Was the service held in the Smolny Cathedral? Smolny Cathedral. Where is it and how to get there

Smolny Cathedral.

One of the most beautiful religious buildings in Russia - Smolny Resurrection Christ's Cathedral- an Orthodox church in St. Petersburg, which is part of architectural ensemble the first convent in the city.

According to the ancient Russian tradition, churches were built on the high banks of rivers, organically fitting into the landscape. Erected at the bend of the Neva, the Smolny Cathedral stands on land that in the Middle Ages belonged to a Novgorod noble family, where the Church of the Savior was destroyed by the Swedes.

On the territory conquered from the Swedes, the urban planning of St. Petersburg introduced its own innovations - closing the distant prospect of straight wide streets with monumental buildings. And this role is played by the Smolny Cathedral, forming Rastrelli Square.

Is this why it so successfully combines strict St. Petersburg symmetry and regularity with elegant and rich decoration, close in spirit to ancient Russian architecture...

Historical reference

According to legend, Empress Elizabeth Petrovna wanted to complete her life's journey by retiring to a monastery as abbess, surrounded by young pupils from noble families. To implement her cherished plan, she envisaged building convent, with a house for yourself and separate apartments for 120 girls, in one of the most beautiful areas Northern capital.

On the site of the burnt Smolny Palace, where the daughter of Peter the Great (the future Empress Elizabeth) spent her youth, construction began in 1748 according to the design of the court architect Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli. The name of the area has been fixed since the founding of the city: once upon a time there was a Resin Yard here, where tar was boiled and resin was stored for the Admiralty Shipyard.

The model of the designed ensemble is stored in and testifies not only to the imperial splendor of the future building, but also to the change in the original plan. Rastrelli planned to erect a grandiose bell tower 140 meters high above the entrance to the monastery, but later abandoned this idea. As a result, the dominant feature of the complex is the Smolny Cathedral.

The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) suspended construction due to lack of funds. And Elizabeth was determined to wage the war with Prussia to a victorious end, and her desire to enter a monastery gradually faded away. She continued to rule until her death in 1761, without waiting for the consecration of the cathedral.

A change of rulers, a change in the purpose of the building, architectural fashion and architects turns the Smolny Cathedral into the longest unfinished construction project in St. Petersburg.

Catherine II, who ascended the throne, removed Rastrelli from the post of chief architect in 1762, sending him first on leave for treatment and then on retirement. The construction of the cathedral was transferred to his assistant J. Felten, who assumed the post of chief architect of the Office of Buildings.

The monastery, in which by the end of the 18th century there was not a single nun left, ceased to exist, and two educational institutions were located on its territory: the Educational Society of Noble Maidens (1764) and the Bourgeois School (1765), which were later transformed into the Smolny and Alexander Institutes .

Renewed Voskresensky Novodevichy Convent was by decree of Nicholas I of March 14, 1845, the monastery was built on the Tsarsko-Selskaya road (Moskovsky Avenue), but that’s a completely different story.

In 1806, the Italian architect Giacomo Quarenghi built a remarkable building in the classicist style for the Smolny Institute. It was here that in 1917 the headquarters of the revolution was located - the Petrograd Council of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies.

The completion of the construction of the Smolny Cathedral is carried out by the architect V. P. Stasov, who designed interior decoration, a square in front of the main entrance and an amazingly beautiful high openwork fence.

After its consecration in 1835, the temple acquired the status of the Cathedral of All educational institutions. By this period, icons were painted specifically for the temple. The large altarpiece of the Virgin Mary belongs to the brush of a remarkable Russian painter, member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, A. G. Venetsianov.

Like most religious buildings after the October Revolution, the Smolny Cathedral was closed and turned into a warehouse, and was badly damaged during the Great Patriotic War.

After restoration in 1990, a concert and exhibition complex was opened in it. An organ was purchased especially for the hall; classical music concerts and various exhibitions were held here.

Architecture of Smolny Cathedral

Built in the late Baroque style, the Cathedral surprisingly harmoniously combines the traditions of ancient Russian architecture and European classics. The perfection of proportions, elegance of decoration, lightness and grandeur evoke admiration.

Smolny Cathedral.

