Kodak

Kodak stood on the right bank of the Dnipro opposite the Kodak rapid, at a strategic point on the approaches to the Zaporizhian Sich. The Polish government built the fortress in the summer of 1635 to separate the Sich from the Ukrainian lands under its authority. Its earthworks and wooden defences formed a four-bastioned stronghold above the river.

The fort's first occupation was short: Cossacks attacked it in August 1635, soon after construction. It was subsequently rebuilt and again became a contested military position. During the uprising beginning in 1648, Kodak passed into Cossack hands and served as a strongpoint for their forces. Its career as a fortress ended with destruction under the terms of the 1711 Treaty of the Pruth. A settlement also grew near the fort. These episodes locate Kodak in the struggle to control movement along the rapids, rather than presenting it simply as an undifferentiated farming village.