Spaso-Preobrazhensky Solovetsky Monastery

Spaso-Preobrazhensky Solovetsky Monastery is a spiritual stronghold of Orthodoxy in northern Russia and one of the landmark monuments of the country’s history. It is located on the Great Solovetsky Island, the largest among the islands of the archipelago of the same name, belonging to the waters of the White Sea. Founded in the 15th century and strengthened in the following centuries, the Solovetsky Monastery, with its grandiose walls made of huge stone blocks and majestic austere temples with windows in the form of loopholes, for centuries served as a fortress of faith and a military stronghold. Today, the active male monastery receives pilgrims and tourists, impressing guests with the antiquity of its buildings and their architectural originality.

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Video: Solovetsky Monastery

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Highlights

The Solovetsky Monastery is a huge complex that includes temples, cellular buildings, and outbuildings. Its architectural ensemble is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Most tourists come here from June to September, when the Solovetsky Islands are finally ice-free and navigation opens. Coming here by boat or motor ship is a fascinating journey and a romantic prologue to the subsequent acquaintance with the cloister, which resembles a magical castle.

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To get acquainted with the dramatic history of the monastery tourists are helped by spiritualized guides. A sightseeing walk, including only the main attractions, will last 3 hours. And independently wander around the territory of the monastery, thoughtfully examine everything, take pictures you can spend the whole day.

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Deserts and hermitages belonging to the Solovetsky Monastery are also located on the neighboring island of Bolshaya Muksalma, on Anzersky and Bolshoy Zayatsky islands. Boat excursions are organized there. The monastery also has subvallages in Moscow, near St. Petersburg, in Kemi, Faustovo, Radovo.

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History of the Solovetsky Monastery

The foundation of the Solovetsky monastery is associated with the names of the hermit monks Savvatii, German and Zosima. The first to the desolate Solovetsky Islands, sheltered by dense forests and impassable swamps, was a monk of the Valaam monastery Savvatii, who found a place for ascetic solitude. He was accompanied by a like-minded monk German. On the Great Solovetsky Island they erected a wooden cross, cut down modest cells, where they lived for 6 years in labor and prayer. In 1435, in the absence of Herman, who had gone to the mainland, Savvatii felt the approach of the last hour and sailed in a shuttle to the coast of the Vyg River to take communion in the chapel standing there.

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A year later, Herman returned to the deserted island accompanied by a Novgorodian named Zosima, who had distributed his property to the poor and decided to join the brotherhood of hermits. About two kilometers from the future Solovetsky monastery they built cells where they settled. Soon, one by one, believers began to arrive on the island, seeking salvation from worldly temptations. They built their own cells, and soon a monastery was established on Solovki. The Monk Zosima became its hegumen, he also wrote the first statutes that defined the life of the brethren.

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The heyday of the Solovetsky monastery came in the XVI century. It is associated with the name of hegumen Philip. The energetic abbot undertook to improve the monastery, which was in decline after a devastating fire in 1485. The hermits cut trees, drained swamps, dug canals, built dams, laid roads, dug ponds, fertilized the stony soil. Birch groves were planted on the hills and mast trees were planted. Lapland reindeer were brought to the islands, and the monks began to breed fish in the ponds.

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Through the efforts of the hegumen began the construction of the first stone church – the cathedral church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the refectory. The shabby dwellings of the brethren were replaced by well-built and spacious 2-storied premises, household buildings made of bricks were erected, for the production of which a brick factory was built. In the same period on Solovetsky Island appeared harbor with a pier, near it as lighthouses were installed high crosses.

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Philip was hegumen of the Solovetsky monastery for 18 years. Already under him the monastery began to turn into a stronghold. The five-domed Transfiguration Cathedral (1558-1566) looked almost like a fortress, with its massive smooth walls, high corner towers, loophole-shaped windows cutting through the walls high above the ground. The Transfiguration and Dormition Cathedrals were connected by an underground passage. Both buildings were supplied with water from the Holy Lake and had impressive stocks of food, weapons and gunpowder in case of a long siege. Since the early 70s of the XVI century Solovetsky monastery acquired the status of the main outpost of the Russian state on the White Sea coast. In the 80-90s, walls made of huge stone blocks weighing no less than 7 tons were erected here. Behind them a garrison of a thousand riflemen was placed. During the XVI-XVII centuries the monastery walls were stormed by the Swedes more than once without result.

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The second half of the XVII century was marked for the monastery by confrontation with Moscow Patriarch Nikon – the initiator of the church reform. The brethren considered it heretical and refused to serve according to the new canons. The so-called Solovetsky sit-in, which took the form of armed resistance, lasted almost 10 years. The schism was suppressed in 1676, after a siege of the monastery by tsarist troops. In 1765 the Solovetsky monastery acquired the status of a stavropegial monastery, becoming directly subordinate to the Synod.

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In 1814, the monastery lost its status as a fortress, and all the guns and ammunition were taken from here. But during the Crimean War, the monastery walls again took the blow, this time from the British, and again withstood.

