Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God
Kazan Cathedral on Red Square in Moscow has preserved its original features only by chance. The temple’s difficult fate could have resulted in its being erased from the memory of the Russian people.”
General information
For the first time the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God on Red Square is mentioned in the annals of 1625. The funds for the wooden temple were donated by Prince Pozharsky.
The icon of Our Lady of Kazan, in whose honor the cathedral was consecrated, was the most venerated at that time. According to legend, a girl of 9 years old saw the Mother of God three times in a dream, gesturing to her at the ruins of the house. The priest Ermolai, to whom the dream was told, found the icon on the ruins. It happened in Kazan, in 1579.
.The wooden cathedral soon burned in a fire. In its place in 1635, a stone church was erected. The funds were provided by the Tsar himself -Mikhail Fedorovich. The new building of the temple of the Kazan icon of the Mother of God was made in three colors, each of which had its own meaning. Gold symbolized the religious purpose of the building, red color meant the blood of Christ, as well as fire, which punishes and renews, white – the color of holiness and purity. According to Byzantine tradition, this color scheme means that the cathedral was created primarily as a military cathedral.
In the Kazan Cathedral of the Icon of the Mother of God on Moscow’s Red Square, periodic processions were held, in which Russian tsars also participated.
.The temple was once served by Protopopes Avvakum and Neronov, who did not accept Nikon’s church reform. Those who disagreed with Nikon’s innovations were exiled to imprisonment.
The revolution of 1917 was a turning point in the life of the temple. Architect Baranovsky had time to make measurements of the building, which at that time was not only difficult, but also unsafe. In 1930, the Kazan Cathedral on Red Square was closed, and a canteen appeared within its walls. After 6 years, the shrine was completely dismantled.
.On the site of the Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, the Pavilion of the III International was opened, and for its visitors – a public restroom, which existed on the site of the holy altars until 1990, when work began on the restoration of the temple. Baranowski’s measurements proved to be just right..Visitors
- Address: Red Square
- Nearest metro: Okhotny Ryad, Ploshchad Revolutsii, Teatralnaya .
- Phone: +7 (495) 698-27-26 .
- Website: www.kazanski-sobor.ru
