The main symbol of Russia is St. Basil's Cathedral

St. Basil's Cathedral is the most beautiful and mysterious church in all of Russia. It is believed that the architects who created it were deprived of their sight, Stalin himself did not allow the building to be demolished, and during the war the temple was hidden from shelling. The upper tier of the cathedral resembles a labyrinth, and the base resembles an eight-pointed star. We have collected all the most important things about the temple, by which foreigners unmistakably recognize Russia.

St. Basil's Cathedral - real name

St. Basil's Cathedral is a cult building from the time of Ivan the Terrible, by which any foreigner still recognizes Moscow. This is the most recognizable Russian temple. Few people know its true name - the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary on the Moat. On July 2 (June 29, old style), 1561, the central Intercession Church of the cathedral was once consecrated. The first reliable mention of the construction of the Church of the Intercession of Our Lady dates back to the autumn of 1554. It is believed that it was a wooden cathedral, which was later demolished to build a stone church.

The reason for the construction of the cathedral was the conquest of the Kazan Khanate. Tsar Ivan the Terrible, praying before the start of a military campaign, made a vow to God to build a temple, which Rus' had never seen before, in the event of his victory. The king was harsh and merciless, but remained a deeply religious man.

St. Basil's Cathedral - history

In order to preserve the beautiful building in a single copy, Tsar Ivan the Terrible ordered the architects Postnik and Barma to be blinded, so says the legend. Their names became known only at the end of the 19th century. It is believed that the king watched the construction of the temple from a tower on the Kremlin wall. When construction came to an end, he called the architects to him to ask if they could repeat such a building? The architects answered the king in the affirmative. Then he ordered to deprive them of their sight. Scientists also have doubts about this: in the 16th century, outstanding architects were highly valued. So Italian craftsmen were invited to build the Kremlin. It is quite possible that, knowing the harsh disposition of the Russian Tsar, foreigners spread the rumors.

In the XVIII-XIX centuries. Divine services were regularly held in St. Basil's Cathedral. As a rule, they were performed in the annex - a church built in honor of St. Basil the Blessed, because the other churches were cold. That is why the name has taken root among the people - St. Basil's Cathedral.

Divine services in the temple continued until the beginning of the 20th century. The last rector became, now canonized in the host of new martyrs and confessors. He was shot for missionary activity. He enjoyed special love and respect among Muscovites.

Eyewitnesses said:

“At the request of Father John, the executioners allowed all the condemned to pray and say goodbye to each other. Everyone knelt down, and fervent prayer poured out... And then everyone said goodbye to each other. The first to cheerfully approach the grave was Archpriest Vostorgov, who had previously said a few words to the others, inviting everyone, with faith in God’s mercy and the speedy revival of the Motherland, to make the final atoning sacrifice. “I’m ready,” he concluded, turning to the convoy. Everyone stood in the indicated places. The executioner approached him from behind and took him left hand, twisted it by the waist and, putting a revolver to the back of his head, fired, at the same time pushing Father John into the grave.”

During the Great Patriotic War the museum did not stop its work, although it was closed to visitors. St. Basil's Cathedral was carefully camouflaged to protect it from bombing. There is a legend that after the war, Stalin was offered to remove the cathedral under the pretext of interfering with the parade. It is believed that Kaganovich showed Stalin a model of the square, and in his presence removed the model of the temple, offering to demolish it. Stalin abruptly interrupted him: “Lazarus, put him in his place!” Since then, no one has questioned the integrity of the cathedral.

St. Basil's Cathedral - architecture

The cathedral was built over 6 years from 1555 to 1561. Its original image was changed by extensions, but the idea of ​​​​St. Basil's Cathedral seems unusual even in modern times. It looks like a vault of eight churches that surrounds the tallest one, the ninth. A similar temple still does not exist in Russia. Each temple has its own entrance and lighting, however, the cathedral is a single building.

