The Holy Assumption Cathedral in Vitebsk is one of the unique architectural structures of Belarus. The Orthodox Church is located on the banks of the Western Dvina on the Assumption Hill. From it the cathedral got its name.
History
The Assumption Cathedral (Vitebsk) has great fame in Belarus and beyond. The history of this place dates back to the fifteenth century. The mountain itself, which used to be called Lysa, has been used for many centuries to build religious structures - sanctuaries.
The first mention of a wooden church erected on a mountain dates back to the beginning of the fifteenth century. Then it was called the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the seventeenth century it was transferred to the Uniates. A few years later, the Uniate archbishop was killed and the temple was devastated by the townspeople. The church was dismantled by court decision, and a little later the inhabitants of Vitebsk restored it at their own expense.
According to some reports, the church burned down around the middle of the seventeenth century, and after some time a new wooden church was built in its place. But the building quickly lost its original form. Then a resident of Vitebsk, Judge Adam Kisel, built a temple at his own expense and founded a Basilian monastery in it. But in the eighteenth century, the city was burned along with the temple. Adam Kisel again restored all the buildings.
Unfortunately, this was not the only fire in the history of the cathedral. He soon burned out again. The place remained deserted for about twenty years.
First stone temple
The Assumption Cathedral in Vitebsk was in no hurry to restore. Only in 1743 it was decided to build a stone temple. The project was developed by the Grodno architect Joseph Fontani. The temple was supposed to be a valuable building of the city’s architecture, as it was believed that the author of the development took one of the temples of Rome as a basis and practically copied it. But the construction almost immediately stopped, and only after the reunification of Vitebsk with the Russian Empire did the first shifts appear. Built in 1777, the church was consecrated only ten years later.
The Cathedral of the Assumption was named after the order of Paul I on transferring the monastery to the Orthodox ministry. But the difficulties on the way of the cathedral did not end. During the Patriotic War of 1812, a French infirmary was arranged in the church, all values were destroyed. After the war, it was restored and became a vibrant landmark of the city.
In the mid-twentieth century, Soviet power came to Vitebsk. The Assumption Cathedral was closed, and a few years later it was blown up in the early autumn morning.
The workshop of the machine tool factory was built at the same place, but soon it was abandoned and demolished.
Restoration of the Holy Assumption Cathedral
In the early nineties of the twentieth century, Belarusian architects developed a plan for the restoration of the cathedral. In 1998, the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II at the site of the destroyed temple, a capsule was laid and the first stone was consecrated.
Archaeologists have been able to accurately determine the location of all parts of the temple. Also at this place were found human remains, which most likely belong to the victims of the NKVD or the German Gestapo. The remains are buried next to the cathedral. A memorial plaque and a cross are installed on one of its walls.
The restoration of the temple began in the summer of 2000. Three years later, the first liturgy was held in the building of the lower tier of the cathedral. In 2005, this tier was completed, and a year later the first floor was ready. By the end of 2007, the walls of the second floor and the bell tower were erected.
In the summer of 2008, ten bells were consecrated and installed on one of the towers, the largest weighed up to two tons. Soon domes and crosses were erected.
Later, work began inside the temple, decorative lighting appeared. Eleven bells were installed on another tower. Among them, the heaviest bell in Belarus, it weighs more than five tons. Great help in the restoration of the temple was provided by Russian patrons. During the construction of the cathedral, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill visited the cathedral.
In 2011, all of Vitebsk triumphed. The Assumption Cathedral was completely renovated. The grand opening took place on the eve of the great holiday - the Annunciation.
Residents and tourists always come to the temple with pleasure, because only here you can hear the ringing of more than 20 bells. Proud of its construction Vitebsk. The Assumption Cathedral was consecrated on September 30, 2011 by Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk Filaret in the service of all the bishops of the Belarusian Orthodox Church.
Legends
There are many legends associated with the temple. One of them says that under the cathedral there is an underground passage that leads to the Western Dvina.
This is due to the fact that in the eighteenth century during the construction of the temple systems were created in order to divert the accumulated groundwater from the basements into the river. The bends were so high that a person could go through them to their full height. Over time, the bends ceased to be cleared, so a fairly large amount of water gathered in the basements.
Features of the architecture of the cathedral
The temple was originally built in the Baroque style. Due to the volumes of naves (elongated rooms, limited on both sides by columns or pillars from neighboring ones), the voluminous structure of the cathedral was formed. The silhouette of the building was decorated with three lamps: one was located above the main dome, the other two above the towers.
For the design of the facade used arches, niches, cornice belts. The composition was completely completed in the nineteenth century. On the second tier is the gallery. The extreme naves were divided into chapels. The total height of the cathedral reaches more than fifty meters.
A masterpiece of architecture
Surprising tourists with its architecture Vitebsk. The Assumption Cathedral is one of the unique Belarusian structures. This is the only temple of Vitebsk, the lower tier of which is located underground. Having experienced many difficulties, the temple nevertheless revived and became even more beautiful. Residents of Vitebsk highly value this wonderful place.
One of the Soviet demolitionists of the church, Pyotr Grigorenko, said that, seeing this miracle, many knelt.
Transforms modern Vitebsk. The Assumption Cathedral is changing with it. It attracts not only with its external solemnity, but also with its internal decoration, which creates a special atmosphere of warmth in the church, and blesses good deeds.
Many local historians compare the Belarusian cathedral with Russian buildings and appreciate its beauty. Some call it a masterpiece of architecture.