Kirzhach is named after the river on which the city stands, which in turn is thought to get its name from the Mordvin word for ‘left’ - ‘kirzh’. The city grew around the Blagoveschensky Monastery, which was founded in 1358 by St Sergius of Radonezh, who is more famous for founding the Troitse-Sergieva Lavra in Sergiev-Posad. The monastery, which today is now a convent, remains the city’s main sight. However just outside the city on the road to Pokrov is another important sight - a memorial complex marking the site of the plane crash which killed the first man in space Yury Gagarin.