Nizhny Novgorod is a city with almost eight hundred years of history rich in various events. Located at the confluence of the Volga and Oka, it has always been one of the largest cultural, economic and transport centers of Russia. More than once the city served as a stronghold of statehood, defending the country from external enemies. All this contributed to the fact that at present Nizhny Novgorod is rich in interesting memorable places and sights. One of them is the famous ancient Kremlin.
History
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin began to be built around 1500. It was finally erected in 1515. The structure was a two-kilometer wall, which was reinforced by thirteen towers. One of them - Zachatskaya - has not survived to the present.
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, which was also called the stone city, had its own permanent garrison, as well as impressive artillery weapons. The Volga fortress was created by the Moscow state as the main stronghold designed to confront the Kazan Khanate. For its military service, the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin withstood numerous attacks and sieges.
The last page in the military track record of the Volga fortress was written at the beginning of the 17th century. It was a period of foreign intervention and the great feats of the Nizhny Novgorod militia, led by Kuzma Minin and Dmitry Pozharsky.
Description
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is a defensive medieval building. It is located partially on the flat top of Watch Mountain, as well as on its slopes (from the northwestern part).
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin (photo you can see below) is located on an area of 22.7 hectares. The so-called stone city is quite impressive in size. Its perimeter is 2045 meters. Unapproachable walls for enemies in the past have a height of twelve to fifteen meters. Moreover, they are also very wide.
The thickness of the walls is from three and a half to four and a half meters. Defensive towers were erected along the perimeter of the stone city. How many towers are there in the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin? At first there were thirteen of them. Currently, twelve have survived. The names for the towers were chosen according to their use and purpose or according to the names of nearby buildings.
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin (Nizhny Novgorod) from the day it was founded has had cathedrals on its territory that were the main ones in the city. Among them are Mikhailo-Arkhangelsk, as well as Holy Transfiguration. In the "stone city" there are several parish churches. There are episcopal and grand-princely palaces, as well as several monasteries.
Location of defensive towers
If you look at the plan of the chain of fortifications, you can see that it is an irregular polygon with towers located at the corners. It was in ancient times that they played the role of defensive towers. The scheme of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin introduces us to the names of the towers. If you look clockwise, the first of them is Dmitrievskaya (Dmitrovskaya). This is the main tower. It is named after the great Nizhny Novgorod Prince Dmitry Konstantinovich, who ruled in the 14th century.
The next scheme is a tower called Pantry. It was used as a storage place. Next to the now defunct Posad Nikolskaya Church, the Nikolskaya Tower was erected .
The next tower - Koromyslovu - is presented to us by the scheme on which the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is designated. The history of this building tells about the legendary young woman with a yoke supposedly buried in this place. The fifth tower is Tainitskaya. The tower got its name because of the secret passage located in it, leading to the Pochaya river. The northernmost tower is Ilyinskaya.
Not far from it is the Church of Elijah the Prophet. This tower is also called by geographic location - North. At the Watch Tower in the 16th century The clock was set.
The Ivanovo Tower was adjacent to the now destroyed Church of St. John the Baptist. White was called a defensive tower because of its white stone cladding, which was overlaid on the outside facade. The St. George Tower was erected not far from the now defunct St. George Church, and gunpowder and various ammunition were stored in the Gunpowder.
Destination of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin
After Kazan fell, the Volga fortress lost its military significance. Subsequently, it became the administrative center for a vast district. On its territory was an orderly hut. The governor and provincial government were located in the stone city.
And today, the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is the cultural and administrative center of the city. On its territory are the buildings of the regional and city administration, as well as the representative office of the President of Russia in the Volga Federal District. Visitors to the former fortress are offered excursions to the Art Museum, as well as to the Museum of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. Located on the territory of this ancient stone city and the Center for Contemporary Arts.
Dmitrievskaya tower
The main defensive tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin was erected in the central part of the upland section. Its facade faces a semicircular part of the square, named after Minin and Pozharsky.
The Dmitrievskaya tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin since its construction played the role of the main entrance to the fortress. It was also the central defense hub of the entire upland section. The leading role of the tower is confirmed by the radial-concentric layout of the city. The fact is that from the very entrance to the Dmitrievskaya Tower, streets diverge in different directions. Among them are Ulyanov, Alekseevskaya, Barbarian and Bolshaya Pokrovskaya.
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, whose history is contained in the oldest chronicles, began its existence with the erection of this particular tower. This is confirmed by extant documentary sources.
In the 17th century Dmitrievskaya tower had significant weapons. In terms of numbers, it exceeded all other defensive towers. Military equipment existed until 1705. Subsequently, in the late 18th - early 19th centuries. The Dmitrievskaya tower served as the premises for the garrison school. Then it housed the provincial archive, and from 1896 to 1919 - a museum with artistic and historical exhibits. During the Soviet period, the tower worked for a considerable time in the workshop, producing decorations for ballet, theater and opera.
In 1965, a significant event occurred. On the roofing spire of the tower was installed gilded coat of arms of the city, depicting a walking deer.
