Mozdok (Osset. Мæzdæg) is a city in the Republic of North Ossetia - Alania. It is the second largest city in the republic. The name of the city comes from the Kabardino-Circassian "mez degu" (mez - "forest", degu - "dense"), and in translation means "dark forest". To date, most of the Terek's floodplain forests have been cleared.
The city is located on the left bank of the Terek
River, in the central part of the Mozdok region. It is located 95 km
(by road) and 84 km (in a straight line) north of the city of
Vladikavkaz.
The area of the urban settlement is 17.50 km2.
From west to east, the city is about 6 km long, from south to north
about 6.5 km.
The city is located in the lowland
forest-steppe zone of the republic. The terrain is relatively flat.
Variations in heights are insignificant. In the southern part of the
city, there is a chain of hilly hills. The average elevation in the
city is about 130 meters above sea level.
The coastal zone of
the Terek River is occupied by riverside forests protected by the
State Forest Fund. To the south of the city, in the valley of the
Terek River, there is Victory Park [hy] (Osset. Uælakhizy Park). To
the southeast of the city stretches the largest forest in the region
- the Alborov Forest.
The hydrographic network is represented
mainly by the Terek River. To the south of the city, in the valley
of the Terek River, there are dammed lakes. To the north of the city
there are canals - Tersko-Kumsky and its branch Burunny. To the
north-west of the city there is a lake - Karskoe.
In 1759, one of the princes of Malaya Kabarda, Kurgoka Konchokhin,
was baptized (new name - Andrei Ivanov (Konchokhin)) and moved with
the baptized subjects to the Mezdogu tract. From among the settlers,
mainly baptized Kabardins and Ossetians, the mountain Mozdok Cossack
team was created, numbering slightly more than 100 people.
In
October 1762, the Senate sent a report to Catherine II, which
indicated the allotment of the Mozdok tract for the settlement of
the baptized Malokabardian prince Kurgoko Kanchokin and the need to
build a fortress there. The fortress project was prepared back in
1757. In accordance with it, the fortification, while remaining
Russian, had to consist of Ossetian Christians, migrants from
mountainous regions.
Catherine II instructed the commandant
of the Kizlyar fortress, Major General Nikolai Potapov, to
strengthen the Mozdok tract on the Terek. The construction of the
settlement and a small fort for the first time was entrusted to
Lieutenant Colonel Peter Gaku.
On July 17 (July 28), 1763, a
detachment of Russian troops, consisting of 287 regular troops and
Cossacks under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Gak, arrived at the
Mozdok tract to establish a new fortress. As V. A. Potto noted, by
this act Russia laid "the cornerstone of the conquest of the
Caucasus."
From 1763 to 1765, the construction of the
fortress went on. The main population of the fortress forstadt were
Georgians, Circassians, Ossetians, Armenians and Greeks.
The
Kabardians, who demanded to demolish the fortress from their land,
repeatedly besieged and destroyed the military fortification under
construction. However, the arriving detachments of Russian troops
each time strengthened the fortress and made it difficult to access
it by building ditches and canals.
In 1770, 517 Volga Cossack
families were resettled on the outskirts, after which the Mozdok
Cossack regiment of the Terek army was created. Among them was
Emelyan Pugachev, who was elected by the Cossacks as a military
ataman. Later he was arrested by representatives of the state
authorities and from 1771 to 1772 he was held in the prison of
Mozdok, from where he escaped.
In 1774, negotiations were
held in Mozdok between representatives of the empress and the elders
of the Ossetians, as a result of which Ossetia became a subject of
the Russian Empire.
In the 1780s, a highway was built between
Mozdok and Tiflis (through the Vladikavkaz fortification founded in
1784), called the Georgian Military.
Mozdok was a small town,
but it pulled together all the threads of Russia's ties with the
peoples of the North Caucasus, and this was its main significance.
For a long time, being the most advanced Russian outpost to the
Caucasus Mountains, Mozdok attracted the local population who came
here for the purpose of trade and in search of protection from the
oppression of their princes or the revenge of their bloodlines in
their homeland. For this reason, in particular, Mozdok differs from
other cities of the North Caucasus with its motley ethnic
composition.
