Description and history of the island of Khortitsa. Sights of Zaporozhye

The history of Khortytsia Island began even before the appearance of man on our planet. The island of Khortitsa consists entirely of granites, which form it as the most ancient rock. That’s why the Khortytsia rocks open up the island to us from a completely new side.

The bed of the old Dnieper River settled millions of years ago, but then Khortytsia was not even an island, but was a full-fledged mainland, which over time broke off and became a separate part of the land. So it became an island, dividing the river into two channels. The granites of Khortitsa, according to all experiments and research, are the oldest rocks on our planet.

Khortytsia Island in Zaporozhye - details

The Khortytsia National Reserve is a natural and state heritage, and not just an island. This is not only a natural, but also a historical complex. The uniqueness of this place was recognized back in 2007, because at that time Khortytsia was named the Seventh Wonder of Ukraine.

The nature of this place cannot but amaze with its beauty and naturalness. This is where we gathered rare species flora and fauna of Ukraine. On Khortytsia there are not only steppes, but also meadows, as well as coniferous and oak forests. In general, the microclimate of this island’s flora differs significantly from that of the mainland.

But most of all, Khortytsia attracts interest for its historical value. Legends of the past still hover around this ancient island.

The most striking events for Khortitsa are considered to be the period of the Cossacks in Ukraine, because it was then that the entire island was considered the residence and place where the Cossacks resolved all state issues.

The historical and cultural complex Zaporozhye Sich is very popular among tourists because it fully conveys the atmosphere and spirit of that time.

By visiting the Zaporozhye Sich, you will touch your soul and body to the glorious Cossack past, which will give you an unforgettable experience thanks to the Cossack spirit.

Khortytsia Island in Zaporozhye is the largest on the Dnieper. There are many historical, cultural and architectural monuments here. Before the flooding of the territories, the last Dnieper threshold was located near the northern shore. At the rapids, according to legend, the Kiev prince Svyatoslav Igorevich died. For centuries, Khortytsia was an important strategic site. The historical past of Khortytsia is determined by its location and numerous natural resources. The island is surrounded by rocks, rapids, and smaller islands.

History of Khortitsa

The first settlements appeared here in the Paleolithic and Mesolithic eras. For some time (from the 7th to the 3rd century BC) the island of Khortitsa belonged to the Scythians. This is evidenced by numerous finds and burial mounds. There was a large settlement, on the territory of which archaeologists found fragments of housing, a rampart and a defensive ditch.

Princely era

The first mention of Khortytsia dates back to the mid-10th century. The Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus calls it the island of St. George in a letter to his son Roman. In the 9th century, a trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks passed along the Dnieper. At Khortitsa, travelers stopped to rest.

Cossack era

The first Cossack fortifications appeared on the island of Malaya Khortytsia in 1556. They were built by Prince Dmitry “Bayda” Vishnevetsky, who also became the first hetman of the Zaporozhye Sich. The Cossacks are the brightest period in the history of Khortytsia. The island was fenced with a palisade, Cossack kurens (rooms for overnight and winter quarters) were located here, and the wooden Church of the Intercession stood tall - October 14 was considered the main holiday of the Cossacks. Women did not live on the island at all. The French cartographer Guillaume Levasseur de Beauplan visited Khortytsia in the 1630s and created a map of Ukraine. In 1775, the Zaporozhye Sich was liquidated by the Russian Empress Catherine II.

History of the island after the Cossacks

In 1775, the island became the property of the Russian prince Grigory Potemkin. By his order, a luxurious garden was laid out in Khortitsa. However, in 1789 Potemkin transferred the island to the state. That same year, it was settled by a colony of German Mennonites. These people were engaged in growing timber and selling it. However, after a wave of poaching logging in 1876–1877, the colonists left Khortitsa. In 1927, the Dnieper hydroelectric power station was built near the island, which was blown up by NKVD workers in 1941 to stop the German advance. A huge wave demolished Ukrainian villages; not only did they drown in the Dnieper waters German soldiers, but also Red Army soldiers. It is estimated that between 20,000 and 180,000 people died during this operation. After the war, in 1944, the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station began to be restored.

