St. George's Church, Staraya Ladoga St. George's Church, Staraya Ladoga St. George's Church () in the selo of Staraya Ladoga, Volkhovsky District, Leningrad Oblast, Russia is one of the oldest churches of Russia, dating from the second half of the 12th century. It is one of the few surviving pre-Mongol buildings in Russia. It contains the frescoes of the 12th century, extremely rare in Russia. The church is located within the Staraya Ladoga Fortress, on the left bank of the Volkhov River. The building was designated an architectural monument of federal significance (#4710025007). Staraya Ladoga was the first seat of Rurik in 862, and, after
Lake Ladoga of the 1960s Ladoga has become considerably eutrophicated. Nizhnesvirsky Natural Reserve is situated along the shore of Lake Ladoga immediately to the north of the mouth of the River Svir. In the Middle Ages, the lake formed a vital part of the trade route from the Varangians to the Eastern Roman Empire, with the Norse emporium at Staraya Ladoga defending the mouth of the Volkhov since the 8th century. In the course of the Swedish–Novgorodian Wars, the area was disputed between the Novgorod Republic and Sweden. In the early 14th century, the fortresses of Korela (Kexholm) and Oreshek (Nöteborg) were