Pervomaisk, Luhansk Oblast

Coordinates: 48°37′47″N 38°33′43″E / 48.62972°N 38.56194°E / 48.62972; 38.56194
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Pervomaisk
Первомайськ
City
Central Pervomaisk
Central Pervomaisk
Flag of Pervomaisk
Flag
Coat of arms of Pervomaisk
Coat of arms
Pervomaisk is located in Luhansk Oblast
Pervomaisk
Pervomaisk
Pervomaisk is located in Ukraine
Pervomaisk
Pervomaisk
Coordinates: 48°37′47″N 38°33′43″E / 48.62972°N 38.56194°E / 48.62972; 38.56194
Country Ukraine
Oblast Luhansk Oblast
RaionAlchevsk Raion
HromadaKadiivka urban hromada
Area
 • Total88.54 km2 (34.19 sq mi)
Elevation
199 m (653 ft)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total36,091
 • Density410/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2
Postal code
93200-279
Area code+380-6455
ClimateDfb
Websitehttps://pervomaysklnr.su/

Pervomaisk (Ukrainian: Первомайськ; Russian: Первомайск) is a city in Kadiivka urban hromada, Alchevsk Raion (district), Luhansk Oblast (region), Ukraine, on the left bank of the Luhan River. Pervomaisk is 71 kilometres (44 mi), by road, from Luhansk, 133 kilometres (83 mi) from Izvarino, where there is the de jure international border between Ukraine and Russia, and 736km from Kyiv. [1][2]

Pervomaisk came under the control of the breakaway pro-Russia Luhansk People's Republic (LPR / LNR) in early 2014.[3] In 2014, and 2015, the city would be a focal point of the war in Donbas, sustaining severe destruction in conflict.[4][5] Following their 2022 annexation referendum, Russia claimed the entire Luhansk Oblast, including Pervomaisk, as part of their LPR / LNR.[6][7] The population of Pervomaisk is 36,091 (2022 estimate).[8][9]

History

Founding and Development

The history of Pervomaisk began with the village of Aleksandrovka, founded in 1765. From the beginning of the 19th century, Pervomaisk was part of the Slavyanoserbsky district of the Yekaterinoslav province.[10] In the second half of the 19th century, coal mining began in the settlement, and in 1872 the Petromaryevsky mine was opened and the Petro-Maryevsky Coal Industry Society created. In 1920, from the settlement of 'Petro-Maryevka' the settlement of 'Pervomaisk', literally translated as the 'First of May' in honour of International Workers' Day, was created.[10] A local newspaper has been published in the city since 1930.[11] The peak population of 51,025 was reached in 1989.[12] Pervomaisk remained part of the Ukrainian SSR until its dissolution in 1991, and was from then part of Ukraine.[13] The 2013 population of Pervomaisk was 43,094.[2]

2014-2022

Ukrainian military roadblock near Pervomaisk in 2014

From 2014, Pervomaisk, as all of Donbas, became caught up in the aftermath of Euromaidan. From April 2014, pro-Russia separatists started taking over parts of the south and east of Ukraine.[14] In April and early May 2014, Luhansk and the surrounding area, including Pervomaisk, was taken over by Russian-backed forces of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR / LNR).[15] The Ukrainian Government launched their Anti-Terrorist Operation in mid-April 2014, with the aim of taking back all territories under separatist control.[16] In May, the 2014 Donbass status referendums were held. The referendums returned an overwhelming majority vote to cede from Ukraine into the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, however they were condemned by the west, and did not obtain international recognition.[17][18]

After several months of little military progress, in July 2014 the Ukrainian forces made sweeping territorial gains, capturing swathes of territory from pro-Russia rebels across Donbas.[19] On 25 July 2014 the Kyiv Post reported that the Ukrainian army push for the city was imminent, and that the separatists had been "chased" by the Ukrainian army from nearby settlements and intended to make Pervomaisk their "last stand".[20] Intense fighting for control of Pervomaisk between the pro-Russia separatists and the Ukrainian army broke out on 28 July 2014, and would wage on throughout August, with both sides claiming control of the city.[21][22] It would later be established that, despite heavy bombardment, the separatists had held Pervomaisk for the whole time.[23][24][25] By September 2014, separatist control of Pervomaisk was undisputed.[26][27]