Khortytsia Island in facts and figures

• The area of ​​the island is 23.59 square meters.
• It is known that there are many old oak trees on the island. However, unfortunately, not all of them have survived to this day (active felling took place during the 19th–20th centuries). Scientists suggest that the oldest oak on Khortytsia has been growing here for about 300 years.
• In the northern part of Khortitsa, the so-called “black stones” were found. The largest weighs approximately 600 kilograms, all of them are covered with unusual paintings.
• In 1958, the island of Khortitsa became a natural monument of local importance.
• created in 1965.

Attractions in Khortytsia

• In Khortytsia you should definitely visit, where the housing and outbuildings of the Cossacks, fortifications with cannons, smoking areas and much more have been restored, which will undoubtedly help you feel the atmosphere of those times. And the panoramas of the Cossack battles are executed to the smallest detail.
• In the south-eastern part of the island is located where they demonstrate wonderful equestrian performances, Cossack decorations, crafts, saber fights and much more.
• There are also remains of authentic fortifications, household items, coins, weapons, tools, as well as a sword, which is better known as the “Sword of Svyatoslav”.
• You can also see ancient ones on the island. Unfortunately, many of them were either looted or plowed up during agricultural work. On the basis of the best-preserved mounds they created.
• In the north of the island there is an ancient one. Archaeologists found it relatively recently - in 1992.
• On the territory of the island there is a place from where you can admire the powerful waters of the Dnieper.

Things to do on the island

On Khortytsia you can visit museums and learn more about the history of the island, the Cossacks, and examine important finds, for example, a Carolingian-type sword (10th century) discovered in 2011. They also offer to take part in Cossack fun - horse riding, battle reenactment, and the like. It is possible to rent a bicycle and raft along the Dnieper around the island. You can also visit some interesting excursion, buy souvenirs.

Where to stay in Khortytsia

There are several hotels on Khortitsa (“Khortitsa”,). In addition, there are recreational institutions here, which mainly belong to local enterprises: sanatorium-preventorium "Zaporizhstal", Zaporozhye Transformer Plant, "Dneprospetsstal", Zaporozhye national university, Zaporozhye Ferroalloy Plant, JSC "Ukrgrafit", recreation center "Dnepr". You can also stay in tents in a specially designated area.

How to get there

Khortytsia Island is located below the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station. You can get to it minibuses No. 46, 15, 50, 93, trolleybus No. 3 (stop “Magazin Molodezhny”), as well as by train. Two bridges lead to the island - and Preobrazhensky.

The brightest pages of the history of Khortytsia are associated with the Zaporozhye Cossacks. It was on Khortitsa that the Cossacks mastered the art of combat hopak. And women were not allowed onto the island at all; even the empress was met on the water

Khortytsia is a legendary island on the Dnieper near Zaporozhye, the largest river island in the world. He was known even to the Byzantine emperors. Here is what the Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus (946–953 AD) wrote about the island: “Having passed the Carian transport, the Russes land on the island, which bears the name of St. George. On this island they make their sacrifices. There is a huge oak tree there... This sacred oak tree, which Konstantin Porphyrogenitus writes about, stood right up to 1871 and dried up from old age - it was about two thousand years old! The long-living oak was partially preserved as a monument

The legendary island of Khortitsa is located on one of the main trade routes Ukraine. Since ancient times, Slavs and Greeks traded here. There was a pagan sanctuary, and here, on the island, surrounded by Pechenegs on the Black Rock, Grand Duke Svyatoslav died in battle.

The island is located in the place where the Dnieper is divided into a zone of rapids and a zone of floodplains. Therefore, from ancient times it was a natural resting place for traders, warriors, and travelers who had overcome the dangerous zone of the Dnieper rapids. It also served as a haven for princely squads.

For example, according to the chronicle, in 1103, princes David Vseslavich, Mstislav Igorevich, Vyacheslav Yaropolchich and Yaropolk Vladimirovich “went on horseback and in boats, and came below the threshold and stash in Protolchekh and Khortychy Island.” All chronicle news is confirmed by archaeological finds.

