St. Alexander Nevsky. Icons of Alexander Nevsky. Orthodox hand-written icons

The most important factor in the formation of the idea of a particular event or historical person is its artistic image. It is for this reason that so many icons are attached to Orthodoxy. They show us the faces of saints, transformed, enlightened, far from the worldly vanity. This is what the icon of Prince Alexander Nevsky, a valiant warrior, defender of the Russian land, seems to us.

Childhood and youth of the prince

The life of Alexander Nevsky, composed after finding his honest relics in 1380, as well as historical documents indicate that the future saint was born on May 30, 1220 in Pereslavl-Zalessky. His father was Prince Yaroslav (in the baptism of Theodore), and the mother - Ryazan princess Feodosiya Igorevna. When the boy was seven years old, his father was called to the reign of Novgorod the Great, where he took with him and Alexander. From an early age, the prince comprehended the art of war, and already in incomplete fifteen years together with his father took part in his first battle on the Emajõgi River (modern Estonia).

Guardian of the Russian land

Soon came one of the most difficult stages in the history of Russia. From the east, from the wild Mongolian steppes, hordes of nomads were approaching, and from the west invaded German hordes. The situation was critical, but, as it happened during our entire history, the Lord sent a defender and deliverer to the Russian land. It was the prince Alexander Nevsky, whose icon in subsequent times inspired many generations of Russian soldiers to fight against the enemies.

The defeat of the Swedish and German invaders

His first great act was the defeat in 1240 of the Swedes who invaded the mouth of the Neva and planned the capture of Ladoga. The prince was not at that time another twenty years, but, firmly trusting in the help of God and being courageous, he and his squad inflicted a devastating defeat on the warlike Scandinavians. In memory of this feat people began to call it Alexander Nevsky.

With the Swedes was over, but there were German knights who captured Kaporye, and in 1242 and Pskov. Alexander, at the head of a large army, liberated these cities, and in the spring of the same year crushed the Crusaders on the ice of Lake Peipsi, in a battle that went down in history as the Battle of the Ice. His prayers to the Holy Trinity and military exploits of the Latins were completely expelled from the Russian land.

Negotiations in the Horde and the honest death of the prince

The life of Alexander Nevsky shows us the image of not only a fearless commander, but also a wise diplomat. Having secured the western borders of the state, he understood that an open struggle with Khan Baty, who headed the Tatar hordes, was at that time disastrous for Russia, which had not yet had time to gather strength after the previous battles.

Four times Alexander visited the Golden Horde with negotiations, as a result of which he managed not only to ward off the military threat, but also, having placed discord in the camp of the enemy, to make a significant part of the khan's troops by his allies.

Reposed to the Lord Alexander Nevsky on November 14, 1263 in Gorodets, on the way back from the Horde. His last wish was the adoption of a monastic schema, in which he received the name of Alex. After an honest death, his body was delivered to Vladimir in nine days, and all present witnessed the absence of signs of decay in him.

Canonization and early icons

The people's memory of the prince's glorious deeds lived from the day of his death, but religious worship followed the acquisition of honest relics in 1380. Officially, he was canonized only a century and a half later, in the reign of Ivan the Terrible.

Among the documents of the Moscow Council of 1547 there is a decision according to which among the other saints of God the blessed prince Alexander Nevsky was also counted among the saints. Icons written in the early period show his viewer in a monastic vestment, thereby emphasizing the monasticism he accepted at the very end of his life. In them, above all, the spiritual component of his deed sounds.

However, there is one icon, written a hundred years before these events - "The Battle of Novgorod and Suzdal," which already with a halo of holiness around the head represented by Prince Alexander Nevsky. Icons like this, created before the official act of canonization, were not considered legitimate, and these days are very rare. In the plot of this image there is another curious detail - the event on it occurred long before the birth of Alexander Nevsky, which should emphasize the timelessness of the existence of this saint of God.

Icons of the pre-Petrine period

Its iconography was widely developed already in the 16th century, immediately after the Moscow Cathedral, and it went in two directions. Their essence is well formulated in his words, Metropolitan John (Sychev). He stressed that the holy prince served equally in the cause of the salvation of Rus as a valiant warrior and as a humble monk.