“This is the Temple!” - this is how the famous architect Quarenghi exclaimed every time he passed by. A supporter of something completely different architectural style, he, however, took off his hat to Rastrelli’s brilliant creation.

The composition of the Smolny Cathedral is directed upward, permeated with vertical energy, which flows along the edges of the walls, throwing out lush waves of patterns. The openwork pattern of the arched windows is complemented by three-quarter columns gathered in bunches; the two-color multi-tiered structure is outlined by a complex contour. Thanks to these details, characteristic of Rastrelli's secular buildings, the lower two tiers are more reminiscent of a palace. Unlike European religious buildings with one elegant facade, the temple has an equal view from all sides. The building, 93.7 meters high, has the illusion of shrinking in size as you approach it.

Smolny Cathedral.

Creating your last architectural masterpiece, Rastrelli designed a structure with one dome according to the type Catholic churches Europe, but Elizabeth’s desire was adamant: she wanted a Russian five-domed cathedral. The solution turned out to be original. A convex massive central dome with an onion dome crowns the cathedral, and four concave bell towers located symmetrically around it are topped with small onion domes.

From the Smolny belfry, located in the second tier of the bell tower, a panorama of the monastery, the Smolny Institute and scenic view to the Neva.

Smolny Cathedral from a bird's eye view.

The Smolny Cathedral and the entire ensemble of the monastery are a wonderful example of Elizabethan Baroque, a historical and architectural monument of world significance. The walls of the monastery, which are built as living quarters, are laid out in the shape of a Greek cross with built-in house churches at the corners. The combination of sky-blue walls with white decorative trim and gilding gives the entire complex a festive and picturesque look.

Life of the cathedral in our time

An amazing coincidence: the Cathedral took 87 years to build (1748-1835) and was closed for worship for the same amount of time (1923-2010). The Divine Liturgy again sounded under the arches of the Cathedral after such a long break on the Feast of the Annunciation on April 7, 2010, and in honor of the 175th anniversary of the Cathedral in the same year, a commemorative medal was issued.

Since 2015, the cathedral building was finally transferred to the Russian Orthodox Church. Services are regularly held here, the sacraments of baptism and weddings are performed.

It should be noted that the faculties of political science and international relations are located in the premises of the former monastery buildings State University St. Petersburg.

The historical tradition is preserved according to which the Resurrection Smolny Cathedral is the temple of educational institutions of St. Petersburg. The culmination of the activities of the temple clergy for the spiritual and moral education of young people was the solemn service on Tatiana’s Day - the day of students, which ends with an award ceremony memorial sign the most worthy students.

For young citizens, the “Smolyanka School” and the “Corps of Pages” were opened, where much attention is paid to instilling in children a love for the Fatherland and an interest in sciences that are missing in school curricula: heraldry and etiquette, ancient dances and horse riding, as well as lessons in medicine and mercy.

As before, everyone can climb 277 steps to one of the highest observation platforms in the city - the cathedral belfry, and on weekends take a tour and explore the cathedral. Admission to the cathedral is free, and the recommended donation collected from participants in excursions and visitors to the bell tower goes towards restoring the interior of the temple.

Where is it and how to get there

Address: Rastrelli square, 1.

The path to the Smolny Cathedral from the metro is not close. A trip by public transport will allow you to save energy and time for sightseeing:

• from the Ploshchad Vosstaniya metro station you will be taken by trolleybuses 5 and 7 and bus 22;
• From the Chernyshevskaya metro station, trolleybus 15 and bus 22 go in the right direction.

If you wish, you can take a walking tour through Tauride Gardens, accessing it from the Chernyshevskaya metro station along Furshtatskaya Street. Behind the park, turn left onto Tavricheskaya Street, walk along it until it intersects with the street. Trellis, which will lead to Rastrelli Square to the Smolny Cathedral.

Smolny Cathedral is one of the masterpieces of the Baroque style, built according to the design of the architect Rastrelli. Construction of the temple began in 1748 by order of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. The ruler decided that she would hold last years life in a monastery, in the company of noble maidens: an institute for girls from the noble class was supposed to operate on the territory of the monastery. However, Elizaveta Petrovna never went to the monastery: the opening of the Smolny Institute took place in 1764, after her death, and the cathedral itself was completed only in 1835.

