NATURAL AREAS OF RUSSIA

EASTERN EUROPEAN (RUSSIAN) PLAIN

See photographs of the nature of the East European Plain: Curonian Spit, Moscow Region, Kerzhensky Nature Reserve and the Middle Volga in the Nature of the World section of our website.

The East European (Russian) Plain is one of the largest plains in the world by area. Among all the plains of our Motherland, only it opens to two oceans. Russia is located in the central and eastern parts of the plain. It extends from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains, from the Barents and White Seas to the Azov and Caspian Seas.

The East European Plain has the highest density of rural population, large cities and many small towns and urban-type settlements, and a variety of natural resources. The plain has long been developed by man.

The justification for its determination to the rank of a physical-geographical country is the following features: 1) an elevated strata plain formed on the plate of the ancient East European Platform; 2) Atlantic-continental, predominantly moderate and insufficiently humid climate, formed largely under the influence of the Atlantic and Arctic oceans; 3) clearly defined natural zones, the structure of which was greatly influenced by the flat terrain and neighboring territories - Central Europe, Northern and Central Asia. This led to the interpenetration of European and Asian species of plants and animals, as well as to a deviation from the latitudinal position of natural zones in the east to the north.

Relief and geological structure

The East European Elevated Plain consists of hills with heights of 200-300 m above sea level and lowlands along which large rivers flow. The average height of the plain is 170 m, and the highest - 479 m - on Bugulma-Belebeevskaya Upland in the Urals part. Maximum mark Timan Ridge somewhat less (471 m).

According to the characteristics of the orographic pattern within the East European Plain, three stripes are clearly distinguished: central, northern and southern. A strip of alternating large hills and lowlands runs through the central part of the plain: Central Russian, Volga, Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya uplands And General Syrt separated Oka-Don lowland and the Low Trans-Volga region, along which the Don and Volga rivers flow, carrying their waters to the south.

To the north of this strip, low plains predominate, on the surface of which smaller hills are scattered here and there in garlands and individually. From west to east-northeast they stretch here, replacing each other, Smolensk-Moscow, Valdai Uplands And Northern Uvaly. They mainly serve as watersheds between the Arctic, Atlantic and internal (drainless Aral-Caspian) basins. From the Northern Uvals the territory descends to the White and Barents Seas. This part of the Russian Plain A.A. Borzov called it northern slope. Large rivers flow along it - Onega, Northern Dvina, Pechora with numerous high-water tributaries.

The southern part of the East European Plain is occupied by lowlands, of which only the Caspian is located on Russian territory.

Rice. 25. Geological profiles across the Russian Plain

The East European Plain has a typical platform topography, which is predetermined by the tectonic features of the platform: the heterogeneity of its structure (the presence of deep faults, ring structures, aulacogens, anteclises, syneclises and other smaller structures) with the unequal manifestation of recent tectonic movements.

Almost all large hills and lowlands of the plain are of tectonic origin, with a significant part inherited from the structure of the crystalline basement. In the process of a long and complex development path, they formed as a single territory in morphostructural, orographic and genetic terms.

At the base of the East European Plain lie Russian stove with Precambrian crystalline basement and in the south the northern edge Scythian plate with a Paleozoic folded basement. The boundary between the plates is not expressed in the relief. On the uneven surface of the Precambrian foundation of the Russian plate there are strata of Precambrian (Vendian, in places Riphean) and Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks with slightly disturbed occurrence. Their thickness is not the same and is due to the unevenness of the foundation relief (Fig. 25), which determines the main geostructures of the plate. These include syneclises - areas of deep foundation (Moscow, Pechora, Caspian, Glazov), anteclises - areas of shallow foundation (Voronezh, Volga-Ural), aulacogens - deep tectonic ditches, in the place of which syneclises subsequently arose (Kresttsovsky, Soligalichsky, Moscow, etc.), protrusions of the Baikal basement - Timan.

The Moscow syneclise is one of the oldest and most complex internal structures of the Russian plate with a deep crystalline foundation. It is based on the Central Russian and Moscow aulacogens, filled with thick Riphean strata, above which lies the sedimentary cover of the Vendian and Phanerozoic (from Cambrian to Cretaceous). In the Neogene-Quaternary time, it experienced uneven uplifts and is expressed in relief by fairly large elevations - Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow and lowlands - Upper Volga, North Dvina.

The Pechora syneclise is located wedge-shaped in the northeast of the Russian Plate, between the Timan Ridge and the Urals. Its uneven block foundation is lowered to varying depths - up to 5000-6000 m in the east. The syneclise is filled with a thick layer of Paleozoic rocks, overlain by Meso-Cenozoic sediments. In its northeastern part there is the Usinsky (Bolshezemelsky) arch.

In the center of the Russian plate there are two large anteclises - Voronezh and Volga-Ural, separated Pachelma aulacogen. The Voronezh anteclise gently descends to the north into the Moscow syneclise. The surface of its basement is covered with thin sediments of the Ordovician, Devonian and Carboniferous. Carboniferous, Cretaceous and Paleogene rocks occur on the southern steep slope. The Volga-Ural anteclise consists of large uplifts (vaults) and depressions (aulacogens), on the slopes of which flexures are located. The thickness of the sedimentary cover here is at least 800 m within the highest arches (Tokmovsky).

The Caspian marginal syneclise is a vast area of ​​deep (up to 18-20 km) subsidence of the crystalline basement and belongs to the structures of ancient origin; the syneclise is limited on almost all sides by flexures and faults and has angular outlines. From the west it is framed by the Ergeninskaya and Volgograd flexures, from the north - flexures of General Syrt. In places they are complicated by young faults. In Neogene-Quaternary time, further subsidence (up to 500 m) and accumulation of a thick layer of marine and continental sediments occurred. These processes are combined with fluctuations in the level of the Caspian Sea.

The southern part of the East European Plain is located on the Scythian epi-Hercynian plate, lying between the southern edge of the Russian plate and the alpine folded structures of the Caucasus.

Tectonic movements of the Urals and the Caucasus led to some disruption of the occurrence of sedimentary deposits of plates. This is expressed in the form of dome-shaped uplifts, significant along the length of the shafts ( Oksko-Tsniksky, Zhigulevsky, Vyatsky etc.), individual flexural bends of layers, salt domes, which are clearly visible in the modern relief. Ancient and young deep faults, as well as ring structures, determined the block structure of plates, the direction of river valleys and the activity of neotectonic movements. The predominant direction of the faults is northwestern.

A brief description of the tectonics of the East European Plain and a comparison of the tectonic map with the hypsometric and neotectonic ones allows us to conclude that the modern relief, which has undergone a long and complex history, is in most cases inherited and dependent on the nature of the ancient structure and manifestations of neotectonic movements.

Neotectonic movements on the East European Plain manifested themselves with different intensity and direction: in most of the territory they are expressed by weak and moderate uplifts, weak mobility, and the Caspian and Pechora lowlands experience weak subsidence (Fig. 6).

The development of the morphostructure of the northwestern plain is associated with movements of the marginal part of the Baltic shield and the Moscow syneclise, therefore monoclinal (sloping) strata plains, expressed in orography in the form of hills (Valdai, Smolensk-Moscow, Belarusian, Northern Uvaly, etc.), and strata plains occupying a lower position (Verkhnevolzhskaya, Meshcherskaya). The central part of the Russian Plain was influenced by intense uplifts of the Voronezh and Volga-Ural anteclises, as well as subsidence of neighboring aulacogens and troughs. These processes contributed to the formation strata-tiered, stepped hills(Central Russian and Volga) and stratal Oka-Don plain. The eastern part developed in connection with the movements of the Urals and the edge of the Russian plate, so a mosaic of morphostructures is observed here. Developed in the north and south accumulative lowlands marginal syneclises of the plate (Pechora and Caspian). They alternate between strata-tiered hills(Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya, Obshchiy Syrt), monoclinal-stratal uplands (Verkhnekamsk) and intraplatform folded Timan ridge.

During the Quaternary, climate cooling in the northern hemisphere contributed to the spread of glaciation. Glaciers had a significant impact on the formation of relief, Quaternary deposits, permafrost, as well as on changes in natural zones - their position, floristic composition, wildlife and the migration of plants and animals within the East European Plain.

There are three glaciations on the East European Plain: Oka, Dnieper with the Moscow stage and Valdai. Glaciers and fluvioglacial waters created two types of plains - moraine and outwash. In the wide periglacial (pre-glacial) zone, permafrost processes dominated for a long time. Snowfields had a particularly intense impact on the relief during the period of reduced glaciation.

Moraine of the most ancient glaciation - Oksky- was studied on the Oka River, 80 km south of Kaluga. The lower, heavily washed Oka moraine with Karelian crystalline boulders is separated from the overlying Dnieper moraine by typical interglacial deposits. In a number of other sections to the north of this section, under the Dnieper moraine, the Oka moraine was also discovered.

