A small town in the Moscow region was mentioned in many films about the Great Patriotic War, as there were fierce battles with German troops. The population of Mozhaisk, the city of military glory, is rightfully proud of its glorious history. The economy is not as good as the history, so the number of inhabitants is slowly decreasing.
General information
In 2018, it became a city of regional subordination, located in the western district of the Moscow Region, is the administrative center of the urban district of the same name. Geographically located in the Gzhatskaya depression (part of the Moscow Upland). The Moscow River flows through the territory from the north (four kilometers from the Mozhaisk reservoir), to the east, 106 km, is the center of Moscow and 90 km from the Moscow Ring Road. In terms of population, Mozhaisk ranks 50th in the region. The city now has 30,190 inhabitants (2018).
The settlement has a rectangular grid of streets, partially built up according to the plan of the 18th century. The territory stretches from west to east for a distance of 5 km, and alongdirection from north to south for 6 km. The total area is 17.8 km2.
Foundation
Found traces of human activity on the territory of the modern city belong to the Neolithic era. And in subsequent eras, various tribes constantly lived here, in the early period Finno-Ugric. The first Slavic settlements date back to the 12th century, when a small citadel was built.
They were mentioned for the first time in 1231, the Russian chronicles tell of internecine wars of specific princes trying to establish control over the fortress located on the way "from the Varangians to the Greeks".
The name of one of the tributaries of the Moskva River - Mazoja, which translates as "small" - came from the East B altic tribes that once lived. After adaptation to Russian, the hydronym began to sound like “Mozhay”, “Mozhay” and “Mozhayka”, from where the name of the city came from.
Pre-revolutionary period
In 1277, it was first mentioned as a city, which is now considered the year of foundation of Mozhaisk. The town began to grow. At one time, for a better view, the forest around the fortress was cut down, which caused a gradual shallowing of the Mozhaika River, and now it is only a stream.
The first data on the population of Mozhaisk date back to 1555, when 10,000 people lived in it. The city was repeatedly captured, the Polish invasion led by False Dmitry became especially devastating. In 1614, only 99 inhabitants remained in the village. Built in the 17th centurya powerful fortress, modeled on the Moscow Kitay-gorod, which at one time was commanded by the famous Dmitry Pozharsky.
At the end of the 18th century, the fortress walls were dismantled due to their dilapidation, a development plan was adopted, providing for a breakdown into quarters of a regular rectangular shape. In 1800, the population of the city of Mozhaisk was 1736 people.
Was burned again by retreating French troops in the War of 1812. The city had to be practically rebuilt, the population recovered slowly. In 1825, only 1645 people lived here. At the same time, industry began to develop, the first weaving and spinning factory was built. Peasants from the surrounding villages began to move to the city.
In the 20th century
At the beginning of the century, there were only two large industrial enterprises near the city: a silk-spinning factory and a brick factory. According to the last pre-revolutionary census of 1913, the population of Mozhaisk was 5,500 people.
Revolution and civil war ravaged the city, greatly reducing the number of inhabitants. In 1920, 2975 people lived in Mozhaisk. During the years of Soviet industrialization, the Molotov artel begins its work, currently at the Mozhaisk Valve Plant CJSC. An agricultural technical school, a tuberculosis dispensary were opened, and a telephone network was launched. The population of Mozhaisk grew rapidly due to the recruitment of employees to newly opened enterprises. According to the latest pre-war data in 1939, 11,752 people lived here.
In the post-war period, the beginningactively develop the industry. A plant for reinforced concrete products and a bread factory were built. According to the first post-war census in 1959, there were 15,697 people in the city. In the following Soviet years, a dairy plant, a printing plant, a medical tool factory, and an experimental mechanical enterprise were built. The opening of industrial enterprises required the involvement of significant labor resources. The population of Mozhaisk grew rapidly, reaching a population of 30,700 in 1996.
Modernity
In the first year of the new millennium, 29,900 people lived in the city. The crisis affected many industrial enterprises, some of them were closed. During the period from 2002 to 2010, the population decreased by an average of 0.04% per year, mainly due to natural decline. In 2010, the population of Mozhaisk reached 30,480 people.
In subsequent years, the rate of decline in the number of inhabitants slightly increased, reaching in 2005-2010. 0.55%. The population has stabilized, slightly increasing or decreasing due to natural causes. In 2018, 30,190 people lived in the city.
