Svyato-Klimentovsky Inkerman Cave Monastery: description, history, location and interesting facts

The Inkerman cave monastery is the oldest among the cave monasteries in the Crimea. In the Monastery Hill (its western cliff), its main premises are carved. On the plateau of this rock, the ruins of the fortress Kalamita, whose creation dates back to the VI century, are preserved. In this article we will describe the Inkerman Cave Monastery, an excursion into which has become an integral part of the cultural program of many people who decided to visit Sevastopol. The monastery is not far from this city, in Inkerman (a suburb of Sevastopol). We will tell in detail about the history of the monastery and its main temples.

St. Clement

The person who founded the St. Clementine Cave Monastery is Saint Clement, one of the most famous preachers of the Christian religion. He was elevated to the rank of the apostle Peter himself in Rome. For the preaching of Christianity in this city, Clement was exiled to Chersonesos. Here already there were about 2 thousand Christians, who had previously suffered the same fate. And in the quarries the saint preached his faith. Many convicts, as well as free people living nearby, were baptized with him. The rulers of Chersonesos, worried about this, executed the bishop in 101 year. On his neck he was tied an anchor, and then drowned in a nearby Cossack bay.

The construction of the church and the relics of St. Clement

A year later, at low tide, the remains of the righteous were found in the underwater grotto. Since then, every year on the day of his death, the believers came to the place of his execution. They went to bow to the holy relics on the bare bottom. Until the eleventh century, sea tide allowed people to make such a pilgrimage. Then on a small island in the middle of the bay, a church was built, and Clement's relics were moved there. And in our time there is this islet. Now it is the territory of the military unit. As a result of the excavations carried out in 1890, several rooms were found, as well as a chapel with the relics of a saint.

In 861 Saints Cyril and Methodius arrived in Chersonesos. With the permission of the local archbishop, they took part of the relics with them and moved them to Rome. And to this day they are stored here, in the basilica of St. Clement. Prince Vladimir, who was baptized in Chersonese in the tenth century, transported part of the relics of this saint to Kiev.

Building a fortification

Byzantines in the VI century put their fortifications on top of the Monastery rock. The cloister grew with them: cells, temples and cave rooms were gradually cut out in the rock. They were all connected by stairs carved into stone. Most likely, it was here that monks-icon-worshipers settled, who fled from Byzantium during the period of iconoclastic persecution.

The emergence of the settlement, the capture of the fortress by the Turks

In the Zagaytanskaya rock, located to the east, riddled with numerous caves in several tiers, a medieval settlement arose, which has so far been little studied. Until the beginning of the fourteenth century, written testimonies about Kalamit did not survive. This part of the Crimea in the XV century was influenced by the principality of Theodoro. At the mouth of the river Chernaya, the sea port Avlita was created. In order to protect him, Alexei, the prince of Kangup, rebuilt an ancient fortification on the island. So it became the fortress of Calamity. This fortress was captured by Turks in 1475. They reconstructed it to fit the requirements of firearms. It was from the Turks that the new name of this place went - Inkerman, which in translation means "cave fortress".

At that time the monastery fell into decay. Most likely, the monks moved from the monastery to Cape Fiolent, where the St. George Monastery was located. Later the monastery was revived for a short time. After the Christians left the Crimea in 1778, the monastery was completely abandoned.

Revival of the monastery

After the annexation of Crimea to the territory of Russia the Inkerman Cave Monastery (Crimea) began to revive . Cinema was opened in 1850. Reconstruction of the three cave temples located here has also started. Thus, the St. Klimentovsky Inkerman Monastery received a second life. His story was marked by a number of important events.

Church of Clement

The church in the name of Clement was consecrated first (in the Middle Ages it was St. George's temple, which, according to legend, Clement himself cut down in the rock). The church has the form of a basilica. Its space is divided into three parts by two rows of columns. Benches cut in the rock, part of the columns, as well as a niche intended for the altar image have survived. A long corridor leads to this church. In it stone benches are cut down. Also preserved to our time is a two-stage synthron in the apse. In the center of it there are the remains of a mountainous place, and in the wall above it a niche is cut, designed for the altarpiece. A massive, prosperous cross is carved here. As for the ancient frescoes, only the image of the Savior on the throne is preserved from them.

The low and small ancient chapel was on the right side of the church. It is dedicated to the Apostle A. Pervozvannomu. The altar of this chapel was separated by a solid rock wall from the rest. In the middle of the partition were the Royal Gates. There were also two small windows. Under the left window, in the altar, an altar with a niche under it was built. Near the right window was built a seat for the priest, made of stone. Also in the altar was a stone throne, which adjoined the eastern wall.