Just such a monastic interpretation of the image prevailed in the icons of the pre-Petrine period. So, for example, the icon of St. Alexander Nevsky from the Novgorod Sophia Cathedral presents the prince holding a scroll, the inscription on which calls to fear God and do His commandments. Together with Alexander, the saints are depicted: John and Avraamy of Rostov.

Icon from St. Basil's Cathedral

One of the outstanding works of Old Russian painting is the sacristy image of St. Alexander Nevsky, who is in Moscow, in the famous church of St. Basil the Blessed. On it the prince is presented in the guise of a schemer, standing in full growth, in a blessing gesture that lifted his hand. This is a very unusual icon of Alexander Nevsky.

Its significance lies in the fact that the hallmarks surrounding the central part of the composition represent not only real events from the life of the prince, but also those that occurred in subsequent times. In the plots of these miniatures invisibly felt the presence of Alexander and his heavenly patronage. Among these scenes - and the Kulikovo battle, and the battle with the Crimean Khan Girey, and much more. This indicated, first of all, the spiritual component of the prince's life's deed, and placed the emphasis on his service to God and the Church.

Icons of the era of Peter the Great

The interpretation of the iconographic image of Alexander Nevsky in the reign of Peter the Great changed radically. The tsar-reformer considered himself the continuer of his struggle against all manifestations of foreign expansion. As a sign of profound veneration of his illustrious predecessor, he founded in St. Petersburg in 1710 the Holy Trinity Alexander Nevsky Monastery, which later received the status of a laurel.

Here the holy relics of the prince were brought from Vladimir. Together with this special resolution of the Synod, it was instructed to continue to depict it on icons in military vestments, with weapons and in the imperial robe with ermine padding. Thus, the emphasis was shifted from spiritual feats to military valor, by which Alexander Nevsky became famous. Icons from that time represented him no longer a humble monk, but a formidable warrior, defender of the fatherland.

Iconographic trends of the next centuries

A special veneration of the holy Prince Alexander Nevsky enjoyed in the XIX century, during which the Russian throne was visited by three emperors who bore his name and considered him their heavenly patron. During this period, a large number of icons of the prince were written, continuing the development of the iconographic line, begun in the era of Peter the Great.

In the late XIX - early XX century in Russian painting formed the so-called religious-national style. He touched and icon painting. His most prominent representatives were VM Vasnetsov, who created the monumental artistic image of the prince for the St. Vladimir's Cathedral in Kiev, and MV Nesterov, who painted icons for the Church of Our Savior on Blood in St. Petersburg. In the first case, Alexander Nevsky is represented by the epic hero, and in the second - by a humble monk.

Temples erected in his honor

The memory of the holy prince was also embodied in church architecture. Literally in our days in Moscow, at the intersection of Alexandrovka and Novokryukovskaya streets, the newly constructed Alexander Nevsky church is being opened for the parishioners. Its builders have already begun to complete the work. And he is not the only one in the capital. Another temple of Alexander Nevsky is operated by MGIMO - the Institute of International Relations. It is very gratifying that future diplomats are trained and brought up on an example so worthy of imitation.

Temples in the name of the holy prince were erected in previous times in different cities. This is St. Petersburg, and Riga, and Tula. Particularly noteworthy is the cathedral in Nizhny Novgorod, built in 1858 and nowadays restored after years of atheistic frenzy. The icon in the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral of this Privolzhsky city is revered as miraculous.

The meaning of the holy prince in our day

What does Saint Prince Alexander Nevsky mean for our history, whose icons are so close to the heart of every true patriot? Obviously, very much, for it is not without reason that in the difficult war years a film of the genius Sergei Eisenstein was so necessary about the national hero, the winner of the Germans on the ice of the Peipsi Lake, giving new strength to the fighters who crushed the fascists. His name is a banner for all who went to fight for the Motherland, and his prayer feat is an example of hope for help and intercession of the Holy Trinity.

Every truly religious person, to the question of what and how the icon protects, will rightly answer that it directs our thoughts and spiritual aspirations to God - the Creator and the Settler of human destinies and defender from troubles. This is absolutely true. So the icons of Alexander Nevsky, in the temple, they or at home, preach to us eternal non-clinging values - the Orthodox faith and love for the Motherland, and it is in them that our salvation lies.