Kurgan is a city in Russia, the capital of the Kurgan region, standing on the banks of the Tobol River, 2,044 km east of Moscow. It is an important economic, scientific and cultural center of the Urals, a major transport hub and industrial center.The exact date of foundation of Kurgan is unknown. The official date is 1679. At that time, it was known as Tsaryovo Gorodishche. In 1695, the settlement was moved eight kilometers downstream of the Tobol River and got a new name - Tsarekurganskaya (Tsarevo-Kurganskaya) sloboda (settlement).At the beginning of the 18th century, it turned into a military fortress. In 1782, by decree of Empress Catherine II, the settlement became the town of Kurgan. In 1804-1898, Kurgan was the administrative center of the Kurgan county, the Tobolsk province. At the beginning of the 19th century, the town received the first school, hospital, and a fire station with a lookout tower.Given the distance from the center of Russia, the town was used by the authorities as a place of exile. Over the years, thirteen Decembrists were exiled to Kurgan. William Kiichelbecker, Andrew Rosen, Michael Naryshkin were among them.
