Most people in their travels, one way or another, set a goal to see architectural monuments, which are the main attractions of any place. But there are also those who are interested in architectural styles of different eras, individual artistic elements or decorative arts. Architectural tourism is interesting not only for specialists, historians and writers, but also for all creative people. In the Krasnoyarsk region, historical architecture is concentrated in 5 large cities: Krasnoyarsk, Yeniseisk, Minusinsk, Achinsk and Kansk. And if the first is the capital of the region, and according to the Krasnoyarsk residents themselves, of all Siberia, and the service here is at the highest level, at other points of the architectural journey you need to be ppared for the specifics of small provincial towns. It is symbolic that 4 cities are located in 4 different directions from Krasnoyarsk.

KRASNOYARSK

After the fire of 1773 that destroyed the Krasnoyarsk prison and almost the entire city (only 30 houses remained), the Tobolsk geodesy sergeant Pyotr Moiseev created a new city plan. They took St. Petersburg with its linear layout as a basis. When Krasnoyarsk was rebuilt, the first private stone house appeared anew, and in 1785 a stone church - Pokrovskaya - began to be built.

When Krasnoyarsk was given the status of a county town in 1822, it began to grow and build up intensively. In the first half of the 19th century, "exemplary" projects of residential houses and estates, public, religious, commercial buildings developed with the direct participation of the capital's architects became widespad in Russia.  The first series of such sketches were sent in Krasnoyarsk in the 1810s and 20s. In the second half of the 19th century, the architectural boom was fueled by the "gold rush".

The houses of that era form a valuable part of the city's architectural heritage. And the entire historical center of Krasnoyarsk, and especially the central street - Prospect Mira, today is a space for architectural excursions.

It’s convenient that you can start from the place of arrival in the city - the railway station. .  But from Red Square, you can see the Stalinist Empire style buildings. The creation of an interesting location is being completed - the Historical Quarter, where old mansions will be restored, and there is also a Catholic church, unusual for a Siberian city. And so, moving in the center towards the Strelka (the confluence of the Kacha River with the Yenisei), you can contemplate almost everything that is most important in the architectural heritage of Krasnoyarsk.



YENISEYSK

The first town of the Krasnoyarsk region, founded in 1619. From 1724 to 1775, Yeniseisk was the main city of the Yenisei province. The city reached its greatest prosperity in the middle of the 18th century, turning into a large craft and trade center. In 1743, stone buildings were built. In 1765, there were 143 merchants of the first guild and over 1200 of the second guild in Yeniseisk.

Today it is a true open-air museum city, included in the pliminary list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is imbued with the spirit of the Siberian merchants, the legends of the "gold rush" and the stories of the brave conquerors of the Siberian land. A city where Orthodox monasteries and churches coexist with old merchant mansions. Today in Yeniseisk there are more than a hundred monuments of history, culture, architecture. Many of them were restored for the 400th anniversary of the city.

All the main historical buildings in the center of Yeniseisk are located along the central axis - Lenin Street. Here are the houses of merchants Dementyev, Borodkin, Kytmanov, Tonkonogovs and the trading estate of Zamaraev, and the Church of the Iverskaya Mother of God. The number of architectural monuments, as well as the quiet and measured life of the old Siberian city, clearly does not contribute to a short excursion. For connoisseurs of historical architecture, one day will not be enough to pay attention to each object, so plan your trip for several days.

▶ Three the most convenient ways to get to Yeniseisk from Krasnoyarsk:

# 1: personal car. You need to go along the P-409 highway (“Yenisei tract”). Distance - 340 km, travel time ~ 4-5 hours.

# 2: intercity bus. Regular buses leave from Krasnoyarsk bus station to Yeniseisk every day. Travel time is about 5 hours.

No. 3: motor ship. From June to October, a river service is organized to Yeniseisk. Travel time - 17 hours.



MINUSINSK

After the foundation of the Yenisei province in 1822, the village of Minusinskoye was transformed into the district town of Minusinsk. In 1844, the first urban development plan was approved. From the middle of the 19th century, crafts and industry began to develop in the city. Minusinsk merchants traded with China, Mongolia and even Japan. The growing economy was reflected in construction as well. In 1854, the first stone building in the city was built - the house of the merchant Belova. By local standards, Belova's house seemed to be a real palace; the facade was decorated in the traditions of late provincial classics. Further development was carried out in the late classical style and led to the formation of a single stylistic architectural ensemble in the center of Minusinsk.

