Simonov Monastery was founded in the second half of the 14th century and was considered one of the most significant and rich in the Moscow region. Now it is located within Moscow, in the Southern Administrative District of the capital.
Wealthy people donated substantial amounts of money to the monastery, and crowned heads visited it. Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich was even assigned a cell in which he loved to retire from worldly affairs. On the territory of the monastery there was also a necropolis, where eminent figures of art and Russian culture, as well as representatives of revered noble families, found eternal peace.
What is the story about?
The monastery was founded by the Monk Feodor, who was the nephew and devoted disciple of His Holiness Sergius of Radonezh. Construction work began in the 14th century on lands that were donated for a good cause by the Moscow boyar Khovrin. During his monastic tonsure he was named Simon. The name of the monastery came from this name.
During its complex, centuries-old history, the monastery was not only the spiritual cradle of Orthodoxy, but also an important outpost providing protection on the approaches to the southern borders of Moscow. It was well fortified, and more than once its walls became a barrier holding back enemy hordes. However, during the Time of Troubles, the richest Simonov monastery suffered barbaric destruction and devastation.
By decree of Her Majesty Catherine II in 1771, the monastery was abolished. This time coincided with the outbreak of a plague epidemic that swept through Moscow and killed hundreds of its inhabitants. The monastery premises became a refuge for isolated patients. Only a little more than two decades later, thanks to the petition of A. Musin-Pushkin, the monastery again regained its church status and began to live its former life.
In the 20s, during the Soviet period, the Simonov Monastery again had to go through liquidation. For 7 years, museum exhibitions were located here, and even church services were allowed to be held in one of the churches.
But in the 30s, by decision of a government commission, the monastery walls, five churches, a bell tower and other buildings were demolished. More than two thirds of the entire architectural ensemble was lost irretrievably.
What can you see in the monastery today
Everything returns to normal. In the 90s of the last century, the monastery returned to the fold of the church and began to be revived. Partial restoration work was undertaken on some buildings.
Unfortunately, only a small part of the ancient buildings has survived to this day: fragments of the southern fortress wall with several surviving towers, refectory buildings: an old and later building with a church, a fraternal building and a number of outbuildings.
The surviving monastery walls, which included part of the older structure of the fortress, erected, according to scientists, by Fyodor Kon, date back to the 30s, and the three towers - to the 40s of the 17th century. Particularly noteworthy is the corner tower called “Dulo”. Its top is crowned with a tent structure with a two-tiered sentinel superstructure. The “salt” vase resembles the “Dulo” in its architectural design, but is much more modest in size and decor. The smallest tower is “Kuznechnaya”, it is located in the spindle, that is, in the preserved wall, has a pentagonal shape and is also equipped with a small observation point in one tier.
The structure of the refectory is designed in the Moscow Baroque style and is decorated with paintings imitating faceted stonework. The main facade is completed with a stepped gable, characteristic of Western European architecture. Adjacent to the refectory is a small church. The outbuildings and cellar building are now used as workshops.
The Simonov Monastery is of spiritual, architectural and historical value, attracting numerous believers and curious tourists.
The area where the Simonov Monastery was founded (now near the Avtozavodskaya metro station) has been known since the 12th century. Here was one of the villages of boyar Kuchka - Simonovo - hence the name of the monastery. The location of the monastery was strategically advantageous. He stood by the Kolomenskaya road, which led to the Kremlin. The territory was also distinguished by its beauty and picturesqueness.
Initially, the Simonov Monastery was founded in 1370 on the site where the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary is now located in Old Simonovo, on the left elevated bank of the Moscow River. The primary source for the founding of the monastery is the life of Sergius of Radonezh, in which there is a chapter about the founding of the Simonov monastery by his nephew and The Venerable's disciple was Theodore, who was the son of Sergius's brother Stefan. When Theodore decided to found his monastery, he was blessed to do so by Sergius of Radonezh. The holy elder came to Simonovo, examined the place and approved the choice of his nephew. The monastery was founded with the blessing of Metropolitan Alexei. Theodore was the first abbot of the Simonov Monastery and took an active part in its life. Thanks to his care, in 1379 the monastery was moved to a new location, a quarter of a mile north of the old monastery. There is a legend that Dmitry Donskoy himself pointed out the new place, since it was convenient for defending the approaches to Moscow and was located in a strategically important direction. In 1379, a stone cathedral was founded in the name of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which was consecrated in 1405; due to its splendor, it was revered as the only one in Moscow. The old monastery was not destroyed, but remained in existence with the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary and cells for monks under the name of the Old Simonov Monastery. It was dependent on the new monastery, and during the time of Ivan the Terrible it existed separately. The old monastery served as a tomb for the monks of the new Simonov Monastery. In 1380, the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo, monastic warriors Alexander Peresvet and Rodion Oslyabya were buried here. Silent elders also lived here. By the 18th century The Church of the Nativity of the Virgin became a parish church.
The abbot of the Simonov Monastery, Theodore was the confessor of the Grand Duke Dmitry Donskoy and obtained from the Patriarch of Constantinople the rank of archimandrite for himself, and for the monastery the status of stauropegic.
In his youth, in the bakery of the Simonov Monastery, Saint Jonah worked, later Metropolitan of Kiev and All Rus' (since 1448, the first metropolitan installed in Rus' without the Patriarch of Constantinople). In memory of him, the monastery had a custom of distributing monastery bread from the refectory to all pilgrims. At the beginning of the 16th century. Writers lived in the Simonov monastery: the monk Vassian (in the world - Prince Vasily Ivanovich Patrikeev), the Athonite Maxim the Greek. During the fasts, Tsars Mikhail Fedorovich, Alexei Mikhailovich, and Fedor Alekseevich lived in the Simonov Monastery. In August 1431, Grand Duke Vasily Vasilyevich, before going to the Golden Horde, dined in a meadow near the Simonov Monastery. In 1591, the Simonov Monastery took part in repelling the attack of Khan Kazy-Girey. In the fall of 1606, the monastery actively resisted the advance of Ivan Bolotnikov’s troops, and in 1610-1613. was devastated by the Polish-Lithuanian invaders and fell into disrepair.
