Murmansk

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Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox Russian inhabited locality Murmansk (Template:Langx) is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast in the far northwest part of Russia. It is the world's largest city north of the Arctic Circle and sits on both slopes and banks of a modest fjord, Kola Bay, an estuarine inlet of the Barents Sea, with its bulk on the east bank of the inlet. The city is a major port of the Arctic Ocean<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and is about Template:Convert from the border with Norway, Template:Convert from the border with Finland and Template:Convert from Moscow.

Being a non-freezing port due to the warm North Atlantic Current, Murmansk resembles cities of its size across western Russia, with highway and railway access to the rest of Europe, and the northernmost trolleybus system on Earth. Its connectivity contrasts with the isolation of Arctic ports like the Siberian Dikson on the shores of the Kara Sea, and Iqaluit, in the Canadian Arctic. Despite long, snowy winters, Murmansk's climate is moderated by the generally ice-free waters around it.

There was a building boom in the early twentieth century's arms races.Template:Citation needed Murmansk's population has been in decline since the end of the Cold War, from Template:Su-census1989 Template:Ru-census2002 Template:Ru-census2010 to 270,384 (2021 Census).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Etymology

The name of the city is derived from Murman, from an old name for Norwegians by Russians; it is likely a borrowing from Old Norse norðmaðr (possibly related to Old English Norþmann and English Northman), which gave its name to the Murman Coast and the surrounding region including the Kola Peninsula.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

History

File:Панорама центральной части г. Мурманска (съемка с самолета), 1936 г.jpg
Aerial view of Murmansk, 1936
File:Разрушенный Мурманск 1942 год.JPG
War destruction in Murmansk (1942)
File:MurmanskProspektLenin.jpg
Central part of Murmansk

Murmansk was the last city founded in the Russian Empire.<ref>The Moscow Times. It's Always Colder in Murmansk Template:Webarchive, 20 May 2012</ref> In 1915, World War I needs led to the construction of the northern part of the Kirov Railway: a railroad from Petrozavodsk to an ice-free location on the Murman Coast in the Russian Arctic, to which Russia's allies shipped military supplies.<ref name="ATSBook24">Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast, p. 24</ref> The terminus became known as the Murman station and soon boasted a port, a naval base, and an adjacent settlement with a population that quickly grew in size and soon surpassed the nearby towns of Alexandrovsk and Kola.<ref name="ATSBook24" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

On Template:OldStyleDateNY, 1916, Russian Transport Minister Alexander Trepov petitioned to grant urban status to the railway settlement.<ref name="ATSBook24" /> On Template:OldStyleDateNY, 1916, the petition was approved and the town was named Romanov-on-Murman (Template:Lang, Romanov-na-Murmane), after the Imperial Russian dynasty, the Romanovs.<ref name="ATSBook24" /> On Template:OldStyleDateNY, 1916, the official ceremony was performed,<ref name="ATSBook24" /> and the date is now considered the official date of the city's foundation. After the February Revolution of March 1917, on Template:OldStyleDateNY, 1917, the town was given its present name.<ref name="ATSBook60">Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast, pp. 60–63</ref>

File:Английский крейсер Глори на Мурманском рейде.JPG
HMS Glory, flagship of the British North Russia Squadron in Murmansk in the First World War

In the winter of 1917 the British North Russia Squadron under Rear Admiral Thomas Kemp was based at Murmansk.<ref name="Kinvig">Template:Citation</ref>

From 1918 to 1920, during the Russian Civil War, the town was occupied by the Western powers, who had been allied in World War I, and was also controlled by White Army forces.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On 13 February 1926, local self-government was organized in Murmansk for the first time, during a plenary session of the Murmansk City Soviet, which elected a Presidium.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> Before this, the city was governed by the authorities of Alexandrovsky Uyezd and later of Murmansk Governorate.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> On 1 August 1927, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee (VTsIK) issued two resolutions: "On the Establishment of Leningrad Oblast" and "On the Borders and Composition of the Okrugs of Leningrad Oblast", which transformed Murmansk Governorate into Murmansk Okrug within Leningrad Oblast and made Murmansk the administrative center of Murmansk Okrug.<ref name="ATSBook60" />

