Honorary pensioner of the USSR named UZHAS October 25th, 2017

What is one of the differences between Nazism and Bolshevism? Nazism was defeated militarily, and it was not comme il faut for the punishers there to live under their own names. In the USSR, murderers and executioners (those who were not killed by their own) - calmly grew old, outlived their victims for many decades, died caressed by that power with a bunch of awards and the halo of a "hero" (any grandfather with medal bars is a priori considered a war veteran. But , as we see, "it's not so clear").
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Back in 1989, one could meet a quiet, handsome old man on the Moscow streets. Tapping his stick on the asphalt, he peacefully wandered about his old man's affairs with a string bag in his hands. Passers-by, mistaking him for a war veteran, could not imagine in terrible dreams that this old man was one of the most terrible executioners and sadists of the Stalinist camps, lieutenant colonel of the internal service, head of the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camps (USLON) Dmitry Uspensky.

The son of a priest became the executioner of the prisoners of the Stalinist camps

For his special passion for executions, the prisoners called him "amateur executioner" or "Solovki Napoleon."

With the brand of a parricide

The bitter smile of fate lies in the fact that the bloody monster Dmitry Uspensky was born in the family of a priest, that is, from early childhood he lived in an atmosphere of Christian love, kindness and forgiveness. His father, Vladimir Mikhailovich Uspensky, was a deacon of the Nicholas Church in the village of Snopot, Mosalsky district, Kaluga province. Mother, like most wives of clergymen, was a housewife.
It is difficult to say why the devil in the flesh grew up in the family of a servant of God, but Ouspensky's first bloody crime was the murder of his own father.
Ouspensky Jr. received 10 years for him and that is why he ended up on Solovki. The parricide himself explained his crime by "class hatred."
The young "amateur executioner" was essentially an unprincipled careerist and understood perfectly well that in the USSR, where the state policy was to fight against the church and priests, you could not make a career with such a biography.
That is why he "refused his father", and he did it in such a way that the NKVD noticed and remembered him.
And indeed, he was given a very short term for murder at that time - only 10 years. And he was released in general a year later, and later his conviction for murder was annulled, and the executioner lived all his life with an untainted criminal past biography.
In 1920, having received only an incomplete secondary education, Uspensky came to work at the OGPU, and already in 1927 he was sent to a duty station, which he did not change almost to the end - to USLON. They say he was patronized somewhere upstairs, almost by Yagoda himself. Most likely it was. Because he immediately took the post that many had been seeking for years - the head of the educational and educational department of the Solovetsky camp.

For the love of "art"

It was here that all the "personal qualities" of this "amateur executioner" were fully manifested. Endless drinking, rape of female prisoners, sadistic antics in relation not only to the convicts, but even to the camp staff - this was the work of "educating and enlightening" the new head of the department.
Here is the most typical example. According to official duties, Uspensky was not supposed to take part in mass executions and executions. But ... for the "amateur executioner" this was the most desirable entertainment, and on his own initiative he volunteered to carry out the sentences of the speedy tribunals of the NKVD.
Ouspensky participated in dozens of shootings and executions of prisoners.

On the night of October 28-29, 1929, Uspensky led and himself participated in a mass execution, the victims of which were 400 people. His act was highly appreciated by the command, he almost immediately received the post of head of the Solovetsky branch of USLON.
Less than a year later, the promoted Ouspensky was bored again. And he volunteered to shoot 148 people - Siberian and Volga peasants. All their fault lay only in the fact that they devoutly believed in God.
And finally the loudest case. Dmitry Uspensky personally trampled to death a disabled woman Yevgenia Yaroslavskaya-Markon.
This unfortunate woman ended up in the camp for her connection with the anarchists, she was sentenced to death, which Ouspensky volunteered to carry out.
But during the execution, the woman rushed to run and the executioner missed. Then he caught up with the unfortunate woman, knocked her down with the handle of the revolver and trampled to death with her feet.
The execution was so inhumane that it could not be "silenced". Ouspensky was under the threat of criminal prosecution, and in order to escape from the same camps, he urgently fabricated a version that the deceased was "preparing an assassination attempt on him." According to Ouspensky, she "was going to kill him by hitting him with a stone in the temple." All this was sewn with white thread, but, since the executioner was favored at the very top, it worked. Ouspensky remained at large and even received another promotion.
He also had another dark passion. He was very fond of personally executing young women. Before that, he forced them to strip naked, raped someone, but he always made pencil sketches of female bodies, which became corpses in a few minutes. For this, among the prisoners, he received another nickname - the Artist.

Marriage "by flight"

Under his leadership, the White Sea Canal was built, and the prisoners from this construction site remembered Uspensky for a long time.
His wife was the prisoner Natalya Andreeva, whom, as usual, Ouspensky first brutally raped.
For unknown reasons, this case - one of dozens - received publicity, the threat of criminal punishment hung over Uspensky again, and Yagoda personally ordered his favorite executioner to marry the rape victim. And in order to make this possible, Natalya Andreeva was released.
And here is the paradox. While thousands of people cursed the executioner and sincerely wished him death, the only woman in the world, his wife, apparently, sincerely loved this monster.
“My life is a fairy tale, I am Dima's wife. And Dima has four rhombuses, it’s even scary, ”she wrote in a letter to her friend.
However, the happiness of Natalia Uspenskaya did not last long. The "four diamonds" of her husband did not save her from re-arrest in 1937. She was sentenced as an "enemy of the people" to 8 years in the camps, and after the verdict, her husband never saw her again. And the father personally gave two sons from this marriage to the orphanage.
By the way, Andreeva's second sentence almost cost Uspensky's career. He was expelled from the party, but ... dark forces intervened again, and on April 15, 1939, the Kuibyshev Regional Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks reinstated Uspensky in the party with the wording "for the actions he committed ... he already has party penalties, and new circumstances that would serve as a reason for expulsion he is from the party, is not available.
After Nikolai Yezhov, People's Commissar of the NKVD, was removed from his post, the fate of such as Uspensky was determined - the death penalty. But even here the "amateur executioner" was more fortunate than others. It is not known how he managed to win over the new Chekists who replaced the Yezhovs, but Uspensky was not shot, but was “exiled” to Naryan-Mar, instructed to lead Zapolyarlag.
And here's what's amazing. A monster, a sadist, a rapist and a voluntary executioner, who spent the entire war as head of camps scattered throughout the USSR, and who did not spend a single day at the front, Dmitry Uspensky was awarded five highest government awards, including two Orders of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner, the Order of the Red Stars and others.
In 1952, Uspensky was dismissed from the MGB, and on March 17, 1953 he was sent to retire, having been awarded the title "Personal pensioner of allied significance" with all the ensuing privileges and a huge pension by Soviet standards. And he died a natural death in the summer of 1989.

) , Solovetsky Napoleon(Belbaltlag), June 20, 1902 - July 1989, Moscow) - lieutenant colonel of the internal service, head of many camp departments.

Born on June 20, 1902 in the family of the deacon of the Nicholas Church in the village of Snopot, Mosalsky district, Kaluga province, Vladimir Mikhailovich Uspensky, mother - Elizaveta Ivanovna (née?), housewife. According to Ouspensky himself, his father died in 1905. However, in Solovki there was a persistent rumor that Ouspensky did not come to the islands of his own free will, but was convicted as a parricide, and he explained his deed with class hatred. It should be emphasized that in a conversation with I. L. Solonevich Uspensky confirmed, without indicating the reason, that he was sentenced to 10 years, but there is no information about Uspensky's criminal record anywhere in open documents.

In memory of his deceased father, a deacon, he enjoyed the support of a local priest. He graduated from the 5-class theological school in Kaluga and in 1916 entered the Kaluga Seminary. Learning in both educational institution was carried out "at the expense of the treasury". From June 1918, he worked as a clerk in the Snopotsky volost executive committee, from November 1920 as head of the regional logging artel in Spass-Demensk, assistant accountant at sawmill No. 2 of the Bryanskles trust in Bryansk. In October 1924, he was drafted into the Special Purpose Division (ODON) under the Collegium of the OGPU of the USSR. (According to other sources in the Red Army and the bodies of the Cheka-OGPU since 1920). Since 1927, a member of the RCP (b) (according to other sources, since 1925).

Since 1952 he has been a personal pensioner of the Union importance. In June 1953 he was dismissed from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In 1969 he finally retired.

While still the head of the educational and educational department of the Solovetsky camp, Uspensky repeatedly participated in executions. Direct evidence of at least three cases is known:

Spitting out curses, he [D. V. Uspensky] stunned the woman with the handle of the revolver and, having fallen unconscious, began to stomp with his feet.

(Yagody) ... married a former prisoner Andreeva.

In 1937, Natalya Nikolaevna Uspenskaya (Andreeva) was re-arrested and convicted as an "enemy of the people" for 8 years in prison.

Probably, the consequence of this was that on February 16, 1939, by the decision of the general party meeting of the Administration for the construction of the Kuibyshev hydroelectric complex, Uspensky was expelled from the party. However, on April 15, 1939, the Kuibyshev Regional Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks reinstated Uspensky in the party with the wording: “for the actions he committed ... he already has party penalties, and there are no new circumstances that would cause him to be expelled from the party.”

In 1931, as a camp administrator ... he entered into a personal intimate relationship with the prisoner Andreeva ..., for which he was under investigation in 1932 and as a result served a penalty - 20 days of arrest ... In 1933, with the permission of the deputy chairman of the OGPU (Yagoda) ... married former prisoner Andreeva.

In the same room with me was a fragile, blue-eyed mermaid girl, as I mentally called her for her bright appearance. She seemed very angry: she scolded her neighbors, sisters, then she began to hurt me too. I was silent, feeling that behind her behavior is not simple hooliganism, but some kind of terrible mental pain, which is looking for a way out in this way. Once, when we were alone in the ward, she spoke: “Why are you silent? I hurt you, and you are silent. When you entered, I suddenly felt a breath of fresh wind in the sultry desert, and I so wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t know how, and you were silent, and I began to hurt you.

N. N. Uspenskaya (Andreeva) wrote poetry, her Solovetsky poem is known:

A large figure, slanting fathom in the shoulders, a bright, friendly face. How did this good fellow get to such a responsible post?<директора ББК >? <…>I met him at his government dacha, on the banks of the Kumsa, where I was received by his wife, my patient. It is hard to imagine two more opposing types. He is a fair-haired hero, and she is a little brunette , fragile in appearance, with black moist eyes, always excited and agitated and always full of contradictions and even reproaches against her imperturbable husband. "You see, you see!" - that was her favorite expression

Documentary“Solovki Power” in terms of the strength of the impression can be compared with the film “Repentance”. The film shows a former prominent Chekist who began his career with the murder of his father, a priest, the surname is purposely not mentioned. An old man with a shopping bag hobbles, limping along a Moscow street, and on his chest he has six rows of medal slats. - Why, this is the executioner who killed my sister's husband Georgy Osorgin!

Status while working on canal construction:

Born in the village of Snotop Spas - Deplensky district of the Smolensk (Kaluga) province.