Obviously, the moraine relief that arose during the Oka Ice Age has not been preserved to this day, since it was first washed away by the waters of the Dnieper (Middle Pleistocene) glacier, and then it was covered by its bottom moraine.

Southern limit of maximum distribution Dneprovsky integumentary glaciation crossed the Central Russian Upland in the Tula region, then descended along the Don valley - to the mouth of the Khopr and Medveditsa, crossed the Volga Upland, then the Volga near the mouth of the Sura River, then went to the upper reaches of the Vyatka and Kama and crossed the Urals in the region of 60 ° N. In the Upper Volga basin (in Chukhloma and Galich), as well as in the Upper Dnieper basin, above the Dnieper moraine lies the upper moraine, which is attributed to the Moscow stage of the Dnieper glaciation*.

Before the last Valdai glaciation During the interglacial era, the vegetation of the middle zone of the East European Plain had a more heat-loving composition than the modern one. This indicates the complete disappearance of its glaciers in the north. During the interglacial era, peat bogs with brazenia flora were deposited in lake basins that arose in depressions of the moraine relief.

In the north of the East European Plain, boreal ingression arose during this era, the level of which was 70-80 m above modern sea level. The sea penetrated through the valleys of the Northern Dvina, Mezen, and Pechora rivers, creating wide branching bays. Then came the Valdai glaciation. The edge of the Valdai ice sheet was located 60 km north of Minsk and went northeast, reaching Nyandoma.

Changes occurred in the climate of more southern regions due to glaciation. At this time, in the more southern regions of the East European Plain, the remnants of seasonal snow cover and snow patches contributed to the intensive development of nivation, solifluction, and the formation of asymmetric slopes near erosive landforms (ravines, gullies, etc.).

Thus, if ice existed within the distribution of the Valdai glaciation, then nival relief and sediments (boulder-free loams) were formed in the periglacial zone. The non-glacial, southern parts of the plain are covered by thick layers of loess and loess-like loams, synchronous with the ice ages. At this time, due to climate humidification, which caused glaciation, and also, possibly, with neotectonic movements, marine transgressions occurred in the Caspian Sea basin.

The East European Plain is one of the largest plains on our planet (the second largest after the Amazon Plain in Western America). It is located in the eastern part of Europe. Since most of it is located within the borders of the Russian Federation, the East European Plain is sometimes called the Russian Plain. In the northwestern part it is limited by the mountains of Scandinavia, in the southwestern part by the Sudetes and other mountains of central Europe, in the southeastern part by the Caucasus, and in the east by the Urals. From the north, the Russian Plain is washed by the waters of the White and Barents Seas, and from the south by the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas.

The length of the plain from north to south is more than 2.5 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 1 thousand kilometers. Almost the entire length of the East European Plain is dominated by gently sloping terrain. The majority of Russia's population and most of the country's large cities are concentrated within the territory of the East European Plain. It was here that the Russian state was formed many centuries ago, which later became the largest country in the world by its territory. A significant part of Russia's natural resources is also concentrated here.

The East European Plain almost completely coincides with the East European Platform. This circumstance explains its flat terrain, as well as the absence of significant natural phenomena associated with the movement of the earth’s crust (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions). Small hilly areas within the East European Plain arose as a result of faults and other complex tectonic processes. The height of some hills and plateaus reaches 600-1000 meters. In ancient times, the Baltic shield of the East European Platform was at the center of glaciation, as evidenced by some forms of glacial relief.

The East European Plain. Satellite view

On the territory of the Russian Plain, platform deposits lie almost horizontally, making up lowlands and hills that form the surface topography. Where the folded foundation protrudes to the surface, hills and ridges are formed (for example, the Central Russian Upland and the Timan Ridge). On average, the height of the Russian Plain is about 170 meters above sea level. The lowest areas are on the Caspian coast (its level is approximately 30 meters below the level of the World Ocean).

Glaciation left its mark on the formation of the relief of the East European Plain. This impact was most pronounced in the northern part of the plain. As a result of the passage of the glacier through this territory, many lakes arose (Chudskoye, Pskovskoye, Beloe and others). These are the consequences of one of the most recent glaciers. In the southern, southeastern and eastern parts, which were subject to glaciations in an earlier period, their consequences were smoothed out by erosion processes. As a result of this, a number of hills (Smolensk-Moscow, Borisoglebskaya, Danilevskaya and others) and lake-glacial lowlands (Caspian, Pechora) were formed.

Even further south is a zone of hills and lowlands, elongated in the meridional direction. Among the hills one can note Priazovskaya, Central Russian, and Volga. Here they also alternate with plains: Meshcherskaya, Oksko-Donskaya, Ulyanovskaya and others.

Even further south are the coastal lowlands, which in ancient times were partially submerged under sea level. The flat relief here was partially corrected by water erosion and other processes, as a result of which the Black Sea and Caspian lowlands were formed.

As a result of the passage of the glacier through the territory of the East European Plain, valleys were formed, tectonic depressions expanded, and even some rocks were polished. Another example of the influence of the glacier is the winding deep bays of the Kola Peninsula. When the glacier retreated, not only lakes formed, but also concave sandy depressions appeared. This happened as a result of the deposition of a large amount of sandy material. Thus, over many millennia, the multifaceted relief of the East European Plain was formed.

Meadows of the Russian Plain. Volga river

Some of the rivers flowing through the territory of the East European Plain belong to the basins of two oceans: the Arctic (Northern Dvina, Pechora) and the Atlantic (Neva, Western Dvina), while others flow into the Caspian Sea, which has no connection with the world ocean. The longest and most abundant river in Europe, the Volga, flows along the Russian Plain.

Russian Plain

On the East European Plain there are almost all types of natural zones found in Russia. Along the coast of the Barents Sea, the subtropical zone is dominated by tundra. To the south, in the temperate zone, a strip of forests begins, which stretches from Polesie to the Urals. It includes both coniferous taiga and mixed forests, which in the west gradually turn into deciduous ones. To the south begins the transition zone of the forest-steppe, and beyond it the steppe zone. A small strip of deserts and semi-deserts begins on the territory of the Caspian lowland.

Russian Plain

As mentioned above, on the territory of the Russian Plain there are no natural events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Although some tremors (up to magnitude 3) are still possible, they cannot cause damage and are recorded only by highly sensitive instruments. The most dangerous natural phenomena that can occur on the territory of the Russian Plain are tornadoes and floods. The main environmental problem is the pollution of soil, rivers, lakes and the atmosphere with industrial waste, since many industrial enterprises are concentrated in this part of Russia.

EASTERN EUROPEAN PLAIN (Russian Plain), one of the largest plains on the globe. It occupies mainly Eastern and part of Western Europe, where the European part of Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Moldova, most of Ukraine, the western part of Poland and the eastern part of Kazakhstan are located. The length from west to east is about 2400 km, from north to south - 2500 km. In the north it is washed by the White and Barents Seas; in the west it borders on the Central European Plain (approximately along the Vistula River valley); in the southwest - with the mountains of Central Europe (Sudetes, etc.) and the Carpathians; in the south it reaches the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas and is limited by the Crimean Mountains and the Caucasus; in the southeast and east - the western foothills of the Urals and Mugodzhary. Some researchers include the southern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula and Karelia in the East European Plain, others classify this territory as Fennoscandia, the nature of which is sharply different from the nature of the plain.

Relief and geological structure.

The East European Plain geostructurally corresponds mainly to the Russian plate of the ancient East European platform, in the south to the northern part of the young Scythian platform, in the northeast to the southern part of the young Barents-Pechora platform.

The complex terrain of the East European Plain is characterized by slight fluctuations in heights (average height is about 170 m). The highest altitudes are on the Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya (up to 479 m) and Podolsk (up to 471 m, Mount Kamula) elevations, the smallest (about 27 m below sea level, 2001; the lowest point in Russia) are on the coast of the Caspian Sea. On the East European Plain, two geomorphological regions are distinguished: the northern moraine with glacial landforms and the southern non-moraine with erosive landforms. The northern moraine region is characterized by lowlands and plains (Baltic, Upper Volga, Meshcherskaya, etc.), as well as small hills (Vepsovskaya, Zhemaitskaya, Khaanya, etc.). In the east is the Timan Ridge. The far north is occupied by vast coastal lowlands (Pechorskaya and others). In the north-west, in the area of ​​distribution of the Valdai glaciation, accumulative glacial relief predominates: hilly and ridge-moraine, western with flat lacustrine-glacial and outwash plains. There are many swamps and lakes (Chudsko-Pskovskoe, Ilmen, Upper Volga lakes, Beloe, etc.) - the so-called lake district. To the south and east, in the area of ​​distribution of the more ancient Moscow glaciation, smoothed undulating moraine plains, reworked by erosion, are characteristic; There are basins of drained lakes. Moraine-erosive hills and ridges (Belarusian ridge, Smolensk-Moscow upland, etc.) alternate with moraine, outwash, lacustrine-glacial and alluvial lowlands and plains (Mologo-Sheksninskaya, Verkhnevolzhskaya, etc.). More often there are ravines and gullies, as well as river valleys with asymmetrical slopes. Along the southern border of the Moscow glaciation, Polesye (Polesskaya Lowland, etc.) and opolye (Vladimirskoye, etc.) are typical.