Without the attached porches, St. Basil's Cathedral seemed to be moving upward. The craftsmen used all possible architectural decorations at that time. All the domes of the cathedral are similar, but made differently. Nevertheless, the building looks very harmonious. This is one of the unique features cathedral The idea of ​​particular differences with general similarity dominates in interior design cathedral There are a lot of sacred symbols in the architecture of the cathedral: a circle is a symbol of eternity, a triangle is a symbol of the trinity of God, a square reminds of equality and justice, and a dot is the beginning of life. The architecture of the cathedral contains enormous spiritual meaning.

The thickness of the walls of the base of St. Basil's Cathedral reaches three meters. It is this thickness that allows you to securely hold as many as nine buildings. If you look at the foundation of the church, you can see that 8 small churches form an eight-pointed star - a symbol of the Virgin Mary. In the ensemble of small churches there are larger churches. They are strictly oriented to the cardinal directions and form symmetry. Main temple, with a huge dome and tent, represents the Protection of the Mother of God, Her intercession.

The first changes to the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary on the Moat occurred almost immediately after construction and were associated with the name of the famous Moscow saint - St. Basil the Blessed. Before the appearance of the stone cathedral on this site, there was a wooden Trinity Church, where Saint Basil often came to pray. In 1558, a lower church was added to the Intercession Cathedral over the burial place of the Moscow wonderworker - St. Basil the Blessed. To build this temple, the builders dismantled part of the original cathedral.

In the 17th century, two elegant porches with double tents were added to St. Basil's Cathedral, and a roof was erected over the outer gallery.

St. Basil's Cathedral - the idea

This choice of the architects is due to the fact that, according to the idea, St. Basil's Cathedral was supposed to symbolize paradise, the city of the Lord. The idea belonged to Metropolitan Macarius, and the architects tried to bring it to life. Epochs changed, and along with them, people’s ideas about what heaven should look like changed, and therefore the cathedral underwent changes. The main idea remained unchanged: St. Basil's Cathedral is a prototype of a heavenly paradise, a blossoming garden. It is decorated with grape leaves, beautiful flowers, plants that do not grow on the ground...

One of the most striking and famous monuments of ancient Russian architecture. Already in the 16th century, the cathedral delighted travelers and guests of Moscow, and for Russians it became a symbol national history and national character.

In 1552, in honor of the victory of the troops of Ivan the Terrible in the war for the conquest of the Kazan and Astrakhan Khanates, a temple was founded, consecrated in honor of the Holy Trinity. In 1554, Ivan the Terrible ordered the construction of the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary with chapels glorifying the victory over the Tatars in its place. The temple was popularly called the Intercession on the Moat, because was built next to a deep ditch that ran along the eastern wall of the Kremlin.

Collection of S. Narozhnaya

Collection of S. Narozhnaya

Collection L. Franzek

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

The chronicle names the Russian architects Postnik and Barma as the authors of St. Basil's Cathedral. There is a legend, according to which Ivan the Terrible, having seen the cathedral built according to their design, was so delighted with its beauty that he ordered the architects to be blinded so that they could not build a temple anywhere else equal in beauty to the Intercession Cathedral. Some modern historians offer a version according to which the architect of the temple was one person - Ivan Yakovlevich Barma, who was nicknamed the Faster because he kept a strict fast. As for the legend about the blinding of Barma and Postnik, its partial refutation can be served by the fact that the name of Postnik later appears in the chronicle in connection with the creation of other significant architectural structures.

Popular rumor spread the rumor that supposedly Ivan the Terrible built this temple in honor of his father, the Grand Duke Vasily III: “People will remember me even without churches for a thousand years, but I want my parent to be remembered.”

It is a symmetrical ensemble of eight pillared churches, surrounding the ninth, highest, temple, crowned with a tent. Each of the eight churches is named after a saint on whose day this or that happened. an important event Kazan campaigns of Ivan the Terrible. Each dome is decorated with cornices, kokoshniks, windows, and niches. In general, the cathedral creates a feeling of festivity and elegance.

