Kadiivka (Ukrainian: Кадіївка) or Stakhanov (Russian: Стаханов), is a city in Alchevsk Raion, Luhansk Oblast, eastern Ukraine. It is located on the Komyshuvakha River, a right tributary of the Luhan.[1] Ukraine renamed the city 'Kadiivka' in 2016, and refers to the city by this name, however Ukraine has not controlled the city since early 2014.[2][3][4] The city is incorporated by Ukraine as a city of oblast significance.
Following their 2022 annexation referendum, Russia claimed the entire Luhansk Oblast, including Stakhanov, as part of their LPR / LNR.[5][6] Its population is approximately 73,248 (2022 estimate).[7] Russia still calls the city 'Stakhanov', after the famous Soviet miner Alexei Stakhanov.[8]
Name
The name Kadiivka (Ukrainian: Кадіївка; Russian: Кадиевка, romanized: Kadiyevka) dates back to 1898.[1] The city was briefly renamed Serho, after Bolshevik leader Sergo Ordzhonikidze (Ukrainian: Серго) between 1937 and 1940, before returning to the name Kadiivka from 1940 to 1978. [9][10][11] On 15 February 1978, the city was renamed Stakhanov (Ukrainian: Стаханов; Russian: Стаханов) after the famous Soviet miner Alexei Stakhanov, who started his career there.[12] On 12 May 2016, Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada voted to change its name back to Kadiivka as a result of decommunization laws.[3] The Luhansk People's Republic, and later Russian, occupation authorities who militarily control the city have not recognized this decision and maintain the name Stakhanov.[13][14]
History
Kadiivka has its origins in the mid-19th century in the settlement of Shubynka, when coal mining was developing in the region.[1] It became known as Kadiivka in 1898.[1]
In January 1928, the town became the center of Kadiivka Raion.[15]A local newspaper has been published in the settlement since September 1930.[16] In 1931, the session of the All-Ukrainian Central Executive Committee decided to build a new orderly city. Kadiivka received city status in 1932.[1] In April 1932, Kadiivka Raion - along with five other raions in the Donbas - was abolished, due to the "great industrial importance and development prospects" of the areas. The territory of the abolished raion was annexed to the expanded Kadiivka Municipality, which was subordinated to the center.[17]
During the Second World War, the city was occupied by German troops from July 1942 until September 1943. A Soviet labor camp for German prisoners of war operated at Kadiivka during the Second World War.[18][19] In November 1944, three districts (city district councils) were created: Illichivskyi, Bryanskyi, and Golubivskyi.[20] In the 1950s, the city encompassed settlements that were later separated into separate cities - Brianka, Pervomaisk, and Kirovsk.[21]
The city was renamed in 1978 in honor of Alexei Stakhanov,[22] a Soviet coal miner famous for purportedly setting a new record of coal mining output using his own innovative working methods and inspiring the Stakhanovite movement.[22][12]
From 2014, Kadiivka, as all of Donbas, became caught up in the aftermath of Euromaidan. From April 2014, pro-Russia separatists started taking over parts of the south and east of Ukraine.[23] In April and early May 2014, Luhansk and the surrounding area, including Kadiivka,
was taken over by Russian-backed forces of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR / LNR).[24][2] The Ukrainian Government launched their Anti-Terrorist Operation in mid-April 2014, with the aim of taking back all territories under separatist control.[25] In May, the 2014 Donbass status referendums were held. The referendums returned an overwhelming majority vote to cede from Ukraine into the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, however they were condemned by the west, and did not obtain international recognition.[26][27]
Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Stakhanov has been a significant location. In 2022, Russia's Wagner Group were reported to have significant bases in Kadiivka, which were repeatedly targeted by Ukrainian strikes. [30][31][32] The city of Stakhanov has been hit multiple times by Ukrainian shelling since 2022, with civilian casualties and fatalities. [33][34]
A metallurgical plant in Kadiivka, pictured in the early 1900s
The city has traditionally been a major coal-mining town, though its importance has declined as its natural resources have been depleted and alternative fuels have gained prominence.[22] The city has several coal mines today.[1]
The city formerly had electric city transport in the form of both trams and trolleybuses. Tram traffic opened on February 15, 1937, and trolleybus traffic opened on March 1, 1970. Tram traffic closed on November 11, 2007, and trolleybus traffic closed on August 31, 2011, while it is elsewhere reported that it was suspended on September 11, 2008,[36] with its newer LAZ trolleybuses bought by Antratsyt.[37] As the years went on, the number of trams dwindled from 38 in 1973 to 4 in 2007, of which only 2 would run.
Demographics
In 1991, the population was 112,700 people, by 2013 this had fallen to 77,593.[38][39]
^Boeckh, Katrin (2007). Stalinismus in der Ukraine: die Rekonstruktion des sowjetischen Systems nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. p. 131.
^Bonwetsch, Bernd; Bordjugov, Gennadij; Naimark, Norman M. (1998). Sowjetische Politik in der SBZ 1945–1949: Dokumente zur Tätigkeit der Propagandaverwaltung (Informationsverwaltung) der SMAD under Sergej Tjul'panow. Bonn: Verlag J.H.W. Dietz Nachf. Bonn. p. 57.
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