DAZED AND CONFUSED USING THE MOSCOW METRO

Heavy traffic welcomed us into Moscow, we are staying in the suburbs, 15 minute walk to a metro station about 7 metro stops to center of town. Some of us decided to check out the famous market/bazaar whose name I can't remember. The closest Metro stop from the hotel is Vladykino, we all bought the 10 pass ticket. The Moscow Metro is very efficient and goes every 3-5 minutes probaly even less if only our T (Boston)would be as efficient and as clean. Got to the market but took us awhile to figure out how to get there, lots of thing to buy but we mostly concentrated on souvenir things, lots of us bought souvenir shirts, dolls and propaganda posters. I noticed lots of Oriental and Central Asians having their stalls in the market, lots of Chinese, they really are good with business stuff. Bruce tried on the cosmonaut head gear, I got quite tempted to buy it but how am I gonna bring it back home?! It's so bulky. On the way back we went to another train station and we saw a soccer stadium next to it. Every stops in the Metro is unique, different themes and designs quite impressive, I remember Tbilisi is the same. I wish I took some photos but did not becasue I was told it's not allowed but checking other people's blogs people did try and succeed. Oh well.


The next day Catherine and Peter joined me and went to the main square in town to sight see ,we decided to do the Lenin tomb first as it will be closed the next day, long lines took us 2 hours before being able to go inside and only 15 seconds and it is over, security is super strict, no cameras, packs allowed and you cant put your hands in your pocket inside the mausoleum, Catherine did and got told off, maybe in case she had a camera in her pocket that they missed to discover, come on! security is tighter than the airport check.
From there we went to Mcdonald's for lunch, it is the cheapest lunch our budget can buy, Moscow is quite expensive and have no more money to burn. We went our own ways after that, Catheine going to the monastery Peter decided to go back home and me walked around some more, to St. Basil's in the square and the Tsum department store, when I tired I decided to head to the metro, I will have to take another train at the circular transfer station , that's when I got lost I asked the kind babushka, she speaks good English and made me jump over the fence to get to the right direction. I made it home safely, but took the wrong exit at the metro stop to home, so I ended up walking longer and cross the highway to get back into the path leading to the hotel, by now my legs are about to fall off, got to my room and sat there quietly while Peter and I watch the Russian Nanny!

The next day again I wanted to go to the Kremlin so I made my way to the metro with my map in hand, when I got to the transfer stations, I got totally confused where to connect and which trains, it does not help that all stations are in Cyrillic and when you get to the connecting platform the name of the stop changes, the metro is busy, people whizzing by me, I look like an idiot standing in the middle trying to figure out where I was, I tried 2 trains and everytime it's the wrong stop so have to go back from where I started in the circle, the only consolation is the trains come every few minutes. I may as well have bought the shirt with the metro map on it, now I know why they sell it, it's for disoriented tourists like me. I got fed up and surfaced out from the metro stop whichever it was, found a policeman and told him direct me to the Kremlin, he pointed to a direction and off I went, 15 minutes later I got there. As it is a Monday, there is not a lot of people in the Red Square, I made my way to the ticket booth for the Kremlin but not until I had a look at changing of the guards and took some photos, met Bev, Doug, Bryan and Brenda at the ticket office and told me that tickets to the Armory museum will be sold at certain times only. We lined up for it, it's ridiculous that the ticket seller won't sell until 1pm for 230pm session at the Armoury, we were just standing there watching the clock tick, while she sits in her booth staring at us, she can sell you kremlin tickets but not for the Armory because its not time yet. Comes one o clock and she starts selling them only if you have exact change! She made me wait on the side until she can break large denominations, now the number of tickets sold per session is limited, if it got sold out while I was standing there I would have slapped her.

Head cooled down, got me ticket,went to the kremlin and wandered around, yet another bunch of churches, they are all wonderful architectures don't get me wrong, am just sick of it, got to snap some more of this and that....in the end I had gazillion photos of spires, domes,icons, none of which I knew the names.

At the Armory I caught up with Bev and company, it is indeed an impressive collection at the museum, chariots, royalty costumes, jewelleries, carriages, icons, lots of treasures, Bev was eaves dropping at tour groups in English so she was able to explain to us some of the things in the exhibit, If you come too close to any exhibit it will alarm, naive as I am when Bryan asked me to come close to a carriage to read an apparently fine print I triggered the alarm to my embarrasment while the bugger was chuckling on the side.

