Staraya Ladoga (Russian: Старая Ладога) is a village near Lake Ladoga. Its old Russian name is Ladoga (Rus: Ладога). In 1703 Russian tsar Peter I the Great founded the town of Novaya Ladoga ("New Ladoga"), and renamed old Ladoga to Staraya Ladoga ("Old Ladoga"). Its Swedish name is Aldeigjuborg. Dendrochronology reports that it was founded in 753.
It was one of the most important trading port for the Eastern Europe between the year 750–950. In fact, the oldest Arabic Middle Age coin in Europe (where the youngest has been dated to year 786) has been found from archeological remains.
A clearly Scandinavian living culture has been identified from its earliest settlements by archeological remains. However, written evidence (Primary Chronicle), which identifies Staraya Ladoga with Aldeigjuborg and associates it with Ruriks first resident town , shows that most citiziens were Finns.
According to legend (written down, for example, in the Primary Chronicle), it was the first capital of Russia.
Staraya Ladoga: Fortress (Staroladozhskaya krepost')
The heart of Staraya Ladoga is an ancient fortress where the Elena River (Rus: Елена) flows into the Volkhov River. In earlier times, it was a strategic site because it was the only possible harbour for sea-vessels that could not navigate through the Volkhov river.
In 2003 there was a celebration of Staraya Ladoga's 1250th anniversary, that was covered by press and attracted the attention of powerful people (Vladimir Putin, Russian President, visited there). This may give at least minimal funding for the ancient Russian capital, forgotten for many hundreds of years. In the image one can see ancient mounds located in Staraya Ladoga (the shot was taken during the 1250th anniversary celebration, so people are in historical clothes).
