Which temple was built in honor of the Russian fleet. Temple-monuments in honor of military victories

Municipal educational institution of the district municipal institution "Khomutovskaya secondary school No. 2"

Regional scientific and practical conference

Cyril and Methodius

Theme: “Temples - monuments in honor of military victories”

Section “Orthodox History”

Work completed

a history teacher

Petrova A.I.

Irkutsk 2015

Abstracts

The thousand-year history of the Russian state will be empty and insignificant without Orthodoxy and the feat of Russian weapons for the glory of the Fatherland. These two concepts are inseparable and are united in temple-monuments in honor of military victories. The bloodiest events in Russia took place in the European part of Russia, especially around its two capitals - Moscow and St. Petersburg, which met the victors, burned, and were reborn from the ashes like a phoenix. On the eve of the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, I would like to remember those pages of Russian history with which the glory of Russian weapons is associated, which was remembered at all times, regardless of state policy and social system.

Orthodox churches in Rus' and in Russia are built in honor of military victories according to the inner conviction of the Russian Grand Dukes, Tsars, Emperors, with public donations and do not have a statute of limitations or oblivion.

There were 932 churches in Moscow, and if you count the boundaries and chapels, then there were 1714 of them. Of these, 1114 -65% were churches built according to a vow, to commemorate victories over the enemy. Military votive churches were divided according to their location into churches in settlements,

In the Alexander Nevsky Lavra rest the relics of the outstanding commander and statesman of the 13th century, Alexander Nevsky, recognized by the Russian Orthodox Church as the heavenly patron of St. Petersburg.

Temples built with public donations cannot be destroyed in the people's memory. In Moscow, St. Petersburg, on the Kulikovo Field, temples and monuments to the glory of Russian weapons are located in architectural ensembles. Like heavenly warriors, churches stand on Russian soil, setting an example of the firmness of the Orthodox faith and service to the Fatherland.

1.Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………4

2. Main part. Temples - monuments in honor of military victories…………………………5-13

2.1.Moscow. …………………………………………………………………………………..5-12

2.2. The Most Holy Theotokos – protectors of the Russian land………………………………...6-7

2.3. Scheme of the Kremlin and Red Square……………………………………………………..8-10

2.4.Last tribute. …………………………………………………………………………………. 10-13

3. St. Petersburg and Russian military glory reflected in Orthodox churches………………………………………………………………………………………..13 -14

3.1.In the Alexander – Nevsky Lavra………………………………………………………14

4. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………..14

5. Literature………………………………………………………………………………14

1. Introduction.

The relevance of the problem in all centuries has been at the forefront of the spiritual and moral view of life in Russia. The thousand-year history of the Russian state will be empty and insignificant without Orthodoxy and the feat of Russian weapons for the glory of the Fatherland. These two concepts are inseparable and are united in temples-monuments in honor of military victories. The bloodiest events in Russia took place in the European part of Russia, especially around its two capitals - Moscow and St. Petersburg, which met the victors, burned, and were reborn from the ashes like a phoenix. On the eve of the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, I would like to remember those pages of Russian history with which the glory of Russian weapons is associated, which was remembered at all times, regardless of state policy and social system. Respect for the Orthodox traditions of Russia, the talent of architects and architects, became temples of military glory. They remind us that we cannot be Ivans who do not remember kinship, otherwise an entire people can lose their spiritual core and become a thief in the hands of others.

Target:

Consider in various written sources, photographic materials, reproductions the most significant temples - monuments in honor of military victories that influenced the formation of Russian identity.

Tasks:

Describe the temples of military glory in Moscow and St. Petersburg;

Determine the public attitude towards the construction of Orthodox churches associated with the victories of Russian weapons.

Object of study:

Russian Orthodox churches - monuments of military glory

Subject of study:

Orthodox churches in Moscow and St. Petersburg, built in honor of military victories.

Hypothesis:

To prove that Orthodox churches in Rus' and in Russia are built in honor of military victories according to the inner conviction of the Russian Grand Dukes, Tsars, Emperors, with public donations and do not have a statute of limitations or oblivion.

2. Main part.Temples are monuments in honor of military victories.

One of the first memorial churches in Ancient Rus' was Church of the Intercession on the Nerl, built in 1165 by the holy Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky in memory of the victory over the Volga Bulgars and in honor of his son Izyaslav killed in the battle.

2.1.Moscow.

Moscow is the embodiment of Russian history and culture: in the 17th century. There were 932 churches in Moscow, and if you count the boundaries and chapels, then there were 1714 of them. Of these, 1114 -65% were churches built according to a vow, to commemorate victories over the enemy. Military votive churches were divided according to their location into churches in settlements,

who took part in this battle, and churches built in the most revered places (the Kremlin, Red Square, China - the city, monasteries).

The tradition of honoring great victories over foreign enemies in Moscow has changed over time. In ancient times, the national victory was celebrated with a church celebration, under Peter I state triumphs appeared, later civil monuments and military memorials were created, but over the centuries a stable symbol of the victory holiday has been preserved - thanksgiving and memorial churches.

The first victory immortalized in a monument, known in the history of Muscovite Rus', was a diplomatic victory. After the Tver uprising of 1327 against the khan's tribute collectors, in which the khan's nephew Shevkal was killed, the Tver prince took refuge in Pskov. Khan Uzbek assembled a punitive campaign and put the Moscow prince Ivan Kalita at the head of the army. However, on the eve of the feast of St. John the Climacus, the litigation, with the help of St. Theognostus, Metropolitan of Moscow, was resolved peacefully, without bloodshed. In gratitude for the peaceful victory, Ivan Kalita founded in 1329 a church in the name of John Climacus - the Ivan the Great Bell Tower. The traditional version of historians that the reason for its founding was the birth of Ivan Kalita’s son, named Ivan, was refuted by Ivan Zabelin: the heavenly guardian of the baby was Saint John, Patriarch of Jerusalem, and not John Climacus.