Education - incomplete secondary.

Party membership since 1927 Party ticket No. 2030318

Chekist since 1931.

Since 1924, a Red Army soldier of the 1st regiment of the ODON named after. Dzerzhinsky.

Since 1925 pom. Politician there.

Since 1927, the head of the club of the 4th regiment of the OGPU (Solovki Islands).

Since 1928 - head of the KVO of the Solovetsky and Karelian-Murmansk camps of the OGPU.

Since 1930, the head of the department there.

Since 1931, head of the department, head of the northern region of the Belomorstroy OGPU.

Since 1933, the head of the Belbaltlag

Photo from the book "LBC named after Stalin" M. 1934, p. 174.

The main headquarters of the construction of the BBVP from 15.07. 33 to reorganize into the Directorate of the Belomormsko-Baltic ITL OGPU with a center in the village of Nadvoitsakh (in connection with the completion of the construction of the BBVP

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the Department of BB ITL Order of the OGPU No. 00233 dated 02.07.33. TsGARO USSR F.9401, O.1a, Arch. 3, L.88

Uspensky D.V. head of the northern section of the LBC construction.

He was awarded the Order of the Red Star for the construction of the LBC. Decree of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR of 04. 08.33. GATsOR of the USSR F. CEC of the USSR F.3316.O 12 Arch. 528. L 37-42

Uspensky D.V. appointed deputy head of the Bel-Baltic Combine of the OGPU. Order of the OGPU No. 140 dated 08/23/33. TsGARO USSR F. 940. O. 1a. Arch. 3 L. 227

ORDER of the NKVD of the USSR No. 937 October 7, 1936

City of Moscow By personnel

APPOINTED

Deputy head of the department of the Dmitrovsky labor camp of the NKVD comrade. Uspensky Dmitry Vladimirovich, with the dismissal of the deputy. head of the Belbaltkombinat and head of the White Sea-Baltic corrective labor camp of the NKVD.

People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR Yezhov.

Uspensky D.V. to appoint the deputy head of the department of the Dmitrovsky ITL of the NKVD, dismissing the deputy head of the Belbaltkombinat and the head of Bel-Balt. ITL NKVD. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 937 of 10/07/36 on personnel. TsGAOR USSR F. 9401.O 9 arch. 799.

Uspensky D.V. deputy head of DITL to entrust the management of architectural and construction work, the installation sector, the mechanical department and the mechanical plant. Order of the MVS No. 239 dated 04.05.1937. TsGA RSFSR F.9489.O 2. Unit. ridge 101. L 159.

Uspensky D.V. Deputy Dmitlag is awarded the Order of Lenin for the construction of the Moscow-Volga Canal. Decree of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR of 14.07. 1937. Central State Administration of the RSFSR. F. 3316. O. 13. Item. 28. L 124 rev.

Uspensky D.V. appoint an interim head of the Operations Department of the Moscow-Volga Canal and head of Dmitlag of the NKVD of the USSR. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 1500 dated 25. 08. 37 on personnel. TsGAOR USSR F. 9401.O.1. Arch. 1595. L 96.

Before him, the head of the Dmitlag of the NKVD of the USSR was the commissioner of the State Security Committee of the 2nd rank Katsnelson Z. B. By order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 104 of 02. 08. 1937, F. T. Prokhorsky was appointed head of the DITL.

Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 013 dated January 31, 38

1. Based on the Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR No. 590 dated 09.04. 37 Department of Operation of the Moscow-Volga Canal to hand over to Nkvodd.

2. DITL to be reorganized into a separate Dmitrovsky district.

5. Appoint D. I. Lisitsin as the head of a separate Dmitrovsky district, I. A. Protserov as the chief engineer and head of work.

Uspensky D.V. to appoint the head of the Zhigulevsky district for the construction of the Kuibyshev hydroelectric complex. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 369 of 09/02/37. TsGAOR USSR F. 9401 O. 1a Arch.18. L 99

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the Lower Amur camp of the NKVD of the USSR, dismissing and. about. pom. head of the construction of the Kuibyshev hydroelectric complex (in the Amur region). Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 1866 dated 05.10.39 on personnel. TsGAOR USSR F.9401.O. 9. Arch. 840. L 177.

Uspensky D.V. issue a badge "Builder of the Moscow-Volga Canal"

Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 802 dated 10.09. 40. TsGAOR USSR F. 9401. About 12. Arch. 275t5. L 9.

D.V. Uspensky, head of the department of the Soroklag of the NKVD of the USSR, put on display for violating the regime for keeping prisoners. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 085 dated February 14, 1941. GARF F. 9401 o. 1a

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the Zapolyarny ITL, dismissing the head of the Soroksky ITL. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 1028 dated July 20, 1941 on personnel. TsGAOR USSR F, 9401 O. 9 Arch. 868. L. 502.

Uspensky D.V. to award the head of construction of the NKVD with the Order of the Badge of Honor for the construction of defensive structures. Decree of the PVS of the USSR dated 28. 11.41. TsGAOR USSR F. 7523. O. 4 Arch. 55. L 177

The administration of Zapolyarlag and Pecherlag should be merged into one administration Pechorlag of the NKVD of the USSR Assign D.V. Uspensky as the head of the Pecherlag. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 00185 of 01/25/42. TsGA OR USSR F. 9401. O. 12. Arch. 110. L. 45.

Uspensky D.V. dismiss the head of the North Pechersk ITL of the NKVD. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 2829 dated 05.09. 42

Uspensky D.V. to appoint the head of the first construction site of the railway. line Panshino - Kalach. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 013 dated 16.01.43. TsGA OR USSR F. 9401 O. 1a. Arch. 140. L. 18.

Uspensky D.V. to appoint the head of the Karaganda construction of the GULZhDS of the NKVD of the USSR for Kazakhstan Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 695 of March 23, 1943 on personnel. TsGAOR USSR F.9401 O. 9. Arch. 902

Organize the UITL of the NKVD for the construction of a coal mine 34 Appoint Uspensky D.V. as the head of the UITL and construction No. 4

Uspensky D.V. to award the head of Karangandstroy of the NKVD of the USSR with the Order of Lenin for the construction of a coal mine Decree of 08.04. 44. TsGA RF F. 7532. O 4. D. 223. L 115.

Uspensky D.V. assign special titles "p-p-to GB" by the NKVD of the Kazakh SSR. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 563 dated 04/20/44 on personnel. TsGA RF 9401 O. 9. Arch. 915

Uspensky D.V. was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for long service. Decree of the PVS of the USSR dated 03.11.44 of the Central State Administration of the RSFSR F. 7523 O. 4 units. ridge 306 L 48.

Uspensky D.V. to appoint concurrently the head of the camp of the NKVD of the USSR for prisoners of war and the head of the construction of BAM (the city of Komsomolsk, Khabarovsk Territory; a camp for 30,000 Japanese people on the Komsomolsk - Sovgavan highway). Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 001026 dated 08. 09. 45 TsGARF F.2 with about the NKVD of the USSR F. 9421. O 1 Arch. 5 L. 120.

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the Lower Amur construction camp of the NKVD of the USSR No. 500 Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 001133 of 04. 10. 45 TsGARF No. 9401 O. 1a Arch. 181. L. 181.

Uspensky D.V. to appoint the first deputy head of the Department of Amur Construction of the BAM and construction No. 500, relieving the head of Nizhamurlag from his post. Order of the NKVD SSR No. 00180 dated 03. 03. 46 TsGAFR F. 9401 O. 1 Arch. 751 . L 187.

Uspensky D.V. to award the badge “Honored Worker ...... of the Khabarovsk Territory for completing assignments. Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR 3280 dated 07.13.46 GARF F. 9401 O. 1a Arch. 211 L. 71.

Uspensky D.V. appoint Deputy Head for General Affairs of the Eastern Directorate of Construction and Camps of the BAM of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs. Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 032 dated January 15. 47 TsGARF F. 9401, O12. Arch. 231 L. 66.

Uspensky D.V. By Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR No. 3134 -1024 ss of 04. 09. 47, he was appointed deputy head of railway construction. Naushki - Ulaanbaatar. TsGARF F. 9401 O. 2 Arch. 194 L. 208.

Uspensky D.V. was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor for the construction of new railways. Decree of the PVS of the USSR of May 18. 48 TsGARFSR F. 7523 o. 36. Item 403 L 5.

Uspensky D.V. Letter from the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR dated May 31. 48 on abuse of office. TsGARF F, 9401. O. 1 Arch.3045. L. 233-261.

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the Sakhalin UITL, dismissing the head of the Southern Camp of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs. Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 001014 dated 20.08.48. TsGA RSFSR F.9401 O. 1 Item 875 L.62.

Uspensky D.V To the head of the Sakhalinlag of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR n - n - to announce a reprimand for failure to ensure proper treatment, isolation, security and conditions of detention. Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 00231 dated 07. 04. 50 TsGARF F. 9401 O. 1a. Arch.341. L. 1 about.

Uspensky D.V. appoint the head of the construction of oil fields, exploration and road construction carried out by the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs on Sakhalin, dismiss the head of the Dalneft association Decree of the Council of Ministers of the USSR No. 2628 of 18 06. 50

Uspensky D. To warn the head of the Sakhalinlag for the last time about incomplete service compliance (for an irresponsible attitude towards the state of the camp). Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 00177 dated 09.04. 51 CGA RFSR F. 9401 O. 1a. Unit ridge 385. L. 146v.

Uspensky D.V. appoint i. about. head of the Tatagazneftestroy Department of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs, to dismiss the head of the Sakhalin UITL and construction. Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR No. 879 of July 26, 1952, Central State Administration of the RSFSR F. 9401 O.9 Unit. xr.1072

Uspensky D.V. .and. about. The head of UITL and Tatspetsneftestroy of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs to remove the disciplinary sanction imposed by order of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs No. 00231 of 07.04.50. Order of the USSR Ministry of Internal Affairs No. 01102 of 26.09. 52 TsGARF F. 9401 O. 1a. Arch. 469. L.80.

1. 53.g Uspensky D.V. Head of construction works No. 18 Min. oil industry of the USSR.

01.56. Head of the 2nd construction area Director for the construction of the plant No. 18

1. 56.g. District chief manufacturing enterprises Directorate for the construction of the plant plant (Pavlodar city, Kaz. SSR).
2. 58 Uspensky D.V. - pensioner, Moscow.
3. 58 D. Uspensky, head of the mailbox enterprise No. 410 4 (vikhorevka village, Bratsk district, Irkutsk region).

06.66 Uspensky D.V. director, deputy Director for Human Resources and Life Vikhorevsky logging plant

1. 69 Uspensky D.V. retired city of Moscow

Uspensky D. died in July 1989.

October 7, 1936 By order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 937, the former head of the White Sea-Baltic camp, Dmitry Vladimirovich Uspensky, was appointed deputy head of Dmitlag.

(1902 - 1989)

Born in the village of Snotop Spas - Deplensky district of the Smolensk (Kaluga) province. Education - incomplete secondary. Membership since 1927.

Party ticket No. 2030318.

