A Walk Along Millionnaya

16 points2 km0 hours

A. L. Konovalova, a student at the Tver College of Service and Tourism, together with the Tver Tourist Information Center, invites you for a walk along Millionnaya (“Millionaires' Street”), the old name of Tver's main street, to discover your hometown anew and be inspired by its rich history! We look forward to seeing you!

Route author

Tver Tourist Information Center

Things to do

📜 Learn the city's history
🔍🖼️ Spot interesting details
📸 Take photos

Route points (16)

Lenin Square in Tver

Point on route “A Walk Along Millionnaya”

Point 6

Lenin Square

История • ⛲ Square

Historical Background

The square lies in the center of Tver, at the intersection of Sovetskaya and Tryokhsvyatskaya Streets. The plan for rebuilding Tver was drawn up by the architect P. R. Nikitin after the fire of 1763 and approved in 1767.

Architecture

The square is a regular octagon with sides of about 50 meters (164 feet). It measures 120–130 meters (394–427 feet) across, and its total area is about 11,940 square meters (128,500 square feet). Four early Classical buildings form the octagon around the square. The first to be built was the magistracy, where the fabulist Ivan Krylov worked. At various times it housed the city bank, the public library, and the Young Spectators' Theater. The square was called Sudebnaya (Court) Square, and the City Duma held its sessions here. On the opposite side of the square, next to 13 Sovetskaya Street, stood an 18th-century salt store built in 1773. Later one of its wings was turned over to an archive. By the early 20th century the building had become dilapidated and was dismantled. In its place a new bank building was erected in 1913–1915; it met the needs of a financial institution so well that from its opening to this day it has always housed one bank or another. Opposite today's bank stands the former Governorate Administration building, where M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin worked. The square was originally adorned with a monument to Catherine II, and later a monument to V. I. Lenin was erected; behind it is a mass grave of soldiers who died in the Great Patriotic War.

Fun Fact

Originally the square was named Fontannaya (Fountain) Square, since a large fountain with a basin was planned for its center. But the fountain was never built, and the square came to be called after its shape: Octagonal.