Khotyn Хотин1 Hotin | |
|---|---|
 Panoramic view of theKhotyn Fortress | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Interactive map of Khotyn | |
  Khotyn Location of Khotyn Show map of Chernivtsi Oblast Khotyn Khotyn (Ukraine) Show map of Ukraine | |
| Coordinates:48°30′25″N26°29′25″E / 48.50694°N 26.49028°E /48.50694; 26.49028 | |
| Country |  Ukraine |
| Oblast | Chernivtsi Oblast |
| Raion | Dnistrovskyi Raion |
| Hromada | Khotyn urban hromada |
| First chronicled | September 22, 1002 |
| City rights | 11th century |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Andrii Dranchuk |
| Area | |
• Total | 182.15 km2 (70.33 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• Total | 18 426 |
• Estimate (2023)[1] | 10 000 |
| • Density | 545.6/km2 (1,413/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 60000–60005 |
| Area code | +380 3731 |
| Website | http://khotynmr.gov.ua/ |
Khotyn (Ukrainian:Хотин,pronounced[xoˈtɪn];Romanian:Hotin,pronounced[hoˈtin]; seeother names) is acity inDnistrovskyi Raion,Chernivtsi Oblast of westernUkraine, located south-west ofKamianets-Podilskyi. It hosts the administration ofKhotyn urban hromada, one of thehromadas of Ukraine.[2] According to the2001 Ukrainian census, it has a population of 11,124. Current population:8,936 (2022 estimate).[3]
Khotyn, first chronicled in 1001,[4] is located on the right (southwestern) bank of theDniester River, and is part of the historical regionBessarabia. Important architectural landmarks within the city include theKhotyn Fortress, constructed in the 13-15th centuries (new fortress started in 1325, major improvements in the 1380s and 1460s), and two 15th century constructions by Moldavia's rulerStephen the Great: thePrince's Palace (Palatul Domnesc) and the city'sclock tower.
Historically, the town was part of theKievan Rus' and theGalicia–Volhynia Principality (from its foundation to 1359),Principality of Moldavia,[a] and thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.[b] For most of the period after 1514, Moldavia was a vassal of theOttoman Empire, which also ruled Khotyn directly (1711–1812). Subsequently, it was part of theBessarabia Governorate of theRussian Empire (1812–1917), andde jure it was part ofMoldavian Democratic Republic (1917–1918). Khotyn was part ofRomania (1918–1940, 1941–1944), was annexed by theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic within theSoviet Union (1940–1941, 1944–1991) and now is part of independentUkraine (1991–present).
Khotyn (Polish:Chocim;Romanian:Hotin;Russian:Хотин,romanized: Khotin;Turkish:Hotin;Ukrainian:Хотин;Yiddish:כעטין,romanized: Khetìn) was conquered and controlled by many different states, resulting in many name changes. Other name variations includeChotyn, orChoczim (especially in Polish).
Khotyn, located on cliffs above theDniester, is sometimes conflated with a sound-alike locality mentioned in 1001,[4] a minor settlement ofKievan Rus'.[5][6] Archaeological excavations found that the Kievan town covered the area of some twenty hectares.[7] It later became part of thePrincipality of Halych and its successor,Halych-Volhynia. The town was an important trading center due to its location by a river crossing. AGenoese trading colony was established there by the 13th century.[5]
Khotyn was first mentioned in 1310, as a residence of a catholic bishop, being held in the first half of the 14th century by theKingdom of Poland, which intended to impose Catholicism on the localVlach (Romanian) communities, mentioned there in the 10th-13th centuries. The first fortifications date back from this period. In 1351, theGrand Duchy of Lithuania conquered the area, only to give it three years later to theRomanians, who formed their own independent principality in 1359,Moldavia.
The present-day fortress was constructed after 1400 by the Moldavian rulerAlexander the Good, with the help ofVytautas the Great of Lithuania. After 1433, it was occupied by Poland, due to wars between Alexander's successors, and was reconquered from the Poles byStephen the Great of Moldavia in 1459 after a two-year siege. The fortress, strengthened by Stephen, during the 15th century, became the strongest on the northern border of the medieval Moldavia.
DuringWallachian rulerMichael the Brave's conquest of Moldavia in May 1600, its rulerIeremia Movilă took refuge in the Fortress of Khotyn together with his family, a handful of faithful boyars, and the formerTransylvanian Prince,Sigismund Bathory.
As the Moldavian state's power was weakened by that of theOttoman Empire, the latter sought to gain control of the strategic river crossing. As a result, Hotin's later history was dominated by wars between the expanding Christian powers (first Poland, then Russia) and the expandingOttoman Empire. The Turks suffered two decisive defeats at Khotyn in the 17th century, at the hands of the army of thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth:in 1621 byHetmanJan Karol Chodkiewicz, and againin 1673 byJan III Sobieski (see:Battles below).
The Ottoman Empire finally seized the fortress fromMoldavia in 1713 during theGreat Northern War and held it during the following century as a base for its troops. Another power,Russian Empire, came to claim the region in the 18th century. The Turks amplified and enlarged the citadel, which was besieged and taken by the Russians on four occasions: in 1739 byBurkhard Christoph von Münnich, in 1769 by PrinceAlexander Galitzine, in 1788 byPrince Josias of Coburg, and Ivan Saltykov, in 1807 byIvan Ivanovich Michelson.