Church in the name of John Climacus

(Ivan the Great belltower)

The first military victory of Muscovite Rus' was won in the Battle of Kulikovo. Then the first military memorials appeared in Moscow: St. George's Church in Kolomenskoye, founded, according to legend, by Dmitry Donskoy himself, when he stopped in Kolomenskoye, returning with victory to Moscow - dead soldiers were buried near this temple; and the Church of All Saints on Kulishki - in memory of all those who fell on the Kulikovo Field. (There is a version that a wooden temple of the same name stood on Kulishki since 1367, and the Donskoy army, going to battle, served a prayer service near it). At his beloved Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo, Dmitry Donskoy buried the Sergius Moscow Church of All Saints on Kulishki

monks-warriors of Peresvet and Ooslabya and established Dmitrievsky parental Saturday for

church commemoration of the dead. The mother of the hero of the Battle of Kulikovo, Prince Vladimir Serpukhovsky, founded the Nativity Monastery, since the victory was won on this holiday, and after the death of Dmitry Donskoy, his widow Grand Duchess Evdokia founded, according to a vow, the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Senya at her Kremlin chambers

At the walls of the Spaso-Andronnikov Monastery in 1380, Muscovites met soldiers returning from the Kulikovo field. In the wooden church of the monastery, built by the disciple of Sergius of Radonezh, the Monk Andronnik, a prayer service was served in honor of the victory, and those who died on the banks of the Don were buried in the fence. Between 1410 and 1427 the old church was dismantled and the white-stone Spassky Cathedral was erected in its place. The monastery was devastated by the Mongol-Tatar (XIV-XV centuries), Polish-Lithuanian (1611) and Napoleonic (1812) troops, but each time it rose from the ruins. The relics of Andrei Rublev, who was canonized on July 17, 1989, rest in the monastery.

Cathedral of the Savior Not Made by Hands

2.2. The Most Holy Theotokos are the protectors of the Russian land.

More than a thousand years of history of the Russian state takes place under the cover of miraculous images of the Mother of God, who created the sacred geography of the Russian land.

Our Lady of Vladimir defender of Moscow, guards the very center, the heart of our state - the Kremlin, China - the city. Such decisive events for our Fatherland as the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380. and Borodinskaya in 1812. occurred on the days of the Nativity of the Mother of God and her Vladimir icon.

Tikhvin Mother of God. The Tikhvin icon protects the northern borders of the state.

Kazan Icon of the Mother of God Since the time of Ivan the Terrible, he has defended Russia from the east.

Russia's western borders were defended Smolensk Mother of God, called Hodegetria (“Guide”). In difficult times for the country - in 1395, 1482 and 1612, 1812 and 1941 - the icons of the Mother of God stood as an unbreakable wall in the path of those who sought the destruction of the Russian land.

Spiritual shield on the southern borders of the Fatherland - Don Icon of the Mother of God. The Don Cossacks presented this saving image as a gift to Prince Dmitry Ivanovich (Donskoy) after the victory on the Kulikovo Field.

The monument to the miraculous salvation of Moscow from the invasion of Timur became Sretensky Monastery, based on the meeting place of the miraculous Vladimir Icon, brought by order of Grand Duchess Evdokia from Vladimir to protect the Russian capital. And the Holy Cross Monastery was founded in memory of the deliverance of Moscow from the invasion of Khan Mehmet in 1440 - it was demolished under Soviet rule. This monastery was founded by the treasurer and favorite of Prince Vasily the Dark, Prince Khovrin, who had a house here. After the Khan left, he built a stone temple in his yard, which was then converted into a monastery, of which today only the name of Vozdvizhenka Street remains.

The largest military triumph of medieval Rus' was the conquest of Kazan. The monument to this victory was the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat (1555 -1561) on Red Square - a symbolic embodiment of the idea of God's chosen Third Rome and the architectural image of the Heavenly Jerusalem. On the Feast of the Intercession on October 1, 1552, the victorious assault on Kazan began. The remaining eight temple-altars surrounding the central tent of the Intercession are reminiscent of the old white-stone Trinity Church, in which St. Basil the Blessed was buried, and of the battles that preceded the conquest of Kazan. They are consecrated in the name of those saints, on whose memory days victories were won in the battle with the enemy.

In the late autumn of 1552, all of Moscow, led by Saint Macarius, met Ivan the Terrible and the army at the walls of the Sretensky Monastery. The king dismounted and fell on his face in front of the monastery. After a prayer of thanks, he took off his armor, put on royal clothes and went to the Kremlin with a procession of the cross. After the service in the Assumption Cathedral, a grandiose three-day feast followed in the Faceted Chamber. The Tsar and the Metropolitan made speeches that emphasized not only the national, but also the Christian meaning of the victory over the infidel Tatars who were tormenting the Russian land. The Tsar says that the victory was won only thanks to Divine help, thanked the Metropolitan, all the clergy and all the Russian people for their prayers, thanked his army, generously granting the winners sable fur coats, golden cups, horses, estates. The Tsar promises to build a temple in honor of the victory over the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates

If you look at the Intercession Cathedral from above, you can see an eight-pointed star. Eight churches - rays - are closely pressed against each other around the largest central tented temple - a figure of two squares, shifted relative to each other by 45 0 and forming an eight-pointed star. A little apart, under a hipped dome, there is a bell tower. This is not just a temple, but a town of temples connected by galleries and ceilings (the 10th tent is located above the burial place of St. Basil). The architects of the temple were masters Barma and Postnik Yakovlev.

