St. Basil's Cathedral today. Saint Blessed Basil

02.11.2023

St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow on Red Square is the main temple of the capital of Russia. Therefore, for many inhabitants of the planet it is a symbol of Russia, just as the Eiffel Tower is for France or the Statue of Liberty for America. Currently, the temple is a branch of the State Historical Museum. Since 1990, it has been included in the List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Russia.

From the history of St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow on Red Square

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 soldiers. In honor of this victory, by decree of Ivan the Terrible, the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God, now known as St. Basil's Cathedral, was founded.

Previously, on the site of the temple there was a church in the name of the Trinity. According to legend, in the crowd among those walking one could often see the holy fool St. Basil the Blessed, who left home in his youth and wandered around the capital. He was known for having the gift of healing and clairvoyance and collecting money for the new Intercession Church. Before his death, he gave the collected money to Ivan the Terrible. The holy fool was buried at the Trinity Church. When the Intercession Church was built, his grave was located at the very wall of the temple. Later, 30 years later, on the orders of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, a new chapel was built, consecrated in honor of St. Basil. Since then, the temple began to be called by the same name. In the old days, the Intercession Cathedral was red and white, and the domes were gold. There were 25 domes: 9 main and 16 small ones, located around the central tent, aisles and bell tower. The central dome had the same complex shape as the side domes. The painting of the temple walls was more complex.

There were very few people inside the temple. Therefore, during the holidays, services were held on Red Square. The Intercession Cathedral served as an altar. Church ministers came to the place of execution, and the sky served as a dome. The temple has a height of 65 meters. Before the construction of the Ivanovo Bell Tower in the Kremlin, it was the tallest in Moscow. After a fire in 1737, the temple was restored, and in the second half of the 18th century, 16 small domes around the towers were removed, and the bell tower was connected to the temple, which became multi-colored.

Throughout its history, the temple was on the verge of destruction several times. According to legend, Napoleon kept his horses in the temple and wanted to move the building to Paris. But at that time it was impossible to do this. Then he decided to blow up the temple. A sudden downpour of rain extinguished the lit wicks and saved the structure. After the revolution, the temple was closed, the bells were melted down, and its rector, Archpriest John Vostorgov, was shot. Lazar Koganovich proposed demolishing the building to open up traffic and hold demonstrations. Only the courage and perseverance of the architect P.D. Baranovsky was saved by the temple. Stalin’s famous phrase “Lazarus, put him in his place!” and the decision to demolish it was reversed.

How many domes are there on St. Basil's Cathedral

The temple was built in 1552-1554. at a time when there was a war with the Golden Horde for the conquest of the Kazan and Astrakhan kingdoms. After each victory, a wooden church was built in honor of the saint whose memory day was celebrated on that day. Also, some temples were built in honor of significant events. By the end of the war, there were 8 churches on one site. Saint Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow advised the tsar to build one temple in stone with a common foundation. In 1555-1561 The architects Barma and Yakovlev built eight temples on one foundation: four of them are axial and four smaller ones between them. All of them are different in architectural decoration and have onion domes decorated with cornices, kokoshniks, windows, and niches. In the center stands the ninth church with a small dome in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God. In the 17th century, a bell tower with a hipped dome was built. Considering this dome, there are 10 domes on the temple.

The northern church was consecrated in the name of Cyprian and Ustina, and later in the name of St. Andrian and Natalia.
The eastern church is consecrated in the name of the Trinity. The southern church is in the name of Nikola Velikoretsky.
The Western Church was consecrated in the name of the Entry into Jerusalem in memory of the return of the army of Ivan the Terrible to Moscow.
The northeastern church was consecrated in the name of the Three Patriarchs of Alexandria.
The southeastern church is in the name of Alexander Svirsky.
Southwestern Church - in the name of Varlaam Khutynsky.
Northwestern - in the name of Gregory of Armenia.

Eight chapters, built around the central ninth, form a figure in plan, consisting of two squares located at an angle of 45 degrees and representing an eight-pointed star. The number 8 symbolizes the day of the Resurrection of Christ, and the eight-pointed star is a symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The square means firmness and constancy of faith. Its four sides mean the four cardinal directions and the four ends of the cross, the four evangelist apostles. The central temple unites the rest of the churches and symbolizes patronage over all of Russia.

Museum in St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow on Red Square

Now the temple is open as a museum. Its visitors can climb the spiral staircase and admire the iconostases, which contain icons from the 16th to 19th centuries and see the patterns of the internal gallery. The walls are decorated with oil paintings and frescoes from the 16th to 19th centuries. The museum displays portrait and landscape paintings, as well as church utensils from the 16th to 19th centuries. There are opinions that it is necessary to preserve St. Basil's Cathedral on Red Square in Moscow not just as a monument of extraordinary beauty, but also as an Orthodox shrine.

