Saved on the blood of the assassination of the king. Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ on Blood

History of the Savior on Blood (Church of the Resurrection of Christ)

In this note, we will talk about the history of the creation of the memorial church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, or the Church of the Resurrection of Christ: we will find out why it got such a name, which architects and in what style it was built, how construction and finishing work progressed, and also how the fate of this a unique temple-monument after the revolution, in the XX and XXI centuries.

Savior on Spilled Blood on an old postcard (from the site):

Background. Murder on the Catherine Canal

Erect church buildings in honor of important historical events or in memory of the dead - an ancient tradition of Russian architecture. Examples include the Church of the Intercession-on-the-Nerl, the Church of St. Demetrius-on-the-Blood, or, say, St. Basil's Cathedral, with which the Savior on Blood is sometimes compared (although their actual similarity is not so great). True, if the Moscow temple was built on a joyful occasion (the capture of Kazan), then the St. Petersburg one is dedicated to a far from cheerful event: the Savior on Spilled Blood stands on the spot where on March 1, 1881 (according to the old style) Emperor Alexander was mortally wounded as a result of a terrorist act II.

K. E. Makovsky. Portrait of Emperor Alexander II

Alexander II went down in the history of Russia as the tsar-liberator, the initiator of many reforms, but terrorists did not hunt for any other ruler for so long and mercilessly.

The reign of Alexander II from the very beginning was marked by ominous omens. The first happened already during the coronation: at the celebrations in the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin on August 26, 1856, the elderly courtier suddenly lost consciousness and dropped the pillow with the orb. The symbol of autocracy, ringing, rolled across the stone floor...

Coronation of Alexander II, 1855

Under Alexander II, a real restructuring of the state began, numerous reforms were carried out that had no equal in the history of Russia: the elimination of military settlements, the introduction of a jury trial, the organization of zemstvo self-government, censorship reform, education reform, military reform (the transition from recruitment to universal military service ) and, the most important reform, the abolition of serfdom.

However, in fact, the reform turned out to be half-hearted. For many peasants, it came down to the fact that they ceased to be formally called "serfs", but nothing has changed in their position. The great reforms did not affect the very organization of power. Public discontent grew. Peasant riots broke out. Many protest groups also appeared among the intelligentsia and workers. The radical intelligentsia called on the country to the ax, threatening to exterminate the landowners and the royal family itself. On April 4, 1866, the first attempt was made on Alexander II: Dmitry Karakozov fired at the emperor at the bars of the Summer Garden in St. Petersburg, but missed.

In memory of the salvation of the emperor, a chapel was erected on that place (now demolished; photo source):

About a year after that, on May 25, 1867, in Paris, Alexander II was shot unsuccessfully by the Polish emigrant Anton Berezovsky. These failed assassination attempts put an end to the era of the "Great Reforms". A period of police repression began. The latter, in turn, further spurred public indignation and laid the foundation for terrorist activities. If until then the majority of anti-government groups were engaged in propaganda and agitation, then from the mid-late 1870s a clear tilt towards terrorist acts began. In 1879, the organization "Narodnaya Volya" was created, which set as its goal an open struggle against state power and declared a real hunt for the autocrat.

Emperor Alexander II in his study (photo source):

So, on April 2, 1879, Alexander Solovyov, a populist revolutionary, shot at Alexander II almost point-blank on Palace Square. The terrorist missed. Then, on November 19, 1879, members of Narodnaya Volya made an attempt to blow up the imperial train near Moscow, but a confused route accidentally saved the tsar. Already on February 5, 1880, the Narodnaya Volya organized a new assassination attempt on the emperor: Stepan Khalturin blew up the Winter Palace, but Alexander II at that time was at the other end of the palace and was not injured. Soldiers on guard were killed.

A. Solovyov's attempt on the life of Alexander II (source of illustration):

The assassination attempt on March 1, 1881, which became fatal for the emperor, was prepared by the Narodnaya Volya, led by Andrey Zhelyabov. But a few days before the assassination attempt, Zhelyabov was arrested, and the operation was headed by Sofya Perovskaya.

This time, too, it was not without ominous omens: on the eve of the emperor, several times he saw dead pigeons under the windows of his palace. It turned out that a huge kite settled on the roof, which killed pigeons. The kite was caught, but in St. Petersburg they started talking that this was not good.

Having previously studied the emperor's usual route from the Mikhailovsky Manege, the terrorists dug a tunnel to Malaya Sadovaya (Ekaterininskaya) Street and laid a mine. However, on that day, Alexander II unexpectedly changed the route and, after the guards were raised in the arena, went to visit his cousin, Grand Duchess Ekaterina Mikhailovna, the mistress of the Mikhailovsky Palace. Upon learning of this change, Sofya Perovskaya quickly got her bearings and transferred the "bombers" to the Ekaterininsky Canal (now the Griboedov Canal).

After tasting tea with his cousin, Alexander II returned to the Winter Palace along the embankment of the Catherine Canal. Sophia Perovskaya, who was standing at the railing of the Mikhailovsky Garden, saw the royal carriage and waved her handkerchief, after which student N. Rysakov, a member of the Narodnaya Volya party, rushed after the carriage and threw a bundle with a bomb under the carriage with force. There was a deafening explosion. The back of the carriage was torn apart, and on the pavement, in a pool of blood, two Cossack escorts and a peasant peddler boy were writhing in their death throes.

Bomb-damaged royal carriage (illustration source):

The killer was captured. The king was not hurt. Leaving the carriage, he wanted to look at the criminal, and then went along the canal to the wounded, but suddenly a figure of another "bomber" unnoticed by the guards separated from the canal grate. It was Ignaty Grinevitsky, member of the People's Will.

The bomb thrown by Grinevitsky tore off both of the emperor's legs. Here it is appropriate to recall another creepy legend: as if even at the birth of the future Russian emperor, a certain city holy fool Fedor predicted that the sovereign " will be mighty, glorious and strong, but will die in red boots» .

The explosion of a shell on the Catherine Canal on March 1, 1881 (source of illustration):

Shortly before his death, Alexander II signed the constitutional draft of M. T. Loris-Melikov (introduction to the State Council of elected delegates from cities and provinces). And so, on the eve of the publication of the decree, which was supposed to mark the beginning of constitutional government in Russia, on March 1, 1881, the tsar-liberator was killed.

The seriously wounded Alexander II is placed in a sleigh (source of illustration):

This eighth attempt was fatal. How can one not recall the French fortune teller who predicted to the emperor that he would die from the eighth of the assassination attempts made on him.

K. E. Makovsky. Portrait of Alexander II on his deathbed

Alexander II and his assassin died almost simultaneously, a few hours after the explosion. The emperor died at 15:35 in the afternoon in the Winter Palace, and Grinevitsky - in the court hospital, which was then located in house number 9 on the embankment of the Catherine Canal (;). The remaining participants in the assassination attempt - Rysakov, Kibalchich, Mikhailov, Zhelyabov and Perovskaya - were sentenced to death by hanging, which took place on April 3, 1881 on the Semyonovsky parade ground.

Execution of the First March

It was said that, rising to the platform of the scaffold, Sofya Perovskaya suddenly seemed to grab a white handkerchief from somewhere and waved it over the assembled crowd, as when she was giving a signal to the bombers. Since then, there has been a legend about famous ghost Petersburg - the ghost of Sophia Perovskaya. Like, every year on the first of March before dawn on the bridge across the Griboedov Canal appears the silhouette of a young woman in a shroud, with a scar on her neck and with a white handkerchief in her hand.

Savior on Spilled Blood: the history of the creation of the temple

The very next day after the tragedy, on March 2, 1881, a temporary monument appeared at the site of the death of Alexander II, where people brought flowers. On the same day, the City Duma of St. Petersburg, at an extraordinary meeting, decided to ask the Emperor Alexander III, who ascended the throne, " allow the city public administration to erect ... at the expense of the city a chapel or a monument» to the deceased sovereign.

Temporary monument on the Catherine Canal (photo from the site):

The new emperor approved the idea, but replied that it would be desirable to have on the site of the regicide not a chapel, but a whole church. He ordered the construction of a temple that would resemble " soul of the viewer martyrdom the late Emperor Alexander II and evoked loyal feelings of devotion and deep sorrow of the Russian people» .

First design attempt

The competition for the creation of a memorial church was announced by the City Duma commission to perpetuate the memory of Alexander II on April 27, 1881. Thus, the construction of the temple on the site where " the sacred blood of the Sovereign was shed' was only a matter of time.

Until then, they decided to build a temporary chapel. A temporary chapel designed by the young L. N. Benois was erected on April 4, 1881 and consecrated on April 17 - the birthday of Alexander II. The chapel replaced the former temporary monument. It was a small wooden pavilion with an octagonal roof topped with a gilded cupola with a cross. As A. N. Benois recalls, the chapel “ for all her unpretentiousness, she possessed some special grace, which aroused general approval» .

Temporary chapel on the Catherine Canal (photo source):

The well-known St. Petersburg merchant and timber merchant I. F. Gromov allocated money for this construction, and the merchant Militin (Militsyn) paid for the construction work. Memorial services for the repose of the soul of the murdered servant of God Alexander were served daily in the chapel. Through the glass of the door one could see a link of the embankment fence and part of the pavement with traces of the murdered emperor's blood. The chapel was installed on special rails, so that it could be moved to the side to perform prayers over the site of the tragedy. On the Catherine Canal, the chapel stood until the spring of 1883 - before the construction of the stone church began. After that, it was transferred to Konyushennaya Square, and in 1892 it was finally dismantled.

In the meantime, the competition for projects of a memorial church continued, which was decided to be erected on the embankment of the Catherine Canal. Projects were submitted under a conditional motto (so that the authority of the participant does not dominate). The deadline for submitting the drawings was December 31, 1881. By this time, the jury, chaired by the rector of the Academy of Arts in architecture A.I. Rezanov, received 26 projects, including works by leading St. Petersburg architects: I.S. Kitner and A.L. Gun, V.A. Shreter, A. O. Tomishko, I. S. Bogomolova and others. L. N. Benois also presented his version (unlike most projects in the spirit of the “Byzantine style”, he proposed a version of the Baroque church) (source of illustration):

The results of the competition were summed up in February 1882. The first prize was awarded to the project under the motto "To the Father of the Fatherland" by architect A. O. Tomishko (known as the author of the Crosses prison project) (source of illustration):

He lost to the version of A. L. Gun and I. S. Kitner under the motto "March 1, 1881", and the third place was taken by the project of L. N. Benois "Caesar Caesar's".

In total, 8 projects were selected for presentation to the emperor. However, none of them received the highest approval.

Line of power: "Russian style"

Alexander III unexpectedly rejected the "Byzantine style". He acknowledged the work of the participants " gifted works of art", but did not approve a single one, expressing a wish," so that the temple was built in a purely Russian style XVII century, samples of which are found, for example, in Yaroslavl» . The king also wished that the very place where Emperor Alexander II was mortally wounded, it must be inside the church itself in the form of a special chapel» .

The conditions put forward by Alexander III became indispensable for the participants in the subsequent competition. As you can see, already at the initial stage, the creation of the temple-monument was carried out under the vigilant control of the emperor. It was that exceptional case when the creative process was strictly regulated by the authorities (;) - this monument was so important, primarily from a political point of view.

