View source for Mozhaysk

{{Short description|Town in Moscow Oblast, Russia}}
{{expand Russian|date=March 2024|topic=geo}}
{{Infobox Russian inhabited locality
|en_name=Mozhaysk
|ru_name=Можайск
|image_skyline=Mozhaysk-saint-nicholas-church-july-2016.jpg
|image_caption=
|coordinates={{coord|55|31|N|36|02|E|display=inline,title}}
|map_label_position=top
|image_coa=Mozhaysk_coats_2020.png
|coa_caption=
|image_flag=Flag of Mozhaisk (Moscow oblast).png
|flag_caption=
|anthem=
|anthem_ref=
|holiday=
|holiday_ref=
|federal_subject=[[Moscow Oblast]]
|federal_subject_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|adm_district_jur=[[Mozhaysky District, Moscow Oblast|Mozhaysky District]]
|adm_district_jur_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|adm_selsoviet_jur=Mozhaysk
|adm_selsoviet_type=[[Town of district significance|Town]]
|adm_selsoviet_jur_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|adm_ctr_of1=Mozhaysky District
|adm_ctr_of1_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|adm_ctr_of2=Town of Mozhaysk
|adm_ctr_of2_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|inhabloc_cat=Town
|inhabloc_cat_ref=<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" />
|inhabloc_type=
|inhabloc_type_ref=
|mun_district_jur=Mozhaysky Municipal District
|mun_district_jur_ref=<ref name="MoscowOMozhayskyD_mun" />
|urban_settlement_jur=Mozhaysk Urban Settlement
|urban_settlement_jur_ref=<ref name="MoscowOMozhayskyD_mun" />
|mun_admctr_of1=Mozhaysk Municipal District
|mun_admctr_of1_ref=<ref name="MoscowOMozhayskyD_mun" />
|mun_admctr_of2=Mozhaysk Urban Settlement
|mun_admctr_of2_ref=<ref name="MoscowOMozhayskyD_mun" />
|leader_title=
|leader_title_ref=
|leader_name=
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|representative_body=
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|area_of_what=
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|pop_2010census=31363
|pop_2010census_ref=<ref name="2010Census">{{ru-pop-ref|2010Census}}</ref>
|pop_density=
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|pop_latest=
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|established_date=1231
|established_title=First mentioned
|established_date_ref=
|current_cat_date=1708
|current_cat_date_ref=
|prev_name1=
|prev_name1_date=
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|postal_codes=143200–143204, 143210
|dialing_codes=49638
|dialing_codes_ref=
|website=http://gpmozhaysk.ru/
}}
'''Mozhaysk'''<ref name="Sp">Alternative transliterations include ''Mozhaisk'', ''Mozhajsk'', ''Mozhaĭsk'', and ''Možajsk''.</ref> ({{langx|ru|Можа́йск}}, {{IPA|ru|mɐˈʐajsk|IPA}}) is a [[types of inhabited localities in Russia|town]] and the [[administrative center]] of [[Mozhaysky District, Moscow Oblast|Mozhaysky District]] in [[Moscow Oblast]], [[Russia]], located {{convert|110|km|sp=us}} to the west of [[Moscow]], on the historic road leading to [[Smolensk]] and then to [[Poland]]. Population: {{ru-census|p2010=31,363|p2002=31,459|p1989=30,735}}

==History==
First mentioned in 1231 as an [[appanage]] of [[Principality of Chernigov|Chernigov]];{{citation needed|date= April 2014}} A theory says Mozhaysk took its name from the Mozhay (Mozhaya) River, whose name could be of Baltic origin (compare Lithuanian ''mažoji'' "small"<ref>Е. М. Поспелов. "Географические названия мира". Москва, 1998. Стр.&nbsp;272</ref> - in contrast to the larger [[Moskva River]] nearby). Later Mozhaysk became an important stronghold of the [[Principality of Smolensk|Smolensk]] dynasty, in the 13th century ruled by Duke (later Saint) [[Theodore the Black]]. [[Muscovite Russia|Muscovites]] seized Mozhaysk in 1303, but in the course of the following century had serious troubles defending it against [[Algirdas]] ([[Grand Duke of Lithuania]] from 1345 to 1377). A younger brother of the ruling Grand Duke of Moscow usually held the Principality of Mozhaysk - until the practice was dropped in 1493. In 1562 Denmark and Russia signed the [[Treaty of Mozhaysk]] there during the [[Livonian War]] of 1558–1583. In 1708 the administration of [[Peter the Great]] granted town status to Mozhaysk.{{citation needed|date= April 2014}}

Mozhaysk played a role in defending the Western approaches to Moscow in the 19th and 20th centuries. During the [[French invasion of Russia]] in 1812 the [[Battle of Borodino]] took place {{convert|12|km|sp=us}} from the town.