Collection of V. Kolobov

Collection of V. Kolobov

Collection of V. Kolobov

Collection of V. Kolobov

Agreed one of the legends, the temple is an inaccurate copy of the Kul-Sharif mosque in Kazan. When the army of Ivan the Terrible stormed the city, the tsar was angry at the resistance of the residents and ordered the demolition of the beautiful mosque immediately after a successful assault. The gilded domes of the mosque, according to legend, were taken to Moscow on twelve carts. St. Basil's Cathedral, erected in honor of the conquest of Kazan, supposedly carries an encrypted image of the lost mosque. The eight chapters of the Moscow temple repeat the eight minarets of Kul-Sharif, and the ninth, as a symbol of victory, dominates them. Historians cannot completely deny this legend, because supposedly the architect was simultaneously working on Red Square and in Kazan, where he was erecting new walls of the Kremlin.

Collection of I. Koltakova

Tenth Church, Church of St. Basil, was added in 1588. So the temple became ten-domed and received its second, unofficial name - St. Basil's Cathedral.

According to legend, St. Basil the Blessed, the most revered holy fool in Rus', himself collected money for the future Church of the Intercession, brought it to Red Square and threw it over his right shoulder, and no one, not even thieves, touched these coins. And before his death, in August 1552, he gave them to Ivan the Terrible, who soon ordered the construction of a temple on this site.

Vasily was born in 1469 in the Moscow village of Elokhov. At the age of sixteen, he began the feat of foolishness, which he performed for 72 years, without shelter and clothing, subjecting himself to great hardships, burdening his body with chains that still lie on his coffin.

Many legends, stories and miracles are associated with the name of St. Basil. So, in the summer of 1547, Vasily came to the Ascension Monastery on Ostrog (now Vozdvizhenka) and prayed for a long time in front of the church with tears. So he foreshadowed the terrible Moscow fire, which began the next day precisely from the Vozdvizhensky Monastery.

Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible honored and feared the Blessed One, “as a seer of human hearts and thoughts.” When, shortly before his death, Vasily fell into a serious illness, the Tsar himself visited him with Tsarina Anastasia. Vasily died on August 2, 1552.

Since 1588, they began to talk about miracles occurring at the tomb of Blessed Basil; As a result, Patriarch Job determined to celebrate the memory of the miracle worker on the day of his death, August 2. Tsar Theodore Ioannovich ordered a chapel to be built in the Intercession Cathedral in the name of St. Basil the Blessed, on the spot where he was buried, and built a silver reliquary for his relics.

Before late XVII century, until the bell tower of Ivan the Great was built on the territory of the Kremlin, St. Basil's Cathedral was the tallest building in Moscow. The height of the cathedral is 60 meters.

In total, St. Basil's Cathedral has 9 iconostasis, containing about 400 icons. The walls are decorated oil painting and frescoes of the 16th-19th centuries. In addition to icons, the cathedral displays portrait and landscape paintings of the century, and church utensils. Among the particularly valuable exhibits is a 17th-century chalice that belonged to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.

The Temple of extraordinary beauty was repeatedly tried to be demolished, but each time the Temple miraculously remained standing in place. In 1812, Napoleon, leaving the devastated capital of Russia, ordered the bombing of the Intercession Cathedral along with the Kremlin. However, in their haste, the French did not have time to do required amount undermining, and the Kremlin was undermined in only five places. But the Intercession Cathedral was not damaged, since the rain extinguished the lit wicks.

Photo by V. Leonov

Other legends date back to the 30s of the 20th century. Lazar Kaganovich, who succeeded in destroying the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the Kazan Cathedral of the Kremlin and other churches in Moscow, proposed demolishing the Intercession Cathedral to clear the place for parades and demonstrations. As if he ordered the production of a model of Red Square with a removable cathedral and brought it to Stalin. Proving that the temple interfered with cars and demonstrations, he unexpectedly tore the temple from the square. The stunned Stalin allegedly uttered the historical phrase: “Lazarus, put him in his place!” And the famous restorer P.D. Baranovsky sent telegrams to Stalin calling on him to save the temple. There were rumors that allegedly Baranovsky, invited to the Kremlin on this issue, knelt before the assembled Central Committee, begging not to destroy the temple, and this had an effect. True, Baranovsky subsequently received a considerable prison sentence.