Kramskoy I. N. Portrait of Alexander III (1886)

The choice of architectural style was due to very specific factors. After March 1, 1881, a period of counter-reforms began, accompanied by increased Russification. The manifesto of April 29, 1881 on the steady saving of the beginnings of autocracy, drawn up by the chief procurator of the Synod, K. P. Pobedonostsev, became a reflection of the new course. Along with the revision of the political program, the official current of the “Russian style” came to the fore. Now in Russia the style of architecture was asserted " great Orthodox Russia », « style of the era of Moscow tsars”, which, in accordance with the instructions of the monarch, was now to be followed. The priorities of the authorities were unambiguous: architects had to focus on a specific range of prototypes.

The new tsar, who loved the pre-Petrine antiquity, perceived St. Petersburg almost as a hostile city, the center of terrorist activity. In addition, too much here reminded of the difficult relationship with his father and of the former reformist course, which was now announced as the result of "foreignness." It is no coincidence that in the spring of 1881 there were even rumors about the return of the capital to Moscow.

The creation of a temple-monument in the traditions of the 17th century would serve as a metaphor for joining St. Petersburg to the precepts of old Muscovite Russia. Recalling the era of the first Romanovs, the building would symbolize the unity of the king and the state, faith and people. That is, the new temple could become not just a memorial to the murdered emperor, but a monument to the Russian autocracy in general.

The second competition and the intrigues of the archimandrite

The second competition for the design of the memorial temple was hastily held in March - April 1882. The haste of the competition once again proves the increased attention of the authorities to the development and selection of projects.

Now the projects were drawn up with the obligatory consideration of the stylistic preferences of the monarch. So, the projects of L. N. Benois, Alb. N. Benois, R. A. Gedike, A. P. Kuzmina, N. V. Nabokov, A. I. Rezanov and other authors were inspired by Moscow monuments of the middle of the 17th century. In the projects of N. L. Benois, N. F. Bryullov, V. A. Kossov and V. A. Shreter, the features of Yaroslavl architecture were more pronounced.

Project by L. N. Benois (source of illustration 15]):

By April 28, 28 projects had been submitted to the City Council. Three more came after the fact.

The future builder of the temple, A. A. Parland, also took part in the second competition. In the project, under the motto "Old Man", he was based on the Moscow Church of John the Baptist in Dyakovo (XVI century), but his version had significant design differences. The central part of the temple was cut through by a high window with a semicircular top - this detail will then go to the facade of the bell tower of the completed building. On the western side, Parland designed a vestibule with two chapels, one of which marked the place where Alexander II was mortally wounded. (Just on the model of these symmetrical pavilions, Parland then built a sacristy chapel near the Savior on Spilled Blood).

Parland's project under the motto "Old Man" (source of illustration):

Alfred Alexandrovich Parland (1842-1920), a descendant of immigrants from Scotland, was born in St. Petersburg. Shortly after graduating from the Academy of Arts, he created his first structures. Later he taught at the Academy of Arts and the Central School of Technical Drawing of Baron A. L. Stieglitz. In 1881, Parland returned from a five-year retirement trip abroad and received the title of academician of architecture.

Architect A. A. Parland

When his own competitive project under the motto "Starina" was already ready, the architect was approached with a proposal to develop a joint project by Archimandrite Ignatius.

Archimandrite Ignatius (in the world I. V. Malyshev) (1811-1897), a native of the townspeople of the Yaroslavl province, in 1857 became rector of the Trinity-Sergius Hermitage near St. Petersburg, the successor of the famous ascetic and spiritual writer Ignatius Brianchaninov. Ignatius was not a stranger to art: in his youth he studied painting at the Academy of Arts, studied ancient Russian architecture.

Archimandrite Ignatius (I. V. Malyshev)

Feeling like an "architect by vocation", Ignatius launched a large construction project in the desert. In 1881 he was awarded the title of honorary free member of the Academy of Arts. A number of works in the Trinity-Sergius Hermitage, at the request of Ignatius, were also carried out by Parland: for example, according to his project, the now non-existent Resurrection Cathedral (a church in the name of the Resurrection of Christ) was built there.

Trinity-Sergius Hermitage, Resurrection Cathedral designed by Parland

During the second competition for the temple on the Catherine's Canal, Ignatius suddenly " came up with the idea to draw a project”, and then there was confidence that it was his proposal that would be accepted. Having made the first sketches, he completely devoted himself to the fulfillment of his cherished dream - to become the builder of a temple intended to serve as an eternal monument to the Tsar - Liberator and Martyr» .

The archimandrite was well known at court and skillfully played on the religious moods of the royal family. According to the memoirs of the mosaicist V. A. Frolov, through the pious Grand Duchess Alexandra Iosifovna, who often visited the desert, Ignatius brought “ to the knowledge of the king about the appearance of the Mother of God to him in a dream, allegedly showing him the main foundations of the temple» .

However, it was hardly possible for the archimandrite to develop a project for such a large and complex structure on his own - that is why he turned to A. A. Parland, whom he knew well from joint work in the desert. The offer of cooperation from such an influential person as Ignatius was tempting. True, at first the architect was skeptical of him (especially since his own project was already ready), but in the end he agreed, apparently counting on the fact that the name of Ignatius would play a role.

Joint competition project of Parland and Ignatius (source of illustrations):

And so it happened. On June 29, 1883, Alexander III deigned to approve the joint project of Archimandrite Ignatius and architect Parland (this was just one of three projects submitted later than the others).

The personality of the archimandrite played an almost decisive role in choosing this particular option. It was officially announced that the emperor singled out this project " mainly due to the special decoration of the place where the king was mortally wounded» . The political background of this choice is understandable: in the first place for the authorities were not so much the artistic merits of the project as "divine inspiration" and, in general, the religious and symbolic aspect.

Refine the project!

The version chosen by the emperor, developed by A. A. Parland together with Archimandrite Ignatius, remotely resembled the tripartite type of churches of the 17th century, planned by the “ship”. The place of the fatal assassination attempt on Alexander II stood out as a memorial hipped bell tower, to which hipped porches adjoined. The lower tier of the facades of the three-nave temple was surrounded by a gallery. The central tower was inspired by the church in Dyakovo, and the side aisles resembled gate churches of the late 17th century.

Joint competition project of Parland and Ignatius (source of illustration):

The authorship of Archimandrite Ignatius served as a guarantor of the correct ideological orientation of the building. It was he, and not Parland, who was perceived in the early years by the public as the main character. However, Ignatius was not a professional architect, although they tried to mitigate this circumstance by calling him " experienced home builder and emphasizing the tendency spiritual person to the arts.

The choice of this particular option caused some bewilderment among the architectural shop. Many professionals rated the artistic merit of the winning project extremely low. A. N. Benois recalled: “... the architect Parland penetrated the sovereign with his project (using connections with the clergy and lower employees), and his monstrous invention, presented in a very spectacular coloring, found himself the highest approval. Already during the construction of the “Temple on the Blood”, the Academy of Arts insisted that the too obvious absurdities and shortcomings of the Parland project be corrected.» .

And indeed, the emperor accepted the project only “as a whole”, with the condition of further refinement, “ so that the project is reviewed and what should be changed for execution Professor of the Imperial Academy of Arts D. I. Grimm» . Professor I. V. Shtrom tried to take advantage of the situation, and in January 1883 he proposed his own candidacy to develop the idea of ​​Ignatius. He proposed to build a structure of multi-colored brick with majolica, gilded and enameled domes and internal painting, reminiscent of St. Basil's Cathedral. Shtrom's candidacy was rejected, but his proposals significantly influenced the composition of the completed building.

In March 1883, a Construction Commission was formed, chaired by the President of the Academy of Arts, Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich. It included architects R. A. Gedike, D. I. Grimm, E. I. Zhiber, R. B. Bernhard. On the recommendations of the commission, Parland and his assistants were just finalizing the project. They made several alternatives, one of which was approved on June 29, 1883, but this project was not destined to become final either.

This new project involved the construction of not just a single temple, but a grandiose complex similar to a monastery. The complex included a church, a memorial zone, a museum, a bell tower and a procession gallery, the corners of which were marked by small buildings with folded domes (a copy of the chapels from the competition project "Starina"; these corner pavilions are reproduced by the implemented sacristy chapel of the Savior on Spilled Blood). The bell tower was supposed to stand on the other side of the canal and be connected to the temple by a gallery thrown over the bridge. The temple itself in this project was a five-domed structure with a central tent and facade kokoshniks, as well as a pillar-shaped tower adjoining the main volume. As the subsequent course of events showed, this composition turned out to be quite self-sufficient, from which the image of the Savior on Spilled Blood, known to us today, crystallized.

Large-scale project of 1883 (illustration source):

Apparently, at this stage of the design, Ignatius’s participation in the development of the project was already purely nominal, and “in the final version” the project deviated so far from the joint competitive version that A. A. Parland could already legitimately call himself the sole author of the building being created. Details of the project were specified already during construction. The final approval of the project took place only on May 1, 1887.

Final draft (source of illustration):

As you can see, both of Parland's competitive projects - both "Starina" and the joint one with Ignatius - ultimately turned out to be very far from the implemented version. It is for the best, since the final temple turned out to be incomparably more complete and artistically integral. As a result, the structure lost the scale that the alternative project of June 1883 was distinguished by, but it became more solid and compact. The pillar-shaped tower over the place where the emperor was mortally wounded retained the function of a monument and at the same time turned into a bell tower.

The name of the temple and the symbolism of the Savior on Spilled Blood

Although a different name has taken root among the people - Savior on Spilled Blood, the canonical name of the cathedral - a temple in the name of the Resurrection of Christ at the site of the mortal wound in Bose of the deceased Emperor Alexander II.

To consecrate the future temple in the name of the Resurrection of Christ was proposed by none other than Archimandrite Ignatius. It happened at the very first meeting of the Construction Commission. The dedication of the church to the Resurrection of Christ deep meaning: in this name sounded the idea of ​​overcoming death. In the Christian consciousness, death is not the end of being, but only a transition to another form. Therefore, there is no contradiction in the construction of a festive, “provocatively beautiful” temple: the bright temple, located on the site of a tragic event, expresses faith in God and in the Russian people.

The dedication of the church to the Resurrection of Christ also confirmed the connection between the martyrdom of Alexander II and the expiatory sacrifice of the Savior, crucified and then resurrected. I.V. Shtrom wrote: “As the Savior died for all mankind, so<...>Alexander II died for his people» . The association of the death of the king with the death of the Savior on the cross can also be found in the folklore of that time: “ Sovereign's life passed away / The second time Christ was crucified". Such a parallel found additional confirmation in calendar coincidences: the emperor was born on April 17, 1818 during Easter week and was killed on the first Sunday of Great Lent.

Thus, the memorial temple was built as an expiatory sacrifice for the martyrdom of the liberator king. It was created to perpetuate the memory of his death and was intended to express the protective principles of autocracy and Orthodoxy, as well as the idea of ​​overcoming death through the Resurrection. The place where Alexander II was mortally wounded should have been perceived as "Golgotha ​​for Russia".

Both in the common name "Savior on Blood", and in the whole symbolism of the church, there is a parallel between the death of Christ on the cross and the death of Alexander II.

Savior on Spilled Blood: construction history

The ceremonial laying of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ on the Catherine Canal took place on October 6, 1883 in the presence of Metropolitan Isidore and the royal couple. The first stone was laid personally by Emperor Alexander III. An engraved plaque with an inscription about the co-authorship of Archimandrite Ignatius with the architect Parland was placed at the base of the temple.