Today, the Smolny Resurrection Cathedral (this is the full name) is one of the few churches that has not been transferred to the church. There are excellent acoustics here, so in 1990 a concert and exhibition hall opened in the building, which is still in operation. The temple is part of state museum-monument"St. Isaac's Cathedral" (Museum of Four Cathedrals).

Photos of Smolny Cathedral inside and outside

Concert and exhibition hall of the Smolny Cathedral

The concert and exhibition hall of the Smolny Cathedral is a very popular venue. Organ and instrumental concerts are regularly held here. The program is very interesting: in the cathedral you can hear sacred music and operas, baroque and medieval compositions, and playing the harpsichord. You can view the poster and book tickets online on the official website isaak.ticketnet.ru, and you can also purchase them here entrance ticket to the cathedral.

Chamber Choir of Smolny Cathedral

The Smolny Cathedral Chamber Choir, one of the most famous groups in the northern capital, has existed since 1991. In addition to well-known classical works, the choir performs rare compositions - from cantos from the era of Peter the Great to little-known works by modern composers. The choir often performs at other venues in the city - at the Philharmonic, St. Isaac's Cathedral and other places.

Belfry of Smolny Cathedral

The belfry of the Smolny Cathedral is one of the best observation platforms in St. Petersburg: you can admire the sights from a height of 50 meters. The height of the cathedral itself is 93 meters. A visit to the belfry with an 18-minute audio tour “Panorama of St. Petersburg” costs 100 rubles. Not only the view from the belfry is interesting, but also what tourists will see and hear while climbing the 277 steps to the top. Baroque music plays here and you can see structural elements and masonry from Rastrelli's time.

Organ concerts at the Smolny Cathedral

The organ in the Smolny Cathedral was installed in 2010. Since then organ concert are held here regularly and are its calling card.

Schedule of services in the Smolny Cathedral

Divine services in the Resurrection Smolny Cathedral are held at 7:00. On the occasion of church holidays Changes may be made, the schedule is available on the official website: www.cathedral.ru/raspisanie_bogoslugenii.

Where is it and how to get there

Smolny Cathedral is located in the central part of the city, but quite far from metro stations. The nearest station, Chernyshevskaya, is located at a distance of 2 kilometers. You can stroll along the beautiful streets or take advantage of by land transport. Trolleybuses No. 5, 7, 11, 15, 16, 33, buses No. 22, 46, 54, 74, 105, 136, 181, minibuses K15, K28, K76, K90 stop near Smolny on Suvorovsky Prospekt or Proletarskaya Dictatorship Square. K167, K185, K269, K389. Bus No. 136 and minibuses K46, K76 stop directly at Rastrelli Square.

Below we have marked the location of the Smolny Cathedral on the map of St. Petersburg.

Opening hours: 10:30-18:00. Wednesday is a day off.

Ticket prices: a ticket for adults without visiting the belfry costs 150 rubles, a discounted ticket costs 50 rubles.

Address: St. Petersburg, Rastrelli Square, 1. Website: On January 25, 2015, according to tradition, a student holiday dedicated to the memory of Saint Tatiana will be held in the Smolny Cathedral of St. Petersburg. The Divine Liturgy will be led by Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Barsanuphius, co-served by Archbishop of Peterhof Ambrose, dean of churches of higher educational institutions Archpriest Peter Mukhin and a host of clergy. It is expected that hundreds of students will pray and receive communion during the service and will receive books about Orthodoxy as gifts. Students and teachers who have succeeded in educational activities will be awarded diplomas and badges. On the eve of this event, we are publishing material by Deacon Vladimir Vasilik, dedicated to the difficult fate of the Smolny Cathedral. Two cathedrals, creating the image of St. Petersburg, its “sky line”, are dedicated to the Holy Resurrection of Christ. This is the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood and the Smolny Cathedral. But if the Savior on Spilled Blood, built on the spot

