Russian Empire
Which country did Kirov, Kirov Oblast belong to from Oct 1721 to Mar 1917?
Kirov , Kirov Oblast Kirov ( ) is the largest city and administrative center of Kirov Oblast , Russia . It is located on the Vyatka River in European Russia , 896 km northeast of Moscow . Its population is 518,348 ( in 2020 ) . Kirov is a historical , cultural , industrial , and scientific center of Priurale ( territory on the west side of the Ural Mountains ) ; place of origin for Dymkovo toys ; the most eastern city founded during the times of Kievan Rus . The city also had the names of Khlynov ( , from 1457 to 1780 ) , and Vyatka ( , until 1934 ) . History . Principality and republic . The native Slavic tribe of Central Russia and Volga regions , the Vyatichis ( also called Viatichi ) , mixed here with the Novgorodian Slovenes and Finno-Ugric people . According to the medieval chronicles the first Russian settlements in the area appeared in 12th century . Kirov itself was first mentioned ( as Vyatka ) for the first time in 1374 when Novgorod ushkuyniks plundered it on their way to Bolghar . Vyatka was governed by a public assembly ( veche ) as other Northern Russian republics of Pskov and Novgorod . At different times in the late 14th and 15th centuries Vyatka militias raided Ustyug , Novgorod and Tatar lands on Kama and Volga . Vyatka supported Yury of Zvenigorod during the Muscovite Civil War and after his party lost the victorious Vasily II sent Muscovite armies twice against Vyatka to subjugate it and eventually it was forced to accept the suzerainty of Moscow while retaining a significant measure of autonomy . In 1469 Vyatka allied with Khan Ibrahim of the Khanate of Kazan and did not take part in the campaign of Ivan III against the khanate . After several unsuccessful campaigns by Moscow against Vyatka in 1480s , the latter was finally annexed in 1489 . Part of Grand Duchy of Moscow and Russian Empire . Khlynov became known throughout Russia for its clay statuettes and whistles . The towns oldest surviving monument is the Assumption Cathedral ( 1689 ) , an imposing structure surmounted by five globular domes . In 1780 , Catherine the Great renamed the town Vyatka and made it the seat of Vyatka Governorate . The town also served as a place of exile , notably for Alexander Herzen , Alexander Vitberg , and Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin . By the end of the 19th century , it was an important station on the Trans-Siberian railway . Soviet and post-Soviet period . In December 1934 , it was renamed for the Soviet leader Sergey Kirov , who had been assassinated on December 1 . However , whilst the name Kirov has remained since the dissolution of the Soviet Union , numerous institutions such as the university bear the former name of Vyatka . Administrative and municipal status . Kirov is the administrative center of the oblast . Within the framework of administrative divisions , it is , together with 134 rural localities , incorporated as the City of Kirov—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts . As a municipal division , the City of Kirov is incorporated as Kirov Urban Okrug . Economy . Kirov is a major transport hub ( railway ; Trans-Siberian main ) and river port . It is served by Kirov Pobedilovo airport . During the 1990s this airport was closed and for several years provided only irregular service . During the 2003-2006 summer seasons there were signs of a revival in air transportation as several companies attempted to establish flight routes from Kirov to Moscow and Krasnodar . Since 2006 Kirov airport has been used by a local company operating flights to Moscow . The Kirov River port went bankrupt in the late 1990s and all its river boats were sold to other regions . Kirov is a center of machine building ; metallurgy , light , the printing trade , biochemical and the timber industry . Culture . Museums . - Kirov Regional Museum - Kirov Regional Art Museum in honor