Ancient stone towers of Svaneti (Georgia). The ancient towers of Baku keep centuries-old secrets Middle Arsenal Tower

The Moscow Kremlin has 20 towers and they are all different, no two are alike. Each tower has its own name and its own history. And probably many people don’t know the names of all the towers. Shall we meet?

Most of the towers are made in a single architectural style, given to them in the second half of the 17th century. The Nikolskaya Tower, which at the beginning of the 19th century was rebuilt in the Gothic style, stands out from the general ensemble.

BEKLEMISHEVSKAYA(MOSKVORETSKAYA)

BEKLEMISHEVSKAYA (Moskvoretskaya) tower is located in the south-eastern corner of the Kremlin. It was built by the Italian architect Marco Fryazin in 1487-1488. The courtyard of boyar Beklemishev adjoined the tower, for which it received its name. Beklemishev's courtyard, together with the tower, served as a prison for disgraced boyars under Vasily III. The current name – “Moskvoretskaya” – is taken from the nearby Moskvoretsky Bridge. The tower was located at the junction of the Moscow River with a moat, so when the enemy attacked, it was the first to take the blow. The architectural design of the tower is also connected with this: the tall cylinder is placed on a beveled white stone plinth and separated from it by a semicircular ridge. The surface of the cylinder is cut through by narrow, sparsely spaced windows. The tower is completed by a machicolli with a battle platform, which was higher than the adjacent walls. In the basement of the tower there was a hidden rumor to prevent undermining. In 1680, the tower was decorated with an octagon carrying a tall narrow tent with two rows of dormitories, which softened its severity. In 1707, expecting a possible attack by the Swedes, Peter I ordered bastions to be built at its foot and the loopholes to be expanded to install more powerful guns. During Napoleon's invasion, the tower was damaged and then repaired. In 1917, the top of the tower was damaged during shelling, but it was restored by 1920. In 1949, during the restoration, the loopholes were restored to their previous form. This is one of the few Kremlin towers that has not been radically rebuilt. The height of the tower is 62.2 meters.

KONSTANTINO-ELENINSKAYA(TIMOFEEVSKAYA)

The KONSTANTINE-ELENINSKAYA tower owes its name to the Church of Constantine and Helena that stood here in ancient times. The tower was built in 1490 by the Italian architect Pietro Antonio Solari and was used for the passage of the population and troops to the Kremlin. Previously, when the Kremlin was made of white stone, there was another tower in this place. It was through her that Dmitry Donskoy and his army went to the Kulikovo field. The new tower was built for the reason that there were no natural barriers on its side from the Kremlin. It was equipped with a drawbridge, a powerful diversion gate and passage gates, which later, in the 18th and early 19th centuries. were dismantled. The tower got its name from the Church of Constantine and Helena, which stood in the Kremlin. The height of the tower is 36.8 meters.

NABATNAYA

The Alarm Tower got its name from the large bell - the alarm - that hung above it. Once upon a time there were guards on duty here all the time. From above, they vigilantly watched to see if the enemy army was approaching the city. And if danger was approaching, the watchmen had to warn everyone and ring the alarm bell. Because of him, the tower was called Nabatnaya. But now there is no bell in the tower. One day at the end of the 18th century, at the sound of the Alarm Bell, a riot began in Moscow. And when order was restored in the city, the bell was punished for divulging bad news - they were deprived of their tongue. In those days it was a common practice to recall at least the history of the bell in Uglich. Since then, the Alarm Bell fell silent and remained idle for a long time until it was removed to the museum. The height of the Alarm Tower is 38 meters.

ROYAL

ROYAL Tower. It is not at all like other Kremlin towers. There are 4 columns right on the wall, and on them there is a peaked roof. There are neither powerful walls nor narrow loopholes. But she doesn’t need them. Because they were built two centuries later than the other towers and not for defense at all. Previously, there was a small wooden tower on this site, from which, according to legend, the first Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible watched over Red Square. Previously, there was a small wooden tower on this site, from which, according to legend, the first Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible watched over Red Square. Later, the smallest tower of the Kremlin was built here and called it Tsarskaya. Its height is 16.7 meters.

