Sea Cathedral of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker

St. Nicholas Cathedral is the decoration of Kronstadt and one of its main attractions. This opulent, majestic structure – the main temple of the Russian Navy and a mournful monument to the fallen sailors in battles. It stands in the very center of the city, on Anchor Square, opposite the Admiralty. On cloudless days, the silver dome of St. Nicholas Cathedral, decorated with gilded anchors and crowned with a cross, is clearly visible from St. Petersburg, Peterhof and Lomonosov. By the silhouette of the grandiose temple it is easy to determine where exactly in the Gulf of Finland is the island of Kotlin, on which Kronstadt is built.

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Video: Maritime St. Nicholas Cathedral

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Highlights

The Maritime Cathedral in Kronstadt is consecrated in the name of St. Nicholas, the heavenly intercessor of all seafarers. The history of the temple is rich and dramatic, although it cannot be called ancient. St. Nicholas Cathedral was laid in 1902, consecrated in 1913, and 15 years later it was ruined. For seven decades the church premises were used as a warehouse, movie theater, concert hall, sailors’ club. By the time the half-destroyed building was returned to the bosom of the Russian Orthodox Church in the early 2000s, little remained of the former grandeur of the temple. The cathedral was repaired and restored intermittently, and it was only opened to the faithful in 2013.

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Built in the Neo-Byzantine style, the temple, despite its massiveness, looks light and airy. Its facades are made of light brick and decorated with portals with elegant columns, carvings, mosaic panels, many stained glass window openings. The interior design of the cathedral is also magnificent, with a maritime theme. The building is surrounded on three sides by a garden with walking paths and benches.

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Today, as in the pre-revolutionary era, the St. Nicholas Cathedral is not only a spiritual place where services are held, but also a monument to the people who dedicated their lives to the navy of the state and died at sea. Memorial plaques and relics of the temple keep the names of the heroes who perished in the ocean from the Peter the Great times to the present day. The dome of the cathedral shining in the sun with wavy gold banners still serves as a friendly landmark for ship navigators guiding ships along the Kronstadt fairway.

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History of the Kronstadt Sea Cathedral

The first maritime church in Kronstadt was the wooden Epiphany Cathedral Church, built in 1728. It was erected by decree of Peter the Great and honored as a spiritual monument to the emperor, who founded a fortress on the island of Kotlin. The church stood for more than a century, having collected numerous naval relics in its sacristies. Celebrations connected with significant dates in the history of the Russian Navy were regularly held here. Traditions of St. Nicholas Church were inherited by the St. Nicholas Sea Cathedral, which became its spiritual successor. However, its construction began only 60 years after the dilapidated Epiphany Church was dismantled in 1841, building in its place a small temporary church.

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A monumental maritime cathedral-memorial decided to build on Anchor Square, where old anchors from decommissioned ships lived out their days in a warehouse. The initiative belonged to Vice-Admiral Nikolai Kaznakov, the chief commander of the Kronstadt port. In 1896, he petitioned Nicholas II to erect a temple on the island, which would become not just a maritime cathedral, but a monumental monument to those who gave their lives in the performance of their duty compatriots who served in the navy of the country. Along with the petition was sent a plan and calculations of finances required for the construction of the temple. The Emperor approved the proposal, and this gave the opportunity to begin collecting donations for large-scale construction.

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Predominantly the funds came from sailors, who up to 1913 sent to the good cause of a quarter of a percent of their salaries. In addition, the construction was donated by merchants and businessmen, a lot of money contributed and the royal family. The author of the cathedral project was the famous architect and engineer Vasily Kosyakov, who proposed to erect the building in the Byzantine style. The construction began in 1902. A year later, Nicholas II and his family arrived at the ceremony of solemn laying of the walls. The Romanovs were also present at the consecration of the temple, the momentous event was accomplished on June 10, 1913.

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St. Nicholas Cathedral could accommodate up to 5000 people. The painting of its dome imitated the night starry sky, and the richest mosaic on the floor – the sea. The cross crowning the dome was wonderfully visible from all points of the Neva fairway, just as the spire of the high bell tower of the Epiphany Church was once perfectly visible from the bay. In the interior stood out black marble and granite slabs, on which were imprinted the names of more than 1500 sailors who died since the creation of the Russian Imperial Navy in 1696 and up to 1913.

