In the vast expanses of Ukraine, there are many amazing places that, with their thousand-year history, beauty and uniqueness, arouse interest, excitement and admiration. One of such places, meeting with which makes the heart beat with excitement, is the picturesque island of Khortytsia. Surrounded by the mighty Dnieper, fenced with stone cliffs, covered with centuries-old forest, shrouded in legends, sung by poets, recreated by artists, it has become one of the seven wonders of Ukraine.
Khortytsia Island is a unique place, because it wonderfully combines miniature landscapes typical for the whole of Ukraine, geological, historical and cultural monuments. On Khortytsia you can find coniferous and oak forests, steppes, meadows, mountains, swamps, deserts. Hundreds of plant species and many tree species are widely spread, ten of which are in the Green Book of Ukraine. Wild animals, birds, reptiles, amphibians - dozens of species of fauna, including those listed in the Red Book of Ukraine, feel free here. The island is covered with lakes and bays, and small and large islands and rocks are spread around it.
This is the largest island on the Dnieper, and it is also the largest river island in the world, its length reaches 12 kilometers, its width is up to 2.5 kilometers, and its total area is 2,360 hectares.
But Khortytsia is most interesting for its centuries-old glorious history from the Paleolithic era to the present day.
Center of the ancient world
The history of the island began long before humans appeared on our planet. According to scientists, it was formed as a result of a major geological fault that occurred more than two million years ago. It was then that Khortytsia, which was previously part of the mainland, broke away and became an island that divided the wide Dnieper into two channels. This is confirmed by the Khortytsia granite rocks, which are the oldest rocks on Earth.
During the Paleolithic era, almost 35,000 years ago, the first people settled on the island, as evidenced by archaeological finds.
In different eras, carriers of different cultures, nationalities and nations settled and lived on Khortytsia. It is known that the Cimmerians lived on the island from the 9th century BC, and from the 7th to the 2nd century BC the Scythians ruled here. It is from the Scythians that the settlement "Sovutyna Skela" with a defensive rampart, moat and residential buildings and Scythian mounds remained on Khortytsia. There is an opinion that Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian, once visited this island, from where he brought the legend about the son of Hercules and Tabitha, the goddess of snakes, who became the ancestor of the Scythians. After the Scythians, the island became a settlement for the ancient Sarmatians. At different times, the Khazars, Pechenegs, Polovtsians, Huns, Avars and, of course, Slavs lived here. The memory of them is preserved in the local land and rocks.
Khortytsia is located on one of the most important trade routes along the Dnieper - the famous route "from the Varangians to the Greeks" passed nearby. This made the island an object of strategic importance, because control over it meant control over the crossing of the river, which was the narrowest in this place.
In the 9th century, the Slavs built a city here of fords, free warriors who controlled all the fords across the Dnieper.
The Byzantine emperors also knew about Khortytsia. Constantine the Great was the first to mention the island in his treatise "On the Governance of the Empire", published in 952. The emperor writes about it as the island of St. George, on which the Rus' make sacrifices.
In Slavic manuscripts, the island was also mentioned, but it was called differently: Khortych, Khorchik, Khyrtytsia, Kortytsky, Ortynsky, Instrsky. And only in 1435 did the Venetian A. Bianchi record it on his map as Khortytsia. Opinions about where the name of the island Khortytsia comes from differ significantly. According to some scholars, this name comes from the sun god Khors, one of the ancient gods of the Eastern Slavs. Others derive it from the word of Turkic-Polovtsian origin "orta", which means "middle" (it is meant that Khortytsia is located in the middle of the Dnieper). Some believe that since the shape of the island resembles a dog in outline, its name comes from the Ukrainian word "hort".
During the time of Kievan Rus, Princes Askold and Dir, Oleg, Igor, and Princess Olga visited Khortytsia. Here, in a clash with the Pechenegs, Prince Svyatoslav Igorevich of Kiev died in the spring of 972. The Ipatiev Chronicle mentions a stop on the island of the army of Prince Svyatopolk Izyaslavovich in 1103. And in 1223, a princely gathering was held on Khortytsia, in preparation for the battle with the Mongol-Tatar army on the Kalka River.
The struggle of the Kiev princes did not always bring victory, so in the history of Khortytsia there is a more than a hundred-year period when it was owned by the khans of the Golden Horde.
Glorious past
The brightest and most famous pages in the history of Khortytsia certainly belong to the times of the Zaporozhian Cossacks, because from the end of the 15th century, refugees from national and feudal oppression found refuge in Khortytsia. The Zaporozhian Sich arose in 1552-1557 in the first town on Khortytsia, founded by Dmitry Vyshnevetsky. The island, having unique natural defensive structures, became a Cossack stronghold, strong fortifications, military bases, fortresses were built on it, from here, under the leadership of hetmans, the Cossacks went on their campaigns against the Turkish Sultan, the Crimean Khan, noble Poland and the Russian Empire.
It was with the defeat of the Polish detachment near Khortytsia in January 1648 that the liberation war against Poland began, led by Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky. From that time on, Khortytsia became a true free city of the Ukrainian Cossacks, courageous and heroic.
The Zaporozhian Sich was an important phenomenon in the history of Ukraine. The foundations of its statehood were formed here: military, political, cultural, economic. The Zaporozhian Sich controlled large territories, had a multi-thousand-strong army and an administrative apparatus. The Cossacks had their own state symbols: a coat of arms, anthem, banners. They themselves, through free voting, elected their leaders. At the same time, very strict legal legislation operated in the Sich, which mercilessly and resolutely eradicated robbery and theft. There was a school of military art, and a general school was organized at the church, so the level of education of the Cossacks was quite high. Most commanders of various levels, many privates received education in various educational institutions, including the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
After defeating the Zaporozhian Sich in 1775, the Russian Empress Catherine II tried to eradicate the spirit of Cossack freedom. Prince Grigory Potemkin, to whom the Tsarina generously gave the island, planted a garden here, and Admiral José de Ribas, whom everyone knows as the founder of Odessa, built a pier and shipyard here.
Since 1790, the new owners of Khortytsia were colonists, German Mennonites, who carefully and neatly arranged their lives, building strong brick houses, outbuildings, planting gardens and cultivating vegetable gardens. Literate and educated, they quickly learned the Ukrainian language, which helped in communicating with local residents. During the First World War, the Germans left Khortytsia, leaving behind a huge experience of respectful attitude towards nature, labor, land, and education.
Khortytsia has always attracted prominent people with its originality, nature, history and culture. In the 19th century, Taras Shevchenko, Mykola Lysenko, Ilya Repin, Valentin Serov, Maxim Gorky, Ivan Bunin came here. And they all felt the greatness of this place, reflecting it in their works.
And in the 1920s, ancient Khortytsia became a place of new pilgrimage for people who wanted to see with their own eyes a historical event – the construction of the Dnipro Hydroelectric Power Plant, which stretched out opposite the rocks located in the north of the island. Thus, Khortytsia entered a new historical milestone.
Traveling around the island
Today, Khortytsia Island and the surrounding islands and rocks, Dubovyi, Baida, Blyznyuky, Rostyobin, Serednya, Tri Stolpy, are part of the Khortytsia National Reserve, a museum complex included in the State Register of Immovable Monuments of Ukraine. Its historical, archaeological and natural uniqueness attracts tourists not only from Ukraine, but also from all over the world.
Numerous museums, panoramas, historical and cultural complexes of Khortytsia recreate all periods in the history of the island, from the most ancient to the most recent. Historical monuments are harmoniously combined with the rich diversity of nature. On the island you can spend time for every taste: historical and ecological excursions, scientific, educational, sports, hiking, horseback riding, cycling, water and underwater tourism, as well as rock climbing and even orienteering. There are recreation centers and sanatoriums-dispensaries, children's and youth health complexes.
If you look at the map of Khortytsia, in the north you can see the rocks: Sredniy Stolp, Pokhyy Stolp and Divan, combined under the common name Three Pillars, which have long been considered a kind of gate to Khortytsia. And behind the gate begins the most developed part of the island, rising on the Dnieper. It is the most accessible and popular among tourists, because it is here that most of the objects that are interesting to see are concentrated. In addition, it also has a convenient tourist infrastructure: numerous historical monuments, health resorts, roads, transport stops, parking lots, bicycle paths and hiking trails. Here rise rocks that reach several dozen meters in height, thereby attracting climbers. Most of the territory is covered with steppe and coniferous and deciduous forests, which are pierced by picturesque dirt roads.
It is in the north of Khortytsia that there is a world-famous museum and historical and cultural center related to the history of the island and the Zaporozhian Cossacks.
The Museum of the History of the Zaporozhian Cossacks is a dark, granite-lined room that immediately takes you back in time. Ancient relics on the walls, ancient exhibits found on the island and its surroundings create a sense of living history. Here you can see stone tools, shipwrecks, icons, ceramics, dishes, interior and household items. But the history of this region is most clearly and spectacularly presented in the dioramas "The Last Battle of Svyatoslav", "Military Council on the Sich", "Night Assault by the Soviet Army of Zaporozhye on October 14, 1943", "Construction of the Dneprohes".
In the museum courtyard is the Black Stone, transported from the shore, covered with ancient sacred lines. According to one version, it came here millions of years ago with a glacier, and according to another, it was brought along the Dnieper from the far north.