With the start of theRusso-Turkish War in 1806, the Hotin Fortress was taken by theImperial Russian Army and passed toRussia. With the signing of theBucharest Peace Treaty in 1812, the entire region that became known asBessarabia was annexed by the Russian Empire from Moldavia.[8]
From 1812 to 1918, Hotin was the administrative center of theHotin County, one of the twelve, later nine counties of Bessarabia. During the 19th century, due to economic reasons and the Russian policy ofcolonization andrussification, the Ukrainian population of Bessarabia (especially in its north) increased significantly, from around 15,000 in 1810 to around 200,000 in 1917 (of which over half in the northern half of the Hotin county alone), mostly by migration fromPodolia (just across the riverDniester). DuringWorld War I, the north-eastern corner of the Hotin county was the only area of Bessarabia occupied temporarily byAustria-Hungary.
With the collapse of the Russian Empire, Bessarabia proclaimed independence from Russia as theMoldavian Democratic Republic in 1917. The Austrians were in control of Khotyn and several surrounding villages for several months starting February 28, 1918.[9] In April 1918 the Moldavian Democratic Republic formally proclaimed aunion with Romania. Romania and Austria signeda peace treaty in May 1918, and the Austrians withdrew from the area. The treaty was not formally ratified by Romania, a formerEntente ally which found itself isolated, until on November 10 Romania re-entered the war. Shortly after that, in January 1919, local Ukrainians desiring to be part of Ukraine, started a revolt,[10][11][12] which was also exploited by some Soviet agitators, followed by the expulsion and massacre of Ukrainian rebels and collaborators during the rebellion by the Romanian authorities from January 23 to February 1, 1919. After theKhotyn Uprising was put down by theRomanian Army, Romania implemented policies aimed at there-Romanianization of the territory.[11][13] At this time, the population was approximately 35,000.[14]
The city remained under Romanian control until June 28, 1940, when along with Bessarabia and NorthernBukovina it wasoccupied by theSoviet Union. In August 1940 most of Bessarabia became theMoldavian Soviet Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union; however, Northern Bukovina and the area around Khotyn were attached to theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic asChernivtsi Oblast and the southernmost part of Bessarabia (Budjak) became theAkkerman (later Izmail) Oblast. AfterOperation Barbarossa, where Romania acted as a German ally, the area was retaken by Romania in early July 1941. In March 1944, with the defeat of theAxis forces, the town was retaken by the Soviets, and reattached to Soviet Ukraine. The Jews were deported to Transnistria by the Romanian authorities in 1941, where most of them died.[15]
With thecollapse of the Soviet Union and theDeclaration of Independence of Ukraine in 1991, Khotyn became a part of newly independentUkraine. In 2000, theCabinet of Ministers of Ukraine created the historical-architectural preserve "Khotynska Fortetsia" (Khotyn Fortress).[16] In September 2002, the city celebrated its 1,000 year anniversary.[16]
Until July 18, 2020, Khotyn served as an administrative center ofKhotyn Raion. The raion was abolished in July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Chernivtsi Oblast to three. The area of Khotyn Raion was merged into Dnistrovskyi Raion.[17][18]
In the firstBattle of Khotyn in 1621, an army led byOsman II, advanced fromAdrianople towards the Polish frontier. The Turks, following their victory in theBattle of Cecora, had high hopes of conquering Polish controlledUkraine. ThePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth commanderJan Karol Chodkiewicz crossed theDniester in September 1621 with approximately 35,000 soldiers[20][21] and entrenched the Khotyn Fortress, blocking the path of the Ottoman march. The arrival of 40,000[20][21]Ukrainian Cossack forces under their hetmanPetro Konashevych was helpful in that anti-Ottoman victory. The Commonwealth hetman held the sultan at bay for a whole month, until the first snow of autumn compelled Osman to withdraw his diminished forces. But the victory was also dearly purchased by Poland: a few days before the siege was raised, the aged grand hetman died of exhaustion in the fortress on September 24, 1621. The Commonwealth forces held under the command ofStanisław Lubomirski. The battle, described byWacław Potocki in his most famous workTransakcja wojny chocimskiej, marked the end of the long period ofMoldavian Magnate Wars.
In 1673, the Polishhussars again fought a major battle on this site (second Battle of Khotyn). This time Polish forces under the command of soon-to-be-kingJan Sobieski defeated the Ottomans on November 11, 1673. In this battle, rockets ofKazimierz Siemienowicz were successfully used. This brilliant victory was a prelude to theBattle of Vienna 1683.
In theRusso-Turkish War (1735–1739), the fortress was taken by Russianfield marshalBurkhard Christoph von Münnich on August 30 [O.S. August 19] 1739. This victory is remembered primarily through theOde on the Taking of Khotyn from the Turks, composed by the youngMikhail Lomonosov.[22] This ode has a place in the history of Russian literature: its sonorous iambic verse is often taken as a starting point of the modernRussian poetry.
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding missing information.(November 2024) |
Khotyn is most famous for itsfortress complex. Khotyn contains aJewish cemetery, indexed by theU.S. Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad.
A church built in the fortress grounds was later converted to a mosque by the Turks.
Media related toKhotyn at Wikimedia Commons