2.3.Scheme of the Kremlin and Red Square

Cathedral of Christ the Savior

St. Basil's Cathedral

Intercession of the Virgin Mary on the Moat Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God on Red Square

The victory over the Poles was celebrated with churches. In honor of the victory of 1612, a thanksgiving Kazan Cathedral was founded on Red Square in honor of the shrine of the second militia of K. Minin and D. Pozharsky - the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God - and religious processions from the Kremlin with the participation of king On October 22, 1612, the squads solemnly, with a procession of the cross, went to the Kremlin, carrying in front of them the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. At Lobnoye Place, the religious procession led by the Kazan icon was greeted by Archbishop Arseny, who emerged from the Kremlin. He carried the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God, which he had preserved in captivity. In front of the shocked people, a meeting of two miraculous icons of the Mother of God took place.

The first wooden church was built with the contribution of Prince Dmitry Pozharsky in 1626 -1632. It burned down in 1635, and in its place a stone cathedral was erected in two years. After construction was completed, a smooth wooden pavement was laid from the temple to Lobnoye Mesto, which was first called “Red Bridge” and then “Red Square”. In 1936, the cathedral began to be destroyed. In 1937 At the site of the demolition of the temple, a pavilion was erected in honor of the Third International, designed by B. Iofan. Later, a toilet was installed here, which was popular among GUM visitors. Half a century later, in 1989, a public movement arose for the restoration of the Kazan Church. On November 4, 1993, on the day of the Icon of the Kazan Mother of God, the doors of the cathedral were again opened to believers.

A grandiose celebration in Moscow took place in honor of the Battle of Poltava (1709), which became not only a radical turning point in the Northern War, but also the collapse of the occupation plans of Charles XII, who had already appointed a Swedish governor-general of Moscow. That is why the Poltava victory was celebrated in Moscow with special triumph. Petervelel ordered to compose a rite of thanksgiving church service “about the great God-given victory.” In the same summer of 1709, by order of Peter and with his personal funds, the Bolshoi

Temple of John the Warrior on Yakimanka

In Yakimanka, construction began on the stone temple of John the Warrior, the patron saint of warriors for the Fatherland. According to legend, the sovereign himself drew up a sketch of it and allocated a priceless brick to the architect Ivan Zarudny.

On the feast of the Nativity of Christ, December 25, 1812, when the last Napoleonic soldier left Russia, Alexander I signed a Manifesto on the construction of the thanksgiving Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. And after Paris was taken in March 1814 and the war ended, Alexander I issued a decree to the Holy Synod to henceforth serve in all churches on Christmas after

Cathedral of Christ the Savior

festive liturgy, a thanksgiving prayer in “memory of the deliverance of the Church and the Russian state from the invasion of the Gauls and with them twenty languages.” So that the memory of that victory - “both the deliverance of Russia and the salvation of all of Europe” - would be preserved from generation to generation. In Russia, the day of victory over Napoleon was established on December 25. It was no coincidence that the Emperor chose as the date of celebration not the March capture of Paris, but the expulsion of the enemy from Russia, since this liberation was attributed to Divine Providence, which preserved the state. On the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, a prayer of thanksgiving to the Savior was especially appropriate. The Emperor approved the Sparrow Hills for the construction of the temple, where the last Napoleonic redoubt stood in October 1812. After the death of Alexander I, construction was stopped due to financial troubles; the national idea of a thanksgiving church already required implementation in national forms of architecture. That is why in the second competition for the creation of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the project of Konstantin Ton, who turned to the Russian-Byzantine style, won. The temple was founded again in 1839 on Prechistenskaya embankment and was built with funds from the treasury and public donations. On May 26, 1883, in the presence of Emperor Alexander III and with a large crowd of people, the temple was consecrated. It became the tallest building in Moscow and the largest temple in Russia (height 103.5 m, capacity 10 thousand people).

Oh, Temple of the Savior Christ

Your appearance is strong for a reason -

You are freedom incarnate.

On victorious blood

You are the memory of fiery love

And the glory of the Russian people.

Yuri Konetsky “Shrine”

On December 5, 1931, on the initiative of L.M. Kaganovich and the personal order of I.V. Stalin, the temple was blown up. On the site of the destroyed temple, it was planned to build the Palace of the Soviets with a height of 480 m, but this project was not implemented, and in 1960. The Moscow swimming pool was opened in a deep pit. And on January 7, the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, 1995, an artillery salute rang out while the bells were ringing. In the presence of Patriarch Alexy II, government officials, Moscow authorities, and the public, a capsule and memorial plaque were laid into the foundation of the recreated temple-monument. On April 14, 1996, on Easter Day, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior opened its doors to believers. The next day, the canonization of the royal family (Nicholas II) took place in the temple.

2.4. Last tribute. Spaso-Borodino Monastery. A few weeks after the Battle of Borodino, the mournful figure of the widow of the murdered Major General A.A. Tuchkov appeared on the battlefield. Accompanied by an elder monk, Magarita Mikhailovna looked for her husband’s body, but did not find it. In 1817 MM. Tuchkova asked for the highest permission to build a memorial church - a chapel in the name of the Savior Not Made by Hands. This temple became the first and main monument to the fallen heroes of Borodin. Opposite him, Margarita Mikhailovna built a small gatehouse for herself, in which she began to live alone after the death of her only son Nikolenka. Widows began to come and live with the Borodino hermit. In 1840, Margarita Mikhailovna was tonsured a nun with the name Maria and elevated to the rank of abbess of the Spaso-Borodinsky monastery.