In [[Eastern Front (World War II)|World War II]], the German [[Wehrmacht]] took Mozhaysk on October&nbsp; 18, 1941;<ref name=":14">{{Cite book |last=Ueberschär, Gerd R. |title='Unternehmen Barbarossa': Der deutsche Überfall auf die Sowjetunion 1941 |publisher=Ferdinand Schöningh |year=1984 |isbn=9783506774682 |editor-last=Ueberschär, Gerd R. |pages=141–172 |chapter=Das Scheitern des Unternehmens 'Barbarossa': Der deutsch-sowjetische Krieg vom Überfall bis zur Wende vor Moskau im Winter 1941/42 |editor-last2=Wette, Wolfram}}</ref>{{Rp|1=157}} the Soviet [[Red Army]] re-captured it on January&nbsp;20, 1942.

==Administrative and municipal status==
Within the [[subdivisions of Russia#Administrative divisions|framework of administrative divisions]], Mozhaysk serves as the [[administrative center]] of [[Mozhaysky District, Moscow Oblast|Mozhaysky District]].<ref name="MoscowO_admlist">Resolution #123-PG</ref> As an administrative division, it is, together with twenty-one [[types of inhabited localities in Russia|rural localities]], incorporated within Mozhaysky District as the '''[[Town of district significance|Town]] of Mozhaysk'''.<ref name="MoscowO_admlist" /> As a [[subdivisions of Russia#Municipal divisions|municipal division]], the Town of Mozhaysk is incorporated within Mozhaysky Municipal District as '''Mozhaysk Urban Settlement'''.<ref name="MoscowOMozhayskyD_mun">Law #95/2005-OZ</ref>

==Architecture==
[[File:mozhaisk11.jpg|thumb|left|The Cathedral of St. Nicholas, constructed in 1802–1814]]
[[File:Nikolka Mozh.jpg|thumb|180px|The wooden statue of [[Saint Nicholas of Mozhaysk]], 14th century]]
The first stone cathedral was built in the [[Kremlin (fortification)|kremlin]] in the early 14th century and named Nikolskiy (then [[:ru:Церковь Петра и Павла (Можайск)|Staro-Nikolsky]]) Cathedral. It very much resembled the Dormition Cathedral in [[Zvenigorod]]. At that time the wooden statue of [[Saint Nicholas of Mozhaysk]] was carved by an unknown master and placed into the cathedral. Later the statue was moved to the Church Over-the-gates.

The first fortified [[Detinets]] existed in the Mozhaysk as early as in the 12th century. After the great fire of 1541, it was completely rebuilt by an order of [[Ivan the Terrible]]. Only in the early 17th century, the stone fortress was constructed, replaced with the Kremlin made of bricks in 1624–1626.

[[Cathedral of St. Nicholas (Mozhaysk)|The Cathedral of St. Nicholas]] in the [[Gothic Revival architecture|Gothic Revival]] style, designed by Aleksei Bakarev ([[Matvei Kazakov]]'s student), started in 1802, but the building was ransacked by the retreating French troops in 1812. Only in 1814 the cathedral was completed and consecrated.<ref>{{cite web
 |author      = Brumfield, W.
 |url         = https://www.rbth.com/special_projects/discovering_russia_1/2017/06/09/the-mozhaisk-st-nicholas-cathedral-from-prokudin-gorsky-to-the-present_779855
 |title       = The Mozhaisk St. Nicholas Cathedral: From Prokudin-Gorsky to the present
 |publisher   = Russia Beyond the Headlines
 |date        = 2017-06-09
 |access-date  = 2020-01-29
}}</ref> The church of St.&nbsp;Joachim and Anna preserves some parts from the early 15th century. Another important landmark is the [[Luzhetsky Monastery]], founded in 1408 by [[Therapont of White Lake|St.&nbsp;Ferapont]] and rebuilt in brick in the 16th century. The monastery cathedral, erected during the reign of [[Vasily III of Russia|Vasily&nbsp;III]], was formerly known for its frescoes, ascribed to [[Dionisius]]' circle.

==Trivia==
Mozhaysk was frequently the last major obstacle on the way to the capital and it gave birth to the expression "to push beyond Mozhay" ({{lang|ru|загнать за Можай}}, ''zagnat' za Mozhay''), which literally means "to push (the enemy) beyond Mozhay". In modern usage, it means to "completely crush the enemy and push them away at a great distance". The phrase originated during the [[Polish-Muscovite War (1605-1618)|Polish Muscovite War]] when the Polish Army retreated to Mozhaysk following the [[Battle of Moscow (1612)]].<ref>Diclist.Ru [https://diclist.ru/slovar/frazeologizmov/z/zagnat_za_mozhaj.html] {{in lang|ru}}</ref>

