Lozova


Lozova or Lozovaya is a city in Kharkiv Oblast, eastern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Lozova Raion. Lozova hosts the administration of Lozova urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The city population was Lozova is the 2nd largest city in Kharkiv Oblast after Kharkiv in terms of population.

Etymology

The name "Lozovaya" comes from the word "vine." According to one version of the origin of the city's name, the Lozovaya River flowed through Lozovaya. According to another, the banks of this river were filled with vines, which gave the river, and then the city, its name.
The famous Soviet writer Vasily Yan writes about the name "Lozovaya."

History

Foundation

Lozovaya was founded in 1869 as a station settlement in Kharkov Governorate of the Russian Empire in connection with the construction of the Kursk-Kharkiv-Azov Railway. On December 23, 1869, the first train of the Kursk-Kharkov-Azov Railway passed through Lozovaya. Its construction initiated the development of the region, as grain-producing regions were connected to the seaports of the Russian Empire, which exported grain.
In the second half of the 19th century, the Dnieper Railway, opened in 1875, also saw the construction of the Lozovaya-Sevastopol Railway, which gave further impetus to the development of the entire southern region of the Russian Empire. In 1902, a new railway line was built—Lozovaya—Poltava, connecting the Donbass with the western region.
Before the World War I, Lozovaya had two parts: Zarudnevskaya and Avilovskaya. Zarudnevskaya, a well-appointed part, was home to merchants, traders, and commoners. The houses were made of stone, and there was a cinema, a merchant club, and a city garden. The Avilovskaya part, near the station, was home to railroad workers: switchmen, conductors, and engine drivers; artisans and other hired laborers. Living conditions here were worse: the houses were poor, wooden, often wattle and daub huts; there were no sidewalkss.

Russian Civil War (1917-1919)

During the Civil War, in December 1917, a 30,000-strong corps of military units led by Vladimir Antonov-Ovseenko launched an offensive deep into Slobozhanshchina. After capturing Kharkov, a combined detachment of Red Guards and soldiers of the 30th Infantry Regiment under the command of Nikolay Rudnev began advancing toward Pavlograd. On December 14, the Red Army soldiers approached Lozovaya station, after which, on the third day of fighting, having pushed back small detachments of the Lozovsky Haidamaka Kuren and the Pavlograd Free Cossacks the active Ukrainian army that had arrived to reinforce it, they occupied the settlement.
Soviet power lasted less than four months: on April 8, 1918, Lozovaya was recaptured by the 3rd Haidamaka Regiment of the Zaporizhian Division of the UPR Army under the command of General Alexander Natiev with the support of troops from Austria-Hungary and Kaiser's Germany.

Interwar period (1920–1941)

From its founding until 1926, Lozovaya was part of the Pavlograd District of the Yekaterinoslav Governorate. In July 1926, it was transferred to the Kharkiv Governorate. Since 1929, it has been in the Kharkiv Oblast. A local newspaper has been published in Lozova since August 1929. In August 1929, publication of a local newspaper began.
In 1932–33, during the Holodomor, the population of Lozovaya suffered less than residents of surrounding villages, as the settlement was considered industrial, and workers received rations. On October 19, 1938, Lozovaya was granted city status. In 1939, the city's population was 21,975 people.

Great Patriotic War (1941–1945)

