Pechory

Pechory was founded as a posad in the 16th century near the Pskov-Caves Monastery established in 1473 by the Orthodox priest Jonah, who fled Dorpat (now Tartu) for the Pskov Republic.{{Cite web|url=http://www.pskovo-pechersky-monastery.ru/eng|title=The holy dormition Pskov-Caves Monastery|website=www.pskovo-pechersky-monastery.ru|language=en|access-date=2018-03-20}} Its name, Pechory, or earlier Pechery derives from the word {{transliteration|ru|peshchery}} (пещеры), Russian for caves.{{Cite book|title=Географические названия России: Топонимический словарь (Geographic names of Russia: a toponymic dictionary)|last=Pospelov|first=Yevgenij|publisher=АСТ|year=2008|isbn=9785170549665|location=Moscow}}{{Cite book|title=Этимология местных названий Псковского уезда (Etymology of the local names of the Pskov uyezd)|last=Trusman|first=Yuri|year=1897|location=Reval|pages=53}} The site soon developed into an important trading post and border stronghold.{{cite book|title=Энциклопедия Города России|year=2003|publisher=Большая Российская Энциклопедия|location=Moscow|isbn=5-7107-7399-9|page=354}} During the campaign of {{transliteration|ru|oprichnina}} introduced by Ivan the Terrible, Pechory remained within {{transliteration|ru|zemschina}}, or regular municipal lands subject to the rule of the government.{{Cite book|title=Secular cycles|url=https://archive.org/details/secularcycles00turc|url-access=limited|last=Turchin|first=Peter|date=2009|publisher=Princeton University Press|others=Nefedov, Sergey|isbn=978-0691136967|location=Princeton, N.J.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/secularcycles00turc/page/n262 252]|oclc=747411209}} It was besieged numerous times by Russia's enemies: Stephen Báthory's forces sacked the settlement during the Siege of Pskov in 1581–1582, and the Swedes or Polish stormed Pechory in 1592, 1611, 1615, and 1630, and from 1655 to 1657.{{citation needed|date=June 2014}} The fortification of Pechory was besieged by Swedes in the course of the Great Northern War in 1701 and 1703. In 1701, after an unsuccessful Swedish assault led by Shlippenbach, Boris Sheremetev began his campaign of advancing into Swedish Estonia from Pechory.{{Cite book|title=Предыстория Санкт-Петербурга. 1703 год|last=Шарымов|first=Александр|year=2009|isbn=9785936824180|location=Saint-Petersburg}} After the war the Russian border was shifted westwards so Pechory lost its military significance.

In the course of the administrative reform carried out in 1708 by Peter the Great, the area was included into the Ingermanland Governorate (known since 1710 as the Saint Petersburg Governorate).{{Cite web|url=http://doc.histrf.ru/18/ukaz-ob-uchrezhdenii-guberniy/|title=Указ об учреждении губерний|website=doc.histrf.ru|access-date=2018-03-20}} In 1727, the separate Novgorod Governorate was split off and in 1772, the Pskov Governorate was established; it existed as Pskov Viceroyalty between 1777 and 1796. In 1776, Pechory was granted town rights and the Pechorsky Uyezd was established. However, in 1797, the uyezd was abolished and the territory became a part o f the Pskovsky Uyezd of the Pskov Governorate.{{Cite web|url=http://w.histrf.ru/articles/article/show/pskovskaia_gubierniia|title=ПСКО́ВСКАЯ ГУБЕ́РНИЯ {{!}} Энциклопедия Всемирная история|website=w.histrf.ru|language=ru|access-date=2018-03-20}} From then on, Pechory was formally considered as a suburb of Pskov, however retaining its former rights of self-administration.

