Who built the Cathedral of St. Basil the Blessed. Intercession Cathedral (St. Basil's Cathedral)
Quote message Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin on the Moat. Miracles of St. Basil the Blessed.
The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat, also called St. Basil's Cathedral, is an Orthodox church located on the Red Square of Kitay-gorod in Moscow. A well-known monument of Russian architecture. Until the 17th century, it was usually called Trinity, since the original wooden church was dedicated to the Holy Trinity; was also known as "Jerusalem", which is associated both with the dedication of one of the chapels, and with the procession to it from the Assumption Cathedral on Palm Sunday with the "procession on a donkey" of the Patriarch.
Currently, the Pokrovsky Cathedral is a branch of the State Historical Museum. Included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in Russia. 
Pokrovsky Cathedral is one of the most famous sights of Russia. For many inhabitants of the planet Earth, it is a symbol of Moscow (the same as the Eiffel Tower for Paris). Since 1931, a bronze Monument to Minin and Pozharsky has been placed in front of the cathedral (installed on Red Square in 1818).
Versions about creation
Intercession Cathedral was built in 1555-1561 by order of Ivan the Terrible in memory of the capture of Kazan and the victory over the Kazan Khanate.
There are several versions about the founders of the cathedral.
According to one version, the famous Pskov master Postnik Yakovlev, nicknamed Barma, was the architect.
According to another, widely known version, Barma and Postnik are two different architects, both involved in the construction, this version is now outdated.
According to the third version, the cathedral was built by an unknown Western European master (presumably an Italian, as before - a significant part of the buildings of the Moscow Kremlin), hence such a unique style, combining the traditions of both Russian architecture and European architecture of the Renaissance, but this version is still never found any clear documentary evidence.
According to legend, the architect (architects) of the cathedral were blinded by the order of Ivan the Terrible so that they could no longer build such a temple. However, if the author of the cathedral is Postnik, then he could not be blinded, since for several years after the construction of the cathedral he participated in the creation of the Kazan Kremlin.
In 1588, the Church of St. Basil the Blessed was added to the temple, for the device of which arched openings were laid in the northeastern part of the cathedral. Architecturally, the church was an independent temple with a separate entrance.
At the end of the XVI century. figured domes of the cathedral appeared - instead of the original cover, which burned down during the next fire.
In the second half of the 17th century, significant changes took place in the external appearance of the cathedral - the open gallery surrounding the upper churches was covered with a vault, and porches decorated with tents were erected over the white stone stairs. 
The outer and inner galleries, platforms and parapets of the porches were painted with grass ornaments. These renovations were completed by 1683, and information about them is included in the inscriptions on the ceramic tiles that decorated the facade of the cathedral. 
Fires, which were frequent in wooden Moscow, greatly harmed the Intercession Cathedral, and therefore, already from the end of the 16th century. it was undergoing renovations. For more than four centuries of the history of the monument, such works have inevitably changed its appearance in accordance with the aesthetic ideals of each century. In the documents of the cathedral for 1737, the name of the architect Ivan Michurin is mentioned for the first time, under whose leadership work was carried out to restore the architecture and interiors of the cathedral after the so-called "Trinity" fire of 1737. The following complex repair work was carried out in the cathedral at the behest of Catherine II in 1784-1786. They were led by the architect Ivan Yakovlev. 
In 1918, the Intercession Cathedral became one of the first cultural monuments taken under state protection as a monument of national and world significance. From that moment began its museumification. Archpriest John Kuznetsov became the first caretaker. In the post-revolutionary years, the cathedral was in distress. Roofs leaked in many places, windows were shattered, and in winter even inside the churches there was snow. John Kuznetsov single-handedly maintained order in the cathedral. 
In 1923, it was decided to create a historical and architectural museum in the cathedral. Its first head was the researcher of the Historical Museum E.I. Silin. On May 21, the museum was opened to visitors. Active collection of funds began.
In 1928, the Pokrovsky Cathedral museum became a branch of the State Historical Museum. Despite the constant restoration work that has been going on in the cathedral for almost a century, the museum is always open to visitors. It was closed only once - during the Great Patriotic War. In 1929 it was closed for worship, the bells were removed. Immediately after the war, systematic work began to restore the cathedral, and on September 7, 1947, on the day of the celebration of the 800th anniversary of Moscow, the museum reopened. The cathedral has become widely known not only in Russia, but also far beyond its borders. 
Since 1991, the Intercession Cathedral has been in the joint use of the museum and the Russian Orthodox Church. After a long break, services were resumed in the temple.
Temple structure
There are only 10 domes.
Nine domes over the temple (according to the number of thrones):
Protection of the Mother of God (center),
Holy Trinity (east),
Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem (zap.),
Gregory of Armenia (north-west),
Alexander Svirsky (southeast),
Varlaam Khutynsky (southwest),
John the Merciful (former John, Paul and Alexander of Constantinople) (north-east),
Nicholas the Wonderworker Velikoretsky (Southern),
Adrian and Natalia (former Cyprian and Justina) (sev.))
Plus one dome over the bell tower.
In the old days, St. Basil's Cathedral had 25 domes, denoting the Lord and 24 elders sitting at His throne.
The cathedral consists of eight temples, the thrones of which were consecrated in honor of the holidays that fell on the days of the decisive battles for Kazan:
trinity,
in honor of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker (in honor of his Velikoretskaya icon from Vyatka),
Entrance to Jerusalem
in honor of mch. Adrian and Natalia (originally - in honor of St. Cyprian and Justina - October 2),
St. John the Merciful (until XVIII - in honor of St. Paul, Alexander and John of Constantinople - November 6),
Alexander Svirsky (April 17 and August 30),
Varlaam Khutynsky (November 6 and 1st Friday of Petrov Lent),
Gregory of Armenia (September 30).
All these eight churches (four axial, four smaller between them) are crowned with onion domes and are grouped around the ninth pillar-shaped church towering above them in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God, completed with a tent with a small dome. All nine churches are united by a common foundation, bypass (originally open) gallery and internal vaulted passages.
In 1588, a chapel was added to the cathedral from the northeast, consecrated in honor of St. Basil the Blessed (1469-1552), whose relics were located at the site where the cathedral was built. The name of this aisle gave the cathedral a second, everyday name. St. Basil's chapel adjoins the chapel of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos, in which Blessed John of Moscow was buried in 1589 (at first, the chapel was consecrated in honor of the Deposition of the Robe, but in 1680 it was re-consecrated as the Nativity of the Mother of God). In 1672, the uncovering of the relics of St. John the Blessed took place in it, and in 1916 it was re-consecrated in the name of Blessed John, the Moscow miracle worker.
In the 1670s, a hipped bell tower was built.
The cathedral has been restored several times. In the 17th century, asymmetrical outbuildings, tents over the porches, intricate decorative processing of the domes (originally they were gold), ornamental painting outside and inside (originally the cathedral itself was white) were added.