Chekist with 1931 of the year. Uspensky D.V. by order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 937 of 07.10.36, he was appointed deputy head of the department of the Dmitrovsky ITL of the NKVD. Further Uspensky D.V. by order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 1500 dated 25. 08. 37, an interim is appointed. Head of the Operations Department of the Moscow-Volga Canal and head of Dmitlag of the NKVD of the USSR.

Rank Uspensky D.V. was awarded the special rank of lieutenant colonel of state security. Order of the NKVD of the USSR No. 563 dated April 20, 1944.

In September 1969, Uspensky Dmitry Vladimirovich becomes a pensioner and lives in the city of Moscow.

Awards order " Red Star» for the construction of the BBK, the Order "Lenin» for the construction of the Moscow-Volga canal. Decree of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR of 14.07. 1937, badge " To the builder of the Moscow-Volga canal", Order" Badge of honor", order "Lenin", Order "Red Banner"", Order" Labor Red Banner.

Uspensky Dmitry Vladimirovich died in July 1989.

The history of the Solovetsky Monastery dates back to 1429, when Saints Savvaty and Herman arrived on the island. They settled in the northern part of the Big Solovetsky Island near Sosnovaya Bay, on the shore of the lake, “raising a cross and setting up a cell for themselves.” The place of hermitage deeds of the monks later received the name of Savvatiyevo. The history of the Solovetsky monastery began with him.

The monks lived in the arranged desert for 6 years, then both left Solovki. The Monk Herman left for the mainland for household needs. Left alone, the Monk Savvaty felt the imminent death and, desiring to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, he also went to the mainland. At the mouth of the Vyg River, he met a priest who visited local Christians, he confessed and communed the ascetic. Soon the Monk Savvaty departed to the Lord, it happened on September 27, 1435. Saint Herman returned to the island only the following year, 1436. The monk Zosima arrived with him. This time, the shore of the Bay of Prosperity was chosen for the settlement. The place is “very fair and beautiful”. It is in many ways convenient for the construction of the monastery: it is located in the center of the island, on the one hand a closed sea bay approaches it, on the other there is a freshwater lake.

The place for the device of the monastery was predetermined from above. Such an indication almost always guided the ascetics in their choice of a place for future monasteries. Most of them were based in the most beautiful places. The creations of human hands - the monastery buildings were in tune with the landscape, emphasizing its beauty and grandeur. The harmony of nature and architecture created a visible image of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Choosing a place for a future monastery, their founders heard angelic singing or bell ringing in desert places, they suddenly saw an icon or some kind of vision happened. So it was with the Solovetsky Monastery. Arriving on the island, Saints Zosima and Herman celebrated the All-Night Vigil. According to the Life, immediately after this, the Monk Zosima saw an unusual light in the east and a beautiful church in the air. At the site of the vision, the Solovetsky Monastery subsequently began to be equipped.

From the time of the ancient Palestinian laurels, cenobitic monasteries were built mainly according to the quadrangle plan - this is the shape of the Heavenly City of Jerusalem, described in the Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse).

The first wooden ensembles of the Solovetsky Monastery also had a shape close to a quadrangle. The original ensemble, formed in the 50s of the XV century, included a church in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord with a chapel of St. Nicholas. The Refectory Chamber adjoined them, a belfry with stone bells-billas rose slightly to the north. The temple complex was surrounded by cells and outbuildings. The monastery was surrounded by a fence. The first wooden ensemble was located on the territory of the current Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral.

In the mid-60s of the 15th century, under Abbot Jonah, the monastery underwent significant restructuring. The economy developed, the brethren quickly increased - new spacious temples, cells, outbuildings were needed. On the site of the small Church of the Transfiguration, “a huge wooden church of the Transfiguration of the Lord was built with a meal, and next to it on the eastern side was a wooden church in the name of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos; at the same time, cells were rebuilt; and other monastic services. A separate temple was the chapel in the name of St. Nicholas.

The boundaries of the second architectural ensemble of the Solovetsky Monastery, also wooden, were presumably as follows: the northern part of the fence ran just north of the Assumption Refectory Complex; southern - along the line of the Svyatitelsky cell building; the eastern and western sections of the fence were on the line of the current fortress walls. This ensemble was destroyed by a fire in 1538.

The stone ensemble of the second half of the 16th century, like the wooden ones, was built within the boundaries of a quadrangle. Only when building a fortress did the architects have to deviate from the former form. It was forced to change it by the features of the relief and the requirements of defense. The fortress included a mill, Sushilo, and other outbuildings so that the monastery could exist autonomously and, if necessary, withstand a long siege. The monastery from the end of the 16th century to this day has the shape of an elongated pentagon. This form is also symbolic, as it is similar to a ship, and reminds us that the monastery is a ship of salvation in the sea of ​​life.

Monasteries were certainly surrounded by walls. She protected the territory of the monastery from the outside world and turned it into a special spiritual fortress. They tried, if possible, to move hotel cells outside the monastery fence, although their arrangement was also allowed in the monastery, but immediately at the entrance. And in the Solovetsky Monastery they were at the entrance, to the left of the Holy Gates, in the Annunciation cell building. Animal farms and stables were arranged away from the monastery. In the Solovetsky monastery, according to the charter, which was commanded by the Monk Zosima, cattle yards were arranged even on another island - Bolshoi Muksalma, more than 10 km away. from the monastery. Household services, for the most part, were also taken out of the territory of the monastery and only the most necessary were placed between the cells and the monastery fence. So in the Solovetsky monastery, such services were mainly located in the settlement around the monastery or behind the cell rows in the Northern and Southern courtyards.

The main entrance to the monastery is called the Holy Gate. The prototype for the Holy Gates of the monasteries was the Golden Gate in Jerusalem, through which the Lord entered this city before His suffering on the Cross. The main gates of the cloisters symbolize the entry of Jesus Christ into the Monastic City.

A bell tower or a small gate temple was often arranged above the Holy Gates. The gate church was usually dedicated to the feast of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem, John the Baptist, or feasts in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos, which meant Her patronage over the monastery city. In the Solovetsky Monastery, the gate church is dedicated to the feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos. Often in such temples, at the very entrance to the monastery, monastic vows were performed, and the newly tonsured one, as it were, entered the monastery for the first time in his new state.

Arriving at the monastery pier, the Solovetsky pilgrims went to the Holy Gates. According to the recollections of travelers, they stood for a long time in front of the main entrance to the monastery and prayed, lamenting over their sins, and trying to leave all their sinful thoughts behind the monastery wall. For a worthy entry into the monastery, many tried to purify themselves not only spiritually, but also physically. For this, 2 baths were arranged on the Holy Lake: male and female.

In the icon case over the Holy Gates was the image of the Savior Not Made by Hands. On the memorial plate, under the image on the left, there was the following inscription: “This image of the Savior and our Lord Jesus Christ was written with the diligence and diligence of the Founder of the Anzersk Skete, St. Eleozar the Wonderworker; during the attack on the monastery by the British in 1854, this image was transferred and placed here under the Holy Gates to protect and save the monastery from enemies visible and invisible. After the closing of the monastery, the icon was lost.

On the left side of the icon there is another plate with an inscription about the history of the construction of the fortress of the following content: “By the decree of the Sovereign Tsar and Grand Duke Theodore Ioannovich, a stone fortress that still exists around the monastery was built to protect the monastery from attacks by foreign tribes in 1854 under the 27th hegumen Jacob on the monastic sum collected from the coastal monastic estates, according to the plan of the Solovetsky monk Tryphon; the building lasted 12 years under the supervision of the governor Ivan Yakhontov.

Directly opposite the main entrance to the monastery is usually a cathedral church. It is the spiritual center of the monastery and, as a rule, its architectural dominant. According to the Apocalypse, in the center of Heavenly Jerusalem is the throne of God. The monastery, as an earthly reflection of the Heavenly City, has a temple in its center. The temple is the place where the Divine Liturgy is performed, and the Lord Himself resides.

In most cases, the cathedral was erected on the site of the very first monastery church, which was often built by the founders of the monastery. The dedication of the first temple gave the name to the entire monastery. Shrines were located in the cathedral, the main services were performed, distinguished guests were received, sovereigns and bishops' letters were read.

Refectory churches were erected in many monasteries, so called because a refectory adjoined them. The refectory could accommodate the entire brethren. Here, in addition to the general eating of food, cathedrals were held - general monastic meetings.

In the monasteries, as a rule, there were several churches. So, on the territory of the Solovetsky Monastery in 1906 there were 8 temples with 10 aisles in total. Each temple or chapel in it is a prayer for the intercession of a particular saint. Many temples and chapels are a prayer to a whole host of saints, with whom the idea of ​​​​their special patronage was united in this monastery. Such is the dedication of the Solovetsky churches to the feasts of the Mother of God (Christmas, the Annunciation, the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos), Saints Nicholas and Philip, Saints Zosima, Savvaty and Herman.

Churches dedicated to the heavenly patrons of the reigning persons and their heirs were erected in the monasteries. Often the kings themselves donated money to such churches, thus asking the brethren for prayerful intercession. Monastic prayers have always been considered the most effective.

In the central ensemble of the Solovetsky Monastery there were 5 such churches, and they were dedicated to the Beheading of the Head of the Baptist John (Holy Forerunner John - Heavenly patron of Tsar John IV the Terrible), Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica (patron of False Dmitry I), Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky (Heavenly Intercessor of the Emperor Alexander II), Saint John of the Ladder and Holy Great Martyr Theodore Stratilates. The last two temples - the aisles of the Transfiguration Cathedral - are named after the heavenly patrons of the sons of Ivan the Terrible.

In terms of the number of churches dedicated to the heavenly patrons of the members of the royal house, the Solovetsky Monastery could only be compared with Kirillo-Belozersky. Thus, it turned into the most important royal pilgrimage - a place of prayer for the kings and members of their families.

Another mandatory building of the main monastery courtyard is the bell tower (or belfry). The bell tower is usually the highest building of the monastery, its vertical axis. The bells ring out with the good news, announcing the beginning of the service. Ringing, like a cross, connects heaven and earth. Surroundings were monitored from the bell towers in the monasteries, and if the enemy approached, the bells immediately began to ring. In bad weather, the bell ringers saved dozens of lives, in a blizzard or in fog they rang for hours so that travelers would not go astray. In Arkhangelsk, in the State Archives of the Arkhangelsk Region, there is even a file called “On the conduct of church bells during snowstorms from the bell tower of the Mikhailo-Arkhangelsk Monastery.”

On the territory of the central monastery courtyard there could be icon-painting workshops, sacristies, book storage tents (libraries), government and armory chambers, cooks (kitchens), bakeries (bakeries), and hospitals were also allowed here.

Cells were located along the perimeter of the main courtyard. The decor of all cell buildings is the same. Even the rectory corps did not stand out among the others. This uniformity in design, as it were, expresses the equality of the monastic brethren before the Lord.

The windows of most cells overlooked the cathedral square, from which the monks always had to see the temples. Most of the monastic cells of the Solovetsky monastery could see the patronal church - the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior.

