Narva (Russian: Нарва) is the third largest city in Estonia. It is located at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, by the Russian border, on the Narva River which drains Lake Peipus.
History
Early history
People settled in the area from the 5th to 4th millennium BC, as witnessed by the archeological traces of the Narva culture, named after the city.The fortified settlement at Narva Joaoru is the oldest known in Estonia, dated to around 1000 BC. The earliest written reference of Narva is in the First Novgorod Chronicle, which in the year 1172 describes a district in Novgorod called Nerevsky or Narovsky konets (yard). According to historians, this name derives from the name of Narva or Narva River and indicates that a frequently used trade route went through Narva, although there is no evidence of the existence of a trading settlement at the time
Middle history
The favourable location at the crossing of trade routes and the Narva River was behind the founding of Narva castle and the development of an urban settlement around it. The castle was founded during the Danish rule of northern Estonia during the second half of the 13th century, the earliest written record of the castle is from 1277. Narvia village is mentioned in the Danish Census Book already in 1241. A town developed around the stronghold and in 1345 obtained Lübeck City Rights from Danish king Valdemar IV.[5] The castle and surrounding town of Narva became a possession of the Livonian Order in 1346, after the Danish king sold its lands in Northern Estonia. In 1492 Ivangorod fortress across the Narva River was established by Ivan III of Moscow.
Trade, particularly Hanseatic long distance trade remained Narva's raison d'être throughout the Middle Ages.[4] However, due to opposition from Tallinn, Narva itself never became part of the Hanseatic League and also remained a very small town – its population in 1530 is estimated at 600–750 people.
20th century
Narva became part of independent Estonia in 1918 following World War I. The town saw fighting during the Estonian War of Independence. The war started in Narva on 28 November 1918, on the next day the city was captured by the Red Army. Russia retained control of the city until 19 January 1919. Heavy battles occurred in and around Narva in World War II. The city was damaged in the German invasion of 1941 and by smaller air raids throughout the war, but remained relatively intact until February 1944. However, being at the focus of the Battle of Narva, the city was almost completely leveled. The most devastating action was the bombing of 6 March 1944 by the Soviet Air Force, which destroyed the baroque old town.
The civilian casualties of the bombing were low as the German forces had evacuated the city in January the same year. Germans also blew up some of the remaining buildings and by their retreat in the end of July 98% of Narva had been destroyed.[9] After the war, most of the buildings could have been restored as the walls of the houses still existed, but in early 1950s the Soviet authorities decided to demolish the ruins to make room for apartment buildings. Only three buildings remain of the old town, including the Baroque-style Town Hall.
The former inhabitants were not allowed to return to Narva after the war. The main reason behind this was a plan to build a secret uranium processing plant in the city, which would turn Narva into a closed town. Although already in 1947 nearby Sillamäe was selected as the location of the factory instead of Narva, the existence of such plan was decisive for the development of Narva in the first post-war years and thus also shaped its later evolution. The planned uranium factory and other large-scale industrial developments, like the restoring of Kreenholm Manufacture, were the driving force behind the influx of internal migrants from other parts of the Soviet Union, mainly Russia.
In January 1945 Ivangorod, a town across the river which was founded in 1492 by Tsar Ivan III of Russia, was given a separate administrative status from the rest of Narva, as a part of the Leningrad Oblast in the Russian SFSR. Ivangorod received the official status of town in 1954.
Demographics
On 1 January 2011 Narva had 64,667 inhabitants. The population, which was 83,000 in 1992, has been declining since then.93.85% of the current population of Narva are Russian-speakers (82% are ethnic Russians), mostly either Soviet-era immigrants from parts of the former Soviet Union (mainly Russia) or their descendants. Ethnic Estonians account for only 3.86% of total population. Much of the city was destroyed during World War II and for several years during the following reconstruction the Soviet authorities prohibited the return of any of Narva's pre-war residents (among whom ethnic Estonians had been the majority, forming 64.8% of the town's population of 23,512 according to the 1934 census), thus radically altering the city's ethnic composition.
Only 46,4% of the city's inhabitants are Estonian citizens. Another 36% are citizens of the Russian Federation, while 16,4% of the population has undefined citizenship.
A significant concern in Narva is the spread of HIV, which started expanding in 2000. Between 2001 and 2008, more than 1600 cases of HIV were registered in Narva, making it one of the three areas worst hit in Estonia, after Tallinn and ahead of the rest of Ida-Viru County. On average 150–200 new cases have been registered yearly.
Geography and climate
Narva is situated in the eastern extreme point of Estonia, 200 km (124 mi) to the east from the Estonian capital Tallinn and 130 km (81 mi) southwest from Saint Petersburg. The capital of Ida-Viru County, Jõhvi, lies 50 km (31 mi) to the west. The eastern border of the city along the Narva River coincides with the Estonian-Russian border. The Estonian part of the Narva Reservoir lies mostly within the territory of Narva, to the southwest of city center. The mouth of the Narva River to the Gulf of Finland is about 13 km (8 mi) downstream from the city.
The territory of Narva is 84.54 square kilometres (32.64 sq mi). The city proper has an area of 62 square kilometres (24 sq mi) (excluding the reservoir), while two separate districts surrounded by Vaivara Parish, Kudruküla and Olgina, cover 5.6 km2 (2.16 sq mi) and 0.58 km2 (0.22 sq mi), respectively.[20] Kudruküla is the largest of Narva's dacha regions, located 6 km (4 mi) to northwest from the main city, near Narva-Jõesuu.
Landmarks
Narva is dominated by the 15th-century castle, with the 51-metre-high Long Hermann tower as its most prominent landmark. The sprawling complex of the Kreenholm Manufacture, located in the proximity of scenic waterfalls, is one of the largest textile mills of 19th-century Northern Europe. Other notable buildings include Swedish mansions of the 17th century, a Baroque town hall (1668–71), and remains of Erik Dahlberg's fortifications.[citation needed]
Across the Narva River is the Russian Ivangorod fortress, founded by Grand Prince Ivan III of Muscovy in 1492 and known in Western sources as Counter-Narva. During the Soviet times Narva and Ivangorod were twin cities, despite belonging to different republics. Before World War II, Ivangorod (Estonian: Jaanilinn) was administrated as part of Narva.
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