History of the city

Long history of the city is connected with ancient civilization of the Kazan Tatars and their direct ancestors - the Bulgars of the Volga region. The city, located on the border line of Europe and Asia, has always been a kind of link between the East and the West, keeping traditions of two great cultures.

There is a long-running dispute as to whether Kazan was founded by the Volga Bulgars in the early middle ages or by the Tatars of the Golden Horde in the mid-fifteenth century, as written records before the latter period are sparse. If there was a Bulgar City on the site, estimates of its foundation range from the early 11th century to the late 13th century (see Iske Qazan). It was a block-post on the border between Volga Bulgaria and Finnish tribes (Mari, Udmurt). Another vexed question is where the citadel was built originally. Archaeological explorations have produced evidence of urban settlement in 3 parts of the modern city: in the Kremlin in the place of modern Zilantaw monastery and near the Qaban lake. The oldest was the Kremlin which could be dated back to 11th century.

For the following one hundred years the city became a big administrative centre of one of the uluses of the Golden Horde, where handicraft production and international trade prospered. Traditions of friendship with Ancient Russia had been expanded and developed at that time. From 1438 to 1552 Kazan was the capital of the Kazanien Khanate.

For the following 15 years of our history Kazan was the main city of the Kazan Region, being the Oriental gates of the widening Russia and the city of Moslem-and-Christian contacts.

In the reign of Peter the Great, in 1708, Kazan became the capital of the Kazan gubernia (province) and kept this status for more than 200 years.

During the last 90 year Kazan is the capital of Tatarstan.

During World War II, many industrial plants and factories were evacuated to Kazan, and the city subsequently became a center of the military industry, producing tanks and planes.

Since 2000, the city has been undergoing a total renovation. A single-line metro, the north-southeast running Central Line, opened on 27 August 2005. The Kazan Metro has five stations. But there are plans to extend the line in both directions, bringing the total number of stations on it to 11, according to Website UrbanRail. Net; Five stations will cross the Kazanka River and extend further north, while one station will complete the line's southeast end. Kazan celebrated its millennium in 2005, when the largest mosque in Russia was inaugurated in the kremlin, and the holiest copy of Our Lady of Kazan was returned to the city. The date of "millennium", however, was fixed rather arbitrarily.

Kazan. Millenium.

The history of the Kazan city foundation was uncertain for a long time. As far as we know, scientific debates on the date of the city foundation had been continued for more than one hundred years. In 1894 the State Duma attempted to determine the age of Kazan, so did the city officials and scientists 25 years ago. But there were no undeniable scientific evidences and facts in both cases.

Careful researches of the last years, which have been done in 32 archaeological digs, 62 libraries and archives, including 46 overseas, literally exposed new layers of history. Scientific examination of finds and decisions were made by the Numismatics Department of the State Hermitage, National Museums of Hungary and Czech Republic as well as specialists from Moscow, Berlin and Cairo.

Taking into consideration the frequency of coincided experts’ opinons and using the method of mathematical approximation, scientists determined the year of 1005 as the date of the Kazan city foundation. The results of investigations were discussed at three international forums with participation of scientists from 21 countries.

As a result five institutes of history and a bureau at the Academy of Sciences of Russia declared the time of Kazan foundation, and, more over, admitted that a new method of dating ancient cities’ foundation was opened. By the orders of the presidents of Russian Federation and the republic of Tatarstan, the 1000 anniversary celebration was the state ceremony. Kazan was blessed with its birthday, and celebrated that great jubilee on August 30, 2005.

Women of Kazan

Women of Kazan are famous for their dynamic beauty. A mixture of Slavic and eastern cultures make them look attractive and open to most cultures. The combined influence of Russian style and intelligence give them an enchanting charm that is hard to resist. It is not a surprise to see groups of young women on the streets in Kazan. Most are students, walking on Bauman or Kremlevskaya street or gathering in Gorky Park, local cafes or shopping malls. They are young, pretty, energetic and happy.

A great number of universities, colleges and research centers are located in Kazan attracting female high school graduates to the city for higher education. Many remain there after graduation and pursuit professional careers.

Let me know what you think of all this!

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