Abbess Maria (Tuchkova) General A.A. Tuchkov

Temple - tomb of the Savior - Image Not Made by Hands

(Photograph from the early 20th century)

There the land is baptized,

The blood on it was holy;

There, saving the Throne and Rus',

The whole army lay down,

Saved both the Throne and Rus'

Vasily Zhukovsky

Chapel-monument to the heroes of Plevna

The Russian-Turkish War of 1877–1878 left two Orthodox monuments in Moscow. The first to appear was the memorial chapel of Alexander Nevsky on Moiseevskaya Square, built according to the design of D.N. Chichagov in 1883 in memory of the fallen Russian soldiers. Four years later, exactly the same monument - to the heroes of Plevna - was erected at the Ilyinsky Gate for the 10th anniversary of the great battle on the initiative of the grenadiers and the Russian Archaeological Society. Its author was V.O. Sherwood, architect of the Historical Museum. Both monuments are made in the form of a chapel, which is connected with the task of the competition announced for the selection of the project - “to express the goal for which Russian soldiers died in battle”, and with its dedication: in Bulgaria there was a tradition of erecting chapel monuments. The shape of the monument-chapel is purely Russian - a tent topped with a cross, a crescent and kokoshniks. Reliefs on the monument to heroes The monument was opened with a military parade, in the presence of Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich, Moscow Governor-General Prince V.A. Dolgorukov and mayor N.A. Alekseeva.

Tomb of Russian admirals in Sevastopol. The Cathedral of Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir is located on the Central City Hill of Sevastopol. Built in the Byzantine style according to the design of architecture professor K.A. Ton. The project was finalized and changed by academician A.A. Avdeev. Laid down on July 15, 1854. During the war of 1854-1855. work was suspended and continued only in 1858. The lower church was consecrated on October 5, 1881 in the name of St. Nicholas. The upper church was consecrated in 1888 in the name of the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir. The cathedral is the tomb of the Russian admirals M.P. Lazarev, V.A. Kornilova, V.I. Istomina, P.S. Nakhimov. Inside, marble slabs with the names of 33 heroes are installed on the walls.

Tomb of Russian Admirals

First defense awarded the Order of St. George. In 1932, the cathedral was looted and the graves were desecrated. The cathedral was closed, and in subsequent

for years it housed workshops

Aircraft Construction Society Restoration of St. Vladimir's Cathedral

then the warehouse of the political department of the Black Sea Fleet. During the Great Patriotic War of 1941 -1945. the cathedral building was heavily damaged. After restoration in 1972, the building was transferred to the Museum of the Heroic Defense and Liberation of Sevastopol. September 19, 1991 The consecration of the cathedral took place.

The ashes of Russian admirals will serve as a shrine for all present and future sailors of the Black Sea Fleet, a monument to the heroes of the defense of Sevastopol in 1854-1855.

Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Maryin the village of Monastyrshchina.

The Russian army, having driven the remnants of Mamai's horde across the Mecha River, returned to the battlefield and buried the warriors who had fallen in battle on the high bank of the Nepryadva, at its confluence with the Don. This place was called Green Oak and consisted of an oak forest. An oak church was built on the bones of the slain soldiers in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, celebrated on September 8 (Old Style). i.e. on the day of the battle.

Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary

This is how a memorial structure of ancient Russian architects arose on the Kulikovo Field. A village was soon built near the church, called Rozhdestvenskoye. This village was assigned to the Moscow Donskoy Monastery, from which it received its second, now more well-known name - Monastyrshchina. Over the centuries, the church burned down more than once, but was always rebuilt.

Ivanovka. Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh on the Kulikovo Field.

Church of St. George the Victorious on Poklonnaya Hill, on the territory of the Victory Park memorial complex, built in honor of the victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. Built in 1993-1995 for the 50th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
Architect A.T. Polyansky.

Temple of St. George the Victorious

3. St. Petersburg and Russian glory,

reflected in Orthodox churches.

On Nevsky Prospekt there is the Kazan Cathedral, which became a monument to the victory of Russian weapons over Napoleonic France. Field Marshal M.I. Kutuzov is buried here. A monument with his image, as well as a monument to the hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, M.B. Barclay de Tolly, are installed in front of the northern facade.

One of the shrines of Russian Orthodoxy, the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, is kept in the Temple.

Kazan Cathedral. Architect

A.N. Voronikhin.

Grave of Field Marshal M.I. Kutuzov

One of the churches in St. Petersburg associated with the naval glory of Russian weapons was the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral. The first solemn service in the cathedral took place on September 14, 1770. after the victory over the Turkish armada near Chesma. In the cathedral there is an icon of St. Nicholas, one of the most beloved saints of the Russian people. He was named Nicholas the Wonderworker, the patron saint of sailors.

St. Nicholas-Epiphany Naval Cathedral

Icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker

3.1. In the Alexander Nevsky Lavra rests the relics of the outstanding commander and statesman of the 13th century, Alexander Nevsky, recognized by the Russian Orthodox Church as the heavenly patron of St. Petersburg. Under his command, Russian troops won a victory over the Swedes on the banks of the Neva in 1240. The relics of Alexander Nevsky rest in the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. Also in the Alexander Nevsky Lavra there is the grave of A.V. Suvorov, where it is written on the tombstone “Here lies Suvorov.”

Holy Trinity Cathedral

Reliquary with the relics of Alexander Nevsky

4. Conclusion.

Having examined written sources, photographs, reproductions, and video materials about temple-monuments built in honor of military victories, we can conclude that temples built according to vows made before battles or after their victorious outcome played a large role in the formation of Russian identity. And the great princes, and the kings, and the emperors considered it their moral duty to the memory of those who fell for their Fatherland, to perpetuate their feat of arms in cathedrals, chapels, monasteries, where Orthodox Russians could read a prayer of remembrance for them from the soul, coming from the heart. Temples built with public donations cannot be destroyed in the people's memory. In Moscow, St. Petersburg, on the Kulikovo Field, temples and monuments to the glory of Russian weapons are located in architectural ensembles. Like heavenly warriors, churches stand on Russian soil, setting an example of the firmness of the Orthodox faith and service to the Fatherland.

