Divnogorsk monastery is a monastery located in the Voronezh region, in the Liskinsky district. It was founded in the middle of the XVII century by monks from the Hetman and Little Russian Cossacks. There is a version that on the site of Divnogorsky monastery there was a monastery back in the XII century.
Background
According to legend, where the Divnogorsky Monastery is located today, in the 12th century there was a monastery founded by the Greek skimons Joasaph and Xenophon, who arrived on Russian soil from Sicily as a result of Catholic persecution. The monks allegedly arranged a cave where today is the Divnogorsky monastery.
However, there is no written evidence of this version. Moreover, in those days there were constantly clashes between Russian troops and the Tatars, which excluded the existence of the monastery. Most likely, the monks who arrived from Sicily built a monastery here, but the monastery appeared later.
The base of the monastery
Holy Dormition Divnogorsk Monastery - this is the official name of the main attraction of the village of Tubsanatorium "Divnogorye". In the fifties of the XVII century, construction of fortifications and ground structures began here, which were supposed to save the Russian settlements from Tatar raids. The territory was surrounded by a wooden wall, cells were built. Then the church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker appeared here. The year of foundation of the Divnogorsk Assumption Monastery is considered to be 1653th.
At first, there were no more than 15 novices. Hegumen Gury became the rector. The Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker burned out five years after the completion of construction. In its place, a new one was soon erected. Around the same time, the Church of St. John the Baptist was built and illuminated.
Divnogorsk monastery is a cave monastery. It was hard to live in a lime-soaked grotto. The monks built cells nearby, and a high fence was erected around the monastery. It was then the only cave monastery on the banks of the Don.
Settlements located near the monastery appeared relatively recently. In the XVII century, when the Divnogorsky monastery was founded, there were practically no settlements here. The monks had a hard time. The abbot appealed to Moscow more than once for help, and, finally, he was allocated a sum from the treasury and a mill.
On the way of the Tatar invasion
The choice of the place of the monastery, given the situation at the end of the 17th century, could not be called successful. The monastery was often attacked by Tatars. Under Mother Superior Tikhon, a part of the brethren left the monastery. They went to more peaceful places - west of the Don River. There, over the river Psel, the fugitives founded a monastery, which uninvited guests from the Golden Horde could no longer reach.
In the summer of 1770, the monks of the Divnogorsk monastery became witnesses of the battles between the Cossacks under the leadership of Stepan Razin and the tsarist troops. The main events of the Peasant War unfolded here. The rebels were hit hard. They left the bank of the Don. But the peace of the novices of the Divnogorsky monastery did not bring the rebels.
The monks who remained in the monastery despite the danger from the Tatars had to learn the basics of self-defense. They installed iron and copper pipes in the bell tower. In case of danger, hastily hid in a cave, which had several exits. In 1677, the Tatars again attacked the monastery, after which the monks rebuilt their structures for a long time.
Becoming
By the end of the XVII century, the monastery became the center of education and the fight against schism. There was a good library at that time. In 1686, the abbot became archimandrite. One of the monks went to Cherkassk, where he preached for two years. True, the locals did not welcome him cordially, and the monk had to return to his native monastery without slumber.
A few decades after the founding of the monastery, these places were no longer so deserted. The inhabitants of Little Russia flocked here, who settled and influenced the local culture. Settlers took part in the expansion of the monastery.
A certain general, sailing from Voronezh to Azov in 1696, saw the monastery from afar and left enthusiastic notes about it in his diary. He was struck by a small building, equipped with guns, squeakers and having fortifications that, it would seem, not a single enemy could overcome.
Peter's times
The great reformer visited this monastery in 1699. By the arrival of Peter, the number of monks was increased to forty people - the tsar considered the inhabitants of the holy places to be idle, and therefore closed the small cloisters. According to the memoirs of Vice Admiral K. Kruys, Peter dined with the monks. True, the monks treated the guest exclusively with fish, because there was nothing else in their ascetic menu. After lunch, the king deigned to shoot guns. Each time the monks heard a shot, they plugged their ears and retired.
Under Catherine II
In the second half of the XVIII century, many monasteries were deprived of land ownership. Only seven monks served in the Divnogorsk monastery. In 1788 the monastery was closed. The fraternity was transferred to other cloisters of the Voronezh diocese. The restoration of the monastery began in the first half of the 19th century.
XX century
In 1903, the monastery celebrated its 250th anniversary. However, after 15 years he was plundered by the Red Army. In 1924 the monastery was closed, and the monks were drowned in the river. Representatives of the new government also sent a library there.
On the territory of the monastery in the Soviet years there was a Rest House, and during the Second World War, the invaders arranged a military hospital. In 1960, a tuberculosis sanatorium was opened here.
The revival of the Divnogorsk Assumption Monastery began in the nineties. Divine services are held every day. On the territory of the monastery is still undergoing restoration work.