Balti

Visiting the historical city center, old parks and squares, church of the national romanticism style "Saint Constantin and Elena", church "Saint Nikolay", Armenian church, History and Ethnography Museum, Art center, Pedagogical University A.Russo.

 

30 km from Balti - visiting the estate of boyar Hesnash in the village Sofia and House-museum of the Moldavian poet Liviu Deleanu in the village Corleten.

 

           Balti is located 130 km to the northwest from Chisinau on the river Reut. This is the third city in quantity of the population in the country (after Chisinau and Tiraspol). Balti is the economic and cultural center of the northern region, that is why the city is often called "northern capital".

The first annalistic data on this settlement are referred to the beginning of XV century. In 1421 under the government of the Moldavian sovereign Alexander Dobry it passed to possession of the princess Mazovetsky - the sister of Lithuanian prince Vladislav II. The poorly strengthened settlement was often attacked by the Tatars who plundered, devastated and burned houses.

           In the end of XV century the Budak Tatars led by khan Megli-Gereem have completely plundered and burned the settlement and up to the beginning of XVIII century no data on it are kept. In 1711 during the Prussian campaign Balti was the main base for supply of the Russian armies, the foodstuffs ig large quanitites remained here. Having learned about it the Tatars again attacked the settlement, plundered and burned it.

          In 1766 after the Tatars were expelled the Moldavian sovereign Alexander Gika presented the fertile earths on the river Reut to Iasi monastery and brothers - merchants  Alexander, Constantin and Iordakii Panaiti.

In the Panaiti manor they began erection of the village Balti which in the end of XVIII century becomes a small trading center.

And still it was the typical remote place surrounded by the impassable dirt which never dried out between the rains. The city received the name “balti” that means "bog". “My God, relieve us from the rain. Then streets turn in to the continuous medley of dirt. And the dirt in Balti is unusual, liquid on which everybody slips and has to walk using sticks”. These words were written much later, in 1911 when the city received several roadways. You can imagine what was happening in its streets at the time during the short-term visit of the Russian tsar Alexander I when he ordered to rename the place Balti into the city.

           Located at the crossroads of the main roads (it connected cities Chernovtsy, Khotin, Soroca with Chisinau, Bendery, Akkerman, Izmail), the city became the important trading center of Bessarabia. The cattle was the main subject of the trade. On the first Sunday of each month many merchants were coming to the Balti markets for two-three day, they were bringing from 8 to 20 thousand cattle for sale. The Austrian merchants were the main buyers of the cattle. The biggest part of the cattle was taken from the country through the customs in the village Novoselitsa (on the border with Austria) and the Odessa port. Once a year - on 20 July - Balti were holding the fairs where great quantity of cattle was sold. The old passport of our city displays the head of the horse on the red background, the symbol of prosperity.

 

Services of the guide: Russian, Romanian, English, German languages

Transport services: Minivan, Minibus, Bus  

Recommendations for the tourist: 

Take with You convenient footwear and clothes; camera

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