The Kremlin is one of the most talked about Russian icons, usually because people have so many conspiracy theories which they like to throw around, which usually do involve the Kremlin. Aside from this however today I want to talk about some facts about this building, which is one of the most visited in Moscow, and in Russia. Movies like to make this place out for something that it may or may not be, but I want to get to the bottom of exactly what this magnificent building actually is, let’s take a look.
Not the Only One
The word Kremlin is used to refer to citadels, and essentially translates to ‘fortress within a city’ there is not just one Kremlin. The Moscow Kremlin however is of course the most famous and this is mainly because it is one of the world’s oldest active fortresses.
President
This is where the government of the Russian Federation resides and it is considered the government’s executive office here in the country. The official website of the government is actually kremlin.ru.
Inside The Kremlin
What many don’t realize is that inside the Kremlin there is an enormous range of structures and of buildings which have nothing to do with the government per se. Here you can find bell towers, a cathedral, secular structures, open plazas and squares and there is two domestic churches as well.
The oldest secular structure still standing is Ivan III’s Palace of Facets (1491), which holds the imperial thrones. The next oldest is the first home of the royal family, the Terem Palace. The original Terem Palace was also commissioned by Ivan III, but most of the existing palace was built in the 17th century.
Recent Developments
Unlike many government buildings around the world, the Kremlin is exceptionally well maintained and reparations and updates are completed very swiftly indeed. In recent years we have seen the installation of a helipad on the site, which is there so that the President can come and go faster, not to mention in order to reduce the traffic which motorcades used to create.
Moscow Population
Based on the most recent census results these are the current figures with regards to the population of Moscow. here were some surprises to be found when compared with 2002 figures but in general, things are moving in a way that is consistent with the rest of the country.
This is all up from 10,382,754 recorded in the 2002 Census.
At the time of the official 2010 Census, the ethnic makeup of the city’s population whose ethnicity was known (10,835,092 people) was:
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Russian: 9,930,410 (91.65%)
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Ukrainian: 154,104 (1.42%)
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Tatar: 149,043 (1.38%)
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Armenian: 106,466 (0.98%)
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Azeri: 57,123 (0.5%)
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Belarusian: 39,225 (0.4%)
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Georgian: 38,934 (0.4%)
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Uzbek: 35,595 (0.3%)
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Tajik: 27,280 (0.2%)
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Moldovan: 21,699 (0.2%)
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Mordvin: 17,095 (0.2%)
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Chechen: 14,524 (0.1%)
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Chuvash: 14,313 (0.1%)
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Ossetian: 11,311 (0.1%)
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Others: 164,825 (1.6%)
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668,409 people were registered from administrative databases, and were not able to declare an ethnicity. It is generally believed that the proportion of those from ethnic backgrounds in this group is around about the same as those of the declared group.
The official population of the city is based on those who hold permanent residency.
According to Russia’s Federal Migration Service, Moscow has just over 1.8 million official guests who have secured temporary residency on the basis of visas or other documentation, this is what contributes to give a legal population of 13.3 million.
The number of undocumented migrants has been estimated for the purpose of the census. In the main these people are, or at least the vast majority are, originating from Central Asia. It has been estimated that an additional 1 million people fall into this category. This gives a total population of about 14.3 million.
Total fertility rate%
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2009 – 1.22
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2010 – 1.25
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2011 – 1.25
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2012 – 1.32
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2013 – 1.33
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2014 – 1.34 (estimated)
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Births (2012): 134 653 (11.3 per 1000)
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Deaths (2012): 117 489 (9.9 per 1000)
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So there you have it, the up-to-date population figures for the city which do run along the same trend as the rest of the country. Moscow will usually rise higher as it has this time around, by way of percentage at least, but there is nothing shocking or surprising about these figures.