Koporye Fortress

Koporye Fortress is situated at the edge of Izhora plateau, at the top of a high limestone rock surrounded by deep natural gullies from all the sides. The maximum height above the gully from south-west is 50 meters.

The first fortification in Koporye was built supposedly in 1237 and the first reference of it was in 1240. It was a time when the knights of the Livonian Order captured Koporye and built the wooden fortress here. But at the next year Novgorod army led by Alexander Nevsky set those lands free from Livonians.

The first stone Koporye Fortress was built in 1280 by prince Dmitry Alexandrovich, the son of Alexander Nevsky. But in less than two years it was dismantled by Novgorodians. And that was their mistake, and they realized it. That's why in 1297 they started rebuilding the fortress. Its laying became the foundation of the walls that we can see nowadays.

Natural protection of the fortress explains the low number of the towers that it has. There are only 4 towers per 530 meters of the walls. But despite this Koporye Fortress had changed its owners for several dozens of times during multiple wars.

Koporye Fortress has finally became part of Russia in 1703, in the year of Saint-Petersburg foundation. Peter the Great could not leave the fortress to the Swedes as it was too close to the new capital of Russia. After the fortress had been regained Peter the Great visited it.

The year of 1703 when Koporye Fortress was regained by Russia was its last year as a military fortress. After the Great Northern War, Russian borders were moved far to the west and Koporye lost its strategic value.

In 1763 by the decree of the empress Catherine the Great, Koporye Fortress was officially excluded from the list of functioning fortresses.