Yam Fortress

Yam (also Yama or Yamgorod; Russian: Ям) is a fortress and heritage site located on the eastern bank of the Luga river in Kingisepp, Leningrad Oblast, Russia.

The fortress was built in 1384 by Ivan Fyodorovich, a boyar (noble) of the Novgorod republic, to protect the republic's western borders. Thanks to it, Yam remained unconquered from the 14th to 15th centuries. The fortress was completely rebuilt after the Novgorod Republic was incorporated into the Grand Principality of Moscow. Following the construction of Ivangorod Fortress, Yam fortress lost its military significance.

Between the end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century, Yam fortress was captured twice by the Swedish army, and the fortress was awarded to Sweden in 1612 by the Treaty of Stolbovo. Russians stormed the fortress in 1658 and captured most of it, however the Swedish garrison held out in the Detinets. Subsequently, the Swedish army demolished most of the fortress (except for the Detinets) to re-build it. Construction of a new bastion-type fortress was begun but never finished. In 1703 the fortress was recaptured by the Russians. The construction of Yam was completed by the Russian tsar Peter the Great.

However, since the border of Russia extended further westward, Yam fell into disuse. The remains of the Detinets were demolished on the orders of Catherine the Great in 1781, and the bastions were abandoned. In the 19th century, the area surrounding the fortress became a town park.

Text adapted from “Yam fortress” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Yam Fortress ranks #2,988 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #79 of the 141 mapped in Russia. Founded 1384, it is older than 55% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 582 atlas entries founded in the 14th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 1,329 times in the last 60 days, more than 56% of the atlas. 2 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. See how Russia compares in the castle statistics.

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