formerly Khadzhi-tarkhan, city and administrative cent.... km) mile

Astrakhan city is situated in the delta of the Volga River, 60 miles (100 km) from the Caspian Sea. Astrakhan was formerly the capital of a Tatar khanate, a remnant of the Golden Horde, located on the higher right bank of the Volga, 7 miles (11 km) from the present-day city. A city of bridges and water channels, it is an important river port, but because of the shallowness of the northern Caspian, seagoing craft have to transship about 125 miles (200 km) by road from Astrakhan, which is reached by a dredged channel.