The Intercession Cathedral was erected on Red Square in 1555-1561 in memory of the annexation of the Kazan kingdom - one of the most important events in the era of strengthening the Russian centralized state. The victory over Kazan in 1552 was the first major foreign policy success of the young Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible (the first two campaigns in 1547 and 1550 ended in failure); with the annexation of the Kazan and Astrakhan (in 1554) kingdoms, he also began to be called the Tsar of Kazan and Astrakhan.

A symbolic place was chosen for the construction of the votive temple - on the border of the Kremlin and Posad, next to the moat that surrounded the Kremlin walls (hence the names of the temple - “Protection on the Moat at the Trinity Gate” and “Trinity on the Moat”). Chronicle sources indicate that in its final form the idea of the temple-monument took shape and began to be implemented in 1555. The depth of the plan and the originality of its implementation indicate the undoubted involvement in the “development of the project” of St. Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus', and Tsar Ivan the Terrible, who were co-authors of the most important cultural endeavors of their era.

Nine separate churches were erected on a single foundation, with one central one, crowned with a large tent, surrounded by eight church pillars arranged crosswise in plan. The dedications of the thrones reflected the main stages of the Kazan victory and the idea of heavenly protection of the Russian army. The central church was consecrated in honor of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos - on this day, October 1, 1552, the attackers launched a powerful attack, the success of which was crowned with the capture of the city the next day. Dedications of thrones in the name of Saints Cyprian and Justinia (October 2 - capture of Kazan), Patriarchs of Constantinople Alexander, John and Paul the New and Venerable Alexander of Svir (August 30 - Russian victory on the Arsk field), Gregory Bishop of Greater Armenia (September 30 - the beginning of the assault on the city), Varlaam Khutynsky (November 6 - the Tsar’s return to Moscow). The names of the thrones in the name of the Holy Trinity and the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem have a symbolic meaning - and also connected with the Kazan campaign.

Only the ninth throne was dedicated to an event not related to the “Capture of Kazan”. On June 29, 1555, the image of Nikola Velikoretsky was brought to Moscow from Vyatka. Numerous miracles and healings from this image occurred both on the way to the capital and in Moscow, in the Assumption Cathedral. To commemorate this manifestation of God's grace, the ninth altar of the church under construction was consecrated in memory of Nikola Velikoretsky; later it contained a copy of the miraculous icon made by Metropolitan Macarius himself.

The construction of the stone Intercession Cathedral, which began no later than the spring of 1555, lasted five and a half years. On October 1, 1559, according to the Nikon Chronicle, all the churches were consecrated, except for the central Church of the Intercession, the construction of which had not yet been completed. The date of completion of construction and consecration - June 29, 1561 (July 12, new style) - was determined only during the restoration work of 1957-1961, when restorers discovered the text of the temple “chronicle” preserved under late plaster, made at the base of the main tent .

The Intercession Cathedral is a national symbol of Russia: as a monument to the glory of Russian weapons and as a unique temple in architecture, a recognized masterpiece of ancient Russian architecture. For a long time, based on memoir sources of Western origin, it was believed that the creators of the temple were foreign architects. The honor of discovering the names of Russian architects who embodied the idea of a tsar and metropolitan in stone belongs to the archpriest of the Intercession Cathedral Ioann Kuznetsov, who at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century discovered the names of the builders in the chronicle sources of the 17th century - Barma and Postnik “with their comrades”.

A new page in the history of the temple is associated with the glorification in 1588 of the Moscow holy fool St. Basil the Blessed, who died on August 2, 1557 and was buried under an arch near the walls of the cathedral that was then under construction. In it, over the relics of the saint, between the northern chapel of the Holy Trinity and the northeastern chapel of the three Patriarchs, a stone tent was built. In 1588, the arch was dismantled and, by order of the son of Ivan the Terrible, Fyodor Ioannovich, the church (mortirium) of St. Basil was erected. In 1672, the Church of St. John the Blessed was built at the site of his burial.

The cathedral became a place of crowded and inexhaustible pilgrimage to the “holy healing tomb” of St. Basil. Unlike the churches of the Intercession Cathedral, where services were held on the days of the twelfths and patronal feasts, in the church of St. St. Basil's service was daily. This was the reason for the appearance of the popular name of the Intercession Cathedral - “Church of St. St. Basil's.

Near the temple “on the Moat”, according to his will, another holy fool, John, nicknamed the Big Cap (July 3, 1589 - death, June 12, 1672 - discovery of relics) was also buried.

In the second half of the XVI-XVII centuries. The Intercession Cathedral was the semantic center of the celebration of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem: a solemn church procession led by the Tsar and the Patriarch, called the “procession on a donkey,” headed to it from the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin.