Bookmark of the temple (photo source):

Before that, a fragment of the canal grating, granite slabs and part of the cobblestone pavement, stained with the blood of Alexander II, were removed, placed in boxes and transferred to storage in the chapel on Konyushennaya Square. Subsequently, these relics were returned to historical sites, and a memorial was erected over them in the form of a canopy in the spirit of ancient Russian architecture.

Although the final project, as we know, had not yet been approved by 1883, construction had already begun. In 1883-1886, preparatory and earthworks were carried out. Interestingly, during the construction of the cathedral, they abandoned the usual method of driving piles under the foundation of the building: for the first time in the history of St. Petersburg architecture, a concrete foundation was used under the entire area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe structure (;). A solid foundation made of rubble slab on a solid concrete pad has a thickness of 1.2 m. The outer plinth of the cathedral was faced with granite by craftsmen who worked in the workshop of Gaetano Botha, well-known in St. Petersburg. Then the laying of brick walls began, supplied by the Russian Pirogranit plant, and then - pylons from rubble slabs on granite bases.

Construction of the temple (photo source):

It was planned that the construction would be completed by 1890, but the work was delayed.

In 1889, a scandal broke out related to the misappropriation of state funds by the conference secretary of the Academy of Arts A. Iseev. The embezzlement was allowed by the president of the Academy and the chairman of the Construction Commission, Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich. In 1892, a new commission was assembled, which included architects E. I. Zhiber, M. T. Preobrazhensky and A. A. Parland. But construction and finishing work progressed more slowly than expected. V. A. Frolov explained this by the bureaucracy that prevailed in the work of the commission, as well as Parland's unwillingness to part with the prestigious position of architect-builder.

In 1890-1891, the sculptor G. Botta and craftsman Andreev made a large, “impeccable in all respects” painted model of the temple from alabaster, 3.5 m high, it was exhibited at the construction site.

A. A. Parland at the temple model (photo source):

The construction of vaults, arches and sails began only in 1893. AT next year completed the main volume of the building and laid out a granite ring at the base of the central drum. The walls and facade details were faced with durable durable materials: Estonian marble (supplied by Kos and Dürr), glazed bricks made at the Siegersdorf factories ( Siegersdorfer Werke) in Germany, as well as colored tiles ordered by the Imperial Porcelain Factory. The structures of the domes and the iron frame of the tent were mounted at the Petersburg Metal Plant. In 1896, the casting of bells began at the plant of P. N. Finlyandsky.

The original innovation was the covering of the chapters with enamelled copper plates. Bright polychrome domes were created in 1896-1898 at the factory of A. M. Postnikov in Moscow, gilded crosses were also made there. The middle dome above the altar was at the suggestion of P. P. Chistyakov lined with gilded smalt (the work of the Frolov mosaic workshop). The heads of the side apses and the bell tower were covered with gilded copper in 1897-1900. True, the dome of the bell tower quickly darkened, and in 1911-1913 the gilding was replaced with cantar plating (gold smalt) under the supervision of V. A. Frolov.

In 1900, the building began to be gradually cleared of scaffolding. The porches were built in 1900-1901. At the same time, enamel tiles sparkled on the facades, created in the workshop of M.V. Kharlamov (colored glazed tiles for apses, the central tent, as well as tents and slopes of porches were also created there).

In 1905-1907, according to the drawings of I. I. Smukrovich, the entrance doors (gates) were made of copper inlaid with silver ornaments. This unique work was made by the workshop of the Kostroma jeweler Savelyev in 1905-1907. On the silver bas-reliefs of the gates, the patron saints of the ruling house of the Romanovs were depicted (only 33 out of 80 plates have survived to this day). At the same time, interior decoration was carried out using more than a dozen types of gems. The best domestic and Italian factories participated in the decoration of the interior.

Savior on Spilled Blood, Crucifixion mosaic

Together with Parland, a large creative team worked, including I. F. Schlupp, L. N. Solovyov, I. P. Zlobin, N. N. Kramorenko, M. F. Eremeev and others.

During the construction of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, the architects were given a special task: the section of the pavement, on which the blood of Alexander II was shed, had to be left untouched and included in the space of the temple (; ; ). Hence such an unusual location of the Savior on Blood: right at the edge of the embankment. Before the announcement of the competition, the City Council drew up a plan for the settlement of this section of the embankment with the construction of a wide bridge and a semicircular square. Besides, grand duchess Ekaterina Mikhailovna, the owner of the Mikhailovsky Palace, agreed to donate part of the Mikhailovsky Garden for construction (;).

Savior on Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg

In total, construction and finishing work in the Savior on Blood lasted 24 years: from 1883 to 1907.

Savior on Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg

A rather long period is explained by the richness and variety of decor (especially the production of mosaic decoration required a lot of time), as well as the use of advanced engineering and construction technologies for its time. Yes, despite the “archaizing” external forms, the temple was built taking into account the latest achievements in engineering. All communications, steam heating and electrification system, lightning protection were made in accordance with the most modern standards (; ). To prevent the penetration of canal water and groundwater around the perimeter of the building, an ingenious clay “deputy” was built. about to". Electric lighting was carried out with the help of 1689 lamps. The original system of steam heating was developed in the bureau of engineer S. Ya. Timokhovich, electric lighting - Russian society Schukkert & Co. The metal crown for 288 electric lamps in the main dome was made at the Berto factory (;).

The area around the temple

The appearance in the historical center of St. Petersburg of such a significant building as the Savior on Spilled Blood required redevelopment of the surrounding area. How this area looked before can be understood by looking at a fragment of the panorama of Nevsky Prospekt by V. S. Sadovnikov in the 1830s (source). Now, few people can immediately recognize this place, the view of the perspective of the Griboedov Canal (the former Ekaterininsky Canal) is so unusual.

Near the temple there was a square paved with paving stones. A part of the Mikhailovsky Garden on the east side was surrounded by an artistic wrought-iron fence in the Art Nouveau style. Unfortunately, the construction of the fence significantly reduced the western part of the Mikhailovsky Garden. At the same time, trees planted under Peter I were cut down.

To the north of the temple, an economic yard with residential outbuildings appeared. Of these buildings, only one two-story house has survived to our time, which now houses the administration of the museum (it is visible in the photograph).

Nearby, with a facade to the embankment, in 1906-1907 a chapel-sacristy of the Iberian icon was erected Mother of God.

Initially, Parland planned to demolish the houses between the canal and the Stables Museum and build a wide bridge so that the temple would not be located on a narrow embankment, but would effectively complete the space of the expanded Konyushennaya Square. However, the bridge projects were never realized. As a result, by the opening of the temple in 1907, a wooden ceiling was hastily built, which was replaced only in 1967 with a reinforced concrete bridge, retaining the forged openwork lattice. This bridge was named the Grinevitsky Bridge in 1975, and since 1998 it has been called Novokonyushenny.

Savior on Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg

Since the space of Konyushennaya Square, contrary to plans, was not expanded, and the channel was not blocked, the temple did not receive a full view. By chance, the southern facade of the cathedral turned out to be the main one, facing Nevsky Prospekt. In fact, the western facade was conceived as the main Parland, but since it remained facing the narrow embankment, its solemn composition was somewhat lost.

Consecration of the Savior on Blood

The temple was solemnly consecrated on a wonderful sunny day on August 19, 1907, on the feast of the Transfiguration (summer Savior), in the presence of Emperor Nicholas II (grandson of Alexander II), his wife Alexandra Feodorovna, the imperial court, senior clergy and government ministers. Only the “clean public” got to the consecration celebration: they entered the temple with special passes signed by P. Stolypin.

The event had a current political significance: Russia had just experienced the first revolution, and the opening of the memorial church was supposed to affirm the inviolability of the autocracy. At the same time, apparently, the common name "Savior on Spilled Blood" was fixed. Here, a direct association with the ancient church of St. Demetrius-on-the-Blood in Uglich, which was erected on the site of the murder of Tsarevich Dimitri of Uglich, is not ruled out. That long-standing tragedy came to life again in the memory of people in 1906, when the 300th anniversary of the transfer of the remains of the prince from Uglich to Moscow was celebrated.

Savior on Blood, memorial plaque

The day before the consecration of the Savior on Blood, on August 18, a solemn vigil was held in the church. Also on the eve of the streets of St. Petersburg, there were many merchants with freshly printed postcards with photographs of the new church. Similar postcards (only of higher artistic quality) appeared in stores. Trade was brisk.

A group of temple builders who were present at the consecration, including A. A. Parland (photo source):

On the morning of August 19, 1907, she arrived in St. Petersburg from Peterhof royal family. The boat delivered the monarchs to the luxuriously decorated temporary pier at the Marble Palace. From there they proceeded in an open carriage through the Field of Mars to the temple. The sovereign was in the uniform of the Preobrazhensky Regiment and St. Andrew's Ribbon, and the empress ... And here it becomes clear that all correspondents in newspapers and magazines of that time were men. They report only one thing: the empress was in a white dress. And no more details.

Procession around the temple (photo source):

In anticipation of the arrival of the emperor and the royal family, ranks of all military branches lined up on the square in front of the cathedral. After the performance of the anthem, the tsar, accompanied by the grand dukes, made a detour of the troops. Metropolitan Anthony of St. Petersburg and Ladoga participated in the consecration of the temple. The throne in the altar was installed and consecrated, the rite of its washing was performed. Then, to the sound of bells and music, the procession began. The gray-haired valet of Alexander II carried the altar cross, followed by the archimandrites, the metropolitan, the imperial couple, courtiers, senators, ministers ... The bishop sprinkled the walls of the temple, and the chorus of singers sang the troparia.

Nicholas II takes the parade in honor of the consecration of the Savior on Blood (photo source):

The final stage of the consecration of the throne and the temple took place in the altar. Sprinkling the walls of the altar with holy water completed the rite of consecration of the Savior on Blood.

Interior consecrated temple in 1907 (photo source):

The mountainous place in the Church of the Savior on Blood (photo from the consecration of the temple, 1907) (source):

Then, at noon, a solemn liturgy began with a lithium at the place where Alexander II was mortally wounded. After the lithium there was the end of the liturgy and then a parade of troops. The troops paid homage to the emperor as they marched past the newly consecrated cathedral. To jubilant exclamations, the royal cortege left the territory of the temple. After that, the royal family departed for Peter and Paul Fortress, where she bowed to the tombstones of Alexander II and Alexander III.

Masterpiece or architectural squalor?

Appearance in St. Petersburg unusual temple, sustained rather in the Moscow style, caused controversy and gossip in the capital.

Petersburg newspapers and magazines of that time placed photographs and detailed descriptions of the temple and its interiors, told about the consecration ceremony itself. There were many rave reviews. Professor Pokrovsky in the article "The New Church of the Resurrection of Christ on the Catherine's Canal in St. Petersburg" in the "Additions to the "Church Gazette"" noted: " In general, both the architecture of the newly built temple ... and its interior decoration are a remarkable phenomenon and deserve special attention ... the harmony of architectural lines, the beauty of forms, the richness of material and the perfection of technology put it among the best works of modern Russian architecture» .

