A photocopy of an article from “Komsomolskaja Pravda” dated 14.04.2014 caught my attention a few days ago. The short article was published just as the Nazi coup in Ukraine unseated the last legitimate government of the failed country, and Ukraine firmly set its course on becoming “not Russia”.

Russian Tzars Didn’t Even Think That They Were Founding Ukrainian Cities

Politicians, historians and bloggers on both sides of the Russian-Ukrainian border are arguing today, breaking microphones and keyboards, whose ancestral land is the South-Eastern Ukraine, or, as it was called earlier – Malorossiya (Rus Minor) and Novorossiya. Who worked it? And monuments to whom should stand here – to Bandera or, for example, to the Russian tzars?

Let us not get involved in this argument, but rather list those who founded the main cities here:

Harkov – founded in the 1630-s by the Russian Tzar Aleksei Mihailovich Romanov. Sailors who fleeing from the Poles from the right bank of Dniepr settled there.

Sumy – founded not later than 1655 by Tzar Aleksei Mihailovich Romanov. The tzar allowed
refugees-Malorossians, who were killed by the Poles, to settle here.

Kirovograd – founded in 1754 by the Russian Empress Elizabeth Petrovna under the name of Elisavetgrad as a fortress to protect the southern boundaries of Russia from Tatars.

Zaporozhie – founded in 1770 by the Russian Empress Catherine II undere the name of Alexandrovsk.

Krivoj Rog – founded in 1775 by the Catherine II.

Dnepropetrovsk – founded in 1776 by the Catherine II under the name of Ekaterinoslav.

Herson – founded in 1778 by Catherine II for the construction of the Russian fleet. The Russian Count Potemkin built the fleet and the city.

Mariupol – founded in 1778 by Catherine II. She allowed Greek immigrants from
Crimea to settle there.

Nikolaev – founded in 1789 by Catherine II. At that time Russian Count Potjomkin was building there the ship “St. Nicolas” (“St. Nikolai”).

Odessa – founded in 1794 by Catherine II at the site of a fortress previously built by the Russian Commander Suvorov.

Lugansk – founded in 1795 by Catherine II. People from central and north-western counties of the Empire came to work here at the iron foundries.

Donetsk – founded by the Russian Emperor Alexadner II in 1869 during the construction of the iron foundry in Yuzovka.

As for Crimea:

Sevastopol – founded in 1783 by the Russian Empress Catherine II at the site of a fortress previously built by the Russian Commander Suvorov. The Russian Count Potjomkin was building the city.

Simpferopol – founded in 1784 by Catherine II. Count Potjomkin was building it at a site of a military camp of the Russian Commander Suvorov.