For four and a half centuries, the Intercession Cathedral witnessed all the significant events of Russian history: coronation processions and solemn religious processions took place next to it, state decrees were announced and petitions were drawn up, city life was in full swing around it. In 1913-1918. The position of Archpriest of the Intercession Cathedral was held by Hieromartyr John Vostorgov.

As a monument of national and world significance, the Intercession Cathedral was one of the first to be taken under state protection according to the decree of October 5, 1918. At the end of 1919, services in the Intercession Cathedral were stopped, but in St. Basil's Church they continued until 1928.

In 1923, the historical and architectural museum “Pokrovsky Cathedral” opened (since 1928, a branch of the State Historical Museum).

Church life returned to the Intercession Cathedral in 1990, on the patronal feast day, when on October 13, after a 70-year break, an all-night vigil was served, and on October 14, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus'.

By decree of the President of the RSFSR dated November 18, 1991, the Russian Orthodox Church was allowed to hold regular services in the Kremlin cathedrals and St. Basil's Cathedral. In accordance with this decree, an Agreement “On the use of the temples of the Moscow Kremlin and the Church of the Intercession on the Moat (St. Basil’s Cathedral) on Red Square in Moscow” was concluded between the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Moscow Patriarchate in November 1992, the obligations under which are strictly fulfilled by all parties and the parties to the agreement - the Ministry of Culture of Russia, the Moscow Patriarchate, the Moscow Kremlin Museums and the State Historical Museum.

On August 15, 1997, after restoration, St. Basil's Church was opened, in which regular services began to be held.

The Intercession Cathedral is one of the most outstanding monuments of Russian history and culture; it is classified as a particularly valuable cultural heritage site of the peoples of the Russian Federation and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

In the 20s of the 20th century, extensive scientific restoration research was launched on the cathedral, thanks to which it became possible to restore its original appearance and recreate the interiors of the 16th-17th centuries in individual churches. From this moment to the present, four global restorations have been carried out, including architectural and pictorial works.

In the 60s of the 20th century, unique restoration work was carried out: the temple chronicle was opened, in which the builders indicated the exact date of completion of the cathedral; The iron coverings of the domes of the cathedral churches were replaced with copper ones.

In the interiors of four churches, iconostases for the 16th century were reconstructed, consisting entirely of icons of the 16th-17th centuries, among which there are rarities (“Trinity” of the 16th century, “Alexander Nevsky in the Life” of the 17th century). In the remaining churches, iconostases from the 18th-19th centuries have been preserved. Among them are two unique ones from the Moscow Kremlin from the first half of the 18th century.

In the 17th century, above the northern part of the church of St. St. Basil's Church was built in Feodosia, and at the end of the 18th century it was turned into a sacristy - a repository of church valuables. Currently, it houses an exposition of the exhibition “Shrines of the Intercession Cathedral”, which presents unique examples of ancient Russian painting, book and applied art that belonged to this temple during the 16th-20th centuries, as well as rarities related to the history of the construction of the cathedral.

Since 1990, the Intercession Cathedral has been used both as a museum (a branch of the State Historical Museum) and as a temple in which the Russian Orthodox Church holds services: on the days of the main altars (the Intercession and St. Basil's Day), Patriarchal or bishops' services are held. At the shrine of St. St. Basil's akathist is read every Sunday.

Compiled by E.M. Yukhimenko

1.Why was the Intercession Cathedral built on Red Square?
2.Who built the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square
3.Postnik and Barma
4.Architecture of the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square
5.Why is the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square called St. Basil’s Cathedral
6. St. Basil the Blessed
7.Cultural layer near the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square
8. Bell tower and bells
9.Additional information about bells and ringing
10. Intercession Cathedral on Red Square. Facade icons
11. Heads of the Intercession Cathedral

The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on the Moat or, as it is more often called, is a unique monument of ancient Russian architecture. For a long time it has served as a symbol not only of Moscow, but of the entire Russian state. Since 1923, the cathedral has been a branch of the historical museum. It was taken under state protection in 1918, and services there ceased in 1928. However, in the 1990s of the last century, services were resumed and in St. Basil's Church are held every week, in other churches of the cathedral - on patronal holidays. Services are held on Saturdays and Sundays. On Sunday, services are held from 10 a.m. to approximately 1 p.m. On Sundays and religious holidays, excursions to St. Basil's Church are not conducted.

Why was the Intercession Cathedral built on Red Square?

