The vast territory of Pushkin Square is located in the Earth City, which occupies part of the center of Moscow. It is located two kilometers from the northwest side of the Kremlin. Its borders are in contact with the outskirts of two boulevards - Strastnoy and Tversky.
In other words, Pushkin Square is included in the Boulevard Ring belonging to the Tver region. The metro is immediately represented by three stations here: Pushkinskaya, Tverskaya and Chekhovskaya.
The historical names of Pushkin Square
From the very beginning, the square was called Passion. This was the name of the monastery located nearby. She called herself the boulevard of the Tver Gate, which once served as the entrance to the White City.
The current name, “Pushkinskaya Square”, was officially assigned to the territory in 1937. They called it so in commemoration of the centenary of the death of the great Russian poet.
Historical facts related to the Tver Gate
At the end of the sixteenth century, in the place where Pushkin Square now stretches, the Tver Gate leading to the streets of the White City towered. On the road leaving them, travelers went to Tver and St. Petersburg. The gates rose over the lands of I.D. Miloslavsky, a father-in-law to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.
Near the gate in 1641 they completed the construction of the church in honor of the Holy Icon of the Mother of God. In 1645, the Holy Monastery (female) was immediately opened. Nearby, they built a stone two-hipped temple of Demetrius of Solunsky. On Malaya Dmitrovka there was a place for the “Traveling Embassy Court”. It hosted European envoys, approaching Moscow from Novgorod.
Next to the embassy yard, the original three-hipped Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin in Putinki was erected. The church building has survived to the present day. In 1641, blacksmiths settled in the gate area. They worked in 63 forges, next to which in 1670 they built flour and butcher shops.
Create Square
Tver Gate lasted until 1720. On the site of their demolition, a compact platform was formed, which was decorated with a triumphal arch intended for the ceremonial entry of Peter I, who concluded the Nistadt Peace. Subsequently, on the eve of the upcoming coronations, a new arch was erected here.
The wall of the White City was destroyed in 1770. In 1784, Kuznetsov was driven out beyond Zemlyanoy Val. After 11 years, the need for shops disappeared, their owners also had to move to another place. In 1791, the Cathedral of Dmitry Solunsky was rebuilt. In its place, a baroque temple was built, famous for its choirs.
Five years later, Tverskaya Boulevard lay in the area of the dismantled wall, the first public walking place that Moscow received . From this moment, Pushkin Square will begin to transform and become a favorite place of the boardwalk.
The heyday of Pushkin Square
In 1803, the construction of the mansion was completed here, the owner of which, M. I. Rimskaya-Korsakova, arranges magnificent balls in it. In the house of Famusov (as this pompous palace was called), Griboedov and Pushkin visited. After the death of the mistress, the building was transferred to the Stroganov School of Technical Drawing. And during the construction of socialism, it was transferred to the Communist University of the Peoples of the East.
After 52 years, a wall decorated with towers and a bell tower was added to the Passion Monastery, which allowed him to dominate other buildings. In 1880, a monument was erected on Pushkin Square. Monument A.S. Pushkin is designed by sculptor A. Opekushin. Funds for its construction were collected by subscription, opened by I. Turgenev and F. Dostoevsky.
Until 1890, the Strastnaya Square was a place of trade. At a small bargain they sold meat, flour, firewood and hay. In 1872, along its territory, a horse-drawn railway line was drawn to Petrovsky Park. When twenty-seven years pass, the first Moscow trams will be launched along it. And after another 8 - horse-drawn cabman will change taxi.
Revolutionary Uprising on Strastnoy Boulevard
And only the events of 1905 and 1917 will overshadow the heyday of Tverskaya Square. She, like the whole country, will survive the sad days of hard times. At first, dragoons and the army fought with the rebels on the barricades of Strastnoy Boulevard. The rebels were shot. In the days of the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks took control of the boulevard. She was the link between the Moscow Soviet and Presnya.
Square in the era of socialism
Passion monastery in 1919 will be closed. He will stand idle for nine years. And then an anti-religious museum is organized in it. In 1927, the Izvestia newspaper’s editorial office will be built next to it. In 1934, two neighboring mansions under the numbers 16 and 16/2 were reconstructed and connected. The dome of the structure will form a characteristic silhouette, due to which Pushkin Square will gain a recognizable look. The new building will become the abode of the All-Union Theater Society, the House of Actors and the editorial board of the Moscow News newspaper.
In the same year, the temple of Dmitry Solunsky will be demolished. Five years later, a construction with a turret topped with a sculpture of a girl with a model of a yacht will be built in its place. Because of the sculpture, the building was nicknamed "The House Under the Skirt." Passion Monastery stood until 1938.
A decade later, Stalin ordered the monument to Pushkin to be moved to the place where the monastery stood. And two years later, a beautiful square was created on the boulevard. In 1961, the Rossiya Theater was erected on the free part of the monastery territory. Pushkin Square did not stop transforming, losing some cultural and historical objects.
So, in 1975, it was decided to demolish the Famusov House. Public protests did not lead to anything. The historic building was demolished, and soon a new structure grew up instead, where the newspaper Izvestia was settled.
In the era of Stalin, during the days of popular festivities, festivities were organized on the boulevard. May Day and October demonstrations took place on the square, entertainers and a military band performed. At the bazaars, they traded children's goods, sweets, traditional Russian food and scarce products.
Boulevard during the period of stagnation and perestroika
Since the stagnation, Strastnoy Boulevard has become the arena where sanctioned and spontaneous rallies and demonstrations take place. Dissidents traditionally held their walking marches here. The first "publicity rally", held on 05.15.65, on Constitution Day, grew into annual dissident demonstrations, which included Andrei Sakharov.
During the period of perestroika, Pushkin Square turned into an important center of public life. Near the editorial office of the Moskovskiye Novosti newspaper, fresh newspapers were posted on established stands. On this spot daily crowded crowd, arranging heated discussions about political changes in the country. In 1988, a rally organized by the Democratic Union without the permission of the authorities would be dispersed on the boulevard. Significant “marches of dissent” will be held here, entered on the pages of Russian history in 2007.
The opening on January 31, 1990 of the first McDonald's in Russia is perhaps the most epoch-making event of the times of the Soviet Union, which surprised the citizens of Pushkin Square. Photos of the restaurant, which made a splash, were found in almost every print publication of that time. People who wanted to taste foreign food stood in the frost for many hours.
Tourists reviews
This part of the Boulevard Ring, although it has lost its original appearance with majestic old buildings and churches, is always revitalized. Muscovites and metropolitan guests make appointments here. Vacationers drawn to the monument to A.S. Pushkin, to the benches by the elegant fountains. Tourists like to relax in restaurants and bars built of glass, decorated with bizarre figures cast in metal. For a long time, unhurried walks in the magnificent public garden remain in the memory of guests of the capital.