Historian I.E. Zabelin spoke about St. Basil's Cathedral this way: “In its way, it is the same, if not more, Moscow, and, moreover, a folk wonder, like Ivan the Great, the Tsar-Bell, the Tsar-Cannon.”

Since 1934, St. Basil's Cathedral has been a branch of the State Historical Museum.

The temple has a lot different names. The most famous of them are:

St. Basil's Cathedral, Intercession Cathedral, Church of the Intercession Mother of God, Cathedral of the Intercession of the Mother of God on the Moat, Intercession Church, Trinity Church.

Until the 17th century, the Intercession Church was most often called Trinity, because the Trinity Church originally stood on this site wooden temple on the moat - dated to the mid-16th century. In fact, it stood on a hill - next to the moat that surrounded the medieval Kremlin and was filled in in the 19th century.

It was built by order of Ivan the Terrible, in honor of the victory of the Russian army over the Kazan Khanate. (then the Khanate was part of the Golden Horde)

By the way, many historians claim that Ivan the Terrible was a merciless and evil tyrant. Can a tyrant give the order to build a cathedral, expressing his gratitude to his heavenly patrons? I don’t want to speculate and focus attention... We still won’t know the truth. But it’s more believable that Ivan was an adequate guy, and he created more.

Why the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God

Everything is very logical. All historical information refer to the day when the Russian army successfully stormed the walls of Kazan. The exact date of October 1, 1552 appears everywhere; on this day in Rus' the Feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God was celebrated. I didn't have to think long about the name.

Why St. Basil's Cathedral

And here everything is very logical and simple - in honor of St. Basil. But few people are “familiar” with the personality of the latter. And in general, why Blessed, why Foolish (not to be confused with ugly).

So: in the old days, eccentrics who rejected worldly values ​​were considered holy fools. An ascetic lifestyle and a little madness are the main features of all holy fools. And one of the synonyms for “holy fool” was the word “blessed.” In Old Slavonic, those who did good, good deeds were considered blessed, and in in a broad sense blessed is everyone who sees God in heaven. For me, the one who is happy is blessed. And in Christianity, the blessed one is a special face of saints.

There is an interesting story about St. Basil.

Saint Blessed Basil, Moscow miracle worker, was born in December 1468 on the porch of the Yelokhovsky Church near Moscow. His parents were simple people and sent their son to study shoemaking. During the teaching of the Blessed One, his master had to witness one amazing incident when he realized that his student was not like everyone else.

One merchant brought bread to Moscow on barges and went into the workshop to order boots, asking them to make them so that he would not wear them out in a year. Blessed Vasily shed tears: “We will sew you such that you will not wear them out.” The merchant did not attach any importance to the eccentric’s tears, paid and left. The master immediately asked the student why he was crying. Then the student explained that the customer would not put on the boots because he would soon die. A few days later the prophecy came true.

At the age of 16, the saint came to Moscow and began the thorny feat of foolishness. Into the scorching summer heat and in the biting bitter frost he walked naked and barefoot through the streets of Moscow. His actions were strange: he would knock over a tray of rolls of bread, or spill a jug of kvass. Angry merchants beat the Blessed One, but he gladly accepted the beatings and thanked God for them. And then it was discovered that the kalachi were poorly baked, and the kvass was completely unusable. The veneration of Blessed Basil quickly grew: he was recognized as a holy fool, a man of God, a denouncer of untruth.

Here's another case.

Once, a merchant decided to build a stone church on Pokrovka in Moscow, but its vaults collapsed three times. The merchant turned to the Blessed One for advice, and he sent him to Kyiv: “Find poor John there, he will give you advice on how to complete the church.” Arriving in Kyiv, the merchant found John, who was sitting in a poor hut and rocking an empty cradle. “Who are you rocking?” - asked the merchant. “Dear mother, I pay the unpaid debt for my birth and upbringing.” Then the merchant only remembered his mother, whom he had kicked out of the house, and it became clear to him why he could not finish building the church. Returning to Moscow, he returned his mother home, asked her forgiveness and completed the church.

Preaching mercy, the Blessed One helped first of all those who were ashamed to ask for alms, and yet needed help more than others. There was a case when he gave rich royal gifts to a foreign merchant, who was left without everything and, although he had not eaten anything for three days, could not ask for help, since he was wearing good clothes.