The cathedral was erected in honor of the conquest of the Kazan Khanate. The victory over Kazan was perceived at that time as the final victory over the Golden Horde. Going on the Kazan campaign, Ivan the Terrible made a vow: in case of victory, to build a temple in honor of her. The construction of temples in honor of the most important events and military victories has been a long-standing Russian tradition. At that time, sculptural monuments, columns, and obelisks were unknown in Rus'. However, memorial churches have been erected since ancient times in honor of important state events: the birth of an heir to the throne or a military victory. The victory over Kazan was commemorated by the construction of a memorial church, consecrated in the name of the Intercession. On October 1, 1552, a decisive assault on Kazan began. This event coincided with the celebration of a major church holiday - the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The central church of the cathedral was consecrated in the name of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, which gave the name to the entire cathedral. The first and main dedication of the temple is the votive church. His second dedication was the capture of Kazan.

Who built the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square

The construction of the memorial church was blessed by Metropolitan Macarius. Perhaps he is the author of the idea of the temple, because Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible was still very young at that time. But it is categorically impossible to say this, since very few written sources have reached us.

In Rus', it often happened that, having erected a temple, they wrote down the name of the temple builder (tsar, metropolitan, noble person) in the chronicle, but forgot the names of the builders. For a long time it was believed that the Intercession Cathedral was built by the Italians. But at the end of the 19th century, a chronicle was discovered, from which the true names of the cathedral’s builders became known. The chronicle reads as follows: “The pious Tsar John, having come from the victory of Kazan to the reigning city of Moscow, soon erected stone churches near the Frolov Gate above the ditch(Frolovsky – now Spassky Gate) and then God gave him two Russian advertising masters(i.e. by name) Fasting and Barma and higher wisdom and more convenient for such a wonderful work ".

Postnik and Barma

The names of the architects Postnik and Barma appear in sources telling about the cathedral only at the end of the 19th century. The oldest source telling about the Church of the Intercession on the Moat is the Degree Book of the Royal Genealogy, written under the leadership of Metropolitan Athanasius in 1560-63. It talks about the votive construction of the Intercession Cathedral. The Facial Chronicle is no less important. It talks about the foundation of the cathedral, its construction and consecration. The most important, most detailed historical source is the life of Metropolitan Jonah. The Life was created in the 1560-1580s. This is the only source where the names of Faster and Barma are mentioned.
So, the official version today sounds like this:
the Church of the Intercession, which was erected on the Moat by Russian architects Barma and Postnik. According to the unofficial version, this cathedral was built by foreigners of unknown origin. If Italians were previously mentioned, now this version is highly doubted. Without a doubt, when starting the construction of the cathedral, Ivan the Terrible called upon experienced architects. In the 16th century, many foreigners worked in Moscow. Perhaps Barma and Postnik studied with the same Italian masters.

Intercession Cathedral on Red Square. Architecture

The Intercession Cathedral is not one huge church, as it might seem at first glance, but several completely independent churches. It consists of nine temples on a single foundation.

Heads of the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, which is on the moat

A tent-roofed church rises in the center. In Rus', tented temples are considered to be those that have a pyramidal rather than vaulted ending. Around the central tented church there are eight small churches with large beautiful domes.

It was from this cathedral that the ensemble of Red Square that we are accustomed to now began to take shape. The tops of the Kremlin towers were built in the 17th century; they were built with an eye on the Intercession Cathedral. The tent on the Tsar's tower-gazebo to the left of the Spasskaya Tower repeats the tented porches of the cathedral.

South porch of the Intercession Cathedral with a tent

The Tsar's Tower of the Moscow Kremlin is located opposite the Intercession Cathedral

Eight churches surround the central tented temple. Four churches are large and four are small.

Church of the Holy Trinity - eastern.

Church of Alexander Svirsky – south-eastern.

Church of St. Nikola Velikoretsky - southern..

Church of Varlaam Khutynsky - southwestern.

The Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem is western.

Church of Gregory of Armenia - northwestern.

The Church of Cyprian and Justina is northern.

St. Basil's Church, behind it is the Church of the Three Patriarchs of Constantinople - northeastern.

Four large churches are oriented to the cardinal points. The northern temple overlooks Red Square, the southern one overlooks the Moscow River, and the western one overlooks the Kremlin. Most of the churches were dedicated to church holidays, the days of celebration of which fell on the most important events of the Kazan campaign.
Services in the eight side churches were held only once a year - on the day of the patronal feast. Services were served in the central church from Trinity Day until its patronal feast day - October 1st.
Since the Kazan campaign fell in the summer, all church holidays also fell in the summer. All the churches of the Intercession Cathedral were built as summer, cold ones. In winter they were not heated and services were not conducted in them.

Today the cathedral has the same appearance that it had in the 16th-17th centuries.
At first, the cathedral was surrounded by an open gallery. Around all eight churches on the second floor there is a belt of windows.