The main temple of the Solovetsky Monastery was erected in 1558-1566, under the rectorship of the holy abbot Philip (Kolychev). The Transfiguration Cathedral became the most important building of the architectural ensemble. This temple is a kind of symbol of the greatness of the Solovetsky Monastery.

The architecture of the cathedral is consonant with the city. It has high walls, unites several thrones on different tiers. Its foot before the creation of the stone porch included stairs, wooden porches, belfries, wooden-stone passages. Due to the variety of components and the picturesque composition, it looked like a city, which is especially clearly seen on the icons of the 16th-17th centuries.

This is one of the tallest buildings in the monastery. Powerful sloping walls (thickness at the base - 4, at the end - 3, 5), the absence of horizontal articulation, massive shoulder blades contribute to the aspiration of the temple upwards.

The building has three levels. On the first tier, in a fairly high basement floor, there were utility rooms. On the second, three churches were built: the patronal one, dedicated to the Transfiguration of the Lord, and its two aisles - Zosimo-Savvatievsky, - in the northeastern part, and Mikhailo-Arkhangelsk - from the southeast. In 1859, on the site of the chapel in honor of the Monks Zosima and Savvaty, the Holy Trinity Zosima-Sabbatius Cathedral was built.

In the upper tier, in the corner tower superstructures, there were four more chapels: St. John of the Ladder, Great Martyr Theodore Stratilates, Cathedrals of 12 and 70 Apostles.

The front western wall of the cathedral ends with two rows of keeled kokoshniks. They contain the remains of ancient murals depicting the Transfiguration of the Lord, the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Monk Zosima with the Monk Savvaty and Saint Philip with the Monk Herman. For the first time, the paintings are mentioned in the inventory of the monastery in 1711.

In the XVIII-XIX centuries, the facades of the cathedral were decorated with paintings with floral and geometric patterns.

The high vaults of the cathedral rest on two pillars. The octagonal light drum is close to the altar wall. It is located directly above the pulpit, where during the Divine Liturgy the Gospel is read and the Holy Gifts are taught. Being in front of the iconostasis, the light drum perfectly illuminates it.

The temple premises are also illuminated by windows located at different levels. Currently, the cathedral has two types of windows: in the original forms of the 16th century and rebuilt windows of the 18th century. The early ones have very small light openings and vaulted niches lined with ledges in the lower part.

Chambers and stairs are arranged in the thickness of the wall. On such a staircase, which begins in the southwestern corner of the temple, you can climb to the upper aisles of the cathedral. Intra-wall staircases and chambers are typical of the early stone buildings of the monastery.

The main decoration of the temple is the iconostasis. It has been rebuilt several times over the centuries. During the construction, the iconostasis was a four-tiered one. It was created by icon painters from Veliky Novgorod "Gavrilo the Old and Ilya". In the first third of the 17th century, the 5th, ancestral row with 28 icons appeared. The seven hundred rubles granted in 1695 by the sovereigns John V and Peter I were used in 1697 to build a new carved frame-frame construction of the iconostasis. Then it was replenished with new icons.

At the end of the 17th century, there were more than 1000 images in the cathedral, their listing alone occupied more than a hundred sheets. In addition to the main iconostasis, along the walls and near the pillars, there were five-seven-tiered wall iconostasis filled with dozens of folds and moths.

In 1826, wooden gilded, carved iconostases for two miraculous icons of the monastery were arranged on the pillars of the cathedral. On the southern pillar was the image of the Sosnovskaya Icon of the Mother of God of Korsun, which was revealed in Pine Bay in 1627. On the opposite side is a list from the Bread (Baking) Tikhvin Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, which appeared to St. Philip when he carried out his obedience in the bakery. The icon itself was in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These icons were lost after the closing of the monastery.

Since 1646, the relics of St. Philip have rested in the church. In 1652, the relics were taken to Moscow, leaving three of their particles in the old cancer. In 1697, a special arch was built for it on the south side of the salt. Above the reliquary was the “Slovenskaya” icon of the Most Holy Theotokos (so called because of its iconographic proximity to the miraculous “Slovenskaya” icon), in front of which the saint especially liked to pray.

In 1861-62. the walls and vaults of the temple were painted. The plots of the murals depicted the events of the Holy History, the Old Testament and New Testament saints.

Emperor Alexander II, who visited Solovki in 1858, donated 2,000 rubles for the construction of an aisle church in the cathedral in honor of his heavenly patron, the holy noble prince Alexander Nevsky. The aisle was arranged by the monastery at its own expense, and the emperor's contribution was used to renovate the iconostasis.

During the camp period, the Transfiguration Cathedral, as a unique architectural monument, was declared a reserve. Here was a branch of the anti-religious museum, and there were expositions on icon painting (up to 2000 icons) and church utensils, as well as a collection of copper engravings. For some time, the relics of the Solovetsky saints were kept in the church: the Monk Zosima, Savvaty and Herman, Irinarkh and Eleazar.

The restoration of the temple began in the 80s of the XX century and by the beginning of the XXI century was basically completed. On April 20, 1990, a divine service was held here - the first after a 70-year break, not only in the cathedral, but also within the walls of the monastery. It was headed by the Archbishop of Arkhangelsk and Murmansk Panteleimon.

In the cathedral, after being transferred to Solovki in August 1992, the relics of the Monks Zosima, Savvaty and Herman rested for some time.

The modern five-tiered iconostasis was installed in 2002. It was commissioned by the monastery at the expense of the Andrey Rublev Charitable Foundation.

On August 19, 2007, Archbishop Alexy of Orekhovo-Zuevsky performed the Great consecration of the temple. Divine services in the Transfiguration Cathedral are currently held in the summer, as a rule, from July to the end of August or the beginning of September. At this time, the shrines of the monastery are transferred to the temple.

The Assumption Refectory complex was built in 1552-1557. With its construction, stone construction began in the Solovetsky Monastery.

Not a single building of the first wooden ensembles of the monastery survived - they were destroyed by fires, from which the monastery suffered more than once. The fires of 1485 and 1538 were especially destructive. In 1485, the Church of the Assumption burned down with the Refectory and all the supplies stored in it. It was restored again with wood. In 1538 the monastery burned down completely.

Fires were the main cause of stone construction. It took a long time to get ready for it. Not far from the monastery, a brick factory was set up, timber, mica, iron and lime were brought from the mainland estates. Hydrated lime was used as a binding material for the construction of stone and brick masonry. The local building material boulder was widely used in the construction.

The complex was erected during the abbess of St. Philip. The architects were invited Novgorod masters Ignatius Salka and Stolypa.

The main part of the building is occupied by the Refectory Chamber, from the southeast it is adjoined by the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and from the northeast by the Kelar Chamber. All these rooms are located on the second tier. Beneath them, in the basement, there were housekeeping services: a bakery with flour, a bread and kvass cellar, a prosphora service, as well as stoves that heated the building. As in a northern Russian house, everything here was under one roof. In the event of an enemy attack, the brethren could withstand a long siege behind powerful walls, having everything they needed at hand.

The Church of the Dormition has a second tier, there were arranged chapels dedicated to the Beheading of the honest Head of the Prophet John the Baptist and the Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica.

The exterior of the building is extremely simple. Its facades are practically devoid of decoration. The walls, as in the cathedral, are laid out with an inward slope. The building is austere and majestic.

A peculiar decoration of the Refectory was a bell tower with a clock and two bells above its western facade.

An unknown author of the 17th century expressed his admiration for visiting the Refectory Chamber, writing: “And the Stone Refectory, built on one pillar, is wonderful, bright and great.” The Solovetsky Refectory is the second largest one-pillar chamber of Ancient Russia. Its area is 483 sq. m., which is slightly inferior to the area of ​​the Faceted Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin, which is considered the largest single-pillar building.

The vaults rest on a massive pillar with a diameter of 4 meters, built of hewn limestone. The shape of the chamber windows is unusual. Their deep internal niches are rounded at the corners, which allows you to gently and evenly illuminate the room. On the eastern wall of the chamber there are two portals leading to the Assumption Church and the Refectory. The portal to the church is richly decorated, the entrance to Kelarskaya is more modest.

To heat the ward, a stove was built in the basement, from which passages were laid in the walls. They carried warm air up to the second floor. In 1800, a stove was installed directly in the Refectory, it replaced the ancient heating system.

The interior of the Refectory has undergone several changes.

In 1745, according to the Solovetsky Chronicler, “large windows were made in the fraternal Assumption Refectory and Kelarskaya, and glass windows were inserted instead of mica ones.” In 1800, the portal to the church was torn apart and a rectangular arch was made so that those in the Refectory could see the premises of the temple. In 1826 the refectory was painted.

Restoration of the Refectory was carried out in the 60-70s of the XX century. This is one of the first restored monuments in Solovki. The chamber has been recreated in its original forms of the 16th century, as it was before the start of reconstruction.

On the same tier with the Refectory are the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Kelar Chamber.

The premises of the Assumption Church are small. An altar barrier with three arches separates the main part of the temple from the altar. In the southern wall there is an intra-wall chamber, and in the western wall there is a staircase leading to the upper aisles. Like the Refectory, the Assumption Church underwent significant changes at the beginning of the 19th century: the chamber and stairs were destroyed, the vaults with formwork were partially cut down, and the arch of the altar barrier was rebuilt. According to historical documents and natural remains, the temple was completely restored in the 1970s in its original forms of the 16th century.

The Kelar chamber is larger than the church. It has much in common with the Refectory. Both of them are one-pillared, but the pillar in Kelarskaya is octagonal. The windows in both rooms have the same shape. Niches and chambers for storing property are arranged in the thickness of the Kelarskaya wall. Here, as well as in the Church of the Assumption, there is an intra-wall staircase, it leads down to the bakery (bakery). The ovens of the bakery heated the Kelar Chamber, warm air from them rose up through the air ducts. The exits of the air ducts have been preserved in the niches of its southern wall.

The Kelar chamber was meant for the cellar. Its size, unusual arrangement, rich decoration corresponded to the position of the cellar in the monastic hierarchy. The duties of the cellarer included: managing the monastic services, cash income, sacristy, estates, food supplies, correspondence with government agencies on economic issues, receiving guests of the monastery.

Next to the Refectory in the monasteries there were traditionally cookhouses, bakeries, kvass breweries with cellars, barns and glaciers. So on Solovki, next to the Refectory, a similar complex of services and utility rooms was formed. In the neighborhood with it there were a cookery and a kvass factory, on the contrary - a fish barn in the Rukhlyadny case. In the Prosphora building there were pantries for flour, yeast and baked prosphora. And under the Refectory itself, as mentioned above, there was a bakery with flour, kvass and bread cellars.

At the end of the 18th century, a transition was made from the kitchen to the Refectory complex, along which food was first brought to the Kelar Chamber, and then carried to the tables in the Refectory. The complex of Solovetsky premises associated with the reception and preparation of food included another refectory - the General, built in 1798 opposite Kelarskaya. It was intended "for visiting pilgrims."

