Moscow is the undisputed capital of the Russian Federation. More than 12 million people call this city home, another 12 million live in the immediate surroundings, making Moscow the political, economic and cultural center of Russia.
Situated on the Moskva River, Moscow is the world's most northern and coldest megacity and enjoys an average annual snowfall of 150 cm. 

In 1147 Moscow is first mentioned as a tiny settlement. During the Mongol invasion in 1238 Kievan Rus soon fell to the victorious Mongols and was incorporated in theGolden Horde Empire. One small principality was the Duchy of Moscow, which grew by absorbing other principalities and eventually became the leader in liberating Russia, a feat completed by Ivan the Great in 1480.
Moscow became the thriving capital of a growing empire, the Kremlin was reconstructed and the Red Square built.

In 1721 Peter the Great moved the capital of the Russian Empire to St Petersburg, but when Napoleon invaded Russia he went strait for Moscow. He failed and some of his abandoned hardware is now on display in the Kremlin.
After the Russian Revolution Lenin moved the capital of the Soviet Union in 1918 back to Moscow.
In 1941 the German army reached the outskirts of Moscow but in the Battle of Moscow the Germans were eventually driven back. Both sides suffered huge casualties.

The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 and Moscow embraced the market driven economy and quickly westernized.

Until recently the city drew millions of tourists that swamped the Kremlin, Red Square, Metro and museums but Covid 19 and the invasion of Ukraine has changed that.