In the main, Intercession Church, there is an iconostasis from the Kremlin Church of the Chernihiv Wonderworkers, which was dismantled in 1770, and in the aisle of the Entrance to Jerusalem, there is an iconostasis from the Alexander Cathedral, which was dismantled at the same time.
The last (before the revolution) rector of the cathedral, Archpriest John Vostorgov, was shot on August 23 (September 5), 1919. Subsequently, the temple was transferred to the disposal of the renovation community.
First floor
There are no basements in the Intercession Cathedral. Churches and galleries stand on a single base - a basement, consisting of several rooms. Strong brick walls of the basement (up to 3 m thick) are covered with vaults. The height of the premises is about 6.5 m. 
The construction of the northern basement is unique for the 16th century. Its long box vault has no supporting pillars. The walls are cut with narrow holes - vents. Together with a "breathing" building material - brick - they provide a special microclimate of the room at any time of the year.
Previously, the basement premises were inaccessible to parishioners. Deep niches-hiding places in it were used as storage facilities. They were closed with doors, from which the hinges are now preserved. 
Until 1595, the royal treasury was hidden in the basement. Wealthy citizens also brought their property here.
They got into the basement from the upper central church of the Intercession of the Mother of God along the intra-walled white stone staircase. Only the initiates knew about it. Later, this narrow passage was laid. However, during the restoration process of the 1930s. a secret staircase was discovered.
In the basement there are icons of the Intercession Cathedral. The oldest of them is the icon of St. Basil the Blessed at the end of the 16th century, written especially for the Pokrovsky Cathedral. .jpg)
Also on display are two icons from the 17th century. - "Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos" and "Our Lady of the Sign". 
The icon "Our Lady of the Sign" is a replica of the facade icon located on the eastern wall of the cathedral. Written in the 1780s. In the XVIII-XIX centuries. the icon was above the entrance to the chapel of St. Basil the Blessed.
Church of St. Basil the Blessed
Canopy over the tomb of the saint
The lower church was added to the cathedral in 1588 over the burial place of St. Basil the Blessed. A stylized inscription on the wall tells of the construction of this church after the canonization of the saint by order of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich.
The temple is cubic in shape, covered with a groin vault and crowned with a small light drum with a cupola. The covering of the church is made in the same style with the domes of the upper churches of the cathedral.
The oil painting of the church was made for the 350th anniversary of the beginning of the construction of the cathedral (1905). The Almighty Savior is depicted in the dome, the forefathers are depicted in the drum, the Deesis (the Savior Not Made by Hands, the Mother of God, John the Baptist) is depicted in the crosshairs of the arch, the Evangelists are in the sails of the arch.
On the western wall there is a temple image "Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos". In the upper tier there are images of the patron saints of the reigning house: Theodore Stratilates, John the Baptist, St. Anastasia, the martyr Irina.
On the northern and southern walls are scenes from the life of St. Basil the Blessed: "The Miracle of Salvation at Sea" and "The Miracle of the Fur Coat". The lower tier of the walls is decorated with a traditional ancient Russian ornament in the form of towels.
The iconostasis was completed in 1895 according to the project of the architect A.M. Pavlinov. The icons were painted under the guidance of the famous Moscow icon painter and restorer Osip Chirikov, whose signature is preserved on the icon "The Savior on the Throne".
The iconostasis includes earlier icons: “Our Lady of Smolensk” of the 16th century. and the local image "St. Basil the Blessed against the backdrop of the Kremlin and Red Square" XVIII century.
Above the burial of St. Basil the Blessed, a cancer was installed, decorated with a carved canopy. This is one of the revered Moscow shrines.
On the southern wall of the church there is a rare large-sized icon painted on metal - “The Mother of God of Vladimir with selected saints of the Moscow circle “Today the most glorious city of Moscow flaunts brightly” (1904)
The floor is covered with cast-iron plates of Kasli casting.
St. Basil's Church was closed in 1929. Only at the end of the 20th century. its decoration was restored. August 15, 1997, the day of memory of St. Basil the Blessed, Sunday and holiday services were resumed in the church.
Second floor
Galleries and porches
Along the perimeter of the cathedral around all the churches there is an external bypass gallery. It was originally open. 
In the middle of the XIX century. the glazed gallery became part of the interior of the cathedral. Arched entrances lead from the outer gallery to the platforms between the churches and connect it with the inner passages. 
The central church of the Intercession of the Mother of God is surrounded by an internal bypass gallery. Its vaults hide the upper parts of the churches. In the second half of the XVII century. the gallery was painted with floral ornaments. Later, narrative oil painting appeared in the cathedral, which was repeatedly updated. Currently, tempera painting has been uncovered in the gallery. Oil paintings of the 19th century have been preserved in the eastern section of the gallery. - images of saints in combination with floral ornaments.
Carved brick portals-entrances leading to the central church organically complement the decor of the inner gallery. The southern portal has been preserved in its original form, without later plastering, which allows you to see its decoration. The relief details are laid out from specially molded patterned bricks, and the shallow decor is carved on site. 
Previously, daylight entered the gallery from windows located above the passages to the promenade. Today it is illuminated by mica lanterns of the 17th century, which were previously used during religious processions. The multi-headed tops of the remote lanterns resemble the exquisite silhouette of the cathedral.
The floor of the gallery is laid out of herringbone brick. Bricks from the 16th century have been preserved here. - darker and more resistant to abrasion than modern restoration bricks. 
The vault of the western section of the gallery is covered with a flat brick ceiling. It demonstrates a unique for the XVI century. engineering method of the flooring device: many small bricks are fixed with lime mortar in the form of caissons (squares), the edges of which are made of figured bricks.
In this section, the floor is lined with a special rosette pattern, and the original painting imitating brickwork has been recreated on the walls. The size of the drawn bricks corresponds to the real one.
Two galleries unite the aisles of the cathedral into a single ensemble. Narrow internal passages and wide platforms give the impression of a "city of churches". Passing through the mysterious [style!] labyrinth of the inner gallery, you can get to the platforms of the porches of the cathedral. Their arches are "flower carpets", the intricacies of which fascinate and attract the eyes of visitors.
On the upper platform of the northern porch in front of the Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, the bases of pillars or columns have been preserved - the remains of the decoration of the entrance. This is due to the special role of the church in the complex ideological program of the consecrations of the cathedral.
Church of Alexander Svirsky
The southeastern church was consecrated in the name of St. Alexander Svirsky.
In 1552, on the day of memory of Alexander Svirsky, one of the most important battles of the Kazan campaign took place - the defeat of the cavalry of Tsarevich Yapanchi on the Arsk field.
This is one of four small churches 15 m high. Its base - a quadrangle - turns into a low octagon and ends with a cylindrical light drum and vault.
The original appearance of the interior of the church was restored during the restoration work of the 1920s and 1979-1980s: a brick floor with a herringbone pattern, profiled cornices, and stepped window sills. The walls of the church are covered with paintings imitating brickwork. The dome depicts a "brick" spiral - a symbol of eternity.
