PLYOS - RUSSIA

The small town is 63 km southeast of Kostroma on the Volga. It was founded in 1409 by Great Prince Vasilii I Dimitriovich as a fortress to help protect the approaches to Kostroma from the Tatars. On the right bank of the Volga atop an already high bluff they built the usual earthen ramparts behind deepened ditches and topped with wooden stockade and towers. In 1428 the Tatars took Plyos and Kostroma as well. In 1459 Prince Semyon Nesvizhski repulsed another Tatar attack. In the 16th century the city served as a conscription point for the Muscovite army against the Kazan Tatars. The army assembled in 1506 at Plyos under command of Prince Patrikyev-Golitsin-Bulgakov, but the campaign was cancelled because Kazan sued for peace. In 1539 the Kazan Tatars attacked the frontier regions of Moscow and were about to attack Kostroma when the Russians came out of Plyos and stopped them. On the left bank of the Volga the Russians under command of Prince Feodor Mikhaiovich Mistislavski won a battle but suffered heavy losses. One fourth of the Russian commanders were killed. Princes Feodor Kurbski, Zasykin, Tulupov, and voveyod Vlasyev were killed. During the time of Troubles Lisovski rampaged through Plyos in 1609. In 1612 Prince Pozharski and Kuzman Minin learned of the enemy attack in Kostroma and the resulting rebellion by the citizens. They brought their relief army to the Volga here and the citizens of Plyos ferried them across the Volga. In 1778 Plyos was made into a provincial head town. The Uspenski (Assumption) Cathedral, built in the 17th century, remains inside the remanant of the medieval ramparts. It has a rectangular form with faceted apses and a double row of windows topped by five domes. The other churches are in poor condition. A memorial to Vasilii I, built in 1910, is also within the earthen rampart. Now the town is famous for its serene scenic beauty and its reputation as an artists haven. This is due largely to the renown of Isaak Levitan, the landscape painter who recorded local scenes. The town was also the home of the famous Russian basso, Chaliapin.

This page has a catalog of the photography taken during our two tours on the Volga in 1998 and 2003. It was still light around 10 to 12 at night.---

Photo number	Description
	View downstream of the Volga from the crest of the bluff and kremlin wall showing the part of the village south of the bluff.
	View to the north from the top of the hill in the center of Plyos at near midnight. The Feodor Chaliapin cruise ship is tied to the small riverside dock.
	View along one side of the medieval earthen rampart built on top of an already steep bluff to protect Plyos. But it didn't stop the Mongols from sacking the village.
	Monument to Vasilli I in the medieval kremlin grounds on top of the high bluff in middle of Plyos. Part of the rampart is visible through the trees. The town forms a horseshoe around this bluff with most of the town on lower ground by the river on either side.
	Uspenski Sobor in the kremlin on the bluff in Plyos
	Trinity Church on the top of the hill at Plyos.
	Closer view of part of the Trinity Church in Plyos
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Exterior of the Voskresenski Church
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Voskresenski Church on hillside at north end of Plyos.
	Interior of the Voskresenski Church showing the start of rennovation.
	Interior of the Voskresenski Church showing rennovation in progress.
	The Levitan home at Plyos viewed from out in the Volga River.

Return to Xenophon. Return to Ruscity. Return to Rushistory. Return to Ukraine. Please leave a note at our guestbook.