Vyazniki, Vladimir Oblast

Vyazniki is a town and the administrative center of Vyaznikovsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia. It stands on a height overlooking the Klyazma River, a site that mattered for defending the approaches to the medieval capital Vladimir, and a fortress named Yaropolk was established there in the 12th century, most likely in the 1130s. The Mongols destroyed that fortress in 1238; the settlement of Vyazniki appeared downhill from it toward the end of the 16th century, was first mentioned in documents in 1608, grew into a merchant sloboda and was granted town status in 1778. The 2021 census counted 36,203 residents, down from 41,248 in 2010. The town is one of the centers of the flax industry of Russia, and its most notable landmark is the Annunciation Church, built between 1682 and 1689.