In ancient times, the gallery was open, there were no ceilings above it, and open staircases led upstairs. The ceilings and porches over the stairs were erected later. The cathedral looked and was perceived completely differently than we perceive it today. If now it seems like a huge multi-domed church of incomprehensible design, then in ancient times this feeling did not arise. It was clear that nine soaring churches stood on an elegant, light foundation.

Height at that time was associated with beauty. It was believed that the higher the temple, the more beautiful it is. Height was a symbol of greatness, and in those days the Intercession Cathedral was visible 15 miles from Moscow. Until 1600, when the bell tower of Ivan the Great was built in the Kremlin, the cathedral was the tallest building in the city, and throughout Muscovy. Until the beginning of the 17th century, it served as a town-planning dominant, i.e. the highest point in Moscow.
All churches of the cathedral ensemble are united by two bypass galleries: external and internal. The ceilings over the walkway and porches were made in the 17th century, because in our conditions having open galleries and porches turned out to be an unaffordable luxury. In the 19th century, the gallery was glazed.
In the same 17th century, a tented bell tower was built on the site of the belfry to the southeast of the temple.

Tent bell tower of the Intercession Cathedral

The outer walls of the cathedral are restored approximately once every 20 years, and the interiors - once every 10 years. Icons are inspected every year, since our climate is harsh and icons are not immune to swelling and other damage to the paint layer.

Why is the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square called St. Basil's Cathedral

Let us remember that the cathedral consists of nine churches on a single foundation. However, ten multi-colored domes rise above the temple, not counting the onion above the bell tower. The tenth green chapter with red spikes is located below the level of the heads of all other churches and crowns the north-eastern corner of the temple.

Head of St. Basil's Church

This church was added to the cathedral after construction was completed. It was erected over the grave of a very famous and revered holy fool of that time, St. Basil the Blessed.

St. Basil the Blessed

This man was a contemporary of Ivan the Terrible, he lived in Moscow, and there were many legends about him. (The miracles of St. Basil are described in the article) From the current point of view, a holy fool is something like a madman, which, in fact, is absolutely wrong. In the Middle Ages in Rus', foolishness was one of the forms of asceticism. St. Basil the Blessed was not a holy fool from birth, he is a holy fool for Christ’s sake, who became one quite consciously. At the age of 16, he decided to devote his life to God. It was possible to serve the Lord in different ways: go to a monastery, become a hermit, but Vasily decided to become a holy fool. Moreover, he chose the feat of the godwalker, i.e. he walked without clothes both in winter and in summer, lived on the street, on the porch, ate alms and spoke incomprehensible speeches. But Vasily was not crazy, and if he wanted to be understood, he spoke intelligibly and people understood him.

Despite such harsh living conditions, St. Basil lived a very long life even by modern times and lived to be 88 years old. He was buried next to the cathedral. Burial near the temple was commonplace. At that time, according to Orthodox tradition, each church had a cemetery. In Rus', holy fools were always revered both during life and after death and were buried closer to the church.

After the death of St. Basil, he was canonized. As if over a saint, a church was erected over his grave in 1588. It so happened that this church turned out to be the only winter one in the entire cathedral, i.e. Only in this temple services were held every day all year round. Therefore, the name of this small church, built almost 30 years later than the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary on the Moat, was transferred to the entire Intercession Cathedral. They began to call it St. Basil's Cathedral.

Cultural layer near the Intercession Cathedral on Red Square

An interesting detail can be seen on the eastern side of the temple. There is a rowan growing there in... a pot.

The tree was planted, as it should be, in the ground, and not in a pot. Over the years, a cultural layer of considerable thickness has formed around the cathedral. The Intercession Cathedral seemed to have “grown into the ground.” In 2005, it was decided to return the temple to its original proportions. To do this, the “extra” soil was removed and taken away. And by that time the mountain ash had already been growing here for decades. In order not to destroy the tree, a wooden cover was made around it.

Bell tower and bells

Since 1990, the cathedral has been jointly used by the state and the Russian Orthodox Church. The building of the Intercession Cathedral belongs to the state, since its funding comes from the state budget.

The church bell tower was built on the site of a dismantled belfry.

The cathedral bell tower is operational. The museum staff make the calls themselves; they were trained by one of the leading bell ringers in Russia, Konovalov. Museum workers themselves provide the accompaniment of church services with bell ringing. A specialist must ring the bells. Museum workers do not trust anyone with the collection of bells of the Intercession Cathedral.

Fragment of the bell tower of the Intercession Cathedral

A person who does not know how to ring, even a fragile woman, can send his tongue incorrectly and break the bell.

More information about bells and ringing

The ancient cathedral belfry was three-tiered, three-spanned and three-hipped. There were bells hanging on every tier in each span. There were several bell ringers and they were all located below. The bell system was ochepnaya or ochepnaya. The bell was firmly attached to the beam and they rang it, swinging not the tongue, but the bell itself.