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In 1918. Maritime St. Nicholas Cathedral was transferred to the disposal of the Kronstadt Council, but for another ten years church services were still held here. In 1929, the local authorities ordered to close the church, and it was subjected to ruin. The wonderful iconostasis was destroyed, the altar was desecrated, the bells and crosses were thrown down, some of the memorial slabs lay in the road leading to the city Summer Garden, others were used for other economic needs.

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In 1932, the premises of the church were divided by the Maxim Gorky movie theater (in urban folklore – “Maximka”) and warehouses. During the war years here were placed the service of accurate time, hospital. Under the dome, at a height of 70 meters, an observation post, a point of correction of ship and coastal artillery were arranged. From this position the terrain could be viewed for 45 km. In 1943, the roof was penetrated by a German aerial bomb, which, fortunately, did not explode. Its trace is marked in the northern wing of the building.

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In the postwar period, the church housed the Kronstadt Fortress Club with a 1200-seat concert hall, balconies and a stage for theatrical productions. In 1976 the building received the status of an architectural monument of local importance, and for the first time it began to be thoroughly repaired. In 1980, on the eve of the 35th anniversary of the Victory, the Kronstadt Fortress Museum opened its doors in the cathedral.

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In the early 2000s, church hierarchs insisted on the return of the St. Nicholas Cathedral to the Russian Orthodox Church. In 2002, the dome of the temple was again crowned with a cross, and a year later the cathedral was transferred to the St. Petersburg diocese. Long repair and restoration works began here, the building was in an emergency condition. The restoration of memorial plates also required a lot of effort: the mournful list of fallen heroes was recreated practically anew. The cathedral was consecrated in May 2013 during the celebration of its centenary.

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Architecture of St. Nicholas Cathedral

In the architectural appearance of the Maritime Nikolsky Cathedral one can guess the features of the legendary St. Sophia Cathedral. But the architect Kosyakov, who intentionally went to Constantinople (today – Istanbul), to remove the exact measurements of St. Sophia Cathedral, decided to build the Kronstadt temple in a somewhat “reduced” version and in slightly altered proportions. Thus, the external dimensions of St. Sophia are 75.6 by 72 meters, and the Sea Cathedral – 83.2 by 64 meters, height – respectively 56 m and 52 m. The cross adds another 18 meters to the Kronstadt Cathedral, making it the tallest structure in the city. Huge, 26.7 meters in diameter, the dome of the temple and the cross crowning it today again serve as a landmark for sailors, almost fulfilling the unfulfilled wish of Peter the Great – to erect in the heart of Kronstadt two-hundred-meter tower-beacon.

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The white outline of a huge anchor laid out on the square near the cathedral is impressive. In this large-scale drawing from the top point can be seen the outline of the cross, the outline of the temple, which guesses a resemblance to the Old Russian helmet. Since 1913 Anchor Square has been decorated with a bronze statue of Stepan Osipovich Makarov, a brilliant naval commander and Arctic explorer. The monument is made by architect Leonid Sherwood in an expressive manner, emphasizing the resolute character of the vice-admiral who died during the defense of Port Arthur.

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The basement level of the St. Nicholas Sea Cathedral is faced with granite rust in light colors, the walls are lined with grayish brick and decorated with terracotta ornamentation. The solemn main facade faces west. In front of it you will see lanterns made in the form of huge fantastic flowers. The facade is divided by three portals, to which wide staircases lead. The central entrance is highlighted by a volumetric arch. Slender bell towers topped with gilded domes rise above the side entrances. The arches are framed by sculptural images of angels on a golden background.

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In the niche of the opulent central portal, behind a beautiful openwork lattice, shelters the chapel of the Savior of the Nerukotvorny. The mosaic panels above the portals and in the chapel were created in the workshop of Vladimir Frolov based on drawings by Russian artist Mikhail Vasiliev, a great master of church painting. Above the entrance one can see the faces of St. Peter and Paul the Apostles, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. John of Rylsk.

