Russian Adventure: St Basil's cathedral

This was a dream come true to be standing in front of the this huge gingerbread house that I had wondered about my entire life. As a little girl I had dreamed and wished that I would be able to see this incredible building before I die and here I was standing in front of this incredible church. So much myth and legend has followed this breathtaking building and its surprising that little seems to be known about this church. I found myself half expecting Hansel and Gretel to pop their heads out and offer me some tea and biscuits as I stood at the bottom and gazed up into a fantasy world. A visual art of epic kaleidoscope proportions.

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selfie in front of St Basil's cathedral

It is so hard to describe what a visual impact this place has, just how huge...no colossal these buildings are, just how grand and beautifully ornate. You have to appreciate the painstaking hours, years it took to complete these buildings, and to build with such perfection, you cannot help but marvel at mans capabilities when he puts his mind to it.

Photograph Google

I did however manage to find some interesting information and facts by asking around and through a touristy brochure. So obviously its found bang in Red square , Moscow near the Kremlin. Today it is known to the vast majority as St. Basil's Cathedral, however the legendary building is actually officially called "The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Virgin by the Moat". One very long name and I can see why St Basil is the easier of the two to remember. The more popular alternative refers to the cathedral as Basil the Blessed (this was actually a very religious guy) , a Muscovite 'holy fool', the Beatific, the Wonder Worker of Moscow. Basil whom the Cathedral is named after, died in 1557 and was buried on the site (in the Trinity Cathedral that once stood here) a few years before the present building was erected.

He was born in 468, and Basil was the son of commoners and actually trained to be a cobbler. Basil was also known for his prophetic powers and for being a “fool for Christ,” Throughout his life, poor Basil suffered privations, was homeless and wore no clothes or shoes irrespective of the weather. When he died, the Metropolitan of Moscow Macarius conducted his funeral, while Ivan the Terrible himself acted as a pallbearer, together with other boyars. Amazing

After Basil was canonized in 1588, a 10th church was added to the cathedral to house his relics, and the whole ensemble was named after Basil the Blessed.

copyrig Kim Williams - the ornate details on the walls, arches and doorways was just breathtaking and incredible.
Artistic perfection!

History tells us that the Cathedral was ordered by none other than Ivan the Terrible to mark the 1552 capture of Kazan from Mongol forces it was completed by 1560. Surprisingly it did not take that long to complete bearing in mind that it was white and not painted with all the colours that we see today. That's pretty much all the genuine history that' the locals tell me is known about this famous and celebrated landmark. Like I said there are many legends. Nothing much is seen to be known about the builders, Barma and Postnik Yakovlev, except their names and that the legend persists that Ivan had them blinded so that they could not create anything to outdo or compare to the cathedral, however most historians unanimously agree that this is nothing but urban folklore.

Copyright Kim Williams, my bucket list iconic photo of me standing in front of Basil's Cathedral , when I stood on this smooth cobble.brick paving I could not help but wander just how many millions of bricks it had taken to create this huge square. The hundreds of brick layers and artisans it took to spend back breaking hours, months to lay each and every brick, never mind the firing of each of these bricks. It just boggles the mind!!.

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The windows are really amazing. (photo copyright Kim Williams). There are interesting accounts both verbal and written of the time that this cathedral was in mortal danger on more than one occasion. Once such occasion occurred in 1812 when the French troops were retreating from Moscow and they wanted to blow up st Basil's but thankfully they did not have time to do that. Can you imagine if this had disappeared from history.

Then again it was about to disappear for ever. Over 100 years later, in the late 1920's, the Soviet authorities decided to pull the cathedral down: They were not too keen to have a house of worship in the very center of the city. The cathedral once again saved, this time by an architect and restoration artist Pyotr Baranovsky, who even sent a telegram to Stalin to that end. As a result, the Cathedral of the Intercession was not demolished but Baranovsky was subjected to reprisals for “anti-Soviet activity.”

The cathedral’s belfry is still operational, but sadly out of all the multitude of bells it has had since the cathedral was built in the 16th century, only one survived to the present day. In 1929, the Soviet authorities ordered that the bronze bells be melted down. Its bell ringer Alexei Konovalov, was reported say that it was by a miracle that one bell survived: “It has preserved the sound of the 16th century, down to the last upper partial tone,” he said. Really sad that such art and history ended up lost to future generations.

