Lipetsk

Lipetsk developed beside the Voronezh River in Russia's southern forest-steppe. In the early eighteenth century ironworks were established near local ore deposits under Peter the Great, producing material for the state's military needs. Their furnaces depended on water, fuel and labour from the surrounding district.

The works gave rise to a settlement known as Lipskie Zavody. In 1779 it was granted town status as Lipetsk, becoming an administrative centre within the Tambov region. Its development joined industry with the resources and labour of the neighbouring countryside.