Tula, Russia

Tula(Russian:Ту́ла,IPA:[ˈtulə]) is the largest city and theadministrative centerofTula OblastinRussia, located 193 kilometers (120 mi) south ofMoscow. Tula is located in the northernCentral Russian Uplandon the banks of theUpa River, a tributary of theOka. At the2010 census, Tula had a population of 501,169, an increase from 481,216 in 2002, making it the32nd-largest city in Russiaby population.
A primarily industrialcity, Tula was a fortress at the border of thePrincipality of Ryazan. The city was seized byIvan Bolotnikovin 1606 during theTime of Troublesand withstood a four-month siege by the Tsar's army. Historically, Tula has been a major centre for the manufacture ofarmaments. TheDemidovfamily built the first armament factory in Russia in the city, in what would become theTula Arms Plant, which still operates to this day.
Tula is home to theKlokovoair base,Tula State University, theTula Kremlin, Tula State Museum of Weapons, and Kazanskaya Embankment. Tula has a historical association with thesamovar, a metal container used to heat and boil water; the city was a major center of Russian samovar production.Yasnaya Polyana, the former home of the writerLeo Tolstoy, is located 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) southwest of Tula. Additionally, Tula is known for itsimprinted gingerbread(pryanik),which has been made in Tula since the 17th century.
The name of the city is likely  pre-Russian, probably of Baltic origin.
Tula was first mentioned in theNikon Chronicle(year 1146).
In theMiddle Ages, Tula was a minor fortress at the border of thePrincipality of Ryazan. As soon as it passed to theGrand Duchy of Moscow, a brick citadel, orkremlin, was constructed in 1514–1521.It was a key fortress of theGreat Abatis Beltand successfully resisted a siege by theTatarsin 1552. In 1607,Ivan Bolotnikovand his supporters seized the citadel and withstood a four-months siege by theTsar's army. In the 18th century, some parts of the kremlin walls were demolished. Despite its archaic appearance, the five-domed Assumption Cathedral in the kremlin was built as late as 1764.
In 1712, Tula was visited byPeter the Great, who commissioned theDemidovblacksmiths to build the firstarmament factoryin Russia. Several decades later, Tula was turned by the Demidovs into the greatest ironworking center of Eastern Europe. The oldest museum in the city, showcasing the history of weapons, was inaugurated by the Demidovs in 1724, andNicholas-Zaretsky Churchin the city houses their family vault. The first factory to producesamovarsindustrially was also established there in the course of the 18th century. After the Demidovs moved the center of their manufacture to theUrals, Tula continued as a center ofheavy industry, particularly in the manufacture ofmatériel.
In the 1890s, Ivan Savelyev, a medical orderly, became the founder ofsocial democracyin Tula and set up a workers'study circle.
DuringWorld War II, the city was important in the production ofarmaments. Tula became the target of a German offensive to break Soviet resistance in the Moscow area between 24 October and 5 December 1941. According toErik DurschmiedinThe Weather Factor: How Nature has Changed History, one German general reached the southwestern outskirts of Tula on 29–30 October 1941.
The heavily fortified city held out, however, andGuderian'sSecond Panzer Armywas stopped near Tula. The city secured the southern flank during theBattle of Moscowand the subsequent counter-offensive. Tula was awarded the titleHero Cityin 1976. It is home to theKlokovoair base and theTula Arms Plant.
Tula serves as theadministrative centerof theoblast.Within theframework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated asTulaCity Under Oblast Jurisdiction—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of thedistricts.As a municipal division, the territories of Tula City Under Oblast Jurisdiction and ofLeninsky Districtare incorporated asTula Urban Okrug.
For more than four centuries Tula has been known as a center of crafts and metalworking. Tula is a developed industrial center. Importance in the industrial structure of Tula are metallurgy, machinery and metal with a high share of themilitary-industrial complexand food manufacturing.
A musical instrument, theTula accordion, is named after the city, which is a center of manufacture for such instruments sold throughout Russia and the world. Tula is also renowned for traditional Russianpryanik, cookies made with honey and spices (seeTula pryanik). In the West, Tula is perhaps best known as the center of arms manufacturing, mainly byTT pistol, as well assamovarproduction: the Russian equivalent of "coals to Newcastle" is "You don't take a samovar to Tula". (The saying is falsely ascribed to the writer and playwright Anton Chekhov, whose made a satirical portrait of one of his characters saying "Taking your wife to Paris is the same as taking your own samovar to Tula".)
The most popular tourist attraction inTula OblastisYasnaya Polyana, the home and burial place of the writerLeo Tolstoy. It is situated14 kilometres (8+1⁄2miles) southwest of the city. It was here that Tolstoy wrote his celebrated novelsWar and PeaceandAnna Karenina. The largest public park in Tula is theP. Belousov Central Park of Culture and Recreation.
Tula is home to:
Since 1867, there has been a railway connection between Tula and Moscow.Tula is a majorrailway junctionwith trains to Moscow,Oryol,KurskandKaluga. The Moscow toSimferopolM2 motorwayruns past the city. City transport is provided bytrams,trolleybuses,buses, andmarshrutkas. Tula trams, trolleybuses, and bus routes are operated by "Tulgorelectrotrans" (Tula city electrotransport company). TheRussian Air ForcebaseKlokovois located nearby.
Most of Tula's churches areRussian Orthodox churches. Next in number areCatholicsandProtestants. Other religions present in the city includeMuslims,Jews,Hare Krishna,BuddhistsandTaoists.
All Orthodox organizations in Tula and the Tula Oblast are under theDiocese of Tula and Yefremov. The oldest churches in Tula include the Saints' Cathedral (built from 1776-1800), the Annunciation Church (1692), and the Assumption Cathedral of the Tula Kremlin (1762-1764). The Shcheglovsky Monastery of Holy Mother of God is also located within the city, built in the mid-19th century and consecrated in 1860.Old Believers' community services are performed in the church of St. John Chrysostom.
The only Roman Catholic church in Tula is the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. Since the 1990s, several Protestantdenominationshave grown, the largest of which is aBaptistchurch with a prayer house in Tula. Representatives of other Protestant churches in Tula areSeventh-day Adventists,Presbyterians(Church of the Holy Trinity, The Glorious Jesus the Lord, the Good News),Pentecostals(Tula Christian Center, Church of the New Testament) and other evangelical churches (Word of Life, the Vine Gypsy Church).
The city also has asynagogueand the Jewish Community House.
InRussian fist fighting, Tula was considered to have some of the most famous fighters.
The cityassociation footballclub,FC Arsenal Tula, played in the Russian Premier League in 2014/2015 and 2016/2017 seasons.
Tula has ahumid continental climate,featuring warm summers, and cold, but not particularly severe winters by Russian standards.
Tula istwinnedwith: