Ternopol

Ternopil (Ukrainian: Тернопіль, Ternopil’; Polish: Tarnopol; Russian: Ternopol) is a city in western Ukraine, located on the banks of the Seret river. It is the capital of Ternopil Oblast.

Ternopil is one of three main cities of Eastern Galicia. It is located at 49°33′N 25°35′E, with a 132km distance to Lviv. The city has a population of 221,300 (as of 2004).

Ternopil is known in the neighbourhood for rock festivals and great subcultural movements. The great Pochayiv Monastery is situated 50 km to the north.

Founded in 1540 by Jan Amor Tarnowski as a Polish military stronghold and a castle. In 1548 Tarnopol was granted city rights by king Sigismund I of Poland.

In the 17th century the town was almost annihilated in the Chmielnicki Uprising which drove out or killed most of its Jewish residents. Ternopil soon recovered but was sacked again in 1770 by adherents of the Confederation of Bar who massacred much of its population.

The Battle of Tarnopol took place from 6 September to 19 September 1915; Austria-Hungary and Germany fought against Russia.

Since 1921 it has been the capital of the Tarnopol voivodship.

During the Polish Defence War of 1939 it was seized by the Soviets and reunited with the rest of Ukraine.