In the mid-14th century the town passed to the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which had to surrender it to
Ivan III following the
Battle of Vedrosha in 1503. In the early 17th century, Toropets was ransacked by the
Polish army. In the course of the
administrative reform carried out in 1708 by
Peter the Great, Toropets was included into Ingermanland Governorate (known since 1710 as
Saint Petersburg Governorate). In 1727, separate
Novgorod Governorate was split off. Toropets was included into
Velikiye Luki Province.[15] In 1772, as a result of the
First Partition of Poland,
Inflanty Voivodeship and eastern
Belarus were transferred to Russia. In order to accommodate these areas,
Pskov Governorate was created, and Toropets was transferred to Pskov Governorate. The town of
Opochka was made the administrative center of the governorate. Pskov Governorate has proven to be too big to be administered properly, and in 1776, the decree of the empress,
Catherine the Great, was issued. It divided the governorate into Pskov and
Polotsk Governorates. Pskov was made the administrative center of Pskov Governorate, and Toropets remained in Pskov Governorate. In 1777, Pskov Governorate was transformed into
Pskov Viceroyalty, which was administered from Novgorod by
Jacob Sievers. In 1796, the viceroyalty was abolished, and on 31 December 1796 the emperor
Paul I issued a decree restoring Pskov Governorate.[16] Toropets was the center of
Toropetsky Uyezd of Pskov Governorate.
The Soviet authority in Toropets was established on October 30 (November 12), 1917. On August 1, 1927, Pskov Governorate was abolished, and
Leningrad Oblast was established. Toropetsky Uyezd was abolished as well, and Toropetsky District, with the administrative center in Toropets, was established. It belonged to
Velikiye Luki Okrug of Leningrad Oblast. On June 17, 1929, the district was transferred to
Western Oblast. On August 1, 1930, the okrugs were abolished, and the districts were subordinated directly to the oblast. On January 29, 1935
Kalinin Oblast was established, and Toropetsky District was transferred to Kalinin Oblast.[17][18] The town was occupied by the
Wehrmacht during WWII, from August 29, 1941 until January 21, 1942, when it was retaken during the
Toropets–Kholm Offensive. On August 22, 1944, the district was transferred to newly established
Velikiye Luki Oblast. On October 2, 1957, Velikiye Luki Oblast was abolished, and Toropetssky District was transferred back to Kalinin Oblast. In 1990, Kalinin Oblast was renamed Tver Oblast.[18]
There are enterprises of chemical, metallurgical, textile, and food industries in Toropets.[19]
Transportation
The railway connecting
Bologoye with
Velikiye Luki passes through Toropets. There is infrequent passenger traffic.
The
M9 highway connecting Moscow with Riga also crosses the southern part of Toropetsky District. Toropets has access to it via a paved road. The same road continues to the north to
Kholm and further to
Staraya Russa.
Culture and recreation
Toropets contains 66 cultural heritage monuments of federal significance and additionally 30 objects classified as cultural and historical heritage of local significance. The federal monuments include plenty of buildings in the historical center of Toropets.[20] The oldest brick churches in the town are dedicated to St. Nicholas (1666–1669), to
Our Lady of Kazan (1698–1765), and to John the Baptist (1704).
There are a number of museums in Toropets, which include the Toropets District Museum, the Museum of the History of Photography, the house-museum of Patriarch Tikhon (
Tikhon, in the future the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, lived here as a child for ten years).
Notable people
The town is where
Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow spent his childhood (between 1869 and 1878) and attended school
^
abcdLaw #34-ZO stipulates that the borders of the settlements (administrative-territorial divisions) are identical to the borders of the urban and rural settlements (municipal divisions), and that the borders of the administrative districts are identical to the borders of the municipal districts. Law #50-ZO, which describes the borders and the composition of the municipal formations in Toropetsky Municipal District, lists the town of Toropets as a part and the administrative center of Toropets Urban Settlement of that district.
^Воробьёв, М. В. (1993). Г. В. Туфанова (ed.). Административно-территориальное деление Смоленской области (in Russian). Государственный архив Смоленской области. pp. 118–133.
Законодательное Собрание Тверской области. Закон №34-ЗО от 17 апреля 2006 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Тверской области», в ред. Закона №66-ЗО от 1 октября 2014 г. «О внесении изменения в статью 18 Закона Тверской области "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Тверской области"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Тверские ведомости", №17 (специальный выпуск), 19 апреля 2006 г. (Legislative Assembly of Tver Oblast. Law #34-ZO of April 17, 2006 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Tver Oblast, as amended by the Law #66-ZO of October 1, 2014 On Amending Article 18 of the Law of Tver Oblast "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Tver Oblast". Effective as of the official publication date.).
Законодательное Собрание Тверской области. Закон №50-ЗО от 28 февраля 2005 г. «Об установлении границ муниципальных образований, входящих в состав территории муниципального образования Тверской области "Торопецкий район", и наделении их статусом городского, сельского поселения», в ред. Закона №20-ОЗ от 28 марта 2013 г. «О преобразовании муниципальных образований Торопецкого района Тверской области и внесении изменений в Закон Тверской области "Об установлении границ муниципальных образований, входящих в состав территории муниципального образования Тверской области "Торопецкий район", и наделении их статусом городского, сельского поселения"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Тверские ведомости", №10, 11–17 марта 2005 г. (Legislative Assembly of Tver Oblast. Law #50-ZO of February 28, 2005 On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formations Which the Territory of the Municipal Formation of "Toropetsky District" Comprises and on Granting Them the Status of Urban, Rural Settlements, as amended by the Law #20-OZ of March 28, 2013 On the Transformation of the Municipal Formations of Toropetsky District of Tver Oblast and on Amending the Law of Tver Oblast "On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formations Which the Territory of the Municipal Formation of "Toropetsky District" Comprises and on Granting Them the Status of Urban, Rural Settlements". Effective as of the day of the official publication.).
Законодательное Собрание Тверской области. Закон №4-ЗО от 18 января 2005 г. «Об установлении границ муниципальных образований Тверской области и наделении их статусом городских округов, муниципальных районов», в ред. Закона №65-ЗО от 24 июля 2012 г. «О внесении изменения в статью 2 Закона Тверской области "Об установлении границ муниципальных образований Тверской области и наделении их статусом городских округов, муниципальных районов"». Вступил в силу через десять дней после официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Тверские ведомости", №3, 21–27 января 2005 г. (Legislative Assembly of Tver Oblast. Law #4-ZO of January 18, 2005 On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formations of Tver Oblast and on Granting Them the Status of Urban Okrugs, Municipal Districts, as amended by the Law #65-ZO of July 24, 2012 On Amending Article 2 of the Law of Tver Oblast "On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formations of Tver Oblast and on Granting Them the Status of Urban Okrugs, Municipal Districts". Effective as of the day which is ten days after the official publication.).