In 1934, the Murmansk Okrug Executive Committee developed a redistricting proposal, which included a plan to enlarge the city by merging the surrounding territories in the north, south, and west into Murmansk.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> This plan was not confirmed by the Leningrad Oblast Executive Committee. In 1935–1937 several rural localities of Kolsky and Polyarny Districts were merged into Murmansk anyway.<ref name="ATSBook60" />

According to the Presidium of the 'Leningrad Oblast Executive Committee resolution of 26 February 1935', the administrative center of Polyarny District was moved from Polyarnoye to Sayda-Guba.<ref name="ATSBook48">Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast, p. 48</ref> However, the provisions of the resolution were not fully implemented, and due to military construction in Polyarnoye, the administrative center was instead moved to Murmansk in the beginning of 1935.<ref name="ATSBook48" /> In addition to being the administrative center of Murmansk Okrug, Murmansk continued to serve as the administrative center of Polyarny District until 11 September 1938.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> On 10 February 1938, when the VTsIK adopted a Resolution changing the administrative-territorial structure of Murmansk Okrug, the city of Murmansk became a separate administrative division of the okrug, equal in status to that of the districts.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> This status was retained when Murmansk Okrug was transformed into Murmansk Oblast on 28 May 1938.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> The Germans were promised the use of the port they called Template:Lang for transportation of goods and raw materials from 1922 to 1941Template:Source?.

From March 1941 to 1945, the US government supplied Allied nations with food, oil, and Template:Not a typo through the Lend-Lease policy. Murmansk was a link to the Western world for the Soviet Union. Arctic convoys brought large quantities of goods: primarily military equipment, manufactured goods and raw materials.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Wehrmacht and Finnish forces in Finnish territory launched an offensive against Murmansk as part of Operation Silver Fox (29 June to 17 November 1941). Fierce Soviet resistance and harsh local weather, with the bad terrain, prevented them from capturing it. The Luftwaffe bombed Murmansk 792 times during World War II.<ref>Hansen, Trond. 25 June 2021. "Dagen for mot og utholdenhetTemplate:Dead link" [day of courage and endurance]. Sør-Varanger Avis. P.10</ref> It suffered extensive destruction, the magnitude of which was rivaled only by the destruction in Leningrad and Stalingrad.<ref>Мурманску исполняется 90 летTemplate:In lang</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On 6 May 1985, the city's resistance was commemorated at the 40th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in the formal designation of Murmansk as a Hero City.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During the Cold War Murmansk was a center of Soviet submarine and icebreaker activity. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union (December 1991), the nearby city and naval base of Severomorsk remain the headquarters of the Russian Northern Fleet.

File:Rehearsals-NF-1200-08.jpg
Russia's Young Army in Murmansk, 2018

In 1974, a Template:Convert tall statue Alyosha, depicting a Soviet World War II soldier, was installed on a Template:Convert high foundation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Hotel Arctic opened in 1984, becoming the tallest building above the Arctic Circle.

On 1 January 2015, the territory of Murmansk was expanded when the urban-type settlement of Roslyakovo, previously under the jurisdiction of the closed administrative-territorial formation of Severomorsk, was abolished and its territory merged into Murmansk.<ref name="Roslyakovo">Law #1812-01-ZMO</ref>

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated as the City of Murmansk—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.<ref name="Ref395">Law #96-01-ZMO</ref> As a municipal division, the City of Murmansk is incorporated as Murmansk Urban Okrug.<ref name="Ref811">Law #531-01-ZMO</ref>