The iconostasis of the church has been reconstructed. Icons of the 16th - early 18th centuries are located close to each other between the wooden beams (tablas). The lower part of the iconostasis is covered with hanging shrouds skillfully embroidered by craftswomen. On velvet shrouds - the traditional image of the Calvary cross.
Church of Varlaam Khutynsky
The southwestern church was consecrated in the name of the Monk Varlaam Khutynsky.
This is one of the four small churches of the cathedral with a height of 15.2 m. Its base has the shape of a quadrangle, elongated from north to south with the apse shifted to the south. The violation of symmetry in the construction of the temple is caused by the need to arrange a passage between the small church and the central one - the Intercession of the Mother of God.
Four turns into a low octagon. The cylindrical light drum is covered with a vault. The church illuminates the oldest chandelier in the cathedral of the 15th century. A century later, Russian craftsmen added a pommel in the shape of a double-headed eagle to the work of the Nuremberg masters.
The table iconostasis was reconstructed in the 1920s. and consists of icons of the 16th-18th centuries. The peculiarity of the architecture of the church - the irregular shape of the apse - determined the shift of the Royal Doors to the right.
Of particular interest is the separately hanging icon “The Vision of Sexton Tarasius”. It was written in Novgorod at the end of the 16th century. The plot of the icon is based on the legend about the vision of the Khutynsky Monastery's sexton of disasters that threaten Novgorod: floods, fires, "pestilence".
The icon painter depicted the panorama of the city with topographical accuracy. The composition organically includes scenes of fishing, plowing and sowing, telling about the daily life of the ancient Novgorodians.
Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem
The Western Church is consecrated in honor of the feast of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem.
One of the four large churches is an octagonal two-tiered pillar covered with a vault. The temple is distinguished by its large size and the solemn nature of the decoration.
During the restoration, fragments of the architectural decoration of the 16th century were discovered. Their original appearance has been preserved without the restoration of damaged parts. No ancient painting was found in the church. The whiteness of the walls emphasizes the architectural details, executed by architects with great creative imagination. Above the northern entrance there is a trace of a shell that hit the wall in October 1917.
The current iconostasis was transferred in 1770 from the dismantled Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin. It is richly decorated with openwork gilded pewter overlays, which give lightness to the four-tiered structure.
In the middle of the XIX century. the iconostasis was supplemented with wooden carved details. The icons of the lower row tell about the Creation of the world.
The church presents one of the shrines of the Intercession Cathedral - the icon "St. Alexander Nevsky in the Life of the 17th century. The image, unique in terms of iconography, probably comes from the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
The right-believing prince is represented in the middle of the icon, and around him there are 33 hallmarks with plots from the life of the saint (miracles and real historical events: the Battle of the Neva, the prince's trip to the Khan's headquarters, the Battle of Kulikovo).
Church of St. Gregory of Armenia
The northwestern church of the cathedral was consecrated in the name of St. Gregory, Enlightener of Greater Armenia (d. 335). He converted the king and the whole country to Christianity, was the bishop of Armenia. His memory is celebrated on September 30 (October 13, N.S.). In 1552, on this day, an important event of the campaign of Tsar Ivan the Terrible took place - the explosion of the Arskaya tower in Kazan.
One of the four small churches of the cathedral (15m high) is a quadrangle, turning into a low octagon. Its base is elongated from north to south with the apse shifted. The violation of symmetry is caused by the need to arrange a passage between this church and the central one - the Intercession of the Mother of God. The light drum is covered with a vault.
The architectural decoration of the 16th century has been restored in the church: ancient windows, semi-columns, cornices, a brick floor laid out “in a Christmas tree”. As in the 17th century, the walls are whitewashed, which emphasizes the severity and beauty of the architectural details.
The tyabla (tyabla - wooden beams with grooves between which icons were fastened) iconostasis was reconstructed in the 1920s. It consists of windows of the XVI-XVII centuries. The royal gates are shifted to the left - due to the violation of the symmetry of the internal space.
In the local row of the iconostasis is the image of St. John the Merciful, Patriarch of Alexandria. Its appearance is connected with the desire of the wealthy contributor Ivan Kislinsky to re-consecrate this chapel in honor of his heavenly patron (1788). In the 1920s The church was given back its original name.
The lower part of the iconostasis is covered with silk and velvet shrouds depicting Calvary crosses. The interior of the church is complemented by the so-called "skinny" candles - large painted wooden candlesticks of the old form. In their upper part there is a metal base, in which thin candles were placed.
In the display case there are items of priestly vestments of the 17th century: surplice and phelonion, embroidered with gold threads. The 19th-century kandilo, decorated with multi-colored enamel, gives a special elegance to the church.
Church of Cyprian and Justina
The northern church of the cathedral has an unusual dedication for Russian churches in the name of the Christian martyrs Cyprian and Justina, who lived in the 4th century. Their memory is celebrated on October 2 (N.S. 15). On this day in 1552, the troops of Tsar Ivan IV stormed Kazan.
This is one of the four large churches of the Intercession Cathedral. Its height is 20.9 m. The high octagonal pillar is completed with a light drum and a dome, in which Our Lady of the Burning Bush is depicted. In the 1780s oil painting appeared in the church. On the walls are scenes from the lives of the saints: in the lower tier - Adrian and Natalia, in the upper tier - Cyprian and Justina. They are complemented by multi-figure compositions on the theme of gospel parables and stories from the Old Testament.
The appearance in the painting of images of martyrs of the 4th century. Adrian and Natalia is associated with the renaming of the church in 1786. A wealthy contributor Natalya Mikhailovna Khrushcheva donated funds for repairs and asked to consecrate the church in honor of her heavenly patrons. At the same time, a gilded iconostasis in the style of classicism was also made. It is a magnificent example of skillful woodcarving. The bottom row of the iconostasis depicts scenes of the Creation of the World (day one and four).
In the 1920s, at the beginning of scientific museum activities in the cathedral, the church returned to its original name. Recently, it appeared before the visitors updated: in 2007, the wall paintings and the iconostasis were restored with the charitable support of the Russian Railways Joint-Stock Company.
Church of St. Nicholas Velikoretsky
Iconostasis of the Church of St. Nicholas Velikoretsky
The southern church was consecrated in the name of the Velikoretsky icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. The icon of the saint was found in the city of Khlynov on the Velikaya River and subsequently received the name "Nikola Velikoretsky".
In 1555, by order of Tsar Ivan the Terrible, the miraculous icon was brought in procession along the rivers from Vyatka to Moscow. An event of great spiritual significance determined the dedication of one of the chapels of the Intercession Cathedral under construction.
One of the large churches of the cathedral is a two-tiered octagonal pillar with a light drum and vault. Its height is 28 m.
The ancient interior of the church was badly damaged during a fire in 1737. In the second half of the 18th - early 19th centuries. a single complex of decorative and fine arts was formed: a carved iconostasis with full ranks of icons and a monumental narrative painting of the walls and vault. The lower tier of the octagon contains the texts of the Nikon Chronicle about bringing the image to Moscow and illustrations for them.
In the upper tier, the Mother of God is depicted on the throne, surrounded by prophets, above - the apostles, in the vault - the image of the Almighty Savior.
The iconostasis is richly decorated with gilded stucco floral decorations. Icons in narrow profiled frames are painted in oil. In the local row there is an image of "St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in his life" of the 18th century. The lower tier is decorated with gesso engraving imitating brocade fabric.
The interior of the church is complemented by two remote double-sided icons depicting St. Nicholas. With them they made religious processions around the cathedral.
At the end of the XVIII century. The floor of the church was covered with white stone slabs. During the restoration work, a fragment of the original covering made of oak checkers was discovered. This is the only place in the cathedral with a preserved wooden floor.
In 2005-2006 The iconostasis and monumental painting of the church were restored with the assistance of the Moscow International Currency Exchange.
Church of the Holy Trinity
The eastern one is consecrated in the name of the Holy Trinity. It is believed that the Pokrovsky Cathedral was built on the site of the ancient Trinity Church, by whose name the entire church was often called.
One of the four large churches of the cathedral is a two-tiered octagonal pillar, ending with a light drum and a dome. Its height is 21 m. In the process of restoration in the 1920s. in this church, the ancient architectural and decorative decoration was most fully restored: semi-columns and pilasters framing the arches-entrances of the lower part of the octagon, a decorative belt of arches. In the vault of the dome, a spiral is laid out with small-sized bricks - a symbol of eternity. Stepped window sills in combination with the whitewashed surface of the walls and vault make the Trinity Church especially bright and elegant. Under the light drum, “voices” are mounted in the walls - clay vessels designed to amplify sound (resonators). The church illuminates the oldest Russian chandelier in the cathedral from the end of the 16th century.
On the basis of restoration studies, the form of the original, so-called “tabla” iconostasis (“tabla” - wooden beams with grooves between which the icons were fastened close to each other) was established. The peculiarity of the iconostasis is the unusual shape of the low royal doors and three-row icons that form three canonical ranks: prophetic, Deesis and festive.
The "Old Testament Trinity" in the local row of the iconostasis is one of the most ancient and revered icons of the cathedral in the second half of the 16th century.
Church of the Three Patriarchs
The northeastern church of the cathedral was consecrated in the name of the three Patriarchs of Constantinople: Alexander, John and Paul the New.
In 1552, on the day of memory of the Patriarchs, an important event of the Kazan campaign took place - the defeat by the troops of Tsar Ivan the Terrible of the cavalry of the Tatar prince Yapanchi, who was marching from the Crimea to help the Kazan Khanate.
This is one of the four small churches of the cathedral with a height of 14.9 m. The walls of the quadrangle pass into a low octagon with a cylindrical light drum. The church is interesting for its original ceiling system with a wide dome, in which the composition "The Savior Not Made by Hands" is located.
The wall oil painting was made in the middle of the 19th century. and reflects in its plots the then change in the name of the church. In connection with the transfer of the throne of the cathedral church of Gregory of Armenia, it was re-consecrated in memory of the Enlightener of Great Armenia.
The first tier of the painting is dedicated to the life of St. Gregory of Armenia, in the second tier - the history of the image of the Savior Not Made by Hands, bringing it to King Avgar in the Asia Minor city of Edessa, as well as scenes from the life of the Patriarchs of Constantinople.
The five-tiered iconostasis combines baroque elements with classical ones. This is the only altar barrier in the cathedral from the middle of the 19th century. It was made especially for this church.
In the 1920s, at the beginning of scientific museum activities, the church returned to its original name. Continuing the traditions of Russian patrons, the leadership of the Moscow International Currency Exchange contributed to the restoration of the interior of the church in 2007. For the first time in many years, visitors were able to see one of the most interesting churches of the cathedral.
Bell tower
The modern bell tower of the Intercession Cathedral was built on the site of an ancient belfry.
By the second half of the XVII century. The old belfry was dilapidated and fell into disrepair. In the 1680s it was replaced by a bell tower, which still stands to this day.
The base of the bell tower is a massive high quadrangle, on which an octagon with an open area is placed. The site is fenced with eight pillars, connected by arched spans, and crowned with a high octagonal tent.
Intercession Cathedral. 1839
The ribs of the tent are decorated with colorful tiles with white, yellow, blue and brown glaze. The edges are covered with figured green tiles. The tent is completed by a small onion dome with an eight-pointed cross. There are small windows in the tent - the so-called "rumors", designed to amplify the sound of the bells.
Bogolyubov A.P.
Inside the open area and in the arched openings, bells cast by outstanding Russian masters of the 17th-19th centuries are suspended on thick wooden beams. In 1990, after a long period of silence, they began to be used again.
The height of the temple is 65 meters.
Interesting Facts
In St. Petersburg there is a memorial church in memory of Alexander II - the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, better known as the Savior on Spilled Blood (completed in 1907).
The Intercession Cathedral served as one of the prototypes for the creation of the Savior on Blood, so both buildings have similar features.
In 1561, one of the most famous churches in Russia, the Intercession Cathedral, or, as it is called otherwise, St. Basil's Cathedral, was consecrated. The Kultura.RF portal recalled interesting facts from the history of its creation.
Temple-monument
The Intercession Cathedral is not just a church, but a memorial temple erected in honor of the accession of the Kazan Khanate to the Russian state. The main battle, in which the Russian troops won, took place on the day of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. 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 in which the decisive battles for Kazan took place - the Trinity, the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem and others.
Massive construction in record time
Initially, a wooden Trinity Church stood on the site of the cathedral. Temples were built around it during campaigns against Kazan - they celebrated the resounding victories of the Russian army. When Kazan finally fell, Metropolitan Macarius proposed to Ivan the Terrible to 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. So, on the same foundation, 9 independent churches and a belfry were built, they were connected by vaulted passages. Outside, the churches were surrounded by an open gallery, which was called the abyss - it was a kind of church porch. Each temple was crowned with its own dome with a unique pattern and original drum decoration. A grandiose building for those times, 65 meters high, 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. Holy fool Basil the Blessed walked the streets of Moscow barefoot, almost without clothes for almost the entire year, preaching mercy and helping others. There were legends about his prophetic gift: they say he predicted the Moscow fire of 1547. The son of Ivan the Terrible, Fyodor Ivanovich, 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 always worked - all year round, day and night. Later, according to its name, parishioners began to call the cathedral St. Basil's Cathedral.
Louis Bichebois. Lithograph "St. Basil's Church"
Vitaly Grafov. Moscow miracle worker Blessed Basil. 2005
The royal treasury and the lectern at the Execution Ground
There are no basements in the cathedral. Instead, they built a common base - a vaulted basement without supporting pillars. It was ventilated through special narrow holes - vents. Initially, the premises were used as a warehouse - the royal treasury and the values of some wealthy Moscow families were stored there. Later, a narrow entrance to the basement was laid - 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 temple, especially on major church holidays, very few people were placed inside. Then the lectern was transferred to the Execution Ground, 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 a foreign architect became the author of the cathedral. After all, the composition of St. Basil's Cathedral has no analogies in ancient Russian architecture, but in Western European art you can find prototypes of the building.
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 building anywhere. Another legend says that the foreign builder was executed at all - for the same reason.
Iconostasis with inversion
The iconostasis for St. Basil's Cathedral was created in 1895 by architect Andrei Pavlinov. This is the so-called iconostasis with an inversion - it is so large for a small temple that it continues on the side walls. It is decorated with ancient icons - Our Lady of Smolensk of the 16th century and the image of St. Basil the Blessed, written in the 18th century.
Also, the temple is decorated with murals - they were created on the walls of the building in different years. Basil the Blessed, the Mother of God are depicted here, the main dome is decorated with the face of the Almighty Savior.
Iconostasis in St. Basil's Cathedral. 2016. Photo: Vladimir d "Ar
"Lazarus, put me in my 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 completely blown up. Already in Soviet times, Stalin's associate Lazar Kaganovich suggested dismantling the cathedral so that Red Square would have more space for parades and demonstrations. He even created a layout of the square, and the temple building was easily removed from it. But Stalin, seeing an architectural model, said: “Lazar, put it in its place!”
One of the most interesting and beautiful sights of the Russian capital is St. Basil's Cathedral (photo below), also known as the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God, built back in the 16th century by order of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible. Almost every person in the country knows that it is located on Red Square, but not everyone knows the history of its construction and the legends associated with it. But still, it will not be enough to learn only about the cathedral. The saint, in whose honor the chapel was built, and later the temple itself became known, bore the name of St. Basil the Blessed. The history of his life, deeds and death is no less interesting than the story of the construction of the cathedral.
Versions about the creators
(its photo is decorated with many postcards for tourists) was erected in the period from 1555 to 1561 in memory of the capture of the fortress city of Kazan by Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich. There are many versions of who was the true creator of this architectural monument. Consider only three main options. The first of them was the architect Postnik Yakovlev, who bore the nickname Barma. It was a well-known Pskov master at that time. The second option is Barma and Postnik. These are two architects who participated in the construction of this temple. And the third - the cathedral was erected by some unknown Western European master, presumably from Italy.
The latest version is supported by the fact that most of the buildings of the Kremlin were built by people from this country. The unique style in which St. Basil's Cathedral was created (the photos perfectly demonstrate it) harmoniously combined the traditions of Russian and European architecture. But it should be noted right away that this version has absolutely no documentary evidence.
There is also a legend according to which all the architects who worked on the project of the temple were deprived of their sight by order of Ivan the Terrible - with the aim that they could never build anything similar again. But there is one problem here. If the author of the temple is still Postnik Yakovlev, then he could not be blinded in any way. Just a few years later, he was also working on the creation of the Kremlin in Kazan.
Temple structure
The cathedral has only ten domes: nine of them are located above the main building, and one - above the bell tower. It includes eight temples. Their thrones were consecrated only in honor of those holidays during which the decisive battles for Kazan took place. All eight churches are located around the highest ninth, which has a pillar-like structure. It was built in honor of the protection of the Mother of God and ends with a tent with a small cupola. The rest of St. Basil's domes look traditional at first glance. They have a bulbous shape, but differ from each other in their design. All nine temples stand on a common foundation and are interconnected by vaulted internal passages and a bypass gallery, which was open in the original version.
In 1558, a chapel was added to the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Mother of God, which was consecrated in honor of St. Basil the Blessed. It was erected on the spot where the relics of this saint had previously been. Also, his name gave the cathedral a second name. Approximately 20 years later, the temple acquired its own hipped bell tower.
First floor - basement
I must say that St. Basil's Cathedral (the photo, of course, does not show this) does not have a basement. All of its constituent churches stand on the same foundation, called the basement. It is a structure with rather thick (up to 3 m) walls, divided into several rooms, the height of which is more than 6 m.
The northern basement has, one might say, a unique design for the 16th century. Its vault is made in the form of a box without supporting pillars, despite the fact that it has a large length. In the walls of this room there are narrow openings called air vents. Thanks to them, a special microclimate is created here, which remains unchanged throughout the year.
Once all the premises of the basement were inaccessible to parishioners. These deep recesses in the form of niches were used as vaults. Previously, they were closed with doors. But now only loops are left of them. Until 1595, the royal treasury and the most valuable property of wealthy citizens were kept in the basement.
To get into these previously secret rooms of St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, one had to go through a white stone staircase inside the walls, which only the initiates knew about. Later, as unnecessary, this move was laid down and forgotten about, but in the 30s of the last century it was accidentally discovered.
Chapel, organized in honor of St. Basil the Blessed
It is a cubic church. It is covered with a groin vault with a small light drum crowned with a cupola. The roof of this temple itself is made in the same style as the upper churches of the cathedral. There is a stylized inscription on the wall here. She reports that the Church of St. Basil the Blessed was built in 1588 right above the burial place of the saint immediately after his canonization by order of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich.
In 1929 the temple was closed for worship. Only at the end of the last century, its decorative decoration was finally restored. The memory of St. Basil the Blessed is venerated on August 15. It was this date in 1997 that was the starting point for the resumption of worship in his church. Today, over the very burial place of the saint, there is a shrine with his relics, decorated with fine carvings. This Moscow shrine is the most revered among the parishioners and guests of the temple.
Church decoration
It must be admitted that it is impossible in one article to reproduce in words all the beauties that St. Basil's Cathedral is famous for. Describing them would take more than one week, and possibly months. Let us dwell only on the details of the decoration of the church, consecrated in honor of this particular saint.
Its oil painting was timed to coincide with the 350th anniversary of the beginning of the construction of the cathedral. Basil the Blessed is depicted on the southern and northern walls. Pictures from his life represent episodes about a miracle with a fur coat and rescue at sea. Under them, on the lower tier, there is an ancient Russian ornament made of towels. In addition, on the south side of the church there is a large-sized icon, the drawing of which is made on a metal surface. This masterpiece was written in 1904.
The western wall is decorated with a temple image of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. The upper tier contains images of saints who patronize the royal house. This is the martyr Irina, John the Baptist, and Theodore Stratilat.
The sails of the vault are occupied by the image of the Evangelists, the crosshairs - by the Savior Not Made by Hands, John the Baptist and the Mother of God, the drum is decorated with the figures of the forefathers, and the dome - by the Almighty Savior.