File:Petseri raudteejaam Pechory train station.jpg

In 1820 it had a population of 1,312, including 1,258 Russians and 27 Estonians, living in 228 predominantly wooden houses. By 1914 the population grew to 2,240,{{Cite web|url=http://pechory.reg60.ru/orajone/istorija|title=История района {{!}} Печорский район|website=Official WEB-site of the Pechory district|access-date=2018-03-21}} residing along eleven streets and five squares. The streets were equipped with 31 kerosene street lights. In 1889, the Pskov-Riga railroad that went through the northern outskirts of Pechory was commissioned.РГИА, ф. 446, оп. 28, д. 23. «Об окончании строительства Риго-Псковской железной дороги и об открытии движения по ней». Доклад № 116. 14 июля 1889 г. The Pechory railway station (now Pechory-Pskovskiye) was opened in 1899.РГИА, ф. 446, оп. 31, д. 20. «О переименовании Петербургско-Варшавской, Балтийской и Псково-Рижской ж. д. в Северо-Западные ж. д.» Доклад № 145. 14 июля 1906 г. There were leather and malt factories in the town, a postal and telegraph station, four schools including one maintained by the monastery, and a hospital.{{Cite web|url=http://pechori.ru/istoriya-goroda-pechory-prodolzhenie/|title=История города Печоры (2) {{!}} Печоры Псковские {{!}} Официальный сайт города {{!}} Псково-Печерский монастырь|website=pechori.ru|date=September 24, 2012 |language=ru-RU|access-date=2018-03-21}} Pechory was known for its flax trade, that was further expanded during the consequent Estonian period of the town's history.

From 25 February to 30 November 1918, Pechory was occupied by the Germans. During the Estonian War of Independence and, simultaneously, the Russian Civil War, the town was occupied by the Estonian army on March 29, 1919. The centre of the Governorate, Pskov, was occupied by the anti-Bolshevik Russian Northwestern Army, that was later in August 1919 repelled back by the Red Army. Under the terms of the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that stipulated the border{{Cite web|url=http://www.worldlii.org/int/other/LNTSer/1922/92.html|title=Esthonia and Soviet Republic of Russia - Peace Treaty, signed at Tartu, February 2, 1920 [1922] LNTSer 92; 11 LNTS 30|website=www.worldlii.org|access-date=2018-03-20}} along the actual front line between the Red and Estonian Armies, so Pechory and the adjacent Western part of Setomaa were ceded to Estonia.{{Cite book|url=http://ematf.pskgu.ru/projects/pgu/storage/SETU/text/setomaa_otchet%202012.pdf|title=Report on the study of Seto of the Pechory district, summer 2012 (ОТЧЁТ ПО ИТОГАМ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЯ СЕТУ ПЕЧОРСКОГО РАЙОНА ЛЕТОМ 2012 ГОДА)|last=Manakov|first=Andrey|publisher=Pskov State University, Seto Study Centre|year=2012|location=Pskov|pages=5}}{{Cite journal|last=Manakov|first=Andrey|title=ИЗМЕНЕНИЕ ТЕРРИТОРИИ РАССЕЛЕНИЯ СЕТУ С СЕРЕДИНЫ XIX В. ПО НАСТОЯЩЕЕ ВРЕМЯ (CHANGES IN THE STRUCTURE OF SETU SETTLEMENT FROM MIDDLE OF 19TH TO PRESENT TIME)|url=http://isf.pskgu.ru/projects/pgu/storage/prj/prj_16/prj_16_15.pdf|journal=Псковский регионологический журнал}}

File:CH-NB - Estland, Petseri (Pechory)- Kloster - Annemarie Schwarzenbach - SLA-Schwarzenbach-A-5-16-077.jpg

In the interbellum, Petseri, as it was called at that time, was the centre of Petseri County, one of the eleven counties that made up the Republic of Estonia. Under Estonian rule, the town's population more than doubled, predominantly due to the arrival of ethnic Estonians. Tuition at the municipal primary schools was conducted in both Russian and Estonian, with more bias toward the latter following the Schools Reform of 1934.R. Ruutsoo. Vene rahvusvahemuste ja tema identiteedi kujunemine Eesti Vabariigis 1920–1940. – Eesti Teaduste Akadeemia Toimetised. Humanitaar- ja Sotsiaalteadused, 45, 1996. Nr. 2. Lk. 203–204{{Cite web|url=http://www.baltija.eu/news/read/78|title=Портал русской общины Эстонии - Русская школа в Эстонии - история вопроса|website=www.baltija.eu|language=en-US|access-date=2018-03-21}} In May 1925, most of the land owned by the Pskov-Caves Monastery was confiscated by the Estonian government and provided to new settlers. St. Peter's Lutheran Church was built in 1926. In 1939, a huge fire broke out in the town, destroying 212 wooden buildings and killing many inhabitants.Небывалый пожар в Петсери — сгорело 212 домов // Вести дня. № 116 (4074). 1939 г., 25 мая.

