Kremlin

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kremlin (Russian: Кремль, IPA: [krʲɛmlʲ]) is the Russian word for "fortress", "citadel" or "castle" and refers to any major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or the government that is based there. Outside Russia, the name "Kremlin" is sometimes mistakenly thought of as being Saint Basil's Cathedral because of its distinctive shape, although this is not a part of the Moscow Kremlin.

The name Kremlin (or Kreml) has also been allocated to various Soviet Navy vessels during construction. In each case, the name was changed prior to commissioning. Vessels which have briefly carried this name included Admiral Kuznetsov and Ulyanovsk.^[1]

The Kremlin is the executive branch of the government of Russia (or formerly Soviet Union). They are especially concerned with foreign affairs. The Kremlin is also referred to as the citadel of Moscow, which houses the chief offices of the Russian executive branch (or formerly, the Soviet Union).

[edit] List of Russian cities and towns with kremlins

• World Heritage Sites
  • Moscow Kremlin
  • Novgorod Kremlin
  • Kazan Kremlin
  • Suzdal Kremlin
  • Solovetsky Monastery

• Extant
  • Astrakhan Kremlin
  • Kolomna Kremlin
  • Nizhny Novgorod
  • Pskov Kremlin
  • Rostov Kremlin
  • Smolensk Kremlin
  • Tobolsk Kremlin
  • Tula Kremlin
  • Zaraysk Kremlin

• In ruins
  • Gdov Kremlin
  • Izborsk Kremlin
  • Porkhov Kremlin
  • Serpukhov Kremlin
  • Velikie Luki Kremlin
  • Torzhok Kremlin

• Unwalled
  • Dmitrov
  • Ryazan
  • Vologda
  • Yaroslavl

• Only traces
  • Borovsk
  • Opochka
  • Zvenigorod
  • Starodub
  • Tver – burned down by Muscovites during the Golden Horde occupation
  • Sknyatino – underwater since flooding during the 1930s.

• Unknown state
  • Ostrov
  • Volokolamsk

Many Russian monasteries have been built in a fortress-like style similar to that of a kremlin. For a partial list, see Category:Monasteries in Russia.

[edit] See also

• Image:Commons-logo.svg Commons has media related to Fortresses of Russia

[edit] References

bg:Кремъл

ca:Kremlin cs:Kreml da:Kreml de:Kreml el:Κρεμλίνο es:Kremlin fr:Kremlin gl:Kremlin io:Kremlin he:קרמלין it:Cremlino ka:კრემლი lt:Kremlius nl:Kremlin no:Kreml pl:Kreml pt:Kremlin ro:Kremlin (citadelă) ru:Кремль sr:Кремљ fi:Kreml sv:Kreml vi:Kremli tr:Kremlin zh:克里姆林