As for the iconostasis, it was made according to the project of A. M. Pavlinov in 1895, and the famous Moscow restorer and icon painter Osip Chirikov supervised the painting of the icons. His original autograph is preserved on one of the icons. In addition, the iconostasis also has more ancient images. The first is the icon "Our Lady of Smolensk", dating back to the 16th century, and the second is the image of St. Basil the Blessed, where he is depicted against the backdrop of Red Square and the Kremlin. The latter dates from the 18th century.
Bell tower
In the middle of the 17th century, the previously built belfry was in a terrible state. Therefore, it was decided to replace it with a bell tower in the 80s of the same century. By the way, it's still standing. The basis for the bell tower is a high and massive quadrangle. On top of it, a more elegant and openwork octagon was erected, made in the form of an open area, which is fenced with eight pillars, and they, in turn, are connected at the top by arched spans.
The bell tower is crowned with a fairly high octagonal tent with ribs, decorated with multi-colored tiles with blue, white, brown and yellow glaze. Its edges are covered with green figured tiles and small windows, which, when the bells ring, can significantly amplify their sound. At the very top of the tent there is a small onion dome with a gilded cross. Inside the site, as well as in the arched openings, bells are suspended, which were cast back in the 17th-19th centuries by famous Russian masters.
Museum
In 1918, the Intercession Cathedral was recognized by the Soviet authorities as a historical architectural monument of not only national but also international significance and taken under state protection. It was then that it began to be considered a museum. Its first caretaker was John Kuznetsov (archpriest). I must say that after the revolution, the temple was, without exaggeration, in a very distressed situation: almost all the windows were broken, the roof was full of holes in many places, and in winter snowdrifts lay right inside the premises.
Five years later, on the basis of the cathedral, it was decided to create a historical and architectural complex. E. I. Silin, a researcher at the Moscow Historical Museum, became its first head. Already on May 21, the temple was visited by the first visitors. Since that time, work began on staffing the fund.
In 1928, the museum, called Pokrovsky Cathedral, became a branch of the Historical Museum. A year later, the temple was officially closed for worship and all the bells were removed. In the 30s of the last century, rumors spread that they were planning to demolish it. But he was still lucky to avoid such a fate. Despite the fact that the temple has been underway here for almost a century, it is always open for Muscovites and guests of the capital. For all the time the museum was closed only once, when the Great Patriotic War was going on.
After the end of the war, all measures were immediately taken to restore the cathedral, so by the day of the celebration of the 800th anniversary of the capital, the museum started working again. He gained wide popularity in the days of the Soviet Union. It should be noted that the museum was well known not only in the USSR, but also in many other countries. Since 1991, the temple has been in use by both the Orthodox Church and the State Historical Museum. After a long break, services have finally resumed here.
Saint's childhood
The future Moscow miracle worker Blessed Vasily was born at the very end of 1468. According to legend, this happened right on the porch of the Yelokhov Church, erected in honor of the Vladimir Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. His parents were ordinary people. When he grew up, he was sent to learn shoemaking. Over time, his mentor began to notice that Vasily was not like all the other children.
An example of his eccentricity is the following case: once a merchant brought bread to Moscow and, seeing the workshop, went to order boots for himself. At the same time, he asked that he could not wear shoes for a year. Hearing these words, Blessed Basil wept and promised that the merchant would not even have time to wear down those boots. When the master, who did not understand anything, asked the boy why he thought so, the child explained to his teacher that the customer would not be able to put on the boots, as he would soon die. This prophecy came true just a few days later.
Recognition of holiness
When Vasily was 16 years old, he moved to Moscow. It was here that his thorny path as a holy fool began. According to eyewitnesses, Blessed Basil walked the streets of the capital barefoot and naked almost all year round, regardless of whether it was a bitter frost or a scorching summer heat.
Not only his actions were considered strange, but also his actions. For example, passing by market stalls, he could spill a vessel filled with kvass, or overturn a counter with rolls. For this, Basil the Blessed was often beaten by angry merchants. Strange as it may sound, he always gladly accepted beatings and even thanked God for them. But as it turned out later, the spilled kvass was unusable, and the kalachi were badly baked. Over time, he was recognized not only as a detractor of untruth, but as a man of God and a holy fool.
Here is another incident from the life of a saint. Once a merchant decided to build a stone church in Moscow, on Pokrovka. But for some reason, its arches collapsed three times. He came to St. Basil the Blessed to ask for advice on this matter. But he sent him to Kyiv, to poor John. Upon arrival in the city, the merchant found the person he needed in a poor hut. John sat and rocked the cradle, in which there was no one. The merchant asked him who he was pumping after all. Na answered him that he was lulling his mother for his birth and upbringing. Only then did the merchant remember his mother, whom he once kicked out of the house. It immediately became clear to him why he was unable to complete the church. Returning to Moscow, the merchant found his mother, asked her forgiveness and took her home. After that, he easily managed to complete the church.
Acts of a miracle worker
Blessed Basil always preached mercy to his neighbors and helped those who were ashamed to ask for alms, while needing help more than others. On this occasion, there is a description of one case when he gave all the royal things donated to him to a visiting foreign merchant, who, by chance, lost absolutely everything. The merchant had not eaten for several days, but he could not ask for help, as he was wearing expensive clothes.
Basil the Blessed always severely condemned those who gave alms out of selfish motives, and not out of compassion for poverty and misfortune. For the sake of saving his neighbors, he even went into taverns, where he comforted and tried to encourage the most degraded people, seeing in them grains of kindness. so purified his soul by prayers and great deeds that the gift of foresight was revealed to him. In 1547, the Blessed managed to predict a great fire that happened in Moscow, and with his prayer he put out the flames in Novgorod. Also, his contemporaries claimed that once Vasily reproached Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible himself, since during the service he was thinking about building his palace on Sparrow Hills.
The saint died on August 2, 1557. The then Moscow Metropolitan Macarius and his clergy performed the burial of Vasily. He was buried at the Trinity Church, where in 1555 they began to build the Intercession Church in memory of the conquest of the Kazan Khanate. 31 years later, on August 2, this saint was glorified by the Council, headed by Patriarch Job.
Contemporaries described him in much the same way, and they necessarily mentioned three features: he was extremely thin, wore a minimum of clothes and always had a staff in his hand. This is how St. Basil the Blessed appears before us. Photos of icons and paintings with his image are presented in this article.
The veneration of this holy wonderworker among the people was so great that the Pokrovsky Cathedral began to be called his name. By the way, his chains are still preserved in the Theological Academy of the capital. Anyone who wants to admire a wonderful monument of medieval architecture can find it at the address: St. Basil's Cathedral.
Today, July 12, the Intercession Cathedral, better known as St. Basil's Cathedral, celebrates its 450th anniversary. This date is not accidental: on July 2 (June 29, according to the old style), 1561, the central Intercession Church of the cathedral was consecrated.
The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat, better known as St. Basil's Cathedral, is located in the southern part of Red Square in Moscow, near the Spassky Gates of the Kremlin, above the descent to the Moscow River. It was built in the middle of the 16th century by order of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible to commemorate the conquest of the Kazan Khanate - part of the former Golden Horde - as a token of gratitude for the victory.
