Cities are often renamed. History knows a lot of examples when one city changed its name several times during its existence. In this situation, confusion can occur, so it is not surprising that many are wondering what is now called Voroshilovgrad. In order to answer this question, it is necessary to delve a little into the past. In the history of this city there are a fairly large number of different glorious names and pages that citizens are proud of, but most of all it is known precisely for the number of name changes. He was even called a champion in this.
Decree of Catherine II
Back in 1795, Catherine II signed a decree on the construction of the Lugansk Iron Foundry on the Lugan River, near the village of Kamenny Brod. In essence, it has become a city-forming enterprise. In order to provide the plant with the necessary labor, several hundred families were brought there, mainly from the Kherson, Olonets and Lipetsk plants.
In fact, the Lugansk plant became the first so large metallurgical enterprise in the southern part of Russia. He supplied the Black Sea Fleet with shells and guns, and the whole country with cast iron. Thanks to this enterprise, the battle of Borodino became what we know it. Also, the guns of the Lugansk plant took part in the Crimean War.
Contribution of Alexander III
Continuing to look for the answer to the question of what is now called Voroshilovgrad, we are getting closer to the point. Emperor Alexander III on September 3, 1882 built the village together with the Lugansk plant "to the degree of a county town under the name of Lugansk." From that moment on, the settlement that grew around this plant can be officially considered a city.
In the same year, the city council was also assembled, which, of course, was located in one of the best buildings on Kazan Street. In 1903, the emblem of the city was approved.
Since that time, Lugansk has acquired industry and is growing right before our eyes. And by 1905, more than 39 industrial enterprises could be counted, not counting small (or even artisanal) industries.
Active development of the city
Even though the development of the city was not supported by any officially approved plan, colossal amounts of 20 million rubles for those times were allocated for these purposes. The first street was English, since there lived specialists from England who were invited to work at the foundry. A well-known doctor I.M. Dal, who later became the father of the world-famous ethnographer Vladimir Ivanovich Dahl, who later compiled the Explanatory Dictionary of the Living Great Russian Language. By the way, he even took a talking pseudonym Cossack Lugansk.
Voroshilovgrad (as it is now called, everyone understands) had at that time more than 10 places of worship. Unfortunately, only a few survived to this day due to the destruction of the 30s. XX century.
Voroshilovgrad: meaning of the word, definition of the word
Of course, you can argue for a very long time on the issue of renaming cities and how Voroshilovgrad is now called, because every time you read historical or fiction, you come across different names of the same city, so there may be confusion.
So, on November 5, 1935, by the Decree of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, the city of Lugansk became officially called Voroshilovgrad.
Of course, this event was preceded by the September assignment of the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union to five generals, among whom was Voroshilov. Despite the fact that this decision was made not at the local level, but in Moscow, the residents of the former Lugansk accepted it enthusiastically. Enough large-scale companies were immediately launched for this, for example, the Voroshilov campaign campaign, which was accompanied by the slogan “Wash accumulated dirt from the face of the city for centuries”.
Moreover, Voroshilov himself made a lot of efforts to equip this city. The construction of new schools, the opening of two tram routes, the asphalting of streets, the creation of a culture park, landscaping and much more. By the way, it was thanks to him that in 1938 the region became known as Voroshilovgrad, Lugansk Region.
There is also evidence that Voroshilov did not leave this city in subsequent years. So, a military pilot school, youth theater, a palace of culture, an opera and ballet theater, clubs, a Russian regional drama theater, cinemas, a regional puppet theater, a children's regional library and much more were created.
Lugansk again
Despite the fact that before Lugansk was called Voroshilovgrad, already in 1957 the question arose of renaming it. This is due to the fact that a decree was issued in which it was forbidden to give cities the names of living people, despite their achievements.
So, the very next year, in 1958 (March 5), Voroshilovgrad again became Lugansk. Moreover, many witnesses of those events unanimously said that they did not fully understand why it was urgent to rename not only the city, but also all the streets and even dismantle the monuments in one night. So, in the morning people went to work along Voroshilovskaya street, and in the evening they returned along Oktyabrskaya.
Many say that they remember very well that night when a monument was dismantled in the light of the searchlights, and many could not sleep completely not from the noise of working equipment, but because of some kind of anxiety in the shower. Monuments are put to people not just like that, but for outstanding services, and therefore their dismantling is a kind of sacrilege. But it is worth saying that the decree was initiated by Voroshilov himself.
Voroshilovgrad again
In order to keep abreast of the name of the city of Voroshilovgrad at a particular time, it is necessary to monitor the political mood in the country and various events. So, for example, on December 3, 1969, Kliment Efremovich Voroshilov died. The very next month, in order to perpetuate his memory, it was decided to rename the city of Lugansk again.
It is worth noting that by that time the memory of the townspeople had not yet cooled down, they again accepted this idea with all the cordiality.
Last rename
So we come to the name of the city of Voroshilovgrad. On May 4, 1990, the village was returned to its original name, it again became Lugansk.
The history of this city impresses not only with a large number of different renames, but also with the fact that it has always been considered the heart of the entire USSR thanks to hardworking people who know how to work and know how to do it.
Now everyone knows what Voroshilovgrad is called now, and even though all its renaming is far in the past, residents have not forgotten about the history of their city, and even now, initiatives are constantly being raised to return the historical name to the city.