In the 10th–14th centuries there was a Russian fortress on Khortitsa, known from chronicles under the name Protolche. Archaeologists find at the site of the settlement the remains of spacious “squad” dwellings, dugouts, and various objects of the 10th–12th and 13th–14th centuries.

Length Khortitsa Islands about 12 kilometers, width - 2.5 kilometers. The height of the coastal cliffs in some places reaches 30 meters. The rocks are cut with caves, there are a lot of them here. The most famous is the Serpent Cave. According to ancient legend, a “serpent” with twelve heads lived in it.

Khortytsia Island literally breathes History. Evidence of it is found both under water and underground. In 1995, not far from the Generalka ravine, at a depth of 9.5 meters, the skeleton of a large oak dugout ship was discovered. The photo shows the operation to raise a Cossack ship and part of the ship at the bottom of the Dnieper

According to archaeologists, these are the remains of a boat from the times of Kievan Rus. And on the northeastern coast of the island, dugouts from the same era were discovered. Amphoras, ceramic fragments, arrowheads and much more were found.

But still, the most important legend of the island is the Zaporozhye Sich and the treasures of the Zaporozhye Cossacks. The Sich originated here in 1552–1557, when Dmitry Vishnevetsky founded the first fortified city on Khortytsia. Then Cossack towns spread to the right bank of the Dnieper and to the southern half of the island. In 1577–1578, the leader of the Cossack detachment, Yakov Shah, set up his camp here. From here he raided the Turks and Tatars

Construction of the Cossack camp

In 1617, Pyotr Konashevich-Sagaidachny built on Khortitsa new fortifications. Back in the 19th century, traces of ramparts, kurens and a church could be seen in the western part of the island. Gradually the Sich settled. In addition to Khortitsa, the surrounding small islands on the Dnieper were also developed, part of the lands on both sides of the Dnieper, including the Great Meadow - a huge section of steppe adjacent to the Dnieper in the former Alexandrovsky district (until 1921, Zaporozhye was Alexandrovsky)

In the Zaporozhye Sich accumulated a large number of treasures, weapons and money. It was mainly booty captured from the Turks and Tatars. The Cossacks obtained some things in battle themselves, while others fell from the division of the general booty. Part of the wealth went to the formation of the “Military Treasures” - the treasury of the Zaporozhye army. The rest was shared by “companionship.” Naturally, there were no banks with deposit safes and safe deposit boxes nearby. And when you go on your next hike, you can’t take all your valuables with you. The safest thing to do was to hide them. And they hid it.

In the 1630s–1640s, the French military engineer Boplan, who was in Polish service, stayed in Ukraine. He wrote that “every Cossack has his own secret corner on the islands.” Returning with victory over the Turks, “they divide the spoils in Skarbnitsa and hide everything they receive under water, excluding things damaged by it.” According to Beauplan, the Cossacks “hid under water not only the cannons they recapture from the Turks, but also money, which they take only when necessary.” If a Cossack returned from another campaign, he took what was hidden back. And if he died in battle, the treasure remained in the ground.

In 1775, the Zaporozhye Sich was liquidated, and the Cossacks were forcibly resettled in the Kuban. Leaving Khortitsa, many Cossacks considered this a temporary phenomenon. Many Cossacks “had the idea that if “Darkness” (that is, Prince Potemkin-Tavrichesky) dies, they will return back.” When leaving, many Cossacks “took nothing with them, but hovaled the goods: some to the ground, some to the skeleton, and the Inchi to the Dnieper.” At the same time, according to legend, somewhere on Khortitsa or in its environs the “Military Treasure Box” of the Cossacks was hidden. Although there are versions that she was taken out.