The Blessed One severely condemned those who gave alms for selfish purposes, not out of compassion for poverty and misfortune, but hoping in an easy way to attract God’s blessing to their deeds.

For the sake of saving his neighbors, Blessed Basil also visited taverns, where he tried to see the grain of goodness even in the most degraded people, to reinforce them with affection, and to encourage them. Many noticed that when the Blessed One passed by a house in which they were madly having fun and drinking, he hugged the corners of that house with tears. They asked the holy fool what this meant, and he answered:

“Sorrowful angels stand at the house and lament over the sins of people, and with tears I begged them to pray to the Lord for the conversion of sinners.”

In 1547 he predicted the great fire of Moscow; prayer extinguished the fire in Novgorod; once reproached Tsar Ivan the Terrible that during the Divine service he was busy thinking about building a palace on the Sparrow Hills.

He constantly exposed lies and hypocrisy. Contemporaries noted that this was almost the only person whom Tsar Ivan the Terrible was afraid of. Tsar Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible honored and feared the Blessed One, “as a seer of human hearts and thoughts.” When, shortly before his death, Vasily fell into a serious illness, the Tsar himself visited him with Tsarina Anastasia.

Saint Basil died on August 2, 1552 (sometimes the year 1551 is also mentioned). Ivan the Terrible and the boyars carried his coffin, and Metropolitan Macarius performed the burial.

The description of the saint’s appearance retains characteristic details: “all naked, with a staff in his hand.” The veneration of Blessed Basil has always been so strong that the Trinity Church and the attached Church of the Intercession are still called the Church of St. Basil.

Key dates

In 1552 On Red Square, near the protective moat, in the place where the wooden Trinity Church previously stood, and the most revered Russian holy fool, St. Basil the Blessed, was buried, construction began on a new stone church.

In 1588 by order of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich ( Grand Duke Moskovsky, the third son of Ivan the Terrible), a chapel of St. Basil's was built in the Intercession Church, where his relics were placed in a silver shrine, and the cathedral was often called the St. Basil's Cathedral.

Another version is a legend

Intercession Church erected in 1555-1561 by Russian architects Barma and Postnik Yakovlev (or perhaps it was the same master - Ivan Yakovlevich Barma).

There is a well-known legend that, having seen the temple, Ivan the Terrible ordered the craftsmen to be blinded so that they could not build such a miracle anywhere else. As if when the king asked whether the master could build another equally beautiful temple or an even better one, he answered defiantly: “I can!” - and angered the king. "You are lying!" - cried the Terrible and ordered to deprive both eyes so that this temple would remain the only one.

Popular rumor spread the rumor that Ivan the Terrible supposedly built this temple in honor of his father, Grand Duke Vasily III: “People will remember me even without churches for a thousand years, but I want my parent to be remembered.” That’s why the temple is supposedly called St. Basil’s.

The uniqueness of the architectural composition of the cathedral and its symbolism.

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

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

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

The eight-pointed star - a reminder of the Star of Bethlehem, which showed the Magi the way to the infant Christ, the Savior of the world - symbolizes the entire Christian Church as a guiding star in human life to the Heavenly Jerusalem.

The eight-pointed star is also a symbol Holy Mother of God- Lady of the Church and Queen of Heaven: in Orthodox iconography, the Mother of God is depicted in a maforia (veil) with three eight-pointed stars on her shoulders and on her forehead as a sign of Her Eternal Virginity - before, during and after the Nativity of Christ.

The throne in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God is located in the central tented church, which unites the remaining chapters, as if gathering them around itself. This symbolizes the primacy, protection and intercession of the Mother of God over the Church of Christ and over the entire Russian land. In Russian temple construction, a tent symbolizes a canopy (canopy), which from ancient times was erected over a sacred place as a sign of its God-protectedness and holiness.

Tallest building in Moscow

The Intercession Cathedral on Red Square has become the most tall structure Moscow (its height is 60 meters) and was such until the end of the 16th century, when under Boris Godunov the bell tower of the Church of St. John the Ladder, 81 meters high, was built.