SPASSKAYA(FROLOVSKAYA)

SPASSKAYA (Frolovskaya) tower. Built in 1491 by Pietro Antonio Solari. This name comes from the 17th century, when an icon of the Savior was hung over the gates of this tower. It was erected on the spot where the main gates of the Kremlin were located in ancient times. It, like Nikolskaya, was built to protect the northeastern part of the Kremlin, which had no natural water barriers. The passage gates of the Spasskaya Tower, at that time still Frolovskaya, were considered “holy” by the people. No one rode through them on horseback or walked through them with their heads covered. The regiments setting out on a campaign passed through these gates; kings and ambassadors were met here. In the 17th century, the coat of arms of Russia - a double-headed eagle - was installed on the tower; a little later, coats of arms were also installed on other high towers of the Kremlin - Nikolskaya, Troitskaya and Borovitskaya. In 1658, the Kremlin towers were renamed. Frolovskaya turned into Spasskaya. It was named so in honor of the icon of the Savior of Smolensk, located above the passage gate of the tower from the side of Red Square, and in honor of the icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands, located above the gate from the Kremlin. In 1851-52 A clock was installed on the Spasskaya Tower, which we still see today. Kremlin chimes. Chimes are large clocks that have a musical mechanism. The bells play music at the Kremlin chimes. There are eleven of them. One large one, it marks the hours, and ten smaller ones, their melodious chime is heard every 15 minutes. The chimes contain a special device. It sets the hammer in motion, it hits the surface of the bells and the Kremlin chimes sound. The Kremlin chimes mechanism occupies three floors. Previously, chimes were wound manually, but now they do it using electricity. The Spasskaya Tower occupies 10 floors. Its height with the star is 71 meters.

SENATE

The SENATE Tower was built in 1491 by Pietro Antonio Solari, rises behind the Mausoleum of V.I. Lenin and is named after the Senate, whose green dome rises above the fortress wall. The Senate Tower is one of the oldest in the Kremlin. Built in 1491 in the center of the north-eastern part of the Kremlin wall, it performed only defensive functions - it protected the Kremlin from Red Square. The height of the tower is 34.3 meters.

NIKOLSKAYA

NIKOLSKAYA Tower is located at the beginning of Red Square. In ancient times, there was a monastery of St. Nicholas the Old nearby, and above the gate of the tower there was an icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. The gate tower, built in 1491 by the architect Pietro Solari, was one of the main defensive redoubts of the eastern part of the Kremlin wall. The name of the tower comes from the Nikolsky Monastery, which was located nearby. Therefore, an icon of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was placed above the passage gate of the strelnitsa. Like all towers with entrance gates, Nikolskaya had a drawbridge over the moat and protective grilles that were lowered during the battle. The Nikolskaya Tower went down in history in 1612, when militia troops led by Minin and Pozharsky burst into the Kremlin through its gates, liberating Moscow from the Polish-Lithuanian invaders. In 1812, the Nikolskaya Tower, along with many others, was blown up by Napoleon's troops retreating from Moscow. The upper part of the tower was especially damaged. In 1816, it was replaced by the architect O.I. Bove with a new needle-shaped dome in the pseudo-Gothic style. In 1917, the tower was damaged again. This time from artillery fire. In 1935, the dome of the tower was crowned with a five-pointed star. In the 20th century, the tower was restored in 1946-1950s and in 1973-1974s. Now the height of the tower is 70.5 meters.

CORNER ARSENAL (DOG)

The CORNER ARSENAL tower was built in 1492 by Pietro Antonio Solari and is located further away, in the corner of the Kremlin. The first name was received at the beginning of the 18th century, after the construction of the Arsenal building on the territory of the Kremlin, the second comes from the estate of the Sobakin boyars located nearby. There is a well in the dungeon of the corner Arsenal Tower. It is more than 500 years old. It is filled from an ancient source and therefore it always has clean and fresh water. Previously, there was an underground passage from the Arsenal Tower to the Neglinnaya River. The height of the tower is 60.2 meters.

MEDIUM ARSENAL(FACETED)

The MIDDLE ARSENAL tower rises from the side of the Alexander Garden and is called so because there was a weapons depot right behind it. It was built in 1493-1495. After the construction of the Arsenal building, the tower got its name. A grotto was erected near the tower in 1812 - one of the attractions of the Alexander Garden. The height of the tower is 38.9 meters.

TRINITY

The TRINITY Tower is named after the church and the Trinity Compound, which were once located nearby on the territory of the Kremlin. Trinity Tower is the tallest tower of the Kremlin. The height of the tower currently, together with the star from the side of the Alexander Garden, is 80 meters. The Trinity Bridge, protected by the Kutafya Tower, leads to the gates of the Trinity Tower. The tower gate serves as the main entrance for visitors to the Kremlin. Built in 1495-1499. Italian architect Aleviz Fryazin Milanets. The tower was called differently: Rizopolozhenskaya, Znamenskaya and Karetnaya. It received its current name in 1658 after the Trinity courtyard of the Kremlin. In the 16th-17th centuries, the two-story base of the tower housed a prison. From 1585 to 1812 there was a clock on the tower. At the end of the 17th century, the tower received a multi-tiered hipped superstructure with white stone decorations. In 1707, due to the threat of a Swedish invasion, the loopholes of the Trinity Tower were expanded to accommodate heavy cannons. Until 1935, an imperial double-headed eagle was installed at the top of the tower. By the next date of the October Revolution, it was decided to remove the eagle and install red stars on it and the other main towers of the Kremlin. The double-headed eagle of the Trinity Tower turned out to be the oldest - made in 1870 and prefabricated with bolts, so when dismantling it had to be dismantled at the top of the tower. In 1937, the faded gem star was replaced with a modern ruby star.