The discovery of ancient buildings, the opening of the church of St. Martiniana

In the course of the restoration, other ancient temples were found, as well as auxiliary rooms. However, they were covered or covered with walls, so they remained unexplored. The second in the Inkerman monastery was opened with the dedication of St. Martiniana cave church. It is a rectangular temple, covered with a dome (semicircular).

Further fate of the monastery

Two years after the discovery of the monastery, the Crimean War broke out. Violent fighting took place near the Black River. Kalamita, where there were Russian troops, was brutally bombarded. The English plundered the property belonging to the monastery. When the war was over, the monks settled again in the cinema. They built a house church (Holy Trinity), as well as the house of the abbot. Also, the monks carried out the restoration of the source of St. Clement. A little later a hotel for pilgrims was built. In honor of the miraculous rescue of the family of the emperor, occurred at the station. Borki in the wreck of the train in 1888, in 1895 a new church was built in the monastery. It was dedicated to the healer and the great martyr Panteleimon. The peculiarity of this temple is that its altarpiece is cut in the rock, and the remaining, ground, created in the Byzantine style.

The history of the monastery in the twentieth century

In the monastery in 1905, several other temples were created. One of them is in the eastern part of the cliff, in the place of the church of St. Evgrafiya, which existed in the Middle Ages. He was consecrated in honor of St. Dm. Thessalonica. In the twentieth century, burials were made in the Dmitrievsky church. There are 3 tombs that were cut down next to the temple, in the floor of a small cave. At the same time, the construction of the church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was completed on the upper plateau. It has two aisles, in shape - a cross-shaped.

History of the Sophia Church

In the presence of Alexei Mikhailovich (Grand Duke), as well as participants in the Crimean War on September 27, 1905, the church of the icon "All the Afflicted Joy" was consecrated. It is built on a place where in ancient times there was a Sophia church, carved in a cliff, along the left bank of the river. Black. It is known that in the 14th century there was also a monastery of St. Sofia. Apparently, he was very rich, because his temples stood out among others in design and size. When the Christians left the Crimea, the monastery was abandoned and abandoned. Cathedral of St. Sophia is the largest cave temple in Crimea. It is covered by a flat dome. The church is cross-shaped. Part of its northern wall, as well as the altar part, fell down in antiquity. In the floor of the temple were tombs. There is a course from this church to the chapel, in the floor of which there are 2 tombs with the remains of Greek inscriptions.

The construction of the chapel, the processions

Powder warehouses were located in the caves of the monastery before the Crimean War. After the end of hostilities, the former non-commissioned officer settled near the Quarry Gully. This man was courting the common grave. Thanks to him, the collection of funds was organized, and in 1885 a chapel was built over the grave. The monks who inhabited the Inkerman Holy Klimentovsky cave monastery, every year on October 24 went to this chapel by the procession. They performed a requiem for those who were killed for their faith and the tsar. At the initiative of Alexei Mikhailovich in 1903, the Sophia Temple was restored. From all over the country they collected money for this business. Inside the Church of the Holy Cross, built at this time, images of the parts that participated in the battles on the Black River were kept.

Construction of new buildings, the closure of the monastery and its revival

In Inkerman monastery in 1910 were built two residential buildings intended for the brethren, as well as the house church of the Annunciation. In addition, a parish school was established at the monastery. By 1917 the Inkerman cave monastery was inhabited by 122 novices and 25 monks. During the Civil War, the monastery was supported by Wrangel's detachments. After the proclamation of Soviet power, all the Crimean monasteries and lands were nationalized. Inkermansky cave monastery in 1926 was finally closed. In 1927, the chapel was destroyed at the grave of the soldiers who fell in the Inkerman battle, and in 1932 - the Cathedral of St. Nicholas, who was on the upper plateau.

During the Great Patriotic War, the headquarters of the Maritime Division was located on the site of the monastery. In June 1942, her soldiers tried to contain the Germans, who were rushing to Sevastopol. In 1991, the Inkerman St. Clement Cave Monastery began to revive. The cell buildings and temples were restored.

Inkerman Cave Monastery: how to get

You can travel by train from Sevastopol to ok. 1531 km. You can get to the monastery from Balaklava by taxi or bus number 31. Another option is to use any intercity bus that goes to the stop "Vtormet", passing through Inkerman. If you go by car, then near the white stone cross (you will see it near the main road that passes through the whole city) you need to turn to the monastery. Inkerman St. Klimentovsky Monastery has the following coordinates: N 44 39.873, E 34 16.160.