Ust-Izhora

59°48′07″N 30°36′14″E

Alexander Nevsky Church on the Neva River in Ust-Izhora

Ust-Izhora (Russian: Усть-Ижо́ра) is a municipal settlement in Kolpinsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, situated at the confluence of the Izhora and Neva Rivers, and is roughly equidistant to St. Petersburg and Shlisselburg, Russia, 30 kilometers (19 mi) from both the Gulf of Finland in the west and Lake Ladoga in the northeast. Population: 1,354 (2010 Census);^[1] 1,152 (2002 Census);^[2] 1,378 (1989 Soviet census).^[3]

The settlement is believed to mark the location of the Battle of the Neva (July 15, 1240), when weak forces led by Prince Alexander Yaroslavich of Novgorod defeated the Swedes here, and prevented them from advancing farther south into Ingria. The chronicles tell of a "great battle," in which Alexander's men stormed and sank three Swedish ships, and Alexander himself wounded Birger, the Swedish commander.

Following this victory on the Neva, the prince was renamed Alexander Nevsky. The Russian Orthodox Church eventually canonized him, and he is now the patron saint of Saint Petersburg. A church was built on the bank of the Neva in 1799 to commemorate the famous battle. Close by the church are two monuments honoring Alexander Nevsky, in whose memory the church is dedicated.

References

1. Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1 [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года [2010 All-Russia Population Census] (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service.
2. Federal State Statistics Service (May 21, 2004). Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек [Population of Russia, Its Federal Districts, Federal Subjects, Districts, Urban Localities, Rural Localities—Administrative Centers, and Rural Localities with Population of Over 3,000] (XLS). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года [All-Russia Population Census of 2002] (in Russian).
3. Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров [All Union Population Census of 1989: Present Population of Union and Autonomous Republics, Autonomous Oblasts and Okrugs, Krais, Oblasts, Districts, Urban Settlements, and Villages Serving as District Administrative Centers]. Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года [All-Union Population Census of 1989] (in Russian). Институт демографии Национального исследовательского университета: Высшая школа экономики [Institute of Demography at the National Research University: Higher School of Economics]. 1989 – via Demoscope Weekly.