5. Literature.

1. Marina Anashkevich Temples of Russia Publisher: AST Astrel M., 2007.

2. Moscow Panorama of centuries. AST Astrel M., 2005

3. St. Petersburg and suburbs N. Popova, N. Kutov. Album edition “P-2”, St. Petersburg, 2005.

4.//Foma. OPK basics of Orthodox culture for teachers, parents and children. Special issue 2014, M., Publishing House "Foma"

5. S. Chekhov The fate of the Russian capital, Enlightenment M., 2010

6. http/www/ [email protected].

7. http/www/rossiyanavsegda.ru

8. http://pravoslavnie.gorojane.tv/usypalnica-russkix-admiralov/#sthash.LF36nLPs.dpuf

9. http://www.pravnov.ru

In 1561, one of the most famous churches in Russia was consecrated - the Intercession Cathedral, or, as it is otherwise called, St. Basil's Cathedral. The portal "Culture.RF" recalled interesting facts from the history of its creation.

Temple-monument

The Intercession Cathedral is not just a church, but a temple-monument erected in honor of the annexation of the Kazan Khanate to the Russian state. The main battle, in which Russian troops were victorious, took place on the day of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And the temple was consecrated in honor of this Christian holiday. The cathedral consists of separate churches, each of which is also consecrated in honor of the holidays on which the decisive battles for Kazan took place - Trinity, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem and others.

A huge construction project in record time

Initially, a wooden Trinity Church stood on the site of the cathedral. Temples were erected around it during the campaigns against Kazan - they celebrated the loud victories of the Russian army. When Kazan finally fell, Metropolitan Macarius suggested that Ivan the Terrible rebuild the architectural ensemble in stone. He wanted to surround the central temple with seven churches, but for the sake of symmetry the number was increased to eight. Thus, 9 independent churches and a belfry were built on one foundation; they were connected by vaulted passages. Outside, the churches were surrounded by an open gallery, which was called a walkway - it was a kind of church porch. Each temple was crowned with its own dome with a unique design and original drum decoration. The 65-meter-high structure, grandiose at the time, was built in just six years - from 1555 to 1561. Until 1600 it was the tallest building in Moscow.

Temple in honor of the soothsayer

Although the official name of the cathedral is the Cathedral of the Intercession on the Moat, everyone knows it as St. Basil's Cathedral. According to legend, the famous Moscow miracle worker collected money for the construction of the temple, and then was buried near its walls. The holy fool St. Basil the Blessed walked the streets of Moscow barefoot, almost without clothes, almost all year, preaching mercy and help to others. There were also legends about his prophetic gift: they say he predicted the Moscow fire of 1547. The son of Ivan the Terrible, Fyodor Ioannovich, ordered the construction of a church dedicated to St. Basil the Blessed. It became part of the Intercession Cathedral. The church was the only temple that was always open - all year round, day and night. Later, by its name, parishioners began to call the cathedral St. Basil's Cathedral.

Louis Bichebois. Lithograph "St. Basil's Church"

Vitaly Grafov. Moscow wonderworker Blessed Basil. 2005

The royal treasury and lectern at Lobnoye Mesto

The cathedral has no basements. Instead, they built a common foundation - a vaulted basement without supporting pillars. It was ventilated through special narrow openings - vents. Initially, the premises were used as a warehouse - the royal treasury and the valuables of some wealthy Moscow families were kept there. Later, the narrow entrance to the basement was blocked - it was found only during the restoration of the 1930s.

Despite its colossal external dimensions, the Intercession Cathedral is quite small inside. Perhaps because it was originally built as a memorial monument. In winter, the cathedral was completely closed, as it was not heated. When services began to be held in the church, especially on major church holidays, very few people could fit inside. Then the lectern was moved to the Place of Execution, and the cathedral seemed to serve as a huge altar.

Russian architect or European master

It is still not known for certain who built St. Basil's Cathedral. Researchers have several options. One of them, the cathedral, was erected by the ancient Russian architects Postnik Yakovlev and Ivan Barma. According to another version, Yakovlev and Barma were actually one person. The third option says that the author of the cathedral was a foreign architect. After all, the composition of St. Basil's Cathedral has no analogues in ancient Russian architecture, but prototypes of the building can be found in Western European art.

Whoever the architect was, there are sad legends about his future fate. According to them, when Ivan the Terrible saw the temple, he was struck by its beauty and ordered the architect to be blinded so that he would never repeat his majestic construction anywhere. Another legend says that the foreign builder was executed altogether - for the same reason.

Iconostasis with a turn

The iconostasis for St. Basil's Cathedral was created in 1895 according to the design of the architect Andrei Pavlinov. This is the so-called iconostasis with a turn - it is so large for a small temple that it continues on the side walls. It is decorated with ancient icons - the 16th-century Our Lady of Smolensk and the image of St. Basil, painted in the 18th century.

The temple is also decorated with paintings - they were created on the walls of the building in different years. Here St. Basil and the Mother of God are depicted; the main dome is decorated with the face of the Savior Almighty.

Iconostasis in St. Basil's Cathedral. 2016. Photo: Vladimir d'Ar

“Lazarus, put him in his place!”

The cathedral was almost destroyed several times. During the Patriotic War of 1812, French stables were located here, and after that the temple was going to be blown up. Already in Soviet times, Stalin's associate Lazar Kaganovich proposed dismantling the cathedral so that there would be more space on Red Square for parades and demonstrations. He even created a model of the square, and the temple building was easily removed from it. But Stalin, seeing the architectural model, said: “Lazarus, put it in its place!”

The main temple of the Russian Armed Forces, which is being built on the territory of the Patriot Park in Kubinka near Moscow, will embody the memory of the feat accomplished by the people during the Great Patriotic War. This was stated on Tuesday by the chairman of the expert council on church art, architecture and restoration of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), Archpriest Leonid (Kalinin), speaking at the opening ceremony of the exhibition “Modern Russian Church Architecture” in Venice.

