| Shelon River | |
|---|---|
 The Shelon in the village of Bor | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Russia |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Mouth | Lake Ilmen |
• coordinates | 58°12′52″N30°46′58″E / 58.21449°N 30.78266°E /58.21449; 30.78266 |
| Length | 248 kilometres (154 mi)[1] |
| Basin size | 9,710 square kilometres (3,750 sq mi)[1] |
| Discharge | |
| • average | 43.6 cubic metres per second (1,540 cu ft/s)[1] |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Lake Ilmen→Volkhov→Lake Ladoga→Neva→Gulf of Finland |
TheShelon (Russian:Шелонь) is ariver in the northwest part ofEuropean Russia, inDedovichsky,Porkhovsky, andDnovsky Districts ofPskov Oblast andSoletsky andShimsky Districts ofNovgorod Oblast. The Shelon is one of the principal tributaries ofLake Ilmen. It has a length of 248 kilometres (154 mi) and drains a basin of 9,710 square kilometres (3,750 sq mi).[2] The towns ofPorkhov andSoltsy, as well as urban-type settlements ofDedovichi andShimsk, are located on the banks of the Shelon. The principal tributaries of the Shelon are theSudoma (left), theBelka (right), thePolonka (right), theUza (left), theUdokha (left), theSitnya (left), and theMshaga (left).
The Shelon has its source in the swamps at the east of Pskov Oblast, close to the border with Novgorod Oblast. It flows northeast, then turns around and flows west. Around the urban-type settlement of Dedovichi the Shelon turns northwest. It further enters Porkhovsky District, and behind Porkhov turns north and then northeast. The Shelon crosses a short segment of Dnovsky District and returns to Porkhovsky District, crossing then to Novgorod Oblast. In Novgorod Oblast, the Shelon flows northeast and has its mouth by the urban-type settlement of Shimsk, forming anestuary.
The river basin of the Shelon comprises vast areas on theIlmen Depression which administratively are located in Soletsky, Shimsky, andVolotovsky Districts of Novgorod Oblast, and in Porkhovsky, Dnovsky, Dedovichsky, andBezhanitsky Districts of Pskov Oblast.
The Shelon is navigable downstream of the town of Soltsy, however, there is no passenger navigation.
TheBattle of Shelon on July 14, 1471 betweenMuscovy andNovgorod Republic occurred between the town of Soltsy and the mouth of the Shelon. It ended in a victory for the Muscovite army led byPrince Kholmsky, and consequently resulted in the annexation of Novgorod by Muscovy in 1478.
