In the USSR, many cities were flooded in the 1930s-1950s during the construction of hydroelectric power plants. 9 cities fell into the flood zone: 1 on the Ob River, 1 on the Yenisei and 7 on the Volga. Some of them were completely flooded (as, for example, Mologa and Korcheva), and some partially (Kalyazin). Many cities were rebuilt, and for some it became a breakthrough in development: for example, Stavropol (or Stavropol-on-Volga) from small village turned into a city with a population of 700 thousand inhabitants, which today is called Togliatti.

Kalyazin- one of the most famous flooded cities in Russia. The first mention of the village of Nikola on Zhabna dates back to the 12th century, and after the foundation of the Kalyazin-Troitsky (Makarevsky) monastery on the opposite bank of the Volga in the 15th century, the significance of the settlement increased. In 1775, Kalyazin was given the status of a county town, and from late XIX century, the development of industry begins in it: felting, blacksmithing, shipbuilding. The city was partially flooded during the construction of the Uglich hydroelectric power station on the Volga River, which was built in 1935-1955. The Trinity Monastery and the architectural complex of the Nikolo-Zhabensky Monastery, as well as most of the historical buildings of the city, were lost. All that remained of it was the bell tower of St. Nicholas Cathedral sticking out of the water, which became one of the main attractions of the central part of Russia.

Mologa is the most famous city, completely flooded during the construction of the Rybinsk reservoir. This is a rather rare case when the settlement was not moved to another place, but completely liquidated: in 1940 its history was interrupted. The village of Mologa has been known since the 12th-13th centuries, and in 1777 it received the status of a county town. In the 19th century, the Afanasievsky Monastery and several churches were built here. With the advent of Soviet power, the city became a regional center with a population of about 6 thousand people. Mologa consisted of about a hundred stone houses and 800 wooden ones. After the impending flooding of the city was announced in 1936, the resettlement of residents began. Most of the Mologzhans settled far from Rybinsk in the village of Slip, while the rest dispersed to different cities of the country. Since the 1960s, Rybinsk has hosted meetings of the Mologa residents, where they remember their lost city.

Korcheva is the second (and last) completely flooded city in Russia, which ceased to exist after that. This village in the Tver region was located on the right bank of the Volga River, on both sides of the Korchevka River, not far from the city of Dubna. The village has been mentioned in chronicles since the 16th century, and it received the status of a city in 1781. By the 1920s, the population of Korchevka was 2.3 thousand people. Mostly there were wooden buildings, although there were also stone buildings, including three churches. In 1932, the government approved the plan for the construction of the Moscow-Volga canal, and the city fell into the flood zone. On March 2, 1937, the center of the Konakovo district was moved to Konakovo, and the inhabitants of Korchevo were also resettled here. Today, on the unflooded territory of Korchevo, a cemetery and one stone building - the house of the Rozhdestvensky merchants - have been preserved.

City of Puchezh exists to this day, but all of its old part went under the waters of the Gorky reservoir in 1955-1957. The village has been mentioned in sources since the 16th century. Its inhabitants were engaged in trade, fishing, gardening. In 1793 the settlement became a settlement, and in the first half of the 19th century there was a center for hiring barge haulers. In 1862, a flax-spinning factory was built here. In 1955-1957, due to the impending flooding of the city, it was decided to move Puchezh to a higher place. Part of the wooden buildings was moved to new town and all the stone buildings were destroyed. The rebuilt city still exists today: in 2014, its population is 7624 people.

Vesyegonsk, flooded in 1939 in connection with the creation of the Rybinsk reservoir, has been known since 1564. In those days, the village of Ves Yogonskaya was located on the site of the future city. In the 16th-19th centuries, this settlement was an important shopping center. Here they sold and bought salt, wax, hops, fish, furs and much more. Since 1796 Vesyegonsk has been a provincial town of the Tver province, and since 1803 it has been a county town. It is mentioned in N. Gogol's "Dead Souls" as an example of a provincial county town: "... And the court writes: send you from Tsarevokokshaysk to the prison of such and such a city, and that court writes again: send you to some Vesyegonsk, and you move yourself from prison to prison and say, examining the new dwelling: “No, here the Vsegonsk prison will be cleaner: even if it’s in grandmas, there is a place, and there is more society!” By 1930, about 4 thousand people lived in Vesyegonsk. During the flood, the territory of the old city was completely destroyed, and new buildings were located to the south, on collective farm lands. At the same time, the city was downgraded to the status of a working village. Vesyegonsk received the city status again in 1953. Only the ensembles of the Trinity and Kazan churches and the cemetery church of John the Baptist have survived from the old buildings.

Stavropol(informal names - Stavropol-Volzhsky or Stavropol-on-Volga), a city in Samara region, was founded in 1738 as a fortress. The number of inhabitants fluctuated greatly: in 1859, 2.2 thousand people lived here, by 1900 - about 7 thousand, and in 1924 the population decreased so much that the city officially became a village (city status was returned in 1946). At the time of the flood in the 1950s, about 12 thousand people lived in Stavropol. The city was moved to a new location, and in 1964 it was renamed Tolyatti. The rapid development of the city is associated with the emergence of large industrial enterprises here (Volgotsemmash, KuibyshevAzot and KuibyshevPhosfor, etc.).