What used to stand on the site of the Pokrovsky Cathedral is not exactly known. Russian chronicles contain fragmentary and conflicting reports about wooden and stone churches. This gave rise to many conjectures, versions and legends.
According to one version, soon after the return of Ivan IV the Terrible from the Kazan campaign of 1552, on the site of the future Church of the Intercession on the Moat on the edge of the Moskva River, a wooden church in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity with seven aisles was laid on a hill.
Saint Macarius Metropolitan of Moscow advised Ivan the Terrible to create a stone church here. Metropolitan Macarius also owned the main compositional idea of the future church.
The first reliable mention of the construction of the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God dates back to the autumn of 1554. It is believed that it was a wooden cathedral. It stood for a little over half a year and was dismantled before the construction of the stone cathedral began in the spring of 1555.
Intercession Cathedral was erected by Russian architects Barma and Postnik (there is a version that Postnik and Barma are the names of one person). According to legend, so that the architects could not create a new better creation, Tsar Ivan IV, upon completion of the construction of an outstanding masterpiece of architecture, ordered them to be blinded. Subsequently, the inconsistency of this fiction was proved.
The construction of the temple was carried out only 6 years and only in the warm season. The chronicle contains a description of the "miraculous" finding by the masters of the ninth, southern throne, after the entire construction was almost completed. However, the clear symmetry inherent in the cathedral convinces us that the architects initially had an idea about the compositional structure of the future temple: it was supposed to put eight aisles around the central ninth church. The temple was built of brick, and the foundation, plinth and some decorative elements were made of white stone.
By the autumn of 1559 the cathedral was basically completed. On the feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God, all the churches were consecrated, with the exception of the central one, since "the large church of the middle Intercession of that year was not completed."
The consecration of the Intercession Church and, accordingly, the entire cathedral took place on July 12 (June 29, according to the old style), 1561. The church was consecrated by Metropolitan Macarius.
Each cathedral church received its own dedication. The Eastern Church was consecrated in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity. Researchers are still looking for an answer to why this church got its name. There are several hypotheses. It is known that in honor of the "Holy Life-Giving Trinity" in 1553 a monastery was founded in conquered Kazan. It is also believed that the wooden Trinity Church originally stood on the site of the Intercession Cathedral, which gave the name to one of the aisles of the future temple.
Four side aisles were consecrated in honor of the saints, on whose days of memory the most important events of the Kazan campaign took place: Cyprian and Justina (October 2 (15) - on this day the assault on Kazan ended), Gregory, the Enlightener of Great Armenia (on the day of his memory September 30 (13 October) there was an explosion of the Arskaya tower in Kazan), Alexander Svirsky (on the day of his memory on August 30 (September 12), a victory was won over the army of Tsarevich Yepanchi, who was hurrying from the Crimea to help the Tatars), the Three Patriarchs of Constantinople Alexander, John and Paul the New ( commemorated also on August 30).
Three more chapels are dedicated to Nikolai Velikoretsky, Varlaam Khutynsky and the feast of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem. The central throne is named in honor of the Intercession of the Virgin, since on October 1 (14) on the day of this holiday, which symbolized the intercession of the Mother of God for the Christian race, the main assault on Kazan began. By the name of the central church, the whole cathedral was named.
The prefix "on the Moat", found in chronicles about the cathedral, is due to the fact that a deep and wide defensive moat ran through the entire area, later called Red, along the Kremlin wall from the 14th century, which was filled up in 1813.
The cathedral had an unusual architectural composition - 9 independent temples were built on a single foundation - the basement - and interconnected by internal vaulted passages surrounding the central temple. Outside, all the churches were surrounded by the originally open gallery-ambulance. The central church ended with a high tent, the aisles were covered with vaults and crowned with domes.
The ensemble of the cathedral was complemented by a three-hipped open belfry, in the arched spans of which massive bells hung.
Initially, the Intercession Cathedral was crowned with 8 large domes and a small dome above the central church. To emphasize the significance of the building material, as well as to protect the cathedral from atmospheric influences, all its walls were painted in red and white colors from the outside. The painting imitated brickwork. The material of the original covering of the domes remains unknown, as they were lost during the devastating fire of 1595.
In its original form, the cathedral existed until 1588. Then, from the northeast side, a tenth church was added to it over the grave of the holy fool Basil the Blessed, who spent a lot of time at the cathedral under construction and bequeathed to bury himself next to it. The famous Moscow miracle worker died in 1557, and after his canonization, the son of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible, Fyodor Ioannovich, ordered the construction of a church. In architectural terms, it was an independent pillarless temple with a separate entrance.
The place of finding the relics of St. Basil the Blessed was marked with a silver shrine, which was subsequently lost during the Time of Troubles, at the beginning of the 17th century. Divine services in the church of the saint soon became daily, and starting from the 17th century, the name of the chapel was gradually transferred to the entire cathedral, becoming its "folk" name: St. Basil's Cathedral.
At the end of the 16th century, figured domes of the cathedral appeared - instead of the original burnt cover.
In 1672, an eleventh church was added to the cathedral from the southeast side: a small church over the grave of St. John the Blessed, a revered Moscow holy fool, who was buried near the cathedral in 1589.
In the second half of the 17th century, significant changes took place in the external appearance of the cathedral. The wooden sheds over the grove, which burned down every now and then in fires, were replaced with a roof on arched brick pillars. Above the porch of the church of St. Basil the Blessed, the church of St. Theodosius the Virgin was added. Above the previously open white stone stairs leading to the upper tier of the cathedral, vaulted hipped porches appeared, arranged on the so-called "creeping" arches.
In the same period, polychrome ornamental painting appears. It covers the newly built porches, supporting pillars, the outer walls of the galleries and the parapets of the promenades. The facades of churches retain at this time a painting that imitates brickwork.
In 1683, the entire cathedral along the upper cornice was surrounded by a tiled inscription. Large yellow letters on a dark blue background of glazed tiles told about the history of the creation of the temple and its renovation in the second half of the 17th century. The inscription was destroyed a century later during the next repair.
In the 1680s the belfry was rebuilt. On the site of an open structure, a two-tiered bell tower was erected with an open upper platform for ringing.
In 1737, during a grandiose fire, St. Basil's Cathedral was badly damaged, especially its southern church.
Cardinal changes in its program of murals occurred during repairs in the 1770s-1780s. The altars of wooden churches demolished to prevent fires from Red Square were transferred to the territory of the cathedral and under its vaults. At the same time, the throne of the Three Patriarchs of Constantinople was renamed in the name of John the Merciful, and the church of Cyprian and Justina began to bear the name of Saints Adrian and Natalia (the original dedications to the churches were returned in the 1920s).