Even in present day Architectural specialists are yet to agree about the governing idea behind the structure of the cathedral. Either the creators were paying homage to the churches of Jerusalem; perhaps by building eight churches around a central ninth, they were representing the medieval symbol of the eight-pointed star. The original concept of the Cathedral of the Intercession has been hidden beneath layers of stylistic additions and new churches added to the main building. Its amazing to think while standing in front of St Basil's in this present day knowing that when it was built, the Cathedral was all white to match the white-stone Kremlin, and the onion domes were once gold rather than the multi-colored and patterned we see today. It was only some 200 years later that the these beautiful colours and patterns were added.

Photo Google: taken off the internet but gives you a fantastic birds eye view

Sometime during the 17th century, the facade and domes began to be painted in the exquisitely beautiful and vibrant colours that I saw today, I was told by a local that the pigment is said to have been taken from the Biblical description, in the Book of Revelation, of the Kingdom of Heaven. Built around the 156-foot high central nave are nine small, separate chapels that are aligned to points on the compass, four of which are raised to designate their position between heaven and earth. The chapels are dedicated to the Protecting Veil of Mary; the Entry into Jerusalem, Saints Kiprian and Ustinia, the Holy Trinity, St. Nicholas Velikoretsky, St. Gregory of Armenia, St. Barlaam Khutynsky, St. Alexander Svirsky, and the Three Patriarchs. The ninth chapel was added in honor of Saint Basil. Four of the cathedral’s eight chapels were named after religious holidays that coincided with the key events in the Kazan campaign. Another one is named after Saint Trinity: According to one theory, in the Middle Ages there was a Trinity Church on this spot.

During the 1970s a wooden spiral staircase was discovered within one of the walls while restoration on the church was being carried out. I could not find out anymore information on this and what had become of this spiral staircase. I was unable to go inside due to time constrains as the ques were very long. So this will most definitely require a second visit.

This building just explodes with wonder and colour

The sun was very strong and most of my photos had to be taken directly into the sun and the quality for the most part was really poor. Most photos were taken with my cell phone and on the 2nd visit I used my Nikon camera.

Saint Basil’s Cathedral has many brightly coloured onion shaped domes that have many traditional red, white and gold colours as well as many other colours of the rainbow. Saint Basil’s Cathedral’s structure is made of a traditional white stone foundation, and red bricks walls that contain wooden framework.

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In the front on the small lawns of St Basil's, the rest is all cobble/brick paving. I was afraid to stand on it in case I landed up in a Russian jail.

The ques went all the way around the building!

The garden at the front of the cathedral stands this magnificent bronze statue honoring Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin, who led Russia's volunteer army against the Polish invaders, during the Time of Troubles, in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.

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I had two ladies from Japan who wanted to pose with me. None of us spoke Russian or English so it was really funny but sign language is universal!!

Google

Saint Basil’s Cathedral has seen much renovation and restoration over the centuries, which includes major restoration by Ivan Michurin after a fire damaged the building in 1737.

In the 17th century a hip-roofed bell tower was added, the gallery and staircases were covered with vaulted roofing, and the helmeted domes were replaced with decorated ones. In 1860 during rebuilding, the Cathedral was painted with a more complex and integrated design, and has remained unchanged since which I was truly grateful for as I stood and looked up at all the domes. What really strikes you is how clean, dust free and bird poo free the domes and the whole of Red Square is, even the pigeons know their place and are disciplined!!

This photos again are into the sun but show a different angle of the bronze statue.

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These photos are really not great and taken directly into the sun.

Both the photo above and below are taken from Google Images:

Like I have mentioned the design of St. Basil's Cathedral comprises of nine individual chapels. Each of the nine chapels has a unique onion dome, reflecting a victorious assault on the city of Kazan. Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich added the ninth chapel of St. Basil's Cathedral in 1588. It was added on the eastern side to house the grave of St. Basil

According to one theory, I am told that the cathedral symbolizes Heavenly Jerusalem (which I have already mentioned), in other words the Kingdom of God, whose walls are decorated with precious stones. According to another theory, its architects tried to replicate the Church of St. Mary of Blachernae in Constantinople, the scene of a miraculous intercession when the Holy Virgin appeared to Christians praying for protection from a Saracen army and covered the whole Christian world with her mantle.