In 1778, Lieutenant-General Alexander Suvorov
visited Mozdok with an inspection of the Azov-Mozdok line of
fortifications.
City
In 1785, the Caucasian province was
formed. The Mozdok fortress was elevated to the status of a city,
which was determined by the center of one of its 6 counties -
Mozdok.
According to 1803 data, 4097 people lived in Mozdok
(without garrison troops), including Russians - 436, Armenians -
1411, Georgians - 811, Ossetians - 451, Circassians - 429. The
population of the city lived in closed national communities and
strictly adhered to their customs ... Communities were governed by
elected officials. It is no coincidence that it was in Mozdok in
1764 that the first school “for children of Ossetians and other
mountain peoples” was opened, and in 1770 - the first Ossetian
printing house. Children of foremen and city owners were admitted to
the school.
By the end of the 18th century, Mozdok had become a large
commercial and administrative fortress city along the entire
so-called "Caucasian military line" - from Azov to Kizlyar. In 1794,
there were 101 trading establishments in the fortified city.
Residents of the Cossack villages brought grain, flour, vegetables
to Mozdok; Ossetians - cheese, butter, cloaks, cattle, wool and
other goods; mountain peoples - livestock, handicrafts and fruits;
Georgians - fruits, tobacco, tea, wine, etc.
The first
quarter of the 19th century is the heyday of Mozdok. Its commercial,
economic and cultural significance at this time went beyond the
boundaries of the Mozdok district. Due to its advantageous
geographical position, it becomes one of the main economic and
political centers of the North Caucasus.
Back in 1823, the
serfs, the Dubinin brothers, built one of the world's first oil
refineries in Mozdok, where they began to produce kerosene from oil.
The activities of the Dubinin brothers did not receive the necessary
support, but the plant existed for about 20 years. During this time,
he gave many thousands of poods of kerosene, which was exported to
different regions of Russia and even to Moscow.
Later, the
largest soap-making, distillery and other factories in the North
Caucasus for that time were built in Mozdok. Since 1799, the Mozdok
fairs have enjoyed wide popularity among the highlanders, their
existence confirming the capitalist influence on the socio-economic
life of the population of the Caucasus with its patriarchal clan
structure. At the fairs one could meet Russian, Georgian,
Azerbaijani, Armenian and other merchants who traded in a variety of
industrial and agricultural products. Here, as nowhere else in the
Caucasus, there was a trade in horses of various breeds.
The
city, as an outpost in the Caucasus, attracted many advanced people
of that time. Outstanding figures of Russian culture, A.S. Pushkin
(who wrote the lines: "I am no longer a rider to Mozdok"), L.N.
Tolstoy, M. Yu. Lermontov, A.S. Griboyedov and others, stopped here
passing by.
However, the heyday of Mozdok was short-lived. In
connection with the laying in 1825 of a shorter route from Russia to
Georgia (through the Yekaterinogradskaya stanitsa), that is, in
connection with the transfer of the route from the right bank of the
Terek to the left, the economic importance of the settlement began
to decline. This was also caused by the fact that part of the
Ossetians moved from the mountains to the plain, and movement along
the left bank of the Terek became less dangerous. The change in the
direction of the highway, and hence the economic situation of the
city, has significantly undermined the trade that was once the pride
of Mozdok. In 1837, the Mozdok district chief wrote that the
position of the city was very unfavorable, since "the large highway
leading to Tiflis has been moved."
From the mid-30s of the
19th century, Mozdok began to gradually decline. In 1835 the Mozdok
fortress was officially abolished. Her garrison was stationed in
other cities and fortresses of the Caucasus. In the middle of the
19th century, the population of the city began to decline. Some
revival of his economic activity was observed in the first years
after the abolition of serfdom. However, in the 70s of the XIX
century, a new economic blow was dealt to Mozdok by the construction
of the Rostov-Vladikavkaz and Beslan-Petrovsky railways through
Beslan. These roads finally left Mozdok aside from the main traffic
flows. The old post routes that passed here have lost their former
economic importance, since most of the cargo now began to arrive
directly at railway stations (Prokhladnaya, etc.), bypassing Mozdok.