Kalinin called the project of the Main Temple of the Russian Armed Forces “the core of the exhibition in Venice,” which is being held as part of the “Russian Seasons 2018.”

“Almost 30 million people died. And we,” said the priest, “cannot help but pay tribute to them. For these deceased, the Church of the Resurrection is a temple of hope. And for us, it is a temple that pays tribute to the memory of all those who suffered in those terrible years from different sides."

The exhibition presents a model of the future Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ - the Main Temple of the Russian Armed Forces, the construction of which is underway on the territory of the Patriot Park in Kubinka near Moscow. The construction deadlines for the original are being met; it will be built for the 75th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War using public money.

“To date, more than 30 thousand donors have contributed to the construction of the temple - both individuals and organizations. This is a center of spirituality. I am confident that the temple - as it looks now - will be built on time,” said the chairman of the board Fund "Resurrection" Alexander Alekseev at the opening of the exhibition in Venice.

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According to the chief architect, the author of the project, Dmitry Smirnov, the space of the Main Temple of the Russian Armed Forces “will be permeated with symbols associated with the history of the Great Patriotic War.” The central drum of the temple with a diameter of 19 meters 45 cm repeats the year of the end of the Great Patriotic War. On the territory of the complex there will be a memory gallery 1418 steps long - the number of days and nights of the war, in which 33 million photographs of participants in the Great Patriotic War will be placed using microphotography technology.

The height of the belfry will be 75 meters - in honor of the anniversary of the Victory, for which the temple is planned to be consecrated, the height of the small domes will be 14 meters 18 centimeters.

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Temple and the poor

Vladimir VORSOBIN

The news that the Ministry of Defense was going to build an almost hundred-meter-tall temple in Patriot Park did not seem special at first. A temple is a temple. Let it be in a “military” style that is strange for Orthodoxy (judging by the sketches), but on the other hand, what are the complaints about the style? Army temple. I do not agree with those who venomously ridicule the holy project. ()

The temple will be erected in memory of the country's defenders who died during the Great Patriotic War. A model of the building was presented at the Army forum this year. It will be made in the traditional Russian-Byzantine style and can accommodate up to six thousand people. Money is being collected all over the world, and a charitable foundation has been created.

It has long been customary in Russia to build such monuments using donations. What other temples were built using public funds?

The Cathedral of Christ the Savior was built in the 19th century in honor of the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812. It took about 50 years to build. Money from personal funds was allocated, among others, by Bagration’s family, Denis Davydov, and Ataman Platov. There were a lot of donations from ordinary soldiers, World War II veterans, as well as private individuals, merchants and philanthropists. On the walls of the temple there were plaques with the names of fallen soldiers, with the names of the main battles of the War of 1812. At the end of the 20th century, the temple was also rebuilt with donations from Russians.

The Naval St. Nicholas Cathedral in Kronstadt is the main temple of the Russian Navy, as well as a monument to all sailors who died in the line of duty. The collection of donations began in 1897. The main amount was collected by sailors who contributed part of their salaries to the construction. In 1913, the Naval Cathedral was consecrated in the name of Nicholas the Wonderworker, the patron saint of sailors and all travelers.

Vladimir Cathedral in Sevastopol became a monument to the heroes of the first defense of the city. The all-Russian subscription to raise funds began in 1829. Donations range from one penny to very large sums. During the Crimean War, the still unfinished cathedral became the tomb of outstanding admirals of the Russian fleet - Kornilov, Istomin, Nakhimov. Construction of the cathedral was completed in 1888. There are no paintings in the upper church; instead, there are marble slabs with the names of the heroes of the Crimean War.

Sampsonievsky Cathedral in St. Petersburg was founded by Peter the Great in honor of the victory at Poltava in 1709. This is one of the oldest cathedrals in the city and the first monument church in honor of the victory of Russian weapons. In 1710, a small wooden church was consecrated, which was later rebuilt into a cathedral. The construction was also funded by donations.

The Church of All Saints on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd became a symbol of religious and military feats on the front of the Great Patriotic War. On May 9, 2005, the temple was opened and consecrated. It was built with donations, large Russian companies contributed significant sums.

The Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God (St. Basil's Cathedral) is the main temple of Red Square and all of Moscow. It was built in the middle of the 16th century by decree of Ivan the Terrible in honor of the capture of the Kazan Khanate - part of the former Golden Horde. On October 1, 1552, on the feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God, the assault on Kazan began, which ended in victory for the Russian army.

An old Moscow legend says that when in a camp church near Kazan at a lunch service the deacon proclaimed the Gospel verses: “Let there be one flock and one shepherd,” part of the fortress wall of the enemy city, under which a tunnel was made, flew into the air, and Russian troops entered to Kazan.

Two years later, the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary was founded on Red Square in Moscow. Initially, here, on the edge of the Moscow River, on a hill next to the moat that surrounded the medieval Kremlin and was filled in in the 19th century, there stood a white stone temple in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity, where the most revered holy fool in Rus', St. Basil the Blessed, was buried. The legend said that he himself collected money in the floor for the future Church of the Intercession, brought it to Red Square and threw it over his right shoulder - nickel to nickel, kopeck to kopeck, and no one, not even thieves, touched these coins. And before his death, in August 1552, he gave them to Ivan the Terrible, who soon ordered the construction of a temple on this site.

During the campaigns against Kazan, Ivan the Terrible ordered the erection of votive wooden churches around the Trinity Church in honor of those saints on whose memory days victories were won in the battle with the enemy. So, on August 30, on the day of the three Patriarchs of Constantinople - Alexander, John and Paul - a detachment of the Tatar cavalry of Prince Epanchi was defeated. On September 30, on the day of memory of Gregory of Armenia, the fortress wall of Kazan was taken along with the Arsk Tower. On October 1, the Feast of the Intercession, the assault on the city began, ending victoriously the next day, October 2, on the Feast of Cyprian and Ustinya.

