In 2019, the city's population reached 12.6 million. The entire agglomeration has 17.2 million inhabitants. In addition to the permanent population, the city has an additional 1.8 million visitors (people from other regions of the country looking for work, students, etc.). In addition, about 1 million people are living there illegally who do not declare their residency. 1)
Moscow is the capital of the Moscow Oblast, although it does not belong to it. It is divided into 12 districts, of which the first 10 are divided into 125 regions, and the last two into 21 settlements. 2)
Moscow was founded before 1147. Throughout history, it has been the capital of the Duchy of Moscow, the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the Russian Empire, Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union. 3)
In the 14th century, the Duchy of Moscow was raised to the status of a grand duchy. The Grand Duchy of Moscow from 1271 to 1480 depended on the Golden Horde (a historical Mongol state, founded in 1240 in the western part of Genghis Khan's empire, with its capital at Sarai Batu). 4)
Between 1485 and 1495, the Moscow Kremlin was expanded according to the design of Italian Renaissance architects Pietro Solari and Marco Ruffo, who gave it its present-day appearance. Moscow churches (including the Annunciation Cathedral in the Kremlin) were often decorated with frescoes and icons by Theophan the Greek, Andrei Rublev, and Prochor of Gorodets. 5)
Alexander Nevsky (Grand Duke of Vladimir of the Rurykovich dynasty, an Orthodox saint) carved out the Duchy of Moscow as part of his state. He did this specifically for his youngest son Daniel, the founder of the Moscow line of the Rurykovichs. Moscow became the capital of the principality. During Daniel's reign, the city thrived, grew rich and its population increased. Among other things, during his reign, Daniel built the Danilov Monastery - now one of the residences of the patriarchs of Moscow and All-Russia. 6)
The Grand Principality of Moscow from 1271 to 1480 depended on the Golden Horde (a historic Mongol state founded in 1240 in the western part of Genghis Khan's empire, with its capital at Sarai Batu). 7)
The Rurykovich dynasty led to the liberation of All-Russia from Tatar rule, united the Rus' lands and in the 16th century, the Grand Duchy of Moscow became the only independent Rus' state. 8)
The beginning of the Russian Empire was given in 1547 with the coronation of the Grand Duke of Moscow, Ivan IV the Terrible, as “Tsar of All-Russia. During his reign, the city received a sea connection, via the White Sea (an inland sea that is part of the Arctic Ocean, located between the Kolsk Peninsula and the coast of northern Russia), with the countries of Western Europe. 9)
In the 16th century, architects Barma and Postnik Yakovlev built the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed in Red Square, which has become a symbol of Moscow. 10)
Moscow ceased to be the capital of Russia in 1712 when Peter I the Great moved it to Petersburg. 11)
In 1755, on the initiative of Mikhail Lomonosov, the first Russian university was founded in Moscow, which now bears his name. 12)
In 1856 Pavel Tretyakov, a merchant, founded the Tretyakov Gallery, which now houses one of the world's largest and most significant collections of works of fine art, especially paintings. 13)
In 1918, the government formed by the Bolsheviks moved the capital back from St. Petersburg to Moscow. 14)
During World War II, Moscow was a city that the Germans failed to conquer. 15)
It is also home to the world's largest Orthodox church, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. It is located on the banks of the Moskva River, near the Kremlin. It is the main church of the Russian Orthodox Church. 16)
On Theater Square, near the Kremlin, is the Bolshoi Theater, Moscow's historic and historic theater. It stages opera and ballet performances, and the Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are among the oldest and largest ballet and opera companies in the world. It was founded in 1776 by Prince Peter Urussov and Mikhail Yegorovich Maddox. During World War II, a bomb fell on the building, but the damage was quickly repaired. 17)