KUTAFYA

KUTAFYA tower (connected by a bridge to Troitskaya). Its name is associated with this: in the old days, a casually dressed, clumsy woman was called a kutafya. Indeed, the Kutafya tower is not high, like the others, but squat and wide. The tower was built in 1516 under the direction of the Milanese architect Aleviz Fryazin. Low, surrounded by a moat and the Neglinnaya River, with a single gate, which in moments of danger was tightly closed by the lifting part of the bridge, the tower was a formidable barrier for those besieging the fortress. It had plantar loopholes and machicolations. In the 16th-17th centuries, the water level in the Neglinnaya River was raised high by dams, so that water surrounded the tower on all sides. Its original height above ground level was 18 meters. The only way to enter the tower from the city was via an inclined bridge. There are two versions of the origin of the name “Kutafya”: from the word “kut” - shelter, corner, or from the word “kutafya”, which meant a plump, clumsy woman. The Kutafya Tower has never had a covering. In 1685, it was crowned with an openwork “crown” with white stone details.

COMMENDANT (KOLYMAZNAYA)

The COMMANDANT'S Tower got its name in the 19th century because the commandant of Moscow was located in the building nearby. The tower was built in 1493-1495 on the northwestern side of the Kremlin wall, which today stretches along the Alexander Garden. It was formerly called Kolymazhnaya after the Kolymazhny yard located near it in the Kremlin. In 1676-1686 it was built on. The tower is made up of a massive quadrangle with machicolations (mounted loopholes) and a parapet and an open tetrahedron standing on it, completed with a pyramidal roof, an observation tower and an octagonal ball. The main volume of the tower contains three tiers of rooms covered with barrel vaults; The completion tiers are also covered with vaults. In the 19th century, the tower received the name “Komendantskaya”, when the commandant of Moscow settled nearby in the Kremlin, in the Poteshny Palace of the 17th century. The height of the tower from the side of the Alexander Garden is 41.25 meters.

ARMORY (STABLE)

The ARMORY tower, which once stood on the banks of the Neglinnaya River, now enclosed in an underground pipe, received its name from the nearby Armory Chamber, the second comes from the nearby Stables Yard. Once upon a time there were ancient weapons workshops located next to it. They also made precious dishes and jewelry. The ancient workshops gave the name not only to the tower, but also to the wonderful museum located nearby behind the Kremlin wall - the Armory Chamber. Many Kremlin treasures and simply very ancient things are collected here. For example, helmets and chain mail of ancient Russian warriors. The height of the Armory Tower is 32.65 meters.

BOROVITSKAYA(PREDTECHENSKAYA)

Built in 1490 by Pietro Antonio Solari. Travel card. The first name of the tower is the original one, it comes from Borovitsky Hill, on the slope of which the tower stands; The name of the hill apparently comes from an ancient pine forest that grew on this site. The second name, assigned by royal decree of 1658, comes from the nearby Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist and the icon of St. John the Baptist, located above the gate. Currently, it is the main passage for government motorcades. The height of the tower is 54 meters.

VODOVOZVODNAYA(SVIBLOVA)

WATER TOWER - so named because of the machine that was once here. She lifted water from a well located below to the very top of the tower into a large tank. From there, water flowed through lead pipes to the royal palace in the Kremlin. This is how in the old days the Kremlin had its own water supply system. He worked for a long time, but then the car was dismantled and taken to St. Petersburg. There it was used to construct fountains. The height of the Vodovzvodnaya tower with a star is 61.45 meters. The second name of the tower is associated with the boyar surname Sviblo, or the Sviblovs, who were responsible for its construction.

BLAGOVESCHENSKAYA

Annunciation Tower. According to legend, the miraculous icon of the Annunciation was previously kept in this tower, and in 1731 the Church of the Annunciation was added to this tower. Most likely, the name of the tower is associated with one of these facts. In the 17th century, for the passage of laundresses to the Moscow River, a gate was made near the tower, called Portomoyny. They were founded in 1831, and in Soviet times the Church of the Annunciation was also dismantled. The height of the Annunciation Tower with a weather vane is 32.45 meters.