The bells of the Intercession Cathedral were not tuned to a specific sound; they had only three main tones - one tone at the bottom of the skirt, the second in the middle of the skirt, the third at the top, and there were also dozens of overtones. It is simply impossible to play a melody on Russian bells. Our ringing is rhythmic, not melodic.

To train bell ringers, there were characteristic rhythmic chants. For Moscow: “All monks are thieves, all monks are thieves, and the abbot is a rogue, and the abbot is a rogue.” For Arkhangelsk: “Why cod, why cod, two kopecks and a half, two kopecks and a half.” In Suzdal: “They burned with their shanks, they burned with their shanks.” Each area had its own rhythm.

Until recently, the heaviest bell in Russia was the Rostov bell “Sysoi”, weighing 2000 pounds. In 2000, the “Great Assumption” bell began to ring in the Moscow Kremlin. It has its own history, each sovereign cast his own Greater Uspensky, often pouring over the one that existed before him. A modern one weighs 4,000 pounds.

When the bells ring in the Kremlin, both the bell tower and the belfry ring. The bell ringers are at different levels and cannot hear each other. The chief bell ringer of all Rus' stands on the steps of the Assumption Cathedral and claps his hands. All the bell ringers see him, he beats out the rhythm for them, as if conducting the bells.
For foreigners, listening to Russian bells was a martyr's torment. Our ringing was not always rhythmic, often chaotic, the bell ringers had trouble keeping up with the rhythm. Foreigners suffered from this - they were calling everywhere, their heads were pounding from the irregular cacophonous ringing. Foreigners liked the Western ringing more, when they rocked the bell itself.

Intercession Cathedral on Red Square. Facade icons

On the eastern outer wall of the Intercession Cathedral there is a facade icon of the Mother of God. This is the very first facade icon that appeared here in the 17th century. Unfortunately, almost nothing remains of the 17th century letter due to fires and repeated renovations. The icon is called the Intercession with the upcoming Basil and John the Blessed. It is written on the wall of the temple.

The Intercession Cathedral belongs to the Church of the Mother of God. All the local façade icons were painted specifically for this cathedral. The icon, which was located on the south side of the bell tower from the moment it was painted, fell into terrible condition by the end of the 20th century. The south side is most susceptible to the damaging effects of sun, rain, wind and temperature changes. In the 90s, the image was removed for restoration and restored with great difficulty.
After restoration work, the icon frame did not fit in its original place. Instead of a frame, they made a protective box and hung the icon in its original place. But due to large temperature changes characteristic of our climate, the icon began to collapse again. After 10 years it had to be restored again. Now the icon is in the Church of the Intercession. And for the south side of the bell tower they wrote a copy right on the wall.

Icon on the bell tower of the Intercession Cathedral

The copy was consecrated when the 450th anniversary of the cathedral was celebrated, on Intercession Day in 2012.

Heads of the Intercession Cathedral

The top of churches, which we call a dome, is actually called a chapter. The dome is the roof of the church. It can be seen from inside the temple. Above the dome vault there is a sheathing on which metal sheathing is fixed.

According to one version, in the old days the domes on the Intercession Cathedral were not bulbous, as they are now, but helmet-shaped. Other researchers argue that there could not be helmet-shaped domes on such thin drums as those of St. Basil's Cathedral. Therefore, based on the architecture of the cathedral, the domes were onion-shaped, although this is not known for certain. But it has been absolutely established that initially the chapters were smooth and monochrome. In the 17th century they were briefly painted in different colors.

The chapters were covered with iron, painted blue or green. Such iron, if there were no fires, could withstand 10 years. Green or blue paints were obtained based on copper oxides. If the heads were covered with German tinned iron, then they could be silver in color. German iron lived for 20 years, but no more.

In the 17th century, the life of Metropolitan Jonah mentions “figured chapters of various types.” However, they were all monochrome. They became variegated in the 19th century, maybe a little earlier, but there is no confirmation of this. Now no one can say why the chapters are multi-colored and different in shape, or on what principle they were painted; this is one of the mysteries of the cathedral.

In the 60s of the twentieth century, during a large-scale restoration, they wanted to return the cathedral to its original appearance and make the chapters monochrome, but Kremlin officials ordered them to be left in color. The cathedral is recognizable primarily by its polychrome domes.

During the war, Red Square was guarded by a continuous field of balloons to protect it from bombing. When anti-aircraft shells exploded, fragments falling down damaged the casing of the domes. The damaged domes were immediately repaired, because if the holes were left, a strong wind could completely “undress” the dome in 20 minutes.