There were, however, other opinions. The temple was considered a stranger among the classic buildings and was given the nickname "bonbonniere". "Rus" wrote that the temple, " unfortunately, far from gifting in thought and execution…», «… but undoubtedly significant in the idea that hovers over him» . Some expressed a much more radical assessment. So, A. N. Benois believed that “ this pathetic imitation of St. Basil's is striking in its ugliness, being at the same time a real spot in the ensemble of the Petersburg landscape» . Later, after the revolution, he even allowed himself an even sharper statement: they say, if the Bolsheviks suddenly decide to blow up the Savior on Blood, he will not even be against it.

Savior on Spilled Blood, St. Petersburg

The critics, grouped around the World of Art association, used the building of the Savior on Spilled Blood to demonstrate their artistic predilections and denounce the regime. " A barbaric example of artistic squalor"Named the Savior on Spilled Blood by A. A. Rostislavov, and V. Ya. Kurbatov wished that" quickly forgot about the pseudo-Russian buildings that ruined Russian cities so much» . S.K. Makovsky was horrified " unprecedented architectural ugliness» temple, this « shameful page of Russian art", he called on future generations " destroy the work of Parland without a trace, tear down the monstrous cathedral to the ground» .

However, in Soviet times, the struggle to preserve the temple - one of the few churches in the "Russian style" that was not blown up, a kind of symbol of the last period of the existence of the Russian Empire - became important for the Leningrad intelligentsia.

At whose expense is this temple

It is generally accepted that the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood was built with public money. In fact this is not true . The main source of funding was the receipts from the State Treasury: the treasury allocated 3 million 600 thousand silver rubles for the construction - huge money at that time. In addition, a significant amount was donations from institutions, from the imperial family and officials. Private contributions played a rather symbolic role.

The total cost of the ensemble of the Church of the Resurrection and its artistic decoration, including mosaics, amounted to more than 4.6 million rubles. The cost of construction was exceeded by 1 million rubles due to the replacement of painting with mosaics, the high cost of the canopy and cases of financial abuse.

In the future, the state took over the maintenance of the temple. At that time, only St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow were in such a special position: they were financed directly from the state treasury.

Savior-on-Blood. Company of the Palace Grenadiers at the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood

In the Savior on Blood, sermons were read daily, requiem services were served, and services dedicated to the memory of Alexander II were held. However, they did not baptize and did not marry here, since the temple " due to its special significance as a national monument» was not a parish (; ). For believers, a place was allotted near the western facade, in front of the mosaic "Crucifixion", where church services were held.

(To be continued)

The temple, built in memory of the death of Alexander II, is considered one of the main attractions of the city on the Neva. But not everyone knows that it keeps many mystical mysteries and secrets: about how the temple turned into a mortuary and influenced the collapse of the USSR, where is the icon that can predict the future, and why the crosses were kept under water.

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg is one of the most beautiful, festive and vibrant churches in Russia. For many years, during the Soviet era, it was consigned to oblivion. Now, restored, it attracts thousands of visitors with its grandeur and originality.
The temple was built in memory of Emperor Alexander II. Back in 1881, tragic events took place at the place where the temple was later erected.
On March 1, Tsar Alexander II was heading to the Field of Mars, where a parade of troops was to take place. As a result of a terrorist act committed by the People's Will I. I. Grinevitsky, the emperor was mortally wounded.

By order of Alexander III, the Church of the Savior on Blood was erected on the site of the tragedy, where regular services were to be held for the murdered. So the name of the Savior on Blood was assigned to the temple, official name Church of the Resurrection.

The main place of the temple is an inviolable fragment of the Catherine's Canal.
It includes paving slabs, cobblestone pavement, part of the lattice.

The place where the emperor died was decided to be left untouched.
To implement this plan, the shape of the embankment was changed, and the foundation of the temple moved the canal bed by 8.5 meters.

Under the bell tower, exactly at the place where the tragic incident occurred, there is a “Crucifixion with the upcoming ones”.

The unique cross is made of granite and marble. Icons of saints are placed on the sides.

An architectural competition was announced to select the best project for the construction of the temple. The most eminent architects took part in it. Only on the third attempt (the competition was announced so many times) Alexander III chose the project that seemed to him the most suitable. Its author was Alfred Parland and Archimandrite Ignatius.

The Church of the Savior on Blood in St. Petersburg was built on donations collected by the whole world. Contributions were made not only by Russians, but by citizens of other Slavic countries. After construction, the walls of the bell tower were crowned with many coats of arms of various provinces, cities, counties that donated savings, all of them were made of mosaic.
On the main cross of the bell tower, a gilded crown was installed as a sign that the most important contribution to the construction was made by the august family.
The total amount of construction was 4.6 million rubles.

The temple was laid in 1883, when the construction project had not yet been finally approved. At this stage, the main task was to strengthen the soil so that it would not be subject to erosion, because the Ekaterininsky Canal was nearby (in 1923 it was renamed the Griboedov Canal), as well as to lay a solid foundation.

The construction of the Cathedral of the Savior on Blood in St. Petersburg began in 1888.
Gray granite was used for facing the plinth, the walls were laid out of red-brown bricks, tie-rods, window frames, cornices were made of Estonian marble. The plinth was decorated with twenty granite boards, which listed the main decrees and merits of Alexander II. By 1894, the main vaults of the cathedral were erected; by 1897, nine domes were completed. Most of them were covered with colorful bright enamel.

The walls of the temple, domes, towers are completely covered with amazing decorative patterns, granite, marble, jewelry enamel, and mosaics. White arches, arcades, kokoshniks look especially special against the background of decorative red brick.

The total area of ​​the mosaic (inside and outside) is about six thousand square meters. Mosaic masterpieces were made according to the sketches of the great artists Vasnetsov, Parland, Nesterov, Koshelev. The northern side of the façade features the Resurrection mosaic, while the southern side features the Christ in Glory panel. From the west, the facade is decorated with the painting “The Savior Not Made by Hands”, and from the east you can see the “Blessing Savior”.

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg is somewhat stylized as St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. But the artistic and architectural solution itself is very unique and original. According to the plan, the cathedral is a quadrangular building crowned with five large domes and four slightly smaller domes. The southern and northern facades are decorated with pediments-kokoshniks, the eastern side - three rounded apses with golden cupolas. From the west there is a bell tower with a beautiful gilded dome.

The interior design - the decoration of the temple - is very valuable and far exceeds the external one. The mosaics of the Savior are unique, all of them are made according to the sketches of eminent masters of the brush: Kharlamov, Belyaev, Koshelev, Ryabushkin, Novoskoltsev and others.

The cathedral was opened and consecrated in 1908. It was not just a temple, it was the only temple-museum, a monument to Emperor Alexander II. In 1923, the Church of the Savior on Blood rightfully received the status of a cathedral, but by the will of fate or due to turbulent historical changes in 1930, the temple was closed. The building was handed over to the Society of Political Prisoners. For many years, under Soviet rule, the decision was made to destroy the temple. Perhaps the war prevented this. Other important tasks were set before the leaders at that time.
During the terrible Leningrad blockade, the building of the cathedral was used as a city morgue.
After the end of the war, the Maly Opera House set up a warehouse for scenery here.
After the change of power in the Soviet government, the temple was finally recognized as a historical monument.
In 1968, he fell under the protection of the State Inspectorate, and in 1970 the Church of the Resurrection of Christ was declared a branch of " St. Isaac's Cathedral».
During these years, the cathedral begins to gradually revive. Restoration was slow, only in 1997, as a museum of the Savior on Spilled Blood, it began to receive visitors.
In 2004, more than 70 years later, Metropolitan Vladimir celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the church.

And now seven secrets and legends of the Church of the Savior on Blood.

1. Underwater crosses of the Savior on Blood.
At one time, the location of the temple played an important role in its history: they say that in order to save the decoration of the temple from the Bolsheviks, the townspeople removed the crosses from it and lowered them to the very bottom of the Griboyedov Canal. Subsequently, when the danger passed, and the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood began to be restored, but they could not find the crosses that crowned the temple, a curious incident occurred: a passer-by who knew the legend approached the restoration team and advised them to look for decoration in the water. The workers decided to try and sent a team of divers to explore the bottom - to everyone's surprise, the crosses turned out to be exactly where the stranger indicated.

2. A story about how the temple influenced the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Another curious legend associated with the Savior on Blood and the materialization of thought took place already at the very beginning of the 90s. For a long time, one of the main attractions of the city on the Neva stood in scaffolding for decades, which gave rise to many anecdotes and was even reflected in poems and songs. On the wave, there was an ironic belief among the townspeople that as soon as the scaffolding was removed from the Savior, the entire Soviet Union would collapse. It may seem like a fiction to some, and someone will write it off as a coincidence, but the fact remains: in 1991, the temple was "liberated" from scaffolding, and a little later, in August of that year, the end of Soviet power came.

3. The largest collection of mosaics in Europe.
Many people know that one of the main churches of the Northern capital is a real museum of mosaics, because under its roof the richest and largest collection of mosaics has been collected, on which the most famous domestic masters worked - Vasnetsov, Nesterov, Belyaev, Kharlamov, Zhuravlev, Ryabushkin and others. Mosaics are the main decor of the temple, because even the iconostasis of the Savior on Blood is mosaic. It may also seem curious that it was precisely because the works of art were made for a very long time that the opening of the temple and its consecration were delayed for a good ten years.

4. Blockade morgue and Spas-on-potatoes.
It's no secret that in war times (and under Soviet rule) the city's churches and temples worked in an unusual mode for them - cowsheds were equipped somewhere or enterprises were located. So, during the blockade, the Church of the Savior on Blood turned into a real morgue. The bodies of the dead Leningraders were brought from all over the city to the district Dzerzhinsky morgue, which for a time became the temple, confirming its historical name. In addition, one of the functions of the attraction in those difficult times was the storage of vegetables - some townspeople with a sense of humor even called it "Spas-on-potatoes". At the end of the war, the Savior-on-Blood was again not returned to its religious function; on the contrary, it began to be used as a storehouse for the scenery of the Maly Opera House, which is now known as Mikhailovsky.

5. Secrets of numerology and the Savior on Blood.
The magic of numbers really exists, and the St. Petersburg temple quite successfully proves this - for example, guides who want to add some mystical charm often turn to numerology and talk about the fact that the height of the central structure is 81 meters, which fully corresponds to the year of the death of Alexander II , and another number 63 - not only the height to which one of the domes rises, but also the age of the emperor at the time of the attempt on his life.

6. Mysterious icon.
In addition to the famous ghost of the Griboedov Canal embankment, there is another mystical and mysterious legend (not proven or refuted): allegedly under the roof of the Savior on Blood there is an icon on which fatal Russian history years - it appears there 1917, 1941 and not only. It is believed that the icon has the power and is able to predict turning dates for the history of Russia, because other fuzzy silhouettes of numbers are visible on the canvas - perhaps they will appear as a new tragedy approaches.

7. Bloody pavement.
It's no secret that the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood was built on the site where on March 1, 1881, the last assassination attempt on Emperor Alexander II took place. Naturally, immediately after the tragic events, the City Council proposed to build a small chapel here, but the new emperor Alexander III ordered not to be limited to the chapel and build a magnificent temple on this site.
The sovereign also ordered to leave an untouched section of the pavement inside the future cathedral, where the blood of his father was shed.

Indestructible Church
Another belief that has not yet been refuted is that this cathedral cannot be destroyed. One of the clearest examples confirming the legend is the story of how in 1941 the authorities decided to blow up the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, calling it "an object that has no artistic and architectural value." Holes were drilled in the walls, explosives had already been placed there.
But the Great Patriotic War began, so all the explosives were urgently sent to the front.