The monastery was a large feudal lord: until 1764 it owned about 12 thousand peasants, had many villages and villages, several small monasteries and deserts were assigned to it. For its church utensils and sacristy, the monastery was revered along with the richest monasteries in Russia. During the secularization of monastic lands, the Simonov Monastery retained its surroundings; it was classified as first class, and was the third stauropegic monastery in Moscow. In 1771, a plague epidemic began, some of the monks were transferred to the Novo-Spassky Monastery, and a quarantine was established in Simonovo. By the end of the epidemic, few monks remained alive, the monastery faded away, so its staff was transferred to the Epiphany Monastery. In 1788, by order of Catherine II, the monastery was abolished with the establishment of a hospital within its walls. Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod Musin-Pushkin A.I. on the advice of the Novgorod Metropolitan Gabriel, he decided to petition Catherine II for the restoration of the ancient Russian shrine; the monastery was reopened on May 6, 1795 in the first class. In 1812, the monastery suffered from the French, the temples and sacristy were looted, and precious manuscripts were lost.
The Simonov Monastery was famous for the splendor of its churches and the euphony of its bells. From the very foundation of the monastery, large stone construction was carried out on its territory, which continued in the 15th, 16th and subsequent centuries. In the first half of the 19th century. Simon's chant was famous, which they wanted to introduce in other churches. At this time, the monastery and its surroundings were a favorite place for country walks among Muscovites.
The ensemble of the Simonov Monastery was finally formed by the middle of the 19th century. Before the revolution of 1917, the monastery had churches: the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary 1543-1549, the Church of the All-Merciful Savior over the western gate 1593 (after which the monastery was sometimes called Spas-Simon), the hospital church of St. Nicholas over the eastern gate 1834. , the Church of Our Lady of Tikhvin at the refectory of the 17th century, the Church of Alexander Svirsky from 1700, the Church of Alexander Nevsky and John of Constantinople in the second tier of the bell tower, built in 1835-1839. in the northern fence by architect A.K. Tonom (height 99.6 m, was 12 m higher than the bell tower of Ivan the Great). The monastery was surrounded by a stone fence with five towers (Watchtower, Tainitskaya, Dulo, Kuznechnaya and Solevaya), built in the 16th-17th centuries. The towers were covered with tiles, two towers had angels on gilded balls, and the others had weather vanes. Three gates were built in the fence: the main western ones served for the entrance and entry into the monastery, the northern ones under the bell tower served for the entrance to the cathedral, the eastern ones - for the entrance to the monastery garden. On the territory of the monastery, in the western part, there were two fruit gardens (abbot's and fraternal), paths lined with trees were laid out throughout the monastery, and a sundial was installed in open areas.
There was a large necropolis in the Simonov Monastery. Stepan Vasilyevich Khovrin and many Khovrin-Golovins, the son of Dmitry Donskoy Konstantin (in the monks Cassian, 1430), the baptized Kasimov prince Simeon Bekbulatovich (in the monks Stefan, 1616) were buried in the cathedral. The cemetery was located near the eastern fence, behind the Assumption Cathedral and the Tikhvin Church. The following were buried there: writer S.T. Aksakov (1859) with his relatives, friend A.I. Herzen historian V.V. Passek (1842, was buried free of charge for writing the history of the Simonov Monastery) with children, composer A.A. Alyabyev (1851) with his family, poet D.V. Venevitinov (1827) with his relatives (they were related to A.S. Pushkin), famous publishers S.A. and N.S. Selivanovskys, writer and magazine publisher Maxim Nevzorov (1827), uncle of A.S. Pushkina N.L. Pushkin (1821) and the poet’s son-in-law L.N. Hartung (1877), collector A.P. Bakhrushin (1904) and many other outstanding figures of our history and culture.
The Simonov Monastery was closed in 1923, the vacated monastery premises were given over to housing for workers of the Simonovskaya Sloboda. The Simonov Monastery was gradually destroyed. The last church was closed in May 1929. The monuments in the monastery cemetery remained until November 1928, then the necropolis was demolished and a park was laid out in its place. In 1930, the Assumption Cathedral was blown up, the Church of Alexander Svirsky, the Watchtower and Taynitskaya tower and part of the wall were destroyed, and later other churches and buildings were destroyed. On the site of the monastery in the early 30s. The Palace of Culture of the Proletarsky District (hereinafter ZIL) was built. During Soviet times, various institutions were located on the remaining territory of the monastery. Currently, the entire complex of the monastery with the Tikhvin Church has been transferred to a community consisting of deaf and dumb people.
In 1509, the wooden Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo, next to which the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo Peresvet and Oslyabya were buried, was replaced by a stone one. In 1660, stone tombstones were erected over the graves of monks. In 1785-1787 a new stone bell tower with a refectory was built to the west of the church. In 1846-1855 The refectory and bell tower were rebuilt, and two chapels were built in the refectory: the southern chapel of St. Nicholas and the northern chapel of St. Sergius of Radonezh, in which there were the graves of heroes. In 1870, cast-iron tombstones were installed over the graves of Peresvet and Oslyabya and a metal tent was erected.
After the revolution, the church ended up on the territory of the Dynamo plant named after Kirov and they wanted to demolish it. Then it was equipped with a transformer and then a compressor station. Thanks to the public, in 1983 the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary was transferred to the Historical Museum to create an exhibition dedicated to the Battle of Kulikovo, and restoration of the temple began.
