Vereya, Naro-Fominsky District, Moscow Oblast
Wereja (Russian Верея ) is a small town with 5368 inhabitants (as of October 14, 2010 ) in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It lies on the right bank of the Protva, 111 km south-west of Moscow and about 40 km away from the raion center Naro- Fominsk. The nearest town is 20 km with Mozhaisk.
History
Wereja was first mentioned in 1371, making it one of the oldest towns of the western Moscow Oblast. The name of the city meant in Russian parlance of the 14th century as much as " forest ".
The first mention in connection with an unsuccessful campaign against Muscovy Lithuanian. This Wereja and some surrounding places were devastated. Due to the location west of Moscow, the 1382 is connected to Muscovy Wereja was also in the coming decades repeatedly attack target. So it was devastated by Tatars in 1410 and the beginning of the 17th century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
In the 18th century Wereja became a flourishing trade and crafts center. At that time it was built intensively with stone houses and churches that have been partly preserved to this day. A further development thrust was the administrative reform under Catherine the Great in the 1780s. This was Wereja city rights and a general plan for the predominantly neoclassical buildings. At that time presented Wereja one of the largest cities in the Moscow environs dar.
During the war against Napoleon in 1812 Wereja was once again the scene of battles and at times under French control. In their retreat after the Battle of Maloyaroslavets in October 1812, the French made stop in Wereja and devastated the city.
In the 19th and early 20th centuries Wereja lost its importance for trade, especially since there was no connection to the rail network as part of the rain railway construction in Russia substantially. Since then Wereja was dominated by agriculture especially. In the Battle of Moscow during the Second World War Wereja was temporarily occupied by the Army Group Centre and could be freed on 19 January 1942.
Attractions
- Remains of the medieval Kremlin
- Nativity Church ( 1552, Bell Tower 1802)
- Former Spassky Monastery ( 1670s - years)
- Appearance Church (1777 )
- Prophet Elijah Church ( 1803)
- Altorthodoxe Virgin Protection and Intercession Church (1907 )
- Museum of Local History
Economy and Transport
To date, mainly farming is done in Wereja and environment. The industry is represented in the city with a textile mill and processing plants for agricultural commodities rather little.
Major transport links exist on the northerly Mozhaisk, where connection is made to the highway M1 and on the railway between Moscow and Smolensk. About 15 kilometers east of Wereja runs the ring road A108.
Personalities
- Michael Friedrich Adams (1780-1838), botanist, died in Wereja
- Alexei Ewert (1857-1926), Army General, died in Wereja
- Konstantin Rudakov (* 1954 in Wereja ), mathematician
- Alexander Chekalin (* 1947 in Wereja ), Deputy Interior Minister of Russia from 2004 to 2008