City of Kuibyshev(Spassk-Tatarsky) has been mentioned in chronicles since 1781. In the second half of the 19th century, there were 246 houses, 1 church, and by the beginning of the 1930s, 5.3 thousand people lived here. In 1936 the city was renamed Kuibyshev. In the 1950s, it ended up in the flood zone of the Kuibyshev reservoir and was completely rebuilt in a new location, next to the ancient settlement of Bulgar. Since 1991, it has been renamed Bolgar and soon has every chance of becoming one of the main tourist centers Russia and the world. In June 2014, the ancient settlement of Bulgar (Bulgarian State Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve) was included in the list world heritage UNESCO.

This song is known to every Russian person. One has only to utter the first words, as passers-by immediately pick them up, and in a moment the whole street sings the famous melody of past years.

But does everyone know from what "far" and how "long" the great Russian river flows. And why is she so big?

The Volga flows not quite from far away. It originates in the Tver region in the village of Volgoverkhovye, but it extends to Astrakhan itself, where it flows into the Caspian Sea. Its path lasts 3,530 km, which makes the river the longest in Europe.

Is it possible to imagine that over all this distance the Volga turns from a stream that can be stepped over into a wide river, the bridge over which reaches more than 5 km!

Presidential bridge in Ulyanovsk. Photo: www.wikiwand.com

This is interesting:

Presidential Bridge - the total cost of building a bridge across the Volga River in Ulyanovsk in 2008 prices is 38.4 billion rubles. The total construction period of the bridge was 23 years, which exceeded the standard construction period by 14 years and led to an increase in the cost of the facility (with an average inflationary growth of 1 billion rubles a year) by 14 billion rubles.

“Can you cross the Volga?” - I always ask guests who come to the Tver region. The answers are different, but everyone's eyes light up, and then the question follows: "Where can I do this?". I myself crossed the Volga twice, but this action was always accompanied by some kind of mystery. Now I like to watch people who come to the source for the first time. They, like children, run to a tiny stream and, not believing their eyes, ask: “Is it really her?”. And then they merrily jump from shore to shore. Happiness. Yes, happiness lives here, which lies in simple things. It is located at the very source, at the source of the great Russian river.

Next is happiness flows through 15 entities Russian Federation , capturing such cities as Tver, Yaroslavl, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Ulyanovsk, Samara, Saratov, Volgograd, Astrakhan and others. And for every inhabitant of these cities, the Volga is a favorite river, a breadwinner. Songs were always composed about her, poets and writers sang about her, artists painted her at any time of the year.

The Volga fed and inspired our people for many centuries. How many centuries? While I was trying to understand the scientific material on geography and geodesy, I realized that the issue with the history of the origin of the Volga is a little deeper than I imagined. I won't go into details. One thing is important - the Paleo-Volga was formed 5 million years ago! What about the references to the river? The first of them belongs to Herodotus (5th century BC), then there are references to ancient Roman sources of the 2nd - 4th centuries. and, of course, the Volga is mentioned in Old Russian work"The Tale of Bygone Years", written by the chronicler Nester.

ancient map Volga rivers / Fra Mauro map (detail) - Volga and Caspian

Of course, like any deep river- the main function is transport. In the Middle Ages, the Volga trade route ran along the Volga, which connected Scandinavia with the countries East Asia. The dawn of this trade route came in the 9th century. Under Ivan the Terrible, through traffic was opened along the river to its mouth, both for self-propelled rowboats and those driven by barge haulers. Everyone, of course, is familiar, so the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthis hard work does not need a description. In the early 1800s, steamships began to appear, which still ply the Volga.

Ples. Photo: pliosvestnik.ru

Many famous people traveled along the Volga, described it, drew. One such person was Catherine the Great. The journey itself was called the "Volga Voyage" and lasted a little over a month from May 13 to June 16, 1767. It began in Tver and ended in Sinbirsk. During her stay in Kostroma, Catherine learned that the city does not have a coat of arms. The Empress ordered immediately to create a coat of arms for Kostroma: "Order in the Heraldry to make the city and county the Kostroma coat of arms, with which they intend to welcome them."

That emblem became the first officially approved emblem in Russia, and it depicted Catherine's Volga voyage - the ship on which the empress sailed along the Volga. Thus, the Great Russian River began to appear in heraldic symbolism.

I don’t know what other facts from the life of the river to cite so that there is no doubt about its greatness and significance, although, did anyone doubt it? And how can one question the beauty and power of the Russian river, which has become a symbol of the whole country.

O Volga!.. my cradle!
Has anyone loved you like me?
Nekrasov N.A.

The most sacred river in the world
Crystal waters queen, mother!
Karamzin N.M.

And I just can't live without the Volga.
How good raspberry early
Come and sit on the beach
And be silent near her silence.
Dementiev A.S.