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Since the XVI century Solovetsky Monastery served as a place of imprisonment of freethinkers dangerous to the tsar’s throne. After 1883 the prison was abolished, but the monastery remained a place of exile for guilty churchmen. The Soviet power inherited the gloomy tradition. Already in 1920 in the monastery walls was organized a forced labor camp, which in 1937 was transformed into a prison of special purpose. Here were held mainly “political” – former SRs, white officers, priests.

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From 1942 to 1945 in the monastery walls was based in the school of young sailors. After 1967, when the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve was established, restoration work began here. Monastic life returned here in 1990: on October 25, the Holy Synod blessed the opening of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Stavropigial Monastery.

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Monastery Grad

Solovetsky Monastery, austere and majestic, rises above the narrow isthmus that connects the Holy Lake and the sea bay – the Bay of Well-Being. It is surrounded by grandiose walls 8 to 11 meters high and 4 to 6 meters thick. Outside the walls, the formidable towers, each of which is famous for its own history, extend downwards and are overgrown with moss. Huge boulders form the basis of most of the monastery buildings.

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The architectural ensemble of the revived monastery includes temples, residential and household buildings connected by covered passages. The way to the Central Court is through the front entrance of the monastery – the Holy Gate. Passing it, you will find yourself at the cathedral complex, its dominant buildings are the five-domed Holy Transfiguration Cathedral and the Assumption Cathedral with a huge, occupying about 500 m², refectory.

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The Holy Transfiguration Cathedral, the embodiment of the spiritual grandeur of the Solovetsky Monastery, is characterized by its monumentality and laconic beauty. Behind its high walls there are altars located on different tiers. Today the facades of the cathedral are not decorated with painting, the remnants of ancient paintings are preserved only in the keel-shaped niches of the vaults of the front western wall of the temple. The facades of the Church of the Assumption, which is a part of the Assumption refectory complex, are practically devoid of decorations. The refectory, which was admired by contemporaries, is the dominant feature of the ensemble. The church adjoins it from the south-east, on the north-east side there is the Cellar Chamber, which used to house the utensils kept by the cellar in charge of the household of the monastery. Today the refectory has been recreated in its authentic medieval appearance, and on feast days tables are set here for the brethren and guests.

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The old religious buildings include the gateway Annunciation Church, which dates back to the end of the XVI century and first welcomes visitors to the monastery, the church in the name of St. Philip (XVIII century), the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Holy Trinity Zosimo-Savvatiev Cathedral, erected in the XIX century, St. Nicholas Church – the successor of one of the first temples of the Solovetsky monastery. Next to it stands the 50-meter bell tower (XVIII century) – the tallest building of the architectural complex.

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In the miniature courtyard between St. Nicholas and Transfiguration temples hid the Church of St. Herman, built in the century before last on the site of ancient chapels, where the remains of Herman and Savvatiy rested. In the courtyard of the church there is always a gracious silence and peace.

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The central monastery courtyard is surrounded by buildings with monks’ cells. Each of them has its own name. Next to the Holy Priest’s cell block is the southern courtyard, where you can see one of the most richly decorated monastic sights – Solovetsky mill of the XVIII century, which is considered to be the oldest stone water mill in Russia. It is installed on the site of a miracle of the Solovetsky monastery’s hydraulic system – a wooden mill built by hegumen Philip to supply the monastery with water from the Holy Lake.

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Monastery properties

In the old days, numerous subvillages, sketes, and hermitages were assigned to the Solovetsky Monastery, today returned to its possessions. They are located both on Solovki and outside the archipelago. Thus, on the Big Solovetsky Island, 4 km away from the monastery walls, there is the Makarievskaya Desert. It stretches on the shore of Lake Nizhny Perth, in a picturesque hilly corner with a favorable microclimate. In the XIX century there was a chapel and two cells, one of which the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Macarius, liked to seclude himself, and the other was intended for the silent residence of monks. Later the surrounding land began to be cultivated – on the terraces fortified with boulders the monks planted apple trees, berry bushes, cedars, laid out flower beds, arranged heated greenhouses. Since 1981 this beautiful location of Solovki has been elevated to the status of a botanical garden. Walking and bus excursions are organized here (the cost is 400 rubles per person).

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In 2.5 km from the monastery town, on the shore of Lake Igumensky, is located Filippovskaya Desert – a favorite place of retreat of hegumen Philip. Here, according to legend, Jesus Christ appeared before him, and at the place of the divine appearance, a key of pure water ran. Abbot himself deepened it and put over the miraculous source of a wooden chapel.

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On the Great Solovetsky Island there is also one of the oldest deserts – Isaac’s Desert. It is surrounded by lush meadows and lakes rich in fish. This territory belongs to the hayfields of the Solovetsky monastery.

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On Sekirnaya Mountain, 11 km from the monastery, is located the Holy Ascension Skete, named after the church erected here in the 60s of the XIX century. Later a cell block was built here. During the gloomy camp period there was a punishment isolation center here. At the foot of Sekirnaya Hill prisoners were shot. Now there is a cross in honor of the Solovetsky New Martyrs.

In the Savvatievskaya Desert, founded in the place where the cells of Savvatii and German stood, today there is a fraternal building, next to which are arranged vegetable gardens and greenhouses.