Currently, the Refectory and the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary are shown to visitors during tours of the monastery. Festive meals are held in the Refectory several times a year for guests and brethren. In the premises of the former monastery bakery, a village bakery operates.

In 1859, the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos was built in the northeastern basement of the Refectory.

It was intended for "monks working in the bread service." The church was built in memory of the vision of St. Philip - then still carrying obedience to the monk in the bakery - the icon of the Mother of God. According to the place of acquisition, it was called "Khlebenny" ("Baking").

During the construction of the church, an altar was fenced off in the southeast corner of the room. The temple was decorated with a small single-tiered iconostasis.

A memorial chapel was erected on the site of the former church in 2007. It was created jointly by the monastery and the museum at the expense of the philanthropist Mikhail Rudyak (+2007), head of the Ingeocom Association. The reconstruction of the chapel was dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the birth of St. Philip.

The temple in the name of St. Nicholas was one of the first in the monastery. Nicholas the Wonderworker is one of the most revered Russian saints; those whose life is connected with the sea have a special attitude towards him. And the life of the majority of the inhabitants of the White Sea coast is unthinkable without it. “The sea is our field,” said the Pomors. The proverb says about the veneration of the saint in the North: “From Kholmogor to Kola - thirty-three Nikolas” - so many churches in the name of St. Nicholas were located between these Pomeranian settlements before.

The life of the Solovetsky monks was also inextricably linked with the sea. St. John's slaughter and fishing were the most important in the monastic economic life, all communication with the mainland - with the center and estates - was carried out only by sea; pilgrims got to the monastery only after overcoming the sea. The intercession of St. Nicholas was especially important for the nightingales.

That temple in the name of St. Nicholas, which we see today, appeared in the monastery in 1834. It is located between the Trinity Cathedral and the bell tower.

The five-domed temple was erected on the basis of the old one-domed one. A feature of the ancient temple was the construction of a belfry on the western wall with bells hanging in arched openings. The church was built on a preserved solid boulder foundation. The building of the temple is three-tiered. In the lower tier - basements (as was customary in the monastery) - utility rooms were arranged, above them - a sacristy. A temple was erected on its vaults.

The interior of the temple is pillarless. Despite its small volume, it is spacious and, thanks to two rows of windows, always bright. The church is devoid of any decorative elements; its main decoration has always been the iconostasis. It had four tiers, it was never rebuilt, the icons were not preserved.

There is a bell tower near the St. Nicholas Church. Its height is 50 meters. This is the highest building of the monastery. The modern bell tower was erected in 1777 on the boulder foundation of the former three-hipped belfry.

In the inventory of 1676, the belfry says: “In the Solovetsky Monastery, the bell tower has seven pillars of stone, three pillars of earth, and the other pillars on the vaults of the church.” The stone belfry, in turn, was preceded by a wooden one.

The building of the bell tower is decorated under the influence of Western European baroque, it is distinguished by lightness and elegance. The walls are decorated with intertiered cornices and picturesque buttresses. Under the high octagonal roof there are round windows, which are called lucarnes, above the roof there is a two-tiered drum of complex shape. The spire crowning the building was built in 1846.

On the two upper tiers of the bell tower there were bells, on the lower one - in 1798 a book storage chamber (library) was arranged.

At the beginning of the 20th century, there were 35 bells on the Solovetsky bell tower. The fate of the old bells is unknown - after the closing of the monastery, none of them survived in the monastery.

The bells on Solovki sounded again on August 20, 1992. With festive ringing they greeted the relics of Zosima, Savvaty and Herman who returned to the monastery. They also called in honor of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, who arrived on the Solovetsky Islands for the first time that day. Before the significant day, 15 bells were raised to the bell tower: 3 new chimes and 12, transferred to the monastery from the funds of the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve.

In 2007, a new set of 23 bells, cast at the expense of philanthropists at the Voronezh Bell Foundry, was delivered to the Solovetsky Monastery. A temporary belfry was built for them near the Refectory. In August 2011, 13 new bells were raised to the bell tower, having previously removed the old chimes from there. The rest will be placed on the bell tower after its restoration is completed.

The Holy Trinity Zosima-Savvatievsky Cathedral was built in 1859 according to the project of the Arkhangelsk provincial architect A. Shakhlarev and consecrated in 1866. It became the last large-scale construction of the monastery. The cathedral arose as a result of repeated restructuring of the Zosima-Savvatievsky chapel of the Transfiguration Cathedral.

The building was erected over a travel arch. It is crowned with a massive head on a drum.

The temple is divided into three naves by four pillars. The main altar, located in the central nave of the temple, is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. On the sides of it there were two chapels: the northern one was consecrated in honor of the holy Prince Alexander Nevsky, the southern one - in honor of the Monks Zosima and Savvaty. There were no walls between the altar church and the aisles. The iconostases formed a single whole and filled the entire eastern wall of the cathedral.

In the southern aisle there were shrines with the relics of the Monk Zosima and Savvaty. Here, the brethren began each new day with a prayer service at the relics of the founders of the monastery, numerous pilgrims rushed here.

In 1861, the interior of the temple was decorated with a rich carved gilded iconostasis, created by the Moscow master Astafiev. Icons for him were painted in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. In 1873-1876 the vaults of the temple were painted.

During the camp period, the 13th quarantine company was located in the cathedral. Here, from several weeks to several months, all the prisoners who arrived in the camp were kept. In the 40-50s of the 20th century, the temple housed the dining room of the Training Detachment of the Northern Fleet.

Now the cathedral is undergoing restoration work. After their completion, it will become the main operating temple of the monastery.

The gallery-transition connected the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral, the Assumption Refectory Complex, the St. Nicholas Church, the bell tower, and later the Holy Trinity Cathedral.

With its construction, the center of the Solovetsky monastery town was formed, which includes the largest and most significant monuments of the ensemble.

In the cold and damp climate of Solovki, such a transition was extremely convenient.

The passage was built in 1602 under the leadership of the Solovetsky monk Tryphon (Kologrivov).

One can judge how the transition was in the first two centuries of its existence by its left, northern part, where a monumental stone staircase leads to an open gallery.

At the end of the 18th century, the entire gallery became closed. “The chronicler Solovetsky” tells about the restructuring in the following way: “In 1795, under Archimandrite Gerasim, from the Cathedral Church of the Transfiguration to the Assumption refectory, windows were made on both sides between the pillars of the wall and in them for light, windows were inserted into them, and a brick floor was paved along the transitions” . In 1826 the gallery was painted.

Restorers restored the monument for different time periods.

Before the construction of the cemetery near the southern wall of the monastery in the 17th century, its inhabitants were buried on the territory of the monastery. It is known about several dozen graves around the Transfiguration Cathedral. The most honorable places of burial were located to the north of it.

The Church of St. Herman is one such place. It is located in a small courtyard between the Transfiguration Cathedral and St. Nicholas Church. The church was consecrated in 1860. This small one-story building is crowned with an onion cupola. The church was built on the site of ancient wooden chapels, in which were the graves of three saints: St. Savvaty and Herman and St. Markell. In addition, the church still contains the burial places of the first Solovki Archimandrite Elijah (Pestrikov) (+1659) and Elder Feofan (+1819).

Behind the Herman Church, in the basements of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, there are tombs. These are also the most honorable places for burials.

Opposite the entrance to the basement is the chapel-tomb of the Monk Irinarkh, where his relics rested under a bushel. The stone tomb, which replaced the wooden one, was built in 1753.

Hegumen Irinarkh led the monastery from 1614 to 1626. He did a lot to strengthen the defense capability of the monastery and its border continental estates, entered into diplomatic negotiations with the Swedes, and through his efforts a truce was concluded with the enemy. The hegumen blessed the Monk Eleazar to live in the wilderness on Anzer, and he himself spent the last two years of his life in silence in the desert. The Monk Irinarkh died in 1628.

Behind the wall is the tomb of St. Philip. The relics of the saint were placed in it after they were transferred from Tver in 1591, and here they rested until they were transferred to the Transfiguration Cathedral in 1646. Saint Philip bequeathed to bury him next to the grave of his spiritual teacher Iona Shamin (+1568). The burial of the mentor of the saint is still in the tomb.

At the eastern wall of the tomb, the Solovetsky hegumen, the Monk Jacob (+1597), is buried, at the north - another rector of the monastery, the Monk Anthony (+1612).

A necropolis was built in the courtyard in front of the church of St. Herman. The slabs were transferred to it from the monastery cemetery destroyed in the 1930s. The necropolis was created in 2003 by the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve. There are tombstones from the graves of archimandrites Macarius (+1825), Dimitry (+1852), Porfiry (+1865), Theophanes (+1871), monks Theophilus (+1827) and Naum (+1853), the last ataman of the Zaporozhian Sich Peter Kalnishevsky (+1803), well-known in the North benefactor Afanasy Bulychev (+1902) and others.

In the Germanovsky courtyard, located in the very center of the monastery, there is always grace-filled silence and peace, as always happens in those places where the righteous are buried.

The Gate Church of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos is the first to welcome visitors to the monastery. It seems to be a joyful greeting to everyone entering the monastery city, since on the Annunciation the speech of the Archangel began with a greeting: “Rejoice!”

A small one-domed temple was built over the passage arch of the Holy Gates in 1596-1601. Its architect is Trifon Kologrivov. Initially, the church was smaller, from the west it was adjoined by a porch, from the north - a wooden porch-sprout. It was crowned with a complex roof with a three-tier gable roof.

The temple was repeatedly rebuilt: the church, having removed the porch, was “spread” over the Holy Gates. After the fire of 1745, the gabled roof was replaced with a hipped roof, the wooden galleries and the porch were erected with stone ones, the windows and the passage arch were torn apart.

During the reconstruction, the area of ​​the temple increased, choirs were built above the entrance, the church was included in the volume of the fortress wall.

The Church of the Annunciation was the house church of the rector and from the altar was connected by a passage with his chambers.

This is the only church in the monastery where the design of the iconostasis and almost the entire wall painting have been preserved.

The iconostasis has been rebuilt many times in its history. In 1836, his last renewal took place before the closing of the monastery.

From 1925 to 1937, the camp museum was located in the temple. The temple was painted starting from 1864 for almost 40 years. During this time, the painting was repeatedly updated. The murals present Old Testament prophecies about the Mother of God: Jacob's Ladder, the Burning Bush seen by Moses, the Fleece of St. Gideon, the Vision of Ezekel; the main persons of the Annunciation event: the Archangel Gabriel, the Most Holy Theotokos, the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, as well as the Lord of Hosts, the Solovetsky and especially revered saints in the North. The paintings are framed by floral and geometric ornaments.

Work on the restoration of the interior of the Church of the Annunciation began in the late 1970s. Wall paintings were restored by students of the Moscow Art School named after 1905 under the guidance of the restorer Yu. M. Egorov.