In the 60s, while examining the domes of the temple, they found the only bomb that still hit the temple.
Hit but didn't explode.
A five hundred kilogram bomb lay on the hands of the Savior.

photos are mine + materials from open sources are used

On October 18, 1883, the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood was founded at the site of the assassination of Emperor Alexander II in St. Petersburg. Construction lasted 24 years. Now this monument of Russian architecture is one of the main attractions of the Northern capital and the most beautiful temples of the country. It is associated with many mysterious stories and incredible facts.

bloody stones

Initially, at the place where Emperor Alexander II was mortally wounded, they wanted to build a small chapel. The son of the murdered tsar, Alexander III, ordered the construction of a spacious and majestic temple. He ordered that the pavement stones, on which the blood of his father was shed, be preserved inside the temple. These stones remain in the walls of the temple to this day, and with them - sidewalk slabs and a fragment of the lattice of the Catherine's Canal (now - the Griboedov Canal, ed.), which remember the day of the assassination of the king.

Mysticism of numbers

The height of the central structure of the temple is 81 meters. This number corresponds to the year of the death of Alexander II - 1881. Another dome of the Savior on Spilled Blood rises 63 meters above the pavement. This figure is the age of the emperor at the time of the mortal wound. Historians consider this mere coincidence, but fans of urban legends are convinced that there is no coincidence here.

Mosaic collection

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is also famous for its collection of mosaics - one of the largest in Europe. The area of ​​mosaic covering on the walls of the temple is truly impressive - more than 7 thousand square meters! Mosaics even decorate the iconostasis. The best artists - Nesterov, Vasnetsov, Ryabushkin and others - more than 30 people worked on the creation of such luxurious decoration. This painstaking work took a lot of time even for such masters and delayed the consecration of the temple by as much as 10 years.

The collection of mosaics in the temple is one of the largest in Europe. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Crosses under water

After the revolution, the Bolsheviks removed the bells from the church. There is a legend that the inhabitants of the city decided to hide the crosses so that they would not be sent to be melted down. The crosses were lowered to the bottom of the Griboyedov Canal. As it turned out later, the townspeople were not in vain worried about the fate of the temple: the Soviet authorities were going to dismantle the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood three times, but this intention was never realized. When the temple was no longer in danger, the crosses could not be found. A passer-by told the restorers about their whereabouts. His words were confirmed. The crosses were raised from the bottom of the canal, returned to their place and no longer removed from the domes.

blockade morgue

During the blockade, the Dzerzhinsky district morgue was opened within the walls of the Savior on Blood. The bodies of Leningraders who died of starvation and shelling were brought here from the city center. After the blockade was broken, the temple was adapted for a vegetable store, thanks to which the people began to call it "The Savior on the Potato". There was no irony in this: the potato literally saved thousands of Leningraders from starvation.

Projectile under the dome

In 1961, restorers found a German high-explosive shell in the central dome of the church. It has lain here without bursting since the Great Patriotic War - for 20 years! A 150-kilogram shell pierced the dome of the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, but got stuck in the ceiling of the vault. From here it was extracted by a whole team of former sappers and restorers. The projectile was safely taken out of the dome and blown up in the Pulkovo Heights area.

prophetic forests

In 1972, a large-scale restoration of the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood began. It lasted a quarter of a century - 25 years. For two decades, the temple was closed by scaffolding. They even began to make fun of the protracted repair. So, Alexander Rosenbaum sang a song in which he admitted that he dreams of removing the scaffolding from the Church of the Savior on Blood. The people joked: when the scaffolding is finally removed from the temple, Soviet Union fall apart. Interesting, but that's exactly what happened. The forests were removed in 1991.

The Savior on Spilled Blood is often compared to St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. A photo:

A bit of history.

On March 1, 1881, on the banks of the Catherine Canal, not far from the Mikhailovsky Palace, Tsar Liberator Alexander II was mortally wounded by a bomb thrown by Ignaty Grinevitsky, a member of the People's Will. At this place, with funds raised from all over Russia, a temple-monument to the martyr tsar, the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ or the Savior on Spilled Blood, was built according to the project of the architect Alfred Parland. The temple was built for 24 long years by decree of the son of the deceased monarch, starting in 1883, and was consecrated in 1907 with his grandson.

The neo-Russian architectural style of the temple absorbed the compositional techniques and forms of the churches of Moscow and Yaroslavl of the 17th century.
View from Nevsky prospect.

Until 1917, the temple was not a parish and was state-owned. Entrance to it was carried out by passes. Separate services in memory of Alexander II and daily sermons were held here. In view of the lack of funds in 1919, a parish was formed at the church to maintain it, then in 1922 the church was transferred to the Petrograd autocephaly, in 1923 it became the cathedral church of the old church of the Petrograd diocese, and from the end of 1927 until its closure in 1930 was the center of Josephism in Leningrad.

In 1938, it was decided to demolish the temple, but the war prevented these plans. During the blockade, there was a morgue here, the dead Leningraders were brought to the premises of the temple. After the war, the scenery warehouse of the Maly Theater was arranged in the temple. In April 1971, the temple, which was in disrepair, was transferred to the balance of the St. Isaac's Cathedral Museum. In the 70s, preparatory pre-restoration work began in it, and in the 80s - restoration, the first stage of which ended in 1997. Exactly 90 years after the illumination, the temple was opened to visitors.

Next to the temple there is a chapel-sacristy of the Iberian Icon of the Mother of God, built according to the project of the architect A. Parland. It was used to store icons and other gifts presented in memory of the death of Alexander II.

From the side of the Mikhailovsky Garden, the temple is surrounded by a magnificent cast-iron fence cast at the Karl Winkler factory according to the project of Alfred Parland.

View of the eastern limits of the temple from the Mikhailovsky Garden.

The interior of the temple is unique. Its entire inner surface with an area of ​​about 7 thousand square meters, walls, pillars and vaults, is covered with mosaics. Mosaic compositions were created in the workshop of Alexander and Vladimir Frolov according to original sketches by 30 artists V.M. Vasnetsova, M.V. Nesterova, N.N. Kharlamova, N.A. Bruni and others.

A ticket to visit the temple costs 130 rubles. This price includes a mandatory tour. Tour groups are formed at the entrance. To do this, you have to wait for some time until the right number of people gather. But this is in November, I think in the summer I will have to wait in line at the entrance. Photography is allowed, including using a flash. Although the use of a flash in such a huge room is of little use. After the tour of the temple, you can walk around on your own.

Above the place where Alexander II was mortally wounded, a so-called canopy made of jasper of various colors was installed.

Under the canopy, a part of the lattice of the Catherine Canal and the stones of the cobblestone pavement, on which the mortally wounded tsar fell, have been preserved.

The main limit of the temple with the iconostasis. Above the iconostasis is a mosaic designed by Kharlamov "Christ in Glory" and even higher "Transfiguration" by Koshelev.

"Christ Pantokrator" N.N. Kharlamov in the main ceiling of the temple. Under it is the "Transfiguration" by N.A. Koshelev.

North wall. In the upper part of the scene of the miracles of Christ, "Healing of the dry-handed", "Walking on the waters", "Healing of the possessed youth" made according to the sketches of A.P. Ryabushkin. Below is "Healing of the Blind" by A.A. Kisileva and "The Calling of the Apostle Matthew" and "The Conversation of Christ with the Samaritan Woman" by A.P. Ryabushkin.

The lower part is closer.

Northern kiot. Made of pink rhodonite, Korgon porphyry and various jaspers. In the center is the mosaic "Alexander Nevsky" according to the sketch of M.V. Nesterov.

Iconostasis. In the center "Eucharist" N.N. Kharlamov. To the left and to the right of it are the mosaics "Our Lady" and "Savior" according to the sketches of V.M. Vasnetsov.

The southern icon case is made of the same stones as the northern one. In the center is the mosaic "The Resurrection of Christ" according to the sketch of M.V. Nesterov.

South wall. Above in the center is "The Baptism of Christ" by I.F. Porfirov. To the left and to the right of it are mosaics based on sketches by V.I. Otmar "Behold the Lamb of God" and "The Boy Jesus in the Temple". On the vaults and pillars are paired mosaics of apostles, saints and martyrs.

South wall, lower part. "The Appearance of Angels to Shepherds", "The Nativity of Christ" by I.F. Porfirov and "The Presentation" by V.I. Otmar.

Plafond above the southern wall with a mosaic designed by V.V. Belyaev Sermon on the Mount.

Right side of the south wall. In the center is a mosaic after V.I. Otmar's Adoration of the Magi.

Plafond above the western wall with a mosaic designed by V.V. Belyaev "Entry to Jerusalem".

The limit of the temple over the northern kiot.

Floor under the main ceiling.

Vaults of the altar.

Left side western wall.

HISTORY OF THE CATHEDRAL

The Church of the Resurrection of Christ in St. Petersburg, popularly called the Savior on Spilled Blood, is a memorial church erected in memory of the tragic death of Emperor Alexander II. The cathedral stands over the site of the mortal wound of the Sovereign. Here, on the embankment of the Ekaterininsky Canal (now the Griboedov Canal), the emperor was mortally wounded by the People's Volunteer revolutionaries on March 1, 1881, according to the old style. The tragic event that shook the whole country was the impetus for the creation of the Temple-Monument, the Temple of repentance of the people for the murder of their king.

Alexander II (1855-1881) went down in Russian history as a reformer tsar. Having received the country, weakened by the Crimean War, in the most difficult economic condition, he was forced to undergo large-scale transformations. The main business of his life was the abolition of serfdom in 1861, which gave personal freedom and rights to Russian peasants, paving the way for the economic development of Russia. It was for the liberation of 23 million peasants that Alexander II received the nickname "Tsar-Liberator". The reforms that followed the abolition of serfdom: zemstvo, judicial, military, public education and many others affected all aspects of Russian life. They were late, were not always carried out consistently, met resistance from the "right" and "left", but still it is difficult to overestimate their significance for the history of Russia. The development of industry, the construction of railways, the involvement of all segments of the population in solving local problems, the most progressive judicial system in the world, the reorganization of the army, the annexation of vast territories of Central Asia and the Caucasus to Russia made the country a truly great power, and in many ways allowed it to gain international prestige, in part lost after the defeat in the Crimean War. The emperor also became a liberator for the Balkan peoples, for whose freedom and independence Russia fought in the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-78.

The progressive development of the country was interrupted by the strengthening of the revolutionary movement. Taking advantage of the discontent of a part of the population, the revolutionaries enter into a struggle against the autocracy, considering it the main evil for the country and the people. Attempts to rouse the peasantry to fight were unsuccessful, the "going to the people" of the revolutionaries failed. The organization "Narodnaya Volya", which arose in the late 70s, chooses terror as the main method of struggle. The Narodnaya Volya seriously believed that the death of the tsar and several top officials would cause confusion in the country, on the wave of which, with the support of the workers and the military, it would be possible to overthrow the autocracy and establish republican rule. Having assumed the right to pronounce the "death sentence" on the emperor, they begin a real "hunt" for Alexander II. Attempts follow one after another; innocent people are dying; the authorities are intensifying repressions against the revolutionaries, even trying to make concessions, but nothing stops the regicides.