TAINITSKAYA

TAINITSKAYA Tower is the first tower founded during the construction of the Kremlin. It was named so because a secret underground passage led from it to the river. It was intended to be able to take water in case the fortress was besieged by enemies. The height of the Taynitskaya tower is 38.4 meters.

PETROVSKAYA(UGRESHSKAYA)

PETROVSKAYA tower, together with two unnamed ones, was built to strengthen the southern wall, as it was most often attacked. Like the two nameless ones, the Petrovskaya Tower at first had no name. She received her name from the Church of Metropolitan Peter at the Ugreshsky Metochion in the Kremlin. In 1771, during the construction of the Kremlin Palace, the tower, the Church of Metropolitan Peter and the Ugreshsky courtyard were dismantled. In 1783, the tower was rebuilt, but in 1812, the French destroyed it again during the occupation of Moscow. In 1818, the Petrovskaya Tower was restored again. Kremlin gardeners used it for their needs. The height of the tower is 27.15 meters.

Tourists arriving in Baku usually first go to see the Maiden Tower, which is located in the Old City. However, in fact, this fortress is not at all the only one of its kind. Thus, in the vicinity of the city, on the Absheron Peninsula, other majestic monuments of the Middle Ages have been preserved. These powerful strongholds have endured countless assaults and sieges, and, having withstood the most difficult trials, continue to tower over the Baku villages. "Moscow-Baku" offers a tour of five unique architectural structures of Absheron.

Raman fortress
This tower has a magical look: it looks like it was copied from the pages of fairy tales about Aladdin, where Princess Budur lived in a beautiful castle. The Ramanin fortress was built by order of the Shirvanshahs in the middle of the 14th century on the top of a steep cliff. This location allowed it to seamlessly merge with the rocky landscape of Absheron. Unlike European castles, Absheron buildings were not suitable for long-term living and served only as temporary shelter for soldiers during attacks. The height of the quadrangular tower in the village of Ramana is 12 meters, it consists of four tiers. You can get from floor to floor only by a ladder. Narrow slot-like openings that widened inwards in all tiers of the towers, except the first, served mainly for lighting and ventilation. By the way, the tower also has a primitive sewer line - risers and wells with water. There is written evidence that in the Middle Ages there was an underground road from the Ramana fortress to the Maiden Tower.

Tower in Gala
This tower gave the name to the entire Absheron village - after all, Gala is translated from the Azerbaijani language as “tower, fortress.” Built in the 14th century, the citadel is similar to the quadrangular towers that still stand today in the villages of Mardakan and Ramana. However, unlike them, this citadel was in a dilapidated state for a long time. When they began its restoration, only a 2-3 meter high wall remained. However, the fortress was completely restored and an entire open-air ethnographic museum was opened next to it in 2008. The complex, created with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, also includes burial mounds, tombs, residential buildings, underground reservoirs, mosques and other historical monuments.

Fortress of Light
This fortress was called Ishig galasy (Fortress of Light), as it played a signaling role - when an enemy approached, torches were lit on its top, and thus the population was notified of the approaching danger. That is why the tower was erected close to the sea - just 500 meters from the Caspian coast. The building inscription carved on the stone indicates the date of its construction - 1232, and the name of the architect - Abdulmejid ibn Masud. The 16 meter high tower is located in the center of a square courtyard and is surrounded by stone walls. Three internal tiers, covered with spherical domes, communicate with each other by spiral stone staircases laid in the thickness of the wall.

Quadrangular fortress in Mardakan
The round tower is connected by underground passages to the quadrangular castle - the largest building on Absheron. Its height is 22 meters and consists of 5 tiers connected by spiral staircases. It is located inside a courtyard surrounded by fortress walls 7 meters high. The rough surface of the castle walls is set off by slit-like embrasures and a rich crown of battlements. The tower was erected in 1372, and was repeatedly attacked by enemies. The fortress suffered most severely during a seven-month siege by Mongol-Tatar troops, as a result of which part of the tower and the adjacent mosque were destroyed. During the Soviet years, the tower was restored, but the restorers slightly changed its previous appearance. Thus, the crenellations of the crowns of the walls, which had the shape of a crescent, were replaced with ordinary, round ones. In turn, historical finds are still being discovered on the territory of Mardakyan - tombstones, coins, teeth, tools, and even an ancient juicer in which grapes were decanted and sherbet was made from it.

