Legends of the ore, miners, Rudane, Krivoy Rog

Over the XX-th century’s ancient Krivorozhskaya area on a bend of the rivers Ingulets and Saksagan serves people. Since the writing of Ancient Greek poet Eshila about Scythian iron which has given subsequently life to the ore Cossacks, continuing praises to this precious metal «the father of history» Gerodota. Much later the history has learned about the last leader of Zaporizhzhya Sich, a talented manager, brave warriors, the successful colonizer of the Wild field and the zealous owner of Cossack republic Peter Kalnyshevsky who has surprisingly accurately defined coordinates of the future post station Krivoi Rog. For from this station since May, 8th, 1775 the future ore-bearing city has start owes by the name to a cape outline where its two picturesque rivers Ingulets and Saksagan have merged.

But still the talk that precedes the appearance of all the other legends of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, the glorious miners, precious industrialist was a legend about a girl Rudane. In hoary antiquity came in our region large and mighty tribe. The green meadows, rivers rich with fish, boundless steppes were pleasant to people. The tribe has begun to live well. Long hungry wanderings were forgotten. People sowed corn and thanked for it to gods. So there were years. Nothing foretold trouble. Rivers as well as earlier was full of fish, in steppe sufficed a grass with which fed cattle. But the Sun was made angry on people. The spring and summer were droughty that year. Has burned down a crop, grasses have dried up. The only hope remained in the tribe - hunting and fishing. And so they have lived up to the new spring. And then again, hopefully thrown into the ground grain. But under a blazing sun dried shoots and grasses have dried up on a root. Animals began to leave these places, and fish has lain down at the bottom. Starvation threat has hung over people. Elders thought long and have decided to leave these places for ever, to search happy destiny in other places. And when the tribe had already gathered in the road, came the elder, and said that we have angered the gods and for this they sent us a punishment. That our fields have again started to give birth, that the moisture sufficed to all, and the sun was not so burning, the happiest and most beautiful young couple from our tribe should give itself to a victim to gods. I say this, how gods have speak to me today, the elder said.

When the wise man has stopped to speak, harmonous and brown-eyed inhabitant of the steppe left the crowd. All at once have recognized in her the first beauty of their tribe by name of Rudana. Her handsome husband followed her. They have become engaged more recently. They went to a rock, a place where the tribe always brought gifts to their gods. Someone from the tribe was still trying to stop them. People called: stop Rudan! You are still very young, you should live long life in this world! Stay! We still find new and better land… But Rudana heard nobody. She walked on, full of pride, convinced of the rightness of his decision. Youth! – people do not cease to cry after. – Stop! You're so young! Our tribe is never sacrificed to the gods of human life. For a moment, in the heart of youth in doubt and he slowed down. But Rudan already climbed to the top of the cliff that hangs over a river. She waved her hand: «Farewell, people!...» and jumped into the waves. At the very same time the storm stirred up all around. Immovable people were amazed with a feat of the brown-eyed beauty. The young man rushed to the top. He wanted to see a place below where has jumped its favourite. But before his eyes there was only dark chasm in which terrible waves stormed. And then, without thinking, he has jumped after Rudana.

Even more powerful storm covers cliff, river and everything that was around this place. The element didn't abate two days and two nights. Lightning walked repeatedly in the sky as if they wanted to disperse powers of darkness that have so long hung over the unfortunate tribe. And when the long-awaited came and the sun shone nothing around was impossible to recognize. Grasses turned green, crops alive in the fields, even a lark, which for a long time was unheard here, sang its song in blue sky. And blood of Rudany has got to bowels of the Earth. It has turned to iron ore, keeping a reddish shade. This ore is deeply hidden underground... Much closer to the surface, over red ore lies dark blue, poorer ore. Old people say that this body of the young man covers with itself courageous beauty of Rudana…

Our great slavic people are very rich on legends! The legendary founder of the modern mining-metallurgical center of Ukraine, old-timer the Cossack Krivoi Rog long will disturb rich imagination of fellow countrymen. After all, legends die hard. Besides the people have allocated Rog with fine work list. And it has lost the eye in fight, and the foot to it was interrupted by an enemy sabre... But the real first krivorogian man was other man – zaporozhien clerk Kudlyk Theodosius. He and five Cossacks subordinating him have arranged for a postal station chase. As if cutting the ribbon at the new post path Kremenchug-Kinburn. The further history of Krivoi Rog is a growth round station of a large village of peasants, inhuman cruelty of the Nikolaev military settlement, sleepy everyday life of a deaf place of Hersonshchiny. The status of the city of Krivoi Rog has received in 1860.

Sleepy vegetation of boondocks was blown up by fantastic gushing forth energy of Alexander Nikolaevich Pol'. This great-grandson of the sufferer for truth – hetman of Ukraine Pavla Polubotka – for good reason hasn't been named in the spirit of the time «Novorossiskiy Columb». The decision to establish to it a monument during lifetime was seriously discussed at meeting of noble family of Ekaterinoslav. Pol' itself was huge public force. The Verhnedneprovsky landowner, the far-sighted vigorous businessman and carried away by the past of Ukraine the historian, the ethnographer, the archeologist, the generous philanthropist, the lawyer and the educator of edge, A.N. Pol' became the founder of industrial extraction Khrivoridgen iron ores, the initiator of a lining of a trunk-railway Krivoi Rog – Donbass, bridge buildings through Dnepr in Ekaterinoslave, constructions Bryansk metallurgical and Gdantsevsky iron factories. For building perfection «Old (Amur)» the railway bridge at the World's fair in Paris Pol has been awarded a gold medal simultaneously with the Eiffel Tower.

In 1897 Krivorozhsky iron-ore mining area has overtaken Ural on extraction of iron. its trade relations with the 'world workshop grew stronger – Britain, with Austria-Hungary, Holland, Germany and the Western provinces of the Russian Empire - Kingdom of Poland. Ore export has reached 23 % of extraction. Due to high efficiency of work made destitute krivoy rog miners, to enterprise talent Shimanovsky, Rogovsky, Kopylov, Kolachevsky, other miners, metallurgists, and large investments of French and Belgian banks Krivoy Rog was obliged to yield to the level of two-thirds of the iron ore production of the Russian Empire. The rapid growth of iron-ore district broke the First World War. In 1922, after the October Revolution and the Civil War, a competent expert remarked: «Such phenomenon as flooding for four years of the whole ore area captured by events in the blossoming condition, didn't meet even in the history of mining».

Modern Krivoi Rog is a city-giant; it was stretched from the north to the south on 126 km. But the giant, even among fellow ribbon development, it has surprisingly «wasp waist», is barely 20 km wide. Administrative division of the city consists of 7 districts, 5 towns and city in the city – Ingulets. Together they occupy an area of 450 km².