Work on the restoration of the iconostasis was carried out by the Solovetsky Research and Development Institute "Palata" (headed by V. V. Soshin). The Royal Gates have also been recreated by the Palata cooperative. They were given as a contribution to the Solovetsky cellar of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery Alexander Bulatnikov for prayer "for himself and for his parents as a heritage of eternal blessings." The Royal Doors were made in 1633 by the carver Lev Ivanov from the same monastery. The original gate is in the Kolomenskoye Museum.

Images for the restored iconostasis were created by contemporary icon painters. Only the icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands is ancient. It was written in 1882 on Solovki specifically for this temple. In 1939, the icon, along with other relics, was taken to the Kolomenskoye Museum, where it was kept in a functioning church in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, and in 1993 it was returned to the revived monastery.

On April 5, 1992, the abbot of the monastery, hegumen Joseph (Bratishev), performed a small consecration of the gate church. It became the first of the historical temples of the monastery, where, after its revival, regular services began to take place. On April 7, 1992, the first monastic tonsures in the renewed monastery took place in the gate church, and on August 22 of the same year, the first consecration took place. It was performed by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II. On the same day, the Great consecration of the temple took place.

At present, the Sacraments of the Unction are performed in the Church of the Annunciation, services are served here on the patronal feast, and Saturday morning services are held during Great Lent. During the summer, the temple is open to the public.

The first temple in the name of St. Philip was built in the monastery in 1688 opposite the Refectory, in the northwestern row of cells. It was attached to the hospital wards and was considered a hospital temple. Hospital cells appeared in the monastery under St. Philip. It is known that from the beginning of the 17th century the monastery had a hospital for lay people.

At the end of the 18th century, the hospital cells were moved to the southern part of the central courtyard. Hermits and elderly elders lived in the fraternal hospital building; until the beginning of the 20th century, a hospital with a pharmacy was located on the top floor.

Together with the hospital cells, the temple was also moved. The new church in the name of St. Philip was built in 1798-1799. She is two-tiered. On the first tier there is a temple dedicated to St. Philip. In the octagon towering above it, in 1859, a chapel was built in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "The Sign". This dedication is connected with the events Crimean War. During the shelling of the monastery by English ships on July 7, 1854, the last cannonball hit the icon of the same name, which was located above the entrance to the Transfiguration Cathedral, after which the shelling stopped. The monastery was sure that the Mother of God "took the last wound." After the chapel was built, the icon of the same name from the Holy Trinity Anzersky Skete was transferred to it.

The church through the door in the refectory communicated with the hospital cells and was also considered a hospital temple. In 1829, the church of St. Philip was painted.

The temple was damaged in a fire in 1932. The interior decoration was destroyed, the fire damaged the octagon, it could not be restored, and it had to be dismantled.

Work on the restoration of the church has been carried out since the mid-1990s by the joint efforts of the monastery and the museum.

On August 22, 2001, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II performed a great consecration of the church of St. Philip. At present, it is the main functioning temple of the Solovetsky Monastery. Here are the shrines of the monastery: the relics of St. Zosima, Savvaty and Herman, St. Markell, Archbishop of Vologda and Beloezersky, the honest head of the Hieromartyr Peter, Archbishop of Voronezh, and a particle of the relics of St. Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow.

Monastic cells around the perimeter surround the central courtyard of the monastery. Most of their windows overlook the cathedral square.

The first cells were log cabins made of wood. The beginning of stone cell construction in the monastery dates back to the 16th century. This is one of the earliest cases of the construction of stone residential cells in Russian monasteries. By the middle of the 17th century, almost all the cells in the monastery were made of stone.

Each cell then had a separate entrance. It consisted of two main rooms: a warm vestibule and a cell proper. A cold hallway led out into the back yard, where there was a toilet (toilet) and firewood was stored. The small windows, located in deep niches, were mica and closed with wooden shutters.

At the end of the 18th - beginning of the 19th century, the cell buildings were rebuilt in the monastery. They were arranged according to the corridor principle - the door to each led from a common corridor. The vaults were broken in the cells, stone ceilings were arranged, “stack” windows were hewn, the old doorways were bricked up. At the same time, decor was knocked down, roofs were rebuilt, some buildings were built on the third floor.

Each cell building has its own name. The Holy Corps adjoins the Church of St. Philip, to the south of the Church of the Annunciation is the Annunciation, its line is continued by the Superior, then the Treasury. In the northern row of the perimeter cell building, the Viceroyalty and Rukhlyadny buildings were built. The eastern row is formed by Povarenny, Kvasovarenny, Prosphora and Novobratsky.

In the cell buildings, in addition to living quarters, household services were also located. Their names speak about the purpose of many buildings: Prosphora, Cookery, Kvasovarenny, Laundry. The Viceroyal Corps housed a candle, locksmith, printing workshops, in Novobratsky - a boiler service, in Rukhlyadny - for some time a tailor and shoe workshops.

The presence on the territory of a large number of services distinguishes the Solovetsky Monastery from other monasteries, where they tried to take such services out of the fortress wall. This is dictated by the special border location of the monastery, the need to withstand a long siege when attacked by enemies. But even here, all the services were outside the Cathedral Square.

The brethren of the revived monastery currently live in the Governor's Corps. In the Rukhlyadny building there is a monastery shop, a church-archaeological office, a restoration department and other services of the monastery; in winter, a pilgrimage service is located here. The prosphora, Novobratsky, Blagoveshchensky and Laundry buildings are occupied by a museum-reserve. Restoration work is being carried out in all other cell buildings.

The Church of St. Philip and the St. Cell Building separate the central courtyard of the monastery from the southern courtyard. This courtyard is a household one, its main services were connected with the mill canal, through which water flowed from the Holy Lake to the White Sea.

Abbot Philip in the middle of the 16th century connected several lakes with canals and directed their water to the monastery. In the following centuries, the monks repeatedly expanded the lake system, and already at the beginning of the 20th century, water flowed into its final reservoir - the Holy Lake - from 65 lakes. Entering the mill, she rotated the mill mechanisms. No wonder the mill is called the pinnacle of the Solovetsky hydrotechnical system.

The Solovetsky mill is considered the oldest stone water mill in Russia. It was built in 1601 on the site of a burned-out wooden one. Here, the grain was ground into flour, and a mill was set up for crushing oak and birch bark, which was used for leather dressing. In the 19th century, these mechanisms were supplemented by a grain grinder, a grinding wheel and a fuller. Until 1908, all mechanisms were driven by water wheels, then they were replaced by a water turbine.

The mill is one of the most richly decorated monuments of the Solovetsky Monastery. The variety of decor and its richness attracts attention. Previously, all the details were tinted with red paint, they contrasted with the whitewashed facade, and the building looked especially elegant.

The mill is the "heart" of the southern courtyard. It is connected with a fraternal bathhouse and a port-washing house (laundry room) by a canal, functionally - with a grain barn and a Sushil.

Dryer - the most ancient construction of the southern courtyard. Its construction dates back to the 16th century. The Solovetsky drier is one of the oldest in Russia. It was intended for drying and storage of grain brought from the mainland. Its heating system is unique. Just as in the Refectory, warm air rose here to the upper floors from the furnace in the basement. In such a form, as in Solovki, the ancient heating systems have not been preserved anywhere else. Existing in other places, were lost or significantly rebuilt.

From the east, the port was adjacent to the mill. P.F. Fedorov, in his book Solovki, describes the washing process in the monastery laundry as follows: “From the boilers, through a tube with a tap, hot water was poured into vats of lye. In these vats, the linen "wobbled". After the storm, which lasted from 6 to 12 hours, the linen was washed in troughs in warm water with soap, and then rinsed directly in the fast running water of the ditch.

In 1825, a fraternal bath was set up near the fortress wall behind the mill.

The Laundry building is also located in the southern courtyard. It housed a malt house, a grain barn, cells and, for some time in the 19th century, a laundry. On the 3rd floor in winter, clothes were dried here.

Today, the mill, port washing and Sushilo are open to pilgrims and tourists. Museum expositions dedicated to heating systems and hydrotechnical monuments are located here. In the mill, you can see an underground canal, preserved details of mill mechanisms, the bases of a set and a flour box, and millstones.

In the first tier of Sushila was one of the monastery prisons.

The existence of prisons attached to monasteries was a widespread phenomenon in Russia. In the Solovetsky Monastery, prisoners were kept from the beginning of the 16th century. Solovki, with its insular position, was the best suited for isolating criminals dangerous to society. The severity of the monastic confinement contributed to the punishment of the guilty.

It was also important that the monasteries were a favorable place for the re-education of prisoners. The very atmosphere of monastic life, soul-saving conversations with the elders, attendance at services contributed to their correction.

Some prisoners remained in the monastery after their release, replenishing the ranks of the brethren.

The prison on Solovki was closed in 1903. Over four centuries, about 500 prisoners passed through its walls. Among them were those exiled "on matters of faith" and state criminals.

The most famous prisoners of the monastery prison were the compiler of Domostroy, Archpriest Sylvester, the prominent figure of the Time of Troubles Avraamy Palitsyn, the last ataman of the Zaporizhzhya Sich Pyotr Kalnishevsky, the senator, diplomat, head of the Secret Chancellery under Peter I, Count Pyotr Tolstoy, his colleague, member of the Supreme Privy Council, Prince Vasily Dolgoruky, Decembrist Alexander Gorozhansky.

The buildings that we see today in the Northern courtyard were built mainly in the first half of the 17th century.

In 1615, the Icon-painting Chamber was built here. Initially, the chamber was two-story (“about two lives”) with a stone vestibule. On the second floor there was an icon-painting workshop, and next to it there was a shoemaker’s workshop (“chebotnaya cloakroom”). Under the shoemaker's workshop there was a sexton's shop, under the icon-painting chamber - a hospital for the laity.

In 1798, the building was rebuilt as a prison, arranging cell-closets here, where prisoners were kept, there were also "three chambers for an officer on duty and a barracks for guard soldiers." In 1838, the “two-story guarded castle” was built on the third floor.

The prison on Solovki was closed in 1903, and the building changed its purpose once again. A hospital was equipped here, and on the top floor for the treated patients a church was built in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Satisfy my sorrows”. Its consecration took place on October 24, 1906.

During the camp period, an infirmary was located in the Icon-Painting Chamber. After the camps closed, there was an island council, a library, and a drug store. Since 2005, the building has been transferred to the Solovetsky Monastery. Now there are: on the 1st floor the publishing department and in the summer the pilgrimage service, on the 2nd - a spacious summer pilgrimage refectory, on the 3rd - also in the summer, a hostel for workers.

In 1619, a leather warehouse was built next to the Icon-Painting Chamber. At the prison, he initially served as a pantry. In 1827, it was converted into living quarters for a guard officer and the lower ranks of the military team, and a storehouse and a store were set up next to them.

In 1642, a two-story Tailor (Chobotnaya) Chamber was built, where clothes and shoes were sewn, the guards of the Nikolsky Gates were accommodated, for some time there was a carpentry workshop.

With its northern façade, the Junk building, built at the end of the 16th century, faces the Northern Courtyard. In the one-pillar chambers there was a fish barn and a warehouse for "junk" clothes, shoes, etc. The windows of the 17th-century Viceroy's building, where the brethren lived, and several workshops operated, also overlook the Northern Courtyard.