The southern non-moraine region of the East European Plain is characterized by large hills with erosive gully-gully relief (Volyn, Podolsk, Dnieper, Azov, Central Russian, Volga, Ergeni, Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya, General Syrt, etc.) and outwash, alluvial accumulative lowlands and plains , related to the region of the Dnieper glaciation (Dnieper, Oka-Don, etc.). Characterized by wide asymmetrical terraced river valleys. In the southwest (the Black Sea and Dnieper lowlands, the Volyn and Podolsk uplands, etc.) there are flat watersheds with shallow steppe depressions, the so-called “saucers,” formed due to the widespread development of loess and loess-like loams. In the northeast (High Trans-Volga region, General Syrt, etc.), where there are no loess-like deposits and bedrock comes to the surface, the watersheds are complicated by terraces, and the peaks are weathered remnants, the so-called shihans. In the south and southeast there are flat coastal accumulative lowlands (Black Sea, Azov, Caspian).

Climate. In the far north of the East European Plain there is a subarctic climate, in most of the plain it is temperate continental with the dominance of western air masses. As you move away from the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the climate becomes more continental, harsh and dry, and in the southeast, on the Caspian Lowland, it becomes continental, with hot, dry summers and cold winters with little snow. The average January temperature is from -2 to -5 °C, in the southwest it drops to -20 °C in the northeast. The average July temperature increases from north to south from 6 to 23-24 °C and up to 25 °C in the southeast. The northern and central parts of the plain are characterized by excessive and sufficient moisture, the southern - insufficient and arid. The most humidified part of the East European Plain (between 55-60° north latitude) receives 700-800 mm of precipitation per year in the west and 600-700 mm in the east. Their number decreases to the north (in the tundra 250-300 mm) and to the south, but especially to the southeast (in the semi-desert and desert 150-200 mm). Maximum precipitation occurs in summer. In winter, snow cover (thickness 10-20 cm) lies from 60 days a year in the south to 220 days (thickness 60-70 cm) in the northeast. In the forest-steppe and steppe, frosts, droughts and hot winds are frequent; in semi-deserts and deserts there are dust storms.

Rivers and lakes. Most of the rivers of the East European Plain belong to the Atlantic basins [the Neva, Daugava (Western Dvina), Vistula, Neman, etc. flow into the Baltic Sea; to the Black Sea - Dnieper, Dniester, Southern Bug; into the Sea of ​​Azov - Don, Kuban, etc.] and the Arctic Ocean (Pechora flows into the Barents Sea; into the White Sea - Mezen, Northern Dvina, Onega, etc.). The Volga (the largest river in Europe), the Ural, Emba, Bolshoy Uzen, Maly Uzen, etc. belong to the internal drainage basin, mainly of the Caspian Sea. All rivers are predominantly snow-fed with spring floods. In the southwest of the East European Plain, rivers do not freeze every year; in the northeast, freeze-up lasts up to 8 months. The long-term runoff modulus decreases from 10-12 l/s per km 2 in the north to 0.1 l/s per km 2 or less in the southeast. The hydrographic network has undergone strong anthropogenic changes: a system of canals (Volga-Baltic, White Sea-Baltic, etc.) connects all the seas washing the East European Plain. The flow of many rivers, especially those flowing to the south, is regulated. Significant sections of the Volga, Kama, Dnieper, Dniester and others have been turned into cascades of reservoirs (Rybinskoye, Kuibyshevskoye, Tsimlyanskoye, Kremenchugskoye, Kakhovskoye, etc.). There are numerous lakes: glacial-tectonic (Ladoga and Onega - the largest in Europe), moraine (Chudsko-Pskovskoye, Ilmen, Beloe, etc.), etc. Salt tectonics played a role in the formation of salt lakes (Baskunchak, Elton, Aralsor, Inder), since some of them arose during the destruction of salt domes.

Natural landscapes. The East European Plain is a classic example of a territory with a clearly defined latitudinal and sublatitudinal zonation of landscapes. Almost the entire plain is located in the temperate geographical zone and only the northern part is in the subarctic. In the north, where permafrost is common, tundras are developed: moss-lichen and shrub (dwarf birch, willow) on tundra gley, swamp soils and podburs. To the south there is a narrow strip of forest-tundra with low-growing birch and spruce forests. About 50% of the plain's territory is occupied by forests. The zone of dark coniferous (mainly spruce, with the participation of fir in the east) European taiga, swampy in places, on podzolic soils and podzols, expands to the east. To the south there is a subzone of mixed coniferous-deciduous (oak, spruce, pine) forests on soddy-podzolic soils. Pine forests are developed along the river valleys. In the west, from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the foothills of the Carpathians, there is a subzone of broad-leaved (oak, linden, ash, maple, hornbeam) forests on gray forest soils; forests wedge out towards the Volga and have an island distribution in the east. Primary forests are often replaced by secondary birch and aspen forests, occupying 50-70% of the forest area. The landscapes of opolis are unique - with plowed flat areas, remnants of oak forests and a ravine-beam network along the slopes, as well as woodlands - swampy lowlands with pine forests. From the northern part of Moldova to the Southern Urals there is a forest-steppe zone with oak forests (mostly cut down) on gray forest soils and rich forb-grass meadow steppes (preserved in nature reserves) on chernozems (the main fund of arable land). The share of arable land in the forest-steppe is up to 80%. The southern part of the East European Plain (except for the southeast) is occupied by forb-feather grass steppes on ordinary chernozems, which are replaced to the south by fescue-feather grass dry steppes on chestnut soils. In most of the Caspian Lowland, wormwood-feather grass semi-deserts predominate on light chestnut and brown desert-steppe soils and wormwood-hodgepodge deserts on brown desert-steppe soils in combination with solonetzes and solonchaks.

Ecological situation and specially protected natural areas. The East European Plain has been developed and significantly changed by humans. Natural-anthropogenic complexes dominate in many natural zones, especially in the landscapes of steppe, forest-steppe, mixed and deciduous forests. The territory of the East European Plain is highly urbanized. The zones of mixed and broad-leaved forests are most densely populated (up to 100 people/km2). Anthropogenic relief is typical: waste heaps (up to 50 m high), quarries, etc. The ecological situation is particularly tense in large cities and industrial centers (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Cherepovets, Lipetsk, Rostov-on-Don, etc.). Many rivers in the central and southern parts are heavily polluted.

Numerous reserves, national parks and sanctuaries have been created to study and protect typical and rare natural landscapes. In the European part of Russia there were (2005) over 80 nature reserves and national parks, including more than 20 biosphere reserves (Voronezh, Prioksko-Terrasny, Tsentralnolesnoy, etc.). Among the oldest reserves are: Belovezhskaya Pushcha, Askania Nova and Astrakhan Reserve. Among the largest are the Vodlozersky National Park (486.9 thousand km 2) and the Nenets Nature Reserve (313.4 thousand km 2). The areas of indigenous taiga “Virgin Forests of Komi” and Belovezhskaya Pushcha are on the World Heritage List.

Lit. : Spiridonov A.I. Geomorphological zoning of the East European Plain // Earth Science. M., 1969. T. 8; Plains of the European part of the USSR / Edited by Yu. A. Meshcheryakov, A. A. Aseev. M., 1974; Milkov F. N., Gvozdetsky N. A. Physical geography of the USSR. General review. European part of the USSR. Caucasus. 5th ed. M., 1986; Isachenko A. G. Ecological geography of the North-West of Russia. St. Petersburg, 1995. Part 1; Eastern European forests: history in the Holocene and modern times: In 2 books. M., 2004.

A. N. Makkaveev, M. N. Petrushina.

The East European Plain is one of the largest plains on the planet. It covers four million square kilometers, completely or partially affecting the territories of ten states. What relief and climate are typical for the East European Plain? You will find all the details about it in our article.

Geography of the East European Plain

The relief of Europe is very diverse - there are mountains, plains, and swampy lowlands. Its largest orographic structure by area is the East European Plain. From west to east it extends for about a thousand kilometers, and from north to south - more than 2.5 thousand kilometers.

Due to the fact that most of the plain is located on the territory of Russia, it received the name Russian. With an eye to the historical past, it is also often called the Sarmatian Plain.

It starts from the Scandinavian mountains and the Baltic Sea coast and stretches to the foot of the Ural Mountains. Its southern border of the plain runs near the Southern Carpathians and Stara Planina, the Crimean Mountains, the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea, and the northern edge runs along the shores of the White and Barents Seas. On the territory of the East European Plain there is a significant part of Russia, Ukraine, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Moldova, and Belarus. It also includes Kazakhstan, Romania, Bulgaria and Poland.