tragic death Emperor Alexander II speaks of the Resurrection in connection with Golgotha ​​and the Cross, then the elegant, festive appearance of the snow-white Smolny Cathedral speaks of Easter as a “holiday of the Feast” and a “Triumph of Triumphs.” And this is not accidental, for it reflects the spirit of Russian architecture of the late ΧVII - first half of the 18th century. - Russian Baroque. Western European Baroque is built on the contrast of light and darkness, on Woland’s paradox: “What will you do with your light if there is no darkness?” On the contrary, Russian Baroque grew out of the unity of Russian Orthodox life, from the joyful feeling of the God-created world: “Glory to Thee, Lord, who created everything!” baroque? The style is Italian in origin; moreover, the architect of the Smolny Cathedral was the Italian Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli (1700–1771), a Florentine nobleman. I will answer: in Russia, even Italians become Russians. But Russia is not a melting pot, but rather a life-giving soil that processes any elements and grows amazing flowers. Bartolomeo Rastrelli, living in Russia, conformed to Russian nature, Russian culture, Russian soul. Let us give one example: he initially conceived the Smolny Cathedral as a single-domed one, in the likeness of St. Peter's in Rome, but Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, by whose order the Smolny Monastery was built, in 1749 ordered the construction “not according to the Roman style,” but in the image and likeness of the Assumption Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin, that is, a five-domed one. The five domes symbolize Christ surrounded by four evangelists, a symbol that has taken root in Russia from the 10th to the 10th centuries.

The design of the Smolny Cathedral largely belongs to Empress Elizaveta Petrovna. She planned to build a grandiose monastery for girls of noble rank and retire there herself at the end of her life. The pious empress, who raised the importance of the Orthodox Church after its obvious humiliation under Anna Ioannovna, decided to devote her entire life to God and, after establishing state life, to devote herself entirely to prayer.

The fate of the Smolny Cathedral is symbolic. It was built for 87 years, operated for 87 years and closed for 87 years. The combination of these numbers is significant: the number 7 symbolizes the fullness of creation, the number 8 - eternity, the eternal non-evening day of the Kingdom of Heaven. The question arises: why did it take so long to build the Smolny Cathedral (from 1748 to 1835)? There were and are legends around this “long-term construction”: one of them says that supposedly one construction contractor was deceived and ruined, and then forced to pay the treasury. He could not stand the injustice and allegedly hanged himself in the altar or at the entrance to the temple. The authorities, horrified by such a death, allegedly decided not to complete the construction of the temple, and it stood unconsecrated and unfinished for many years.

Well, it’s just a rehash of Gogol’s “Viy,” and that’s all. In fact, there is not an ounce of truth in this story; it is absolutely not confirmed by documents. And this long-term construction can be explained very simply: after the death of Elisaveta Petrovna, who was personally interested in this construction, Catherine ΙΙ came to power, who did not like her predecessor. Of course, she took measures to complete the construction, but rather sluggishly. Suffice it to say that the soul of construction, Rastrelli, was removed and Y. Felten was appointed architect instead. In addition, Catherine made another decision that was at odds with her aunt’s intentions: she turned the monastery into an institute for noble maidens, which absorbed a significant amount of the funds originally intended for the construction of the cathedral. It got to the point that under Paul I, 276 cast iron capitals and column bases, as well as other unused building materials, were sold. Emperor Paul Ι had other construction interests: Mikhailovsky Castle, Alexander Ι had his own construction program: Kazan Cathedral, then St. Isaac's Cathedral. Only Nikolai I was able to complete what Elisaveta Petrovna had planned. But without the 140-meter bell tower. It's a pity, it would be a magnificent dominant feature of the city. And a deep symbol - the biblical pillar of fire that led the Jews to the Promised Land. And the Church as a pillar and affirmation of the Truth.

But what was achieved is, without exaggeration, a masterpiece of architecture. And let us note symbolic thought. The height of the cathedral is 93.7 meters, which is only 7 meters lower St. Isaac's Cathedral. In plan, the entire monastery is a Greek cross with a central cathedral inside and four churches in the corners. The Greek cross with equilateral branches is at the same time a symbol of our salvation, the atoning sacrifice of Christ, and at the same time a cosmological symbol of the four-part world. “The four-pointed world is sanctified today by the four-pointed cross.” We have already talked about the five chapters and its meaning. Let us note that here Rastrelli maintained a hierarchy of meanings: but only one, the central dome, relates directly to the temple, the other four are bell towers. The central dome, symbolizing Christ, is much larger in size than the others. And again, it is no coincidence that the four belfries symbolically point to the evangelists, because the bell ringing itself was originally called blagovest.

