Poltava - the 1709 Battlefield Between Cossacks and Swedes - a Place Still in History?

Poltava is a city in central Ukraine. It is thecentenary of the Battle of Poltava and featuring
administrative center of the Poltava Oblast18 Swedish cannons captured in that battle.A
(province), as well as the administrative center ofmuseum displays the rather large uniform of Czar
the surrounding Poltavskyi Raion (district) withinPeter, who was unusually tall. In town, visit the
the oblast. The city itself is also designated as itsOctober Park, the gun-barrel-shaped Column of
own separate raion within the oblast. The currentGlory and the Spassky Church, which is actually
estimated population is 313,400 (as of 2004).an outer shell protecting an earlier, wooden church
The city is located between Kharkiv and Kyiv ininside.
Ukraine, Poltava is not much of a touristAs Peter the Great celebrated his victory in the
destination.Saviour church, this 17th-century wooden shrine
Archaeological evidence dates the city from thewas carefully preserved to this day. The
8th to the 9th century, although the firstfive-domed city cathedral, dedicated to the
documentary reference is from 1174, when itExaltation of the Cross, is a superb monument of
was variously known as Oltava or Ltava.Cossack Baroque, built between 1699 and 1709.
Destroyed by the Tatars in the early 13thAs a whole, the cathedral presents a unity which
century, it was the centre of a Cossack regimenteven the Neoclassical bell tower has failed to mar.
by the 17th century.Another frothy Baroque church, dedicated to the
The city is probably best known as the site of aDormition of the Theotokos, was destroyed in
1709 battle between a coalition of Cossacks, led1934 and rebuilt in the 1990s.
by Mazepa, and the Swedes (Charles XII) againstThe climate of Poltava is temperately continental,
the Russian army of Czar Peter I. Thethe average temperatures of January and July,
subsequent Russian victory in battle establishedthe coldest and the warmest months of the year
Russia's prominent position in Europe andare accordingly: 19,2° F (-7,1°C) and
consequently Ukraine's decline. The battle ended66,7° F (+18,7°?).
Sweden's status as a major power and markedYou travel easiest to Poltava by arriving at the
the beginning of Russian supremacy in EasternBorispol airport in Kiev and take a bus, taxi to
Europe. The battle was fought north and west ofPoltava. The taxi ride will cost you around 100-150
Poltava, west of the Vorskla River, in the Ukraine,USD. Be sure to discuss the price of taxi ride and
between 80,000 Russian troops under Peter theagree on it before embarking on the trip itself.
Great and the general Prince Aleksandr DanilovichThe trip will take around 5 hours from Kiev, so be
Menshikov and 17,000 Swedes under Charles XII.sure to make room for pitstops or to have some
The battlefield and its monuments are the majorfood with you on the ride. Several cafes on the
draw. The centre of the old city is a semicircularway to Poltava serve good and cheap food if you
Neoclassical square with the Tuscan column ofdo not want to bring your lunch with you.
cast iron (1805-11), commemorating the