For all its external majestic splendor, the Intercession Cathedral inside is quite modest in size. During the service, a very small number of people could fit inside, so during large church holidays Moscow residents and clergy gathered on Red Square.

In 1737 During a huge fire, St. Basil's Cathedral suffered greatly and had to be restored. When wooden churches were removed from Red Square to prevent fires, fifteen thrones that had been demolished were moved under its vaults. wooden churches, and the throne in the name of the three patriarchs of Constantinople was renamed in the name of John the Merciful. The throne of Cyprian and Ustinia was also renamed, it began to bear the name of Saints Adrian and Natalia. In total, at that time the cathedral had 11 chapels.

In the second half of the 18th century, during the reign of Catherine II, the Intercession Cathedral was reconstructed once again. 16 small domes around the main towers were demolished, and the hipped bell tower was connected to the building of the cathedral itself. It was then that the cathedral became as colorful as we know it now.

Another legend tells that Napoleon, during the days of the occupation of Moscow by his troops, wanted to transport the temple building to Paris, and when it turned out that this was technically impossible, he ordered the cathedral to be blown up along with the Kremlin. And then, when the fuses of the explosives were already lit, it seemed as if the rain came and extinguished them.

Years of the Great October revolution brought many trials to the temple.

In September 1918 The rector of the cathedral, Archpriest John Vostorgov, was shot. And the property of the temple was confiscated. The bells were removed and sent for melting down, the temple itself was closed, but not destroyed.

In the thirties of the 20th century Kaganovich, who was drawing up a plan for the general reconstruction of Moscow in the spirit of the “proletarian capital,” made a proposal to demolish the Intercession Cathedral. To make room for parades and demonstrations, which were held on the fairly compact Red Square. And here it is worth telling about another legend.

They say that when Kaganovich made a model of Red Square with removable model Intercession Cathedral and brought it to show Stalin, he began to show how columns were moving along Red Square and how the cathedral was hindering them. “And if only he - r-time!..” - saying this, he removed the temple from the square in one motion. Stalin looked, thought and slowly uttered the famous phrase: “Lazarus! Put it in its place!..”

One way or another, the temple survived. The architect P.D. also played a big role in this. Baranovsky is a true devotee and enthusiast for the preservation of Russian culture. He was ordered to prepare the temple for demolition, but he categorically refused to do this, after which he sent a rather harsh telegram to the top. What actually happened after this is unknown, but Stalin canceled the demolition of the temple, and Baranovsky received several years in prison.

Back in 1929, the Intercession Cathedral began to be used as a branch of the State historical museum, you can visit it now. The exhibition includes samples of bladed weapons and firearms, armor from the 16th-17th centuries; in the tower-churches you can see a collection of ancient Russian icons from the 15th-17th centuries, artistic sewing, fabric samples, and metal crafts. In the 70s, another reconstruction of the temple was carried out, during which a spiral staircase was discovered in one of the walls, through which current museum visitors get to the central temple.

On my own behalf I will also add that to be in Moscow and not come to the walls of the Temple is ignorance in itself. pure form. Despite the abundance of ubiquitous tourists, it is worth a lot to stand a little near the majestic walls, think about the meaning of life, and enjoy the stunning architecture, which has no analogues in the world (remember the above-mentioned legend).

Found a mistake? Select it and press left Ctrl+Enter.

• Orthodox St. Basil's Cathedral (XVI century) is symbol of Russian church architecture that time.
• IN Soviet time There was a museum here, and religious services resumed in 1991. Now held every week.
• Architect, who built St. Basil's Cathedral, was called Barma Postnik.
• The magnificently decorated church was a thanksgiving to the Almighty for the outstanding military success ‒ capture of Kazan.
• The cathedral consists of nine separate churches, which are located on the same foundation and connected by two galleries.
• The relics of St. Basil, the holy fool who lived in Moscow in the 16th century, are buried in the temple.