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On the northern, eastern and southern sides of the St. Nicholas Cathedral is surrounded by a garden with a regular layout. It is bordered by a low wrought iron fence. The first trees appeared here in 1903. Then, after the ceremonies dedicated to the laying of the church walls, the Emperor and his entourage planted three dozen year-old oak trees on this territory. The formation of the garden in 1911-1914 years worked on the master of garden landscape E. G. Gilbich. Trees in the garden do not grow densely, and all the facades of the Kronstadt Cathedral are perfectly visible from a distance.

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The interior of the temple

The decoration of St. Nicholas Cathedral is impressive in its luxury. Restoration of the interiors, recreation of lost fragments of mosaics and stained glass windows were carried out on the basis of pre-revolutionary photographs and drawings. The décor has a strong marine theme. Golden, blue, ash tones prevail in the mosaic range. The combination of colors in the palette of the internal volume emphasizes the aspiration of the temple upwards: dark tones of granite in the lower tier gradually lighten, turning into bright golden and sky-blue under the roof.

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On the marble floor are images of fish, seaweed, underwater monsters, and ships. These drawings in frames of copper are clearly visible from the height. You can see them if you go up with a guide under the dome or on the upper tier of the bell tower. In the interiors St. Andrew’s flags, chains of chandeliers imitating anchor ones draw attention. Such details give the St. Nicholas Church a similarity to a ship. This feeling is strengthened by the windows in the upper tier, made in the form of huge portholes. The stained-glass windows in them were wonderfully restored by the masters of the St. Petersburg stained-glass workshop of Alexey Yakovlev. On sunny days, the bright light penetrating into the temple through the round and arched window openings is intricately refracted, filling the space with a magical glow.

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The iconostasis of the cathedral, which fell victim to vandalism and was recognized by contemporaries as a masterpiece of stone carving, was restored on the basis of archival materials. It was recreated from white and multicolored Ural marble, decorated with mosaic inserts and bronze details. The columns supporting the two-tiered galleries-choirs are made of artificial marble.

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The side galleries have wooden benches for those wishing to rest. Here are also placed expositions devoted to the history of the national fleet and the Sea Temple. Among the exhibits – ship images, banners, models of ships that died in battles at sea, for example, skillfully executed model of the squadron battleship “Borodino”, which participated in the Battle of Tsushima and sank with the entire crew, excluding one sailor-overseer.

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The gallery of the first tier is flanked by 130 memorial plaques. The black marble slabs bear the names of the drowned sailors in gilded letters. White marble plaques keep the memory of the dead naval clergymen. In this row one can notice empty plaques waiting for the names of future heroes.

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Practical information

You can visit St. Nicholas Sea Cathedral any day of the week from 10:00 to 19:00. Morning and evening services are held here daily. During the services the church choir sings.

The temple offers tours. To join one of them, you will need to make a donation of 100 to 400 rubles. Money in the piggy bank takes the servant, she you will see at the entrance to the cathedral. A half-hour walk with a guide will allow you to get acquainted with the dramatic history of the temple, climb 200 steps under the roof and on the bell tower.

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Photography is prohibited in the Kronstadt Cathedral.

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How to get there

The address of the Maritime St. Nicholas Cathedral is 5, Anchor Square. The square is located near the main entrance to the Kronstadt Admiralty. A five-minute walk from the temple is the stop “Roshal Square”. Buses #1Kr, 2Kr, 3Kr running around the city stop here.

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From St. Petersburg to the cathedral can be reached by the dam. It is most convenient to get there from the metro station “Chernaya Rechka”. From the subway you need to go to Akademika Koroleva Street, where there is a public transportation stop “Primorsky Prospekt”. The marshrutka № 405 will take you to the stop “Roshal Square.”

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At 1.3 km from the temple there is another stop where transport from the Northern Capital arrives. It is called “Civil.” From it, Sovetskaya Street leads to St. Nicholas Cathedral. You can get to “Grazhdanskaya” by bus number 101, which leaves from the metro station “Staraya Derevnya”, or by route number 407 from the subway station “Prospekt Prospect Prosveshcheniya”.

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There is another option: to get from the metro station “Avtovo” to the city of Lomonosov. From the local bus station to Kronstadt runs bus number 175, which makes a stop at “Grazhdanskaya”.

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