Relief and geological structure

The outlines of the plain almost completely coincide with the ancient East European platform (only a small area in the south lies on the Scythian plate). Thanks to this, there are no significant elevations in its relief, and the average height is only 170 meters. The highest point reaches 479 meters - this is the Bugulminsko-Belebeevskaya Upland, which is located in the Urals.

The tectonic stability of the plain is also associated with the platform. She never finds herself in the midst of volcanic eruptions or earthquakes. All the vibrations of the earth's crust that occur here are low-grade and are only echoes of the disturbances in the mountainous regions nearby.

However, this area was not always calm. The relief of the East European Plain was formed by very ancient tectonic processes and glaciations. In the south, they occurred much earlier, so their traces and consequences have long been smoothed out by active climatic processes and water erosion. In the north, traces of past glaciation are most clearly visible. They appear as sandy lowlands, winding bays of the Kola Peninsula, which cut deeply into the land, and also in the form of a large number of lakes. In general, the modern landscapes of the plain are represented by a number of hills and glaciolacustrine lowlands, alternating with each other.

Minerals

The ancient platform underlying the East European Plain is represented by crystalline rocks, which are covered by a sedimentary layer of different ages, lying in a horizontal position. In the Ukrainian region, rocks come out in the form of low cliffs and rapids.

The plain area is rich in a variety of minerals. Its sedimentary cover contains deposits of limestone, chalk, shale, phosphorites, sand and clay. Oil shale deposits are located in the Baltic region, salt and gypsum are mined in the Urals, and oil and gas are mined in Perm. Large deposits of coal, anthracite and peat are concentrated in the Donbass basin. Brown and hard coal are also mined in the Dnepropetrovsk basin of Ukraine, in the Perm and Moscow region in Russia.

The crystalline shields of the plain are composed mainly of metamorphic and igneous rocks. They are rich in gneisses, schists, amphibolites, diabase, porphyrite, and quartzite. Raw materials for the production of ceramics and stone building materials are mined here.

One of the most “fertile” areas is the Kola Peninsula - a source of large quantities of metal ores and minerals. Within its boundaries, iron, lithium, titanium, nickel, platinum, beryllium, various mica, ceramic pegmatites, chrysolite, amethyst, jasper, garnet, iolite and other minerals are mined.

Climate

The geographical location of the East European Plain and its low-lying terrain largely determine its climate. The Ural Mountains near its outskirts do not allow air masses from the east to pass through, so throughout the year it is influenced by winds from the west. They form over the Atlantic Ocean, bringing moisture and warmth in winter, and precipitation and coolness in summer.

Due to the absence of mountains in the north, winds from the southern Arctic also easily penetrate deep into the plain. In winter they bring cold continental air masses, low temperatures, frosts and light snow. In summer they bring with them drought and cold snaps.

During the cold season, temperatures are highly dependent on incoming winds. In summer, on the contrary, the climate of the East European Plain is most strongly influenced by solar heat, so temperatures are distributed in accordance with the geographic latitude of the area.

In general, weather conditions in the plain are very unstable. Atlantic and Arctic air masses above it often replace each other, which is accompanied by a constant alternation of cyclones and anticyclones.

Natural areas

The East European Plain is located mainly within the temperate climate zone. Only a small part of it in the far north lies in the subarctic zone. Due to the flat terrain, latitudinal zoning is very clearly visible on it, which manifests itself in a smooth transition from the tundra in the north to the arid deserts on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

Tundra, covered with dwarf trees and shrubs, is found only in the extreme northern territories of Finland and Russia. Below it gives way to taiga, the zone of which expands as it approaches the Urals. Mostly coniferous trees such as larch, spruce, pine, fir, as well as herbs and berry bushes grow here.

After the taiga, the zone of mixed and deciduous forests begins. It covers the entire Baltic region, Belarus, Romania, part of Bulgaria, a large part of Russia, the north and northeast of Ukraine. The center and south of Ukraine, Moldova, northeast Kazakhstan and the southern part of Russia are covered by a zone of forest-steppe and steppe. The lower reaches of the Volga and the shores of the Caspian Sea are covered with deserts and semi-deserts.

Hydrography

The rivers of the East European Plain flow in both northern and southern directions. The main watershed between them runs through Polesie, and part of them belongs to the Arctic Ocean basin, and flows to the Barents, White and Baltic seas. Others flow south, emptying into the Caspian Sea and the seas of the Atlantic Ocean. The longest and deepest river of the plain is the Volga. Other significant watercourses are the Dnieper, Don, Dniester, Pechora, Northern and Western Dvina, Southern Bug, Neva.

There are also many swamps and lakes in the East European Plain, but they are not evenly distributed. They are distributed very densely in the northwestern part, but in the southeast they are practically absent. On the territory of the Baltic States, Finland, Polesie, Karelia and the Kola Peninsula, reservoirs of glacial and moraine type were formed. In the south, in the region of the Caspian and Azov lowlands, there are estuary lakes and salt marshes.

Despite the relatively flat terrain, there are many interesting geological formations within the East European Plain. Such, for example, are the “Sheep foreheads” rocks, which are found in Karelia, on the Kola Peninsula and in the Northern Ladoga region.

They are protrusions on the surface of rocks that were smoothed during the descent of an ancient glacier. The rocks are also called "curly" rocks. Their slopes in places where the glacier moved are polished and smooth. The opposite slopes, on the contrary, are steep and very uneven.

Zhiguli are the only mountains on the plain that were formed as a result of tectonic processes. They are located in the southeastern part, in the Volga Upland region. These are young mountains that continue to grow, increasing by about 1 centimeter every hundred years. Today their maximum height reaches 381 meters.

The Zhiguli Mountains are composed of dolomites and limestones. Oil deposits are also located within their boundaries. Their slopes are covered with forests and forest-steppe vegetation, among which endemic species are found. Most of it is included in the Zhigulevsky Nature Reserve and is closed to the public. The area, which is not under protection, is actively visited by tourists and ski lovers.

Belovezhskaya Pushcha

Within the East European Plain there are many nature reserves, wildlife sanctuaries and other protected areas. One of the oldest formations is the Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park, located on the border of Poland and Belarus.

A large area of ​​relict taiga, a native forest that existed in this area back in prehistoric times, has been preserved here. It is assumed that this is what the forests of Europe looked like millions of years ago.

On the territory of Belovezhskaya Pushcha there are two plant zones, and coniferous forests are closely adjacent to mixed broadleaf forests. The local fauna includes fallow deer, mouflon, reindeer, tarpan horses, bears, minks, beavers and raccoon dogs. The pride of the park is the bison, which are saved here from complete extinction.

Poland Poland
Bulgaria Bulgaria
Romania Romania

East European Plain (Russian Plain)- a plain in Eastern Europe, part of the European Plain. It extends from the coast of the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains, from the Barents and White Seas to the Black, Azov and Caspian Seas. In the northwest it is limited by the Scandinavian mountains, in the southwest by the Sudetenland and other mountains of central Europe, in the southeast by the Caucasus, and in the west the conventional border of the plain is the Vistula River. It is one of the largest plains on the globe. The total length of the plain from north to south is more than 2.7 thousand kilometers, and from west to east - 2.5 thousand kilometers. Area - over 4 million square meters. km. . Since most of the plain is located within Russia it is also known as Russian Plain.

In addition to Russia, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, and Bulgaria are located entirely or partially on the territory of the plain.

Relief and geological structure

The East European Plain consists of highlands with heights of 200-300 m above sea level and lowlands through which large rivers flow. The average height of the plain is 170 m, and the highest - 479 m - is on the Bugulma-Belebeevskaya Upland in the Cis-Urals.

According to the characteristics of orographic features within the East European Plain, three stripes are clearly distinguished: central, northern and southern. A strip of alternating large hills and lowlands passes through the central part of the plain: Srednerusskaya, Privolzhskaya, Bugulmin

To the north of this strip, low plains predominate, on the surface of which smaller hills are scattered in garlands and individually. From west to east-northeast, the Smolensk-Moscow, Valdai Uplands and Northern Uvals stretch here, replacing each other. They mainly pass through the watersheds between the Arctic, Atlantic and internal drainless Aral-Caspian basins. From the Northern Uvaly, the territory descends to the White and Barents Seas. The southern part of the East European Plain is occupied by lowlands (Caspian, Black Sea, etc.), separated by low hills (Ergeni, Stavropol Upland).

Almost all large hills and lowlands are plains of tectonic origin.

At the base of the East European Plain lie Russian stove with Precambrian crystalline basement, in the south the northern edge Scythian plate with a Paleozoic folded basement. The boundary between the plates is not expressed in the relief. On the uneven surface of the Precambrian foundation of the Russian plate there are strata of Precambrian (Vendian, in places Riphean) and Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks. Their thickness varies (from 1500-2000 to 100-150 m) and is due to the unevenness of the foundation topography, which determines the main geostructures of the plate. These include syneclises - areas of deep foundation (Moscow, Pechora, Caspian, Glazovskaya), anteclises - areas of shallow foundation (Voronezh, Volga-Ural), aulacogens - deep tectonic ditches (Kresttsovsky, Soligalichsky, Moscow, etc.), protrusions Baikal basement - Timan.

