For more than 250 years Vladimir played a very important part in the history of Russia, when it was the capital of the ancient Russian state. Up to 1432, Grand Princes of Russia were crowned in the Vladimir Cathedral of the Assumption of Holly Mother of God.

According to some chronicles the town was founded at the end of the X century and named after Kievan Prince Vladimir the Saint, the baptizer of Russia. Archeologists date the founding of the town back to the beginning of the XII century, and associate its name with Prince Vladimir Monomach. The town reached the climax of its historical significance in the middle of the XII - the beginning of the XIII centuries under Prince Andrey Bogolubsky and his brother Vsevolod the Big Nest. It was the time when the basis of the new state was being laid, when international trade and cultural ties were developing vigorously, and Vladimir school of architecture was taking shape.

Today, Vladimir is a major administrative, industrial and cultural center with a population of about 350,000 residents. Its unique historical and architectural monuments testify to the former beauty and power of the ancient Russian capital. Vladimir has preserved its ancient defensive ramparts, the main gateway to the city - the Golden Gate, the golden-domed Cathedral of Assumption with Andrey Rublev's frescoes, and the Cathedral of St. Dmitry whose walls are lavishly decorated with relief carvings in white stone.