from 1897 The area of Vologda Oblast was settled by
Finnic peoples in prehistory, and most of the
toponyms in the region are, in fact, Finnic.
Vepsians, who still live in the west of the oblast, are the descendants of that population. Subsequently, the area was colonized by the Russians.
Belozersk was mentioned in chronicles in 862 as one of the oldest towns in Russia. Much of the area was controlled by the
Novgorod Republic, in particular,
Totma was founded in 1152.
Veliky Ustyug and the west of the current territory of the Oblast, with Belozersk and
Ustyuzhna, belonged to the
Vladimir-Suzdal Principality and were constantly threatened by Novgorod. Not later than in the 13th century, the Novgorod merchants already reached the
White Sea. They reached the area by using the waterways. The main waterway to the White Sea was the
Northern Dvina, and Novgorod merchants used the
Volga and its tributary, the
Sheksna, along the Slavyanka River into Lake Nikolskoye, then the boats were taken by land to Lake Blagoveshchenskoye, from there downstream along the Porozovitsa River into
Lake Kubenskoye and further to the
Sukhona and the Northern Dvina. In the 13th century, minor principalities started to proliferate. First, the
Principality of Beloozero separated from
Rostov, its northern and northeastern parts in the 15th century became quasi-independent, forming smaller feudal states like the
Principality of Zaozerye or the
Principality of Kubena. Many smaller principalities are only mentioned once in chronicles, and the very existence of these principalities is questionable. Between 1452 and 1481, Vologda was the center of the
Principality of Vologda, the last independent principality in Vologda lands. By the end of the 15th century, all these lands were a part of the
Great Duchy of Moscow. In the 14th and the 15th centuries, the lands around Vologda became attractive for monks looking for desolate areas but still wishing to keep connections with the princes of Moscow. The princes, in their turn, viewed the monasteries as means to keep the influence of the Grand Duchy of Moscow in its remote areas. A number of influential monasteries, including
Spaso-Prilutsky,
Pavlo-Obnorsky,
Kirillo-Belozersky, and
Ferapontov monasteries, were founded. Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery soon became one of the most prominent Russian monasteries, with a lot of political influence, and successful economic development. In the middle of the 15th century, the Vologda Lands were strongly involved with the
Muscovite Civil War: Thus,
Vasily the Blind was exiled to Vologda in 1446 and was released from his allegiance oath by the
hegumen of the
Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, and by the late 1440s the Sukhona valley became the battlefield between the retreating army of
Dmitry Shemyaka and the army of Vasily, chasing Shemyaka. During the
Time of Troubles, the area was ravaged by Polish troops, who at some point besieged Vologda but did not succeed in conquering the city. In the 17th century, Vologda was a prosperous city located on the main trading route from Moscow to Western Europe. During the reign of Tsar
Peter the Great in the 18th century, Vologda became a shipbuilding center and played an important role in support of Russian military operations against Sweden. However, the importance of Vologda as a trade center was diminished after
Saint Petersburg was founded in 1703, and the foreign trade was rerouted to the
Baltic Sea. Peter even imposed restrictions on the White Sea trade. Vologda was the northernmost territory where
serfdom existed in Russia. In the lands west and south of Vologda, estates existed, but to the north and east of Vologda serfdom was never implemented, and the population owned their land. In 1708,
Peter the Great issued an edict which established seven governorates. The description of the borders of the governorates was not given; instead, their area was defined as a set of towns and the lands adjacent to those towns. Two of the governorates,
Archangelgorod Governorate (east of the oblast) and
Ingermanland Governorate (west of the oblast), were located in the present-day area of Vologda oblast. Vologda became a part of Archangelgorod Governorate. Subsequently, the western part of the Oblast was transferred to
Novgorod Governorate. In 1780, Vologda became the administrative center of
Vologda Viceroyalty which included the territory of the former Archangelgorod Governorate. Eventually, the viceroyalty was transformed into
Vologda Governorate. After a sequence of further administrative reforms, Vologda Oblast was established in 1937. During the
Second World War, the Soviet Union operated a prisoner-of-war camp in
Kornilyevo, first for Poles and Finns captured during the Soviet invasions of
Poland and
Finland, and later for German POWs. Parts of
Oshtinsky District in the west of the oblast became the only areas of Vologda Oblast to be occupied by foreign (Finnish) troops. The Finnish advance was stopped in October 1941, but the occupation continued till June 1944, when the
Soviet Army started to advance. In 1955, the construction of
Severstal in the city of
Cherepovets, the biggest industrial enterprise in the oblast, was completed. On 4 July 1997, Vologda, alongside
Bryansk,
Chelyabinsk,
Magadan, and
Saratov signed a power-sharing agreement with the government of Russia, granting it autonomy. The agreement would be abolished on 15 March 2002. ==Politics==