Glaciation greatly influenced the formation of the relief of the East European Plain. This impact was most pronounced in the northern part of the plain. As a result of the passage of the glacier through this territory, many lakes arose (Chudskoye, Pskovskoye, Beloe and others). In the southern, southeastern and eastern parts, which were subject to glaciations in an earlier period, their consequences were smoothed out by erosion processes.

Climate

The climate of the East European Plain is influenced by the features of its relief, geographical location in temperate and high latitudes, as well as neighboring territories (Western Europe and Northern Asia), the Atlantic and Arctic oceans, a significant extent from west to east and from north to south. The total solar radiation per year in the north of the plain, in the Pechora basin, reaches 2700 mJ/m2 (65 kcal/cm2), and in the south, in the Caspian lowland, 4800-5050 mJ/m2 (115-120 kcal/cm2).

The smoothed relief of the plain promotes the free transfer of air masses. The East European Plain is characterized by westerly transport of air masses. In summer, Atlantic air brings coolness and precipitation, and in winter - warmth and precipitation. When moving east, it transforms: in summer it becomes warmer and drier in the ground layer, and in winter it becomes colder, but also loses moisture. During the cold season, from different parts of the Atlantic, from 8 to 12 cyclones come to the East European Plain. When they move to the east or northeast, a sharp change in air masses occurs, promoting either warming or cooling. With the arrival of southwestern cyclones, warm air from subtropical latitudes invades the south of the plain. Then in January the air temperature can rise to 5°-7°C. The overall continental climate increases from the west and northwest to the south and southeast.

In summer, almost everywhere on the plain, the most important factor in temperature distribution is solar radiation, so isotherms, unlike in winter, are located mainly in accordance with geographic latitude. In the far north of the plain, the average July temperature rises to 8°C. The average July isotherm of 20°C goes through Voronezh to Cheboksary, approximately coinciding with the border between forest and forest-steppe, and the Caspian lowland is crossed by an isotherm of 24°C.

In the north of the East European Plain, more precipitation falls than can evaporate under given temperature conditions. In the south of the northern climate region, the moisture balance approaches neutral (atmospheric precipitation is equal to the amount of evaporation).

Relief has an important influence on the amount of precipitation: on the western slopes of the hills, 150-200 mm more precipitation falls than on the eastern slopes and the lowlands shaded by them. In the summer, at the elevations of the southern half of the Russian Plain, the frequency of rainy weather types almost doubles and at the same time the frequency of dry weather types decreases. In the southern part of the plain, maximum precipitation occurs in June, and in the middle zone - in July.

In the south of the plain, annual and monthly precipitation amounts fluctuate sharply, with wet years alternating with dry ones. In Buguruslan (Orenburg region), for example, according to observations over 38 years, the average annual precipitation is 349 mm, the maximum annual precipitation is 556 mm, and the minimum is 144 mm. Droughts are a common occurrence in the south and southeast of the East European Plain. Drought can occur in spring, summer or autumn. Approximately one year out of three is dry.

In winter, snow cover forms. In the northeast of the plain, its height reaches 60-70 cm, and its duration is up to 220 days a year. In the south, the height of the snow cover decreases to 10-20 cm, and the duration of occurrence is up to 60 days.

Hydrography

The East European Plain has a developed lake-river network, the density and regime of which change following climatic conditions from north to south. In the same direction, the degree of swampiness of the territory changes, as well as the depth and quality of groundwater.

Rivers

Most rivers of the East European Plain have two main directions - northern and southern. Northern sloping rivers flow to the Barents, White and Baltic seas, southern sloping rivers flow to the Black, Azov and Caspian seas.

The main watershed between the rivers of the northern and southern slopes extends from west-southwest to east-northeast. It passes through the swamps of Polesie, the Lithuanian-Belarusian and Valdai Uplands, and the Northern Uvals. The most important watershed junction lies on the Valdai Hills. Here, in close proximity, lie the sources of the Western Dvina, Dnieper and Volga.

All rivers of the East European Plain belong to the same climatic type - predominantly snow-fed with spring floods. Despite belonging to the same climatic type, the rivers of the northern slope are significantly different in their regime from the rivers of the southern slope. The former are located in the region of positive moisture balance, in which precipitation prevails over evaporation.

With an annual precipitation of 400-600 mm in the north of the East European Plain in the tundra zone, actual evaporation from the earth's surface is 100 mm or less; in the middle zone, where the evaporation ridge passes, 500 mm in the west and 300 mm in the east. As a result, the river flow here accounts for from 150 to 350 mm per year, or from 5 to 15 l/sec per square kilometer of area. The runoff ridge passes through the interior regions of Karelia (northern coast of Lake Onega), the middle reaches of the Northern Dvina and the upper reaches of the Pechora.

Due to the large flow of rivers of the northern slope (Northern Dvina, Pechora, Neva, etc.) there is a lot of water. Occupying 37.5% of the area of ​​the Russian Plain, they provide 58% of its total flow. The high water supply of these rivers is combined with a more or less uniform distribution of flow across the seasons. Although snow nutrition comes first for them, causing floods in the spring, rain and ground types of nutrition also play a significant role.

The rivers of the southern slope of the East European Plain flow under conditions of significant evaporation (500-300 mm in the north and 350-200 mm in the south) and a small amount of precipitation in comparison with the rivers of the northern slope (600-500 mm in the north and 350-200 mm in the south), which leads to a reduction in runoff from 150-200 mm in the north to 10-25 mm in the south. If we express the flow of rivers of southern slopes in liters per second per square kilometer of area, then in the north it will be only 4-6 liters, and in the southeast less than 0.5 liters. The small size of the flow determines the low water content of the rivers of the southern slope and its extreme unevenness throughout the year: the maximum flow occurs during a short period of spring flood.

Lakes

Lakes are distributed extremely unevenly on the East European Plain. They are most abundant in the well-moistened northwest. The southeastern part of the plain, on the contrary, is almost devoid of lakes. It receives little precipitation and also has a mature erosional topography, devoid of closed basin forms. On the territory of the Russian Plain, four lake regions can be distinguished: the region of glacial-tectonic lakes, the region of moraine lakes, the region of floodplain and suffusion-karst lakes, and the region of estuary lakes.

Region of glacial-tectonic lakes

Glacial-tectonic lakes are common in Karelia, Finland and the Kola Peninsula, forming a real lake country. In Karelia alone there are almost 44 thousand lakes with an area ranging from 1 hectare to several hundred and thousand square kilometers. The lakes in this area, often large, are scattered across tectonic depressions, deepened and processed by the glacier. Their shores are rocky, composed of ancient crystalline rocks.

Region of moraine lakes Region of floodplain and suffusion-karst lakes

The interior central and southern regions of the East European Plain cover the area of ​​floodplain and suffusion-karst lakes. This area lies outside the boundaries of glaciation, with the exception of the north-west, which was covered by the Dnieper glacier. Due to the well-defined erosional topography, there are few lakes in the region. Only floodplain lakes along river valleys are common; Small karst and suffosion lakes are occasionally found.

Region of estuary lakes

The area of ​​estuary lakes is located on the territory of two coastal lowlands - the Black Sea and Caspian. At the same time, estuaries here mean lakes of various origins. The estuaries of the Black Sea lowland are sea bays (formerly river mouths), fenced off from the sea by sand spits. The estuaries, or ilmens, of the Caspian lowland are weakly formed depressions, which in the spring are filled with water from the rivers flowing into them, and in the summer they turn into swamps, salt marshes or haylands.

The groundwater

Groundwater is distributed throughout the East European Plain, forming the East European platform artesian region. The foundation depressions serve as reservoirs for the accumulation of water from artesian basins of various sizes. Within Russia, three artesian basins of the first order are identified here: Central Russian, Eastern Russian and Caspian. Within their boundaries there are artesian basins of the second order: Moscow, Sursko-Khopyorsky, Volga-Kama, Pre-Ural, etc. One of the largest is the Moscow basin, confined to the syneclise of the same name, which contains pressure waters in fractured carbonaceous limestones.

The chemical composition and temperature of groundwater change with depth. Fresh waters have a thickness of no more than 250 m, and with depth their mineralization increases - from fresh hydrocarbonate to brackish and saline sulfate and chloride, and below - to chloride, sodium brines and in the deepest places of the basin - to calcium-sodium brines. Temperatures rise and reach a maximum of about 70°C at depths of 2 km in the west and 3.5 km in the east.

Natural areas

On the East European Plain there are almost all types of natural zones found in Russia.

The most common natural areas (from north to south):

• Tundra (northern Kola Peninsula)
• Taiga - Olonets Plain.
• Mixed forests - Central Berezinskaya Plain, Orsha-Mogilev Plain, Meshcherskaya Lowland.
• Broad-leaved forests (Mazowieckie-Podlasie Lowland)
• Forest-steppe - Oka-Don Plain, including the Tambov Plain.
• Steppes and semi-deserts - the Black Sea Lowland, the Cis-Caucasian Plain (Prikubanskaya Lowland, Chechen Plain) and the Caspian Lowland.

