Vladimir

The city of Vladimir is the administrative center of the Vladimir region with a population of 357,024 people (2018). It is located mainly on the left bank of the Klyazma River, 176 km northeast of Moscow, on the M-7 Volga highway and the Moscow-Nizhny Novgorod railway. One of the oldest Russian cities, Vladimir is included in the list of historical settlements of the Russian Federation.

According to the version established in historical science, the city of Vladimir was founded in 1108 by Prince Vladimir Monomakh (great-grandson of Vladimir the Baptist). According to the version that became widespread in the 1990s, in 990 Vladimir Svyatoslavich (the Baptist) built a fortress on Klyazma, which became the starting point of the future capital of the North-Eastern Russia (from 1157 to the beginning of the 15th century). In 1238, Vladimir was seriously affected by the Mongol-Tatar invasion.

In 1778, the Vladimir governorate was established, in 1796 – the Vladimir province, the center of which became Vladimir. The official coat of arms of the city of Vladimir was approved in 1781. A cultural and economic rise of the city was outlined in connection with the administrative elevation.

The rapid industrial development of Vladimir began in the Soviet period. In 1929 the city was included in the Ivanovo Industrial Region. Enterprises that formed the basis of the future industrial breakthrough of the city appeared in 1932: the Chemical Plastics plant (now the Vladimir Chemical Plant) and one of the first-born domestic instrument-making plants, the "Avtopribor" (Automotive Devices) plant. During the Great Patriotic War, the construction of the Vladimir Tractor Plant began, the first phase of which was put into operation in April 1945. Large residential areas arose around these enterprises, the city expanded north and east.

On August 14, 1944, the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR created the Vladimir Region, the administrative center of which was Vladimir.

The industrialization of Vladimir continued in the postwar period. In 1955, large enterprises – the Vladimir Electromotor Plant (VEMZ) and the "Elektropribor" (Electrical devices) plant – were commissioned. Currently, Vladimir is a large industrial center of Russia. The city has enterprises of machine-building, metalworking, electrical, instrument-making, chemical, construction, light and food industries.

In the early 1970s, Vladimir became one of the tourist centers of the Golden Ring, which was facilitated by the work of the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve (was founded in 1958). There are unique monuments of white stone architecture of the 12th century in Vladimir – the Golden Gates, the Assumption Cathedral and the Cathedral of St Demetrius, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1992.

Vladimir is the city with a rich heritage of traditional folk culture. The Regional Center of Folk Art (RCFA) works in Vladimir, with the basic creative groups – the ensemble "Vladimir Rozhechniki" and the Children's studio "Rus". In the expositions of the House of Folklore and the House of Folk Artists of the RCFA you can get acquainted with the best examples of folk crafts and trades of the Vladimir region. Famous creative groups work in the Vladimir institutions of  culture – the State Vocal and Choreographic Ensemble "Rus" (Vladimir Regional Philharmonic), the People's Collective Russian Song Choir of the Vladimir Regional Music College, the People's Collective Dance Ensemble “Rosinka” (Vladimir Regional College of Culture and Art) and others.

Crafts and trades
Clay toy
Based on the study of materials about the ancient craft, factory masters were able to create a unique style of modern clay toys.
Blacksmith craft
Today, blacksmithing craftsmen are rare. But nevertheless, forges that are engaged in manual forging are preserved.
Wood carving
Argunovo carving. Morden masters of wood carving.
Wood painting
Vladimir patterns is an original painting, when the paint is applied not with a brush, but with a foam rubber swab or just an artist’s finger, forming a light cloud.
Embroidery
Embroidery in the technique of " white satin-stitch ", "Vladimir seam".
Scrappy sewing
Today, craftswomen collect from rags and fashionable clothes, and rag dolls, and even paintings.
Russian folk costume
Women's folk costume of the Vladimir province was modest, practical chintz fabrics dominated.
Weaving of withy
In Vladimir land withy was an available material: willow thickets were abundant on the banks of the Klyazma, the Oka, etc.
Vladimir horn
For making a horn they used birch, maple, and juniper blanks the length of which varied from 36 to 85 cm.
Ceremonial dolls
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