During the Great Patriotic War, the city changed hands several times. The first Wehrmacht units entered the city on October 11, 1941, and the city was occupied by German troops.
Fierce fighting in the Lozovaya area took place in January 1942 during the Red Army's Barvenkovo–Lozovaya offensive. On January 27, 1942, the city was liberated from German forces by troops of the Southwestern Front Southwestern Front: the 6th Army 6th Army, consisting of the 270th Rifle Division 270th Rifle Division.
On May 22–23, 1942, after the the failure of the Soviet offensive on Kharkov, the city was reoccupied. On February 11, 1943, it was liberated by troops of the Southwestern Front during the Voroshilovgrad Operation: the 1st Guards Army consisting of: the 35th Guards Rifle Division and the 4th Guards Rifle Corps.
On February 21, 1943, it was occupied for the third time. During the occupation, the city housed two concentration camps for Soviet prisoners of war, where the mortality rate in winter reached up to 100 people per day. Thousands of prisoners and Jews were shot in Zayachyaya Balka. Partisan detachments were active in the city, regularly distributing anti-fascist propaganda leaflets and carrying out bombings and sabotage at Lozovaya station. Partisan activity intensified particularly in 1943, during the Battle of Kursk.
On September 16, 1943, the city was liberated from German troops by Soviet troops of the Southwestern Front during the Donbas strategic offensive :
After its liberation, the city was completely restored. In the 1950s, a new railway station was built. The restoration of the railway junction and the construction of the new station were carried out under the supervision of General-Chief of the 3rd rank Hero of Socialist Labor Mikhail Bondarenko by the restoration work department of the Southern Railway and the Yuzhtransstroy trust. In 1953, there were several railway maintenance companies, four secondary schools, two libraries, a House of Culture and one stadium.
In January 1959, the city's population was 27,100. In January 1970 - 35,600 people. In 1972, the population was 38,800 people. In 1975, the city's population was 49,200. In January 1989 the population was 72,991 people, the basis of the city's economy at that time were mechanical engineering, metalworking, railway transport enterprises and the food industry.
The city was evacuated on 27 August 2008 due to a fire in an arsenal. However, there were no serious casualties or deaths and caused significant material damage. On August 28, 2008, a gas distribution station near a military unit exploded due to a fire., the population within a 3 km radius was temporarily evacuated.
As of the beginning of 2009, the population was 59,400, with the economy based on the forge and mechanical plant, the Traktorodetal combine plant, a metalworking plant, and railway maintenance enterprises. In January 2013, the population was 58,307 people.
Until 18 July 2020, Lozova was incorporated as a city of oblast significance and the center of the Lozova Municipality. The municipality was abolished in July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Kharkiv Oblast to seven. The area of Lozova Municipality was merged into Lozova Raion.

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Russia started an invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. Lozova has come under attack several times since the beginning of Russian invasion of Ukraine as it is one of the main railway hubs and a city of strategic significance.
  • On 24 February 2022 at 5:52 am, a radar station located in the south of the city near Avilovka raion was hit by three Russian missiles which saw the devastation of the radar station and a gas transit station nearby.
  • On 20 May 2022, a Russian missile system fired three rockets, according to Ukrainian sources; two of them were anticipated by the Ukrainian anti-rocket system but the third one hit the city's Cultural Centre. According to the ministry of emergency affairs of Ukraine, 11 people were injured but no one died. Russian authorities made no comment but on some unofficial Twitter handles of pro-Russian forces, it was claimed that the Ukrainian Territorial Defence Brigade was hiding in the Cultural House building.
  • On August 5, 2025 the Sevostopil side of the station was badly damaged by a Russian Drone attack, and as a result a station railway mechanic died while ten passengers were badly injured. Among them there were two children under 10.
As of January 1, 2025, the population was 60,000.

Geography

The city is located at the source of the Lozovaya River, which flows into the Britai River after 12 km. The villages of Domakha, Ukrainske, and Lesovskoye are adjacent to the city.

Climate

Lozovaya's climate is moderately continental. It is drier than Kharkiv's climate and is classified as a steppe climate. The average July temperature is +22 to +25 degrees Celsius, and January temperatures are -5 to -8 degrees Celsius. Precipitation is approximately 500–550 mm per year. Winds are easterly and westerly.

Culture

Lozovaya had a well-developed cultural, sports, and recreational sector. The city's long-standing Lozovaya Palace of Culture was destroyed by a Russian missile strike during the Russian invasion in 2022.
There were clubs and clubs for children and teenagers, including the Lozovaya Children's Art Center. Lozovaya's sports are represented by several youth sports schools: Yunost, Olimpiya, and Lokomotiv. A significant number of athletes in the city compete in wrestling, as well as basketball, volleyball, and football. The city also has the Lokomotiv Stadium. The Lozovaya Football Club has competed at the regional and national levels.