Note that a similar design is typical for another brainchild of Rastrelli - St. Andrew's Church in Kyiv. Architectural solution Smolny Cathedral creates an unusual illusion of its size. As you approach, the cathedral visually becomes smaller, without losing its majesty; in some ways, this is similar to the phenomenon of reverse perspective.

The temple, with its elegant decoration in the Elizabethan Baroque style, rather resembles a palace, and this is connected not only with the August Order: the temple must display the image of the Kingdom, albeit the Heavenly one. Its interior decoration amazed with its beauty and splendor: a magnificent baroque iconostasis, in harmony with the snow-white arches and columns, a unique crystal balustrade.

According to legend, the architect Giacomo Quarenghi, a representative of the opposite view of architecture, despite his irreconcilable character and open hostility towards Rastrelli, stopped in front of the main entrance to the Smolny Cathedral, turned to face him, took off his hat and exclaimed: “Ecco una chiesa!” (“This is a temple!”).

The beauty of the Smolny Cathedral was captured in the immortal poems of Anna Akhmatova:

Whiter than the vaults of the Smolny Cathedral,
More mysterious than the lush Summer Garden,
She was. We didn't know that soon
Let us look back in extreme anguish.

And this is significant for us because we remember the centenary of the First World War. In this temple, donations were collected for the wounded and refugees, prayers were served for the granting of victory to Russian weapons and memorial services for slain soldiers.

For 87 years, the Smolny Cathedral was the main temple of educational institutions. But in 1922 the temple was closed and turned into a warehouse. The barbaric destruction of its interior began. To be fair, let’s say: not right away. Thus, the iconostasis was dismantled only in 1972. Only one icon remains of him in the temple Holy Mother of God XVIII century The unique crystal balustrade was barbarically destroyed. According to legend, part of it was used to decorate columns at the Avtovo metro station.

In 1989–1990 a number of temples were returned to the city (including the Kazan Cathedral, the church Vladimir icon Mother of God). However, the fate of the Smolny Resurrection Cathedral was more complex and difficult. Neither the last secretary of the Leningrad Regional Committee of the CPSU, Boris Gidaspov, nor the first democratic mayor of St. Petersburg, Anatoly Sobchak, even thought about returning the Smolny Cathedral to the Russian Orthodox Church. Other considerations, including financial ones, outweighed: after all concert hall and a rehearsal space in the city center provide a very good income. It is sad that the pursuit of momentary gain takes away from people a sense of historical memory, and elementary justice, and the fear of God, and human conscience. After all, it is written: “Holiness befits your house, O Lord, for the length of the days.” In other words, the temple must be a temple. And he's in Soviet time was a warehouse, an exhibition hall and even... an anti-nuclear bunker. Underneath it, in the late forties, a bomb shelter was built in case of nuclear war for government workers. Of course, churches of God and monasteries served the Fatherland in the Cold War to protect Russia from the nuclear threat: it is enough to mention the Sarov Monastery - the nuclear center of Arzamas-16. But hardly anyone would argue that this is a fitting and proper use of the temple.

And yet, in recent years, some steps have been taken to restore the temple as a temple. The crosses on the domes were restored. Unfortunately, on July 16, 2001, during a hurricane, the main cross collapsed. And his restoration was a true miracle. A cross was erected above the Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg on April 12, 2004. The event was attended by representatives of the city administration, headed by Valentina Matvienko. Complex weather made it difficult to install the cross. Helicopter departure from the site Peter and Paul Fortress was allowed two hours later than the scheduled time. The cross was carried over the city of St. Peter. Half an hour later, installers and pilots under the leadership of Vadim Bazykin managed to install the cross at an almost hundred-meter height of the main dome. The height of this cross is 6 meters, weight is about 600 kilograms. The restorers actually recreated it from scratch.

There was also a resumption of services, made possible thanks to the energetic work of Archpriest Pyotr Mukhin. On May 24, 2009, Bishop Ambrose of Gatchina served the first prayer service in the cathedral after a long break, and since 2010, Smolny Cathedral was again open for worship. On April 7, 2010, on the Feast of the Annunciation, 87 years later, the chairs were removed from the right Catherine's chapel of the cathedral, freeing up space for half a thousand worshipers. The Divine Liturgy on this day was celebrated by Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Vladimir (Kotlyarov). The Kazan Cathedral donated an ancient throne for worship. By this day, the altarpiece of the Virgin Mary was restored - a copy of the painting by A. Venetsianov, stored in the State Russian Museum. After this, services in the southern (Catherine's) aisle of the cathedral began to be held regularly on Sundays. On January 6–7, 2011, the first Christmas service since 1917 was held in the cathedral.

