The Fortress of Old Ladoga

     By the end of the IX century a stone fortress was built at the site where the small river Ladozhka flows in to the Volhov. The archeologists under the leadership of professor Kirpichnikov in the 70s of the last century excavated 40 meters of southern and western walls and the remains of a quadrangular tower of the ancient fortification construction. The archeologists age-date the southern stack-stand uncovered on the bulwark to the fortress of 1114 year when Ladoga was under the domination of Novgorod. The chronicles denote “Pavel posadnik of Ladoga founded Ladoga, city of stone…” The southern wall of the XII century fortress runs over the trace of the X century fortress wall and stayed on “prisp” which means made earth ground. The fortress walls that circled a cape were made of lime flags on tincture.

The fortress was restored in the XV century. It was a time when the firearms were used in hostilities and Ladoga fortress protected northern and northwestern boundaries of the Muscovy State. However the walls and the towers of the fortress repeated an original layout.


      Constructed for perimeter defense the Old Ladoga fortress had a shape of extended pentagon. Five powerful towers served as the main strong points and were put outward the external line of the fortress walls. The thickness of the tower walls near its foundation was about 9 meters. The tower had several floors, tiers of battle.

The walls of the fortress and tower were made of the local limestone and clued on lime-white. The facing was made of ashlar, walls inside were filled with boulders.

Gate tower located at the western side served as the single entrance to the fortress.


     Arrow tower stood near the estuary of the Ladozhka at the very top of the cape.


     Secret tower was called so because a well was hidden inside of it from which water was consumed during the sieges. The tower is situated in the middle of eastern stack-stand.


     Thunder tower overlooked at the southeastern angle of the fortress.


     St. Clement tower is situated at southwestern stack-stand.


     The walls of Ladoga fortress had upper and under-sutural tiers of battle. On the top of the wall there was a battle passage covered with wooden rough.
According to professor Kirpichnikov a bastion earthen fortress emerged at the end of the XVI century.

     In the XVI centuries Yamskaya, Pushkarskaya, Kazachya, Nukolskaya and Podmonastyrskaya sloboda appeared around the fortress.

     Only at the end of the XIX century the Russian archeological society paid attention to the destiny of the ancient fortification. However the systematic research of the fortress was undertaken only in the XX century.

     In 1931 V. Bogusevich researched the ruin of Old Ladoga fortress after that P. Rappaport continued this exploration.

     Only by the end of the XIX century the Russian archeological society paid attention to the condition of the ancient fortification. However systematic exploration was undertaken only in the XX century.

     In 70-80s of the XX century special restoration workshops were restoring and preserving the fragments of the stone fortress. After the design of A. Draga, G. Noskov and A. Ekk the Gate tower, St. Clement tower and the stack-stand between them were restored.