1. For the first time, people heard the song "The Volga River Flows" in July 1962 on a Sunday radio broadcast. All-Union Radio"WITH Good morning!" performed by Mark Bernes, who was supposed to voice her in the movie "The Volga Flows", however, he refused this. As a result, Vladimir Troshin performs the song in the film.

2. Since 2008, Volga Day has been unofficially celebrated on May 20. Traditionally, environmental events are held to clean up the river. In the Tver region, at the end of May, the Volga procession, which begins with the illumination of the source of the Volga and then follows all the Volga cities of the Tver region.

3. Barge haulers are not only those who dragged the barge. This word can be called a person who has gone to work (cutting a house, laying stoves, etc.). In the USSR in 1929 barge hauling was banned. Now in legal acts no on her ban.

4. The longest bridge across the Volga, the Presidential Bridge, was built in 2009 in Ulyanovsk. Its length is 5,825 meters. The Presidential Bridge was the longest bridge in Russia before the construction of the Crimean Bridge, which is 19 km long.

The Volga is the longest European river, as well as one of the largest on the planet Earth, which is located in the European part of Russia and in Kazakhstan.

On this moment the length of the Volga is approximately 3530 km, although before the construction of reservoirs on the river, it was somewhat longer - 3690 km.

The Volga got its name from the times of Rus' and comes from the word "moisture".

Source

The source of the Volga River is located on the Valdai Upland, namely in the small village of Volgoverkhovye, in the Tver region. The river then passes through several big lakes. A special monument to the river was erected at the place of its source.

Historical characteristics

• For the first time, the Greek historian Herodotus spoke about the river. Then information about the Volga is found in the notes of the Persian king Darius, who described his campaigns against the Scythian tribes.
• Roman sources speak of the Volga as a "generous river", hence they gave it its name - "Ra".
• Arab researchers speak of the Volga as a "river of rivers, a great river."
• In Rus', the river is spoken of in the famous Tale of Bygone Years.
• Since the time of Rus', the Volga has been an important trading link - an artery where the Volga trade route was founded. Through this path, Rus' traded with the Arab countries, to a greater extent such goods: expensive oriental fabrics, metals, slaves, honey, wax. During Mongol invasion this trading region loses its priority and importance, but already in the 15th century it regains its former importance.
• After the conquest of the entire Volga basin, the flourishing of trade begins, the peak of which falls on the 17th century.
• Over time, a powerful river fleet appears on the Volga.
• In the 19th century, a whole army of barge haulers worked on the Volga, to which even a painting by the famous Russian artist I. a. During this period, huge supplies of salt, fish, and bread are transported along the Volga. Then cotton, and later oil, also joined these commodities.
• During the period, the Volga was almost the main strategic point, the control of which would provide the army with bread, as well as oil and the ability to quickly transfer its forces with the help of the fleet.
• When Soviet power was established in Russia, they began to use the river as a source of electricity, building hydroelectric power stations on it.
• During the Second World War, the Volga was the most important river for the USSR, as huge armies and food supplies were transferred through it. In addition, in one of the cities on the Volga - Stalingrad, there was biggest battle in history. The Volga is the key to the USSR, the German and Soviet command thought so, so the battles were especially fierce.
• IN upstream There are huge forests on the Volga, and downstream along the Volga there are large sown areas and garden enterprises.
• The Volga basin is rich in oil and natural gas which form the basis of the entire Russian economy.
• In some areas, potash salt, table salt is mined.

River mode

Like many other Russian rivers, the Volga has a predominantly snow food- about 60%, a small part becomes rainwater - only 10%, and groundwater feeds the Volga itself by 30%. Annual fluctuations in water levels vary in different regions. For example, in the Tver region it can reach 11 meters, in that Astrakhan - only 3 meters.

Volga river photo

The water in the river is warm, summer time, for example, it does not fall below 20-25 degrees Celsius. The river freezes at the end of November - in the upper reaches, and in the lower reaches already in December. In a frozen state, the river is from 100 to 160 days a year. Not uncommon on the Volga River big waves- about 1.5 - 2 meters. Because of this, breakwaters were installed in many ports.

Flora and fauna

The Volga River, as well as its largest tributary - the Kama, are a source of a huge amount of fish. Live in the river large populations the following types of fish: crucian carp, silver bream, pike perch, perch, ide, pike, catfish, burbot, ruff, sturgeon, bream and sterlet. Trout have recently been introduced into the rivers. In total, there are about 70 species of fish in the Volga.

Birds on the Volga River photo

Many species of birds settle in the Volga deltas: ducks, swans, herons, etc. Although the Volga is heavily polluted industrial enterprises, it still retains a fairly rich aquatic vegetation(lotus, water lily, reed, water chestnut, etc.), especially in the bays.

Cities on the Volga River

The most important cities for the country are located on the Volga, among them many cities with a population of many millions. At the very bottom of the Volga lies the most important economic and industrial center of the Lower Volga region - the city of Astrakhan, with more than half a million inhabitants. Astrakhan is considered to be a port city.

