YAROSLAVL, capital of the above government, stands on the right bank of the Volga, at its junction with the Kotorost, 173 miles by rail to the north-east of Moscow, and had a population of 48,310 inhabitants in 1884 ; but this number is temporarily much increased during the period of navigation. The suburbs of the town occupy the left bank and are inundated at high water. A fine quay borders the Volga for nearly two miles. The cathedrals and several churches are very old. The Uspenskiy cathedral was begun in 1215 and rebuilt in 1648 ; the churches of the Preobrazhenskiy monastery, St John's, and Voskreseniye date from the 15th and 17th centuries, the second being a fine specimen of the architectural style exemplified in the Vasiliy Blazhennyi church of Moscow. Yarostavl has a lyceum, founded by Demidoff, with a juridical faculty, three gymnasia (409 boys, 669 girls), and various primary schools. The manufactories, whose total production in 1862 barely reached the value of £200,000, now employ 5100 hands and yield an output valued at about £1,000,000 (one-half from one cotton-mill). The trade, especially that in corn, is very active and accounts for one-quarter of the whole traffic of the government. The Yaroslavl merchants also carry on a large import trade in manufactured goods and groceries.

The town of Yarostavl was founded in 1026-1036 by Yarostav Vladimirovitch, who caused a wooden fort to be erected at the confluence of the Kotorost with the Volga.. It became the chief town of a principality in 1218 and remained so until 1471, when it fell under the dominion of Moscow. Even in the 13th century Yarostavl was an important town, and, although it suffered during subsequent wars, it maintained its importance until the 19th century, when the trade on the Volga and its rising manufactures again gave it a position of predominance in the upper basin of the Volga.