Simonov Monastery is one of the largest, richest and most famous monasteries located in the past in the near Moscow region. Now it is located on the territory of the capital. In the Middle Ages in Rus', it was part of a fortified belt, consisting of monasteries that protected the approaches to the capital from the south. A large number of buildings on its territory were destroyed during Soviet rule, especially many in the 30s. The area was partially built up.
History of the monastery
The founding date of the Simonov Monastery is considered to be 1379. It appeared in the lower reaches of the Moscow River. The land was donated for him by a boyar named Stepan Khovrin, and the first abbot was Archimandrite Fedor, a follower and student of the famous Sergius of Radonezh.
Boyar Khovrin, when he retired, accepted monasticism and began to be called Simon, hence the name of the monastery itself. And in the future, a close connection remained between the monastery and the merchant’s family. For example, the tomb of Simon’s descendants was built here.
Historians still argue about when the monastery was founded. For a long time it was believed that it was 1370, but modern researchers are still inclined to believe that this happened between 1375 and 1377.
The Simonov Monastery was moved to its current location in 1379, so some count the age of the monastery from this date. Where the monastery was located previously, only the church dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin Mary has survived. In the 18th century, it was in it that the graves of the legendary heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo - Andrei Oslyabi were discovered and these burials have survived to this day.
Influence of Sergius of Radonezh
Since the Simonov Monastery was founded by a disciple of Sergius of Radonezh, he considered it a kind of branch of his Trinity Monastery. He often stayed within these walls during his visits to Moscow.
Largely thanks to this, many famous church figures came from here. These are Kirill Belozersky, Patriarch Joseph, Rostov John, Metropolitan Gerontius. All of them were somehow connected with this monastery. In the 16th century, the theologian Maxim the Greek and the monk Vassian lived and worked here for a long time.
The history of the Simonov Monastery was not always cloudless. It was repeatedly raided and was almost completely destroyed during the Time of Troubles.
Before the revolution, the Simonov Monastery in Moscow was considered one of the most revered in the entire Moscow region. Therefore, prominent and respected personalities constantly came here for advice or absolution. The rich made significant donations, so the monastery, as a rule, did not need anything. He was especially loved by the elder brother of Peter I named Fyodor Alekseevich. He even had his own cell, in which he often retired.
A dark streak in the life of the monastery
Problems at the Simonov Monastery in Moscow began soon after Catherine II came to power. In 1771, she simply abolished it due to the plague epidemic that was rapidly spreading throughout the country. As a result, the monastery overnight turned into an isolation ward for plague patients.
It was only in 1795 that normal activities were restored. Count Alexei Musin-Pushkin petitioned for this. Archimandrite Ignatius was appointed rector, who came especially for this purpose from the Novgorod diocese, where he served in the Great Tikhvin Monastery.
During Soviet rule, the monastery was abolished again. In 1923, a museum was founded on its basis, which existed until 1930. Vasily Troitsky was appointed director, who managed to establish relations with the Orthodox church community. He even allowed services to be held in one of the monastery churches, and in exchange the monks agreed to serve as janitors and watchmen. In the 1920s, the architect Rodionov carried out the restoration of the monastery buildings.
In 1930, a special commission from the Soviet government was assembled, which officially recognized that some ancient buildings located on the territory of the monastery should be preserved as historical monuments, but at the same time the walls of the monastery and the cathedral itself should be demolished. As a result, five of the six churches were razed to the ground, including the bell tower, the Assumption Cathedral, and the gate churches. The Tainitskaya and Watchtowers, as well as the outbuildings that were adjacent to them, were destroyed. Several subbotniks were organized, during which the walls of the monastery were dismantled, and the ZIL Palace of Culture appeared in this place.
Only in the early 90s were the remains of the monastery buildings returned to the Russian Orthodox Church.
How to get to the monastery?
Getting to the Simonov Monastery, whose opening hours are from 8.30 to 19.30, is not at all difficult. If you use public transport, take the metro to the Avtozavodskaya station. Next you should walk along Masterkova Street in the direction of a street called Leninskaya Sloboda. As soon as you find yourself at the crossroads, you will see the Salt Tower, which belongs to the Simonov Monastery. Address: Moscow, Vostochnaya street, building 4.
The travel time from the metro to the monastery itself will be about eight minutes on foot.
Bell tower
Today we can see that some of the monastery’s buildings were restored, while others were completely lost. Separately, it is worth mentioning the bell tower of the Simonov Monastery.
By the 19th century it had become very dilapidated, then a new five-tier bell tower began to be erected above the northern gate, the architect of which was Konstantin Ton. After 4 years, a 94-meter structure was built, which became higher than the bell tower of Ivan the Great in the Moscow Kremlin. For a while it became the tallest in the capital.
Four large bells were cast for it specially by order of the kings, who often visited this monastery, prayed, and communicated with the elders.
In February, a photograph was published on the cover of Ogonyok magazine depicting a huge piece of debris from the bell tower of the Simonov Monastery that had just been blown up. The bell tower officially ceased to exist in 1930.
Refectory
The refectory of the Simonov Monastery is a monument of Russian civil architecture of the 17th century. It appeared in the monastery back in the 15th century, but over time it ceased to satisfy the needs of the numerous brethren.
Construction of the new building began in 1677 under the leadership of the architect Potapov. But his appearance was not liked by the customers and the church leadership. As a result, construction was frozen for a while. It resumed in 1683, and by 1685 it was completed. This time the work was led by the famous metropolitan architect Osip Startsev.
Modern researchers attribute the refectory to the Moscow Baroque. On the right is the Church of the Holy Spirit, and on the left is a turret, on the upper tier of which there is an observation deck.