Pantry tower
At the very beginning of the Zelensky Congress, there is a round tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. They call her Pantry. Previously, it was used as a storage place. In the 17-18 centuries. the tower was called Alekseevskaya, as was the church located nearby.
Currently, the tower is a four-tier structure. In its lower part there are underground rooms in which there are side combat chambers with embrasures. Restoration work, which was carried out in 1953, allowed to restore the semicircular extension of the Storage Tower. This building, erected in the 19th century, is designed to create air ventilation in the pantries of the lower tier, where they kept tar oil, used to illuminate the streets of the city.
In the second tier of the tower are similar cameras in the side walls. The third level is a “stone tent” without ceilings. The fourth tier is a running platform around the tower. Its wall is a parapet with battlements.
Nikolskaya tower
After the Pantry Tower, Nikolskaya is located on the scheme of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. Its name was taken from the nearby church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.
In ancient times, this tower played the role of the second most important defense node. By its significance, it was inferior to the Dmitrievskaya Tower. Currently, with the help of restoration work, the original appearance of the building with a driveway has been restored.
During the 17-19 centuries. The tower was used as a storage room, significantly changing its internal layout. Restoration work carried out in 1959-62 not only restored the interior rooms. The facade of the tower also took its original historical form. In the same period, the roof of the tower, which had the shape of a tent with a watch tower, was restored.
Rocker Tower
In the chain of walls located on the upland site, the corner is a round tower, bearing a peculiar name. The history of the name Koromyslovaya tower is associated with two versions of the legends about a woman who is buried in this place. According to some reports, she was killed to give strength to the walls, as required by popular belief. The second legend says about the courage of a woman who killed several invaders with her rocker and was buried near the tower.
A distinctive feature of the Koromyslovaya tower is its white stone lining. In the 18-19 centuries. the tower housed the archive, and since 1886 various warehouses were built in it.
Taynitskaya tower
This round tower is located above the very slope of the steep bank of the Pochain gully with the Pochayna river flowing along the bottom. This structure owes its name to the hiding place - the underground passage. This path led from the tower down the slope of the ravine to the river itself. The trench had wooden ceilings and walls, and the top part from prying eyes was hidden by derain. In the 80s of the last century, the discovered remains of the cache were destroyed.
Historical documents dating back to the 17th century introduce us to another name for the tower - Mironositskaya, originating from the ravine of the church of the same name located on the opposite bank.
North tower
The facade on the Pochainsky ravine is a tower located in the northwestern corner of the upland part of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin. This is the Northern Tower, which got its name by geographical location. However, this happened at a later time. Documents of the 17th century they call it Ilyinskaya, as well as the church of the same name, which was located on the opposite side of the ravine. In some documents, the tower was listed as Angular (angular).
The device of this tower was no different from the layout of Tainitskaya and Koromyslova. Only in some details there are minor differences. In the 19th and early 20th centuries. the tower was used by military units as a warehouse.
Watch tower
This building is located on the slope of the Volga River at the very top of the fortress hill. It is the only tower of the Kremlin, which has a ledge inward. In former times, she did not play a combat role. Its main purpose is to create an artistic and aesthetic composition. The ensemble of the North and Clock towers was decided by architects extremely well. At the same time, the most beautiful place in the Kremlin is the giant steps that descend from a high cliff from the tower wall. At the top of the tower is a special wooden room - the “hour hut”. Hence the name of the structure.
Ivanovo tower
The construction got its name from the previously located nearby church, bearing the name of John the Baptist. The Ivanovo tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, on its inside, had a staircase extension along which the defenders of the stone city climbed the walls. There was also a cell for criminals and prisoners. The Ivanovo tower was equipped with a gate and was the main one in the foothill zone of the Kremlin.
White tower
This building is located opposite the turn of the congress called the Kremlin. This is the only round tower that has been preserved on the foothill territory of the fortress. From the side of the field, the facade of the tower is lined with white stone. From here came its name. In peacetime, the tower was used as a warehouse, and before the fire that occurred here in 1924, archival documents were stored in the tower premises.
St. George's Tower
A rectangular construction that was previously passable. The St. George Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is located above the very steep bank of the Volga. A monument to V.P. Chkalov. There are two versions of the origin of the name of the structure. According to one of them, nearby was the church of the same name. According to the second, in this place stood the St. George's Terem - the palace built by the founder of the city, Yuri Vsevolodovich.
The modern rectangular tower differs significantly from the similar structures of the Kremlin in its appearance and layout of the interior.
Powder tower
The round tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is named for its application. Ammunition was stored in it. According to the name of the nearby cathedral, documents of the 17th century call this tower Spasskaya. In the annals of the 18th century. it is referred to as Streletskaya, because not far from it was located a Streletskaya settlement.
Currently, the Powder Tower is covered with a roof and partially restored. The device of the tower is similar to the Pantry. These two towers have differences from the rest in the form of the absence of frontal loopholes in the lower tiers.