Velizh is situated at a distance of 115 km to the North-West of Smolensk in the direction of the Smolensk – Nevel – St.-Petersburg highway. The official account of the age of Velizh, founded on the Western Dvina, began in 1536. At that very time fortress with 9 towers was erected. For the period of its long history Velizh was in the Vitebsk region, the Pskovsk region and belonged to the polish crown. Since 1772 it is the part of Russia.

There are more than 100 archeological monuments on the territory of the Velizh district. Even within the limits of the modern town there are 4 sites of the ancient town. In 1972 down the river Sertejka two pile-settlements of the Stone Age were discovered. Their discovery became a sensation, because there had been only two settlements of the kind in our country before. As a result of a complex underwater research of the settlement, there was proved the existence of 6 pile-buildings. The settlement is dated the middle of the III millennium B. C.

The river West Dvina in Velizh