The latest buildings of the courtyard were erected at the beginning of the 20th century. The building between the Icon and Chobot Chambers housed the hospital kitchen and dining room, operating room and rooms for medical staff.

Near the Nikolskaya tower was the hotel of the same name. In 1992, a house church was built on the second floor of the Nikolsky building, where the first divine services of the renewed monastery were held. In addition to the house church, the chambers of the abbot of the monastery and the fraternal refectory are now located here.

Many monasteries were not only spiritual but also military fortresses. military history country is inextricably linked with the history of monasteries. For centuries, they ensured its safety. Such monasteries were considered by the authorities as fortresses of national importance, they contained garrisons with a military team.

One of the guardians of the Russian land was the Solovetsky Monastery. The fortress on the islands begins to be built during the Livonian War. By decree of Tsar Ivan the Terrible in 1578, a wooden prison was built around the monastery, and in 1582, by his own decree, later confirmed by a letter from Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, the construction of a stone fortress began.

The construction of the "stone city" was started by the Vologda architect - "city master" Ivan Mikhailov, continued by the Solovki monk Trifon Kologrivov.

The main mass of the fortress was built from local natural material - a boulder. The stones were brought to Solovki by a glacier from the Scandinavian Peninsula. This material created by nature gives a special flavor to the fortress - a majestic structure and at the same time striking in its simplicity.

“The chronicler Solovetsky for four centuries” describes the milestones in the construction of the majestic monastery fortress:

“7092 (1584) the Great Sovereign John Vasilyevich granted 753 people 1100 rubles to the Solovetsky Monastery to commemorate the disgraced Novgorodians.

This summer ... by the Decree of the Grand Sovereign and Grand Duke Theodore Ioannovich, the construction of a stone fortress near the Solovetsky Monastery began to protect against attacks by Germans and all sorts of military people, who often threatened to destroy this monastery, located near the Swedish border. This fortress was built by the monastic sum and the peasants for ten years. At the same time, a wooden prison was built at the expense of the monastery in the Pomeranian village of Sume, 120 versts from the monastery to the South-West.

Hegumen Jacob from the Great Sovereign Tsar and Grand Duke Theodore Ioannovich to the Solovetsky Monastery received the following salaries:

7092 (1584), in commemoration of his father in blessed memory of the Sovereign Tsar and Grand Duke John Vasilyevich, in the monks of Jonah 333 rubles 33 kopecks, and 68 rubles 7 kopecks for the brethren.

7093 (1585), the last half of the Sumy volost, with all the villages, meadow tax and all kinds of land, also with salt pans belonging to it along the sea coast and on the islands, and other monastic services were granted to help build the monastery fortress. The same year, a quarter of the Umba volost was granted, with yards, barns, mills, salt pans, fish and animal traps, also with forests belonging to that part, reapers, sea ton and goblin lakes and with all lands, with tamga (customs duties) in eternal possession.

7097 (1589), by order of the Great Sovereign Tsar and Grand Duke Fyodor Ioannovich, Russian governors with military men went from Solovki to the Kayan Germans.

7098 (1590) Finnish sailing from abroad on ships by the river Kovdoya, among 700 people, ruined many volosts, namely: Kovda, Umba, Keret, and other small villages, and having made many devastations attacked the Kem volost, and from there returned to their places along the Kemya River.

In the same year, by the Decree of the Sovereign, the following military men were sent from Moscow to guard the Solovetsky Monastery: Pan Sevastyan Kobelsky with 5 people from Lithuania, Streltsy head Ivan Mikhailov Yakhontov with boyar children, centurion Semyon Yurenev and 100 people of Moscow archers, among the 500 who had previously arrived with Ivan Yakhontov. These troops, having stood in the monastery all autumn, by winter went to apartments in the Shuya Korelskaya volost, and Smirnoy-Schokurov with a separate detachment and the Circassian Ataman Vasily Khaletsky with forty people of the Serpukhov Circassians (Little Russian Cossacks), returning from a campaign against the Kayan Germans, were one year old in Sumy prison.

The same year, the Great Sovereign Feodor Ioannovich granted two copper one-and-a-half squeaks, 4 barrels of gunpowder, weighing 50 pounds and lead the same amount, also 4 squeaks of mud, to them gunpowder and lead up to 12 pounds ...

7100 (1592) years five squeakers were sent to the monastery, and to them 390 lead cores, and 400 iron cores ...

7101 (1593) years ... military governors arrived at the Solovetsky Monastery: Prince Andrey Romanovich and Prince Grigory Konstantinovich Volkonsky, Streltsy heads: the second Akinfeev, Elizariy Protopopov, Tretyak Stremoukhov, two hundred Moscow archers, 90 people of Little Russian Cossacks, and troops consisting of Serbs , Voloshan, and Lithuania; to multiply these troops, the monastery hired 100 military people from other volosts. These governors, having gone under the Finnish city of Kayan, returned to the monastery with great booty.

In 7102 (1594), the Great Sovereign Theodore Ioannovich, in commemoration of Princess Theodosia, granted 500 rubles to the Solovetsky Monastery.

That same summer Voevoda Ivan Yakhontov and other officials were sent to the Solovetsky Monastery to inspect the fortress under construction and to gather people from the volosts belonging to the monastery to help it. In the same year, this fortress was completed by construction. It was erected from wild unhewn large and medium stones, it has one round-oblong wall, eight high towers and eight gates. The wall at the bottom with loopholes, and at the top with windows or embrasures and a passage under the roof, around and with towers of 509 fathoms three arshins. The natural location near the fortress gives it both importance and beauty, especially from two sides: from the western sea bay, and from the eastern deep and large lake, which is called the Holy. And all this huge structure disposed and the architect with it was the monk Tryphon, a tonsured Solovetsky, a native of the Pomeranian village of Nenoksy. After his death in this monastery, in order to commemorate his labors, he was recorded in the synodik without an extract, as long as the Holy Monastery stands.

The total length of the fortress walls is 1200 meters. The walls enclose an area of ​​4 hectares. The thickness of the fortress walls at the base is up to 7 meters, their height is from 6 to 11 meters, the height of the towers is 12-17 meters. The towers hang over the tents with caretaker's, the height of the tower with the tent is 30 meters. The upper part of the fortress wall is made of bricks.

The fortress has the shape of an elongated pentagon. There are 5 round towers at its corners, three more towers are located in the fortifications. The corner towers are placed outside the volume of the fortress wall, which makes it possible to shoot through the surface of the wall, making it difficult for the enemy to storm the fortress. Each tower has its own name. The corner towers from the Holy Gates (counterclockwise) are called: Spinning (Stratilatovskaya), Belaya (Golovlenkova), Arkhangelskaya, Nikolskaya, Korozhnaya, two towers - Kvasovarennaya and Cookery - have a wall, the Assumption (Arsenal) tower protects the approach to the monastery from the sea , included in the western fence. The main construction of the fortress ended in 1596. However, at the beginning of the next century, it was completed. In 1614-1621, Sushilo and a wall with two towers - Kvasovarennaya and Povarennaya were included in the fortress wall. The northern wall in 1614 was reinforced with a dry moat.

An excellent description of the fortress was given by the architect O.D. Savitskaya in her book “The Solovetsky Fortress” (Arkhangelsk, 2005): “The walls of the Solovetsky Fortress, which completed the formation of the monastery ensemble, carry features that define a special - Solovetsky - circle of architectural monuments, while inheriting the all-Russian traditions of military fortification and building art, and in terms of artistic embodiment, they remain the only one of their kind, having no analogues of the structures of antiquity. The highest technical skill, unsurpassed artistic taste, inventiveness, freedom and independence of creative thinking, resulting in an extremely clear, simple composition with a well-developed functional scheme, put this building among the greatest creations of engineering art and architecture.”

Twice the Solovetsky Fortress had to repulse the attack of the enemy.

The first time was in the 17th century, when the Solovetsky Monastery, the only one of the monasteries, openly opposed the reforms of Patriarch Nikon. The monastery did not accept newly printed books, the monks refused to accept the new rector sent from Moscow. To pacify the recalcitrant monks in 1668, archers were sent to Solovki. At first they sat on Zayatsky Island, controlling the main approach to the monastery - the Harbor of Prosperity and trying to "reason" the monks. In 1672, the archers moved to the walls of the monastery, their number increased. All monastery property and buildings around the monastery were burned. But the monks firmly stood for the "old faith." In 1674, with the arrival of a new governor, active hostilities began. Shrines were set up near the fortress walls, from which the besieged were fired. Streltsy led digs under the White, Nikolskaya and Kvasovarennaya towers. In December 1675, they tried to take the monastery by storm, but the attack was repulsed. The fortress withstood in an open battle, showing all its best fortification qualities, but was captured after a monk who left the monastery showed the archers a secret passage under Sushil. On the night of January 22, 1676, the monastery was taken.

The fortress was attacked for the second time in the middle of the 19th century during the Crimean (Eastern) War. In 1854-55. An Anglo-French squadron was stationed in the White Sea. On July 6 (19) two English steam frigates approached the monastery, on July 7 (20) they fired at it for 9 hours, firing more than 1800 shells. The monastery, despite the scarcity of weapons and the absence of a military garrison - by that time there was only a disabled team guarding the prisoners - organized worthy resistance to the enemy. Cannons were skillfully placed along the fortress wall and on the cape in front of the monastery, arrows fired at the enemy from rifles along the coastline of the enemy, its inhabitants, who were on the island at that time and even prisoners of prison, stood up to protect the monastery along with the disabled team. They defended their city not only with bullets and shells, but also with prayer - during the shelling, worship did not stop, a religious procession walked along the walls of the monastery. The forces were unequal: against 60 cannons on the ships, the monastery had only 10 cannons of incomparably smaller caliber, but the British could neither persuade the monastery to surrender, nor land troops, nor even cause significant material damage to the monastery. The Solovetsky fortress once again demonstrated its fortification qualities, having withstood a hurricane of fire, which, according to the commander of the English squadron, could destroy several medium-sized cities.

The monastery city was built through the efforts of thousands of workers. The names of most of them are known only to the Lord. Realizing that they were working in a holy place and building a holy place, people did not strive for honors or wealth, but sought only God's glory. They worked conscientiously, remembering the words of the prophet Jeremiah: “Cursed is the man who does the work of the Lord negligently” (Jer 48:10). Sincerely believing people at all times have worked and are working with the belief that "their deeds follow them" (Rev. 14:13) and will be noted in eternity.

History has not preserved the names of not only builders, but also many architects. We do not know under whose leadership the Nikolsky and Philippovsky churches, the bell tower, the mill, cell buildings and other buildings were erected. Little is known of architects. Among them are the creators of the Assumption Refectory Complex and, presumably, the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Novgorodians Ignatius Salka and Stolypa, the architects of the fortress "city master" from Vologda Ivan Mikhailov and the tonsure of the Solovetsky Monastery monk Trifon (Kologrivov) from the Pomeranian village of Nenoks, as well as the Arkhangelsk provincial architect A Shakhlarev, according to the project of which the Holy Trinity Zosima-Savvatievsky Cathedral was erected. The names of these architects are forever inscribed in the history of the monastery.

