Novhorod-Siverskyi Community

History

The town of Novhorod-Siverskyi is one of the oldest towns of the era of Ukraine, located on the hills of the picturesque bank of the Desna River in the north of the Chernihiv Region. It has a history of more than 1,030 years from the first written mention in 989.

It was here that the decision to create an independent Ukrainian state was made. On October 30, 1708, a historic meeting between Hetman of Ukraine Ivan Mazepa and King of Sweden Karl XII Gustav took place in the village, where a decision was made to form a military-political alliance and joint actions against Tsar Peter I with the aim of creating an independent Ukrainian state.

On September 11, 2008, in honour of this historical event, a monument to Hetman of Ukraine Ivan Mazepa and King of Sweden Karl XII Gustav was erected in the village of Dehtyarivka.

Novhorod-Siverskyi is the administrative centre of the community and the town of regional importance  which was the first in the Chernihiv region to receive Magdeburg rights. This happened during the time of Prince Volodymyr Svyatoslavych, when he ordered the construction of a fortress town to protect his lands from the Pechenegs.

The town has Zamkova Gora (Castle Mount) where the armed force of Prince Igor of Novhorod-Siverskyi went on a campaign against the Polovtsy. This fact is mentioned in the well-known monument of the literature of ancient Rus – the heroic poem of the end of the 12th century entitled The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.

In the village, there is a church of the Intercession of the Holy Mother of God, which was built on the initiative and at the expense of Hetman of Ukraine Ivan Mazepa in 1708.

In 1990, a unique historical and cultural reserve called The Tale of Igor’s Campaign was opened in the architectural complex.

Several architectural landmarks have been preserved in Novhorod-Siverskyi, including four religious buildings: the Assumption Cathedral, the Nicholas Church, the Peter and Paul Church with the refectory and the Cathedral of the Saviour which is located on the territory of the Novhorod-Siverskyi Transfiguration Monastery for men.

Several architectural monuments of national significance have also been preserved in the town: shopping rows, warehouses and the Triumphal Arch, which was built in honour of the German princess von Anhalt-Zerbst.

16 rivers flow in the community with the Desna River being the largest one. Wide areas around the rivers are occupied by flooded meadows. The water plane of rivers, lakes, and ponds spans an area of 3.7 thousand hectares.

The town has a good location in terms of defence due to the large Desna cliffs.

The Putiv chalk quarry is seven kilometres from Novhorod-Siverskyi. Here you can find the remains of the ancient sea in which the chalk was formed. Some of the walls of the quarry are of a quite bizarre shape, so they serve as beautiful scenery for photos and videos.

A lot of films were shot on the territory of the Novhorod-Siverskyi community, as the location of the town and the existing architecture allow shooting movies of various genres.

The Novhorod-Siverskyi community is the historical centre of northern Ukraine, and at the same time, it is one of the largest communities in the country in terms of area and number of settlements. Unique natural resources and a rich historical and religious heritage create ideal conditions for the development of tourism.

Thanks to its history and the preserved monuments of archaeology, architecture, and culture, the town is included in the system of tourist and local history routes Namysto Slavutycha.

Welfare and Economy

The public associations – Novhorod-Siverskyi Association of Entrepreneurs and NGO Knyazhy Hrad – operate in the community. The latter organizes two formats of motorcycling competitions every year (Knyazi v hryazi in summer and Kholodok in winter).

Sports are very important for the community. It is known for its Leader boxing school. Honoured coach of Ukraine Viktor Balabko trains athletes. During his work, the coach trained 7 masters and 30 candidates of sports. Among the club’s pupils, there are more than 60 prize-winners of the championships of Ukraine, three champions of Europe and two prize-winners of the world championship. Currently, 90 students are enrolled with the school.

Also, the Complex Children’s and Youth Sports School with 8 sports departments operates here. Moreover, the community boasts great achievements in the new sport – Horting as it has European and World Champions of this combat art.

There are 14 educational institutions in the Novhorod-Siverskyi community.

The community is located only 40 km from the border with Russia, so students cannot attend school due to the constant risk of shelling. Therefore, the community provides on-line learning process.

The Novhorod-Siverskyi Central District Hospital was founded in 1860. Today, the hospital is a specialized preventive institution. Recently, thanks to the cooperation of the authorities, it was possible to purchase and install the latest computer tomography equipment.

Various events dedicated to state and professional holidays are held in the community and thematic evenings are held in town clubs. There are also libraries and an administrative services centre.

There is a club of decorative and applied arts Knyazha Skarbnytsia, which unites masters of folk art of various schools: wickerwork, decorative painting, woodcarving, pictorial art.

The basis of the economic development of the community is small entrepreneurship in the field of environment-friendly, innovative and highly specialized agriculture and processing of wood and agricultural products.

The industrial complex, focused mainly on the domestic market, unites 13 industrial enterprises. Production specialization of the community: food industry, light industry, extractive industry. The community is also developing the woodworking industry.

The community is characterized by the presence of a mineral and raw material base, primarily used for the construction industry. Mineral resources include chalk, clay, sand and marl.

38 agricultural enterprises of various forms of ownership and management operate on the territory of the community.

Foreign economic activity plays a significant role in the development of the community’s economy. The main exported products are grain, timber, cheeses and butter.

Community and War

For the Novhorod-Siverskyi community, the war began on February 24, 2022. Due to its proximity to the border with Russia, the community was one of the first to meet the enemy. The community still feels its presence through constant shelling.

Community and War

For the Novhorod-Siverskyi community, the war began on February 24, 2022. Due to its proximity to the border with Russia, the community was one of the first to meet the enemy. The community still feels its presence through constant shelling.

Residents of the border villages of the Novgorod-Siverskyi community were subjected to constant intimidation and threats of physical violence. Many people were deported to the territory of Russia during the occupation, but they managed to return. The fate of one person is still unknown. People need serious rehabilitation.

The community also survived rocket attacks which resulted in people’s deaths and injuries. Two educational institutions were destroyed by direct missile strikes in the town, and an architectural monument of national importance – the Triumphal Arch – was damaged. The civilian population of the community was also affected: 200 households were damaged by shrapnel or the shock wave.

During the occupation food, medicine, and fuel were brought to the settlements of the community via partisan route by joint efforts of mayors of neighbouring municipalities and military administrations.

The community lost its heroes who defended the independence of our country.

People of the Community

Despite the fact that the community had been under occupation for more than a month, Lyudmyla Tkachenko continued to deal with humanitarian issues and problems of citizens, constantly cooperated with the Armed Forces of Ukraine and, at the same time, remained the only actual representative of the authorities in the community.

Development Strategy

At the end of last year, the community adopted the Sustainable Development Strategy of the Novhorod-Siverskyi Town Territorial Community for 2021-2029 and a detailed action plan for its implementation until 2021-2025 which was approved by the decision of the Town Council session on December 3, 2021.

The strategy of the Novhorod-Siverskyi town territorial community is aimed at the support and development of innovative ecological agriculture, the development of tourism and small and medium-sized enterprises. It is also planned to create a Centre for the support of entrepreneurship and tourism in the Novhorod-Siverskyi urban territorial community.

The motto of local development: “A great community of great opportunities!”

List of Sources

• ns-mrada.cg.gov.ua
• Strategy of the Novhorod-Siverskyi Urban Territorial Community 
• Economic profile of the community
• Wikipedia