Since 2012, holiday services for students have been regularly held in the Smolny Cathedral. One of the most memorable is the feast of St. Tatiana on January 25, 2013, which was attended by about 1000 students. Then the service was led by Bishop Ambrose of Gatchina. At the service, 1,000 copies of the New Testament and 1,000 books “The Unknown World of Faith” were distributed to students.

Easter Vespers in the Smolny Cathedral in 2014 was celebrated for the first time by Metropolitan Barsanuphius of St. Petersburg and Ladoga, together with dozens of clergy from the university deanery and thousands of believers, including hundreds of children who warmly greeted the Bishop and received congratulatory gifts from him.

This year, on the feast of St. Tatiana on January 25, Bishop Barsanuphius will perform the Divine Liturgy and congratulate hundreds of students in the city. Devotees of Orthodox educational activities will be awarded diplomas and badges. Students will receive Orthodox books as a gift.

Since February 2013, in agreement with the administration, divine services have been held daily in the southern part of the Catherine Cathedral of the Smolny Cathedral. Unfortunately, not everyone understands this. Some old employees grumble: “Just think: they built a church in the cathedral!” So they are accustomed to its inappropriate use. What can you do!

However, we are optimistic about the future. Parishioners, especially young people, are drawn to us. The revived Smolny Cathedral is envisioned as the main university temple of St. Petersburg, the center of the spiritual life of our youth, its revival. And the revival of Russia.

The Smolny Cathedral in the northern capital of Russia impresses with the splendor of its decoration and scale. This is a truly unique monument of ancient Russian and European architecture, which, according to historical legends, the daughter of Peter I, Elizabeth, wanted to make her abode.

History of the construction of the temple

The Smolny Church organically fits into the surroundings of the left bank of the Neva River. In ancient times, tar for ships was boiled there. Construction work began in 1748. The famous architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli was invited to build the temple. The height of the building reaches 93.7 meters. The temple is designed for six thousand people.

Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg

According to Rastrelli's idea, a bell tower of five tiers was to be built nearby. The project assumed that its height would be 140 meters. But the author’s idea was never realized. The architect died, and his successors decided that the bell tower spire would not fit into the overall picture of the area and abandoned this idea.

Other Orthodox churches St. Petersburg:

Work on the construction of the structure lasted 87 years. The interior decoration of the premises was completed only by 1835. Initially, the cathedral was called the Resurrection Novodevichy. Over time, for convenience, it began to be called Smolny. In 1748, Smolny was consecrated as a cathedral of all educational institutions in the name of the Resurrection of Christ. The empress herself was present at the celebration.

Subsequently, in 1765, an educational institution for the education of noble maidens began to operate on the basis of the monastery.

For almost a century, services were held in the temple. When the revolutionary years came, the temple was closed, and all valuables were confiscated from it. The Bolsheviks ignored appeals from Orthodox parishioners to return the temple. It was only in 2009 that the first church service after the Soviet era was held here. In 2013, a huge 10-ton bell, made in the city of Voronezh, was brought for the temple.

Important! The Smolny Cathedral was solemnly transferred under the protectorate of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2013 on the day of remembrance of the holy martyr Tatiana.

Current state

Since 2010, services in the temple have been held daily. Seats were taken out of the Catherine's chapel so that 500 parishioners could stand there. This happened on April 7, 2010. On that day, Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Vladimir served within the walls of the cathedral.

Interior of Smolny Cathedral

From Kazansky cathedral the city donated an ancient altar for worship to the Smolny Cathedral as a gift. The altarpiece of the Mother of God has been restored. Services are held in the southern aisle of the cathedral every Sunday.

As a monument of architectural art, the temple is known far beyond the borders of the Motherland and has global significance. Smolny Cathedral is a branch of a state-level museum-monument. This place hosts excellent concert programs, talented artists exhibit, and it is worth mentioning scientific and historical-art museum exhibitions.

