The regional center, located on the banks of the Ingul river, with the area near 10,3 thousands hectares. Data like this you can find in every guide. But you will hardly find that Kirovohrad is the Town of Brides. You will find the most beautiful Ukraine brides over here 'cause its women are the most beautiful out of the country.

On the 11th of January 1752, planning to repress liberation movement, to protect southern borders of the Russian Empire and to expand estates, the empress Elizabeth signed the edict to build the fortress. On the 18th of June 1754 the ceremonial laying of the St. Elizabeth fortress was held on the right bank of the Ingul.

During that period the Cossack regiment was situated here and successfully defended the fortress and nearby lands from conquerors and mutineers. But very soon monotonous military way of life bored Cossacks and they began to think about leaving the fortress. Then Elizabeth ordered to resettle the most beautiful girls from all the Russian Empire into the fortress. It was difficult not to execute the order of the empress and soon the population of the fortress has risen greatly.

Till 1783 the borders of the Russian Empire were expanded, the St. Elizabeth fortress lost its strategic importance and was disarmed. Shortly after that it was liquidated as military unit. In 1784 the fortress with the suburbs was entitled to be called a town - Elizavetgrad.

And the town began to meet migrants cheerfully, especially merchants and factory owners. This stimulated the development of commerce and industry. The sugar-refinery, which was built here, was one of the first plants in the Russian Empire. The tannery and the paper-mill appeared in the town during this period.

Elizavetgrad was advancing and shortly after that widened its borders onto the left bank of the Ingul. In the 18th century Elizavetgrad didn't amaze visitors: one-stored buildings, sometimes on the stone base, which were thatched or tiled, with a small gardens nearby. Only the elaborate wooden churches stood out against the background of gray buildings and green leafage. But for the ruthless fires of 1798 and 1833 - 1834 they would exist till nowadays. Such occasions stimulated local authorities to build of stone. The Preobrazhenskaya Church, the Znamenskaya Church and others were rebuilt of very stone.

Since 1829 Elizavetgrad became a center of military settlements in the south of Ukraine. Soon the building of the cantonment was set in. Tsar Nicholas I held the ceremony of laying the mansion-house and the civil buildings. Parades were given in the town in presence of tsar family and superior military dignitaries. These parades didn't consist only in soldiering. They needed a cultural program too. Thus in the first part of the 19th century the cultural life of Elizavetgrad rose to the unprecedentedly high level. Since 1830 the theatre troupes from Kharkov and Poltava began to come to Elizavetgrad. The first performances staged in wooden booths and in early 1840-s the theatre premise was built in Bolshaya Perspektivnaya Street (present Karl Marx Street). And during 13-20 September 1847 exactly in this premise the great Hungarian composer Franz Liszt gave his last concerts.

Alexander Pushkin visited Elizavetgrad three times over 1820-1824. Till the second part of the 19-th century Elizavetgrad became the town with "european face". Buildings changed for the better. There appeared street lamps and cube. A new bridge over Ingul was built. People called Elizavetgrad "a little Paris". In 1850 the central park was laid out on the spot of present Kirov's square.