Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Poltava
0532 / POP 298,600
Quaint and leafy Poltava is all about one particular turning point in history. Had Russian
Tsar Peter I lost the decisive battle on the town's outskirts in 1709, he wouldn't have be-
come Peter the Great and Ukraine could have celebrated the 300th anniversary of its in-
dependence in 2009. But the Russians defeated a joint Swedish and Cossack force, mark-
ing this event a century later by rebuilding the city's centre as a mini St Petersburg imita-
tion. As if avenging the lost battle and architecture imposed from the north, Poltava be-
came a centre of Ukrainian cultural renaissance in the 19th century.
Sights
Poltava Battlefield
HISTORIC SITE
(
www.battle-poltava.org
)
The famous battle was fought over a large area around what's now
vul Zinkivska, about 7km north of the city centre. The best starting point is the
Poltava
Battle Museum
(Shvedska mohyla 32; admission 10uah, audio guide 20uah; 9am-4pm Tue-
Sun May-Aug)
by the Peter I statue. Inside are displays relating to the battle, including
maps, paintings and Peter I's original uniform. English signs that appeared during Presid-
ent Yushchenko's term curiously refrain from mentioning Russia, instead using the term
'Moscow Realm'. Aside from the museum, the battlefield contains numerous monuments
and various redoubts of the old fortress, many of which have been restored.
Bus 4 from outside the Kyivsky shopping mall, near Avtovokzal 3 (bus station 3) runs
to the museum. The museum stands next to Shvedska Mohyla station, one stop away
from Poltava's Kyivska station. A taxi should cost around 30uah one way from the city
centre.
Korpusny Park
PARK
The focal point of the city centre is the circular Korpusny Park, laid out in the early 19th
century in an attempt to emulate the grand planning ideals of St Petersburg. Eight streets
radiate off the plaza, and in its centre rises the
Iron Column of Glory
, topped by a golden
eagle. Southeast of Korpusny Park, the city's main pedestrian drag - vul Zhovtneva (bet-
ter known by some by its Russian name, Oktyabrskaya) - leads down to verdant Zhovt-
nevy Park.
Poltava Museum of Local Lore
MUSEUM