Nardaran fortress
This tower, like other defensive structures of Absheron, served as a reliable stronghold against foreign invasions. Laconic inscriptions in Arabic made on the southern wall of the fortress tell that the architect Ali Mahmud ibn Saad built this fortification in 1301 at the expense of the governor of the Arab caliphate, Khur Berke. By the way, the same master was the author of the old Bibi-Heybatov mosque and the Molla Ahmed mosque in the Baku fortress. The height of the round tower is 12.5 m and, unlike others, it has a more spacious courtyard, and there are practically no stepped parapets with battlements on the crown.

Moscow. Kremlin.

My discovery of Moscow. WORLD OF OLD TOWERS
From the Kremlin-Kremlin, the strong city, From the palace-palace of the Sovereign, As for Red Square itself, A wide path ran here.
From a seventeenth century song

All Kremlin buildings are good in their own way. The glory of the corner Arsenal Tower is military, heroic and... key. In Strelnitsa, there has long been a well that fed the Kremlin with spring water. When it was founded in 1492, the chronicle noted that it was “a new archer above Neglinnaya with a hiding place.” The cache is a key that comes out of the ground. The spring streams do not dry up, the water plays in them, just like five hundred years ago. There is no doubt that the architect Pietro Solari and the Moscow builders deliberately erected a round tower over the springs that flowed out in the open, on the banks of the Neglinnaya. When the time of siege came, there was no concern about where to get water. The tower generously watered both the soldiers and the civilian population hiding behind the fortress walls.

A secret well, steeped in legends, is for us almost the same treasure as a spring on the Tver land, where the Volga begins... When today, by the light of a lamp, you peer into the waters, you see a warrior in a helmet, an ascetic monk, a boyar maiden , a commander wiping off, as the legend goes, bravely victorious sweat. Here is a spring stream gushing out from under the ground and babbling something. "What are you whispering about, hiding place?" - “I remember, I remember a lot... The sky, my sister Neglinnaya River, the smell of herbs.” - “And also?” - “Ivan Kalita drank my water. Dmitry Donskoy washed his face with the stream before the great campaign. And when they imprisoned me in the tower, a wounded warrior crawled, but never reached the water. Then women carried water on rocker arms in buckets to the walls, giving water to those who repelled the siege..."

The tower crowned the main wall of the Kremlin, facing the Great Posad. The wall began at the Moscow River with the Beklemishevskaya tower (named after the owner of the estate located behind the wall), and the archer completed it. The tower, rising above the expanses of Neglinnaya along with all the other Kremlin towers (and there were eighteen of them under Ivan III), conveyed with its epic architectural form that Moscow, having outgrown the white stone outfit of the time of Dmitry Donskoy, had become a great power. The picturesqueness of the fortress, its originality, the integrity of the entire stone panorama, the natural placement of the towers, their heights, outlines, their “tying” to the battlements, the tents of the archers - all this made the Kremlin triangle, fenced with greenery in summer, dusted with snow in winter, one and only. Foreign travelers, seeing Arsenalnaya from a distance, mistook the Kremlin for a royal castle, but when they got closer, they compared it to Capitol Hill. Architectural grandeur - in Russian traditional forms - corresponded to the state idea that Moscow was the successor to the historical missions of Rome and Constantinople.

During the recent repair and renewal, Arsenalnaya shared one of its secrets, and there is no doubt that it has a lot of them. When they cleared the old well, to the surprise of the builders, they found two hundred stone cores there, hewn out in the fourteenth century. Some of them are quite large - half a meter in circumference. You can’t even call them cannonballs, because they were intended for throwing weapons. Who hid them in Arsenalnaya? Various guesses are possible. Chain mail, helmets, and stirrups were also discovered. The tower lives up to its later name: an arsenal - a warehouse for weapons and all kinds of military equipment.

None of the Kremlin towers has such a military and stern appearance in its simplicity. More than any other built under Ivan III, it resembles a warrior. Now, when a searchlight beam illuminates Arsenalnaya late in the evening, you perceive the red-brick light reflections as the reflection of the fire of the military glory of the Kremlin Hill.

We have not sufficiently comprehended the old fortress engineering. Moscow builders were more cunning than Daedalus, who, as is known, created the most mysterious structure in the Mediterranean - the Labyrinth on Crete. It was possible to step on the walls only from the inside and not through every tower. They climbed where the wall was widened, and only near three archers. The tower spindles, located one above the other, communicated with the help of ladders: they were raised - and the floor turned into a stone island in the air. To prevent the enemy from undermining and blowing up the walls, hiding places and “rumors” were built underground. The underground passages were so long that from the Kremlin - such conversations went on for a long time - one could walk through the gallery that ran under the square to Nikolskaya Street. The underground passages of the old fortress are still poorly studied and covered in legends.