During World War II, after the occupation of Estonia by the Soviet Union in 1940, the town initially remained part of the Estonian SSR. The town was occupied by the German Army from July 10, 1941 until August 11, 1944 and administered as part of the Generalbezirk Estland of Reichskommissariat Ostland. In 1943–1944, the Germans operated a forced labour camp for Jews in the town.{{cite web|url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/zwangsarbeit/haftstaetten/index.php?action=2.2&tab=7&id=100000319|title=Zwangsarbeitslager für Juden Pecory|website=Bundesarchiv.de|access-date=28 October 2022|language=de}}

According to a decree of USSR Supreme Soviet dated 23 August 1944 and a decree dated January 16, 1945, Pechory and the eastern part of Petseri County were transferred to the Pskov Oblast of the Russian SFSR, and the Pechorsky District was established.Administrative-Territorial Structure of Pskov Oblast, p. 14 During the Soviet period, bilingual schooling continued, and in 1956, Pechory Secondary School No. 2 was opened for Estonian-speaking students.

In 1976, the town's boundaries were further expanded to encompass the railway station and a few adjacent villages, including Kunichina Gora,Административно-территориальное деление Псковской области (1917—2000 гг.): Справочник / Арх. упр. Псковской обл.; Гос. архив Псковской обл. Кн. 2. Указатели. — 2-е изд. — Псков, 2002. which now hosts a border crossing point.{{Cite web|url=https://triptoestonia.com/granica-estonia-rossia/|script-title=ru:Граница Эстония - Россия: прохождение, привилегии|website=triptoestonia.com|language=ru-RU|access-date=2018-03-21}}

After Estonian independence was re-established in 1991, the town and the territory around it were claimed by Estonia because of the terms of the Tartu Peace Treaty, in which the Soviet Union had relinquished further claims to Estonian territory.Georg von Rauch (1974). The Baltic States: The Years of Independence, 1917–1940. London: C. Hurst & Co. Estonia was reported to have dropped this claim in November 1995.{{cite book | last = Day | first = Alan | title = Political and economic dictionary of Eastern Europe | url = https://archive.org/details/politicaleconomi00edst | url-access = limited | publisher = Europa | location = London | year = 2002 | isbn = 1-85743-063-8 | page = [https://archive.org/details/politicaleconomi00edst/page/n448 437]}} A new Estonian-Russian Border Treaty was signed by Estonia on May 18, 2005, reflecting the later border changes,http://www.estemb.se/estonian_review/aid-427 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130183240/http://www.estemb.se/estonian_review/aid-427 |date=January 30, 2016}} Estonian Parliament ratifies Estonian-Russian border treaties but was rejected and cancelled by Russia on June 27, 2005, because references to "Soviet occupation" were added by the Estonians.{{cite news|title=Russia spurns Estonia border deal|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4626141.stm|access-date=June 26, 2014|newspaper=BBC News|date=June 27, 2005}}{{cite news|last=Socor|first=Vladimir|title=Russia cancels border treaty, assails Estonia|newspaper=Jamestown |url=http://www.jamestown.org/programs/edm/single/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=30600&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=176&no_cache=1|publisher=The Jamestown Foundation|access-date=June 26, 2014}} A series of inter-governmental consultations took place in the decade that followed, and on February 18, 2014, the new version of the Border Treaty was signed by both countries.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.com/russian/international/2014/02/140218_russia_estonia_boarder_treaty|script-title=ru:Эстония и Россия наконец подписали договор о границе|website=BBC Русская служба|date=February 18, 2014 |language=ru|access-date=2018-03-21}} The latest version leaves the agreed border intact with a few minor exemptions not affecting the town of Pechory. Its parliamentary ratification by both sides is pending.{{Cite web|url=http://www.estemb.ru/estonia_i_rossija/pogranitsjnoje_dogovori|title=Estonian Embassy in Russia|website=www.estemb.ru|access-date=2018-03-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820081231/http://www.estemb.ru/estonia_i_rossija/pogranitsjnoje_dogovori|archive-date=August 20, 2011|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=http://vm.ee/en/countries/russia?display=relations|title=Russia {{!}} Ministry of Foreign Affairs|language=en|access-date=2018-03-21}}