Volga river. Astrakhan city photo

One of the most beautiful and most famous cities is the big city of Volgograd, formerly known as Stalingrad. The city has a heroic title, which he received during the Great Patriotic War(). The population of the city is slightly more than 1 million people. Even under the USSR, it was one of the most powerful economically developed cities in the country. Now the city is flourishing engineering, construction industry, metallurgy, energy industry.

Volga river. Volgograd city photo

One of the largest cities in terms of population on the Volga is the city of Kazan. Its population is more than 1 million, 200 thousand people. Kazan is one of the most powerful industrial centers of the Russian Federation. The basis of the industry of the city is mechanical engineering, petrochemical industry, aviation industry. Not less than big city on the Volga there is Nizhny Novgorod with a population of 1 million, 250 thousand people. Although, unlike the population of Kazan, here the population is not growing, but falling.

Volga river. Kazan city photo

There is a wide production of cars, ships of various classes and the production of weapons. Heavy industry is well developed in the city. Novgorod is also considered one of the main information centers big country. The next city to be noted is with a population of almost 1 million and 200 thousand people. Samara is important center engineering and heavy industry, and in particular - the aviation industry.

Volga river. Nizhny Novgorod photo

The last city to be mentioned is the city of Tver with a population of just over 400 thousand people. Tver is the most developed in the machine-building and heavy industries. Slightly less developed food industry as well as chemical.

Tributaries of the Volga

Approximately 200 tributaries flow into the Volga and most of them are on the left side. The left tributaries are also much more abundant than the right tributaries. by the most major tributary Volga is the river Kama - the left tributary. Its length reaches 2000 km, which is more than half the length of the Volga itself. The beginning of the tributary takes on the Verkhnekamsk Upland.

Kama is different huge amount small tributaries - in total their number reaches almost 74 thousand, and the lion's share of them (about 95%) are rivers up to 10 km long. As in the Volga, the Kama is fed mainly by snow. Water level fluctuations most often become from 6 to 7 meters.

Many hydrotechnical studies also indicate that the Kama is much older than the Volga, and that the Volga is a tributary of the Kama, and not vice versa. This is exactly what happened a few millennia ago. But the last glacial period and the construction of reservoirs on the Kama, seriously reduced its length.

The tributaries of the Volga:

• Oka;
• Sura;
• Tvertsa;
• Sviyaga;
• Vetluga;
• Unzha;
• Mologa and others.

Tourism on the river

The Volga is considered to be one of the most picturesque rivers Russia, and therefore tourism is flourishing on it. The Volga makes it possible to maximize short term visit a large number of ancient cities of the state.

Cruises along the Volga are the most common type of recreation on the Volga, as well as one of the most versatile, comfortable and relatively inexpensive. Such a cruise can last from several days to a whole month, which includes visiting the most beautiful cities and places of the country located along the Volga.

Tourism on the Volga River photo

Most favorable period for traveling along the Volga - the beginning of May to the end of September, when the weather is the warmest and most pleasant. The most convenient transport for traveling is a tourist boat, which has all the amenities for passengers, including: swimming pools, comfortable cabins high class, cinemas, library and so on. During the ship's entry into the city, tourists can easily book a tour of a particular city.

Payment for excursions can also be included in the property of the tourist tour itself, along with payment for the ship.

• On the tributary of the Volga - Kama is an annual sailing competition - one of the largest in Europe;
• The Volga River is the core of the entire Russian people in literature, often human qualities were attributed to the river;
• The Volga appears in many literary and works of art Russian classics: Gorky, Nekrasov, Repin;
• Several famous films were made about the Volga feature films, including "Volga, Volga" in 1938, "A bridge is under construction" in 1965;
• The Volga is considered to be the "homeland of barge haulers", sometimes about 600 thousand barge haulers could work hard on it at the same time;
• Volga is the most major river in Europe.

"Maxim Gorky - the Volga Petrel"

Head: Rondar Irina Nikolayevna,

city ​​of Volgograd GAPOU "Volgograd technical school railway transport and communications,

1st year student, ATP group 1-15 "Rolling stock repairman"

In the figurative perception of the essence of the Russian people, the Volga plays an exceptional and central role, it is the root and core of the entire Russian people, a figurative ideal. She is always animated, human qualities are attributed to her, and the ideal Russian person must correspond to the image of this river. In literature and art, the Volga is not found too often, but truly cult works are associated with its image. In the culture of the 19th and early 20th centuries, the most “popular” representatives of culture are associated with the Volga: N.A. Nekrasov, Maxim Gorky, F. I. Chaliapin.

The Volga is a typically flat river. From source to mouth, it descends only 256 meters. This is a very small slope compared to others. the greatest rivers world, which gives very great convenience for navigation.