Legends and myths about treasures buried on the island of Khortitsa are passed on from mouth to mouth. Oral wills and signs of buried treasures are passed down from generation to generation under great secrecy. Even at the end of the 19th century, numerous witnesses were alive who remembered the signs of Zaporozhye treasures from their parents. Here are some records of the stories of ancient grandfathers: “On the Khortyvsky Island, in Vyscha Golov, there was a stone as tall as a man, covered all the way down. Now it’s either mute or covered with moss - you can’t tell. With that stone there is a Zaporozhye treasure. I cast this stone twenty years ago, like a shepherd.”

“Next to the head of the Khortyvsky Island, above the Old Dnieper, there is the Lazne tract. There, on top of the rock, is a treasure. Prymita is like this: there is a stone, and on it the words: “There are some, whoever is vizme - will be kai.” Thirty years ago the words were written down, but now the stone is covered with moss.”

The Sagaidachnoe tract is well known to treasure hunters. In it, somewhere “pid kaminnyamy”, “additional abyss”, Cossack “pennies” are buried, but “not everyone got a damn.” And here, indeed, gold and silver coins and items were found: both by accident and on purpose. A massive golden cross with a relief depiction of the crucifixion was accidentally found near Sovutina Rock in the 1900s. They knew about the finds, but kept quiet: as one 69-year-old treasure hunter admitted in his later years, “in my lifetime I found five gold pieces without telling anyone.” The money and finds were slowly sold to the taverns. They say that I was especially rich in Zaporozhye treasures Great Meadow. In the numerous gullies and “graves” of the Great Meadow, almost every year, “old Midney and Sribni pennies” carried out by spring waters were found. One of the rivers of the Great Meadow, flowing into the Dnieper, even bore the name Skarbnaya (that is, “Pantry” - from Ukrainian “skarb” - “treasure, treasure”).

Floods of the Great Meadow

Legend says that near its mouth, “Bil Skarbnaya, de Stara Sich, there is Strilytsya, and in this Strilytsya the entire Cossack treasury is stored.” The fact that the Skarbnaya River was developed by the Cossacks is confirmed by real finds - even in the last century there were two sunken Zaporozhye seagulls were found.

There are also legends about the nearby islands and islets. So, there is a popular “balachka” that on Streletsky Island, shortly before the liquidation of the Sich, “pennies” were buried - gold, silver and weapons. A few decades later, some “did” appeared here on the island, who knew the signs of the treasure: “There was an oak tree standing opposite the island; On the oak tree there was a tovsta gilka, a kotra pointed to an island, where the treasure was located.”

There is a legend about hidden treasures on Kantsersky Island: “At the mouth of Khortitsa, which flows into the Dnieper, there is Kantsersky Island, and on it there is a fortress. This is against the large island of Khortitsa. On that island, they say, there is a cave, and three barrels of gold are hidden in it. The entrance is closed with doors and blocked with stones and earth. There is a wooden cross in front of the entrance.” In 1846, some “did” from the Kherson region tried to find this treasure, but on the third day of the search he suddenly died. Either he was old, or... Since then, no one has tried to find the entrance to the mysterious cave. One must think that these “dids”, who appeared on Khortytsia literally a few decades after the liquidation of the Sich, were Zaporozhye Cossacks who “stolen” their property or knew about the treasures hidden by their comrades. Each such appearance of treasure hunters on Khortitsa spurred interest in treasures and gave birth to something like a “gold rush”.

In 1789, a colony of German Mennonites was founded on the island, and the deserted Zaporozhye lands began to be populated by peasants. But the legends are not dead. And the more vague the descriptions and hints were, the more intense the interest became. Numerous legends about mysterious Zaporozhye treasures are still alive and circulating among the local population.

If you like mysterious stories, then visit the selection of legends about landmarks, where you will also find a lot of interesting things.

“At the head of the island of Khortytsia, near Kichkas, there is a small grave, all surrounded by fireplaces,” says one of the legends. - About thirty years ago, there, on a dark night, a treasure often appeared: a Cossack with a sword jumped out onto the grave, and it was covered with fire! The Cossack is golden, and throw some mushrooms at it! That, it seems, is gold and pennies. The pennies are either taken or shown, but not to everyone.”

