Derbent is a beautiful old town in Dagestan, 130 km from Makhachkala, on the Caspian coast . So old that it is considered one of the oldest "living" cities in the world . Its history is so rich that you can write about it : for many centuries the city with its powerful wall served as the protection of the whole of the Near East from the barbarians, standing between the impenetrable mountains and the sea . The old city of Derbent was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage site of humanity . At the same time Forbes magazine included Derbent in the first eight most underestimated seaside resorts Russia . And, probably, with There are practically no tourists in the city. .
How to get to Derbent
By train or regular minibus from the bus station of Makhachkala (the bus runs every half hour) or from Kaspiisk. The Moscow-Baku train stops in Derbent (the journey takes about 32 hours).
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A bit of history
The first settlements on the site of the present Derbent appeared about 6 thousand . years ago . The first written mention of the city, made by the ancient Greeks, dates back to the 6th century BC . e . In its present form, the city is more connected with the Persians: in the middle of the 5th century they founded their fortress there, fencing off the passages from the sea to the Caucasus Mountains by enclosing the fortress walls . In the 7th century the Arabs invaded the city, having built the Juma mosque here and turning the city into one of the gl. Caucasian centers of influence . During this period Derbent actively grew and developed as a handicraft, agricultural, commercial and port city, in the harbor of which it was possible to see Russian, Khazar, Indian ships .
Then in the 11th century Derbent was conquered by the Seljuk Turks, but not for long: in the first half of the 13th century the Tatar-Mongol horde came here, and under her yoke the city lost its former strength and well-being . In the second half of the 17th century, the brave Cossack Stenka Razin at the very beginning of his Volga-Caspian campaign stormed Derbent and zyal . But in the 18th century the city became difficult to keep under the pressure of the Persians and Turks, and Peter the Great sent a flotilla here, as a result of which Russia officially took Derbent . under the peace agreement with the Persians. But not for ever: after 13 years the city was handed over to Iran . Only in 1813 . Derbent became finally Russian .
Entertainment, excursions and attractions of Derbent
Derbent is primarily the Old Town. And in this case the word "old" means not just the earliest urban development. Many of the monuments of Old Derbent for a half thousand years (or even more). One of the main attractions of the city is the complex of the old fortress, which successfully served Derbent (though, to its various masters) for a millennium in a row. The citadel includes several objects, each of which is separately described by UNESCO.
First of all, the stronghold of Naryn-kala with two walls - the ones that blocked the way from the sea - is included in the citadel . The fortress on the mountain is pretty well preserved, and the walls as such even today can give an idea of its power . Here on the area of almost 5 hectares today you can see the terms, the siege water storage and the church of the 5th century, which was then converted into a mosque . The history of the discovery of the church is interesting: in the rezu Excavations in the northwestern part of the fortress found an underground structure carved into a rock, which for a long time was considered a reservoir . Only by the results of the study it became clear that this is a cross-domed temple .
- All day to wander through the Old Fortress
- Try the famous Derbent cognac, which is still made from local grapes.
- Snack with sturgeon in one of the city restaurants.
And Derbent Wall in principle is considered the only structure m, built before the Persians, which has reached our days. This is a double wall longer than 3, 5 km, consisting of parallel southern and northern parts. That part of it that went up the mountain was significantly destroyed, but the one that descended to the Caspian remained. The distance between the walls is up to 400 m, and this is the place where Old Derbent is located.
The southern part of the wall was badly damaged, but the northern one remained well. It is laid out of large rustled stone blocks, the height of the wall is more than 10 m, the minimum thickness is 2 m with more. On the wall, of course, the turrets were "on duty": initially there were 73 of them, more than half were preserved. Also today you can see 9 of the 14 gate walls, very interesting from an architectural point of view. The most beautiful are the southern Orta-kala, which means "The Middle Gate."
Another landmark of Derbent and the most important shrine for Russian Muslims is the Juma mosque . This is the oldest mosque in the country and all former Soviet republics . The main mosque was built in the first half 8th century and then it became the highest building in the city . In the 14th century it suffered from the earthquake and was restored, and in the 19th century the complex was expanded by adding to the mosque madrasah and living quarters . In fact, today the ancient mosque does not seem too high: her the dome reaches a height of only 17 m . But in the courtyard, in each of the four corners, grows over the centuries-old plane tree, and these trees, rising above the walls, make the mosque clearly visible from everywhere in the Old Town .
Another significant religious building in Derbent - the old Armenian church of the Holy Savior. This is a rather rough, stern structure with pointed domed crosses. It was erected in the second half of the 19th century and was badly damaged already during the Civil War. Restoration was carried out only in 70-80-ies. century, and since then the building of the church has been placed under the branch of the city museum: here is an exhibition of carpets
There are water tanks and ancient fountains on the territory of the Old Town. The water comes from the mountain springs, and the fountains still serve as a source of water for the citizens. And in the center of the fortress you can see the old khan's baths of the 17th century: according to legend, those who peeped over bathing the people of the opposite sex in them, gouged out their eyes. Curious and ancient city cemeteries, where monuments and sarcophagi are preserved, the oldest of which date back to the 5th century.
Improvement in the "Open South" program.
Excursion tours for children and adults.
In the Art Museum of the city you can see the world's largest collection of objects of Dagestan arts and crafts. This is the silver gizmos of elegant dressing, and weapons, and carpets, and carving in stone and wood. In addition, there are pictures of Russian and Western European artists, as well as a good collection of paintings by Dagestani authors since the 1920s. the last century and until Soviet times.
As for Derbent as a sea resort - yes, the beach is there. And beautiful, sandy, in contrast to the predominantly pebbly Makhachkala. But the lion's share of its territory is leased to private traders. And what is not given, usually littered to impossibility, and this negates all the delights of a really transparent and beautiful warm sea water.
Surroundings of Derbent
Approximately 30 km from the city, if you move along the coast of the Caspian Sea to the south , is the only one in Russia and almost the only lianas forest in Europe. Samursky forest is located in the delta of the river of the same name, and here in the subtropical relic forest, in the national park, you can perfectly spend even a single day. There are plenty of clean water sources, a lot of tree species grow, birds nest, fish spawn, and, of course, all the evergreen vines are twisted.
50 km from Derbent (on the straight line much closer but there is no direct road there) waterfall in the village of Khuchni . This is a beautiful 30-meter narrow gully with a lake suitable for swimming and a camping ground . Near the waterfall there is a fortress of seven brothers and a sister (Yagdygskaya fortress) . This is the last fortress of a number of mountain fortifications, stretching from Derbent for 40 km, and its foundation, as they believe , can relate to the 6-7th centuries . The name of the fortress was in accordance with the popular ancient legend: seven brothers successfully defended the fortress from invasion from Iran, but their beautiful sister betrayed her for the sake of the love of the Iranian khan, and the fortress fell .