Vyborg is a city located northwest of St. Petersburg near the border with Finland. The first written mention of the castle, built by the Swedes on the place where Vyborg is now located, dates back to 1293, and it received the status of a city in 1403.
Vyborg has repeatedly passed from hand to hand. In 1940, following the results of the Soviet-Finnish "winter" war, he became part of the USSR, the legal successor of which was the Russian Federation. There are many interesting sights in Vyborg that attract tourists from different countries.
The main city attraction of Vyborg
The huge medieval castle of Vyborg is famous, first of all, for the fact that it is the only fully preserved medieval fortification monument on the territory of Russia. It was founded in 1293 by the Swedish regent Torgils Knuttson. The main part of the castle was the huge tower of St. Olaf. In the middle of the 15th century, the castle was significantly expanded with additional defensive structures. Subsequently, the same work was carried out several more times, until by the beginning of the 18th century the castle turned into one of the strongest fortresses in Northern Europe.
In June 1710, the troops of Peter I, after a stubborn siege, captured the castle. Vyborg became part of Russia. Despite the fires and wars that occurred after that, the castle largely retained its then appearance. And since 1970 the castle has been a museum. From the observation deck of St. Olaf's tower, a beautiful view of Vyborg and Vyborg Bay opens up.
Other sights of the city
Fans of military history will certainly want to see, in addition to the castle, the preserved fortifications, for example, the Round Tower, the Town Hall Tower and the Panzerlax Bastion - parts of the former fortress wall dismantled in the second half of the 19th century. In addition, the attention of tourists will be attracted by the Anninsky fortifications on Tverdysh Island, built in the first half of the 18th century and named after Empress Anna Ioanovna.
Of great interest to tourists in this city is the Clock Tower - the surviving part of the cathedral, which, unfortunately, was destroyed during the Soviet-Finnish war. By the way, it was here that an exciting episode from the film "Sannikov's Land" was filmed, when the adventurer and braggart Krestovsky (played by Oleg Dal) climbs the bell tower blindfolded.
A very beautiful natural reserve is the Mon Repos rocky landscape park, located on the northern outskirts of Vyborg. Although, unfortunately, many structures on its territory require serious restoration.
There are also many interesting monuments in the city, including Peter I and his faithful companion, Admiral Apraksin.