The inside of the church was painted with oil painting depicting saints and hagiographic scenes. Oil painting was updated in 1845-1848. and at the end of the 19th century. Outside, the walls were covered with paintings that imitated masonry from large boulders - "wild stone". The arches of the basement (lower non-residential tier) were laid, in the western part of which housing was placed for the clergy (temple servants). The bell tower was combined with an extension to the cathedral building. The upper part of the chapel of St. Basil the Blessed (the Church of Theodosius the Virgin) was rebuilt into a sacristy - a repository of church valuables and shrines.
In 1812, an order was given to the French gunners to blow up the cathedral. However, it was only plundered by Napoleon's troops, but immediately after the war it was repaired and consecrated. The area around the cathedral was landscaped and surrounded by an openwork cast-iron grate, designed by the famous architect O. Beauvais.
At the end of the 19th century, for the first time, the task arose of returning the cathedral to its original appearance. The specially created Commission for the restoration of the monument included well-known architects, scientists and painters, who determined the main directions for the study and restoration of the Intercession Cathedral. However, the lack of funds, the October Revolution and the subsequent period of devastation in the history of Russia did not allow the implementation of the planned program.
In 1918, the Intercession Cathedral was one of the first to be taken under protection by the state as a monument of national and world significance. Since May 21, 1923, it has been open to visitors as a historical and architectural museum. At the same time, until 1929, divine services were held in the church of St. Basil the Blessed.
In 1928, the Pokrovsky Cathedral became a branch of the State Historical Museum and remains so to this day.
In the 1920s extensive scientific and restoration work was launched on the monument, thanks to which it became possible to restore the original appearance of the cathedral and recreate the interiors of the 16th-17th centuries in individual churches.
From that moment to the present, four global restorations have been carried out, including architectural and painting works. The original "brick-like" painting of the 16th century was restored on the outside, in the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God and in the Church of Alexander Svirsky.
In the 1950s-1960s. unique restoration work was carried out: in the interior of the central church, a "church-built chronicle" was opened, in which ancient architects indicated the exact date of completion of the construction of the cathedral - July 12, 1561 (the day of Equal-to-the-Apostles Peter and Paul); for the first time, the iron coverings of the domes were replaced with copper ones. The successful choice of material contributed to the fact that until now the coatings of the domes remain unscathed.
In the interiors of four churches, iconostases have been reconstructed, almost entirely consisting of icons of the 16th-17th centuries, among which there are genuine masterpieces of the ancient Russian school of icon painting ("Trinity" of the 16th century). The pride of the collection are the icons of the XVI-XVII centuries. "The Vision of Sexton Tarasius", "Nikola Velikoretsky in Life", "Alexander Nevsky in Life", as well as icons from the original iconostasis of the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos "Basil the Great" and "John Chrysostom". In other churches, iconostases of the 18th and 19th centuries have been preserved. Among them, two iconostasis were moved in the 1770s. from the cathedrals of the Moscow Kremlin (altar barriers in the Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem and in the central church).
In the 1970s a fresco of the 17th century was discovered on the outer bypass gallery under late records. The found painting served as the basis for the reconstruction of the original ornamental painting on the facades of the cathedral.
The year 1990 was an important milestone in the history of the museum: the Pokrovsky Cathedral was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in Russia. After a long break in the Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, divine services were resumed. The following year, the cathedral was approved for joint use by the State Historical Museum and the Russian Orthodox Church.
In 1997, the restoration of the interior, monumental and easel painting was completed in St. Basil's Church, closed since the late 1920s. The church was included in the exposition of the Pokrovsky Cathedral, and divine services were resumed in it.
Divine services are held in the Pokrovsky Cathedral by the Russian Orthodox Church: on the days of the main thrones (Protection and St. Basil the Blessed), patriarchal or sovereign services are held. At the shrine of St. Basil the Blessed, an akathist is read every Sunday.
In 2001-2011 seven churches of the cathedral were completely restored, facade paintings were renewed, and partly tempera painting of the inner gallery. In 2007, the Pokrovsky Cathedral became a nominee for the Seven Wonders of Russia competition.
The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources
...in memory
about the victory over Kazan
two skilled craftsmen
The king ordered the construction of a temple.
And these people raised
Unprecedented in the whole world, colorful, fabulous cathedral,
What's worth so far...
N. Konchalovskaya
Everyone who came to Moscow for the first time definitely goes to Red Square.
Red Square, Kremlin, The cathedral St. Basil's - these are the main sights of Moscow that you need to see first.
Intercession Cathedral ( The cathedral Basil the Blessed) is an Orthodox church. Its official name Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, on the Moat. Its colloquial name is St. Basil's Cathedral. The famous St. Basil's Cathedral was erected under Ivan the Terrible in 1555 -1561 years.
Intercession Cathedral is a magnificent ensemble of amazing harmony and great strength. The cathedral Basil the Blessed is a symbol of Moscow and Russian art.
The temple is considered one of the best works of ancient Russian architecture. It is also unusual as a work of engineering and construction art. It is a monument of world importance and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in Russia. Currently, the Pokrovsky Cathedral is a branch
Significant events have always been marked by the construction of temples in Russia.
On what occasion was the Intercession Cathedral built?
On September 1, 1552, Russian troops stormed Kazan and annexed it to Russian territory. By order of Ivan the Terrible, a temple was erected in memory of the capture of Kazan and the victory over the Kazan Khanate. The original building was wooden. The temple stood for no more than six months. In 1555, the construction of a stone cathedral began, which has survived to this day. The architects of such a great building were Postnik and Barma.
Initially, the temple was called the Cathedral of the Intercession on the Moat. Why cover?
The temple was built in honor of the Kazan victory. The decisive attack on the Kazan Kremlin fell on the day of the Church Orthodox holiday of the Intercession of the Virgin, symbolizing protection. According to legend, the Mother of God once saved Constantinople by covering it with her veil.
Why Rva?
The cathedral was erected at the Kremlin moat.
Why does the Cathedral of the Intercession on the Moat have a different name - St. Basil's Cathedral?
According to folk legends, a poor wanderer Vasily lived in Moscow. In the streets and squares, the holy fool begged for alms. Sharp-tongued, he spoke the truth to everyone, even the king. Among the people, Vasily was revered as Blessed, that is, a saint, God's saint, a soothsayer. He died in 1588 and was buried in the northeastern part of the Intercession Cathedral. Six years after his death, the elder was canonized as a saint. His grave was very revered by Muscovites. Later, a chapel was built over it - a small temple of St. Basil. Since then and to this day, all this magnificent building has become known as St. Basil's Cathedral. In folk legends, stories were kept about miraculous healings that took place with the help of his relics, which were stored in the Vasilyevsky chapel.
The cathedral is intended for contemplation from the outside, inside it is severe and laconic.
Bright, multi-colored domes are pleasing to the eye. There are nine in total and they are all different.
Medieval art has always been symbolic. The temple ensemble consists of eight churches, which are grouped around the ninth pillar-shaped church in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God. Each of the churches is dedicated to a saint, whose feast day coincided with the most stubborn eight days of the assault on Kazan.