By the way, the refectory has a unique feature. This is a stepped spike on the west side. Its design is in the spirit of Western European mannerism, and the walls are decorated with “chess” paintings.
Inside the refectory there is one large vault that spans the entire width of the building. Refectory chambers were later built according to this model in many Russian churches.
Church and towers
The monastery is located in an amazingly beautiful picturesque place. It has repeatedly inspired many writers and therefore to create amazing works. For example, a description of the Simonov Monastery can be found in Karamzin’s story “Poor Liza.” In the pond, it was near its walls that the main character drowned herself in the finale. This made the monastery very popular for a long time among fans and followers of sentimentalism.
The first stone cathedral church at the monastery appeared in 1405. It was named in honor of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Its construction began just in 1379. Since then, the Simonov Assumption Monastery has been considered one of the main shrines of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The cathedral's dome was seriously damaged in 1476 when it was struck by lightning. Therefore, it soon had to be seriously rebuilt. An Italian architect took up the matter, whose name has not survived to this day. By 1549 the temple was rebuilt. A five-domed cathedral was erected on the old foundation, which became larger in size.
At the end of the 17th century, it was painted by capital masters, and at the same time a carved iconostasis in gold appeared in the monastery. It housed the main shrine of the Simonov Monastery - the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. It was this that Sergius of Radonezh gave to Dmitry Donskoy, blessing him for victory in the Battle of Kulikovo.
Among the rare valuables you can immediately see a golden cross strewn with emeralds and diamonds, which was given to the monastery by Princess Maria Alekseevna.
There is an opinion among researchers that the old walls and towers of the monastery were built by one of the most famous Russian architects, Fyodor Kon. The same one who built the Smolensk fortress wall. He was seriously involved in strengthening the border borders of Rus' during the reign of Tsar Boris Godunov, who laid the first stone in the Smolensk Kremlin.
The Horse also worked hard in this monastery. The architect's work was not in vain. In 1591, the monks were attacked by the Crimean Khan of Gaza II Giray, but thanks to strong walls they managed to withstand the enemy.
The walls of some towers of the Simonov Monastery and the monastery itself have survived to this day, although they were built in 1630. When the new fortress was being built, some fragments that Fyodor Kon had already worked on were included in its composition.
The total circumference of the monastery walls is 825 meters. The height is impressive - about seven meters. The Dulo Tower, which is topped with a tent with the original watchtower, has been preserved to this day perhaps better than the others. Two more surviving towers are called Salt and Kuznechnaya; they appeared in the 40s of the 17th century. At that time, a large-scale reconstruction of walls and buildings that had been badly damaged during the Time of Troubles was underway.
The list of buildings and structures of the Simonov Monastery also includes three gates. The northern, western and eastern ones have survived to this day.
After the landmark victory over Khan Kazy-Girey, which took place in 1591, the gate church of the All-Merciful Savior was built at the monastery. In 1834, another church, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, appeared above the eastern gate.
An important decision for the development of the monastery was made in 1832. The Orthodox complex needed a new bell tower, money for which was donated by the merchant Ignatiev. Initially, the project made by the architect Tyurin was approved. The bell tower was supposed to be built in the style of classicism, but later this idea was abandoned. Largely due to the fact that in Russia the traditions of returning to the original traditional Russian architecture were gaining more and more strength. So in 1839 a bell tower of five tiers appeared, designed by Konstantin Ton.
Another ten meters was the belfry. The largest bell in the Simonov Monastery weighed a whole thousand poods, which is about 16 and a half tons. How it was possible to raise it to such a height at that time remains a mystery to many. It was this bell tower that turned into one of the dominant features for Moscow of its time. Visually, she managed to complete the picture of the picturesque capital in the southern part of the city.
In 1929, the bell tower was blown up and the Soviet authorities ordered it to be dismantled into bricks.
Necropolis
In the ancient monastery, as usual, many famous people are buried, whose contribution to the history of Russia and the fate of the monastery is known to many.
For example, in the cathedral at the monastery, Simeon Bekbulatovich, baptized at the whim of Ivan IV the Terrible, was buried, who in 1575, unexpectedly for everyone around him, was named Tsar of Rus'. True, a year later the same Grozny successfully overthrew him.
After the intrigues of Prince Boris Godunov, who was close to the tsar, he was blinded in 1595, and in 1606 he was exiled to Solovki. There he became a monk. Returning to Moscow, he was placed in the Simonov Monastery, where he died under the name of the schema-monk Stefan.
In the necropolis of the monastery lies the body of Konstantin Dmitrievich, who also took monastic vows before his death and died under the name of the monk Cassian. At various times, representatives of the family of boyars Golovins, Buturlins, princes Mstislavsky, Suleshev, Temkin-Rostovsky were buried in the monastery courtyard.
Many representatives of the creative intelligentsia are buried here. The talented poet Venevitinov, who died in 1827, the writer Aksakov, who died in 1859, the composer Alyabyev, who wrote the famous “Nightingale” (his death overtook him in 1851), Bakhrushin, who achieved recognition in collecting and bibliophilia, Nikolai Lvovich Pushkin (uncle of the famous poet ), Fyodor Golovin (close ally and associate of the first Russian Emperor Peter I).
You can also find the graves of representatives of many famous Russian noble families, such as the Vadbolskys, Olenins, Zagryazhskys, Tatishchevs, Shakhovskys, Muravyovs, Durasovs, Islenyevs, Naryshkins.
When the monastery was destroyed in the 30s of the 20th century, most of the necropolis was not preserved. Only a few remains have been recovered. For example, the poet Venevitinov and the prose writer Aksakov, they were reburied at the Novodevichy cemetery. Instead of a cemetery, they organized a carpentry shop and After the monastery was returned to the church, construction and restoration work began, within the framework of which some more remains were found and buried according to Orthodox custom.