“... they are slowly moving towards the banks of the Volga, - the left one, all drenched in the sun, spreads along to the edge of heaven, like a magnificent one, green carpet, and the right one waved its slopes, overgrown with forest, to the sky, and froze in stern peace. A broad-breasted river stretched majestically between them; noiselessly, solemnly and leisurely flow its waters ... "M. Gorky

For middle Volga There are three main types of shores. On the right, the ancient banks, unflooded at any level of water, rise down to the river in steep slopes; sometimes, at a turn, such a bank protrudes into the Volga River, forming a cliff. On the left, extremely gentle, gradually rising to a low meadow floodplain, sandy shores predominate, alternating with "ravines - steep, almost sheer slopes, clayey, sandy-clayey; in some places they reach a considerable height." noiselessly, solemnly and unhurriedly flow its waters; the mountain shore is reflected in them with a black shadow, and on the left side it is decorated with gold and green velvet sandy rims of shallows, wide meadows. " M. Gorky

Gorky's young glory waved its wings over the native Volga.

From here she flew to, with unusual speed, passing the boundaries of land and water, to turn into world glory. It was called a fairy tale - this miracle glory. And she was a fairy tale, because her lightning carried the amazing call of the writer - to make life beautiful.

With his appeal yesterday, an unknown artist turned to people who did not possess either wealth or power, to people deprived of any education, more often - illiterate, clogged with need, oppressed by work without measure and clearance. He called them to straighten up, he awakened the pride of man in them ...

Gorky raised his life from the lowlands of the people, which frightened the philistine, and flew over them like a bird - that was what amazed this particular philistine ...

From his youth, Gorky got to know the people of the revolution more and more deeply, among them - and future Marxists. He happened to study in circles of working youth, for whom the keys to the party underground were not always a secret. As a young man, going on foot across Rus' in order to get to know her, Gorky went on the historical road of our country - on the road of a revolutionary.

“I came into life to disagree” - the motto of youth will sound. With what? With a cruel wrong life, which rarely, very rarely can give a person moments of happiness and joy, as, for example, to swim with good people along the Volga, admire the grandmother's gambling dance, dive into wonderful world books. Later there will be disagreement with the motives of death, decay, despondency in Russian decadence, with the aesthetics of critical realism, with its hero, incapable of a bright deed, a feat. Gorky is convinced: "In order for a person to become better, he needs to be shown how he should be"; “the time has come for the need for the heroic” (from letters to A.P. Chekhov).

"Man creates his resistance environment", - Gorky wrote many years later. This resistance to the surrounding selfish and cruel world, the unwillingness to live the way they live around, early determined the character of the future writer.

The world of selfish, bestial relations between people was opposed by the world of beauty - the beautiful Volga, sung in songs, the river of rebels.

Music has entered Alyosha's life since childhood. In the Kashirins' house they sang old songs, middle-class romances, Alexei's uncle was a good guitarist, and his cousin sang in the church choir.

The grandfather began to teach his grandson to read and write according to the Psalter and the Book of Hours*. His mother forced the boy to memorize poems, but soon Alyosha had "an invincible desire to alter, distort the poems, pick up other words for them." That's how poetry came about.

Having got on board a ship at the age of twelve, for a salary of two rubles a month, he worked from six in the morning until midnight in the smoke and noise of the kitchen. But sometimes he ran away to the stern and admired the shrinking heart of the immense, pacifying Volga. The greatness of this mighty river it was destined to leave an imprint on Alexei for life. “Night,” he writes, “the moon shines brightly, running away from the steamer to the left, into the meadows. An old red-haired steamer, with a white stripe on the pipe, slowly and unevenly, slaps its plates on the silver water, dark shores quietly float towards it, casting shadows on the water, the windows of the huts glow red above them, the girls sing in the village - they dance in a round dance, - and the refrain “ai-luli” sounds like Hallelujah… I am almost moved to tears by the beauty of the night.”

But the interests of an inquisitive and inquisitive teenager were not limited to philistine, philistine reading matter. He loved and appreciated the book that taught and made you think - the works of Pushkin, Gogol, Balzac, Flaubert, Zola.

"... The lady brought out a small volume bound in blue morocco.

You'll love it, just don't mess it up!

These were Pushkin's poems. I read them all at once, seized by that greedy feeling that you experience when you get into the unseen a nice place, - always strive to run around it at once. This is what happens after you walk for a long time over the moss hummocks of a swampy forest and suddenly a dry meadow opens up in front of you, all in flowers and the sun. For a minute you look at her enchanted, and then you happily run around all of it, and every touch of your foot on the soft herbs of the fertile land quietly pleases.

Books did not obscure life from Alexei, but changed it, made it brighter,

bigger, more interesting. “A book is a miracle for me,” Gorky wrote in 1926, and he carried this enthusiasm for the book through his whole life - from swimming to

Volga with Smury to last days life.

Maxim Gorky wrote: "... the banks of the Volga are slowly moving towards, - the left one, all drenched in the sun, spreads along the edge of the sky, like a lush green carpet, and the right waved its slopes, overgrown with forest, towards the sky, and froze in stern peace ..." Apparently, it was not by chance that in the old days the Volga cities were located in such a way that on the right bank there were those who bore a male name - Yaroslavl, Saratov, Simbirsk, on the left - female - Kostroma, Kazan, Samara, Astrakhan.