Natural territorial complex of the plain

The East European Plain is one of the large natural territorial complexes (NTC) of Russia, the features of which are:

• large area: second largest plain in the world;
• rich resources: PTK has land rich in resources, for example: minerals, water and plant resources, fertile soil, many cultural and tourism resources;
• historical significance: many important events in Russian history took place on the plain, which is undoubtedly an advantage of this zone.

The largest cities in Russia are located on the plain. This is the center of the beginning and foundation of Russian culture. Great writers drew inspiration from the beautiful and picturesque places of the East European Plain.

The variety of natural complexes of the Russian Plain is great. These include flat coastal lowlands covered with shrub-moss tundra, and hilly-moraine plains with spruce or coniferous-broad-leaved forests, and vast swampy lowlands, erosion-dissected forest-steppe uplands and floodplains overgrown with meadows and shrubs. The largest complexes of the plain are natural zones. The relief and climate features of the Russian Plain determine a clear change in natural zones within its boundaries from northwest to southeast, from tundra to temperate deserts. The most complete set of natural zones can be seen here compared to other large natural areas of our country. The northernmost regions of the Russian Plain are occupied by tundra and forest-tundra. The warming influence of the Barents Sea is manifested in the fact that the strip of tundra and forest-tundra on the Russian Plain is narrow. It expands only in the east, where the severity of the climate increases. On the Kola Peninsula the climate is humid, and winters are unusually warm for these latitudes. The plant communities here are also unique: shrub tundra with crowberry gives way to birch forest-tundra to the south. More than half of the plain's territory is occupied by forests. In the west they reach 50° N. latitude, and in the east - up to 55° N. w. There are zones of taiga and mixed and deciduous forests here. Both zones are heavily swamped in the western part, where rainfall is high. In the taiga of the Russian Plain, spruce and pine forests are common. The zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests gradually thins out to the east, where the continental climate increases. Most of this zone is occupied by the PTC of moraine plains. Picturesque hills and ridges with mixed coniferous-deciduous forests that do not form large tracts, with meadows and fields alternate with monotonous sandy, often swampy lowlands. There are many small lakes filled with clear waters and intricately winding rivers. And a huge number of boulders: from large ones, the size of a truck, to very small ones. They are everywhere: on the slopes and tops of hills and hills, in lowlands, on arable lands, in forests, river beds. To the south, the sandy plains left after the retreat of the glacier appear - woodlands. Broad-leaved forests do not grow on poor sandy soils. Pine forests dominate here. Large areas of woodlands are swampy. Lowland grass swamps predominate, but high sphagnum swamps are also found. A forest-steppe zone stretches along the edge of the forests from the west to the northeast. In the forest-steppe zone, hills and low plains alternate. The hills are dissected by a dense network of deep gullies and ravines and are better moistened than the low plains. Before human intervention, they were covered primarily by oak forests on gray forest soils. Meadow steppes on chernozems occupied smaller areas. The low plains are poorly dissected. There are many small depressions (depressions) on them. In the past, meadow mixed-grass steppes on black soil dominated here. Currently, large areas in the forest-steppe zone are plowed. This causes increased erosion. The forest-steppe gives way to the steppe zone. The steppe stretches out as a wide, vast plain, often completely flat, in places with mounds and small hills. Where areas of virgin steppe have been preserved, at the beginning of summer it appears silvery from the flowering feather grass and is agitated like the sea. Currently, fields are visible everywhere as far as the eye can see. You can drive tens of kilometers and the picture will not change. In the extreme southeast, in the Caspian region, there are zones of semi-deserts and deserts. The moderate continental climate determined the dominance of spruce forests in the forest-tundra and taiga of the Russian Plain, and oak forests in the forest-steppe zone. The increase in continentality and aridity of the climate is reflected in a more complete set of natural zones in the eastern part of the plain, a shift in their boundaries to the north and the pinching out of the zone of mixed and broad-leaved forests.

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Notes

Literature

• Lebedinsky V.I. Volcanic crown of the Great Plain. - M.: Nauka, 1973. - 192 p. - (The present and future of the Earth and humanity). - 14,000 copies.
• Koronkevich N. I. Water balance of the Russian Plain and its anthropogenic changes / USSR Academy of Sciences, Institute of Geography. - M.: Nauka, 1990. - 208 p. - (Problems of constructive geography). - 650 copies. - ISBN 5-02-003394-4.
• Vorobyov V. M. Portage routes on the Main watershed of the Russian Plain. Tutorial. - Tver: Slavic World, 2007. - 180 p., ill.

Links

• East European Plain // Great Soviet Encyclopedia: [in 30 volumes] / ch. ed. A. M. Prokhorov. - 3rd ed. - M. : Soviet encyclopedia, 1969-1978.

An excerpt characterizing the East European Plain

“So, so,” Bagration said, thinking something, and drove past the limbers to the outermost gun.
While he was approaching, a shot rang out from this gun, deafening him and his retinue, and in the smoke that suddenly surrounded the gun, the artillerymen were visible, picking up the gun and, hastily straining, rolling it to its original place. The broad-shouldered, huge soldier 1st with a banner, legs spread wide, jumped towards the wheel. The 2nd, with a shaking hand, put the charge into the barrel. A small, stooped man, Officer Tushin, tripped over his trunk and ran forward, not noticing the general and looking out from under his small hand.
“Add two more lines, it will be just like that,” he shouted in a thin voice, to which he tried to give a youthful appearance that did not suit his figure. - Second! - he squeaked. - Smash it, Medvedev!
Bagration called out to the officer, and Tushin, with a timid and awkward movement, not at all in the way the military salutes, but in the way the priests bless, placing three fingers on the visor, approached the general. Although Tushin’s guns were intended to bombard the ravine, he fired with fire guns at the village of Shengraben, visible ahead, in front of which large masses of the French were advancing.
No one ordered Tushin where or with what to shoot, and he, after consulting with his sergeant major Zakharchenko, for whom he had great respect, decided that it would be good to set the village on fire. "Fine!" Bagration said to the officer’s report and began to look around the entire battlefield opening before him, as if thinking something. On the right side the French came closest. Below the height at which the Kiev regiment stood, in the ravine of the river, the soul-grabbing rolling chatter of guns was heard, and much to the right, behind the dragoons, a retinue officer pointed out to the prince the French column encircling our flank. To the left, the horizon was limited to a nearby forest. Prince Bagration ordered two battalions from the center to go to the right for reinforcements. The retinue officer dared to notice to the prince that after these battalions left, the guns would be left without cover. Prince Bagration turned to the retinue officer and looked at him silently with dull eyes. It seemed to Prince Andrei that the retinue officer’s remark was fair and that there was really nothing to say. But at that time an adjutant from the regimental commander, who was in the ravine, rode up with the news that huge masses of French were coming down, that the regiment was upset and was retreating to the Kyiv grenadiers. Prince Bagration bowed his head as a sign of agreement and approval. He walked to the right and sent an adjutant to the dragoons with orders to attack the French. But the adjutant sent there arrived half an hour later with the news that the dragoon regimental commander had already retreated beyond the ravine, for strong fire was directed against him, and he was losing people in vain and therefore hurried the riflemen into the forest.
- Fine! – said Bagration.
While he was driving away from the battery, shots were also heard in the forest to the left, and since it was too far to the left flank to arrive on time himself, Prince Bagration sent Zherkov there to tell the senior general, the same one who represented the regiment to Kutuzov in Braunau to retreat as quickly as possible beyond the ravine, because the right flank will probably not be able to hold the enemy for long. About Tushin and the battalion covering him were forgotten. Prince Andrei carefully listened to the conversations of Prince Bagration with the commanders and to the orders given to them and was surprised to notice that no orders were given, and that Prince Bagration only tried to pretend that everything that was done by necessity, chance and the will of private commanders, that all this was done, although not on his orders, but in accordance with his intentions. Thanks to the tact shown by Prince Bagration, Prince Andrei noticed that, despite this randomness of events and their independence from the will of their superior, his presence did an enormous amount. The commanders, who approached Prince Bagration with upset faces, became calm, the soldiers and officers cheerfully greeted him and became more animated in his presence and, apparently, flaunted their courage in front of him.