* * *
Walking around the Kremlin, I have a conversation with the towers:

Which of you towers is the oldest?

“I,” the Taynitskaya Tower proudly answers, “was built by the masters of the first hand.” In 1485. Perestroika did not happen either. They even said that they were building it again.

And the youngest?

Of course, I, the Tsar’s Tower, am not even three hundred years old.

And the highest?

I, Trinity Tower, I am a giant tower. My height is eighty meters.

And the smallest one?

Small, but smart. This is said about me, about the Kutafya Tower. I stand in front of all the walls. I may not even be fourteen meters tall, but I am a bridgehead watchtower. I'm braver than all my sisters...

How many towers are there in total?

We are twenty sisters. Although there are similarities between us, we each have our own face.

But the harmonious hum will be disturbed by exclamations:

And we are very special...

At first you won’t be able to tell who is saying this, but then it will become clear.

This is us, the Kremlin towers. There are five of us: Spasskaya, Borovitskaya, Troitskaya, Nikolskaya, Konstantino-Eleninskaya... All roads lead to Moscow, and in Moscow all streets converge on the Kremlin. People go to the Kremlin through our gates...

But my glory is in the past,” the Konstantino-Eleninskaya Tower will note, which stands between Spasskaya and Beklemishevskaya (Moskvoretskaya) and looks at Red Square. “Now people don’t walk through me.

Why?

My passage gate has been blocked for a long time. My old stones have been resting for centuries. Much flashed before me, much was forgotten, but I always remember one thing. The army of Dmitry Donskoy is moving through the wide open gates.

I also have merits. And considerable ones, says the Moskvoretskaya Tower.

Which ones?

In the old days, the Moscow River flowed almost next to me. And near me the river connected with the ditch, filling a long and deep ditch with water. A blue ribbon surrounded the Kremlin, and we, the towers, considered ourselves residents of the island...

What about merit?

Many people know about my merits. I, the Moskvoretskaya Tower, was the first to meet the enemies coming from across the river. The first contractions began near me. And for the longest time I looked after the enemy hordes fleeing across the Moscow River.

Yes, you have seen a lot of fights, Moskvoretskaya Tower.

But I haven't said everything yet. Look how slim I am. There is no longer such a beautiful and stately tower like me in the Kremlin.

But I will argue with this! - the Alarm Tower will say, which rises opposite St. Basil's Cathedral. - Look how elegant and pretty I am, how the white stone jewelry sparkles on me. Oh, if only you could hear with what a loud and shrill voice I sang! No wonder they gave me a name - Alarm Tower. Under my tent hung a bell, cast from echoing bronze mixed with silver. As soon as the alarm signal was given from the tower, my dashing guards would ring the bell, and the sounds of the alarm bell could be heard throughout Moscow. Everyone loved me, cared for me and decorated me... And then a misfortune happened...

What happened?

The Plague Riot happened in Moscow in 1771. The rebellious townspeople rang my bell, and the echoing sound sent the entire capital running to the Kremlin. The rebels were dispersed, but the instigators who rang the alarm bell could not be found - they flowed across the Don, into the free Cossack steppes. Then Empress Catherine the Second became angry and ordered the tongue of my bell to be torn out. So I was left without a voice. I’m standing dressed up, but I can’t sing.

I don’t understand at all,” the bridgehead Kutafya Tower intervenes in the conversation, “how you can talk so much about your beauty!” Were we built to show off? We, the towers, are the first defenders of the Kremlin. In the old days people called me “Kutafya”; Now, however, rarely anyone even understands such a word. In the old days, Kutafya was a joking name for an awkwardly dressed woman. There was even a riddle: “A little cutie sits in a cramped place.” A smart person immediately answers: “Button.” So I look like a button; I don’t differ in attire, but I stand in the very first place, in front of the Kremlin walls. It is not beauty that should be valued, but strength and power.

Reasonable words, - the corner Arsenal Tower will confirm. - What could be more valuable than power and inaccessibility? My walls go deep into the ground, and their thickness reaches four meters. Look how tall I am. And in modern times, sixty meters is a considerable height, but in the old days I was revered as a giant tower, which had no equal in the surrounding lands. And there is still a secret well in my dungeon. For hundreds of years the stream has not dried up, for hundreds of years I have been giving people tasty and clean water. That’s why they built me so tall, strong and unapproachable, so that the water would always be under reliable protection.

“I also had a hiding place,” noted the Tainitskaya Tower, facing the Moscow River. “And not even one, but two: a hiding place - a well and a hiding place - an underground passage to the river bank. It was only a long time ago...