The high ideal of the writer's personality, embodied in Karonin, became Gorky's ideal in the future. Karonin spoke about Russian literature, aroused in Alexei an interest in tramps (a number of Gorky's first stories are dedicated to them). Seriously ill, half-destitute, just returned from exile, he did not complain about his fate, he lived "all absorbed in the search for" truth - justice ".

Another writer Alexei met in Nizhny was VG Korolenko. Alexey took him the Song of the Old Oak, written in rhythmic prose. In this "huge" poem, he outlined his thoughts on the theory of evolution. "Song" - it did not reach us - Korolenko did not like it: he recommended writing something about the experience. Greatly distressed, Alexei did not pick up a pen for a long time. But one summer night, when he was admiring the Volga, Korolenko sat next to him.

What are you writing?

No...

It's a pity and in vain ... I seriously think - it seems you have

capabilities.

Numerous meetings long conversations with hundreds of people, an avalanche of various impressions turned out to be beyond the power of the writer, and for almost a month Gorky lives in a dacha in Kraskovo near Moscow - in a dense coniferous forest.

But here, as before, intense writing work, heated conversations. "He was cheerful and gave the impression of a man of about forty, living in the fullness of physical and spiritual strength. That's just a cough - deaf, hysterical, as if tearing his chest and therefore especially painful ..." - recalls the writer I. Zhiga.

Nature for poetry is, as it were, its second "I", a mirror in which one's own appearance is more clearly recognized. Whoever nature is for poetry: an ally or a rival, a mentor or a student, it is in relation to it that poetry realizes the full breadth and urgency of its presence in the world as a “second” nature, created, but just as unconditional and omnipresent as the first. Nature is not only the theme of poetry, but also its highest ideal,that great poetry which no longer fits into an individual style, goes beyond the scope of authorship, erases signatures, names and becomesthe flesh of the world. Recognize your relationship withsuch poetry is the greatest happiness and honor for any author.

Then, at the turn of two centuries, the world abruptly broke for the writer into friends and enemies. The reaction was firmly established in the opinion about the "harmfulness" of Gorky's works for the existing order.

The tsarist authorities sought out in Gorky's activity the punishability of every step. It is unthinkable, of course, to weigh how much spiritual strength was stolen from the writer by imprisonment in police stations, prisons, fortresses, under secret or overt supervision, in arrest houses or under house arrest. The fact that throughout the entire chain of persecution Gorky did not let the courage of his magic pen waver testifies to the greatness of the spirit of a true poet ...

August 20, 1929 Gorky again goes on a trip to the USSR. On a steamship"Karl Liebknecht" he sails along the Volga, familiar to him from childhood, examinesAstrakhan, Stalingrad, then Rostov-on-Don, state farm "Giant", Caucasiancoast of the Black Sea, Tiflis. In the flower beds, white flowers of tobacco have opened and smell. Behind the Moscow River, in the meadows, no fog is visible. Alexei Maksimovich, his mustache down, slowly walks to the place where heaps of brushwood are collected. Ignites the fire. He stands, frowning, looking at the dance of the fire - sparks are carried up through the trembling foliage, into the night. In his eyes, gray-blue, - great pleasure.

Standing between the blushing trunks, he may be remembering those - other fires, lit by him forty years ago * on the banks of the Volga. His bonfires lit up the outlines of a creeping revolutionary thunderstorm. The fires of his fires shied away viciously, night drunken ghosts - the age-old Russian philistinism. The alarm of his fires awakened the dormant forces of rebellion. Sparks rushed all over vast Russia, spread across the frontiers, disturbing the minds with the harbinger of great events, inevitable upheavals.

His intense attention to the interlocutor, sincerity, skillful advice and at the same time strictness and exactingness, adherence to principles, which never turned into a dull "elaboration", invariably endeared him, and everyone who left Malaya Nikitskaya took with him a particle of Gorky's thought, a particle of his talent, his spiritual warmth.

The one who spoke to him at least for a short time,

went out full of energy, on the threshold.

This man was like the Volga,

inspiringly powerful and wide! -

writes the poet Pavel Zheleznov, one of those whom Gorky gave a start in life.

On August 11, the writer travels to Gorky, from where with friends and family

(daughter-in-law and granddaughters) travels along the Volga (he sailed along the Volga in the summer of 1934).

The writer wanted last time admire the Volga, and those around him felt that he was saying goodbye to the river of childhood and youth. The trip was difficult for Gorky: he was tormented by heat and stuffiness, constant shaking from the too powerful machines of the newly built steamship "Maxim Gorky" ("It would be possible without it," the writer grumbled when he saw his name on the ship).

Gorky talked with the party and Soviet leaders of the cities, past which the steamer sailed, talked about his youth, about the life of the Volga in those years, listened to the latest Chaliapin records, recently brought

Ekaterina Pavlovna from Paris from the great singer.

"Everywhere along the banks of the rivers, in the cities, the tireless work of building a new world is going on, arousing joy and pride," Gorky summed up his impressions of the trip in a letter to R. Rolland.

