[3] The site of modern Volnovakha was inhabited during the Bronze Age, as is evidenced by archaeological excavations in the northeast part of the city.

[6] During the Russian Civil War, Volnovakha was the scene of fighting multiple times due to its strategic significance as a rail hub.

It was captured by soldiers loyal to the anti-communist White Movement in early December 1918, and changed hands several more times.

[5] Eventually, the victorious Bolsheviks captured Volnovakha along with the rest of Ukraine and established the communist Soviet Union on much of the territory of the former Russian Empire.

[7] During World War II, Volnovakha was occupied by Nazi Germany from 11 October 1941 to 10 September 1943.

[9] Eventually, Volnovakha was liberated by the Red Army on 10 September 1943, after fierce fighting on the Kalmius river.

[5] On 13 January 2015, 12 civilians were killed and 18 injured, after an attack on a passenger bus at a checkpoint in Buhas, a town north-east of Volnovakha.

They said that this had not been possible before, due to fear of the Viktor Yanukovych regime that had been recently deposed in the 2014 Revolution of Dignity.

[14] In October 2015, a monument to Vladimir Lenin was demolished in Volnovakha as part of decommunization in Ukraine.

[16] The terror bombing of the cities violated international law and echoed tactics Russia had previously used on civilian targets in Syria.

[17] On 11 March, Russia claimed that forces of the Donetsk People's Republic had captured Volnovakha.

[22] On 1 April, Pavlo Kyrylenko, the governor of Donetsk Oblast, said that 90% of its critical infrastructure was destroyed.

Today, three out of four residents are Ukrainians, roughly 20% are ethnic Russians and Greeks account for 2.5% of population.

[28] As of the 2001 Ukrainian census, the exact ethnic and linguistic composition was as follows:[29] Media related to Volnovakha at Wikimedia Commons