Luhansk

Coordinates: 48°34′N 39°18′E / 48.567°N 39.300°E / 48.567; 39.300

The city of Luhansk (Ukrainian: Луганськ, IPA: [ɫuˈɦɑnʲsʲk]) or Lugansk (Russian: Луганск; IPA: [lʊˈgansk]), formerly known as Voroshilovgrad (1935-1958 and 1970-1990), functions as the administrative center of Luhansk Oblast in easternmost Ukraine. The city itself is also designated as city of oblast significance. Population: 425,848 (2013 est.).

Since 2014, Luhansk is controlled by the forces of the Luhansk People's Republic and is not controlled by the Ukrainian Government. The administration of Luhansk Oblast was moved to Sievierodonetsk.

History

The city traces its history to 1795 when the British industrialist Charles Gascoigne founded a metal factory near the Zaporizhian Cossacks settlement Kamianyi Brid. The settlement around the factory was known as Luganskiy Zavod. In 1882 the factory settlement Luganskiy Zavod was merged with the town of Kamianyi Brid into the city of Luhansk. Located in the Donets Basin, Luhansk developed into an important industrial center of Eastern Europe, particularly as a home to the major locomotive-building company Luhanskteplovoz. The city was occupied by Nazi Germany between July 14, 1942 and February 14, 1943.

Luhansk People's Republic

The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR or LNR), also known as Lugansk People's Republic (Russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, tr. Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, LNR; IPA: [lʊˈɡanskəjə nɐˈrodnəjə rʲɪˈspublʲɪkə]; Ukrainian: Луганська Народна Республіка, Luhanska Narodna Respublika) is a self-proclaimed state in eastern Ukraine, bordering the Russian Federation, the (also self-proclaimed) Donetsk People's Republic, and Ukraine itself. Along with the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and the Republic of Crimea, the Luhansk People's Republic is one of what the Ukrainian government calls the "temporarily occupied territories".

Its anthem is "Glory to Lugansk People's Republic! (Russian Language: Луганской Народной Республике, Слава!)".

Following the Euromaidan protest movement and the overthrow of President Viktor Yanukovich in the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, local Antimaidan and pro-Russian protests intensified, culminating in the proclamation of the Luhansk People's Republic on 27 April 2014. The authorities of the Republic later held a referendum on 11 May to seek legitimacy for the proclamation, and subsequently declared independence on 12 May 2014. On 24 May 2014, the self-proclaimed government agreed to a merger with the Donetsk People's Republic into an unrecognized confederation known as Novorossiya (thereby making a reference to the corresponding historical region and its name). The Republic is recognised only by South Ossetia, which itself only has limited international recognition. On 20 May 2015 the leadership of the Federal State of Novorossiya announced the termination of the confederation 'project'.