Early history While there are no historical records, archaeological evidence shows that a fortress settlement existed between the
Oka River and
Orlik Rivers as early as the 12th century, when the land was a part of the
Principality of Chernigov. The name of the fortress is unknown; it may not have been called Oryol at the time. In the 13th century, the fortress became a part of the
Zvenigorod district of the
Karachev Principality. In the early 15th century, the territory was conquered by the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The city was soon abandoned by its population after being sacked either by Lithuanians or the
Golden Horde. The territory became a part of the
Tsardom of Russia in the 16th century.
Tsardom of Russia Ivan IV Vasilyevich decreed that a new fortress be built on the spot in 1566 for the purpose of defending the southern borders of the country. The fortress was built starting in the summer of 1566 and ending in the spring of 1567. The location chosen was less than ideal strategically, as the fortress was located on a seasonally flooded low ground easily targeted from the neighboring high ground.
False Dmitry I and his army passed through Oryol in 1605;
Ivan Bolotnikov in 1606;
False Dmitry II camped in Oryol for the winter of 1607–1608. Polish forces sacked it in 1611 and 1615. While the population fled after the second sacking and moved to
Mtsensk, the Orlovsky Uyezd continued to exist administratively. Oryol was rebuilt in 1636. The question of moving the fortress to the more advantageous high ground was debated until the 1670s, but the move was never made. The fortress was deemed unnecessary and taken apart in the early 18th century.
Russian Empire In the mid-18th century Oryol became one of the major centers of grain production, with the Oka River being the major trade route until the 1860s when it was replaced by a railroad. Oryol was granted town status in 1702. In 1708, Oryol was included as a part of
Kiev Governorate; in 1719,
Oryol Province was created within Kiev Governorate. The Province was transferred to the newly created
Belgorod Governorate in 1727. On March 11 (February 28
old style), 1778
Oryol Vice-Royalty was created from parts of
Voronezh and Belgorod Governorates. In 1779, the city was almost entirely rebuilt based on a new plan; and the Oryol River was renamed Orlik (lit: "little eagle").
Russian Republic After the
October Revolution of 1917, the city was in Bolshevik's hands, except for a brief period between October 13 and October 20, 1919, when it was controlled by
Anton Denikin's
White Army.
Soviet Union Oryol was once again moved between different
oblasts in the 1920s and 1930s: first as Oryol Governorate until 1928, then
Central Black Earth Region between 1928 and 1934, finally in
Kursk Oblast), finally becoming the administrative center of its own Oryol Oblast on September 27, 1937. The
Oryol Prison was a notable place of incarceration for political prisoners and war prisoners of the
Second World War.
Christian Rakovsky,
Varvara Yakovleva,
Maria Spiridonova,
Olga Kameneva and 153 other prominent political prisoners were shot on September 11, 1941 on
Joseph Stalin's orders in the
Medvedev Forest massacre outside Oryol. During
World War II, Oryol was occupied by the
Wehrmacht on October 7, 1941. The French air squadron
Normandie-Niemen fought in the skies over Oryol. Oryol was liberated on August 5, 1943 during the
Oryol strategic offensive operation "Kutuzov" on the
Oryol-Kursk Bulge. The city was almost completely destroyed. By Order No .2 of I. V. Stalin of August 5, 1943, on this day in Moscow, an artillery salute was given to the troops that liberated Oryol. Since then, the city has had the nickname, "City of the First Salute", and the day of the liberation from the German invaders was celebrated as the city's day. On September 19, 1943, in the Oryol, was the first parade of partisan units stationed in the Oryol region during the war. Bahnhof von Orjol im September 1941.jpg|Oryol railway station in September 1941 Orjol Innenstadt September 1941.jpg|Downtown Oryol (1941) Orjol Kulturdenkmaeler September 1941.jpg|Damaged cultural monuments in Oryol (1941) Orjol Untere Stadt mit Oka September 1941.jpg|Lower districts of Oryol on the banks of the Oka River (1941)
Russian Federation 's
FIRMS detected fire at a Oryol oil depot on 14 December 2024 00:20:00 (
UTC) On December 14, 2024 during the
Russian invasion of Ukraine an oil depot in Oryol was attacked and set on fire by Ukrainian drones. Russian social media reported explosions and the governor confirmed a fire had broken out at an "infrastructure facility". A fire at the oil depot was detected by
NASA's
FIRMS. == Geography ==