On March 1, 1881, the last assassination attempt took place, which cost the life of the Tsar-Liberator. The terrorist act was carefully prepared. All movements of the emperor were monitored. During the passage of the autocrat's carriage along the embankment of the Catherine Canal, the revolutionary N. Rysakov threw the first bomb. The explosion injured several people, including mortal wounds received by the escort Cossack Alexander Maleichev, who accompanied the carriage, and the boy peddler Nikolai Zakharov, who was near the explosion site. The back wall of the imperial carriage was damaged, the windows were broken, but the tsar himself was not injured. Alexander II refused to immediately leave the scene of the tragedy. He gave orders to help the wounded, looked at the captured terrorist, and, already returning to his carriage, was overtaken by a second explosion. Another Narodnaya Volya, I. Grinevitsky, managed to throw a bomb right at the feet of the emperor. The bleeding Alexander II was transferred to a sleigh and taken to the Winter Palace. The Tsar-Liberator died from his wounds at 3:35 in the afternoon.

"Alexander II on his deathbed". K.E. Makovsky (1881)
Russia was shocked by this tragic event. The hopes of the "Narodnaya Volya" did not come true - there were no mass demonstrations. The place of the tragedy became a place of pilgrimage, where prayers were offered for the soul of the murdered Tsar. Believers felt the regicide as a personal tragedy, seeing in it a parallel with the Gospel events. Just as the Heavenly King Jesus Christ was martyred for the sins of all people, so the earthly Emperor was killed for the sins of the Russian people. The desire to perpetuate the memory of the deceased Tsar-Liberator embraced all sections of the population, including the poorest. Numerous monuments in memory of the emperor are being erected all over Russia: these are sculptural monuments, memorial steles, and chapels.

A few years later, on the site of the mortal wound of the emperor, the majestic Church of the Resurrection of Christ on Blood was laid, continuing the long tradition of Russian architecture to erect church buildings in honor of important historical events or in memory of the dead.

The initiator of the perpetuation of the memory of the murdered Emperor Alexander II was the St. Petersburg City Duma, whose deputies proposed to erect a chapel over the place where the Tsar Liberator was wounded.

The new emperor, the son of the deceased, Alexander III, supporting the decision of the Duma, wished to build not a chapel, but a memorial temple. A competition was announced to design a temple over the site of the tragedy. On April 17, 1881, the birthday of Alexander II, a wooden hipped-roof chapel was consecrated on the embankment of the canal, built according to the project of L.N. Benois at the expense of the merchant I.F. Gromov. Panikhidas were performed daily in it for the repose of the soul of the murdered Emperor Alexander Nikolayevich. Through the glass doors one could see a section of the embankment fence and part of the pavement with traces of blood. The chapel stood until the construction of the temple began in 1883 (then it was moved to Konyushennaya Square and subsequently dismantled).

Temporary chapel on the Catherine Canal
The most prominent St. Petersburg architects took part in the first competition for the design of the memorial church: A.I. Tomishko, I.S. Kitner, V.A. Shreter, I.S. Bogomolov and others. But Alexander III, having considered the selected options, did not approve any of them, since, in his opinion, they did not correspond to the nature of "Russian church architecture." He expressed the wish “that the church be built in a purely Russian style of the 17th century, examples of which are found, for example, in Yaroslavl,” and that “the very place where Emperor Alexander II was mortally wounded should be inside the church itself in the form of a special chapel” . The creation of a temple-monument in the traditions of the 17th century would serve as a metaphor for joining St. Petersburg to the precepts of old Muscovite Russia. Recalling the era of the first Romanovs, the building would symbolize the unity of the king and the state, faith and people. That is, the new temple could become not just a memorial to the murdered emperor, but also a monument to the Russian autocracy in general.

Joint competition project archi mandrita Ignatius and A. Parland
The first competition was followed by the second. April 28, 1882 The Commission began to select the best work. The joint project of Archimandrite Ignatius (I.V. Malyshev), rector of the Trinity-Sergius Hermitage near St. Petersburg, and architect A.A. Parland received the highest approval. It was this project that satisfied all the requirements of the new emperor. However, the final project was approved only in 1887, after A.A. Parland made a number of adjustments that significantly changed the original appearance of the temple.

Archimandrite Ignatius proposed to consecrate the future temple in the name of the Resurrection of Christ. It happened at the very first meeting of the Construction Commission. The dedication of the temple to the Resurrection of Christ had a deep meaning: in this name the idea of ​​overcoming death sounded, the connection between the martyrdom of Alexander II and the atoning sacrifice of the Savior was affirmed. The place where the Tsar-Liberator was mortally wounded was to be perceived as "Golgotha ​​for Russia". This image was best revealed in his poem by A.A. Fet:

Redeeming Miracle Day
Hour of the Consecration of the Cross:
Golgotha ​​handed over by Judas
Bloody Christ.

But the serene heart
For a long time, resigned, comprehended,
What will not forgive boundless love
Him an insidious student

Before the silent victim of malice,
Seeing the righteous blood
The sun faded, the coffins opened,
But love flared up.

She shines with new truth.
Blessing her dawn,
He is the cross and his crown of thorns
The earthly handed over to the king.

The machinations of hypocrisy are powerless:
What was blood has become a temple,
And a place of terrible villainy
An eternal shrine to us.

The Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ was solemnly founded on October 6, 1883 in the presence of Metropolitan Isidore and the royal couple: Emperor Alexander III and Empress Maria Feodorovna. In honor of this event, a medal was knocked out, which, according to tradition, together with the mortgage board, was laid at the base of the future throne. The consecration ceremony was compiled by Archimandrite Ignatius (Malyshev) himself.

The first stone was laid personally by Emperor Alexander III. Before that, a fragment of the canal grating, granite slabs and part of the cobblestone pavement, stained with the blood of Alexander II, were removed, placed in boxes and transferred to storage in the chapel on Konyushennaya Square.

Although the final design of the temple had not yet been approved by 1883, construction began. The cathedral was under construction for 24 years. His estimate was 4,606,756 rubles (of which 3,100,000 rubles were allocated by the treasury, the rest were donations from the imperial family, government agencies and private individuals). Construction was complicated by the proximity of the canal. For the first time in the construction practice of St. Petersburg, a concrete base was used for the foundation, instead of traditional pile driving. Brick walls are erected on a powerful solid foundation made of Putilov slab.

At the same time, there is an external cladding, which is distinguished by increased decorativeness and complexity of execution. The walls of the temple are lined with red-brown brick from Germany, white marble details are made of Estonian marble; Glazed tiles and colored tiles made by the Kharlamov factory give the temple a special elegance. In 1894 the vaults of the dome were closed, in 1896 the metal structures of the frames of the nine domes of the cathedral were made at the St. Petersburg Metal Plant. The coating of the domes with four-color jewelry enamel of a special recipe has no analogues in Russian architecture. This unique work was done by the Postnikov factory.

On June 6, 1897, a solemn raising of a cross 4.5 meters high took place on the central dome of the temple. The Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Pallady performed a prayer service and consecrated the cross. But construction continued for another 10 years. Mostly finishing and mosaic work was carried out. The architecture of the Church of the Resurrection belongs to the late stage of development of the "Russian style" of the 19th century (one of the stylistic trends of eclecticism). The architect A. Parland created an original structure that absorbed all the best and most expressive from the arsenal of Russian architecture of pre-Petrine Russia. The architectural image of the temple evokes memories of Moscow and Yaroslavl churches of the 16th-17th centuries. As prototypes of the Savior on Blood, experts call the Moscow churches of the Trinity in Nikitniki and the Trinity in Ostankino, Yaroslavl churches: John Chrysostom in Korovniki and John the Baptist in Tolchkovo and others. At the heart of the composition of the cathedral is a compact quadrangle crowned with five domes. The central domes are reminiscent of the domes of the Moscow Intercession Cathedral (better known as St. Basil's Cathedral) - one of the symbols of Russia. But the coating of these chapters with jewelry enamel is quite unique. The height of the central tent dome is 81 meters (the height of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower in Moscow). From the east, three semicircular altar apses end with gilded cupolas. From the west, a bell tower adjoins the main volume, extending into the canal bed. The height of the head of the bell tower is 62.5 meters. It is the bell tower that highlights the very place of the tragedy, located inside the temple. Above the bulbous head of the bell tower, a high cross was erected, ending with the imperial crown. By folk beliefs Angels stand invisibly on the crosses of Orthodox churches, carrying the prayer performed in the temple to the Throne of the Most High, and therefore, under the head of the bell tower, words taken from the prayer of St. Basil the Great: “Yourself, Immortal King, accept our prayers…and forgive us our sins, even in deed, and in word, and in thought, in knowledge, or in ignorance, we have sinned…”. On the western side of the bell tower, under a golden canopy, there is a marble Crucifix with a mosaic image of the Savior, marking the place of the mortal wound of the emperor outside the temple. Icons are placed on the sides of the Crucifixion: St. Zosima Solovetsky, on the day of whose memory Alexander II was born (April 17 according to the old style); and St. much. Evdokia, on the day of whose memory the emperor was martyred (March 1 according to the old style). In the decoration of the bell tower, the memorial character of the structure is repeatedly emphasized: above the semicircular window is a mosaic icon of Alexander Nevsky, the heavenly patron of Alexander II; in kokoshniks - heavenly patrons of the imperial family. The surface of the bell tower, below the cornice, is covered with images of the coats of arms of cities and provinces, representing all of Russia, mourning the murder of the Tsar-Liberator. The main events of the reign of Alexander II are carved on red granite boards in the niches of a false arcade located in the lower part of the facade walls. Twenty boards tell about the fate of the emperor and his transformations. The entrances are two double porches under a common tent, attached to the bell tower from the north and south. The tents, covered with colored tiles, are crowned with double-headed eagles, in the tympanums of the porches there are mosaic compositions based on the originals of V.M. Vasnetsov “The Passion of Christ”. Entering the inside of the cathedral, we immediately find ourselves next to the site of the tragedy - a fragment of the embankment, highlighted by a hipped jasper canopy. The canopy, carved by Russian stone-cutters, is an octagonal tent supported by four columns. Most of the decoration was created from Russian Altai and Ural jasper; the balustrade, flowerpots and stone flowers on the tent are made of Ural rhodonite. Behind the gilded lattice with the imperial crown, one can see the cobblestone pavement, sidewalk slabs and the grating of the canal - the place where the mortally wounded emperor fell. People came and come here to pray for the soul of the Tsar-Liberator. Near memorable place and now there are memorial services.

Canopy over the site of the mortal wound of Emperor Alexander II

The interior of the cathedral has a unique appearance - it is an amazing combination of mosaic and stone decoration. The walls and vaults of the temple are covered with a continuous mosaic carpet - these are both sacred images and numerous ornaments. The area of ​​mosaic decoration is more than 7 thousand square meters! In Russia, and in Europe, the temple ranks first in terms of the number of mosaics. The creation of the decoration of the Savior on Spilled Blood became a new stage in the development of Russian monumental mosaic art.

In 1895, the Building Commission announced a competition for the execution of mosaics. It was attended by the mosaic department of the Academy of Arts, the German firm "Poel and Wagner", the Italian firms "Salviati" and "Societa Musiva" and the first private mosaic workshop of A. Frolov, which became the winner. The samples presented by its masters satisfied the members of the Commission, both in terms of technical and artistic merits, and especially in terms of the timing of the mosaics. All monumental mosaics on the walls and vaults of the cathedral were made by this private mosaic workshop. The Academy of Arts was entrusted with recruiting only easel icons for the iconostasis and icon cases. The German company Poole & Wagner was ordered four mosaics for the side parts of the iconostasis.

