There is no reliable information about the foundation of Suzdal, but one of the legends describing this event, written already in the 18th century, sends us back to the times of the great flood . I agree with it, the city appeared thanks to three brothers from the tribe of Japheth (meaning the biblical character, one of the three sons of Noah, considered the progenitor of all Europeans) who came to the Russian land . Two of them, San and Avesarkhan, built a number of cities near the Varangian Sea, and the third, wise Asan, separated from them, built the city "according to his judgment " and named him Suzhdal .

Scientists in the veracity of this version are not too sure and give other variants of the origin of the name. Some believe that it is clearly of Finnish origin, while others adhere to the version that the princes used to convict the people in the city earlier, and that's what the name Suzhdal was called from.

The first official mention about Suzdal refers to the year 1024, when the city was the center of the entire region along the Nerl. At that time, these lands were the richest in all of Kievan Rus.

A little later, at the end of the 11th century the peaceful existence of Suzdal was interrupted by the struggle of Oleg Chernigovsky with the sons of Vladimir Monomakh, Izyaslav and Mstislav. In 1096, Oleg killed Izyaslav and managed to seize the city, but Mstislav, who tried to force Oleg to leave Suzdal, stood up for his defeated brother. That he did, incidentally, having burned down almost the entire city in passing ....

Andrey Bogolyubsky, who came to power, moved the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal princedom from Suzdal to Vladimir, and the subsequent invasion of the Golden Horde again practically equaled the city with the earth. He was burned again, and almost all the inhabitants were captured. However, this did not break him, the city was again resurrected, only now already surrounded by the Horde tribute.

After that, Suzdal is forever losing its political influence, but becomes the center of religious life. It builds a huge number of churches and monasteries for those times, which, by the way, become a haven for many unwanted representatives of noble families exiled from Moscow.

In the 17th century, luck again turns away from Suzdal - it is again burned, this time Polish -Lithuanian troops. What they did not manage to destroy, it becomes a prey of the Crimean Tatars in 1634. The city starts rebuilding again, simultaneously increasing its importance for the religious life of the country at the same time.

But that's not all, in 1719 the city burns down again and is restored again. Approximately in this video, it comes to us as an unbending city museum, striking with the richness and diversity of its religious architecture.