When were done I picked up my pack and off we went towards the river, it was a good walk, sunny but not too warm, we got to a point where there is a giant ship statue, lots of young couples dating and hanging out there, there is an apple tree and we shook it for fruits, quite tasty, good snack as I havent had lunch yet. Our hotel is oppostie a Botanical Garden park and the path on the walkway is lined with apple trees, it is past their peak now but people still gather apples, mostly from the ground, at night as you walk past, if you look up you can see people up the tree gathering the fruits. I like the fact that there's lots of apple trees everywhere here in Russia and Kazakhstan, lining avenues, parks, road side, lots of delicious fruits to pick for snack, I don't see that at home, you have to go to an orchard place and pay to pick them. And I have to say the most delicious apples I have tasted are from here and Kaz. just superb. Decided to let Doug and Bryan lead the way home they discovered a metro station to get on to without making any transfers, just straight out into our hotel stop. As we are walking Bryan and I noticed a stall selling crap dogs, they look delish so we had some, we got the hotdog wrapped in bacon, with mayo, mustard, ketchup, pickles and sprinkled on top with what look like and taste like fried garlic but very mild, hits the spot.

It is around 6pm by now we got caught in the rush hour, the train is absolutely packed, can't barely move, just follow the crowd, made it back to Vladykino, our stop. We bought some chicken at a stall and that was my dinner which I shared with Peter, quite good, and cheap!
We have 4 nights here in Moscow, lots to see, but I am done with downtown, the next day I went with Bruce, Ron, Bryan and Peter to explore the exhibit center in the park next to the Botanical garden, close to our hotel, we took the tram and walked, lots of things to buy electronics, souvenirs etc, I can't remember the name of the park it looks like it was an exhibiton center at one time, they have different style buildnings with names on top of countries that participated. I needed a memory card so I bargained hard with a Bangladeshi man but he wouldn't budge, but after shopping around, I decided to buy from him. A few more souvenir shrts were bought from here, a bit more cheap than the market but I decided I bought enough already. We rode the monorail to try it out then went back to the hotel.

For dinner on our last night I went with Bruce, Ron and Peter to this Armenian restaurant they went to days before and they rave about the food and a free belly dancing! So off we went, the young lady speaks poor English as she takes our orders, I opted for salmon and it was great, simple but tasty dish, there wer a group of young people next to us and Bruce recognized one of the young ladies there was the belly dancer, and indeed before dessert the belly dancing tune came on and she started gyrating in the center of the room, the story is she is learning to belly dance and she wants to practice in front of people, she is quite attractive and I think the guy sitting on their table is the boyfriend, he does not look to happy and glares at us every now and then to see if we are staring at his girl, well who wouldn't stare at her she's dancing provacatively next to our table as we try to finish dinner, we took our time and ordered desserts to see if she will do it again, she's done so home we went.

Early morning departure saw us heading to Novgorod arriving in the afternoon and had a good dinner, I had the sudah fish whatever that is all I know is it is good and within budget. We have a city tour in the morning with Galina, speaks exceptional English, even better than mine, quite informative, this is the first time I trully enjoyed an organized city tour with a guide, saw more churches and monasteries, one intersting church has the Toledo cross which was just returned last year from Spain, a nazi Spaniard took it there when they conquered the city during the war and was not sent back til last year, and an icon of the virgin who according to legend was struck by an arrow on the left eye by invading enemies and cried tears making the enemies tremble in fear. this day is according to Galina, Tourist Day and Exaltation of the cross day so mass services will be longer. Taking bus#7 we set off to the open air museum of wood architecture, then walked to the monastery nearby, we then left hurriedly to go back and view the icon before mass service starts in the church.






The Moscow metro was the most confusing subway I have ever tried in this trip, Tbilisi, Tashkent, Beijing all a breeze. I have the map with me as I set out the next morning to try to get to



WIKI INFO:

Moscow (Moskva) (Russian: Москва́, romanised: Moskva, IPA: [mʌsk'va] (help·info) see also other names) is the capital of Russia and the country's economic, financial, educational, and transportation centre. It is located on the Moskva River in the Central Federal District, in the European part of Russia. The metropolitan area of Moscow (Moskva) is the largest in Europe, whose population constitutes about 7% of the total Russian population. Historically, it was the capital of the former Soviet Union and the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the pre-Imperial Russian state. It is the site of the Kremlin, which now serves as the ceremonial residence of the President of Russia.

