| Moscow Canal | |
|---|---|
 Moscow Canal | |
 | |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 79.6 miles (128.1 km) |
| Locks | 8+2+1 (originally 8) |
| Maximum height above sea level | 531 ft (162 m) |
| History | |
| Former names | Moskva–Volga Canal |
| Date completed | 1937 (1937) |
| Geography | |
| Start point | Ivankovo Reservoir |
| End point | Moskva (river) |
TheMoscow Canal (Russian:Кана́л и́мени Москвы́), named theMoskva–Volga Canal until 1947, is acanal inRussia that connects theMoskva (river) with theVolga. It is located inMoscow itself and in theMoscow Oblast. The canal connects to the Moskva River inTushino (an area in the north-west of Moscow), from which it runs approximately north to meet the Volga River in the town ofDubna, just upstream of the dam of theIvankovo Reservoir. The length of the canal is 128.1 kilometres (79.6 mi).
It was constructed between 1932 and 1937 by 200,000gulag prisoners, under direction of theSoviet secret police andMatvei Berman.[1][2][3]
With the canal, Moscow is connected to Russia'sUnified Deep Water System, a large system of canals and rivers in European Russia, which created access to five seas: theWhite Sea,Baltic Sea,Caspian Sea,Sea of Azov, and theBlack Sea. As such, it is sometimes called the "port of the five seas" (Russian:порт пяти морей).[4] Apart from transportation, the canal also provides for about half of Moscow's water consumption, and the shores of its numerous reservoirs are used as recreation zones.[5]
One of the world's tallest statues ofVladimir Lenin, 25-meter (82 ft) high, built in 1937, is located at Dubna at theconfluence of theVolga River and the Moscow Canal. The accompanying statue ofJoseph Stalin of similar size was demolished in 1961 during the period ofde-stalinization.[6]
During World War II and theBattle of Moscow, the canal played an instrumental role in the defense of Moscow.Wehrmacht plans were to encircle the city from the north and south. To prevent this, water was pumped from the canal and reservoirs into the surrounding plains.[7]
The minimum depth of the canal is 5.5 metres (18 ft), and its lock dimensions are 290 by 30 metres (951 by 98 ft).[8]
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56°43′N37°08′E / 56.717°N 37.133°E /56.717; 37.133
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
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