Then its closest neighbors - the nameless towers - will exchange words among themselves:

Each of us has our own story

Evgeny Osetrov.

For me, every ancient city is associated with the Kremlin, and every Kremlin with an ancient Russian city. Many Kremlins have not survived at all, some were destroyed by time or fires, some were dismantled by people. But, nevertheless, there is still something to see and visit in Russia.

One of the most interesting, both historically and architecturally, is Moscow Kremlin. The largest in area, with an incredible number of towers - twenty of them. And no two are alike. Each of them has its own appearance, its own name and its own history.

Perhaps one of the most, in my opinion, unusual towers of the Moscow Kremlin is Kutafya. Relatively low, openwork, open - this is how it is now, after all kinds of restorations and after hundreds of years.

Kutafya, or as it was also called - Bridgehead, the tower is also unique because it is the only archery tower preserved in the Kremlin

It was built in 1516 year. The openwork parapet was received in 1685 year, and the open area in the 18th century. Before this, the tower looked very stern.

So where does such a strange name of the tower come from - Kutafya? But here there are several versions. I liked the one in which it comes from the word “kutafya” - a plump, clumsy woman. And indeed, if you look closely, there are similarities!

Behind the Kutafya Tower, connected to it by a long Trinity Bridge, is the tallest tower of the Kremlin - Trinity.

The Trinity Tower was the central passage tower in those distant times, and now it allows crowds of tourists to pass through it. The Trinity Tower is a little older, located in front of Kutafya, the date of its construction is considered 1495 year, although after that it was completed and rebuilt several times.

During its existence, the tower has been called various names: Epiphany, and Robbery, and Znamenskaya, and Kuretnaya. But in 1658, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, in his decree, ordered to call it Trinity in honor of the nearby metochion of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery.

Middle Arsenal Tower

If we go from the main entrance of the Kremlin to the right, then the next tower we see will be Middle Arsenal Tower. Previously called faceted for its facade in the 13th century, this small tower (only 38 meters) received its current name due to the construction of the Arsenal building nearby. The date of construction of the tower is considered 1495.

Corner Arsenal Tower

The most powerful tower of the Kremlin completes the northwestern wall. Corner Arsenal Tower, aka the Dog Tower. The Sobakin Tower was named after the nearby courtyard of the Sobakin boyars. But in the 13th century, like its neighbor, it received the name Arsenalnaya. The 60-meter Arsenal Tower was at one time the tallest tower of the structure.

- one of those Kremlin towers that every traveler has probably seen, because one of its sides faces Red Square. It was built in 1491 year. More than five hundred years ago, the Nikolskaya Tower, like the Trinity Tower, had a diversion tower, a bridge and a gate. Everything is quite clear from the name of the tower; it was given on behalf of St. Nicholas of Mozhaisk, whose icon was installed above its gate.

Surely many people noticed while walking along Red Square a low tower behind Lenin's mausoleum. This turret is called the Senate turret. In general, it was nameless for a long time, until 1787, when construction was completed Senate Palace in the Kremlin.

In the summer of July 6999, by the grace of God, this archer was made by the command of John Vasilyevich, the sovereign and autocrat of all Rus' and the Grand Duke of Volodymyr and Moscow and Novgorod and Pskov and Tver and Yugorsk and Vyatka and Perm and Bulgaria and other states in his 30th year, and Peter Anthony did Solario from the city of Mediolana.

This inscription was found on perhaps the most famous tower of the Kremlin - Spasskaya. For many years now, every New Year's Eve, the clock of the Spasskaya Tower counts down the last seconds until the onset of the New Year. By the way, modern chimes - 1852 years, before that, since 1624, there were other clocks on the tower.

The gate of the Spasskaya Tower was the main gate of the Kremlin. For a long time, images of the Savior were painted above them. Townspeople were forbidden to enter through the Spassky Gate on horseback, and men were required to remove their hats.

The travel gates, previously called Frolovsky (from the Church of Frol and Lavra) on April 17, 1658, became by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Spassky, and then the entire tower inherited this name.

By the way, quite recently a mini copy of the Spasskaya Tower was built in the Mari city of Yoshkar-Ola.

Perhaps the smallest tower of the Kremlin is Tsarskaya. Initially, there was no tower at this place at all, and it was built only in 1680s years. And to be honest, this is just a small tent on the Kremlin wall.

Opposite of amazing St. Basil's Cathedral built Already from the name it becomes clear that this is where the alarm bell hung. There was a time when the Alarm Tower began to tilt. The causes of the tilt were eliminated, but even today the tower deviates from the vertical by a meter.

I never thought that I would see my name in the names of the towers of the Moscow Kremlin. But here she is in front of me -.