City divisions

File:Мурманск..JPG
Lenin Avenue

Template:As of, the city is divided into three administrative okrugs:<ref name="MurmanskCharter">Charter of Murmansk, Article 3.1</ref>

City districts were established in Murmansk for the first time by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR of 20 April 1939; at the time, three city districts (Kirovsky, Leninsky, and Mikoyanovsky) were created.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> They were abolished on 2 June 1948.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> The same city districts were created for the second time on 23 June 1951.<ref name="ATSBook60" />

Mikoyanovsky City District was renamed Oktyabrsky on 30 October 1957, but on 30 September 1958, all three city districts were again abolished.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> On 10 June 1967, two city districts were created (Leninsky and Oktyabrsky); Pervomaysky City District was split from Oktyabrsky on 21 February 1975.<ref name="ATSBook60" /> In the Charter of the Hero City of Murmansk, adopted on 17 December 1995, the districts started to be referred to as administrative okrugs.

Geography

File:Photographing Murmansk from Omni Hotel Murmansk.jpg
View of Murmansk

Climate

Murmansk experiences a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc), with long and cold (though average by arctic standards) winters and short, cool summers. In the city, freezing temperatures are routinely experienced from October to May. Average temperatures exceed 0 degrees Celsius only from May through October. The average low during the coldest part of the year in Murmansk is approximately Template:Convert. However, temperatures routinely plunge below Template:Convert during the winter.

Murmansk's brief summer is mild, with average highs in July exceeding Template:Convert. The city is slightly wetter during the summer than the winter and receives an annual average of just under Template:Convert of precipitation.

The "midnight sun" is above the horizon from 22 May to 23 July (63 days), and the period with continuous darkness is somewhat shorter — the polar night lasts from 2 December to 10 January (40 days).

Extreme temperatures range from Template:Convert on 6 January 1985, and 27 January 1999, up to Template:Convert on 9 July 1972; the record cold daily maximum is Template:Convert, set on 6 January 1985, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is Template:Convert last set on 9 July 1972.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Murmansk has been affected by global warming in recent decades, similar to other Arctic locations. For example, December 2007 had an average high of Template:Convert, while a Template:Convert average high was measured for March 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Summer has also been affected, with a Template:Convert average high for June 2013, and a Template:Convert average high during July 2018.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Weather box

Sea temperature data for Murmansk
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average sea temperature °C (°F) style="Template:Weather box/colt"|3.4
(38.12) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|2.5
(36.5) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|1.9
(35.42) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|2.2
(35.96) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|3.9
(35.96) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|7.1
(44.78) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|10.5
(50.9) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|10.9
(51.62) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|9
(48.2) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|7
(44.6) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|5.3
(41.54) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|4.6
(40.28) 		style="Template:Weather box/colt"|5.69
(42.245)
Source:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Demographics

Template:Historical populations

File:Murmansk (19591668996).jpg
Children in Murmansk

The population of the city, according to the 2010 Census, was 307,257, of these, 141,130 men (45.9%) and 166,127 women (54.1%),<ref name="ms">Статистический сборник Численность, размещение и возрастно-половой состав населения Мурманской области. Итоги Всероссийской переписи населения. Том 1. 2012 Template:Webarchive / Федеральная служба государственной статистики, Территориальный орган Федеральной службы государственной статистики по Мурманской области. Мурманск, 2012 — 75 с.</ref><ref name="murmanskstat.gks.ru">Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref> down from 468,039 recorded in the 1989 Census. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the city has been consistently losing population, as the extensive military facilities the city is built around have declined. Ethnic Russians make up the majority of the population, but Ukrainian and Belarusian minorities also live in the city.