Throughout 2014, and 2015 there was heavy shelling by the Ukrainian army of Pervomaisk.[4][28] In early January 2015 the civilian population of the city was estimated at between 10,000 and 20,000, down from a pre-war population of 38,435. Pervomaisk attracted international attention in 2015 due to the large-scale level of destruction, the first time that level of destruction of a city had been seen in the war in Donbas.[5] Between 2014 and 2022, the city was effectively a frontier settlement, with the frontlines near the city limits, between Pervomaisk and Popasna.[29] In the years from 2015 to 2022, Pervomaisk would see sporadic shelling, from the Ukrainian side.[30][31]

2022 on

Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pervomaisk has been hit numerous times by Ukrainian shelling, with multiple civilian casualties and fatalities.[32][33][34][35]

After the 2022 battle of Popasna, between March and May, in which the nearby city of Popasna was completely destroyed, Popasna's status as an independent city was abolished in March 2023 by the Russian occupation authorities due to the extent of the destruction, and Popasna, along with several other surrounding areas, was incorporated into Pervomaisk's administrative area.[36] Pervomaisk and Russia's Kaluga region signed a cooperation agreement in June 2022.[37] In mid-2023, it was reported that repairs were being carried out to buildings in Pervomaisk which had been damaged by shelling. Russian authorities reported that it was planned to repair or rebuild 29 apartment houses, five social infrastructure facilities and 11 infrastructural assets in Pervomaisk. The repairs were being carried out by Russia's Kaluga region, which is partnered with Pervomaisk.[37]

Demographics

Population history
YearPop.±% p.a.
1989 51,025—    
2001 38,800−2.26%
2013 38,435−0.08%
2015 15,000−37.53%
2022 36,091+13.36%

Ethnicity as of the Ukrainian Census of 2001:[38]

Native language as of the 2001 census:[38]

Economy

The city's pre-war economy was focused on the mining industry, with several working mines around Pervomaisk.[2]

Mines

  • Zolotoe
  • Gorskaya
  • Carbonite
  • Toshkovskaya
  • Pervomaiskaya

Factories

  • Pervomaisky Mechanical Plant
  • Pervomaisky Electromechanical Plant
  • GOAO "Repair and mechanical plant"

Other businesses

  • Pervomaisky mine-boring department for drilling shafts and wells
  • Pervomaisky mine-building department
  • Mikhailovskaya Central Processing Plant

Due to the ongoing war, many mines, factories and businesses in Pervomaisk are either closed, or not in operation. The static inverter plant of HVDC Volgograd–Donbass is located to the northeast of the city.[39]

Geography

Pervomaisk is located in a traditional mining region, and surrounded by mines.[2]