The priests noted that all the graves found were badly destroyed, most of them desecrated. The remains were found during the removal of construction waste; enormous work was done to separate human bones from animal bones.
Current state
Today you can see only a small part of the buildings of the Simonov Monastery that have survived to this day. All that remains of the monastery itself is the southern wall with three towers (Dulo, Solevaya and Kuznechnaya). The 17th century refectory with the Church of the Holy Spirit has been preserved, as well as the fraternal building, the so-called refectory chambers, which date back to the 15th century, outbuildings and workshops.
In recent years, the Russian Orthodox Church has been carrying out large-scale restoration and restoration work. In particular, they are working on restoring the refectory, the fraternal building and outbuildings. The latter are also used as workshops. The remaining surviving towers and walls are mostly in an abandoned state.
You can learn even more by going on an excursion to the Simonov Monastery. It's not difficult at all. The “Walking around Moscow” project was launched at one time as part of the City Day celebrations. These excursions turned out to be so popular that they were launched on a permanent basis.
The duration of such a cognitive and educational walk is about two and a half hours. During this time, you can walk with an experienced and well-read guide through the picturesque and quiet places of Simonovskaya Sloboda, see the very pond into which Karamzin’s heroine threw herself out of grief, the station building abandoned by trains for seven decades, learn about the tragic and majestic fate of the monastery -a warrior who has repeatedly defended the capital, to visit the grave of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo. There is also a place in memory of the famous composer Alyabiev, the so-called cemetery of bells.
Among the main objects are not only the Simonov Monastery and the buildings located on its territory, but also the Lizovo railway station, the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, the place where the Mother of God appeared to Kirill Belozersky, the Orthodox factory of the industrialist Alexander Bari, the graves of Peresvet and Oslyabi.
The organizers of the excursion guarantee that after its completion you will find out why the writer Karamzin renamed the settlement, although he did not want it, at what place the temple of obscurantism was demolished and a house of enlightenment was built, how the monastery tower turned into a semaphore, for what reason the troops of Ataman Bolotnikov could not overcome the monastery walls, as the composer Alyabyev created his most famous work “The Nightingale”, where there was a traditional meeting place for cadets of the Spasskaya Tower.
The only thing worth remembering if you are planning to visit this excursion is that certain rules must be followed on the territory of the monastery. Be dressed in accordance with the rules of Orthodox piety, in particular you cannot appear in shorts or short skirts.
The route along which the excursion will take place will begin near the station, from there you will proceed to Masterkova Street, then to Oslyabinsky and Peresvetov Lanes, visit the Simonov Monastery itself, go to Leninskaya Sloboda Street and return again to the Avtozavodskaya metro station.
Towers and walls of the Simonov Monastery
Almost nothing remains of the former grandeur and grandiose plan, which was embodied over centuries - only three red brick towers. They have large cracks and need urgent restoration. The tent, renovated in the early 2000s, further emphasizes the neglect of the ancient walls: the tiles are new - the brick is kept on its word of honor.
The “salt” tower is the first thing that catches your eye if you walk along East Street. It is covered with ancient tiles. Since tsarist times, the tent of the “Salt” tower has not been updated. The tower is connected by a massive southern wall to the other two. All these are the remains of the most powerful outpost in the south of Moscow.
From behind the walls, dilapidated, shapeless buildings of the industrial zone and warehouses appear. But it's on the other side. And on this one there is a neat park with a children's playground and paths. On the site of a former cemetery.
I stop at another tower – “Kuznechnaya”. She is the smallest. Pentagonal. Such a small hulk. Apparently, they wanted to renovate it a couple of years ago. But the liquid scaffolding seems to soon collapse on its own. It, like the round “Salt”, was built by the architect Konstantinov in the 1640s. At this time, the monastery was actively rebuilt: the defensive structures that had been damaged during the Time of Troubles were strengthened.
The panorama of Moscow from the high and steep bank is still impressive. It is no coincidence that the tallest bell tower in Moscow was erected here. We can now appreciate the view from the fifth tier of the famous and lost belfry only from old photographs.
I approach the most powerful of the survivors - the Dulo tower. It was erected by the “sovereign master” Fyodor Savelyevich Kon. “Dulo” is the nickname or name of the Tatar leader. He was killed by an arrow fired from this tower.
Fyodor Savelyevich also built walls. The height of the southern wall, preserved by some miracle, in some places reaches 7 meters. But what remains is rather a quiet greeting from the past.
The Dulo tower has 16 sides. The horse built on a grand scale and to last. The ribs of the tower are decorated with blades. They give the majestic structure a harmonious appearance. This is to speak in the language of a historical reference book. And to put it as it is, the entire tower, despite its majesty, is slowly settling and falling apart.
The walls of the monastery held the defense more than once, exhausted the enemy and were the first to meet enemy fire. And there were enough enemies
But let us be fair and careful in our conclusions: the walls and towers of the Simonov Monastery are a real masterpiece of Russian fortification thought. They held the defense more than once, exhausted the enemy and were the first to meet enemy fire. And there were enough enemies. In 1591, the Simonov Monastery took part in repelling the attack of Khan Kazy-Girey. In the fall of 1606, the monastery prevented, and quite unsuccessfully, the advance of Ivan Bolotnikov’s troops. In 1610–1613 it was ruined – “almost to the ground” – by Polish-Lithuanian invaders and fell into disrepair. And in 1812 the monastery suffered from the French. Then the temples and sacristy were looted, and precious manuscripts were lost.
But in the 20th century, the monument, huge in design and by construction standards, was almost destroyed... by their own people.
