Cannons of the Biysk Fortress Live Webcam, Biysk

The Cannons of the Biysk Fortress are a memorial site featuring two 12-pound cannons mounted on a stone pedestal in Biysk. They are located in the historic square at the intersection of Sovetskaya Street and Telegrafny (Gileva) Lane, near the Glory Memorial and the Biysk City Drama Theater. The cannons were cast in 1703 at Demidov’s Kamensk state-owned iron foundry in Sverdlovsk Oblast for use in Siberian frontier fortifications, originally in the Tobolsk and Kainsk fortresses. In 1756, twelve cannons were brought to the Biysk Fortress and installed on its bastions to strengthen defenses during the war with the Dzungars. Of those twelve, only two have survived to this day.

The Biysk Fortress existed from 1718 to 1846 as an important stronghold of the Kuznetsk defensive line and played a significant role in the city’s strategic development (including the area of present-day Gileva Lane). In 1909, to mark Biysk’s 200th anniversary, two of the surviving cannons were placed on granite pedestals in the square on Uspenskaya (now Sovetskaya) Street. A plaque on the front reads: “These cannons were mounted on the walls of the Biysk Fortress in the early 18th century. In 1949, the memorial was officially recognized as a protected historical landmark of local significance. Today, the Cannons of the Biysk Fortress are a notable tourist attraction and remain a popular spot for photography.