V.M . and A.M . Vasnetsov Vyatka Museum of Art , one of the oldest museums in Russia , was founded in 1910 by local artists . The idea of creation belongs to natives of Vyatka land , brothers artists Viktor Vasnetsov and Apollinary Vasnetsov . At the core of the collection — works that received the most part in the 1910-1920s from the State Museum Fund , private collections and as gifts — from patrons and artists . Today the museum has more than fifteen thousand exhibits and is located in four buildings in Kirov downtown . - Museum of K.E . Tsiolkovsky , Aviation & Space - Vyatka cabinet of curiosities - Kirov diorama - House-Museum of M.E . Saltykov-Shchedrin - Museum of A . Green - House-Museum of N . Khokhryakova - Kirov exhibition hall - Kirov Planetarium - Vyatka paleontological museum Theaters . - Kirov Oblast Drama Theater - Kirov State Puppet Theater - Kirov State Theater of Young Spectators Theater of the Spasskaya Circus . - Kirov State Circus According to a report in Pravda dated January 4 , 2005 , Kirov is known as the city of twins for the unusually high number of multiple births there . According to a report , the city is home to a high concentration of red-haired individuals . Sports . Rodina plays in the highest division of Russian Bandy League . Their home arena has a capacity of 7500 . It was the venue of the national final in 2013 . Rodina-2 will participate in the Russian Rink Bandy Cup 2017 . Education . Kirov is the home of Vyatka State University , former Vyatka University for the Humanities , Vyatka Agricultural Academy and Kirov State Medical University . Climate . Kirov has a humid continental climate ( Köppen climate classification Dfb ) . Summers are warm and rainy , coupled with cool nights , while winters are cold and extremely snowy , with snow falling on most days during winter . Twin towns – sister cities . Kirov is twinned with : - Siedlce , Poland Notable people . - Anna Alminova ( born 1985 ) , middle-distance runner - Yuri Ardashev ( born 1965 ) , theater director , actor - Ekaterina Atalik ( born 1982 ) , chess player - Mikhail Bagayev ( born 1985 ) , association football player - Aleksey Borovitin ( born 1954 ) , ski jumper - Yevgeny Charushin ( 1901–1965 ) , illustrator , author of childrens literature - Oksana Domnina ( born 1984 ) , ice dancer - Vyacheslav Dryagin ( 1940–2002 ) , Nordic combined skier - Boris Farmakovsky ( 1870–1928 ) , historian , archaeologist - Bl . Leonid Feodorov ( 1879–1935 ) , first Exarch of the Russian Byzantine Catholic Church - Matvey Gusev ( 1826–1866 ) , astronomer - Maria Isakova ( 1918–2011 ) , speed skater - Kirill Khaliavin ( born 1990 ) , ice dancer - Lev Knyazev ( 1926–2012 ) , writer - Olga Kuragina ( born 1959 ) , athlete - Alexey Kuzmichev ( born 1962 ) , businessman - Boris Kuznetsov ( born 1944 ) , lawyer - Andrei Malykh ( born 1988 ) , association football player - Ksenia Monko ( born 1922 ) , ice dancer - Sergey Obukhov ( born 1974 ) , bandy player - Svetlana Pletnyova ( 1926–2008 ) , historian , archaeologist - Aleksei Pugin ( born 1987 ) , association football player - Ivan Shefer ( born 1983 ) , ice dancer - Yekaterina Shikhova ( born 1985 ) , speed skater - Alexei Sitnikov ( born 1986 ) , ice dancer - Alexander Stolbov ( born 1929 ) , painter - Nikolai Tchaikovsky ( 1851–1926 ) , revolutionary , politician - Mikhail Tyufyakov ( born 1974 ) , association football player and manager - Vladimir Urin ( born 1947 ) , theater director , actor - Yuri Vshivtsev ( 1940–2010 ) , association football player - Valentin Yanin ( born 1929 ) , historian , archaeologist - Julia Zlobina ( born 1989 ) , ice dancer - Polina Khonina ( born 1998 ) , rhythmic gymnast Further reading . - Vyatka . Materials for the History of the 17th and 18th Centuries ( 1887 ) ( Вятка . Материалы для истории города XVII и XVIII столетий ) at Runivers.ru in DjVu and PDF formats External links . - Official website of Kirov - Unofficial website of Kirov