The city of Volgograd was founded more than 400 years ago - a crossroads both by land and water.
It has undergone several name changes during that time - founded as Tsaritsyn, it became first Stalingrad, then Volgograd.
Below are some brief highlights from Volgograd's first four hundred years.
In the late 1580s, the Russian government decided to make improvements in the system for guarding the southern frontier.
Several fortresses were built in a short amount of time, Tsaritsyn was among them.
The fortress was laid down on the Volga island in 1589, but in 1608 moved to the right (west) bank of the Volga River,
where the city had been developing.
Tsaritsyn was a witness to many historical events. Stepan Razin, Kondrat Bulavin, Yemelyan Pugachov
and other leaders of popular rebellions led their armies to fight at its walls.
Peter the Great was the first Russian tsar to visit Tsaritsyn during the Azov (1695) and the Persian (1722) campaigns.
In response to an invitation made by Catherine II (the Great) to settle the Russian hinterlands,
Tsaritsyn experienced its first influx of foreign settlers in 1765, who were mostly from Germany.
The Volga Germans established several towns in the region. Sarepta is one example, and today it is a part of Volgograd city.
In the second half of the 19th century the city's development became more dynamic,
making it the largest commercial and industrial center in the Lower Volga region.
In 1925 Tsaritsyn was renamed Stalingrad.
The legendary victory of the Soviet army at Stalingrad marked the turning point of the World War II.
The Battle of Stalingrad lasted 200 days - from July 17, 1942 through February 2, 1943.
During the war the city was virtually destroyed, but by 1975 it had been entirely rebuilt.
On May 1, 1945, Stalingrad was given the honorable title of 'hero-city'.
In 1961, Stalingrad was renamed Volgograd.
Today, Volgograd is one of the largest cities in Russia, with a population of over one million,
and is an important industrial and cultural center in the south of Russia.