(Childhood of Valezhnikov)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Take your time, my faithful dog!
Why jump on my chest?
We still have time to shoot.
Are you surprised that I grew up
On the Volga: I've been standing for an hour
Motionless, frowning and silent.
I remembered my youth
And I want to give myself to her
Here on the loose. I look like
On a beggar: here is a poor house,
Here, maybe they would give a penny.
But here is another - richer: in it
Perhaps more will be served.
And the beggar by; meanwhile
In a rich house, the janitor is a rogue
Didn't give him anything.
Here is a house even more magnificent, but there
Almost got kicked in the neck!
And, as if on purpose, the whole village
Passed - no luck anywhere!
Empty, at least turn out the bag.
Then he came back
To a wretched hut - and glad.
That the crust was thrown to him;
Her poor man is like a timid dog,
Take away from people
And gnaws ... Early neglected
I am what was at hand
And almost a child's foot
I stepped over my father's threshold.
They tried to keep me
My friends, my mother prayed,
My beloved forest babbled to me:
Believe me, there is no sweeter native heaven!
Nowhere to breathe freely
Native meadows, native fields,
And full of the same song
There was a talk of these lovely waves.
But I didn't believe in anything.
No, I said to that life.
Nothing bought peace
Disgusting to my heart...

Maybe not enough strength
Or my work was not needed,
But I killed life in vain,
And what I dared to dream
Now I'm ashamed to remember!
All the powers of my heart
Spent in a slow struggle
without questioning anything
From life to your neighbors and yourself,
I knock timidly at the door
Of my wretched youth:
Oh, my poor youth!
Forgive me, I have reconciled!
Do not remember my daring dreams,
With which, leaving the native land,
I mocked you!
Do not remember my stupid tears,
How many times have I cried
Struggling with your peace!
But kindly something
What to rest your heart on
I could send me! I'm tired,
I lost faith in myself
And only the memory of childhood days
Doesn't weigh on my soul...

I grew up, like many, in the wilderness,
On the banks of a big river
Where only sandpipers screamed,
The reeds rustled deafly,
Rows of flocks of white birds
Like statues of tombs
Sat importantly on the sand;
Mountains were seen in the distance
And the blue endless forest
Hiding the other side of heaven
Where, having finished the day's journey,
The sun goes to rest.

I did not know fear from a young age,
I considered people brothers
And soon stopped
Be afraid of goblin and devils.
One day the nanny says:
"Don't run at night - the wolf is sitting
Behind our barn, and in the garden
Devils are walking on the pond!
And that very night I went into the garden.
Not that I'm happy as hell
And so I wanted to see them.
I'm going. Silence of the night
Full of vigilance
As if deliberately hushed up
The whole world of God - and watched
What a cheeky boy was up to!
And somehow I didn’t walk
In this all-seeing silence.
Shouldn't you return home?
And then how the devils attack
And drag with them into the pond,
And forced to live under water?
However, I didn't go back.
The moon plays over the pond,
And reflected on it
Row of coastal trees.
I stood on the shore
I listened - hell no gu-gu!
I went around the pond three times,
But the devil didn't come out, didn't come!
I looked between the branches of trees
And between the wide mugs,
What overgrown along the coast,
In the water: did he hide there?
You could tell by the horns.
There is no one! I went away
Holding back a step on purpose.
This night came to me as a gift,
But if a friend or an enemy
Sat in a bush and screamed
Or even, frightened by me,
An owl soared overhead
I must have fallen dead!
So, curious, pressed
I am false fears in myself
And in that useless struggle
Lost a lot of power.
But, obtained since then,
The habit of not looking for support
She led me on my way
As long as born a slave
proud fate
Did not turn back into a slave!

Oh Volga! after many years
I brought you greetings again.
I'm not the same, but you are bright
And majestic, as she was.
All around is the same distance and expanse,
The same monastery is visible
On an island, among the sands,
And even the thrill of the old days
I felt in my soul
Hear the bells ring.
Everything is the same, the same ... just not
Killed forces, lived years ...

It's almost noon. Such a heat
That footprints burn in the sand
Fishing doze over the water,
Seated in tight rows;
Grasshoppers forge, from the meadows
The cry of quails is carried.
without breaking the silence
Lazy slow wave
The bark moves like a river.
The clerk, a young guy,
Laughing for his companion
Runs across the deck; she
Sweet, stout and red.
And I hear him shouting to her:
"Wait, naughty, already -
I’ll catch up! .. ”Caught up, caught it, -
And their kiss sounded
Above the Volga is tasty and fresh.
Nobody kissed us like that!
Yes in toasty lips
At our urban ladies
And there are no sounds.

In some pink dreams
I forgot. Sleep and heat
Already reigned over me.
But suddenly I heard moans,
And my eyes fell on the shore.
Almost head down
To legs entwined with string.
Shod in bast shoes, along the river
Barge haulers crawled in a crowd,
And was unbearably wild
And terribly clear in silence
Their measured funeral cry, -
And my heart trembled.

