If there is a city in the world, which in itself is a museum, then this is Suzdal. Its eventful history is not only preserved in the annals, but is presented today in three hundred monuments that are part of the Vladimir-Suzdal architectural complex.
Spaso-Euthymius Monastery is one of the oldest architectural monuments, which has its own history of “life”, as well as the city itself.
Suzdal
The rich Suzdal principality was part of the great Kievan Rus, but the year the city was founded is unknown. It was first mentioned at the beginning of the 11th century in a chronicle that tells of peasant unrest.
Based on the site of earlier trading settlements, Suzdal began to grow rapidly. Its construction began, like most cities of that time, with the Kremlin, around which residential buildings were formed. So far, Suzdal has retained the same development plan as it was in antiquity, although it was burned several times to the ground.
For the first time this happened due to feuds between Prince Chernigovsky Oleg and the heirs of Vladimir Monomakh. Rebuilt, Suzdal was subsequently burned by the Mongol-Tatars in 1238. Its new heyday began in the 14th century, when it became not only a rich city, but also the center of the Christian religion. For example, the Spaso-Euthymius Monastery built in 1352, numerous churches in the village and Pokrovsky Monastery attracted pilgrims and believers from all over Russia.
After Moscow became the seat of government of the Moscow princes, Suzdal lost its former glory, became a provincial city, which is why today it is a real architectural museum. The industrialization of the country has not touched this beautiful place, therefore it is a pearl of the famous tourist route “The Golden Ring of Russia”.
Monastery construction
The Savior-Euthymius Monastery, whose history began in the distant 14th century, was founded by decree of Prince Boris, who ruled the Principality of Nizhny Novgorod-Suzdal at that time . Initially, the monastery was called Spaso-Preobrazhensky, but in memory of Hegumen Euthymius, who headed it for more than 50 years, it was renamed. Being originally wooden, the Savior-Euthymius Monastery was rebuilt anew in the 16th century using bricks and in this form has been preserved to this day.
The location of the monastery on the banks of the Kamenka River and on the north side of the city was of great strategic importance. Fenced for 1200 meters with a fortified wall with watchtowers, the Spaso-Evfimiev Monastery (Suzdal) was a real military fortress and protection for urban residents.
These walls around the monastery were erected at the end of the 17th century, and 12 watchtowers with loopholes at one time were the most powerful in the Vladimir province. The largest is the travel tower, whose height is 22 meters. It is the entrance to the temple complex, although before its construction this function was performed by the Gate Church of the Annunciation, which entered the Spaso-Euthymius Monastery and ended up inside the fortress walls. At that time of troubles, the construction of such a fortification at the monastery was a vital necessity, since it was in the churches that the Orthodox were saved from attacks by the conquerors.
Monastic buildings: Transfiguration Cathedral
Today the Spaso-Euthymius Monastery (the city of Suzdal) has 14 architectural monuments that are well preserved.
The first stone building was the Church of the Savior, built in 1507-1511 over the burial of the first abbot of the monastery - Euphemia. When the Transfiguration Cathedral was built in 1564, it became part of it, becoming a chapel.
Today it is not only an active cathedral, but also a unique architectural structure in which the frescoes created in the 16th century are preserved. The most significant is the wall painting made by the great masters from Kostroma Sila Savina and Guriy Nikitin (17th century). The frescoes are based on the biography of St. Euthymius, as well as a portrait of the Grand Duke Vsevolod of Vladimir. Images of Tsars Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich are also included in the plot of color wall paintings.
The beautiful white-stone cathedral, which is part of the Savior-Euthymius Monastery in Suzdal (whose address is Lenin Street, 148a), is a place of storage of the holy relics of St. Euthymius. They are resting in a silver crab made in 1823.
Also, Transfiguration Cathedral is the burial place of Dmitry Pozharsky and members of his family. Here are stored his things, donated to the cathedral - the shroud, which his wife personally embroidered for the prince, and the Gospel with a gift inscription.
Entrance tower
Unlike other towers, the Entrance has a square shape. It is laid out of red brick and is symbolically divided into two parts. The lower part, which is more strict, is a checkpoint and consists of two arched passages with icon cases above them.
The upper part of the tower is more elegant. Since it was visible from afar (building height 22 meters), the upper tier was decorated with platbands and "bands" of brick, which gave it some "airiness" and grace.
The Entrance Tower ends with a four-pitched roof. In the 17th century, it was damaged by lightning and for many years did not recover. The restoration, carried out in 1860, is still perfectly preserved.
Today at the site of the travel arches are a ticket office and a bookstore.
Monastery belfry
Each church has its own unique bell ringing, and the Suzdal Spaso-Euthymius Monastery is no exception. The belfry of this Orthodox building is in itself a whole story, since it was built at different times and with the use of various architectural styles.
The earliest part of the belfry is the so-called bell pillar church of John the Baptist. The structure has 9 faces, which is not at all characteristic of ordinary bells, which always have an even number of angles. According to legend, its name is associated with the birth of John 4.
Small in size, the bell church was intended to hold confessions of the great princes and kings.
A gallery leads into it, through which the prince could pass unnoticed, while avoiding numerous pilgrims and believers. It connects the church with the house of the archimadrite and with the clock tower. The bells of the 16th century, unfortunately, did not survive, as they were sent for remelting in 1932. Previously, they were a signal for the brethren to go for a meal or prayer. Today, bell ringing calls believers to serve in the Transfiguration Cathedral located nearby.
