Kopor’ye, Russia

History

The first wooden fortress on the coast of the Koporye Bay was built by the Teutonic Knights in the winter of 1240, only to be destroyed by Alexander Nevsky the next year. The second fortress was built in stone by Alexander's son Dmitry Alexandrovich in 1280. Enraged by the prince's independence, the Novgorodians razed the fortress two years later.

The Swedes took advantage of the lack of a fortress and occupied the banks of the Narva River. The Novgorodians had to restore the stone fort in 1297. Koporye was the strongest stronghold in the region and survived numerous attacks during the Swedish–Novgorodian Wars. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the town was given several times to mercenary princes invited by Novgorodians to protect the northern territories of the republic. While the town had an important fortress, the residences of a prince and several lesser landowners, and was the centre of an important iron-working district, it remained very small, with only 18 households by the end of 15th century.

After Novgorod's incorporation into Muscovy, the fortress was strengthened and rebuilt to withstand cannon fire. Most extant structures belong to that period. Russian forces surrendered Koporye during the Livonian War but regained it under the Treaty of Tyavzino.

From the History section of Koporye on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.