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'Narva' (; , ''Narva'') is the third largest city in Estonia. It is located at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, by the Russian border, on the Narva River which drains Lake Peipus.

Contents

History

Demography

Landmarks

Notable residents

External links

History

People settled in the area during 5th to 4th millennium BC, as witnessed by the archeological traces of the Narva culture, named so after the city. The settlement was first mentioned in the First Novgorod Chronicle as Rugodiv (Ругодивъ) under the year 1171.
The castle of Narva was founded during the Danish rule of northern Estonia on November 30, 1223. The castle and surrounding town of Narva became a possession of the Livonian Order after 1346. Captured briefly by Russians in 1558, Narva changed hands a few times, and after 1581 was controlled by Sweden.
During the Great Northern War, Narva was the setting for its first great battle between the forces of King Charles XII of Sweden and Tsar Peter I of Russia. Although outnumbered, the Swedish forces achieved a tactical victory over the Russians. The city was subsequently reconquered by Russia in 1704.
Narva became part of independent Estonia in 1918 following World War I. It was made part of the Estonian SSR in 1940 during World War II. The old center of Narva was destroyed by the Red Army and retreating Germans during the Battle of Narva (1944); it has never been completely rebuilt.

Demography

93.85% of the current population of Narva are Russian-speakers (86.41% are ethnic Russians), mostly either Soviet-era immigrants from parts of the former U.S.S.R. (mainly Russia) or their descendants. Much of the city was destroyed during World War II and for several years during the following reconstruction the Soviet authorities prohibited the return of any of Narva's pre-war residents (among whom ethnic Estonians had been the majority), thus radically altering the city's ethnic composition.

Landmarks

Narva is dominated by the 15th-century castle, with the 51-metre-high Long Hermann tower as its most prominent landmark. The sprawling complex of the Kreenholm Manufacture, located in the proximity of scenic waterfalls, is one of the largest textile mills of 19th-century Eastern Europe. Other notable buildings include Swedish mansions of the 17th century, a Baroque town hall (1668-71), and remains of Erik Dahlberg's fortifications.
Across the Narva River is the Russian Ivangorod fortress, founded by Grand Prince Ivan III of Muscovy in 1492 and known in Western sources as ''Counter-Narva''. During the Soviet times Narva and Ivangorod were twin cities, despite belonging to different republics. Before World War II, Ivangorod (in Estonian known as ''Jaanilinn'') was administrated as part of Narva.

Notable residents

★ Evert Horn (1585-1615), governor of Narva (1613)

★ Friedrich Lustig (1912-1989), Buddhist monk

★ Paul Keres (1916-1975), chess grandmaster

★ Paul Felix Schmidt (1916-1984), chess player

★ Ortvin Sarapu (1924-1999), chess player

★ Valery Karpin (born 1969), football player

★ Maksim Gruznov (born 1974), football player

★ Leo Komarov (born 1987), hockey player

External links

★ Narva – Official site

★ High resolution satellite photo of Narva, via 'Google Maps'