Ethnic composition (2010):<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Politics

In November 2010, direct mayoral elections were abolished; they were reinstituted in January 2014, with the most recent elections for mayor and city council taking place in September 2014.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Museums and monuments

Murmansk has two main museums: Murmansk Oblast Museum and Murmansk Oblast Art Museum; there are also several small museums. There are three professional theaters, libraries, and an aquarium in Murmansk. Murmansk is the venue of the decommissioned Lenin which is now a museum ship. Alyosha Monument, Murmansk or Defenders of the Soviet Arctic during the Great Patriotic War monument is also located in Murmansk. The main square of Murmansk is Five Corners, Murmansk.

Culture

There are three professional theaters in Murmansk. The oldest is the Murmansk Puppetry, which opened in 1933. The largest in the city was the Murmansk Regional Drama Theater, which opened in 1939. The Drama Theater of the Northern Fleet was opened in 1946.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Sports

The city's association football teams are FC Sever Murmansk, which played in the Russian Second Division until 2014 when it folded due to financial difficulties, and FC Murmansk, a football team founded in 2022.

Bandy club Murman<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> has played in the Russian Bandy Super League, last in 2011–2012. Between 2012 and 2018, they were playing in the second tier Russian Bandy Supreme League, but will from the 2018–19 season be a Super League team again.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Their home arena, Stadium Stroitel, has an audience capacity of 5,000.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The city is one of only three places with representation in the female league, through the team Arktika.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Proximity to pole and its side effects, Polar Night, has brought sport festivals such as Template:Ill and Template:Ill. The former has been awarded every year since the inaugural tournament in 1934.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Norway, Finland, Sweden, Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic countries take part in the North Festival Polar Olympiad.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Religion

To commemorate the 85th anniversary of the city's foundation, the snow-white Church of the Saviour on the Waters was modeled after the White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal and built on the shore for the sailors of Murmansk.<ref>see photograph Template:Webarchive)</ref>

Fifteen religious associations have been registered in Murmansk.<ref name="listOfRelig">Template:Cite web</ref> The largest is the Russian Orthodox Church. Murmansk is the center of its Murmansk and Monchegorsk diocese, as well as the Murmansk Metropolis. The city has about a dozen Orthodox churches. The department of the head of the diocese and the metropolis of Metropolitan Simon is located in St. Nicholas Cathedral.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Economy

Media

Murmansk's evening newspaper is Vecherniy Murmansk; it has been published since 1991.

Transportation

The Port of Murmansk remains ice-free year round due to the warm North Atlantic Current and is an important fishing and shipping destination. It is home port to Atomflot, the world's only fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Port is also the headquarters of Sevmorput (Northern Sea Route) and the administration of Russian Arctic maritime transport. In 2018, the Russian government transferred the main responsibility for the Northern Sea Route to Rosatom which through its ROSATOMFLOT subsidiary manages the Russian nuclear powered icebreaker fleet based in Murmansk.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Murmansk is linked by the Kirov Railway to St. Petersburg and is linked to the rest of Russia by the M18 Kola Motorway. Murmansk Airport provides air links to Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Buses and trolleybuses provide local transport.

Arctic Bridge

Murmansk is set to be the Russian terminus of the Arctic Bridge, a sea route linking it to the Canadian port of Churchill, Manitoba. Even though the passage has not been fully tested for commercial shipping yet, Russian interest in this project (along with the Northwest Passage) is substantial, as the bridge will serve as a major trade route between North America, Europe and Asia.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Education

File:МГТУ.jpg
Murmansk State Technical University.

Murmansk is home to Murmansk State Technical University, the Murmansk Arctic State University (formerly Murmansk State Pedagogical University), the Murmansk Institute of Humanities and the Murmansk College of Arts<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (the only art school of the Kola Peninsula, formerly the 'Murmansk Music School'). The city has 86 primary schools and 56 secondary schools, two boarding schools, and three reform schools. There is also a branch of the Naval Academy in Murmansk, where cadets study, to become officers of the Russian Navy.

Twin towns – sister cities

Template:See also

Murmansk is twinned with:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Div col

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Notable people

References

Notes

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Sources

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Template:Murmansk Oblast Template:Hero Cities Template:Authority control

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