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On Anzersky Island, which is 22 kilometers from Bolshoi Solovetsky, there are two active strict monastic sketes – Holy Trinity and Golgotha Raspyatsky. On Bolshaya Muksalma Island, where the monks used to raise and graze cattle, the Sergievskiy skete is located today, and monastic residents live here permanently.

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On Bolshoy Zayatsky Island is located St. Andrew’s Skete, but the monastic life here has not yet returned. Here survived built of stone under hegumen Philip the chamber, cookhouse and harbor. In 1702, by order of Peter I, who visited Solovki, a wooden church in the name of St. Andrew the First-Called was erected on the island. It still stands here today, being one of the oldest surviving examples of wooden architecture of the Russian North.

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Where to stay

Tourists wishing to stay longer in Solovki to get a full idea of the Solovetsky Monastery can stay in hotels, tent city, private sector. A couple of minutes’ walk from the monastery are three cottages of the Shelter Hotel. Accommodation in a double room with amenities costs from 5100 rubles, including breakfast. Nearby is the hotel “Solo-nord”. The shelter is also provided by “Solovetsky Sloboda” and “Solovki Hotel”, which is 10 minutes from the monastery walls.

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Those wishing to work for the good of the Solovetsky monastery, the monastery willingly provides accommodation and meals for up to two weeks. To stay here for a longer period of time it is necessary to obtain an individual blessing by contacting the pilgrimage service (tel: +7 (911) 575 83 10).

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Practical information

There are excursion bureaus in Solovetsky settlement. Private guides also offer to conduct a tour of the monastery. Museum-reserve organizes sightseeing visits to the main monastery sights twice a day: approximately at 10:30 and 16:00. Duration – 3 hours, cost – 400 rubles. During the walk stop by the monastery canteen. Here for 300 rubles you can have a delicious and hearty lunch. In the menu – a lot of fish dishes, among which shines the famous Solovetsky herring.

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Souvenir shops in the village sell books about the monastery and the Solovetsky Islands, guidebooks, photo albums, as well as souvenirs with the Pomor color: sharkunki rattles, wooden rattles, birch bark tuesses, magnets with the image of the shrines of the Solovetsky monastery. In the monastery shop you can buy religious items and icons. Believers traditionally buy images of the holy ascetics Zosima and Savvatii.

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How to get there

Travelers get to the Solovetsky Monastery by sea or by air. Navigation starts from the end of May and lasts usually until the end of September. The starting points are the Karelian towns of Kem and Belomorsk. Trains running on the Moscow-Murmansk and St. Petersburg-Murmansk routes stop here. The journey from the capital will take about a day, from St. Petersburg – 15-16 hours.

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It is worth considering that Moscow trains stop at the stations of Kemi and Belomorsk at night or evening hours, when ships to Solovki already (or still) do not go. In Kemi you can spend the waiting time in the city hotel or in the hotel complex “Prichal” of Rabocheostrovsk settlement – the pier is located here. The Solovetsky Monastery is a 5-minute walk away from it and pilgrims stay here. If available, lay travelers can find shelter here by making a donation from 150 rubles. To Rabocheostrovsk from the railway station there are shuttle buses, bus number 1, cab. Travel time is 15-25 minutes.

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From St. Petersburg it is convenient to get to Belomorsk and Kemi by train № 022Ch. The train arrives at these stations respectively at 09:44 and 10:39. Passengers have time to catch the boats going to the islands in the daytime. There is also a bus service between the Northern capital and Belomorsk. Transport arrives in the city in the morning, the road takes about 12 hours.

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From Kemi at 08:00 and at 12:30 to Solovki depart motor ships “Vasily Kosyakov” and “Metel-4”. Boarding begins half an hour before departure, the voyage takes 2 hours. In a storm, although it is rare in summer, the ships do not sail. Ticket price for adults – from 1800 rubles, for children from 3 to 9 years – from 900 rubles, toddlers go on board for free.

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Between the mainland and the Solovetsky Islands also run monastery boats and motorboats Solovetsky Museum-Reserve. One can get on board with the consent of the organizations-owners. To travel on monastery transport you will need the blessing of the monastery.

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From Belogorsk to Solovki once a day, at 08:00, departs the motor ship “Sapphire”, accommodating 250 people. Departure – from the Eastern port. You will spend 4 hours on the way. The trip will cost the same amount as from Kemi. Book tickets for ships is better in advance, experienced travelers do it in March.

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Most ships arrive at the Tamarinsky pier. To the center of the village of Solovetsky, located behind the monastery walls, from here 15-20 minutes on foot. Boats belonging to the museum and the monastery disembark passengers at the Monastery Pier, located near the walls of the Kremlin.

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Cruise ships periodically visit the islands, but passengers do not have time to see the Solovetsky Monastery, as the ships do not stay here for long.

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Solovki has an airport that receives direct flights from Arkhangelsk. In 2019, reconstruction began here. Those wishing to travel by air should clarify the date of its opening and the new schedule. The planned frequency of flights is 3 times a week. Keep in mind that there is often non-flying weather here.

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Low airfare calendar