Moscow Sights

The history of thе Moscow Kremlin goes back to old times. The first written record of Moscow dates to 1147, when Great Prince Yuri of Kiev, Vladimir Monomakh's son, was the regent of Kiev. He was nicknamed "Dolgoruky" (Long-armed), because he reached out – far – to other principalities. The Kremlin was first mentioned in chronicles during this period. It was erected as a fortress, but very soon became the centre of Russian statehood, the residence of Russian tsars and hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church. » Continue reading

Red Square is located in the very heart of Moscow, just outside the Kremlin, along its Eastern wall. When you hear the name square do not think of “red” as a color or a symbol of Communism; it doesn’t refer to either of those. The square is called Krasnaya Ploshad where krasnaya means both “red” and “beautiful”. The latter, referring mostly to St. Basil’s Cathedral on the South part of the square, was the original meaning » Continue reading

St. Basil’s Cathedral on Red Square, considered to be a true symbol of Russia and an integral part of Moscow scenery, is one of the most remarkable monuments and the supreme achievement of ancient architecture of the capital. Great variety of architectural forms of the pillar-towers on the one hand and wild fantasy of the colorful decor and a rare unity of all the parts of the monument as a whole on the other indicate the brilliant talent of its creators who dared to boldly break the traditional canons of erecting a religious building » Continue reading

The first wooden Mausoleum, a project of Shusev, was constructed for the day of Lenin’s burial (27 January 1924), and was in the form of a cube, united with a three-sided pyramid. The second version of the mausoleum was constructed in the spring of 1924 (again by Shusev) » Continue reading

Sparrow Hills (from 1935-1999 – Lenin Hills) is the name of a location in the south-west of Moscow, positioned on the high right bank of the Moscow River and covered in forest. It is located opposite Luzhnikov, one of the seven hills of Moscow. The hills stretch from the mouth of the River Setuna to the Andreev bridge (on the small ring of the Moscow railroad). In the north they are bordered by the Neskuchny garden » Continue reading

One of the oldest Russian institutions of higher education, Moscow University was established in 1755. In 1940 it was named after Academician Mikhail Lomonosov (1711 - 1765), an outstanding Russian scientist, who greatly contributed to the establishment of the university in Moscow » Continue reading

The Novodevichy Convent was founded in 1525 by the Great Prince Basil III. That was the promise he had given: to establish a monastery in honor of Smolenskaya icon of the Virgin on condition that Smolensk was freed from the Lithuanians. A special place was chosen for the erection of the building. That was Devichy meadow, called like that after a tatar tradition to choose girls to be taken to servitude » Continue reading

The history of the Cathedral begins on December 25, 1812. This was the day that the last soldiers of Napoleons'''' 600,000 man army were driven out of Russia. Emperor Alexander I signed a Manifesto ordering the construction of a magnificent Cathedral in honor of Christ the Savior in Moscow as a thanksgiving to God and to honor the victorious Russian army. » Continue reading