Other temples, according to researchers, were associated with the reigning dynasty or with local Moscow events: for example, Vasily III took monastic vows under the name Varlaam in December 1533 before his death. The Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem was founded, probably, in honor of the victorious return of Ivan the Terrible with his army to Moscow, which was symbolically expressed in the Moscow icon of the 16th century “Church Militant”.

All these altars were originally part of the nine chapter-churches of the Intercession Cathedral, when St. Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow advised the Tsar to build one cathedral here in stone. He was the author of the brilliant idea of the new temple. At first it was planned to build seven churches around the central eighth, but during the construction process “for the sake of symmetry” a ninth southern aisle was added, later consecrated in honor of Nikola Velikoretsky.

The Intercession Church was erected in 1555-1561 by Russian architects Barma and Postnik Yakovlev (or perhaps it was the same master - Ivan Yakovlevich Barma). There is a well-known legend that, having seen the temple, Ivan the Terrible ordered the craftsmen to be blinded so that they could not build such a miracle anywhere else. As if when the king asked whether the master could build another equally beautiful temple or an even better one, he answered defiantly: “I can!” - and angered the king. "You are lying!" - Grozny cried and ordered to deprive both eyes so that this temple would remain the only one. Popular rumor spread the rumor that Ivan the Terrible supposedly built this temple in honor of his father, Grand Duke Vasily III: “People will remember me even without churches for a thousand years, but I want my parent to be remembered.” That’s why the temple is supposedly called St. Basil’s.

The throne of the central tent was consecrated in the name of the Intercession of the Mother of God, and the cathedral completely began to be called the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God, “which is on the Moat.” (The celebration of the Intercession was introduced into the Russian church calendar by Saint Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky). The temple was consecrated by Metropolitan Macarius in July 1557 in the presence of the tsar, but construction was continued by the son of Ivan the Terrible, Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, under whom the relics of St. Basil the Blessed, and subsequent sovereigns of the Romanov dynasty.

The small northeastern Church of St. Basil, later built on the grave of the holy fool revered in Moscow, later gave the whole temple another, more common name - St. Basil's Cathedral. However, it, together with the chapel of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, built on the site of the discovery of the relics of the holy fool John of Moscow, was not included in the main ideological and compositional plot of the cathedral, but only seemed to accompany it.

The unique Intercession Cathedral became a military temple and at the same time a complex symbolic embodiment of the Moscow national idea of the Third Rome, representing an architectural image of the biblical New Jerusalem - the Kingdom of God, described in the Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse). They not only prayed in it - it itself was an icon imprinted in stone.

The design of the Intercession Cathedral is based on the apocalyptic symbolism of the Heavenly Jerusalem. The eight chapters, located around the central ninth tent, form a geometric figure in plan from two squares combined at an angle of 45 degrees, in which it is easy to see an eight-pointed star.

The number 8 symbolizes the day of the Resurrection of Christ, which according to the Hebrew calendar was the eighth day, and the coming Kingdom of Heaven - the Kingdom of the “eighth century” (or “eighth kingdom”), which will come after the Second Coming of Christ - after the end of earthly history associated with the apocalyptic number 7.

The square expresses the firmness and constancy of faith and is a cosmic symbol of the Universe: its four equal sides mean the four cardinal directions, the four winds of the Universe, the four ends of the cross, the four canonical Gospels, the four evangelist apostles, the four equilateral walls of Heavenly Jerusalem. The combined squares symbolize the preaching of the Gospels to the four cardinal directions, that is, to the whole world.

The eight-pointed star - a reminder of the Star of Bethlehem, which showed the Magi the way to the infant Christ, the Savior of the world - symbolizes the entire Christian Church as a guiding star in human life to the Heavenly Jerusalem. The eight-pointed star is also a symbol of the Most Holy Theotokos - the Lady of the Church and the Queen of Heaven: in Orthodox iconography, the Mother of God is depicted in a maforia (veil) with three eight-pointed stars on her shoulders and on her forehead as a sign of Her Eternal Virginity - before, during and after the Nativity of Christ.

All these symbols express the eschatological idea underlying the architectural cathedral - the main temple of the Third Rome. The throne in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God is located in the central tented church, which unites the remaining chapters, as if gathering them around itself. This symbolizes the primacy, protection and intercession of the Mother of God over the Church of Christ and over the entire Russian land. The tent in Russian temple construction symbolizes the canopy, which from ancient times was erected over a sacred place as a sign of its God-protectedness and holiness. A well-known ancient example dates back to Old Testament history, when over the throne of King Solomon there was a canopy (canopy) made of ivory and gold. In the ancient Christian church, the Eucharist was celebrated under the canopy.

The altars in three churches on the main “west-east” axis are consecrated sequentially: in honor of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem (the chapter closest to the Kremlin’s Spassky Gate), the Intercession of the Mother of God (the central tent) and the Holy Trinity in the eastern chapter of the cathedral, that is, in the most important parts of it, because in Orthodox churches the altars are oriented to the east. The famous scientist M.P. Kudryavtsev, whose unique theory of urban planning of medieval Moscow is recognized by Orthodox Moscow scholars, believed that it was the Trinity Church-altar that was the main thing in the ideological composition of the cathedral. In the 16th century, the entire cathedral was called Trinity and after it the adjacent Trade Square was then named Trinity, which later received the name Red, which in ancient Russian meant “beautiful”.

In the composition of the Intercession Cathedral, one can trace the development of a deep plot on this axis: from the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, where He accomplished His redemptive Feat to the Church founded by Him, which, under the Protection of the Mother of God, stands before the Throne of the Holy Trinity, and only through the Church of Christ is the path to the Kingdom open Holy Trinity - to Heavenly Jerusalem.

