Starodub

Starodub (, "old oak") is a town in Bryansk Oblast, Russia, located on the Babinets River (the Dnieper basin), southwest of Bryansk. Population: 16,000 (1975).
History.
Starodub has been known since the 11th century, when it was a part of Severia. It was burned to the ground by the Mongols in the 13th century. It became a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 14th century, and later the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1503–1618, Starodub was a part of the Grand Duchy of Moscow and then Commonwealth until 1648. During the Khmelnytskyi Uprising, Zaporozhian Cossacks seized the town, and 188 families of local Ruthenian nobility recognized the Ukrainian hetman as a new governor. Starodub became the center of Starodub Cossack Regiment and enjoyed a large measure of autonomy between 1666 and 1686. 
Starodub remained rudiments of Cossack Hetmanate's administrative division until 1782 when it became an uyezd town. In 1796, Starodub was incorporated into Chernigov Governorate. In 1918, the town was occupied by the Germans. The Soviet authority was reinstated in November 1918.
During the Soviet period, Starodub was a part of Gomel Governorate (1919–1926), Bryansk Governorate (1926–1929), Western Oblast (1929–1937), and Oryol Oblast (1937–1944). The town was once again occupied by the Germans between August 18, 1941 and September 22, 1943. Starodub finally became a part of Bryansk Oblast in 1944.
Administrative and municipal status.
Within the framework of administrative divisions, Starodub serves as the administrative center of Starodubsky District, even though it is not a part of it. As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as Starodubsky Urban Administrative Okrug—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts. As a municipal division, Starodubsky Urban Administrative Okrug is incorporated as Starodub Urban Okrug.
Prior to January 1, 2013, Starodub was administratively incorporated as a town of district significance within Starodubsky District.
Architecture.
As a significant center of the Cossack Hetmanate, Starodub is the only place in Russia where authentic examples of Ukrainian Baroque may be seen. The Nativity Cathedral, built in 1617 and overhauled after a conflagration in 1677, is a typical example of Cossack Baroque. The Epiphany Church goes back to 1789, while the Church of St. Nicholas was erected in the Neoclassical style in 1802.