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Pechory serves as the administrative center of the Pechorsky District,{{OKATO reference|58 240}} to which it is directly subordinated.Law #833-oz stipulates that the borders of the administrative districts are identical to the borders of the municipal districts. The Law #420-oz, which describes the borders and the composition of the municipal districts, lists the town of Pechory as a part of Pechorsky District. As a municipal division, the town of Pechory, together with forty-two rural localities, is incorporated within the Pechorsky Municipal District as the Pechory Urban Settlement.Law #420-oz

{{multiple image |align=right |caption_align=center |perrow=2 |total_width=340

| image1=Pechory ChurchStBarbara.JPG

| image2=Церковь святого Петра Печоры.jpg

| image3=Водонапорная башня, Октябрьская пл. 7 Печоры. (1).jpg

| image4=742. Pechory. Patriarchal Housing.jpg

| caption1=Saint Barbara Church

| caption2=Saint Peter Church

| caption3=Water tower

| caption4=Abbot's House

}}

Pechory is famous for the Russian Orthodox Pskov-Caves Monastery. St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church is also situated in the town. It is famous for its historic organ.

During the 1930s Russian song festivals inspired by similar Estonian events were held in the town.C.Г. Исаков. Очерки истории русской культуры в Эстонии. Таллинн, 2005. C. 18–21.

Pechory hosts a museum, two libraries, cultural centre and an arts school for children.{{Cite web|url=http://pechory.reg60.ru/|title=Печорский район {{!}} официальный сайт|website=pechory.reg60.ru|access-date=2018-03-21}} Apart from the official and religious events, festivals on Maslenitsa and Ivan Kupala are held there.{{Cite web|url=http://culture.pskov.ru/ru/region/pechorsky|title=Наследие Земли Псковской/ Культура и история Пскова и Псковской области. Достопримечательности, туристическая инфраструктура|website=culture.pskov.ru|access-date=2018-03-21}} [http://www.museum-izborsk.ru/en/page/sigovo The Seto Estate Museum] is located near the town.{{Cite news|url=https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/setomaa-culture-estonia-russia-photographs/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112144853/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/setomaa-culture-estonia-russia-photographs/|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 12, 2016|title=A Fairytale Kingdom Faces Real-Life Troubles|date=2016-11-11|work=National Geographic|access-date=2018-03-21}}

• Alfred Hirv, Estonian painter
• Heino Kostabi, Estonian politician
• Lilli Promet, Estonian writer
• Jaanus Sirel, Estonian footballer
• Johannes Kert, Estonian military officer and politician
• John Krestiankin, a prominent Russian Orthodox monk (archimandrite)

{{Reflist}}

• {{RussiaAdmMunRef|psk|adm|law}}
• {{RussiaAdmMunRef|psk|mun|list}}
• Архивный отдел Псковского облисполкома. Государственный архив Псковской области. "Административно-территориальное деление Псковской области (1917–1988 гг.). Справочник". (Administrative-Territorial Structure of Pskov Oblast (1917–1988). Reference.) Книга I. Лениздат, 1988

• [http://www.pechory.biz/ Unofficial website of Pechory and Pechorsky District] {{in lang|ru}}

{{Pskov Oblast}}

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Category:Cities and towns in Pskov Oblast

Category:Pskovsky Uyezd

Category:Estonia–Russia border crossings

Category:Populated places established in the 16th century