In Khortytsia and in general on the lands of the Zaporozhye Sich, they say, treasures “ask for themselves.” The entire land of the island is stuffed with antiques. In addition to skulls and bones, pistols, daggers, knives, sabers, guns, cannons, cannonballs, bullets, jugs, cauldrons, decanters, cast iron, bottles, damasks, rings, rings, buckles, monistas, coins, pipes were found at the site of the former Zaporozhye Sich . One of the treasure hunters recalls: “Once I found a crooked dagger, a long gun and steel chain mail in the Bolshaya Verbovaya gully; everything was covered with rust...One day I found several coins in the Kutsoy beam; one of them was as heavy as 6 silver rubles together, others were like fish shells (scales), and others were the same as snouts now. It happened that other types of coins were found... Why, they didn’t find anything on Khortytsia! Previously, on Khortitsa you could find all sorts of things... Now a lot of things have been picked up by people, and a lot of things have been carried away by water.” Khortytsia and the Dnieper keep many secrets. In the last century, seventeen canoes and two large ships (apparently Cossack “seagulls”) were found near the island. On one of them there was a surviving cannon, and in the remains of another they found a saber with a silver-plated hilt. Much has been washed away by the river over the past centuries. Under the influence of flood waters, the coastline of Khortytsia partially changed, and Not big Island The oak was completely washed away.

In the vicinity of the Sich, along the banks of the Dnieper, many ancient Zaporozhye cemeteries were scattered. Many of them were gradually plowed open, occupied as vegetable gardens or used for other economic needs, and it often happened that in the middle of a vegetable garden or a peasant’s yard stood an ancient stone cross or tombstone.

Several such graves of the Cossacks were located in the village of Kapulivka on the Chertomlyk River. The famous Koshevoy ataman of the Zaporozhye army I. D. Sirko (died in 1680) was buried in one of them. After the death of Bohdan Khmelnitsky, Ivan Sirko was the Koshevoy ataman of the Cossacks for twenty years. It was he who signed the famous “Response to the Turkish Sultan.” More details

Khortitsa Island is the most big island Ukraine and is located in the middle of the city of Zaporozhye. Since ancient times, Khortitsa was a natural fortress and reliably protected the tribes who settled on it. There are plenty of traces of ancient settlers on the island: these are mounds and stone sculptures from Scythian times, which are represented by the “Scythian Camp” complex. There is also a pagan sanctuary on the island.

In the 16th century, the Zaporozhye Sich was founded on the island of Khortytsia, which was a fortified camp of the Ukrainian Cossacks, and later became the center of the Cossack state.

In 1965, a State and later a National Historical and Cultural Reserve was created here. Today it has become the largest museum complex. Khortitsa Island will impress anyone with its picturesque rocks and granite shores. It is simply dotted with various lakes and ravines. Khortytsia is surrounded by a large number of large and small islands and rocks, which are included in the territory of the reserve.

In 2011, an ancient Russian sword of the Carolingian type was discovered on the Dnieper near the island of Khortitsa, which approximately dates back to the mid-10th century. Much earlier, when the Dnieper hydroelectric power station was being built at the beginning of the 20th century, similar finds were made in the form of 5 ancient Russian swords of the Carolingian type, but during the war they all disappeared.

The island was visited quite often by prominent people. On one of the slopes of the island there is the Shevchenko trail; it acquired its name after the poet visited it. In 1878, the famous composer N.V. Lysenko was there. In the spring of 1880, I.E. Repin visited the island, at that time he was working on sketches that were later used in the film “Cossacks”. Maxim Gorky also visited here.

On this moment There are many environmental, religious and sociocultural organizations operating on the island of Khortytsya.

Address: Ukraine, Zaporozhye, r. Dnieper
Coordinates: 47°49"12.6"N 35°05"45.8"E

Content:

Khortytsia is an unusually beautiful picturesque island, which is surrounded on both sides by the wide and mighty Dnieper River. Its amazing appearance and rich story attracts the attention of travelers from different parts of the world.

