Lviv

Important Events:Lviv seized by Austria;The German fascist troops occupation;Ukraine's independence.

General Data:First mentioned in 1256;Founded by Danylo Romanovych;More than 800.000 inhabitants;Occupies an area of 111 square km.

The most beautiful city:LVIV

Timeline:

1256 - founded by Danylo;1450-1772 - remained under the Polish rule; 1941-1944 - The German Fascist troop occupation;1918-1919 - West Ukrainian People's Republic.

General Data:Dates back to the 13th century, was first mentioned in the year of 1256;Founded by Danylo Romanovych, Prince of Halych, who named it after his son Lev;More than 800.000 inhabitants, in Lviv lives many nationalities: Jews, Poles, Bilorussians, Armenians and Russians;Lies in western Ukraine north of the eastern slope of the Carpatians, about 600 km to the west of the caapital (Kyiv);It is an important transport centre. Highways and roads radiate from it in all directions, railroads and airlines reach it from north, east, south and west. Lviv is also known for its buses.From the History of Lviv:Lviv, an ancient city, is one of the 24 regional centres of Ukraine. It is also the principal city of the Lviv Region, its political, industrial, scientific and cultural centre. Lviv occupies a splendid position among the green low hills of Precarpathia. Its eventful history is inseparable from the history of the entire Ukrainian people. It saw many historical changes, overlived scores of wars, sieges and assaults.The town was founded in the mid-thirteenth century in 1256 by Danylo, Prince of Galicia and Volhynia, a successor of the famous Prince Yaroslav Osmomysl. He named the town after his son Leo.Lviv took its beginnings from the Prince's Mount (now High Castle Hill) where in the middle of the 13th century Prince Danylo built his castle fortress. Soon near the castle a town began to grow. Situated at the crossroads of numerous trade routes running from west to east and from north to south, Lviv was developing rapidly. It played a significant role in defending the western borders of Old Rus from foreign invaders. Lviv was constantly assaulted by Tatar-Mongol hordes and by Polish, Hungarian and Lithuanian invaders. In 1939 when Western Ukraine was reunificated with Eastern Ukraine into a single Soviet Ukrainian Republic.The German fascist troops occupation (1941-1944) and the following years of the Soviet regime added to the sufferings of the city but could not suppress the desire of its people for freedom and independence. Lviv has always been a Ukrainian outpost and a stronghold of the national-liberation movement. With the proclamation of Ukraine as an independent sovereign state Lviv started a new page in its history.Lviv's landmarks: Till our days has remained (though not in its original form) the Church of St.Nickolas, a monument of the 13th century. The only sample of the Gothic Style is the Latin Cathedral. The Renaissance period (the mid-16th the beginning of the 17th century) is represented by a much greater number of monuments. The best of the edifices are the architectural ensembles in Rynok Square (Marketplace), the centre of the old-time Lviv. Forty-four houses of the Square - forty-four monuments of art, the best being Black Palace (known as Chorna Kamyanytsia) and House 6, now the Lviv Museum of History. The centre of Rynok Square is occupied by the Town Hall (Ratusha). The High Castle Hill gives a full view of 65-metre tall building, the tower of which, like a stone lion found in many parts of the city, is one of the town's symbols. The most remarkable relic of the baroque period in architecture (the mid-17th-early 18lh century) is St. George Cathedral, the sparkling gold dome of which can be seen from any direction of the city. The buildings of today's Scientific Library after V. Stefanyk and the Maria Zankovetska Ukrainian Drama Theatre are vivid examples of classicism style and the beautiful structures of the Ivan Franko University and Solomia Krushelnytska Theatre of Opera and Ballet - of neo-Rennaissance and eclectisism style. The Solomia Krushelnytska Opera House is an internationally renowned architectural monument (architect Z.Gorgolevsky 1897-1900). A lot of buildings were constructed during the Soviet period but they are not of great architectural value. Lviv has quite a number of famous museums, that are real treasuries of art. Among the notable ones is the Museum of Ethnography and Crafts. The only one of its kind in Ukraine is a must for everyone who is interested in Ukrainian culture, local customs and traditions. The museum contains unique collections of ceramics, wood-carving, embroidery, carpet-weaving, metal-working, furniture and pottery of craftsmen from Lviv, the Hutsul and Boykian regions and other western parts of Ukraine.In conclusion, i'd like to add, that Lviv has its own charm and beaty, that other cities don't have. I like it very much, so I recommend you to visit this unusual, exciting town.

Church of St.Nicolas

Lviv's Latin Cathedral

Landmarks