In 1969, the domes were covered with copper. The chapters used 32 tons of copper sheets 1 mm thick. During a recent restoration it was discovered that the chapters were in perfect condition. They just had to be repainted. The central head of the Church of the Intercession has always been gilded.

Each chapter, even the central one, can be entered. A special staircase leads to the central chapter. The side chapters can be entered through external hatches. Between the ceiling and the sheathing there is a space the height of a man, where you can walk freely.
The differences in the sizes and colors of the chapters and the principles of their decoration are not yet amenable to historical analysis.

We will continue our acquaintance with the Intercession Cathedral inside the temple.

The article is based on materials from a lecture given by a methodologist at the State Historical Museum in February 2014.

The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, which is on the moat, is the name of this temple on Red Square. But among the people it is more often called St. Basil's Cathedral. There are also those who remember the name Trinity Cathedral, which existed in the 16th century. This 65-meter-high temple closes the perspective of Bolshaya Dmitrovka. And before, before the construction of tall buildings in Moscow at the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries, the cathedral was visible in the perspective of large areas of Pokrovka, Tverskaya, Myasnitskaya, Petrovka. It was rightly called the main temple of the Moscow suburb.

The cathedral was built in 1555-1561 next to the Kremlin fortress moat. You can say, on the edge of the ditch, hence its name - that on the ditch. The customer for the construction of the cathedral was Tsar Ivan the Terrible. The cathedral was built as a memory of the capture of the capital of the Kazan Khanate, the city of Kazan. The siege of Kazan began on August 15, 1552 and ended with an assault on the holiday of the Intercession. It was decided to build a cathedral with 9 thrones, or 9 churches, in honor of those holidays on which important moments of the siege and storming of the city occurred.

The central temple, completed with a tent, is the Intercession of the Virgin Mary. Around it are churches: from the east - the Trinity, the western temple - the Entrance to Jerusalem, St. Nicholas of Velikoretsky, Cyprian and Justina (later reconsecrated in the name of Adrian and Natalia), Paul, Alexander and John of Constantinople (later - John the Merciful), Alexander of Svirsky, Varlaam Khutynsky, Gregory of Armenian. Services in each of the churches were performed only on their patronal feast days. All churches, except the central one, Pokrovskaya, are completed with colored patterned onion domes. They appeared at the end of the 16th century instead of the old helmet-shaped domes. All churches stand on a high basement that unites them, like on a pedestal. All churches have circular passages around them. In the 16th century, the outer gallery around the churches was open, and the treatment of the walls at the gallery level in all churches took the form of a wide strip of arches and cornices, visually unifying the entire building. Today this wall treatment can be seen in the interior of the gallery, at the south-eastern corner of the cathedral. Due to Moscow climatic conditions, in the middle of the 17th century the gallery was covered with vaults, and stone tents were placed over the porches. At the same time, for the first time, bright decorative paintings appeared on the facades of the cathedral. A little earlier, in the 1670s, a tented bell tower was built instead of a belfry.

In 1588, a low single-domed church over the tomb of St. Basil (1469 - 1552) was added to the northwestern part of the gallery. Even during his lifetime, Vasily was famous as a holy fool and seer. During the funeral, Vasily’s coffin was carried by Ivan the Terrible himself with the boyars, and Metropolitan Macarius performed the funeral service. Over time, Vasily became one of the Moscow saints beloved by the people. Services in St. Basil's Church were performed daily, which is why the entire cathedral began to be called St. Basil's Cathedral.

At the beginning of the 18th century, there were already 18 thrones in the Intercession Cathedral. New altars were consecrated in the basement.

By the beginning of the 19th century, there were long shopping rows of small shops, taverns and taverns around the cathedral, separating it from Red Square. During the restoration of the city after the fire of 1812, it was decided to clear the area, and in 1817 the architect Osip Bove built a retaining wall from the west, south and east. The cathedral received a forged fence that has survived to this day.

It is believed that the cathedral was built by masters Barma and Postnik. Some researchers believe that it was one person, Postnik Yakovlev, nicknamed Barma. Other buildings by Postnik Yakovlev are also known, created by him after the construction of the cathedral. But none of them are similar to the Intercession Cathedral either in details or in technology. The architecture of the cathedral contains many architectural forms that could only be created by a person who worked and studied in Western Europe. But such a person is not yet known to us.

In 1923, it was decided to create a museum in the cathedral. Services in St. Basil's Church continued until 1929. The last rector of the cathedral, Fr. John Vostorgov was shot by court in 1918, and in 2000 he was canonized. Since 1991, the cathedral has been jointly used by the museum and the Orthodox Church.

Since 1931, in the fence of the cathedral there has been a monument to Minin and Pozharsky (1818, sculptor Ivan Martos). The monument was moved to the cathedral from the middle of Red Square, where it began to interfere with parades and mass demonstrations held twice a year, on May 1 and November 7.