Prince Bagration, having reached the highest point of our right flank, began to descend downwards, where rolling fire was heard and nothing was visible from the gunpowder smoke. The closer they descended to the ravine, the less they could see, but the more sensitive the proximity of the real battlefield became. They began to meet wounded people. One with a bloody head, without a hat, was dragged by two soldiers by the arms. He wheezed and spat. The bullet apparently hit the mouth or throat. Another, whom they met, walked cheerfully alone, without a gun, groaning loudly and waving his hand in fresh pain, from which blood flowed, like from a glass, onto his overcoat. His face seemed more frightened than suffering. He was wounded a minute ago. Having crossed the road, they began to descend steeply and on the descent they saw several people lying down; They were met by a crowd of soldiers, including some who were not wounded. The soldiers walked up the hill, breathing heavily, and, despite the appearance of the general, they talked loudly and waved their hands. Ahead, in the smoke, rows of gray greatcoats were already visible, and the officer, seeing Bagration, ran screaming after the soldiers walking in a crowd, demanding that they return. Bagration drove up to the rows, along which shots were quickly clicking here and there, drowning out the conversation and shouts of command. The entire air was filled with gunpowder smoke. The soldiers' faces were all smoked with gunpowder and animated. Some hammered them with ramrods, others sprinkled them on the shelves, took charges out of their bags, and still others shot. But who they shot at was not visible due to the gunpowder smoke, which was not carried away by the wind. Quite often pleasant sounds of buzzing and whistling were heard. "What it is? - thought Prince Andrei, driving up to this crowd of soldiers. – It can’t be an attack because they don’t move; there can be no carre: they don’t cost that way.”
A thin, weak-looking old man, a regimental commander, with a pleasant smile, with eyelids that more than half covered his senile eyes, giving him a meek appearance, rode up to Prince Bagration and received him like the host of a dear guest. He reported to Prince Bagration that there was a French cavalry attack against his regiment, but that although this attack was repulsed, the regiment lost more than half of its people. The regimental commander said that the attack was repulsed, coining this military name for what was happening in his regiment; but he himself really did not know what was happening in those half an hour in the troops entrusted to him, and could not say with certainty whether the attack was repulsed or his regiment was defeated by the attack. At the beginning of the action, he only knew that cannonballs and grenades began to fly throughout his regiment and hit people, that then someone shouted: “cavalry,” and our people began to shoot. And until now they were shooting not at the cavalry, which had disappeared, but at the foot French, who appeared in the ravine and fired at ours. Prince Bagration bowed his head as a sign that all this was exactly as he wished and expected. Turning to the adjutant, he ordered him to bring two battalions of the 6th Jaeger, which they had just passed, from the mountain. Prince Andrei was struck at that moment by the change that had occurred in the face of Prince Bagration. His face expressed that concentrated and happy determination that happens to a man who is ready to throw himself into the water on a hot day and is taking his final run. There were no sleep-deprived dull eyes, no feignedly thoughtful look: round, hard, hawk-like eyes looked forward enthusiastically and somewhat contemptuously, obviously not stopping at anything, although the same slowness and regularity remained in his movements.
The regimental commander turned to Prince Bagration, asking him to move back, since it was too dangerous here. “Have mercy, your Excellency, for God’s sake!” he said, looking for confirmation at the retinue officer, who was turning away from him. “Here, if you please see!” He let them notice the bullets that were constantly screeching, singing and whistling around them. He spoke in the same tone of request and reproach with which a carpenter says to a gentleman who has taken up an ax: “Our business is familiar, but you will callus your hands.” He spoke as if these bullets could not kill him, and his half-closed eyes gave his words an even more convincing expression. The staff officer joined the admonitions of the regimental commander; but Prince Bagration did not answer them and only ordered to stop shooting and line up in such a way as to make room for the two approaching battalions. While he was speaking, as if with an invisible hand he was stretched from right to left, from the rising wind, a canopy of smoke that hid the ravine, and the opposite mountain with the French moving along it opened before them. All eyes were involuntarily fixed on this French column, moving towards us and meandering along the ledges of the area. The shaggy hats of the soldiers were already visible; it was already possible to distinguish officers from privates; one could see how their banner fluttered against the staff.
“They are going nicely,” said someone in Bagration’s retinue.
The head of the column had already descended into the ravine. The collision was supposed to happen on this side of the descent...
The remnants of our regiment, which was in action, hastily formed and retreated to the right; from behind them, dispersing the stragglers, two battalions of the 6th Jaeger approached in order. They had not yet reached Bagration, but a heavy, ponderous step could already be heard, beating in step with the entire mass of people. From the left flank, walking closest to Bagration was the company commander, a round-faced, stately man with a stupid, happy expression on his face, the same one who ran out of the booth. He, apparently, was not thinking about anything at that moment, except that he would pass by his superiors like a charmer.
With a sporty complacency, he walked lightly on his muscular legs, as if he were swimming, stretching out without the slightest effort and distinguished by this lightness from the heavy step of the soldiers who followed his step. He carried a thin, narrow sword taken out at his foot (a bent sword that did not look like a weapon) and, looking first at his superiors, then back, without losing his step, he turned flexibly with his whole strong figure. It seemed that all the forces of his soul were aimed at getting past the authorities in the best possible way, and, feeling that he was doing this job well, he was happy. “Left... left... left...”, he seemed to say internally after every step, and according to this rhythm, with variously stern faces, a wall of soldier figures, weighed down with backpacks and guns, moved, as if each of these hundreds of soldiers was mentally saying, every step of the way: “ left... left... left...". The fat major, puffing and staggering, walked around the bush along the road; the lagging soldier, out of breath, with a frightened face for his malfunction, was catching up with the company at a trot; the cannonball, pressing the air, flew over the head of Prince Bagration and his retinue and to the beat: “left - left!” hit the column. “Close!” came the swaggering voice of the company commander. The soldiers circled around something in the place where the cannonball fell; an old cavalier, a flank non-commissioned officer, falling behind near the dead, caught up with his line, jumped, changed his foot, fell into step and looked back angrily. “Left... left... left...” seemed to be heard from behind the threatening silence and the monotonous sound of feet simultaneously hitting the ground.
- Well done, guys! - said Prince Bagration.
“For the sake of... wow wow wow wow!...” was heard through the ranks. The gloomy soldier walking on the left, shouting, looked back at Bagration with such an expression as if he was saying: “we know it ourselves”; the other, without looking back and as if afraid to have fun, with his mouth open, shouted and walked by.
They were ordered to stop and take off their backpacks.
Bagration rode around the ranks passing by and dismounted from his horse. He gave the Cossack the reins, took off and gave his cloak, straightened his legs and adjusted the cap on his head. The head of the French column, with officers in front, appeared from under the mountain.
"With God blessing!" Bagration said in a firm, audible voice, turned for a moment to the front and, slightly waving his arms, with the awkward step of a cavalryman, as if working, he walked forward along the uneven field. Prince Andrei felt that some irresistible force was pulling him forward, and he experienced great happiness. [Here occurred the attack about which Thiers says: “Les russes se conduisirent vaillamment, et chose rare a la guerre, on vit deux masses d"infanterie Mariecher resolument l"une contre l"autre sans qu"aucune des deux ceda avant d "etre abordee"; and Napoleon on the island of St. Helena said: "Quelques bataillons russes montrerent de l"intrepidite." [The Russians behaved valiantly, and a rare thing in war, two masses of infantry marched decisively against each other, and neither of the two yielded until the clash." Napoleon's words: [Several Russian battalions showed fearlessness.]
The French were already getting close; Already Prince Andrei, walking next to Bagration, clearly distinguished the baldrics, red epaulettes, even the faces of the French. (He clearly saw one old French officer, who, with twisted legs in boots, was hardly walking up the hill.) Prince Bagration did not give a new order and still walked silently in front of the ranks. Suddenly, one shot cracked between the French, another, a third... and smoke spread through all the disorganized enemy ranks and gunfire crackled. Several of our men fell, including the round-faced officer, who was walking so cheerfully and diligently. But at the same instant the first shot rang out, Bagration looked back and shouted: “Hurray!”
“Hurray aa aa!” a drawn-out scream echoed along our line and, overtaking Prince Bagration and each other, our people ran down the mountain in a discordant, but cheerful and animated crowd after the upset French.