Residents of Mozdok met the first steam locomotive only in 1913.
The railway (Prokhladnaya - Mozdok - Gudermes) brought some revival
to the life of Mozdok, but it could not significantly change the
economy and culture of the city, since the First World War began.
Until 1899, Mozdok was an ordinary provincial town of the Tersk
region, then - the center of the Mozdok department. Before the First
World War, the city's population declined again from 16,456 in 1903
to 14,655 by 1913.
By this time, Mozdok had lost its
significance as a city and became a settlement. The improvement of
pre-revolutionary Mozdok was characterized as "very primitive". The
entrances and streets of the city were in disrepair. There was no
electricity, running water, sewerage, pavements, sidewalks. The city
was illuminated by rare kerosene lanterns. City transport consisted
of several cabbies. The only bridge across the Terek was in
disrepair. Education and health care were low. The city had only one
real school, two parochial schools, one medical center, and two
paramedics. They all eked out a miserable existence.
The Great October Revolution was greeted by the workers of Mozdok
with enthusiasm. In January 1918, under the leadership of S.M.
Kirov, the 1st Congress of the peoples of the Terek region was held
in Mozdok, which played an important role in strengthening Soviet
power in the national regions of the North Caucasus. On March 18,
1920 Mozdok finally became Soviet. In 1923 Mozdok was established as
a city within the Stavropol Territory.
During the years of
the pre-war five-year plans, large economic activities developed
here. By 1926, industrial production was completely restored. In
1930, new bridges were built across the Terek and a narrow-gauge
railway connecting Mozdok with Malgobek. In 1932, an RSU (repair and
construction department) was founded in the city and an oil loading
rack was built, the Mayak and Iskra brick factories were
reconstructed, their total capacity increased to 30.5 million bricks
per year. Small handicraftsmen and artisans were united in trade
cooperatives. The first small power plant was built with a capacity
of 100-120 thousand kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. City
streets received electric light. Trade turnover grew rapidly. The
improvement of the city developed at a high rate, the city grove
expanded, the stadium was opened. In 1936, on the site of the
Aldatovsky park, a cultural park named after Kirov and a green area
was created for the city.
During the years of the pre-war
five-year plans, the cultural level of the city has significantly
increased. A number of new schools were built, the network of
kindergartens expanded, a hospital with 100 beds and a city
polyclinic were opened. Despite all these achievements, Mozdok in
the pre-war years still did not reach the level of an industrial
city and a cultural center that it had before.
On August 23,
1942, Mozdok was occupied by Nazi troops. The occupation lasted four
months. On January 3, 1943, the city was liberated from the enemy.
During the occupation Mozdok suffered greatly. The total damage
inflicted by the fascists to the economy and industry of the city,
according to the calculations of the emergency regional commission,
amounted to more than 81 million rubles, including over 25.5 million
rubles for housing and communal services.
The post-war period
of Mozdok is characterized by a rapid recovery of industry and urban
economy, high rates of their further development. Already in 1943,
all the previously existing enterprises were operating in the city.
In 1944, Mozdok was transferred from the Stavropol Territory to
the North Ossetian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. The city
itself was elected the administrative center of the newly formed
Mozdok region as part of the SOASSR.
In the post-war years, a
number of new important industrial enterprises were built in Mozdok:
a dairy plant, a bakery and others. The economic infrastructure
began to develop at a significant pace. In 1959, the construction
organization of the Selstroy system was created, the number of
vehicles increased.
In 1960, 5-6 km north of Mozdok, the
Tersko-Kumsky Canal was laid, the construction of which had a
positive effect on the city's economy, since it accommodated
enterprises that ensure the construction and operation of the canal
(PMK-2 and PMK-5, ).
In 1995, the 429th motorized rifle
regiment was located in the city.
Currently, Mozdok is the
second largest city in the republic and the most populous city and a
major center of the food industry.