Not far from the museum, on the edge of a cliff, at the place where, according to legend, the Kiev prince Svyatoslav died after being ambushed by the Pechenegs, there is a memorial sign. And the legend is supported by the fact that a sword was recently pulled out of the Dnieper waters, which, judging by its decoration, could have belonged to the prince.
Near the museum, the Tarasov Trail has been laid, along which an excursion is conducted dedicated to the young poet's stay on the island.
The historical and cultural center "Zaporozhian Sich", widely known from the frames of the feature film "Taras Bulba", is a recreation of the ancient Cossack capital with all its characteristic buildings and original elements of everyday life. There are huts, the Temple of the Protection of the Holy Virgin, a military office, the house of the basket ataman, a Sich school, a treasury, a gunsmith. A forge, a tavern, a pottery and a "Greek hut" were built. All this was done with observance of historical authenticity, natural materials and therefore very accurately conveys the atmosphere of Cossack life, which you can not only get acquainted with, but also become a participant in during various holidays and festivals.
The equestrian theater impresses with its mastery of horse riding and saber exercises, and its participants, dressed in traditional Cossack costumes, enhance these impressions with a sense of authenticity. You can also take a ride on a horse or a sleigh yourself, depending on the season.
In the city of craftsmen, you can become the owner of blacksmith or painted wooden products, traditional Ukrainian embroidery. And you should definitely try dishes of national Ukrainian cuisine, which will be prepared right in front of you by wonderful chefs according to ancient recipes.
Fans of ancient legends will definitely be interested in the gorge "Snake's Cave", in which, supposedly, a fire-breathing dragon lived, which left the island with the Cossacks. It is said that these places are associated with the origin of the Scythians from the youngest son of Hercules, who was so strong that he managed to pull his father's bow, for which he received the southern Ukrainian lands as an inheritance. You can get into the cave only by getting to its entrance by boat.
On the Middle Pillar there is a Cossack bowl, a recess with a diameter of one and a half meters. It is said that the Cossacks cooked dumplings in it and fed each other from it with one and a half meter spoons.
If you continue driving through Khortytsia from the north to the center, you can reach a hill, which is mostly covered with steppe, bordered by forests in ravines and glades, and orchards. This is the highest point, which offers a unique view of Zaporizhia and the Dnieper.
Here is the historical and cultural complex "Scythian Stan" - an open-air museum, which has reconstructed mounds, filled in the time of the Egyptian pyramids. The museum stores many ancient monuments collected from all over the region: stone women, Cossack crosses, burial boxes, steles, millstones. In the north of the complex is a museum of stone sculptures, which contains historical monuments that were used by the inhabitants of these lands in different eras. So, just walking, you can easily touch a trough, a stupa, a cannon, a gatepost, a cross, which were created by the ancient Scythians, Cimmerians or Polovtsians.
And here you can also come across the cemetery of the Mennonites, who lived here in the 19th century, and from their stay on the island, only stone tombstones with quotes from the Bible and the Gospels carved on them remained.
The center of the island is a place permeated with the spirit of ancestors, calm and peaceful. There is no hustle and bustle of the north here. The combination of historical sites with picturesque nature makes this part of the island especially attractive for a quiet holiday. With the exception of one road, all roads here are pedestrian.
And for those tourists who want even more solitude, the south of Khortytsia awaits, a protected part of the island, remote from the main roads. Wild nature, in which people are forbidden to interfere. Wide meadows, forests, lakes, straits - places of free habitat of the main number of animals, birds and insects represented on Khortytsia.
Once upon a time, before the construction of the hydroelectric power plant and the creation of the Kakhovka Reservoir, there was a Protolchy Ford, which connected the banks of the Dnieper River so that you could walk along it waist-deep in water, barely getting wet.
In the bed of the old Dnieper is the island of Baidy, on which Dmytro Vyshnevetsky once built the first fortified town on Khortytsia and where he stopped Tatars who were hunting on Ukrainian lands.
Tips for tourists
Khortytsia is a unique monument that has not lost its originality, beauty, uniqueness and fame. It is interesting to visit here at any time of the year. It is best to come with an overnight stay to have time to see as much as possible, and also take a walk, swim in the waves of the Dnieper or in local rivers or lakes. In addition, the incredible number of Khortytsia antiquities is simply impossible to comprehend in a short period of time. You can stay overnight in hotels, and there is a place for tents on the Tourist Beach.
Entrance to the island is free for everyone. But be prepared for the fact that some exhibitions require a fee. You will also have to pay if you wish to take part in any of the many different excursions around the island.
Getting to the island is very easy, because even if you don't have your own car, you can simply drive here from both banks of the Dnieper River, and there are a large number of buses, minibuses, and trains running from Zaporizhia to Khortytsia.
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