The narrow galleries between the churches also have decoration: in the 17th century. they were painted floral ornament, and a little later – with story frescoes. Special attention It is worth paying attention to the basement, which used to serve as a treasury. Its space is covered with complex box vaults. In addition, a collection of icons is exhibited in the basement, as well as silverware, samples of weapons and a beautiful cover on the shrine of St. Basil, embroidered in the 16th century.

St. Basil the Blessed and the shrines of the cathedral

Saint Basil the Blessed, whose relics are buried in the Cathedral, lived in Moscow in the 16th century. and was a holy fool - a religious ascetic who rejected worldly goods. His life says that he all year round walked without clothes, slept on the street and observed strict fasting. According to legend, he performed many miracles and had the gift of providence: Ivan the Terrible himself was afraid of his speeches. The saint was greatly revered, and his memory has been preserved to this day. The temple also contains the tomb of Blessed John of Moscow.

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 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 it will still not be enough to learn only about the cathedral. The saint, in whose honor the chapel was built, and later the temple itself began to be called, bore the name St. Basil the Blessed. The story 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 adorns many postcards for tourists) was erected between 1555 and 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. Let's consider only three main options. The first of them is the architect Postnik Yakovlev, who bore the nickname Barma. This 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.

In favor latest version This is evidenced by the fact that most of the Kremlin buildings were built by immigrants from this country. The unique style in which St. Basil's Cathedral was created (photos perfectly demonstrate it) harmoniously combines the traditions of Russian and European architecture. But it’s worth noting 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 temple project were deprived of their sight by order of Ivan the Terrible - with the aim that they would never be able to build anything similar again. But there is one problem. If the author of the temple is still Postnik Yakovlev, then there is no way he could have been blinded. Just a few years later, he also worked 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 is above the bell tower. It consists of eight temples. Their thrones were consecrated only in honor of those holidays on whose days the decisive battles for Kazan took place. All eight churches are located around the tallest ninth, which has a pillar-shaped structure. It was built in honor of the veil of the Mother of God and ends with a tent with a small dome. The remaining domes of St. Basil's look traditional at first glance. They have a bulbous shape, but differ from each other in their design. All nine temples stand on common ground and are connected to each other by vaulted internal passages and a bypass gallery, which in the original version was open.

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. It was erected on the spot where the relics of this saint were previously located. His name also gave the cathedral its second name. About 20 years later, the temple acquired its own tented bell tower.

First floor - basement

It must be said that St. Basil's Cathedral (photos, of course, do not show this) does not have basement. All its constituent churches stand on one foundation, called the basement. It is a structure with fairly 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 is long. In the walls of this room there are narrow openings called vents. Thanks to them, a special microclimate is created here, which remains unchanged throughout the year.

Once upon a time, all the basement rooms were inaccessible to parishioners. These deep recesses in the form of niches were used as storage. Previously, they were closed with doors. But now all that remains are loops. Until 1595, the royal treasury and the most valuable property of wealthy townspeople were kept in the basement.

To get to these previously secret rooms of St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, one had to walk along a white stone staircase inside the walls, which only 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-shaped church. It is covered with a cross vault with a small light drum topped with a dome. The covering 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 St. Basil's Church was built in 1588 directly above the burial 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 was its decorative decoration finally restored. The memory of St. Basil is revered on August 15. It was this date of 1997 that was the starting date for the resumption of services in his church. Nowadays, above the saint’s burial itself there is a shrine with his relics, decorated with fine carvings. This Moscow shrine is the most revered among 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 for which St. Basil's Cathedral is famous. 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.

Her oil painting was timed just in time for the 350th anniversary of the start of construction of the cathedral. St. Basil is depicted on the southern and northern walls. Pictures from his life represent episodes about the miracle of the fur coat and salvation at sea. Below them, on the lower tier, is an ancient Russian ornament made of towels. In addition, on the south side of the church hangs a large icon, the drawing of which was made on metal surface. This masterpiece was painted in 1904.

The western wall is decorated with a temple image of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The upper tier contains images of saints who patronize the royal house. These are the martyr Irene, John the Baptist, and Fyodor Stratilates.

