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THE KAZANSKY CATHEDRAL |

| Moscow Kremlin

Administrative buildings | The Kremlin Towers | The Kremlin Cathedrals | Squares and Gardens

The Cathedral of the Assumption

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The Church of St. Ioann Lestvichnik and the Ivan the Great Bell Tower

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The Patriarch’s Palace and the Church of the Twelve Apostles

The Verkhospassky Cathedral and the Terem Churches

The Cathedral of the Intercession (of St. Basil the Blessed)

The Kazansky Cathedral

The Kazansky Cathedral

The Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of the Holy Virgin was built to commemorate the victory of the Russian army over Polish invaders in 1612. The consecration of the cathedral in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Holy Virgin reflected the people’s gratitude to the heavenly Intercessor for liberating the city from the invaders. In addition, it testified to the link between two national victories: the liberation of Moscow by a militia headed by Minin and Pozharsky and the seizure of Kazan by Ivan the Terrible. The idea of constructing a monumental structure to glorify the independence of the Russian state and the military feats of its warriors was vividly reflected in the architecture of the Cathedral of the Intercession on the Moat, and further implemented in the overall design of Red Square. It seems as if the two monumental cathedrals on opposite ends of the square have engaged in a dialogue.

Construction began in the 1620s and the cathedral was consecrated in 1637. The Kazan Icon of the Holy Virgin, with which Prince Pozharsky went off to battle in 1612, was kept there. For many centuries, every year on October 22 there was a religious procession to the Kazansky Cathedral with the tsar and the patriarch participating.

Of particular artistic importance was the crowning part of the cathedral, an elegant pyramid of keel-shaped kokoshniki (decorative elements reminiscent of a traditional Russian women’s headdress of the same name), topped with an unexpectedly massive dome on an elegant drum.

The Kazansky Cathedral was restored in 1753 under the supervision of architect Dmitry Ukhtomsky. In 1865, a bell tower for the cathedral was built on the basis of a design by architect Kozlovsky. The massive pillar of the tall three-tiered bell tower was in perfect harmony with the eastern side of Red Square.

In the early 1930s, the Kazansky Cathedral was demolished and a public lavatory built in its place.

The cathedral was rebuilt in 1993.

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