The length of the monastery walls was 825 meters, the height was 7 meters. To summarize: in the modern architectural ensemble of the monastery, three towers have been preserved: “Dulo”, “Kuznechnaya” and “Solyana”.
Deep history in superficial strokes
And it all started in 1370. His disciple and nephew Theodore founded the Simonov Assumption Monastery. The location for the future monastery was chosen on a picturesque hill located downstream of the Moscow River. These lands were donated by boyar Stepan Vasilyevich Khovrin. When he was tonsured, he received the name Simon - hence the name of the monastery. But this is just a version.
A whole galaxy of ascetics and patriarchs emerged from the walls of the monastery: St. Kirill of Belozersky, St. Ferapont of Mozhaisk. There were also St. Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus', St. Gerontius, also a metropolitan, and Patriarch Joseph... By the way, Jonah became the first metropolitan installed in Rus' without the Patriarch of Constantinople. This happened in 1448. And of course, one cannot help but say that the first Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', Job, came out of the Simonov Monastery.
It is noteworthy that some inhabitants of the Simonov Monastery came here by the will of the sovereign. Around 1510, by direct royal decree, Vasily Kosoy Patrikeev (monastically Vassian) was appointed to the monastery. And of course, the famous Maxim the Greek lived here.
It was in the Simonov Monastery that St. Kirill heard the voice of the Mother of God, who ordered to go to Beloozero
The first on this list, Saint Cyril, heard the voice of the Mother of God in the Simonov Monastery. And a miracle happened like this. He became the archimandrite of the Simonov Monastery, but soon left his abbotship and secluded himself in a cell. One night, while listening to the akathist, he heard the voice of the Mother of God: “Kirill, get out of here and go to Beloozero. There I have prepared a place for you where you can be saved.”
Simonov Monastery was one of the richest in Rus'. Until 1764, he owned about 12 thousand peasants. Several small monasteries and deserts were assigned to the monastery.
It is known that Patriarch Filaret in 1624 wrote a decree to Grigory Vasilyevich Zamytsky in Ostashkov: he demanded that the peasants of Rozhkovskaya Sloboda, the estate of the Simonov Monastery, be allowed to fish in Lake Seliger. The document says that this practice existed before, and the quitrent was paid to the order of the Grand Palace.
Fishing by the peasants of the Simonov Monastery in Lake Seliger for rent did not suit the Ostashkovsky (apparently, the sovereign) peasants, therefore the Simonovsky peasants were forbidden to fish in the lake. This conflict of interest happened four centuries ago.
Even in the Simonov Monastery, Peter the Great’s elder brother, Fyodor Alekseevich, had his own cell. And the famous collector of manuscripts and Russian antiquities, Count Alexei Musin-Pushkin, petitioned Catherine II in 1795 to have the Simonov Monastery reopened after its abolition due to the plague that had decimated the population. So the plague isolation ward was again turned into a monastery.
In past centuries, these landscapes and this area attracted great writers, great poets and famous artists.
In a pond that was located not far from the monastery, Nikolai Karamzin drowned his Lisa. Apollinary Vasnetsov worked here and Konstantin Ton worked here. Alexander Pushkin was also here, but this is a sad story, which will be discussed below...
High classic and luxurious baroque
The ensemble of the Simonov Monastery was finally formed by the middle of the 19th century. But already in 1685, the famous Moscow architect Osip Startsev built the famous Refectory Chamber in the monastery.
The Tikhvin Church, opened today, is that same refectory.
Initially, the architect Parfen Petrov took on the work of its construction. But the customer did not appreciate the master’s work: he did not like the motifs of ancient Moscow architecture. It came to court. Three years later, another architect, Osip Startsev, remade what Petrov had built and created the most impressive monument of the Moscow Baroque in its form and scope.
The architect gave free rein to his imagination and built a spacious observation deck. In size it was not inferior to the large quadrangle of the church. And here is what Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov wrote about this architectural solution:
“Further to the east, on three hills, between which the river meanders, there are wide masses of houses of all possible sizes and colors; a tired gaze can hardly reach the distant horizon, on which groups of several monasteries are depicted, between which Simonov is especially notable for his hanging platform, almost between heaven and earth, from where our ancestors watched the movements of the approaching Tatars.”
Another bold architectural solution has survived to this day - the stepped gable.
The northern façade was decorated with windows with intricately shaped frames. This can be seen from the photographs that have reached us. But another bold architectural solution has survived to this day - the stepped gable. Its design is in the spirit of Western European mannerism.
The above-mentioned Apollinary Vasnetsov depicted just the described part of the building on the canvas “Simonov Monastery. Clouds and golden domes." This is 1927. Barely made it.
Even in black and white, everything is fabulously beautiful. And this is what the Tikhvin Church looked like with the famous gables during the Soviet years.
And Western European mannerism, which miraculously penetrated beyond the thick fortress walls of the Simonov Monastery, has brilliant examples in Florence. Take, for example, the wonderful Laurentian Library. It was built by Michelangelo with his students Giorgio Vasari and Bartolomeo Ammanati. The echo of that wave in architecture is now frozen on the roof of the Tikhvin Church. So until the end, by the way, and not restored. In this sense, it is not far from its sister towers.
The famous bell tower of the Simonov Monastery was less fortunate. More precisely, no luck at all. And this five-tier bell tower was erected in 1839 by Konstantin Ton. They say he loved Simonov very much. The bell tower was 9 meters (and according to some sources, 12) higher than “Ivan the Great”. Designed in the Russian-Byzantine style, it became the highest in Moscow: 90 meters. The Simonov Monastery has turned into a real architectural pearl.