==Transport==

Bus line 457 goes from the Mozhaysk autobus station to [[Poklonnaya Gora|Park Pobedy]] in Moscow. Several bus and [[marshrutka]] services operate within Mozhaysk and connect the town with nearby localities, as well as with touristic sites in the fields of [[Borodino]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rasp.yandex.ru/station/9742980/?date=all-days |title=Yandex schedule for Mozhaysk buses |language=ru}}</ref>
Railway transport is also available. Suburban regular and [[:ru:РЭКС|express]] trains run between [[Mozhaysk railway station]] and Moscow. The minor railway platform Km. 109 of the [[Belorussky suburban railway line]], located on the outskirts of the city, serves the adjacement settlement of [[Stroitel, Moscow Oblast|Stroitel]]. Mozhaysk is also linked by train to [[Smolensk Oblast]], with both short-distance services between the town and [[Vyazma]] and long-distance Lastochka trains on the Moscow-Smolensk route stopping at Mozhaysk.

==Climate==
Mozhaysk has warm summer [[humid continental climate]], [[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Dfb''.
{{Weather box|width=auto
|location=Mozhaysk (1991–2020, extremes 1932–present)
|metric first=yes
|single line=yes
|Jan record high C = 8.2
|Feb record high C = 9.4
|Mar record high C = 19.4
|Apr record high C = 28.4
|May record high C = 32.0
|Jun record high C = 33.8
|Jul record high C = 37.0
|Aug record high C = 37.7
|Sep record high C = 31.5
|Oct record high C = 24.4
|Nov record high C = 15.7
|Dec record high C = 9.6

|Jan high C = -4.2
|Feb high C = -3.2
|Mar high C = 2.6
|Apr high C = 11.5
|May high C = 18.6
|Jun high C = 22.0
|Jul high C = 24.2
|Aug high C = 22.5
|Sep high C = 16.3
|Oct high C = 8.8
|Nov high C = 1.4
|Dec high C = -2.7

|Jan mean C = -6.8
|Feb mean C = -6.7
|Mar mean C = -1.6
|Apr mean C = 6.2
|May mean C = 12.8
|Jun mean C = 16.5
|Jul mean C = 18.7
|Aug mean C = 16.8
|Sep mean C = 11.3
|Oct mean C = 5.3
|Nov mean C = -0.9
|Dec mean C = -4.9

|Jan low C = -9.7
|Feb low C = -10.1
|Mar low C = -5.5
|Apr low C = 1.1
|May low C = 6.9
|Jun low C = 10.9
|Jul low C = 13.4
|Aug low C = 11.6
|Sep low C = 6.9
|Oct low C = 2.1
|Nov low C = -3.1
|Dec low C = -7.2

|Jan record low C = -44.0
|Feb record low C = -38.0
|Mar record low C = -32.5
|Apr record low C = -19.9
|May record low C = -6.1
|Jun record low C = -1.2
|Jul record low C = 2.7
|Aug record low C = -0.5
|Sep record low C = -7.5
|Oct record low C = -18.9
|Nov record low C = -27.8
|Dec record low C = -41.7

|Jan precipitation mm = 42.2
|Feb precipitation mm = 36.1
|Mar precipitation mm = 34.2
|Apr precipitation mm = 32.8
|May precipitation mm = 66.6
|Jun precipitation mm = 77.2
|Jul precipitation mm = 90.0
|Aug precipitation mm = 68.4
|Sep precipitation mm = 58.3
|Oct precipitation mm = 60.1
|Nov precipitation mm = 47.1
|Dec precipitation mm = 44.8
|source 1 = pogoda.ru.net<ref>{{cite web|title=Климат Можайска|url=http://pogoda.ru.net/climate/27509.htm|accessdate=December 28, 2022|language=Russian}}</ref>
}}

==Twin towns and sister cities==
{{Main|List of twin towns and sister cities in Russia}}

Mozhaysk is [[twin towns and sister cities|twinned]] with:
*{{Flagicon|France}} [[Château-du-Loir]], [[France]]
*{{Flagicon|Germany}} [[Drochtersen]], [[Germany]]
*{{Flagicon|Bulgaria}} [[Etropole]], [[Bulgaria]]
*{{Flagicon|Finland}} [[Lohja]], [[Finland]]
*{{Flagicon|Ukraine}} [[Pereiaslav]], [[Ukraine]]
*{{Flagicon|Poland}} Ujazd, [[Poland]]
*{{Flagicon|Belarus}} [[Vileyka]], [[Belarus]]

==References==
===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
*{{RussiaAdmMunRef|mos|adm|list}}
*{{RussiaAdmMunRef|mos|mun|list|mozhaysky}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20131219181211/http://gpmozhaysk.ru/ Official website of Mozhaysk] {{in lang|ru}}
*[http://www.mozhay.ru/ Unofficial website of Mozhaysk] {{in lang|ru}}

{{Moscow Oblast}}
{{Historical places of the former Grand Duchy of Moscow}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2012}}

[[Category:Cities and towns in Moscow Oblast]]
[[Category:Mozhaysky Uyezd]]