Sukharev Tower in Moscow

Moscow for many is not only our capital, which has many districts, but also a city with its unique centuries-old history, which has been preserved in architectural monuments. Of particular interest to tourists, and just for curious people are the old streets of Moscow, storing centuries-old secrets.

The history of Moscow streets is closely connected with the history of Russia, with many historical facts, which the current generation does not even suspect. People just pass through them, hurrying about their business, and hardly think about why this or that street, quay or avenue is named that way.

Muscovites perfectly know one of the central squares of the capital, which is part of the Garden Ring - Bolshaya Sukharevskaya. But the fact that its name is associated with the once located Sukharev Tower, remember a few.

At the end of the 17th century, here were the Sretenskiy wooden gate, marking the entrance to the Earth City, which it was decided to rebuild, erecting them from stone. And for the sake of importance they should be strengthened Sukharev Tower - a unique structure, perhaps the only one in Russia, which until 1934, along with the Kremlin and two other temples - St. Basil the Blessed and Christ the Savior - was considered a symbol of Moscow.

It was a rather gloomy and formidable structure, which had huge dimensions and decisive forms.

Sukharev Tower was really too bulky for Moscow at that time: it seemed to hang over neighboring neighborhoods, turned into one of the architectural dominants of the capital. And since it was installed on the site of the former Sretensky Gate, it assumed the function of the northern exit from the city towards Yaroslavl.

By the way, it was Sukharev's tower that became a stronghold for the revolutionaries, when the Red Guards fired on the square with machine-gun bursts of cadets.

There have always been many legends around her. It was said that the project was developed by Peter the First himself , although in reality the author of the project was Mikhail Choglokov.

According to experts, Sukharev Tower was created not simply as a West European town hall, but rather as an allegorical ship with a mast: its eastern part was a ship's nose, and the western one was a stern. Maybe that's why, remembering Peter's predilection for the fleet, it was assumed that he was the developer of the tower project. Like the Kremlin Spasskaya, Sukharev's tower was decorated with a large clock, while it was crowned with a two-headed eagle.

Sukharev Tower, whose height reached 60 meters, was a symbiosis of the Lombard and Gothic architectural styles. In the people, she was nicknamed the bride of the building of the bell tower of Ivan the Great.

In 1931, after making a decision to develop a plan for the complete reconstruction of the capital, the destruction of many unique historical monuments began.

Did not escape the bitter fate and Sukharev tower, which was first dismantled by a brick, and then decided to blow it up. And already in the summer of the same year it was finally dismantled, and the square was renamed the Kolkhoznaya.

However, memories of her remained on the canvases of artists and in the works of Russian classics, such as Ilf and Petrov, Bulychev, and others.