O Volga!.. my cradle!
Has anyone loved you like me?
Alone, in the morning dawns,
When everything else in the world is sleeping
And the scarlet glitter barely slips
On dark blue waves
I ran to my native river.
I go to the aid of the fishermen,
I ride with them in a shuttle,
I wander around the islands with a gun.
Like a playing animal.
From the high cliff to the sand
I ride, then the river bank
I run throwing stones
And I sing a loud song
About my early daring ...
Then I was ready to think
That I will never leave
From these sandy shores.
And I wouldn't go anywhere
When would, about Volga! upon you
This howl was not heard!

A long time ago, at the same hour,
Hearing it for the first time.
I was scared, stunned.
I wanted to know what he means -
And long by the river bank
Ran. Tired burlaki.
They brought a cauldron from the bark,
Sit down, make a fire
And led among themselves
A leisurely conversation.
- When will we get to the Lower? -
One said: - When to get
At least Ilya ... - “Maybe we'll come.
Another, with a sickly face,
He answered. - Oh, attack!
When the shoulder heals
I would pull the strap like a bear,
And if you die by morning -
It would have been better…”
He fell silent and lay down on his back.
I could not understand these words
But the one who said them
Gloomy, quiet and sick,
Since then, he has not left me!
He is now in front of me:
The rags of miserable poverty,
Exhausted Features
And, expressing reproach,
Calm and hopeless look ...
Hatless, pale, slightly alive,
Only late at night home
I returned. Who was here
I asked everyone for an answer
On what I saw and in a dream
About what they told me
I was delirious. The nanny was scared:
“Sit, dear, sit!
Don't go for a walk today!"
But I ran away to the Volga.

God knows what happened to me?
I did not recognize the native river:
Difficulty stepping on the sand
My leg: it's so deep;
No longer beckons to the islands
Their bright fresh grass
Coastal birds familiar cry
Sinister, piercing and wild,
And the voice of the same lovely waves
Full of other music!

Oh, bitterly, bitterly I sobbed,
When I stood that morning
On the bank of the native river,
And called her for the first time
A river of slavery and longing!..

What I was thinking at that time
Calling the children's comrades,
What vows did I make -
Let it die in my soul
So that no one laughs!

But if you are a naive delirium,
Vows of youth
Why don't you forget?
And you caused a reproach
So devastatingly cruel?

Dull, gloomy hauler!
How I knew you as a child
This is how I see it now:
You sing the same song
You carry the same strap
In the features of a tired face
All the same obedience without end.
The harsh environment is strong,
Where are the generations of people
Live and die without a trace
And without a lesson for children!
Your father groaned for forty years,
Wandering these shores
And before death did not know
What to command sons.
And, as he did not have a chance
You will come across a question:
The worse would be your fate,
When would you be less patient?
Like him, silently you will die,
Like him, you will disappear without a trace.
So swept up in sand
Your footprint on these shores
Where do you walk under the yoke
No more beautiful than a prisoner in chains,
Saying hateful words
From the century the same "one and two!"
With a painful chorus of "oh!"
And shaking my head to the beat...

Analysis of the poem "On the Volga" by Nikolai Nekrasov

A characteristic feature of the work of N. A. Nekrasov is a pronounced civic position. Even in purely lyrical poems, he never forgot about the main goal of his life - highlighting the suffering of the common people. In 1860, Nekrasov wrote the poem "On the Volga", in which childhood memories are closely intertwined with pain for the hard labor fate of barge haulers.

The poem begins quite neutrally: the author sadly recalls his childhood spent on the banks of the Volga. He regrets that he left these dear native places. Nekrasov admits that main reason there was a desire to fight, rejection of a quiet and peaceful life. The line “life in vain I killed” sounds too self-critical. The poet opened the eyes of many to the true situation of the common people.

Next, Nekrasov describes his restless and fearless character. As an example, he cites his night walk in order to see the real devils with which his nanny frightened him. In this desire to get to the truth, one can see the makings of Nekrasov's future realism.

Returning to the banks of the Volga adulthood, the poet watches with tenderness its great steady course. His heart calms down and rests from the bustle big city. Suddenly, the idyll is broken by sounded groans. The author notices barge haulers and recalls his first childhood meeting with them. Once upon a time, the sight of exhausted people pulling their straps frightened and amazed the boy. No one explained to him the meaning of what he saw, only the nanny persuaded him not to walk along the shore anymore. But the wayward child returned to the Volga and was again struck by the fact that in his mind the river had become completely different. Probably, Nekrasov exaggerates, arguing that it was then that he called the Volga "a river of slavery and longing." But there is no doubt that the sight of unbearable barge work made a huge impression on him.

At the end of the work, Nekrasov sums up a disappointing result. Many years have passed, and heartbreaking moans still sound on the banks of the Volga. Several generations of barge haulers are also engaged in overwork, receiving miserable pennies for this. There is no way out of this situation. Hard work provides the only means of survival. The monotony of purely mechanical actions leaves on people the imprint of eternal resignation to their fate. Moans are interspersed only with the same monotonous barge songs "with a painful chorus" oh! The poet bitterly notes that young healthy people quickly waste their strength and eventually die on the banks of the great river.