It received its name after the construction of the Church of Constantine and Helena in the Kremlin. The church, unfortunately, has not survived to this day. Previously, the tower was called Timofeevskaya. At first, the tower had a pair of branch towers and served as a passageway. The lancet towers were demolished in the 13th century, the gate arch was blocked, but if you look closely, you can see the arch, the recess for the gate icon and places for the levers of the drawbridge.

It is very interesting that it was through the gate located on the site of this tower in 1380 that Dmitry Donskoy went to the Battle of Kulikovo.

Gradually, past the towers, we reached the south-eastern corner of the Kremlin. Here the Kremlin wall turns and runs along the Moscow River. The corner tower bears the name Beklemishevskaya or Moskvoretskaya. Moskvoretskaya - because it is located next to the Moscow River, Beklemishevskaya - on behalf of the boyar Ivan Beklemishev who lived nearby. During wars and battles, the Beklemishevskaya Tower was the first to receive a blow; it so happened that the enemies were attacking from the direction of the Moscow River.

One of the few, Moskvoretskaya Tower, is round and for good reason. It had a defensive function, and its shape strengthened the defense against a possible two-pronged attack. For the same reason, the tower is remote, i.e. stands outside the Kremlin walls.

Petrovskaya Tower

Next to the Beklemishevskaya tower, very close to it, is located Petrovskaya Tower. She is much shorter than her neighbor. In old times, next to the tower there was a courtyard of the Ugreshsky Monastery with the Church of Metropolitan Peter, hence the name. The Petrovskaya Tower is notable for the fact that in 1612 it was completely destroyed and then rebuilt. The tower was dismantled for the second time in 1770, and then erected again in 1783. But the story doesn't end there either. In 1812, the French blew up the Petrovskaya Tower, but already in 1818 the architect O.I. Bove restored it. This is such a difficult story.

First and second unnamed towers

There are a couple of towers in the Kremlin wall without a name, so they are called the First Nameless and Second Nameless Towers. The first nameless tower was previously called Porokhovaya and, like Petrovskaya, has a very rich history. In 1547, the tower was destroyed during a fire in Moscow. The situation was aggravated by the fact that a gunpowder warehouse was built in it. In 1770, it, along with the Petrovskaya and Second Nameless Towers, was again dismantled during the construction of the Palace. And in 1812 it suffered from the French.

The Second Nameless Tower suffered a little less damage. Only in 1771 it was dismantled and then rebuilt.

Central tower of the southern wall – Taynitskaya, it is also the first tower of the Kremlin. The date of construction of the tower is considered 1485 but in 1781, like its neighbors, it was dismantled, and rebuilt only in 1783. The Tainitskaya Tower was nicknamed because it contained a secret well and a hidden passage to the Moscow River. Until 1932, an archer was attached to the Taynitskaya tower. It is curious that until 1917 a cannon was fired from here every day at noon. Only in St. Petersburg the tradition has been preserved to this day, but not in Moscow.

There is a very beautiful legend about the origin of the name of this tower. It says that at one moment the icon of the Annunciation miraculously appeared on the northern wall of the tower. Later, in 1731, the Church of the Annunciation was added to the tower. In 1932-33, the church was dismantled, and the tower was restored to its original appearance.

Another corner tower - Vodovzvodnaya. Similar to the Konstantino-Eleninskaya Tower, it has a cylindrical shape. In 1633, a water-lifting machine was installed in the tower, hence the name. The tower was rebuilt twice: in 1805 and 1817.

The majestic Borovitskaya Tower rises near Borovitsky Hill. They say that once there was a dense pine forest here, hence the name. It’s hard to believe it now, when all you see before your eyes is the glass and concrete of the metropolis.

The ancient armory workshops that were once located at its foot gave the tower its name. And not just the tower. Here, behind the Kremlin wall, there is a most interesting museum: the Armory Chamber.

Previously called the Kolymazhnaya Tower, located on the northwestern part of the Kremlin wall, the Commandant Tower was built in 1495. It received its current name in the 19th century, when the Moscow commandant settled in the Amusement Palace of the Kremlin. Like other towers of the Moscow Kremlin, the tower was transformed in the 17th century, when it received a decorative hipped top.

With the commandant's tower we closed the circle of the Kremlin wall. Great towers, great walls preserving history.

Walking around the Kremlin, I first of all admired the architecture, the intricate decorations of the hipped towers, and the pointed arches of the loopholes. Later, having learned the history of each of the towers, I looked at the photographs from a different angle.

Ancient stone towers of Svaneti (Georgia). The ancient towers of Baku keep centuries-old secrets Middle Arsenal Tower