Krasnogorsk is a town in the Moscow Region.

It is located on the southern slopes of Klin-Dmitrov Ridge, on the Moskva River, 23 km to the west of Moscow. It has Pavshino railway station.

The town has the territory of 13 sq.km and the population of 116 738 (as of 2010).

History of Krasnogorsk

The town was founded on the place of the former Pavshino Village (known since 1462) and Gubaylovo Settlement (known since 1620).

In the 1840s several factories – stationery, dyeing, and dress material (famous Znamensky manufactory) - were built around the Settlement of Gubaylovo and near them the factory settlement Banki was formed. In 1926-27 the optical-mechanical plant was transferred from Podolsk to Banki.

Due to the industrial construction expansion of the Pavshino station was required. In summer 1927 a settlement developed and was named Krasnaya Gorka (Red Hill). The name was traditional for Russia – this is how numerous beautiful sunny hills are called, but in the Soviet period it was obviously had ideological contents associated with the definition “red”.

In 1932 Banki settlement was transformed into the industrial township under the name of Krasnogorsk. It included Znamenskoye-Gubaylovo Estate and the housing cooperative Krasnaya Gorka (Red Hill). In 1933 Krasnogorsk included Gubaylovo Settlement and the Standart-Beton plant settlement.

It has been the town of Krasnogorsk since 1940.

The town is harbouring the central archive of film documentary photographs of Russia.

Architecture and Sights

Krasnogorsk is one of the most beautiful towns in the Moscow Region; it is located in a cross-country terran surrounded with woods. Downtown, to the north of Volokolamskoe Highway there stands the ensemble of the former Znamenskoye-Gubaylovo Estate of Prince V. M. Dolgorukov-Krymsky : the main house (late 18th century), office wing and stables (1st half of the 19th century, empire style), and a landscape park with a system of ponds. In Pavshino there is old Nikolsky Church (1821, empire style).

From the mid 1960s the downtown, quarters near Pavshino and Krasnogorsk stations, and northwest part of the town (Chernevo) were built up with modern residential and public buildings.

Near Krasnogorsk there are former farmstead lands of the 17th -19th centuries. 4 km to the southwest of Krasnogorsk there is the famous Arkhangelskoye Estate. The estate was founded in the 1660s by Ya.N.Odoevsky. St. Mikhail Archangel's Church (1667) has remained there. In 1681-1703 it belonged to the Cherkassky Princes, in 1703-1810 to the Golitsyns, and then to the Yusupovs. In the 1780s-1830s a harmonious ensemble in style of classicism was formed there: a palace (the 1780s, reconstructed in 1811-28, architects E.D.Tyurin and O.I.Bove), a regular park (about 14 hectares large), and numerous park constructions. Since 1918 it has been known as the Arkhangelskoye estate museum.

9 km to the southwest of Krasnogorsk there is the former Ilyinsky Estate, which belonged to the Streshnevs in the 17th -18th centuries, to the Osterman-Tolstovs Counts in the 19th century, and to the imperial family from 1864. There have remained the Ilyinsky Church (1732-35) rich in carving and a landscape part of the extensive park.

The former estates Petrovskoye (Durnevo) and Nikolskoye-Uryupino are also tourist attractions.

The town of Krasnogorsk has Memorial Museum of German Anti-fascists.