Moscow also remains a major economic centre and is home to a large number of Russian billionaires; it was recently named as the most expensive city in the world for expatriate employees. It is home to many scientific and educational institutions, as well as numerous sport facilities. It possesses a complex transport system that includes the world's busiest metro system, which is famous for its architecture.


The city is named after the river (old Russian: гра́д Моско́в, literally the city by the Moskva River). The origin of the name is unknown, although several theories exist.[3] One theory suggests that the source of the name is an ancient Finnic language, in which it means "dark" and "turbid".

The first Russian reference to Moscow dates from 1147 when Yuri Dolgoruki called upon the prince of the Novgorod Republic to "come to me, brother, to Moscow."[4] Nine years later, in 1156, Prince Yuri Dolgoruki of Rostov ordered the construction of a wooden wall, which had to be rebuilt multiple times, to surround the emerging city.[5] After the sacking of 1237-1238, when the Mongol-Tatars burned the city to the ground and killed its inhabitants, Moscow recovered and became the capital of an independent principality in 1327.[6] Its favourable position on the headwaters of the Volga River contributed to steady expansion. Moscow developed into a stable and prosperous principality for many years and attracted a large number of refugees from across Russia.

Under Ivan I the city replaced Tver as capital of Vladimir-Suzdal and became the sole collector of taxes for the Mongol-Tatar rulers. By paying high tribute, Ivan won an important concession from the Khan. Unlike other principalities, Moscow was not divided among his sons but was passed intact to his eldest. In 1380, prince Dmitri Donskoi of Moscow led a united Russian army to an important victory over the Tatars in the Battle of Kulikovo. Although this victory is regarded as important its result was somewhat exaggerated; the battle wasn't decisive. After 2 years of battle Moscow was completely destroyed by khan Tokhtamysh. In 1480, Ivan III had finally broken the Russians free from Tatar control, allowing Moscow to become the centre of power in Russia.[7] Ivan III relocated the Russian capital to Moscow (the previous capital was Vladimir), and the city became the capital of an empire that would eventually encompass all of present-day Russia and other lands. In 1571, the Crimean Tatars attacked and sacked Moscow, burning everything but the Kremlin.[8]

In 1609 the Swedish-Finnish army led by Count Jacobus (Jaakko) De la Gardie ("Lazy Jaakko") and Evert (Eetvartti) Horn started their march from Velikiy Novgorod towards Moscow to help Tsar Vasili Shuiski, entered Moscow in 1610 and suppressed the rebellion against Tsar, but leaving it early next year 1611, following which the Polish-Lithuanian army invaded.The 17th century was rich in popular risings, such as the liberation of Moscow from the Polish-Lithuanian invaders (1612), the Salt Riot (1648), the Copper Riot (1662), and the Moscow Uprising of 1682. The city ceased to be Russia's capital in 1712, after the founding of St. Petersburg by Peter the Great on the Baltic coast in 1703. When Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812, the Muscovites burned the city and evacuated, as Napoleon's forces were approaching on 14 September. Napoleon's army, plagued by hunger, cold, and poor supply lines, was forced to retreat and was nearly annihilated by the devastating Russian winter and sporadic attacks by Russian military forces. In January 1905, the institution of the City Governor, or Mayor, was officially introduced in Moscow, and Alexander Adrianov became Moscow's first official mayor. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, on March 12, 1918, Moscow became the capital of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and the Soviet Union less than five years later.[9]

During the Great Patriotic War (a part of World War II after German invasion in the USSR), the Soviet State Committee of Defence and the General Staff of the Red Army was located in Moscow. In 1941, sixteen divisions of the national volunteers (more than 160,000 people), twenty-five battalions (18,500 people) and four engineering regiments were formed among the Muscovites. In November 1941, German Army Group Centre was stopped at the outskirts of the city and then driven off in the course of the Battle of Moscow. Many factories were evacuated, together with much of the government, and from October 20 the city was declared to be under siege. Its remaining inhabitants built and manned antitank defences, while the city was bombarded from the air. It is of some note that Stalin refused to leave the city, meaning the general staff and the council of people's commissars remained in the city as well. Despite the siege and the bombings, the construction of Moscow's metro system, continued through the war and by the end of the war several new metro lines were opened. On May 1, 1944 a medal For the defence of Moscow and in 1947 another medal In memory of the 800th anniversary of Moscow were instituted. On May 8, 1965 in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the victory in World War II, Moscow was one of twelve Soviet cities awarded the title of the Hero City. In 1980, it hosted the Summer Olympic Games.

In 1991 Moscow was the scene of a coup attempt by the government members opposed to the reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev. When the USSR was dissolved in the same year, Moscow continued to be the capital of Russia. Since then, the emergence of a market economy in Moscow has produced an explosion of Western-style retailing, services, architecture, and lifestyles.

Moscow is the seat of power for the Russian Federation. At the centre of the city, in Central Administrative Okrug, is the Moscow Kremlin, which houses the home of the President of Russia as well as many of the facilities for the national government. This includes numerous military headquarters and the headquarters of the Moscow Military District. Moscow, like with any national capital, is also the host of all the foreign embassies and diplomats representing a multitude of nations in Russia. Moscow is also designated as one of only two federal cities - Saint Petersburg being the other - within Russia. Lastly, Moscow is located within the central economic region, one of twelve regions within Russia with similar economic goals.

The entire city of Moscow is headed by one mayor (Yuriy Luzhkov). It is divided into ten administrative okrugs and 123 districts. Nine of the ten administrative districts, except the City of Zelenograd (number 1 on the map), are located within City of Moscow main boundaries.

All administrative okrugs and districts have their own coats of arms, flags, and elected head officials. Additionally, most districts have their own cable television, computer network, and official newspaper.

In addition to the districts, there are Territorial Units with Special Status, or territories. These usually include areas with small or no permanent populations, such as the case with the All-Russia Exhibition Centre, the Botanical Garden, large parks, and industrial zones. In recent years, some territories have been merged with different districts. There are no ethnic-specific regions in Moscow, as in the Chinatowns that exist in some North American and East Asian cities. And although districts are not designated by income, as with most cities, those areas that are closer to the city centre, metro stations or green zones are considered more prestigious.

In addition to being the capital of Russia, Moscow is the administrative centre of Moscow Oblast. Since Moscow has status of a federal city, it is administratively separate from the oblast.
Moscow has a humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dfb) with warm, somewhat humid summers and long, cold winters. Typical high temperatures in the warm months of July and August are around 22 °C (72 °F); in the winter, temperatures normally drop to approximately -12 °C (10 °F) highest temperature ever recorded was +36.7 °C (98.1 °F).[10] and lowest ever recorded -42.2C in January 1940. Monthly rainfall totals vary minimally throughout the year, although the precipitation levels tend to be higher during the summer than during the winter. Due to the significant variation in temperature between the winter and summer months as well as the limited fluctuation in precipitation levels during the summer, Moscow is considered to be within a continental climate zone.


Moscow is situated on the banks of the Moskva River, which flows for just over five hundred kilometres through western Russia, in the centre of the East-European plain. There are 49 bridges across Moskva River and its canals within city limits.

Moscow's road system is centred roughly around the heart of the city, the Moscow Kremlin. From there, the roads in general radiate out to intersect with a sequence of circular roads or "rings" focused at the Kremlin.

The first and innermost major ring, Bulvarnoye Koltso (Boulevard Ring), was built at the former location of the sixteenth century city wall around what used to be called Bely Gorod (White Town).[6] The Bulvarnoye Koltso is technically not a ring; it does not form a complete circle, but instead a horseshoe-like arc that goes from the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour to the Yauza River. In addition, the Boulevard Ring changes street names numerous times throughout its journey across the city.

The second primary ring, located outside the Boulevard Ring, is the Sadovoye Koltso (Garden Ring). Like the Boulevard Ring, the Garden Ring follows the path of a sixteenth century wall that used to encompass part of the city.[6] The third ring, the Third Transport Ring, was completed in 2003 as a high-speed freeway. The Fourth Transport Ring, another freeway, is under construction to further reduce traffic congestion. The outermost ring within Moscow is the Moscow Automobile Ring Road (often called the MKAD from the Russian Московская Кольцевая Автомобильная Дорога), which forms the approximate boundary of the city.

Outside the city, some of the roads encompassing the city continue to follow this circular pattern seen inside city limits.


