several scientific research institutes are located. Krasnoyarsk's Institute of Biophysics is known for a 1973–1985 experiment onecological isolation ofhuman beings (the "Bios Experiment").Sukachev Institute of Forest, founded in 1944 at Moscow and relocated to Krasnoyarsk in 1959.There are several museums in Krasnoyarsk. One is the Krasnoyarsk Regional Museum, containing historical items and exhibits of the region, including ancient history, native Siberians, and woolly rhinos.
The Krasnoyarsk zoo is also a major attraction for residents and tourists.
The transit system is dominated by buses, but there also are several trolleybus andtram routes.
Krasnoyarsk rail station
Anunderground metro system (three lines) has been in planning and construction phases in Krasnoyarsk for decades. Subway construction was terminated in 2008. In 2021, a decision was made to use tunnels to create a light rail system, and construction resumed in 2023.
Krasnoyarsk lies on the Yenisei River and historically has been an important junction on theTrans-Siberian Railway.Krasnoyarsk-Passazhirsky (Russian:Красноярск-Пассажирский, lit. Krasnoyarsk-Passenger) is the main railway station of Krasnoyarsk. Long-range trains of the Trans-Siberian Railway stop at this station. There are some stations served byElektrichka and there isKrasnoyarsk-East goods station 26.3 km east of Krasnoyarsk-Passazhirsky.
Krasnoyarsk was served by two airports:Yemelyanovo Airport is the main airport and handles both medium and long-haul domestic as well as international flights, and is 27 km (17 mi) northwest of the city.[40] The secondaryCheremshanka Airport handled short-haul flights. Cheremshanka has lost its eminent role as the main base airport for an extensive network of local air services (MVL) in Krasnoyarsk Krai formerly served by the local Aeroflot Krasnoyarsk Directorate. In December 2011 a fire broke out at the Cheremshanka airport which destroyed the terminal building and theair traffic control tower.[41]
The most popular place of attraction for tourists visiting Krasnoyarsk is the huge national nature reserve Stolby ("pillars"), which covers an area of 470 km2 (180 sq mi) with numerous giantgranite rocks formations up to 100 meters high, many of very extraordinary shapes. Stolby is also a majorrock climbing location. Many local climbers intentionally do not use anybelaying equipment and call theirextreme sportstolbizm, known elsewhere as solo climbing.
This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2025)
Krasnoyarsk is a center of Siberian sports. Areas, where Krasnoyarsk excels compared to other Russian cities, include rugby union, bandy, and freestyle wrestling.
Yenisey was theSoviet bandy champions every year in the 1980s as well as in 1991. The first Russian title came in 2001. In 2014 they became champions of theBandy Super League and had the highest average attendance, 5 747.[42] In 2015 the league title was won again as well as in 2016.[43][44] At the2019 Winter Universiade, bandy was due to feature as a demonstration sport for the first time and tournaments for both men and women were planned.[45][needs update] An indoor stadium will be built for the occasion.[46][47][needs update] It is planned to be ready for use by the end of 2018.[48][needs update] The complexity of the construction is considered unique.[49]
^Решение Красноярского городского Совета депутатов от 26 мая 2010 года No. В-169 (Decision of the Krasnoyarsk City Council of Deputies 26 May 2010)(in Russian)
^Muzhschinsky, Andrey (May 21, 2018)."Мосты Красноярска. История покорения Енисея".Gor Novosti (in Russian).... the dismantling of the Tsar's bridge began in 2002. On August 7, 2007, the dismantled object was handed over for scrap
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №10-4765 от 10 июня 2010 г. «О перечне административно-территориальных единиц и территориальных единиц Красноярского края», в ред. Закона №7-3007 от 16 декабря 2014 г. «Об изменении административно-территориального устройства Большеулуйского района и о внесении изменений в Закон края "О перечне административно-территориальных единиц и территориальных единиц Красноярского края"». Вступил в силу 1 июля 2010 г. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №33(404), 5 июля 2010 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #10-4765 of June 10, 2010On the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and the Territorial Units of Krasnoyarsk Krai, as amended by the Law #7-3007 of December 16, 2014On Changing the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Bolsheuluysky District and on Amending the Krai Law "On the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and the Territorial Units of Krasnoyarsk Krai". Effective as of July 1, 2010.).
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №10-4763 от 10 июня 2010 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Красноярского края», в ред. Закона №8-3263 от 19 марта 2015 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон края "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Красноярского края"». Вступил в силу на следующий день после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №31(402), 28 июня 2010 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #10-4763 of June 10, 2010On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Krasnoyarsk Krai, as amended by the Law #8-3263 of March 19, 2015On Amending the Krai Law "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Krasnoyarsk Krai". Effective as of the day following the official publication.).
Законодательное собрание Красноярского края. Закон №13-3148 от 25 февраля 2005 г. «О наделении муниципального образования город Красноярск статусом городского округа». Вступил в силу через десять дней после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости высших органов государственной власти Красноярского края", №13, 4 апреля 2005 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnoyarsk Krai. Law #13-3148 of February 25, 2005On Granting Urban Okrug Status to the Municipal Formation of the City of Krasnoyarsk. Effective as of the day ten days after the official publication.).
Красноярский городской Совет. Решение №В-62 от 24 декабря 1997 г. «Устав города Красноярска», в ред. Решения №6-90 от 16 декабря 2014 г. «О внесении изменений в Устав города Красноярска». Вступил в силу в соответствии со статьёй 86. Опубликован: "Городские новости", №4, 16 января 2008 г. (Krasnoyarsk City Council. Decision #V-62 of December 24, 1997Charter of the City of Krasnoyarsk, as amended by the Decision #6-90 of December 16, 2014On Amending the Charter of the City of Krasnoyarsk. Effective as of the date determined in accordance with the provisions set forth in Article 86.).
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