Description:

Central Deanery

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The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin on the Moat was created in 1555-1561. according to the vow of Tsar Ivan the Terrible and with the blessing of Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow and All Rus' in honor of the capture of Kazan and the annexation of the Kazan Khanate to Russia.

In 1552, immediately after the conquest of the Kazan Khanate by Tsar Ivan the Terrible, on the border of the Kremlin and the settlement, next to the moat surrounding the Kremlin walls (hence the names of the temple - “Protection on the Moat at the Trinity Gate” and “Trinity on the Moat”, because Until the middle of the 17th century, a wooden Trinity Church stood on this site), a stone Trinity Church was built, around which seven wooden churches were built in memory of the Kazan victories.

In 1555, masters Barma and Postnik Yakovlev began construction of a new cathedral. Nine separate churches were erected on a single foundation, with one central one, crowned with a large tent, surrounded by eight church pillars arranged crosswise in plan. The dedications of the thrones reflected the main stages of the Kazan victories.

The central church was consecrated in honor of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos - on this holiday, October 1, 1552, the attackers launched a powerful attack, the success of which was crowned with the capture of the city of Kazan the next day. The other five thrones were consecrated in honor of the saints, whose memory fell on the days when the main events of the Kazan expedition took place: in honor of Saints Cyprian and Justinia (October 2 - the capture of Kazan), the Patriarchs of Constantinople Alexander, John and Paul the New and the Venerable Alexander of Svir (August 30 - victory of the Russians on the Arsk field), Gregory of Armenia (September 30 - the beginning of the assault on the city), Varlaam Khutynsky (November 6 - the Tsar’s return to Moscow). The dedication of thrones in honor of the Holy Trinity and the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem has a symbolic meaning.

The ninth throne was dedicated to an event not related to the Kazan victories. In the summer of 1555, the image of Nikola Velikoretsky was brought to Moscow from Vyatka. Numerous miracles and healings from this image occurred both on the way to the capital and in Moscow, in the Assumption Cathedral. To commemorate this manifestation of God's grace, the ninth altar of the church under construction was consecrated in honor of Nikola Velikoretsky; later it contained a copy of the miraculous icon made by Metropolitan Macarius himself.

On June 29 (Old Art.), 1561, the throne of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos was consecrated, which marked the completion of the construction of the entire cathedral.

In 1588, over the grave of St. Basil the Blessed (buried near the walls of the Trinity Church in August 1552), a new chapel was built in the northeast, consecrated in his honor and giving a second name to the entire cathedral. In 1672, in the southeast, a chapel of the Deposition of the Robe (from 1680 - the Nativity of the Virgin Mary) was built over the grave of the blessed one. John of Moscow.

In the second half of the 17th century. a tented bell tower was built, a walkway with porches was added, the shape of the domes was changed from helmet-shaped to onion-shaped, and the walls were painted in many colors.

In the second half of the XVI-XVII centuries. The Intercession Cathedral was the center of the celebration Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem: a solemn church procession led by the Tsar and the Patriarch, called the “procession on a donkey,” was heading towards him from the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin.

Throughout its history, the cathedral was burned and rebuilt many times. In 1817, the architect Osip Bove, while reconstructing Red Square, lined the retaining wall of the temple with stone and installed a cast-iron fence.

In 1923, the historical and architectural museum “Pokrovsky Cathedral” was opened in the temple (since 1928 - a branch of the State Historical Museum).

In the 20s of the XX century. Extensive scientific and restoration studies of the cathedral were launched, thanks to which it became possible to restore its original appearance and recreate the interiors of the 16th-17th centuries in individual churches. In the 60s of the XX century. restoration work was also carried out. In the interiors of four churches, iconostasis of the 16th century were reconstructed, consisting of icons of the 16th-17th centuries, among which there are rarities (“Trinity” of the 16th century, “Alexander Nevsky in the Life” of the 17th century). In the remaining churches, iconostases from the 18th-19th centuries have been preserved. Among them are two unique ones from the first half of the 18th century. from the Moscow Kremlin.

By decree of the President of the RSFSR dated November 18, 1991, the Russian Orthodox Church was allowed to hold regular services in the Kremlin cathedrals and St. Basil's Cathedral. In accordance with this decree, an Agreement “On the use of the temples of the Moscow Kremlin and the Church of the Intercession on the Moat (St. Basil’s Cathedral) on Red Square in Moscow” was concluded between the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Moscow Patriarchate in November 1992, and to this day the cathedral is a branch State Historical Museum. Included in list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Russia.

The first service took place on the patronal feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on October 14, 1991.

On August 15, 1997, after restoration, St. Basil's Church was opened, in which regular services began to be held.