Description

From a bird's eye view, the monastery resembles a Greek cross. There is a temple in the center, and churches surround it on four sides. The building is designed in the Elizabethan Baroque style. The temple has a very festive look. The decoration uses stucco elements, which give the temple a special splendor. The building is painted sky blue and the domes are light gray.

According to the Orthodox tradition, the dome part is five-domed. This is what Elizabeth wanted to do in her time. The peculiarity is that only the central dome belongs to the temple itself. The remaining domes are bell towers.

The main dome is shaped like a helmet. The bell towers are topped with smaller onion-shaped domes.

Being surrounded by the educational buildings of the Smolny Institute, the temple in its lower part, namely from the facade, is more similar to a palace than to a temple. There is luxury and grace in everything here. At the same time, the cathedral building looks very majestic.

The day of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is especially revered in the temple. Easter is celebrated on different days every year. Therefore, there is no specific date for the patronal feast of the cathedral.

How to get there

The Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ is located in the city of St. Petersburg at the address: Central district, pl. Rastrelli, 3/1.

Anyone can get there by two routes:

1. At the Chernyshevskaya metro stop, change to trolleybus No. 1. Minibuses No. 22 and No. 46 also go in this direction.
2. From the Ploshchad Vosstaniya metro station, change to trolleybus No. 5 or 7. Minibus No. 22 also goes there.

The walk to the temple will not take long - a maximum of half an hour from the metro stations indicated above. But it will bring real pleasure to out-of-town guests of St. Petersburg, who will be able to explore local attractions along the way.

Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg its entire history was haunted by the number 87: it was built for so long, services were performed in it for so many years, and it stood for the same amount of time without being used for its intended purpose. It’s worth coming here to have an association with the word “Smolny” that is different from the one to which everyone is accustomed.

Contacts

How to get to Smolny Cathedral

To get to the temple, you will have to prepare to make 2 transport transfers or about 30 minutes. walk from the metro. The starting points are the Chernyshevskaya or Ploshchad Vosstaniya metro stations.

1. In the first case you will have to transfer to trolleybus No. 15 or bus No. 22, 46;
2. In the second– by trolleybus No. 5, 7 or bus No. 22.

Visit. Operating mode

• Since the temple recently, in 2016, became part of the Russian Orthodox Church, its operating hours have changed. Now there are no days off, and the Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg receives visitors from 7:00 to 20:00 (the reference point is evening service).
• In addition to services, excursions are also available: by reservation or three times a day on weekends, at 13:00, 14:30 and 16:00. For the excursion you will have to leave a donation of approximately 200 rubles. (there are discounts for students).
• As before, you can climb the belfry of the Smolny Cathedral, which is considered one of the best observation platforms in the city.
• Operating mode observation deck Smolny Cathedral – 11:00–18:00. For visiting the belfry they also ask for a donation of 150 rubles. (there are discounts for students). All donated funds are used for restoration work on the interior of the cathedral.

Schedule of services of the Smolny Cathedral

You can attend services in the cathedral on any day of the week. Except that the early morning liturgy (7:00) can only be heard on weekends and holidays.
The regular schedule of services is as follows:

• 9:30 – late liturgy, after which the Psalter is read;
• 14:00 – prayer service;

• 16:00 – memorial service;
• 17:00 – evening service.

The schedule of services is adjusted only in connection with major holidays or fasts.

Where can you stay nearby?

Specifically, there are no pilgrim hotels near the Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg, but in the surrounding area, 2 km from the temple, you can choose a place in a dozen hotels/hostels. If you really want to stay in a pilgrimage hotel, there are three of them near the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, on the embankment of the Monastyrka River: "Iris","Dukhovskaya" And "Feodorovskaya".
The cost of staying in hotels starts from 500 rubles/day.