Each new building in the monastery was erected with the blessing and care of its abbots.

The wooden ensemble of the monastery was erected under Abbot Ion I (mid-15th century). Saint Philip (1548-1566) began stone construction. During the years of his abbess, the Assumption refectory complex, the Transfiguration Cathedral, Sushilo, several stone cell buildings appeared in the monastery. Under the Monk Jacob, who led the monastery from 1581 to 1597, the construction of the St. Nicholas Church was completed, a fortress was built, and the construction of the Church of the Annunciation began.

Hegumen Isidore (1597-1604) completed the construction of the gate church of the Annunciation, begun by his predecessor, with him a gallery-transition of the central courtyard and a stone mill were built. Through the efforts of the Monk Markell, who was hegumen in 1639-1645, the Tailor (Chobot) Chamber was erected. Under Archimandrite Dositheus I (1761-1777), a bell tower was erected. And under the rector Jonah II (1796-1805), a library was arranged under it, the church of St. Philip with hospital cells and a refectory for pilgrims opposite the Kelar Chamber were also built.

Through the efforts of Archimandrite Melchizedek (1857-1859), the construction of the Holy Trinity Zosima-Savatiev Cathedral and the Church of St. Herman began.

Their construction was completed by Archimandrite Porfiry (1859-1865), under him a chapel was also built in the name of the icon of the Sign of the Most Holy Theotokos on the vaults of the church of St. Philip, the Prosphora building was built, the 3rd floor of the Tailor (Chobotnaya) Chamber was erected, under the walls of the monastery on the Holy Lake a granite embankment appeared.

Thus, century after century, the monastery city was formed. Each building fit into the already existing ensemble, complementing and decorating it. Gradually, a unique, different from all others, appearance of the Solovetsky monastery was created, which is so dear to every Russian heart.

On the shore of the Holy Lake there is a stone forge built in the 17th century. The building was rebuilt several times, in 1841 the second floor was erected with cells for blacksmiths and locksmiths.

On the same side are the two-story Onion building, in which the pilgrims-investors lived, on the contrary - the St. further away - the building of the pottery factory.

The most interesting in this group of buildings is the building of the monastery school, built in 1860. This building housed a school for working boys, opened under the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Porfiry I, who considered it his duty "to educate the mind and heart of these children for their own happiness and good."

To the north of the monastery, a boulder Belets bathhouse (for workers and pilgrims of the monastery) of 1717, a building of a tannery of the 18th century, and two tar mills of the 19th century have been preserved.

Near the sea, next to the monastery, there are three monastery hotels of the XIX century: Arkhangelsk, Preobrazhenskaya and Petersburg.

For centuries, a unique complex of hydraulic structures was created on Solovki.

Back in the middle of the 16th century, under Abbot Philip, a canal system began to take shape, which today has 242 inter-lake connections, including a system of navigable canals, about 12 km long, built “along the old Filippov channels” at the beginning of the 20th century under the guidance of a monk Irinarkha (in the world Mishnev Ivan Semenovich, from the peasants of the Vologda province), a very talented self-taught engineer. Traveling through canals and lakes leaves an unforgettable impression. As one pilgrim of past centuries remarked, "it is impossible to describe the local lakes ... in their beauty God revealed the greatest of His miracles." In total, there are more than 500 lakes on the Solovetsky Islands.

Under Abbot Philip, a small bay was separated from the sea by a boulder dam, where cages were arranged, which were called Filippovskiye. They were intended for keeping fish caught in the sea. The weather was not always conducive to fishing and the monks were forced to stock up on fish for future use. These cages were successfully used in the 19th century.

At the beginning of the 17th century, a water mill was built on the territory of the monastery, which worked on one of the three channels leading from the Holy Lake to the sea. The mill has been improved many times. The mill building still retains its original appearance. This is the most elegant outbuilding in the monastery.

In the second half of the 19th century, a dam was built - a grandiose stone bridge that connected the islands of Solovetsky and Bolshaya Muksalma. Its length is 1200 m, its width is from 6 to 15 m and its height is about 4 m. There are three arches in the dam for the passage of karbas and water during high and low tides.

The construction was supervised by the monk Feoktist (in the world Sosnin Fedor Ivanovich, a peasant of the Kholmogory district of the Arkhangelsk province). Under his leadership, the embankment of the Holy Lake was built, the harbor was equipped, the dry dock was expanded and deepened (1880-1881).

A dry dock was built on the canal from Holy Lake to the sea in 1799-1801 for the repair and construction of ships. When filling and draining it, the level difference between the Holy Lake and the sea was used. The abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Dositheos, noted that “by the advantage of the location and the ability of this shipyard, many experts testify that there is nowhere else like it.” In the 40s of the 19th century, the dock was improved according to the plan of the monk Gregory, and in the early 80s, as mentioned above, it was expanded and deepened. The heads of the Arkhangelsk port, who were present at the opening of the new dock, gave it a very high rating.

On the canal there was also a sawmill that has not survived to this day, unique in the sense that it almost did not require maintenance personnel.

In 1912, a hydroelectric power station was built on the same canal. All these structures invariably aroused the surprise of those who came, and the Solovetsky monks, seeing him, proudly said: “The harbor, the docks ... all the peasant heads conceived, but the peasant hands did it.” These wonderful buildings - a monument to many famous and unknown Russian craftsmen - today amaze and delight with their grandiose scale and technical perfection.

Published by: GRAD MONASTYRSKY. Central estate of the Solovetsky Monastery.

Illustrated guide. Solovetsky Monastery, 2012. 68 p.

Photo: mon. Onufry (Porechny), M. Skripkin, V. Nesterensko, S. Potekhin

Uspensky Dmitry Vladimirovich, (1902-1989), was born in Moscow, in the family of a priest. Russian by nationality. Education - incomplete secondary. Before the revolution, he was not involved in politics. In 1919 committed a serious crime - killed his father. The murder was explained by “class hatred”, however, there is evidence that it was committed on a domestic basis - the father and son of the Assumption abused alcohol. Dmitry Uspensky was imprisoned and sentenced to ten years in prison, but a year later he was released, and his conviction was expunged. Moreover, at the same time, in 1920. Dmitry entered the service in the Cheka. What explains this is unknown. At the same time, Uspensky entered the service in the Red Army, and in 1925. joined the Bolshevik Party.

In 1927 was sent to serve in the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp (SLON), where he soon became the head of the Educational and Educational Department. However, his activities had nothing to do with education. He was a camp executioner, and not by position - he was not at all obliged to do this, but, as he himself explained, "for the love of art." For this he received the nickname: "Amateur executioner." There are many episodes of Ouspensky's participation in executions, here are just a few of them. So, on the night of October 28-29, 1929. DV Uspensky led and personally participated in the execution of 400 prisoners. Among those executed were famous people, like G.M.Osorgin and A.A.Sivers. For this, he was soon appointed head of the Solovetsky branch of USLON. Ouspensky hastened to “work out” the promotion: in January 1930. on his initiative and with his personal participation, 148 people were shot, belonging to the Old Believer sect of the “imyaslavtsy” (mostly peasants from the Volga region). June 20, 1931 D. Uspensky personally shot the imprisoned anarchist E. Yaroslavskaya, despite the fact that she had a disability. The reason for the execution was the accusation raised against her by Uspensky that she allegedly "prepared an assassination attempt on him." At the moment of the shot, the woman started to run, and Ouspensky missed. Then he caught up with her, stunned her with a blow of a revolver, and, having fallen unconscious, began to stomp with his feet - until she died. In the same 1931. Dmitry Uspensky forced one of the imprisoned women, a certain N.N. Andreeva, to cohabit. The story turned out to be loud, especially since Andreeva was not the only victim, in 1932. Uspensky fell under investigation, but the first deputy commissar of the OGPU G.G. Yagoda, who favored him, in fact the owner of this department (due to the illness of V.R. Menzhinsky), stopped the case, ordered N. Andreeva to be released ahead of schedule, and Uspensky was obliged to marry her. The marriage took place in 1933, and as a gift to the “young” Yagoda appointed Uspensky the head of the Belbaltlag: now he had lives in his hands huge amount"builders of communism" who built the White Sea Canal. As for N.N. Andreeva, she hastened to escape from such a “husband”. Ouspensky took revenge on her at the first opportunity: in 1937. she was arrested again and sentenced to eight years in the camps. Uspensky demanded to be shot, but to no avail: in Moscow they decided that it would be too much. Moreover, in 1939 the question of the behavior of Dmitry Uspensky again became the subject of discussion by his colleagues: he was expelled from the CPSU (b) with the wording "for moral decay." But a few months later this decision was reversed.

In 1936-1937. D.V.Uspensky was the head of Dmitlag, one of the largest concentration camps in the Gulag system. His behavior has not fundamentally changed, only the scale has changed: he personally did not need to kill someone, there were enough assistants for this, and the number of potential victims was so large that he personally would not be able to kill them all. Nevertheless, Dmitry Vladimirovich from time to time "had fun" with the executions of young beautiful women. Before that, he forced them to pose naked for his paintings: he drew well with a pencil. According to the recollections of the prisoners, Ouspensky knew well and liked to recite Baudelaire and Heine. Then he got another nickname: "Artist".

After the removal of N.I. Yezhov, the fate of most types like Uspensky did not differ in variety: they were tried and shot. But with D.V. Uspensky, for some reason, they acted differently: after a conversation with L.E. Vlodzimirsky, they “exiled” to the post of head of the Zapolyarlag, to Naryan - March. It is noteworthy that there he instantly parted with his "arts". Most likely, Vlodzimirsky warned him - one violation - and execution. This means that the reason for Uspensky's behavior was not a mental illness, but permissiveness, "usual" for the "Chekists". As soon as L. Beria, who replaced Yezhov, put an end to permissiveness and introduced the behavior of the NKVD officers into the strict framework of official instructions, the Assumption quickly disappeared.

Later, Dmitry Uspensky was the head of various concentration camps on the outskirts of the country: Sevpechlag, Perevallag, Nizhamurlag, and for the longest time, from 1948 to 1952. - Head of Sakhalinlag. July 26, 1952 D.V.Uspensky was fired from the MGB "to reduce staff." For some time he worked in the management of Tatspetsneftestroy, an enterprise that was engaged in the construction of oil storage facilities and was part of the Gulag system. But March 17, 1953. - almost immediately after the death of I.V. Stalin, he was sent to retire with the title of "Personal pensioner of Union significance."

In the future, D.V. Uspensky lived in Moscow, especially not hiding, and even gave interviews - for example, to Academician D.S. Likhachev. In his actions, he did not see anything wrong, and talked about the "aesthetics of murder." D.S. Likhachev could not understand in any way - whether Uspensky really thinks so, or whether he is simply mocking him.

Dmitry Vladimirovich Uspensky died in 1989. in Moscow.