The sails of the vault are occupied by the image of the Evangelists, the crosshairs are occupied by the Savior Not Made by Hands, John the Baptist and the Mother of God, the drum is decorated with figures of the forefathers, and the dome is decorated with the Savior Almighty.

As for the iconostasis, it was made according to the design of A. M. Pavlinov in 1895, and the painting of the icons was supervised by the famous Moscow restorer and icon painter Osip Chirikov. 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”, relating to XVI century, and the second is the image of St. Basil, where he is depicted against the backdrop of Red Square and the Kremlin. The latter dates back to the 18th century.

Bell tower

In the middle of the 17th century, the previously built belfry was in terrible condition. Therefore, they decided to replace it with a bell tower in the 80s of the same century. By the way, it still stands. The base for the bell tower is a tall and massive quadrangle. A more elegant and openwork octagon was erected on top of it, 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 topped with an octagonal rather high 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 enhance 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 arched openings hanging bells that were cast back in XVII-XIX centuries famous Russian masters.

Museum

The Intercession Cathedral in 1918 was recognized Soviet power historical monument architecture of not only national but also international significance and is taken under state protection. It was then that it began to be considered a museum. Its first caretaker was John Kuznetsov (archpriest). It must be said that after the revolution, the temple was, without exaggeration, in a very dire situation: almost all the windows were broken, the roof was full of holes, and in winter there were snowdrifts right inside the premises.

Five years later, it was decided to create a historical and architectural complex on the basis of the cathedral. Its first head was E.I. Silin, a researcher at the Moscow Historical Museum. Already on May 21, the first visitors inspected the temple. From that time on, work began to complete the fund.

The museum, called the Intercession Cathedral, became a branch of the Historical Museum in 1928. 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 enough to avoid such a fate. Despite the fact that construction has been going on here for almost a century, the temple is always open to Muscovites and guests of the capital. For all this 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 was open again. He gained wide fame back in the days 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 as Orthodox Church, and the State Historical Museum. After a long break, worship services have finally resumed here.

Childhood of a saint

The future Moscow wonderworker Blessed Basil was born at the very end of 1468. According to legend, this happened right on the porch of the Elokhovsky Temple, erected in honor of Vladimir icon Holy Mother of God. His parents were ordinary people. When he grew up, he was sent to study shoemaking. Over time, his mentor began to notice that Vasily was not like all the other children.

An example of his originality 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 off the shoes for a year. Hearing these words, Blessed Basil began to cry and promised that the merchant would not even have time to wear down these 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 turned 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 there was a bitter biting frost or a scorching summer heat.

Not only his actions, but also his actions were considered strange. For example, when passing by market stalls, he could spill a vessel filled with kvass, or knock over a counter with kalachi. For this, St. 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 rolls were poorly baked. Over time, he was recognized not only as an exposer 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 vaults collapsed three times. He came to St. Basil 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 house. John sat and rocked the cradle, in which there was no one. The merchant asked him who he was pumping after all. He answered him that he was lulling his mother to sleep for his birth and upbringing. Only then did the merchant remember his mother, whom he had 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 towards others and helped those who were ashamed to ask for alms, while needing help more than others. In this regard, there is a description of one case when he gave all the royal things presented to him to a visiting foreign merchant, who, by chance, lost absolutely everything. The merchant had not eaten anything for several days, but could not ask for help, since he was wearing expensive clothes.

St. Basil always strictly condemned those who gave alms based on 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 consoled and tried to encourage the most degraded people, seeing grains of kindness in them. He purified his soul so much with prayers and great deeds that the gift of foresight was revealed to him. In 1547, the Blessed One was able to predict the great fire that happened in Moscow, and with his prayer he extinguished the flames in Novgorod. Also, his contemporaries claimed that Vasily once reproached Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible himself, since during a service he was thinking about building his palace on the 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 near 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 approximately the same way, and always mentioned three features: he was extremely thin, wore a minimum of clothing, and always had a staff in his hand. This is exactly how St. Basil 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 Intercession Cathedral began to be called by his name. By the way, his chains are still preserved in the Theological Academy of the capital. Anyone who wants to admire the beautiful monument medieval architecture, can find it at the address: St. Basil's Cathedral.