In Frolov's workshop, mosaics were assembled in the "reverse" or "Venetian" way. This method was designed for the performance of large-scale compositions perceived from a great distance. The picturesque original was traced on thick paper in a mirror image. The drawing was divided into parts, on each of which pieces of smalt (colored glass) were pasted with the front side. The finished mosaic was surrounded by a frame and filled with cement mortar. Mosaic blocks were attached to the wall. The seams between them were filled with mastic, along which the composition "reached" in the direct way of typing. The basis of the artistic method was the simplification of the pictorial drawing, laconism color solution and clarity of light and shade restrictions. The decorativeness of such a mosaic, to a greater extent than that of a mosaic made in the "direct way", depended on the original provided by the artist. The fresco painting of Novgorod and Yaroslavl churches of the 17th century served as a prototype for such a letter.

Picturesque sketches for the mosaics of the Savior on Spilled Blood were created by 32 artists, who differed both in the degree of their talent and in their artistic style. N.N. Kharlamov, V.V. Belyaev, and V.M. Vasnetsov perceived the specifics of monumental art better than others. The range of their creative manner is very diverse: from the Byzantine traditions and canons of academicism to the stylistic techniques of modernity.

The placement of the images is strictly thought out - it reflects both the memorial character of the cathedral and its dedication to the Resurrection of Christ. In the central part of the temple, on the blue backgrounds of the walls, the earthly path of the Savior is presented: from the icon of the Nativity of Christ in the lower case of the southern wall to the miracles and healings depicted on the icons of the northern wall. The eastern part is highlighted with golden backgrounds. Above the altar there is an image of "The Savior in Strength" or "Christ in Glory", an amazing mosaic, according to the sketch of the icon painter N.N. Kharlamov. The mosaic shows the Lord in all the fullness of His power and glory, as He will appear at the end of time to judge the living and the dead. Heavenly forces surround the Lord: Seraphim with fiery wings, Cherubim with green ones; on four sides of Christ are the winged symbols of the Evangelists. An expressive and laconic icon, it fits perfectly into the altar apse and immediately catches the eye. With front lighting and in sunny days the image emits a powerful golden glow. The backgrounds are set with gold smalt - cantorel, containing thin plates of gold leaf inside the glass.

Savior in strength or Christ in glory

In the altar, the entire surface of the eastern apse is occupied by a huge mosaic icon of the Eucharist, also created according to a sketch by N.N. Kharlamov. In the center, on a dais, Christ himself is depicted solemnly presenting the Holy Gifts. On either side of him are Angels holding ripids, and the apostles solemnly marching to Communion. With the Royal Doors open, only the center of the composition is visible - Christ and the bowed supreme apostles Peter and Paul, accepting the Holy Gifts.

Eucharist
In the semicircles of the side apses above the iconostasis: on the right - "The Ascension of Christ", on the left - "The Descent of the Holy Spirit" (both icons based on sketches by V.V. Belyaev).

In the center of the cathedral, in a hemisphere, in front of the altar, a mosaic of the Transfiguration of the Lord radiates a golden glow. Christ, transfigured before His disciples, is depicted in the center, in rays of shining light. On either side of Him are the prophets - Elijah and Moses. Below, hiding from the unbearable radiance, are the apostles Peter, James and John, who ascended the mountain with the Lord. The icon was typed according to the sketch of N.N. Koshelev.

Transfiguration of Christ
The image of the Annunciation is on two pillars-pylons in front of the salt (this icon was created according to the sketch of the architect A. A. Parland). Icons of saints are placed on the four central domed pylons: prophets, apostles, righteous people, martyrs, reverends. The faces of the saints are placed both on the ledges of the walls and on the arches. In the central drum of the dome, in round medallions, there are 16 images of the heavenly patrons of the imperial house. In the vault of the main drum is the face of Christ Pantocrator, which in Greek means the Almighty. The Lord on the mosaic according to the sketch of N.N. Kharlamov is depicted shoulder-width, with his hands raised in a blessing gesture. The gospel is revealed before him with the words "PEACE TO YOU". The images of Seraphim and Cherubim frame the face of the Savior. Their closed wings create a graceful pattern. The composition of the image is schematic, solved widely and decoratively. The color is set in no more than two shades. The silhouette of the Savior stands out against a dark blue background. The face of the Lord with huge dark eyes fixed on the viewer is unusually expressive and resembles Byzantine examples.

Christ Pantocrator
According to the canons of Byzantine icon painting, Kharlamov created mosaics for small plafonds “Savior Good Silence”, “Savior Emmanuel”, “John the Baptist” and “Our Lady”. These relatively small works are distinguished by a clear and precise pattern of the mosaic set, a special spirituality and monumentality. The specifics of the memorial temple made a number of adjustments to the interior design. To a greater extent, the canons were violated in the western part of the temple, where the place of the mortal wound of Emperor Alexander II is located. This determined the thematic orientation of the mosaics located around the canopy: “The Entombment”, “The Crucifixion”, “The Descent into Hell” and others, executed according to the originals by V.V. Belyaev. In them, the theme of the martyrdom of the king is associatively revealed through the posthumous fate of the Savior. The mournful place - canopy - is lit by a window on the western wall. It is crowned by the composition “Like Your Kingdom”, or “The New Testament Trinity”, with God the Father seated on the throne, Jesus Christ and a dove hovering over them - a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The window is flanked by images of the Guardian Angel of the deceased emperor and St. Prince Alexander Nevsky, his heavenly patron. Two warriors - heavenly and earthly - froze on guard at the place of the mortal wound of the king. The mosaics at the place of the tragedy, as well as in the altar part, are set on gold backgrounds. In the evening, the setting sun illuminates the western part of the cathedral and a soft glow emanates from here.

St. Prince Alexander Nevsky and the Guardian Angel of the deceased Emperor
Unlike the monumental images on the walls and vaults of the cathedral, executed by the masters of Frolov, the mosaic icons of the iconostasis and icon cases are easel works. They were executed by the mosaicists of the Imperial Academy of Arts and the German firm "Poule and Wagner" and were typed by the so-called "reproduction method", which allows copying a pictorial original while preserving all its color nuances. Central local icons of the iconostasis "Savior" and " Holy Mother of God» recruited in the mosaic workshop of the Academy of Arts based on paintings by V.M. Vasnetsov. An artist who became famous for his paintings Vladimir Cathedral in Kyiv, with paintings based on fairy tales and epic stories, he agreed to create only a few works for the Savior on Spilled Blood. The images created by V.M. Vasnetsov amaze with their grandeur and at the same time with special spirituality. The Savior is depicted on the royal throne as King and Judge, but His gaze is full of love and compassion for people. The Most Holy Mother of God, the Queen of Heaven also sits on the throne - how much tenderness, warmth, sadness in Her face. A shadow of anxiety touched the face of the Divine Infant. The soft color of the icons is built on a combination of tones echoing the warmth and sincerity of the images. Clear contours and local colors give the icons monumentality.

Holy Mother of God Savior
To the right of the Savior temple icon"Descent into Hell" The iconography of the image conveys the meaning of the Resurrection of Christ - the liberation of people from the bonds of sin and death. M.V. Nesterov, the author of the pictorial original, follows the Old Russian canon. In the center, in a shining mandorla and white robes, Christ is depicted. The light surrounding him is opposed to the darkness around him. Lord right hand gives to Adam, to the left of Him is Eve. Figures of the Old Testament kings and righteous can be seen on the sides, wings create an ornamental background disembodied Forces Heavenly, below - the defeated gates of hell and flames. The gentle tones of the icon, the sophistication of lines and expression are akin to Art Nouveau style. The image was typed at the Academy of Arts using the reproduction method, which conveys all shades and color transitions.

On the other side of the iconostasis, to the left of the image of the Mother of God, there is an icon of the Ascension of the Lord, based on the original by M.V. Nesterov. It is also based on ancient iconography, made in a modern manner for the artist. Nesterov also creates sketches for images in the kokoshniks of the iconostasis: "The Old Testament Trinity" and "Christ on the road to Emmaus."

Ascension of Christ Descent into Hell
The low single-tiered iconostasis of the Church of the Resurrection is a masterpiece of stone-cutting art. It was made according to the sketch of the architect A.A. Parland from Italian marble by the Genoese firm Nuovi. The marble is finely matched in color, the dark tones of the lower part turning into light ones at the top. There is a feeling of lightness and exaltation. The openwork carving of the iconostasis resembles wood carving and strikes with virtuosity and diversity. Ornamentation of architectural details is permeated with symbols born from ideas of eternal Eden, floral patterns reminiscent of the Garden of Eden. Three large kokoshniks crown the iconostasis; crosses, lost in Soviet times, have not yet been installed above them. The crosses were decorated with faceted crystals and now it is planned to recreate them. The unique Italian marble of the iconostasis was also damaged. In the lower left corner, next to the plaque, you can see what condition it was in before the restoration began.

In the center of the iconostasis are the royal doors, recently re-created and returned to their place. Their brief description is given by Parland in the Report on the Construction of the Temple: royal doors- made of silver on a metal frame, with enamel decorations on a gold background and with enamel images of 4 Evangelists and the Annunciation (made according to the drawings of the builder's architect) - a gift from the St. Petersburg Merchant Administration. In Soviet times, their magnificent decoration was completely lost. The reconstruction of the Royal Doors was made by St. Petersburg masters with funds allocated by the museum. L.A. Solomnikova is the author of a unique recipe for modern enamel and its palette. V.Yu.Nikolsky supervised the restoration work on metal. Almost eight years were spent on this complex and painstaking work.

On March 13, 2012, the Royal Doors of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ were installed on historical place and on March 14 were solemnly consecrated by Bishop Ambrose of Gatchina.

The flanking columns of the Royal Doors are decorated with 12 mosaic icons of the “Athos saints”, made in 1861 in the mosaic workshops of the Academy of Arts. These are unique icons made of small columns of “drawn smalt” based on drawings from the originals located in one of the monasteries on Mount Athos (hence the name “Athos saints”). Initially, they were going to be placed in the decoration of the ark-treasury in the future Cathedral of Christ the Savior. But in 1884, Alexander III donated the icons to the Church of the Resurrection under construction in St. Petersburg. Of the 12 icons, only 4 have survived - St. Procopius, St. Demetrius, St. Evgraf, St. Diomid. They were badly damaged during the Soviet era and were in a terrible state. 8 of the 12 icons were lost and had to be recreated: these are the icons of St. Leontius, Mercury, James the Persian, Panteleimon, George, Nikita, Theodore and Mina of Egypt. The author of a unique restoration technique is Igor Lavrenenko. Almost twenty years of painstaking work on the restoration and reconstruction of icons ended in 2013, and now we have the opportunity to admire these marvelous images.

The side aisles of the cathedral end with two large stone cases separating the kliros from the main volume of the building. In the Church of the Savior on Blood, the icon cases are a solid wall made of carved stone. Currently, only 2 icons have been preserved in icon cases, one on each side.