Google Images

This huge open square and busy market area has been largely a geographic and metaphorical centre in Russian life since the 15th centurion. This square (known as Krasnaya Ploschad in Russian) measures a monster 800 000 square feet. The many historical buildings around St Basil's on its western end are the spectacular historic fortress and government buildings known as the Kremlin. There are also a number of really breathtaking and architecturally awe inspiring cathedrals, one such is the Assumption Cathedral all found in the Cathedral square

Google Images

Other historic buildings and monuments in Red Square are the State Historical Museum; a white stone platform called the Lobnoye Mesto; the former State Department Store called GUM; and Lenin’s Tomb. You really need to spend 3 full days here to take in everything that Red Square has too offer.

When Joseph Stalin’s became the head of the Soviet Union, Saint Basil’s fell out of favour and was in danger of being destroyed in order to make room on Red Square for larger demonstrations and marches. Architect Pyotr Baranovsky supposedly sent a telegram to Stalin saying he would rather kill himself than demolish the historic cathedral, and subsequently spent five years in prison, such was his strong will and conviction that St Basil's was worth saving. Once again the cathedral was saved and it was during this time that thankfully the state’s attitude changed and Saint Basil’s was spared.

Both the photo below and above are taken from Google Images:
It is remarkable to see how each era left its trace on the cathedral’s architecture. After a fire back in 1595, the churches were decorated with the onion domes, I mentioned and these vivid colours only materialized in the 18th century. In the late 17th century, a frieze telling the history of the cathedral was added and remained in place till the end of the 18th century. In 1817, during the renovation of Red Square, architect Joseph Bove reinforced the retaining wall of the cathedral with stone and erected a cast-iron fence.

Google Images

The large, circular item in the center is the Lobnoye Mesto, a circular platform where public ceremonies used to take place. Both the Minin and Pozharskiy statue and the Lobnoye Mesto were once located more centrally in Red Square but were moved to their current locations to facilitate the large military parades of the Soviet era.

As mentioned I did not get a chance to go inside the church so these photos below are from Google. I got see see bits and pieces as i peered in and all i can say is WOW!

Google Images

In 1990, the Kremlin and Red Square were named a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. It is one of 16 UNESCO cultural sites in Russia.

The Cathedral is now a museum. During restoration work in the seventies a wooden spiral staircase was discovered within one of the walls. Visitors now take this route into the central church, with its extraordinary, soaring tented roof and a fine 16th Century iconostasis. You can also walk along the narrow, winding gallery, covered in beautiful patterned paintwork.

At first, the basement of the future cathedral served as a basis for nine small churches built one after another and connected with galleries and passageways. Interestingly, in the 16th century the basement was used to store the church coffers and savings of the city’s wealthy residents.

The exterior of the cathedral was made to look like brickwork

Each of the chapels of Saint Basil's Cathedral stands adorned by beautiful icons, medieval painted walls, and varying artwork, on the top inside of the domes. I cannot wait to be able to go back again and spend several hours here just to take all this in.

Confiscated by the state after the Bolshevik Revolution, Saint Basil’s has been a museum and tourist attraction since 1929. Occasional church services have been held there since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1990, and every October the cathedral hosts a service in honor of the Day of Intercession. Opening hours: Daily from 11.00 to 17.00, closed on Tuesdays.

Interesting fact I found out was that a replica now stand near the Russia-China board in the city of Jalainur, in northeastern Inner Mongolia some 3200 miles west of Moscow and nearly 700 miles north of Beijing, a scale model of the cathedral was built but has never been used as a church. Photographer Davide Montoleone documented the strange sight of the building, which houses a children’s science museum and sells fake fossils, during a 2015 visit and noted the beautiful turrets and domes are actually just a shell and, like the fossils, are not real.

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Member: FGASA (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa)
Member: Vincent de Paul Victory Park (St Charles Catholic Church)

Photo Credits: Kim Williams Copyright

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