The attack of the 6th Jaeger ensured the retreat of the right flank. In the center, the action of the forgotten battery of Tushin, who managed to light Shengraben, stopped the movement of the French. The French put out the fire, carried by the wind, and gave time to retreat. The retreat of the center through the ravine was hasty and noisy; however, the troops, retreating, did not mix up their commands. But the left flank, which was simultaneously attacked and bypassed by the superior forces of the French under the command of Lannes and which consisted of the Azov and Podolsk infantry and Pavlograd hussar regiments, was upset. Bagration sent Zherkov to the general of the left flank with orders to immediately retreat.
Zherkov smartly, without removing his hand from his cap, touched his horse and galloped off. But as soon as he drove away from Bagration, his strength failed him. An insurmountable fear came over him, and he could not go where it was dangerous.
Having approached the troops of the left flank, he did not go forward, where there was shooting, but began to look for the general and commanders where they could not be, and therefore did not convey the order.
The command of the left flank belonged by seniority to the regimental commander of the very regiment that was represented at Braunau by Kutuzov and in which Dolokhov served as a soldier. The command of the extreme left flank was assigned to the commander of the Pavlograd regiment, where Rostov served, as a result of which a misunderstanding occurred. Both commanders were very irritated against each other, and while things had been going on on the right flank for a long time and the French had already begun their offensive, both commanders were busy in negotiations that were intended to insult each other. The regiments, both cavalry and infantry, were very little prepared for the upcoming task. The people of the regiments, from soldier to general, did not expect battle and calmly went about peaceful affairs: feeding horses in the cavalry, collecting firewood in the infantry.
“He is, however, older than me in rank,” said the German, a hussar colonel, blushing and turning to the adjutant who had arrived, “then leave him to do as he wants.” I cannot sacrifice my hussars. Trumpeter! Play retreat!
But things were getting to a point in a hurry. The cannonade and shooting, merging, thundered on the right and in the center, and the French hoods of the Lannes riflemen had already passed the mill dam and lined up on this side in two rifle shots. The infantry colonel walked up to the horse with a trembling gait and, climbing onto it and becoming very straight and tall, rode to the Pavlograd commander. The regimental commanders gathered with polite bows and with hidden malice in their hearts.
“Again, Colonel,” said the general, “I cannot, however, leave half the people in the forest.” “I ask you, I ask you,” he repeated, “to take a position and prepare to attack.”
“And I ask you not to interfere, it’s not your business,” the colonel answered, getting excited. - If you were a cavalryman...
- I’m not a cavalryman, colonel, but I’m a Russian general, and if you don’t know this...
“It’s very well known, Your Excellency,” the colonel suddenly cried out, touching the horse, and turning red and purple. “Would you like to put me in chains, and you will see that this position is worthless?” I don't want to destroy my regiment for your pleasure.
- You are forgetting yourself, Colonel. I do not respect my pleasure and will not allow anyone to say this.
The general, accepting the colonel's invitation to the tournament of courage, straightened his chest and frowned, rode with him towards the chain, as if all their disagreement was to be resolved there, in the chain, under the bullets. They arrived in a chain, several bullets flew over them, and they stopped silently. There was nothing to see in the chain, since even from the place where they had previously stood, it was clear that it was impossible for the cavalry to operate in the bushes and ravines, and that the French were going around the left wing. The general and the colonel looked sternly and significantly, like two roosters preparing for battle, at each other, waiting in vain for signs of cowardice. Both passed the exam. Since there was nothing to say, and neither one nor the other wanted to give the other a reason to say that he was the first to escape from the bullets, they would have stood there for a long time, mutually testing their courage, if at that time in the forest, almost behind them, there had not been the crackle of guns and a dull merging cry were heard. The French attacked soldiers who were in the forest with firewood. The hussars could no longer retreat along with the infantry. They were cut off from the retreat to the left by a French chain. Now, no matter how inconvenient the terrain was, it was necessary to attack in order to pave a path for ourselves.
The squadron where Rostov served, who had just managed to mount the horses, was stopped facing the enemy. Again, as on the Ensky Bridge, there was no one between the squadron and the enemy, and between them, dividing them, lay the same terrible line of uncertainty and fear, as if the line separating the living from the dead. All people felt this line, and the question of whether or not they would cross the line and how they would cross the line worried them.
A colonel drove up to the front, angrily answered the officers’ questions and, like a man desperately insisting on his own, gave some kind of order. No one said anything definite, but rumors of an attack spread throughout the squadron. The formation command was heard, then the sabers screeched as they were taken out of their scabbards. But still no one moved. The troops on the left flank, both infantry and hussars, felt that the authorities themselves did not know what to do, and the indecisiveness of the leaders was communicated to the troops.
“Hurry, hurry,” thought Rostov, feeling that the time had finally come to experience the pleasure of attack, about which he had heard so much from his comrades of the hussars.
“With God, you fuckers,” Denisov’s voice sounded, “ysyo, magician!”
In the front row the rumps of horses swayed. The rook pulled the reins and set off himself.
On the right, Rostov saw the first ranks of his hussars, and even further ahead he could see a dark stripe, which he could not see, but considered the enemy. Shots were heard, but in the distance.
- Increase the trot! - a command was heard, and Rostov felt his Grachik giving in with his hindquarters, breaking into a gallop.
He guessed his movements in advance, and he became more and more fun. He noticed a lone tree ahead. At first this tree was in front, in the middle of that line that seemed so terrible. But we crossed this line, and not only was there nothing terrible, but it became more and more fun and lively. “Oh, how I will cut him,” thought Rostov, clutching the hilt of the saber in his hand.
- Oh oh oh ah ah!! - voices boomed. “Well, now whoever it is,” thought Rostov, pressing Grachik’s spurs in, and, overtaking the others, released him into the entire quarry. The enemy was already visible ahead. Suddenly, like a wide broom, something hit the squadron. Rostov raised his saber, preparing to cut, but at that time the soldier Nikitenko, galloping ahead, separated from him, and Rostov felt, as in a dream, that he continued to rush forward with unnatural speed and at the same time remained in place. From behind, the familiar hussar Bandarchuk galloped up at him and looked angrily. Bandarchuk's horse gave way, and he galloped past.
"What is this? Am I not moving? “I fell, I was killed...” Rostov asked and answered in an instant. He was already alone in the middle of the field. Instead of moving horses and hussars' backs, he saw motionless earth and stubble around him. Warm blood was underneath him. “No, I’m wounded and the horse is killed.” The rook stood up on his front legs, but fell, crushing the rider's leg. Blood was flowing from the horse's head. The horse was struggling and could not get up. Rostov wanted to get up and fell too: the cart caught on the saddle. Where ours were, where the French were, he didn’t know. There was no one around.
Freeing his leg, he stood up. “Where, on which side was now the line that so sharply separated the two armies?” – he asked himself and could not answer. “Has something bad happened to me? Do such cases happen, and what should be done in such cases? - he asked himself getting up; and at that time he felt that something unnecessary was hanging on his left numb hand. Her brush was like someone else's. He looked at his hand, searching in vain for blood on it. “Well, here are the people,” he thought joyfully, seeing several people running towards him. “They will help me!” Ahead of these people ran one in a strange shako and a blue overcoat, black, tanned, with a hooked nose. Two more and many more were running behind. One of them said something strange, non-Russian. Between the rear similar people, in the same shakos, stood one Russian hussar. They held his hands; his horse was held behind him.
“That's right, our prisoner... Yes. Will they really take me too? What kind of people are these? Rostov kept thinking, not believing his eyes. “Really the French?” He looked at the approaching French, and, despite the fact that in a second he galloped only to overtake these French and cut them down, their proximity now seemed so terrible to him that he could not believe his eyes. "Who are they? Why are they running? Really to me? Are they really running towards me? And for what? Kill me? Me, whom everyone loves so much? “He remembered the love of his mother, family, and friends for him, and the enemy’s intention to kill him seemed impossible. “Or maybe even kill!” He stood for more than ten seconds, not moving and not understanding his position. The leading Frenchman with a hooked nose ran up so close that the expression on his face could already be seen. And the heated, alien physiognomy of this man, who with a bayonet at his advantage, holding his breath, easily ran up to him, frightened Rostov. He grabbed the pistol and, instead of shooting from it, threw it at the Frenchman and ran towards the bushes as fast as he could. He ran not with the feeling of doubt and struggle with which he went to the Ensky Bridge, but with the feeling of a hare running away from dogs. One inseparable feeling of fear for his young, happy life controlled his entire being. Quickly jumping over boundaries, with the same swiftness with which he ran while playing burners, he flew across the field, occasionally turning around his pale, kind, young face, and a cold of horror ran down his back. “No, it’s better not to look,” he thought, but, running up to the bushes, he looked back again. The French fell behind, and even at that moment he looked back, the one in front had just changed his trot to a walk and, turning around, shouted loudly to his rear comrade. Rostov stopped. “Something is wrong,” he thought, “it can’t be that they wanted to kill me.” Meanwhile, his left hand was so heavy, as if a two-pound weight was hung from it. He couldn't run any further. The Frenchman also stopped and took aim. Rostov closed his eyes and bent down. One and another bullet flew, buzzing, past him. He gathered his last strength, took his left hand in his right and ran to the bushes. There were Russian riflemen in the bushes.

Infantry regiments, taken by surprise in the forest, ran out of the forest, and companies, mingling with other companies, left in disorderly crowds. One soldier, in fear, uttered the most terrible and meaningless word in war: “cut off!”, and the word, along with a feeling of fear, was communicated to the entire mass.
- We went around! Cut off! Gone! - shouted the voices of those running.
The regimental commander, at that very moment when he heard shooting and a scream from behind, realized that something terrible had happened to his regiment, and the thought that he, an exemplary officer who had served for many years, was innocent of anything, could be guilty before his superiors in an oversight or lack of discretion, so struck him that at that very moment, forgetting both the recalcitrant cavalryman colonel and his general importance, and most importantly, completely forgetting about the danger and the sense of self-preservation, he, grabbing the pommel of the saddle and spurring his horse, galloped towards the regiment under a hail of bullets showered him, but happily missed him. He wanted one thing: to find out what was the matter, and to help and correct the mistake at all costs, if it was on his part, and not to be blamed for him, who had served for twenty-two years, an unnoticed, exemplary officer.