In the left northern icon case there is an icon of the Holy Right-believing Prince Alexander Nevsky, the heavenly patron of Emperor Alexander II, typed according to a pictorial original by Mikhail Nesterov. The artist created a soulful image of a praying prince, bowing before the icon of the Mother of God, above which are laid out the words from the Scriptures "God is not in power, but in truth." The holy prince is depicted in armor, but a cloak is thrown over the armor, a shield and a sword are placed at the foot of the Mother of God icon. Alexander Nevsky is immersed in prayer, in his hand is a burning red candle. The icon is strikingly matched in color, both the shine of the prince's armor and the burning of a candle are conveyed. This is one of the most filigree set of icons in terms of technique, set in the mosaic workshop of the Academy of Arts in the "direct" or "Roman" way. In this case, the image was collected from small smalt cubes with a rich palette of color shades.

The front surface of the mosaic was ground and polished, and as a result, the finished image almost does not differ from the pictorial original. In the right southern case there is an icon of the Resurrection of Christ, also after the original by M.V. Nesterov. On this icon, the Lord is depicted as resurrected, emerging from the tomb in a light robe, in one hand the Cross - a symbol of suffering on the Cross, the other - raised in a blessing gesture.

St. Prince Alexander Nevsky Resurrection of Christ
Above the tomb is the inscription: "Where are you, Death Sting, where are you, Hell Victory." The icon was created according to a sketch by Mikhail Nesterov and represents the Western version of the iconography of the Resurrection of Christ, which came to Russia from Europe in the 17th century. Like the image of St. Prince Alexander Nevsky, it was executed in the mosaic workshop of the Academy of Arts in the "direct" way of typing. Its delicate light colors amaze with exquisite tonal transitions, create a complete impression of imitation of oil painting and are in tune with the Art Nouveau style.

Unfortunately, the remaining 14 icons that filled the niches of icon cases have not been preserved. These icons, presented as a gift to the cathedral during construction, were not mosaic. Their salaries were made of silver, decorated with enamel, gilding and pearls. The icons were seized in the 1920s. and their fate today, unfortunately, is not known. While these niches are empty.

Icon cases are examples of the excellent work of Russian stone-cutters from the Ekaterinburg cutting and Kolyvan grinding factories. The choice of stones from which the icon cases were created is not accidental. The same stones - green Revnevskaya jasper and pink rhodonite - were used to create tombstones over the graves of Emperor Alexander II and his wife Maria Alexandrovna in the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

Other varieties of jasper were used to decorate icon cases - pale Aushkul jasper for the cross and openwork ornament on top, bright multi-colored Orskaya jasper for patterned columns and plates in the center of the icon case. The patterns of icon cases, made with extraordinary skill, echo the mosaic ornaments of the temple.

The ornamentation of the temple is imbued with Christian symbols. Stems and leaves, flowers and buds create a feeling of bright joy and hope for the Resurrection, which perfectly matches the name of the temple. Sketches of more than 80 unique ornaments were made by the architect A.A. Parland and the artist A.P. Ryabushkin.

The stone decoration of the cathedral is striking in its diversity. In the interior of the Savior on Blood, not only stones from Russian deposits were widely used, but also those brought from Italy. The plinth of the walls is lined with Italian serpentinite or serpentine, so named for the similarity of its pattern with patterned snake skin.

The floor of the temple, with an area of ​​over 600 square meters, is made of multi-colored Italian marble of more than 10 varieties. It was made according to the drawing by A.A. Parland in the Genoese workshop of Giuseppe Novi, and assembled on the spot by Russian craftsmen. The thickness of colored marble plates is about 5 mm.

The lower part of the pylons of the temple is lined with Ukrainian stone - black labradorite. It has a unique property of iridescence - iridescent glow, coming as if from the depths of the stone. Stone and mosaic decoration mutually complement each other and create a unique ensemble of the temple, imbued with the idea of ​​overcoming death by the Resurrection.

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, erected on the site of the assassination of Emperor Alexander II, was solemnly consecrated on August 19, 1907, according to the old style. The rite of consecration was conducted by Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Anthony (Vadkovsky). The consecration was attended by the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, now canonized. Immediately after the consecration, at noon, the first solemn liturgy was served.

The temple accommodated about 1600 worshipers, and the state allocated funds for its maintenance.

Unlike parish churches, in this church until 1918, the rites were not performed, as they did not correspond to its status. Services were conducted daily, with obligatory funeral litia.

Initially, the clergy of the Savior on Spilled Blood consisted of eight people: a rector, a sacristan, a priest, a deacon, and four psalm readers. The first rector of the cathedral from 1907 to 1923 was the professor of the Theological Academy, Archpriest P.I. Leporsky. He was replaced by Archpriest V.M.Veryuzhsky (1923-1929). The last rector was Archpriest A.E.Sovetov (1929-1930).

Built on the site of the mortal wound of Emperor Alexander II, in the post-revolutionary period, the Savior on Blood to a certain extent repeated the fate of the martyr tsar. In 1917, the receipt of state funds for the maintenance of the temple stopped, in connection with which the rector, Peter Leporsky, turned to the inhabitants of Petrograd with a proposal to unite around the temple and, to the best of their ability and ability, share the concern for maintaining splendor in it.

By decree of the People's Commissariat in March 1918, the Church of the Resurrection and its treasures came under the control and protection of the Commissariat of People's Property of the Republic. At the end of May 1918, the commissariat established its own staff of employees in the church, and in January 1920 transferred it to the church twenty, which made the Church on Spilled Blood an ordinary parish church, on conditions of full maintenance.

Unfortunately, at that time, the very meager donations of parishioners could not cover the operational needs of the building. There was no heating in the building even in winter.

In the 1920s, the Savior on Blood, like almost all Russian churches, was plundered, having lost most of their liturgical objects. From 1921 to 1923, the commission for the seizure of church valuables repeatedly confiscates church property in the cathedral and its sacristy (salaries, icon lamps, candlesticks, vestments, diskos, arks for holy gifts, three altar Gospels, distinguished by their extraordinary richness of design).

In 1922, under pressure from the new government, experts from the Academy of the History of Material Culture declared the temple a typical monument of the decline of Russian architecture of the late 19th century, representing neither artistic nor historical value. Thus, it could be robbed without hindrance.

In the 1920s, the temple repeatedly changed its subordination. From July 1922 to July 1923, the temple, being a parish, belonged to the Petrograd autocephaly. Then, from July 5 to August 9, 1923, the Renovationists, the pro-Soviet-minded clergy, took possession of it. From August 1923 to December 1927 the Church of the Resurrection of Christ was the city's cathedral. From the end of 1927 to November 1930, the Savior on Spilled Blood was the center of the "True Orthodox Church" or "Josephism" - a current in the Russian Church, headed by Metropolitan Joseph (Petrovykh), who was uncompromisingly against the interference of the Soviet authorities in church affairs and broke off canonical communion with patriarchal church. The Soviet authorities considered the activities of the Josephites as counter-revolutionary, although initially the “Josephian schism” did not have any anti-government or anti-state connotation.

As a result, the leaders of the Josephites, including the rector of the Savior on Blood, Vasily Veryuzhsky, and many parishioners were arrested. In December 1930, a trial was organized to neutralize the "monarchist counter-revolutionary church organization aimed at overthrowing the Soviet regime." The number of convicts was 132 people. Their fate is tragic, almost all of them, like Metropolitan Joseph of Leningrad, were either shot or sentenced to long terms in concentration camps.

On November 30, 1930, the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee decides to close the Savior on Spilled Blood. The building of the temple is removed from the register in Glavnauka, and in January 1931 all its 14 bells were sent for remelting. It was assumed that the temple building would be demolished, so the cathedral was temporarily used as a warehouse.

At the end of 1930, the building of the Savior on Spilled Blood was transferred to the Society of Political Prisoners and Exiles for cultural and educational needs, and in 1934 the Society organizes an exposition here dedicated to the events of March 1 and the history of the people's will movement. True, this exhibition lasted only a few months.

At the same time, the Committee for the Protection of Monuments of the Revolution and Culture gave its consent to the destruction of the Savior on Blood. Active preparations for the liquidation of the building began in 1941 and were suspended only in connection with the outbreak of war.

During the siege of Leningrad, one of the morgues of our city was located in Spas on Blood. The cathedral suffered from shelling, and traces of damage are preserved on one of the memorial plaques on the southern facade. A large artillery shell hit the main dome of the temple, did not explode and lay between the arches for almost twenty years. Risking his life, he was neutralized by sapper Viktor Demidov in 1961. After the war, the cathedral rents the Maly Opera House and arranges a scenery warehouse in it. The building continues to collapse - after the war, broken glass windows, holes from fragments in the domes and roof, through which moisture got inside, were added to the "non-core" operation. Another critical moment in the fate of the temple is 1956, when the city authorities once again decided to demolish the cathedral under the pretext of building a highway. A new campaign for the destruction of religious buildings began, which lasted more than ten years.

Memorial plaque on the southern facade
Only in 1968 the cathedral was taken under protection by the State Inspectorate for the Protection of Monuments under the Main Architectural and Planning Department. On July 20, 1970, the Executive Committee of the Leningrad City Council decides No. 535 "On the organization of a branch of the St. Isaac's Cathedral Museum in the building of the former Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood." The transfer of the temple-monument to the balance of the museum took place on April 12, 1971.

A long-term restoration of the temple began. The cathedral was built for 24 years, and the restoration work lasted 27 years - their main stage was completed only in 1997. The cathedral was restored both outside and inside. I had to make a new waterproofing system, lay new communications.

Damaged crosses, enamel domes, tiles, facade cladding were restored by Leningrad craftsmen. The mosaic, on the contaminated surface of which there were chips, damage, partial loss of smalt, was revived by a team of talented restorer Viktor Shershnev. The work continued for 14 years. The entire mosaic of 7,000 square meters was washed, dirt deposits were cleaned off with brushes, scalpels and erasers, and the places of shedding were reached.

The stone decoration of the temple was significantly damaged. Italian marble and serpentinite were damaged the most. It was necessary not only to return the stone to its original appearance but also to recreate the lost details. All cracks and chips were carefully repaired with mastic in the color of the stone, and then the marble was again ground and polished. The specialists from Leningrad and the Urals did an excellent job with this work.

On August 19 (according to the new style), 1997, on the day of the Transfiguration of the Lord, the cathedral was opened as a museum. Currently, it has the status of a state museum as part of the St. Isaac's Cathedral GMP.

The spiritual life of the temple-monument is being revived. On May 23, 2004, the church was re-consecrated, and the first Liturgy was held in it, led by Metropolitan Vladimir (Kotlyarov) of St. Petersburg and Ladoga. On September 19, 2010, regular services began in the church, led by Abbot Mstislav (Dyachina), the current Bishop of Tikhvin and Ladoga. Now Liturgies are celebrated every Sunday, on the great and twelfth feasts. At present, the rector of the church is Archpriest Sergiy (Kuksevich), Secretary of the St. Petersburg Diocesan Administration, Dean of the Central District.

The memory of Emperor Alexander II is deeply revered in the cathedral. On the day of his tragic death on March 14 (March 1, according to the old style), a bishop's service is performed with special commemoration slain Emperor. After each divine liturgy, as a rule, a funeral lithium is served for the emperor.

List of used literature

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5. A note about the mosaic. Frolov's first private mosaic workshop: 1890-1900 // St. Petersburg, 1900
6. Zelenchenko V.A. Scientific restoration of the canopy of the museum-monument "The Savior on Spilled Blood". Museums of Russia: searches, research, work experience // St. Petersburg, 1996, p. 30-33.
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