The idea of creating a museum on the territory of the former Fortress of St. Elizabeth – the only extant 18th-century earthwork fortification monument in Europe – is not new for Kropyvnytskyi. According to head of the bureau for the protection of the cultural heritage in the urban planning and architecture department of the city council Nadia Lisniak, no official archaeological excavations have been conducted during the entire lifetime of the fortress on its territory. In 1994 and 2006, a section of the Earthworks (that is how the fortress is popularly known) was researched by the archaeologist Mykola Tupchiienko, who discovered the remains of an ancient gunpowder magazine. However, due to a lack of funds, further work was indefinitely delayed.
“Other European countries have preserved similar fortresses, shaped as a hexagonal star, but their defensive ditches have been filled with water. Our fortress is completely earthwork,” Lisniak continued. “Unfortunately, the idea of regenerating the Fortress of St. Elizabeth has been considered for too long in Kropyvnytskyi. Similar programs have existed since 2002, but they have not been implemented. Today we understand that funding will not cover restoring the entire fortress, as it would be too burdensome for the city budget. But we can restore parts of the ramparts, thus showing the importance of this fortification monument for Kropyvnytskyi’s development. In addition, there are likely many interesting finds still hidden in the soil of the Fortress Earthworks itself. Only imagine how the soldiers stood on the upper rampart, and their tobacco pipes, weapons, some everyday accessories fell down into the ditch... We have not yet investigated any of these! The fortress’s museification process is rather long, but it is worth the effort. This will be another step towards understanding what really emerged first: the city, then called Yelizavetgrad, or the fortress.”
The plans call for restoring a rampart and strengthening it along the lines of analogous armed defensive structures of that time period. According to the Fortress of St. Elizabeth Regeneration Program, the restoration work will begin with the Rampart of St. Andrew the Apostle, located near one of the fortress’s entrances, called the Prechystenski Gate. This part of the Fortress Earthworks is closest to the city center.
A working group which will include scholars, museum workers, and community representatives will develop the museification process.
The department hopes that the regeneration of the nationally significant monument of architecture and urban planning Complex of the Fortress of St. Elizabeth Structures will increase the tourist flow to Kropyvnytskyi.
