YELETS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th December, 2020) ELETS, Russia, December 28 (Sputnik), Denis Chernyshenko - A Sputnik correspondent has visited the city of YELETS (Pakistan Point news / Sputnik - 28th December, 2020) elets in Russia's Lipetsk Region, which was the northernmost settlement devastated by great Medieval conqueror Amir Timur, also known as Tamerlane.
Yelets is located about 350 kilometers (about 220 miles) south of Moscow, near the M-4 "Don" highway, one of the best highways in Russia that also links the capital with the city of Rostov-on-Don. Founded in the mid-12th century, Yelets is the oldest Russian settlement in the Central Black Earth Region.
As Yelets was located on the southeastern border of the ancient Russian lands, it was often attacked by nomadic neighbors, such as the Cumans (known as Polovtsy in Russia).
Like many other Russian cities and towns, Yelets was devastated by the Mongol troops led by Batu Khan in the middle of the 13th century. Once again, the city was sacked in 1316 by the ruler of the Golden Horde, Öz Beg Khan, in 1216.
However, the most dramatic event in the history of Yelets took place in 1395 when the first Amir of the huge Timurid Empire Timur came with his big army to the walls of the city.
In the late 14th century, the Golden Horde, a big Mongol state in eastern Europe and a part of central Asia, faced a severe political crisis but continued to have Russian principalities as its vassals and tributaries. Khan Tokhtamysh - supported by his new powerful neighbor, the Timurid Empire - managed to reunite the Golden Horde lands, and after that, decided to challenge Amir Timur.
Timur's first campaign against Tokhtamysh culminated in June 1391 in the epic Battle of the Kondurcha River (currently, Russia's Samara Region), in which the latter was defeated and Timur focused on other geopolitical issues. However, several years later, Tokhtamysh attacked the Timurid lands again and suffered an even more devastating defeat in the Battle of the Terek River (currently, Russia's North Caucasus).
Following the battle, Timur decided to eradicate the threat coming from the Golden Horde and burnt all the significant cities of this state, which predetermined its following decay and conquest by Moscow.
After the devastation of the Golden Horde, Timur went to the border of the Russian lands, with his first target being the Yelets Principality. After a short battle, the city fell and the principality's ruler was captured. Timur spent two weeks in the lands of Yelets, thinking about whether he should proceed with the offensive and attack Moscow or return to the Homeland. Moscow ruler Vasily I mobilized an army and waited for Timur's decision. In fact, he had no chance of resisting the Timurid leader in an offensive. In any case, Timur decided to stop his campaign against the Russian principalities and returned to his empire: this event, which the Orthodox believers associate with the miracle of the Virgin of Vladimir icon, saved Moscow and gave it an opportunity to develop into the leading empire in the region.
Concerning Yelets, the remains of the city were once again devastated by the Mongols between 1414-1415, after which the town was completely destroyed. In 1591, Russian Tsar Feodor I ordered that the city be revived, opening a new page in its history.
Just 15 years later, the city witnessed a major battle in which the government's troops were defeated by peasant rebels led by Ivan Bolotnikov as part of what is called the Time of Troubles. In 1618, Yelets was burnt by the Polish-Lithuanian troops led by Hetman Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny.
In the following centuries, Yelets developed into a major economic center specializing in the bread trade. In 1888, the first grain elevator in Russia was built here.
The 20th century brought new tragedies for Yelets. It saw several major battles during the 1917-1923 Civil War in Russia, and in December 1941, the city was taken by the Nazi German troops. However, they left several days later in retreat from the Soviet offensive.
Today, Yelets is the second biggest city in the Lipetsk Region, with a population of more than 103,000 people. The city has its own university and a big railway terminal.
The city is also interesting for tourists due to its multiple sights. The most important among them is the big Ascension Cathedral designed by famous architect Konstantin Ton. The beautiful cathedral was closed and devastated by the Soviet authorities in 1934 but 13 years later was reopened for believers. Today, it is admired by tourists due to its size and might.
Another Orthodox sight of the city is the Znamensky Monastery, located on a high hill in the northern part of�Yelets. From the top of the hill, tourists may see a picturesque panorama of the city.
Yelets also has several interesting museums, including those of great Russian writer Ivan Bunin and of the lane manufacturing. Moreover, despite significant destruction in the 20th century, some streets of the city still look like in the 19th century due to preserved empire-era architecture.
Tourists who are going to�Voronezh or Lipetsk from Moscow by car should spend a day in this wonderful ancient city.�
