St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St Petersburg: History

The St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St. Petersburg has a long, interesting history. It is one of the oldest temples of the Northern capital.

History

The exact date of the opening of the St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St. Petersburg is unknown. Construction began in the sixties of the 18th century. And a little earlier issued a decree of the Empress, according to which the city began the construction of churches in the style of ancient Russian architecture.

This decree was of considerable importance from the political point of view. After all, in the first half of the 18th century, temples were built in the capital, which more resembled the Lutheran church, and therefore associated with the inhabitants of the German dominance. Five-domed churches symbolized a return to the traditions of Russian architecture.

Pietro Trezzini

In 1745 a wooden church was erected in the place of the modern St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St. Petersburg. The construction of the stone building began 15 years later. The author of the project of the St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St. Petersburg is the Swiss architect Pietro Trezzini. This man was educated in Italy, worked for several years in Milan. In 1726, Trezzini came to St. Petersburg, and 17 years later became the chief architect of the city. In addition to the St. Vladimir Cathedral, in St. Petersburg, according to his projects, the Spaso-Senna and Panteleimon churches were erected.

The main icon of the church

According to the legend, the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God by the Evangelist Luke is written. She visited Constantinople, Jerusalem, Kiev and, finally, in Vladimir, where she got her name. Then the icon was transferred to Moscow.

Soon the rumor spread about the miraculous healings that she gave to the parishioners of the Sretensky Monastery. At the very beginning of the device of the St. Vladimir's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, a photo of which can be seen in this article, an exact copy of the icon of Vladimir's Mother of God was issued from Moscow. It was here until the early twenties of the last century.

The icon was laced with pearls, adorned with gilt silver rhizo. The Crown was made of crystal. Where the icon is now is unknown. After the revolution, believers tried to redeem it more than once, but without success. At first she was in the department of Glavnauka, then she completely disappeared.

John Kirikov

This man was not only the first abbot of the temple, but also its main builder. In the late nineties of the last century, the grave of John Kirikov was discovered and then reconstructed near the altar. Restored and the inscription, knocked back in 1870.

The architectural ensemble of the church, which is seen by modern parishioners, was formed in the middle of the 19th century. There is an absolute harmony of proportions, as can be seen by visiting the St. Vladimir Cathedral in St. Petersburg.

Schedule of services

Divine services are held daily in the cathedral. At 9:00 the Divine Liturgy begins. On Sundays and holidays, the schedule changes slightly. Divine Liturgy these days are held twice: at 7:00 and 10:00. At the end of it is the Holy Communion. Confession always begins 30 minutes before the start of the Liturgy. At 18:00 evening worship is provided.

Famous parishioners

The history of the temple is in some way connected with the Pushkin family. The poet's parents lived in Svechny Lane, not far from Vladimir Square. In 1826, on his return from the village of Mikhailovsky, Pushkin stayed at their house. Often he also visited his sister, who lived on Gryaznaya Street, now called Marat Street. Arina Rodionovna spent the last few days in this house. According to the biographers of the poet, he was present at her funeral in the Vladimir church.

The parishioners of the church were many relatives of Pushkin. A few decades after his death in one of the houses located near, lived Fyodor Dostoyevsky. They say that one of the priests of the temple was the confessor of the writer. And Father Nikolai Virooslavsky was a funeral of Dostoevsky.

Another famous parishioner of this church was the composer Rimsky-Korsakov. On Vladimirsky Prospekt he lived for five years. One of the windows of his apartment overlooked the bell tower of the Vladimir Church.

Certainly under the quiet arches of this church, Alexander Blok repeatedly visited. Once upon a time in the parish of the Vladimir Church lived the great-grandfather of the Russian poet. For several years, Blok himself has also been here. In the house, which once belonged to the ancestor of the poet, Pushkin's nanny died. Arina Rodionovna, as already mentioned, was singing in the Vladimir Church.

Another famous monument of Russian architecture in St. Petersburg - the Cathedral of Prince Vladimir. About his history is also worth saying a few words.

The Cathedral of Prince Vladimir

Its history begins in 1765. It was then that the architect A. Rinaldi developed a five-domed temple project. Earlier on the site of the cathedral was first a wooden church, then a stone one.

The reconstruction of the temple took about seven years. In 1789 the cathedral was named in honor of Prince Vladimir. This building is a monument of architectural style, a transition from baroque to classicism. Like other temples in Russia, it was closed in the 1920s. Then in his history there were many sad events. The last restoration of the cathedral took place in 2015.