Initially, the Intercession Cathedral was crowned with 25 chapters: 9 main and 16 small ones, located around the central tent, chapels and bell tower. Its color was also different from the modern one: it was red and white with golden bulbous heads. This was a symbolic expression of the apocalyptic image of the Heavenly Throne, surrounded by 24 elders with golden crowns on their heads and dressed in white robes. There is a version that this also symbolized the 13 kontakia and 12 ikos of the Praise of the Mother of God - the statutory akathist, which was read during Great Lent to the glory of the Mother of God. The internal bypass gallery of the cathedral, painted with intricate floral patterns to resemble the Garden of Eden, has a twelve-pointed cross in plan, which corresponds to the 12 gates in the walls of Heavenly Jerusalem.

For all the splendor of its external appearance, the Intercession Cathedral is quite small inside. Few people could fit there during the service. When services were held on Red Square during major church holidays, it was completely filled with people, the clergy occupied the Place of Execution, where they placed a lectern, and the Intercession Cathedral became the altar of a huge open-air Temple. The ideological composition of Red Square, where the Church of the Intercession dominates, represents a solution to the most difficult problem - the creation of the image of the Temple of the City of God Not Made by Hands in an earthly city (in Heavenly Jerusalem there is no temple, but “there is only His Throne”). Red Square is such a Temple, where the altar, throne and canopy is St. Basil's Cathedral, the pulpit is the Place of Execution, the naos is the space of the square itself, the entrance is the Resurrection Gate, and the role of the dome is played by the open sky.

In favor of this theory proposed by M.P. Kudryavtsev, is also evidenced by the pre-Petrine custom of celebrating the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday). The praying people of Moscow gathered on Red Square, and a religious procession headed there from the Assumption Cathedral through the Spassky Gate. A service was held in the Intercession Church, and the procession returned to the Kremlin. Ahead of the procession rode the patriarch on a white horse, which the king himself led by the bridle - in memory of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem. The square really turned into a huge praying Temple, and its ideological composition developed from the entrance through the Resurrection Gate (from the 17th century past the chapel of the Iveron Mother of God - Goalkeeper and Intercessor) through the Kazan Cathedral - the image of the Church Militant to the Place of Execution - the Moscow symbol of Golgotha, and from there rushed to the Intercession Cathedral - to Heavenly Jerusalem.

This temple was the main symbol not only on Red Square, but throughout Moscow, being the geometric center of its urban planning ensemble. Its forty-six-meter tent was the highest in the medieval capital until the end of the 16th century, when Boris Godunov completed the bell tower of the Kremlin Church of St. John Climacus to 81 meters, and Ivan the Great appeared in Moscow.

In 1737, the Church of the Intercession was badly damaged by fire and was restored, and the altars of fifteen churches from Red Square were moved under its arches. Then the throne in the name of the three saints. Patriarchs of Constantinople was reconsecrated in the name of John the Merciful, and the throne of Cyprian and Justinia - in the name of St. Adrian and Natalia. In total, the cathedral now has 11 thrones, including the throne of Alexander Svirsky. In the second half of the 18th century, under Catherine II, the cathedral was reconstructed: 16 small chapters around the towers were demolished, preserving the octal symbolism at the base, and the hipped bell tower was connected to the cathedral building. At the same time, the cathedral acquired a modern multi-colored coloring and became a real Moscow miracle.

The temple was preserved by the special providence of God - more than once it found itself on the brink of destruction and each time remained intact. According to legend, Napoleon wanted to transfer the Moscow miracle to Paris, but for now the horses of the French army were stationed in the temple. The technology of that time turned out to be powerless against this task, and then, before the retreat of the French army, he ordered the temple to be blown up along with the Kremlin. Muscovites tried to extinguish the lit wicks, and suddenly pouring torrential rain helped stop the explosion.

In the 19th century, after Neglinka was closed into a chimney, the fence of the Intercession Church was made from an openwork cast-iron lattice from its embankment.

After the revolution, the temple almost became a victim of Bolshevik lawlessness. In September 1918, the authorities shot the rector of the cathedral, Archpriest John Vostorgov, the property of the temple was confiscated, all the bells of its belfry were melted down, and the temple itself was closed, but not demolished. In 1936, Lazar Kaganovich proposed demolishing the Intercession Cathedral to make way for festive demonstrations and traffic on Red Square. There is a legend that he made a special model of Red Square with a removable Intercession Church and brought it to Stalin, showing how the cathedral interfered with demonstrations and cars. “And if only for him - r-time!..” - and with these words he jerked the temple off the square. Stalin looked, thought and slowly uttered the famous phrase: “Lazarus! Put it in its place!..”

The demolition of the temple was stopped primarily by the personal courage of the architect P.D. Baranovsky, a martyr and devotee of Russian culture. When he was ordered to prepare the temple for demolition, he flatly refused and threatened to commit suicide, and then sent a very harsh telegram to the top. There were rumors that supposedly Baranovsky, invited to the Kremlin on this issue, knelt before the assembled Central Committee, begging not to destroy the temple, and this had an effect. Something really stopped Stalin - the decision to demolish it was canceled, and Baranovsky paid with several years in prison.

And in the Intercession Cathedral they opened a museum and began to conduct excursions. In the 70s, during restoration, a spiral wooden staircase was discovered in the wall. Museum visitors now take it to the central temple, where they can see a magnificent tent soaring into the sky, a valuable iconostasis, and walk through the narrow labyrinth of the internal gallery, entirely painted with marvelous patterns.

In November 1990, the first all-night vigil and liturgy were held in the church, and its bells rang at the consecration of the Kazan Cathedral. On the patronal feast of the Intercession, October 13–14, a service is held here. The stunning impression of the candles burning in it, so unusual for us, who from childhood remember only a museum in this famous temple...