Vladimir Central

Vladimir Central is a prison in the city of Vladimir, on Bolshaya Nizhegorodskaya Street. Its official name is the Federal State Institution "Prison No. 2 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for Vladimir Oblast", and it is still operating today: this is not only a museum but a working maximum-security correctional facility.

The building was constructed in 1783 by decree of Empress Catherine II. Over its long history the prison was reorganised more than once and held especially dangerous criminals, including spies and saboteurs, as well as political prisoners — among them the revolutionary Alexander Antonov and the military commander Mikhail Frunze.

The name "Vladimir Central" became widely known through the song of the same name by Mikhail Krug, which fixed its image as a symbol of the prison system and of the tragic fate of many inmates.

In 1996 a museum opened on the prison grounds, with materials for it provided by the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve. The museum tells the story of the institution, even though the prison itself continues to operate.