!!!Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

by Stas Sedov and Dmitry Moiseenko,
members of the [AirPano Team|Geography/About/Consortium/AirPano,_Team] that is a member of the [global-geography Consortium|Geography/About/Consortium]. \\

11 December 2015

with kind permission of [AirPano|http://www.AirPano.com]

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is one of the oldest cities situated in the Far
East of Russia. Its history began in 1697 when Cossacks founded a fort
on the coast of Avacha Bay for warehousing animal furs — a "natural" tax
paid by the peoples in Siberia and Northern regions of Russia. Half a
century later on October 17, 1740 the Second Kamchatka Expedition headed
by famous sailors Vitus Bering and Alexey Chirikov arrived here. This
date is considered as the birthday of the city and it got its name the
same day after the two ships on which the expedition had arrived: St.
Peter and St. Paul.

[{Image src='01_Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.jpg' caption='Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='475'}]

In 1854, during the 1853-1856 Crimean War the city was held under siege
by the Anglo-French fleet ten days, but managed to resist and prevent
the intervention. The historians consider this as one of the most
important battles in the second half of the 19th century.

And then the city's destiny was to... disappear for a period of time.
Even though the enemy was driven away, another problem arose: it turned
out that it was quite difficult to maintain and secure such a remote
area. The weather in this region was a problem as well: Petropavlovsk
lies practically on the same latitude as Manchester and Dublin, but the
climate here is much more severe than on the same latitude somewhere in
Northern Europe or in the European part of Russia.

[{Image src='02_Tri Brata (Three Brothers) Rocks.jpg' caption='Tri Brata (Three Brothers) Rocks' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='405'}]

Having considered all the factors, military commanders decided to
evacuate the whole port and the Kamchatka garrison. In a very limited
time all the constructions were dismantled and the most valuable ones
were hidden. Local inhabitants were ordered to go somewhere north. The
Russian squadron managed to leave the port before the second arrival of
the enemy. And when in May 1855 the British-French Alliance entered
Avacha Bay in order to gain revenge, all they could find were the
silence and the abandoned coast.

After the end of the Crimean War the reconstruction of Petropavlovsk was
initiated. But still the city was developing in a rather slow pace. For
many years it looked more like a village with two or three dozens of
buildings scattered around the coast. Generally its sole existence was
provided due to the need of the state's of a port for temporary
harbouring of military, trade and scientific ships. As a result, less
than a century ago (in 1923) Petropavlovsk was a rather small town with
three streets and the population of about 1,500 people. The new chapter
in the history of the city, now called Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, began
in 1928 together with the development of fishing and industrial
enterprises.

[{Image src='03_Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.jpg' caption='Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='410'}]

Evidently, having such a history, Petropavlovsk could not create some
great architectural masterpieces. But, at the same time, a total absence
of any heritage is not its feature. There are 28 historical memorials
and monuments in the city. Among them you can find the first monuments
to appear in the Far East of Russia: the memorials dedicated to Vitus
Bering and Jean Lapérouse and the monument called "In honour of the
Defenders of Petropavlovsk". The wooden buildings built in the beginning
of the 20th century, that can still be found on the streets of
Petropavlovsk, are declared as the monuments of regional importance.

[{Image src='04_Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.jpg' caption='Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='401'}]

However, the most remarkable sights of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky are its
picturesque landscapes. The city lies quite close to Avacha Bay, thus
the citizens can witness the sea and numerous ships from practically any
place in Petropavlovsk. The main street of the city lies at the feet of
Petrovskaya and Mishennaya sidehills, and on the Ozernovskaya sandspit
there is a public beach. Three volcanoes that surround the city —
Koryaksky, Avachinsky and Kozelsky — became such an essential part of
its landscape, that the locals call them ‘homely'. So, now it is your
turn to have a better look of this interesting city using our panoramas.

We are very grateful to Sergey Krasnoshchekov and Yury Pchelincev for
helping us organize photo shoot.

\\ \\
[12 Panoramas of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky|Geography/Asia/Russia/Pictures/Panoramas_of_Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky]










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