View of the island of Khortitsa

The island has been repeatedly glorified by local historians, poets, historians and artists who have visited it. Among them are composer Lysenko, Repin, Maxim Gorky, Ivan Bunin and others.

History of the island

The history of the island is very rich and it begins, according to archaeological data, from the Paleolithic era. There are also early Slavic monuments here: the remains of settlements of various tribes. In the period between the 15th and 16th centuries, the island became the center of formation of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, and then a springboard for the Sichs who defended southern borders from Turkish-Tatar aggression. During the Russian-Turkish War, N.A. Senyavin, a famous naval commander, arrived on the island, under whose leadership the shipyard was built. In June 1789, after the defeat of the Sich, the island was donated to Prince Potemkin by Catherine II, after which it came into the possession of the Mennonite Germans. The island was sold to the Aleksandrovsk city government in 1916 for more than 700 thousand rubles.

Historical and cultural complex "Zaporizhian Sich" on the island of Khortytsia

Since 1927, after the start of construction of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station, thousands of people begin to come to the island to become participants and witnesses of this significant event. historical event. In 1965, a State Historical and Cultural Reserve was created on the island, which currently represents a large museum complex.

Nature and attractions of the island

Khortytsia is a large island located on the Dnieper. The island has amazing landscape diversity. There is a steppe, steep coastal cliffs, floodplain meadows, ravines, lakes, oak and coniferous forests. That is why the flora and fauna of the island is very rich. The island's flora of higher plants currently numbers more than 1,000 species, of which about fifteen percent are endemic plants.

View of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station from Khortytsia Island

Between the 18th and 19th centuries, the forests on the island were gradually destroyed. Cities, fortresses, and fortifications were built, as a result of which the forest was cut down. Even before 1884, the once glorious forest of the island of Khortitsa was almost completely cut down. The Museum of the History of the Zaporizhian Cossacks is the main attraction of the island. You can explore here permanent exhibition and visit various exhibitions.

The museum displays various archaeological finds from the Chalcolithic and Bronze Ages. These are tools and utensils of people living on Khortytsia in ancient times. You can also see various weapons and women's jewelry found in the burial mounds of the nomadic Scythian tribes. Of course, the main theme of the museum exhibits concerns the history of the emergence and formation of the Ukrainian Cossacks. The exhibitions tell about the military campaigns of the Cossacks, about the culture of the Zaporozhye Sich and its economic activity.

One of the beaches on the island

In 2004, on the coast of the island, construction began on the historical architectural complex “Zaporizhian Sich”, which will look like a fortified Cossack settlement with a church, a house of the chieftain, a Sich school, and an office. The buildings will be erected in accordance with historical documents and with the participation of historians. On the island there is an equestrian theater called “Cossack Camp”. There are exhibitions on the peculiarities of Cossack life. This is a whole folklore and ethnographic complex.

The theater's performances tell about the customs of the Cossacks, the peculiarities of their military, everyday and economic activities. Spectators can enjoy spectacular Cossack games and dances with elements of horse riding and acrobatics. Around the island there are rocks and small islands that are part of the reserve. In the north of the reserve, the “Three Pillars” rise: the Divan rock, the Naklonnaya rock and the Middle Pillar.

Place of death of the Kyiv prince Svyatoslav Igorevich on the island of Khortitsa

The Divan Rock is considered Catherine's Chair, since according to legend, the Russian Empress Catherine II rested here on this rock while sailing along the Dnieper in 1787. There are several balkas on the island, the most famous of which are Lipovaya Balka and Kostina Balka. Near the island of Khortytsia there is a small island of Rozstebin, the name of which is associated with the Cossack Rozsteba, and another name for the island is Verbka, since its territory is completely covered with sedge and willow. On the territory of the reserve, there is another island, Baida, where the old shipyard was located, namely in the riverbed of the Dnieper. A large number of interesting finds have been discovered on this island, many of them dating back to the Bronze Age, as well as to the period of the Ukrainian Cossacks. Coins of gold, copper, silver, Cossack axes, guns and sabers, as well as arrowheads were found here. Thus, the Khortytsia reserve is a unique place