Now one can only imagine what kind of ringing rang over the bend of the Moscow River when the monks called people to worship. By the way, the largest bell weighed more than 1000 poods - that’s 16 tons. The atheists removed this colossus and melted it down. But even old photographs convey the grandeur of the bell tower. There's a lot to see. This, for example, is her very first photograph. It was made in 1852.
The bell tower will be blown up and dismantled into bricks. And then they will destroy the necropolis
And here is an old postcard of the Simonov Monastery. The author is the artist-engraver Louis-Pierre-Alphonse Bichebois... Louis-Pierre-Alphonse, by the way, perfectly understood and appreciated beauty and scale. Thanks to his work, we know how the Alexander Column was raised on Palace Square in St. Petersburg.
The bell tower will be blown up and dismantled into bricks. And in a year the famous monastery necropolis will be destroyed.
Buried necropolis
My soul told me long ago:
You will rush through the world like lightning!
You are given to feel everything,
But you won't enjoy life.
These are the lines of the wonderful Moscow poet Dmitry Venevitinov. He died at 21. But he managed to become a great romantic.
In 1826, Venevitinov wrote a brilliant poem in which we find the lines:
This is the hour of final suffering!
Listen: the will of a dead man
Terrible, like the voice of prophecy.
Pay attention: so that this ring
They did not remove the cold hand; –
Let my sorrows die with him
And they will be buried with him.
Venevitinov’s “will” was not fulfilled. There really was a ring. More precisely, a ring from Herculaneum. It was given to the dying poet by the Slavophile Alexei Khomyakov. Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin also came to his funeral at the Simonov Monastery. After a “lightning-fast” life, Dmitry Vladimirovich’s ashes were disturbed. The terrible “will of a dead man” was violated in 1930. The ring was taken and is now kept in the Literary Museum.
The ashes of Sergei Timofeevich Aksakov, the author of “The Scarlet Flower,” were also disturbed. The bodies of both writers were exhumed and reburied at the Novodevichy cemetery. But Venevitinov’s relatives were less fortunate. Their graves were destroyed. Like hundreds of others. They were not moved. All the remains were mixed with earth. Class enemies - representatives of the old noble Russian families: Zagryazhskys, Olenins, Durasovs, Vadbolskys, Soimonovs, Muravyovs, Islenevs, Tatishchevs, Naryshkins, Shakhovskys, who were buried here - were not needed by the new Bolshevik “Russia”. And under the foundation of the library of the ZIL House of Culture there is the burial place of an associate of Peter the Great, the first holder of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called - Fyodor Golovin. This House of Culture was built on the foundation of the five-domed Assumption Cathedral of the Simon Monastery.
Along with the tombstones, the Assumption Cathedral and other churches disappeared forever - before the revolution, there were six churches with 22 altars in the monastery - the Watchtower, and Taininskaya.
The arrival of the deaf-blind and mute and the new life of the Simonov Monastery
The Simonov Monastery began to come to life in the 90s of the last century. Thanks to the enormous energy and superhuman efforts of Archpriest Andrei Goryachev, rector of the Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. He began to restore both the destroyed monastery and the lost necropolis.
A major examination has already been carried out to separate human and animal remains: the bones were randomly scattered throughout the monastery and covered with earth and construction debris. After a short tour of the monastery, Father Andrei and I went down to the Musin-Pushkin tomb. Valentin Platonovich, a relative of the same Alexei Ivanovich Musin-Pushkin, who persuaded Catherine II to open the Simonov Monastery. Valentin Platonovich built two two-story chapels of the temple.
Another tombstone with the surname “Tolokonnikov” caught my eye. Made of black granite. It, like hundreds of others, lay underground for 60 years. And right opposite the entrance to the Tikhvin Church there are several more gravestones. Apparently, so that the memory does not fade.
People with disabilities come here to worship services: some cannot hear, and some cannot see and hear at the same time
I came to the Simonov Monastery to talk with Father Andrei Goryachev about the deaf-blind community. People with disabilities have been coming here for services for more than 20 years: some cannot hear, and some cannot see and hear at the same time. And there is a very strong community here.
After the interview, Father Andrei gave a short tour of the temple. It will appear later. First, I wanted to introduce readers to this amazing place, where the walls, towers and temple that have miraculously survived to this day are ready to tell many stories. I would like to listen to them.
Mysteries of the Simonov Monastery on Avtozavodskaya April 29th, 2011
Taking part in the April cleanup on Avtozavodskaya in the park of the ZIL cultural center, I noticed strange boulders and stones sticking out at the base of the outer wall of one of the three brick towers of the Simonov Monastery. Historians date the towers and remains of the southern fortress wall to the 17th-18th centuries. I wondered: why did huge boulders form the foundation of only one of the three brick towers? The two towers rest on small hewn rectangular blocks, and there are no boulders under them (photo No. 1).
Huge boulders of dark gray color make a strange impression. They stand out strongly against the background of red bricks and white limestone blocks laid at the base of the tower (photos No. 2, No. 3, No. 12, No. 14).
If you look closely, you will notice that boulders of different sizes are fragments or fragments of something whole, namely a monolithic stone. Moreover, it was not a simple stone, but rather a grandiose, most likely sculptural composition, carved from a single rock. On some fragments of the mysterious stone sculpture, split into many parts, there were clear traces of both manual and technical processing - drilled holes, grooves, polished figured parts and even a clear trace of sawing, as if the ancient sculptor was working with a “grinder” (photo No. 7, No. 9, No. 10, No. 17)
The first version that comes to mind after getting acquainted with the mysterious boulders under the tower of the Simonov Monastery are fragments of a sculpture of some pagan deity. Now it is impossible to understand what this work looked like and what it was. Most of its fragments are embedded inside, at the very base of the tower, and only a few large and small parts are visible from the outside.