CurrentlyMinusinsk isincluded in the list of historical cities of Russia. The city is full of monuments of architecture, history and culture - more than 80 objects of cultural heritage are included in the register. In its old part, numerous wooden and stone buildings built in the 19th - early 20th centuries have been pserved.

The visiting card of Minusinsk, the center of the architectural development of the historical part of the city, connecting it into a single architectural ensemble, is the house of the merchant Vilner. This is the first three-story building in the Yenisei province, "Siberian Small Winter Palace". The Martyanov Minusinsk Museum of Local Lore  is one of the oldest local history museums in Siberia and the oldest museum in the Yenisei province.

Historical photos of Minusinsk can be viewed here.

▶ Three the most convenient ways to get to Minusinsk from Krasnoyarsk:

# 1: personal car. You need to go along the Yenisei / R-257 highway. Distance - 437 km, travel time ~ 6-7 hours.

# 2: intercity bus. Regular buses leave the Krasnoyarsk bus station to Minusinsk every day. Travel time is about 8 hours.

# 3: train. There are 2 trains running on the Krasnoyarsk - Minusinsk route. Travel time is almost 12 hours. The one that arrives in Minusinsk at 5 am is more convenient.



ACHINSK

The third largest city in the region, after Krasnoyarsk and Norilsk, was founded in 1683 as Achinsk ostrog. In 1782 the ostrog became a district town of the Tomsk category of the former Siberian kingdom. Achinsk has received the status of a district city since 1804 - first of Tomsk, and since 1822 - of the newly formed Yenisei province. Transport routes passing through Achinsk contributed to the emergence of merchants, and hence to active construction.

In 1990, Achinsk was included in the official list of Russian cities with historical and cultural value of all-Russian importance. 53 buildings designated as cultural heritage sites. However, the historical center of Achinsk has yet to go through the path of restoration of objects following the example of Yeniseisk. Most of the buildings are frankly not in a museum state. But this does not diminish their value. Moreover, you may need to hurry up and see the architectural heritage of Achinsk before it disappears.

The old center of Achinsk is quite compact, and most of the objects are located on the axis of Lenin and Partizanskaya streets. Of the notable architectural monuments of the 19th century, it is worth paying attention to the building of the Kargopolov Museum of Local Lore, the estates of Bronstein, Maksimov, Mokrousov, as well as the Cathedral of Kazan Mother of God. You can start a walk from the cathedral, but you need to get to it from the railway station by taxi or public transport for about 3 km.

▶ Three the most convenient ways to get to Achinsk from Krasnoyarsk:

# 1: personal car. You need to drive along the Baikal / R-255 highway in the western direction. Distance - 176 km, travel time ~ 2-3 hours.

# 2: intercity bus. Regular buses leave from Krasnoyarsk bus station to Achinsk every day. Travel time is about 4 hours.

# 3: train. You can get to Achinsk by any train heading west. There are even electric trains. Travel time is almost 3 hours.



KANSK

It is one of the oldest cities in Siberia, founded in 1636 by the Krasnoyarsk ataman Miloslav Koltsov as an ostrog. In December 1822, the city received the status of a district, becoming the center of the Kansk district (since 1879 - the Kansk district) of the Yenisei province. By 1861, Kansk became a real city - factories appeared. Forty-three noblemen, nine merchants of the first and the second guilds live in the city.  Famous merchants began their activity in Kansk:  Gerasim Gadalov, the founder of the Gadalov dynasty, Timofey Savenkov, the merchant of the 2nd guild and others.

There are not so many architectural attractions here, and they are concentrated on Korostelev Square. It is only 500 meters from the Kansk railway station. Holy Trinity Cathedral is an Orthodox church built in 1804, one of the oldest stone buildings in Kansk, a true example of architectural art and cultural heritage. One more example is Kansk Museum of Local Lore, founded by Kargopolov. A complex of historical buildings, among which one can distinguish the building of the treasury near the former tobacco factory, as well as the building of the printing house can also be interesting.

Look here how Kansk looked in the 19th century.

▶ Threethe most convenient ways to get to Kansk from Krasnoyarsk:

# 1: personal car. You need to go east along the Baikal / R-255 highway. Distance - 235 km, travel time ~ 3 hours.

# 2: intercity bus. Regular buses leave from Krasnoyarsk bus station to Kansk every day. Travel time is about 5 hours.

# 3: train. You can get to Kansk by any train heading east, as well as by electric train, which takes about 4 hours.



Photo: Alexander Krasovitsky, Ekaterina Lukyanova and unknown authors