The old little town of Staritsa lies on the eastern border of Valday Elevation, on the Volga River. From Valdai Hills you can take a wonderful view of woods, rivers and meadows. The town is situated 10 km away from the same-name railway station on route Saint Petersburg - Rzhev. The town with the population of about 9.2 thousand people is part of Tver Region and lies 77 km to the south-west of Tver.

What to See:

Architectural monuments of the Dormition Monastery (founded in the 12th c.) with the Dormition (1530) and Trinity Cathedrals, Church of the Presentation of the Mother of God (1570; houses architecture, art and archeology museum) and St. John the Evangelist Church (1594), and monastic cells.

St. Paraskeva Friday Church (1750), Sts. Boris and Gleb Cathedral (1808-20), Savior Belfry Church (1827), etc.

In the outskirts of Staritsa there is a number of picturesque former estates, such as Pavlovsk, Malinniki, Bernovo (here the estate mansion once owned by the Woulffs is housing Alexander Pushkin Museum).

History

The history of Staritsa is not as rich in events as that of certain other Russian towns is, yet it has also had its share of evil throughout many centuries. It has also seen heydays, witnessed by its architectural monuments, though lots of them have been lost, especially works of wooden architecture.

The town was founded in 1297 as a fortress named Noviy Gorod (translated as New Town) or else Town on Staritsa, or High Town. In the late 14th century it adopted its present name from the name of the river of Staritsa, which literally means “an old riverbed”.

In 1485 Staritsa as part of Tver Princedom was annexed to the Moscow State.

In the 18-19th cc. it was a large landing pier on the waterway to St. Petersburg. Staritsa was also known as a place for limestone output.