Apparently, in pagan times, this sculpture played an important role in medieval rituals, people revered and worshiped it. It is possible that the pagans made sacrifices to this mysterious stone. Otherwise, why would such a huge composition be split into pieces, and even built into the walls of a Christian monastery? Most likely, this was a demonstrative action for the pagans. They needed to be convinced not to worship pagan gods, but to accept the Christian faith. By splitting the pagan shrine and walling up its parts in the base of the tower of the Simonov Monastery, the pagans were taught a lesson!
It is possible that the mysterious sculpture could have been destroyed long before the walls and towers of the monastery were erected in the 17th and 18th centuries. These fragments could have been located on the territory of the monastic monastery even earlier. It is not possible to install this. The question is, how did the ancient sculptor carve a mysterious composition from a monolithic rock? Did he really have at hand in those distant times modern technical means that would allow him to cut stone and drill deep holes in it?
Before dwelling in detail on the individual, most remarkable boulders under the tower of the Simonov Monastery, I would like to make a short excursion into history.
Palace of Culture AMO "Plant named after I.A. Likhachev" (ZIL) - one of the largest cultural and leisure centers of Moscow, an architectural monument of the 30s of the twentieth century, designed by the architects the Vesnin brothers. Few people now know that the ZIL cultural center was built on the site of the Simonov Monastery, which was blown up in 1930. Its founder is considered to be the Monk Feodor, the disciple and nephew of St. Sergius of Radonezh. In 1370, with the blessing of Sergius of Radonezh, the Monk Fedor founded a monastic monastery, which existed for almost six centuries.
You can learn more about the history of the Simonov Monastery at the links http://tserkov.eparhia.ru/numbers/history/?ID=1375 or http://russian-church.ru/viewpage.php?cat=moscow&page=340
I will give only a fragment of the material “Simonov Monastery - a glorious and tragic page in Russian history” on the “Russian Churches” website, which describes how an ancient historical monument was destroyed in a barbaric way during the Soviet years.
“...According to a report in the Ogonyok magazine, “the All-Russian Central Executive Committee commission recognized that half of the ancient buildings of the former monastery could be preserved as a historical monument, but that the cathedral and walls should be demolished.” In January 1930, five of the six monastery churches, two towers with adjacent buildings, as well as all the walls of the monastery, except the southern one, were blown up. According to the project, it was assumed that the entire territory of the Simonov Monastery would be turned into a park, and the cultural complex was supposed to consist of three separate buildings - a cinema club, a theater with 4,000 seats and a sports building. However, only the club of the automobile plant named after was built. I.A. Likhachev..."
And one more episode: “...The explosion occurred on the night of January 21, exactly on the sixth anniversary of the death of V.I. Lenin. Five of the six churches were blown up, including the Assumption Cathedral, the bell tower, the gate churches, as well as the Watchtower and Tainitskaya towers with their adjacent buildings. During the working subbotniks, all the walls of the monastery were dismantled, except for the southern one, and all the graves on the territory of the monastery were wiped off the face of the earth. On the site of the ruins of the “fortress of church obscurantism,” as Ogonyok magazine wrote, the ZIL Palace of Culture rose in 1932-1937...”
The monastic monastery suffered not only during the years of Soviet power. Over six centuries, the Simonov Monastery more than once took on the onslaught of enemy troops, was subjected to Tatar raids, and in the Time of Troubles was ravaged and destroyed almost to the ground. In 1771, under Catherine II, the monastery was abolished and, due to the spreading plague epidemic at that time, turned into a quarantine zone. In 1812, during the Patriotic War, the monastery was ravaged and burned by the French. In this regard, it is not possible to get to the bottom of who exactly could have split the pagan sculpture into pieces - the Tatars, the French or the monks themselves. It is also impossible to determine the age of the fragments. They may be hundreds or thousands of years old. Modern methods of research and dating, unfortunately, are not able to determine the age of a processed stone only from traces of its processing.
The most mysterious stone at the base of the outer wall of the southern tower of the Simonov Monastery is an irregularly shaped block. He was the first to attract my attention, and after studying it, I began to look at other stones, discovering similarities in the rock and processing methods (photo No. 7, No. 7-1, No. 7-2, No. 8, No. 9, No. 10).
On the left side of the stone you can see a drilled hole, above it there is a clearly visible groove and a fragment of a sculptural image that resembles the severed tail of a mermaid. Moreover, a chip line is clearly visible on the stone, which indicates the missing part of the sculptural composition. Where she went is unknown!
On the top of the same stone, a deep groove in the shape of a horseshoe is also clearly visible, and to the left of it there is a deep cut mark, reminiscent of a grinder mark (photo No. 8, No. 9, No. 10). How can this be explained? Moreover, the trace of the cut is far from fresh; apparently, it was left at the time of making the sculpture. But when was this?
Under the base of the southern tower you can see several more strange stones with holes and saw cuts (photos No. 3, No. 4, No. 11).
My attention was also drawn to a stone with a large hole on the side. I tried to dig it up a little and clear it of soil, as a result I discovered several more holes on the stone, and a crescent-shaped cut appeared on the upper side (photos No. 15, No. 16 and No. 17).
This stone clearly had some kind of technical function, and an iron ring could be mounted in its small holes, then this device could be an ancient anchor, sinker or ballast.
If a superficial acquaintance with the boulders and stones at the base of the outer wall of the southern tower of the Simonov Monastery led to such a number of finds, then what results can serious research and archaeological excavations in the area of the walls and towers, miraculously preserved to this day, lead to? I am sure that there will be enough finds and that many important evidence of a distant era will be revealed to researchers. It is likely that archaeologists will then be able to find and piece together parts of the mysterious sculptural composition and reveal how it was made using “modern” technical means.