Pervovmaisk is 63 kilometres (39 mi) from Izvarino, where there is the de jure international border between Ukraine and Russia, however during the war in Donbas, the LPR took control of the border, in autumn 2014.[1] From autumn 2014 until late 2022, Izvarino would serve as a border between the LPR and Russia. After Russia's annexation referendums of September 2022, Izvarino has served as a checkpoint between the LPR, and Rostov Oblast.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b "Fighting rages on despite declared truce". BBC News. 21 June 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d "Encyclopedia". Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  3. ^ "Кабмин назвал города Донбасса, подконтрольные сепаратистам" [Ukraine's Cabinet named the Donbass settlements under separatist control]. 14 November 2014. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Drones Allow People to Witness War at a 'Visceral Level,' Says Filmmaker in Ukraine". 24 September 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Ukraine's forgotten city destroyed by war". 7 January 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Moscow's proxies in occupied Ukraine regions report big votes to join Russia". Reuters. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  7. ^ Walker, Shaun (23 September 2022). "'Referendums' on joining Russia under way in occupied Ukraine". the Guardian. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  8. ^ Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2022 [Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1, 2022] (PDF) (in Ukrainian and English). Kyiv: State Statistics Service of Ukraine. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Ukrainian troops liberate Pervomaisk, Kalynove, Komyshuvakha in west of Luhansk region – ATO press center".
  10. ^ a b Первомайск // Украинская Советская Энциклопедия. том 8. Киев, «Украинская Советская энциклопедия», 1982. стр.173
  11. ^ № 2906. По ленинскому пути // Летопись периодических и продолжающихся изданий СССР 1986 – 1990. Часть 2. Газеты. М., «Книжная палата», 1994. стр.381
  12. ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989". 16 July 1990. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  13. ^ "Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine". 16 July 1990. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  14. ^ "'Casualties' in Ukraine gun battles". BBC News. 13 April 2014. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Luhansk". Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  16. ^ "NINE YEARS AGO, RUSSIA UNLEASHED WAR IN DONBAS". 13 April 2023. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  17. ^ "Russia Calls for "Civilized Implementation" of East Ukraine Referendum Results". The Wall Street Journal. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Russia recognises Ukraine separatist regions as independent states". BBC News. 21 February 2022. Archived from the original on 21 February 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  19. ^ "Ukraine marks 7th anniversary of Kramatorsk, Sloviansk liberation". Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  20. ^ "Ukraine Advances After Heavy Fighting – Jul. 25, 2014". 24 July 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  21. ^ "ATO forces take over Debaltseve, Shakhtarsk, Torez, Lutuhyne, fighting for Pervomaisk and Snizhne underway – ATO press center".
  22. ^ "MH17: AFP again abandon bid to reach Malaysia Airlines crash site after driving into battle zone - Yahoo!7". Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  23. ^ "Ukrainian troops liberate Pervomaisk, Kalynove, Komyshuvakha in west of Luhansk region – ATO press center".
  24. ^ "ATO forces release Pervomaisk, Komyshuvakha and Kalynove| Ukrinform". Archived from the original on 17 August 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  25. ^ "Fierce fighting under way near Donetsk and Luhansk for control over strategic roads – Kyiv".
  26. ^ "Лисенко обіцяє, що Первомайськ скоро звільнять".
  27. ^ "Ukraine claims conflict with pro-Russia rebels entering endgame". 15 August 2014.
  28. ^ "ЛНР: Украинские силовики обстреляли Первомайск из минометов" [The LNR Report that Ukrainian Forces Shelled Pervomaisk with Mortars]. 14 June 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  29. ^ "The media published an accurate map of the borders of the forces in the Donbass". 12 January 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  30. ^ "В ЛНР заявили об обстреле Первомайска с украинской стороны" [The LNR Reported on the Shelling of Pervomaisk from the Ukrainian Side]. 18 April 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  31. ^ "В ЛНР заявили об обстреле Первомайска с украинской стороны" [The LNR Reported on the Shelling of Pervomaisk from the Ukrainian Side]. 20 July 2019. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  32. ^ "ВСУ обстреляли луганский Первомайск" [Ukrainian forces shelled Pervomaisk in the Lugansk area]. 23 March 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  33. ^ "ВСУ обстреляли Первомайск в ЛНР" [Ukrainian Forces Shelled Pervomaisk in the LNR]. 10 June 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  34. ^ "Pro-Russia Militia Blitzes Ukrainian Stronghold With Battery of Howitzers". 10 June 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  35. ^ "Ukrainian artillery strike ruins petrol station in Pervomaisk, damages two homes, communication lines - mayor". 8 June 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  36. ^ "The Ukrainian Cities Obliterated In Russia's Self-Proclaimed 'Liberation'". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 11 June 2023.
  37. ^ a b "Roof repairs completed on 17 apartment buildings in Pervomaisk". 6 June 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2024.}
  38. ^ a b "Офіційна сторінка Всеукраїнського перепису населення". Ukrcensus.gov.ua. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  39. ^ Cory, B.J., Adamson, C., Ainsworth, J.D., Freris, L.L., Funke, B., Harris, L.A., Sykes, J.H.M., High voltage direct current converters and systems, Macdonald & Co. (publishers) Ltd, 1965, p242.
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