The history of the creation of the Smolny Cathedral in St. Petersburg

1. The name of the future cathedral was determined by its location. Even in the time of Peter I, resin was produced at this site for the construction of shipyards, and the Smolny Palace was located nearby, where the Tsar’s daughter, Elizabeth, was raised. When the idea came to her to take monastic vows, to build a monastery for herself and 120 young ladies of eminent families, she indicated the location of these Smolny courtyards.
2. The design of the Resurrection Novodevichy Convent was entrusted to the courtier architect F. Rastrelli, and the first stone was laid with celebration and cannon fire in 1748. Rastrelli had many plans (even a wooden model of the monastery complex in the Academy of Arts was preserved); he wanted to get rid of the defensive walls familiar to monasteries and make the bell tower at the gate the main accent. But the empress intervened in the construction. Now the bell tower had to be shortened, and in addition to the large dome on the Smolny Monastery Cathedral in St. Petersburg (it was renamed from Novodevichy), its neighbors appeared - four smaller domes (though there are two-tier bell towers under them).
3. The architect did not live to see the completion of his masterpiece, so other craftsmen had to complete the baroque temple. Yu. Felten And V. Stasov. Elizaveta Petrovna herself did not have time to see the consecration of the cathedral. The domes were not completed, the walls were not plastered, and the interiors were not completed.
4. By decree of Nicholas I, he worked for three years to complete the complex Stasov. He did a great job, but the Smolny Monastery Cathedral had to wait too long for its opening, as many as 87 years.
5. In 1835 The cathedral was finally dedicated, giving the title of the cathedral of educational institutions of St. Petersburg. It was closed in 1923, using the premises as warehouses and an atomic bomb-proof bunker. By 1974, there was no longer an iconostasis or valuables inside, but there was a historical museum. The liturgy was allowed to be held within the walls of the cathedral only in 2010; icons, a cross and a bell were brought. The Smolny Cathedral changed its museum status to a religious one only in 2016.

Architectural and cultural landmarks

• The style of the entire Rastrelli complex can be designated by the word “Baroque”, although with impurities. After all, the court architect was famous for his style in architecture, which is why the cathedral looks baroque, no matter where you look at it (in European buildings only one baroque façade was practiced). It is clear that thanks to the stucco and blue walls present everywhere, the architect managed to get rid of the oppressive atmosphere of Russian monastery buildings, his ideas brought lightness to the exterior of the cathedral. And the conversion of the cathedral into a five-domed one at the request of Elizabeth Petrovna is a tribute to Russian tradition, because in the minds of Orthodox believers there was an image of a five, consisting of Christ and 4 evangelists. The Smolny Cathedral is quite a bit inferior in height.
• Bell tower of Smolny Cathedral attracts tourists with its views: you can see the Neva, the Smolny Institute, the Smolny Monastery, excavations on the site of the Swedish fortress Nyenschanz taken by Peter and other interesting things of St. Petersburg. Although the bell tower is tall, judging by Rastrelli’s museum model, it was planned to be 5-tiered and 140 meters high, that is, taller than all European buildings. Bells could hang in the three upper tiers, and a cross would crown the belfry. However, there were two “buts”: under martial law (the Seven Years’ War was going on), there was nowhere to get funds, and the architect realized that he had gone too far with his ambitions, and left it alone tall building monastery complex Smolny Cathedral.
  
• Smolny Cathedral Garden in principle, it is a square sandwiched between Rastrelli Square, Quarenghi Lane, Smolny Street and Smolnaya Embankment. It features 4 identical fountains, launched in 1934: two bowls in front of the cathedral building and two behind it. The fountains are separated by flower beds. Benches, alleys, cherry blossoms - everything is clean and well-groomed.
  

Shrines and photos of the Smolny Cathedral

Value can be called iconostasis Smolny. The Baroque shrine adorned the temple until 1972, when it was ordered to be dismantled. Of all the icons that adorned that same ancient iconostasis, only two icons by the court painter A. Venetsianov, depicting entrance to the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary And resurrection of Christ, which are the shrines of the temple.

But he has everything ahead: after returning to the church’s possession, it is possible that valuable and rare icons will once again decorate the iconostasis of the Smolny Cathedral.

Adjacent to the azure cathedral is the former Smolny Institute for Girls, where the administration of St. Petersburg now sits.

It is noticeable, despite the iconostasis, that quite recently this place was museum property.

Smolny Cathedral - video

Historical walk through the Smolny Monastery and the Resurrection Smolny Cathedral. Enjoy watching!!!

The Smolny Cathedral has experienced a lot, and the time of its complete return to life is still ahead. Were you, dear readers, able to feel this within its walls? We look forward to your stories and impressions.