Assumption refectory church
Opposite the belfry is the Assumption Refectory Church, which is one of the first architectural tent structures in Russia. It was built in 1525 and has, on the one hand, a chapel in the form of a pillar-shaped church named after the martyr Diomede, and on the other, a refectory with a roof.
The lower part was used by the monks for household needs, while the upper chamber was the most refectory.
The Archimandrite building adjoins this graceful church, which was originally built for official needs, but from the 18th century the archimandrite began to live in it, and it became a residential building. Built in the form of the letter “G”, the building has a wooden gallery for “gulbis”, which is supported by stone pillars.
At one time, the refectory church of the Assumption was painted inside with frescoes that have not survived to this day.
St. Nicholas Church
The original church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was wooden and was built in connection with the expansion of the monastery during the first abbot. Since the Spaso-Euthymius Monastery (Suzdal) became known far beyond its borders, many new monks came to serve the Lord in this place under the guidance of a wise mentor.
The Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker had a large cellar under it, a refectory adjoined to it, which could accommodate many people at once. It is called the hospital church, as it was in close proximity to the building with cells for sick monks and secular guests of the monastery.
The stone St. Nicholas church, with the adjacent hospital building, was erected in 1669. It consists of a one-domed church with a facade decorated with zakomaras and platbands with kokoshniks.
The church was restored inside twice, and at the beginning of 2000 the wooden roof was completely replaced and the entire facade was painted.
Mausoleum of Pozharsky
The Savior-Euthymius Monastery, whose address is: Vladimir Region, the city of Suzdal, Lenin Street, 148a, became the resting place of the great Russian hero Dmitry Pozharsky and members of his family. He was buried in 1642, and over the grave his son John and nephew Peter Khovansky, the great princes, built a tomb. However, after 100 years the tomb was forgotten, it began to deteriorate, as a result it was dismantled, and the stone was used for the needs of the monastery.
In 1851, the archaeologist Count Uvarov led an expedition to the Spaso-Euthymius Monastery, it was he who discovered the remains of a crypt with four stone tombs. Two of them belonged to the son and nephew of Dmitry Pozharsky, and two belonged to the hero himself and his wife.
In 1852, all the tombs were opened and carefully inspected. Thus, it was possible to find out which of them is Dmitry Pozharsky. He was identified by a partially preserved robe.
A liturgy with a memorial service was held over the remains, after which all the graves were closed again, and in 1858 a mausoleum was erected above them at the behest of Emperor Alexander 2. Construction was carried out at the expense of public donations. The consecration of the mausoleum was carried out in 1885.
During the years of Soviet rule, the tomb was again destroyed, since in 1933 the Savior-Euthymius Monastery became a prison for political prisoners.
In the 70s of the 20th century, a memorial stone was erected at the site of Pozharsky’s burial place, and only in 2007 the exact restoration of the mausoleum began according to preserved plans, sketches and photographs. Today it is part of the architectural complex of the monastery.
Prison castle
Since 1766, a prison building appeared in the monastery, founded by decree of Catherine 2. At first it was intended for "crazy" rebels, among whom were not only peasants, but also people of noble origin, for example, the Decembrist Prince Peter Shakhovskaya.
Later it was intended for apostates of the clergy and sectarians, and from 1923 to 1939 it became an isolator for political prisoners.
Today, within these walls is a museum in memory of prisoners of both the times of tsarist Russia and the years of Stalinist repression. The museum’s expositions provide information on the life, years of imprisonment and death of its most famous “inhabitants”, among which are scientists, revolutionary figures and clergymen.
Brotherly complex
The so-called Brotherly complex was the building in which the monastic cells were located. Built at the beginning of the 17th century, it is a strict structure, the only decoration of which are platbands with kokoshniks on the windows.
This two-story building, built in the form of the letter "G", stretches along the eastern wall of the monastery. Small cells were a place of solitude for the monks, and today they can be examined to find out more about their life in the monastery of those times.
Towers and walls
The Spaso-Euthymius Monastery (photo confirms this) has preserved its towers and walls to this day. All of them, except the Entrance, have a round shape with loopholes. Although the walls around the monastery were built powerful, they were never once besieged.
The builders in the 17th century, when building them, took into account the area on which the Orthodox complex is located. So, the wall overlooking the Kamenka river is rather low, which can not be said about the south side overlooking the plain. Here the structure is much higher and thicker, it is able to withstand shelling from cannons.
The length of the walls is 1200 meters, which at that time was considered a significant defensive structure with embrasures, loopholes and observation towers.
Vladimir-Suzdal complex
Vladimir-Suzdal Historical Museum-Reserve was founded in 1958. It includes architectural monuments of ancient Russian architecture of the cities of Vladimir, Bogolyubov and Suzdal.
The Savior-Euthymius Monastery became a part of the museum-reserve in 1968 in very poor condition, since for over 45 years it has been a prison for political prisoners and now for juvenile delinquents.
The restoration of the monastery allowed to preserve this historical monument of architecture, which today is visited by thousands of tourists from different countries.
Monastery today
The currently inactive male Spaso-Euthymius Monastery, whose opening hours are from 10.00 to 18.00 (all days except Mondays), delights visitors with a bell concert every hour and numerous exhibits.
Since 1991, this monastery has been included in the UNESCO heritage list and acquired the status of a museum of international level.