Moscow's architecture and performing arts culture are world-renowned. Moscow is also well known as the site of Saint Basil's Cathedral, with its elegant onion domes, as well as the Cathedral of Christ the Savior and the Seven Sisters. The Patriarch of Moscow, whose residence is the Danilov Monastery, serves as the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. Moscow also hosted the 1980 Summer Olympics. For a long time the view of the city was dominated by numerous Orthodox churches. The look of the city changed drastically during Soviet times, mostly due to Joseph Stalin, who oversaw a large-scale effort to modernise the city. He introduced broad avenues and roadways, some of them over ten lanes wide, but he also destroyed a great number of historically significant architectural works. The Sukharev Tower, as well as numerous mansions and stores lining the major streets, and various works of religious architecture, such as the Kazan Cathedral and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, were all destroyed during Stalin's rule. During the 1990s, however, both the latter were rebuilt.

Architect Vladimir Shukhov was responsible for building several of Moscow's landmarks during early Soviet Russia. The Shukhov Tower, just one of many hyperboloid towers designed by Shukhov, was built between 1919 and 1922 as a transmission tower for a Russian broadcasting company.[12] Shukhov also left a lasting legacy to the Constructivist architecture of early Soviet Russia. He designed spacious elongated shop galleries, most notably the Upper Trade Rows (GUM) on Red Square,[12] bridged with innovative metal-and-glass vaults.


Ostankino Tower - the tallest free-standing structure in EurasiaStalin, however, is also credited with building the The Seven Sisters, comprising seven, cathedral-like structures. A defining feature of Moscow's skyline, their imposing form was allegedly inspired by the Manhattan Municipal Building in New York City, and their style - with intricate exteriors and a large central spire - has been described as Stalinist Gothic architecture. All seven towers can be seen from most elevations in the city; they are among the tallest constructions in central Moscow apart from the Ostankino Tower which, when it was completed in 1967, was the tallest free-standing land structure in the world and today remains the world's second-tallest.[13] The Soviet policy of providing mandatory housing for every citizen and his or her family, and the rapid growth of the Muscovite population in Soviet times, also led to the construction of large, monotonous housing blocks, which can often be differentiated by age, sturdiness of construction, or 'style' according to the neighbourhood and the materials used. Most of these date from the post-Stalin era and the styles are often named after the leader then in power - Brezhnev, Khrushchev, etc - and they are usually ill-maintained.

The Stalinist-era constructions, usually in the central city, are massive and usually ornamented with Socialist realism motifs that imitate classical themes. However, small churches - almost always Eastern Orthodox - that provide glimpses of the city's past still dot various parts of the city. The Old Arbat, a popular tourist street that was once the heart of a bohemian area, preserves most of its buildings from prior to the twentieth century. Many buildings found off the main streets of the inner city (behind the Stalinist facades of Tverskaya Street, for example) are also examples of the bourgeois decadence in Tsarist times. Ostankino, Kuskovo, Uzkoye and other large estates just outside Moscow originally belong to nobles from the Tsarist era, and some convents and monasteries, both inside and outside the city, are open to Muscovites and tourists.

Attempts are being made to restore many of the city's best-kept examples of pre-Soviet architecture. These revamped structures are easily spotted by their bright new colours and spotless facades. There are a few examples of notable, early Soviet avant-garde work too, such as the house of the architect Konstantin Melnikov in the Arbat area. Later examples of interesting Soviet architecture are usually marked by their impressive size and the semi-Modernist styles employed, such as with the Novy Arbat project, familiarly known as "false teeth of Moscow" and notorious for the wide-scale disruption of a historic area in the Moscow downtown involved in the project.

As in London, but on a broader scale, plaques on house exteriors will inform passers-by that a well-known personality once lived there. Frequently the plaques are dedicated to Soviet celebrities not well-known outside of Russia. There are also many 'house-museums' of famous Russian writers, composers, and artists in the city.




Living costs:


Triumph-Palace building, built in 2005, the second tallest building in Europe (the Commerzbank Tower in Frankfurt holds third place) is just one of many prestigious residential complexesDuring Soviet times apartments were lent to people by the government according to the square meters-per-person norm (some groups, including people's artists, heroes and prominent scientists had bonuses according to their honours). Private ownership of apartments was limited until 1990s, when people were permitted to secure property rights to the places they inhabited. Since the Soviet era, estate owners have had to pay the service charge for their residences, a fixed amount based on persons per living area. Due to the current economic situation, the price of real estate in Moscow continues to rise. Today, one could expect to pay US$4000 in average per square meter (11 sq ft) in the outskirts of the city[61] or US$6000-$7000 per square meter in a prestigious district. The price sometimes may exceed US$40000 per square meter in a flat.[62][63][64] A typical one-bedroom apartment is about thirty square meters (323 sq ft), a typical two-bedroom apartment is forty-five square meters (485 sq ft), and a typical three-bedroom apartment is seventy square meters (753 sq ft). Many cannot move out of their apartments, especially if a family lives in a two-room apartment originally granted by the state during the Soviet era. Some city residents have attempted to cope with the cost of living by renting their apartments while staying in dachas (country house) outside the city.

In 2007, Moscow ranked top on the List of most expensive cities for second year in a row.

As of 2006, there are 8.47 million Muscovites able to work. 1.73 million are employed by the state, 4.42 million are employed by private companies, and 1.99 million are employed by small businesses. There are 74,400 officially registered unemployed working age, of which 34,400 are eligible for unemployment benefits.[24]



NOVGOROD:


Veliky Novgorod (Russian: Вели́кий Но́вгород) is the foremost historic city of North-Western Russia,[1] the administrative center of Novgorod Oblast. It is situated on the M10 federal highway connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg. "Novgorod" is the Russian word for "new city", whereas "Veliky" means "the Great". The city lies along the Volkhov River just below its outflow from Lake Ilmen. Its population in the 2002 census was 216,856; down from 229,126 recorded in the 1989 Census.



Princely state within Kievan Rus':

In 882, Rurik's successor, Oleg of Novgorod, captured Kiev and founded the state of Kievan Rus. Novgorod's size as well as its political, economic, and cultural influence made it the second city in Kievan Rus. According to a custom, the elder son and heir of the ruling Kievan monarch was sent to rule Novgorod even as a minor. When the ruling monarch had no such son, Novgorod was governed by posadniks, such as legendary Gostomysl, Dobrynya, Konstantin, and Ostromir.

In Norse sagas the city is mentioned as the capital of Gardariki (i.e., the East Slavic lands). Four Viking kings — Olaf I of Norway, Olaf II of Norway, Magnus I of Norway, and Harald Haardraade — sought refuge in Novgorod from enemies at home. No more than a few decades after the death and subsequent canonization of Olaf II of Norway, in 1028, the city's community had erected a church in his memory as testified by the late 11th century Sjusta Runestone.

Of all their princes, Novgorodians cherished most the memory of Yaroslav the Wise, who had sat as prince while his father, Vladimir the Great, was prince in Kiev. Yaroslav promulgated the first written code of laws (later incorporated into Russkaya Pravda) among the Eastern Slavs and is said to have granted the city a number of freedoms or privileges, which they often referred to in later centuries as precedents in their relations with other princes. His son, Vladimir, sponsored construction of the great St Sophia Cathedral, more accurately translated as The Cathedral of Holy Wisdom, which stands to this day.


city's downfall was a result of its inability to feed its large population, making it dependent on the Vladimir-Suzdal region for grain. The main cities in this area, Moscow and Tver, used this dependence to gain control over Novgorod. Eventually Ivan III annexed the city to Muscovy in 1478. Novgorod remained the third largest Russian city, however, until the famine of 1560s and Ivan the Terrible sacking the city and slaughtering thousands of its inhabitants in 1570. The city's merchant elite and nobility were deported to Moscow, Yaroslavl, and elsewhere.


City plan of Novgorod in the first half of the 18th centuryDuring the Time of Troubles, Novgorodians eagerly submitted to Swedish troops led by Jacob De la Gardie in summer of 1611. The city was restituted to Russia only six years later, by the Treaty of Stolbovo and regained a measure of its former prosperity by the end of the century, when such ambitious buildings as the Cathedral of the Sign and the Vyazhischi Monastery were constructed. The most famous of Russian patriarchs, Nikon, occupied the metropolian see of Novgorod between 1648 and 1652.

In 1727, Novgorod was made an administrative centre of the Novgorod Governorate of the Russian Empire, which was detached from Saint Petersburg Governorate (see Administrative divisions of Russia in 1727-1728). This administrative division existed until 1927. Between 1927 and 1944 the city was a part of Leningrad Oblast, and then became an administrative center of the newly formed Novgorod Oblast.

During World War II, on August 15, 1941, the city was occupied by the German Army. Its historic monuments were systematically annihilated. When the Red Army liberated the city on January 19, 1944, out of 2,536 stone buildings, fewer than forty were still standing. After the war, the downtown was gradually restored according to a plan worked out by Alexey Shchusev. Its chief monuments have been declared the World Heritage Site. In 1998, the city was officially renamed Veliky Novgorod, thus partly reverting to its medieval title "Lord Novgorod the Great".

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