Where the Volga and the Oka merge into a single stream, the Stroganov’s Christmas Church shines with the multicolored domes - the pride of Nizhny Novgorod, which survived with its inhabitants both joys and troubles, many of which were sent to Russian land. More than three centuries have passed since its founding, but even today it pleases the eye with its festive decoration.
Temple - witness of two eras
Having become one of the visiting cards of Nizhny Novgorod, the Christmas Stroganov Church is not only a unique monument of temple architecture, but also a real embodiment of a radical turning point in the history of Russia. To verify this, it is enough to pay attention to the dates of the beginning and completion of its construction: 1696-1719. They say that they began to erect it at the dawn of the Petrine reforms, when Moscow was still the capital of the Russian state, and it was consecrated already in the Petersburg era.
Companion of Peter I
In the 90s of the 17th century, a major Russian industrialist, financier, politician and closest associate of Peter I, Grigory Dmitrievich Stroganov (1659-1715) moved to Nizhny Novgorod from Moscow. In Russian history, this man left his mark not only as an outstanding statesman, but also as one of the largest church creators - in Russia, from time immemorial, they called those who, from their bounties, decorated the earth with God's churches and cathedrals.
And now, having settled down in a new place, he wished to build a temple in the name of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He chose an unusually picturesque place for the planned construction - on the banks of the Volga, not far from the confluence of the main tributary, the Oka, in it. The authors of the Stroganov Church project in Nizhny Novgorod were prominent architects, experts in church architecture L.V. Dahl and R. Ya. Kilevain.
The first but not the last misfortune
Its laying, accompanied by a solemn prayer, took place in May 1696, and after 5 years the construction was completed on a draft. But then misfortune happened: due to oversight or for some other reason, a terrible fire broke out in the summer of 1701, destroying the fruits of five years of labor.
The barely erected walls had to be dismantled and rebuilt. All the worries associated with the restoration of the church, which was still unfinished, but already burnt, fell on the shoulders of the wife of Grigory Dmitrievich - Maria Yakovlevna, since he himself could not survive this blow of fate - he was ill for many years and died in 1715. Thus, the completion of construction, the final decoration of the church, as well as the consecration performed in 1719 by Metropolitan Pitirim, took place after the death of its founder.
In its final version, the Stroganov Church, the photo of which is presented in the article, was a two-tier structure, where in the upper part there was an altar, a prayer hall, a porch and a refectory. Its roof was crowned with five chapters oriented to the cardinal points. Initially, they were green, but in the middle of the XIX century they were given a look reminiscent of the domes of the St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. The outer and inner walls were richly decorated with white stone carvings made by the best masters of that time.
The wrath of the sovereign
The temple, which grew on the banks of the Volga, was perhaps the most elegant architectural monument of that time, and it seemed that despite all the difficulties, Grigory Dmitrievich’s desire was fulfilled, but the joy was short-lived. The seemingly incredible thing happened: in May 1722, Tsar Peter I, visiting Nizhny Novgorod and defending the liturgy in the Stroganov Church, suddenly became angry and ordered to close it. Everyone was amazed at what they heard, but no one dared to argue with the king.
What was the reason for such a strange act, which the sovereign did not even bother to explain? Historians do not cease to argue about this to this day, but due to the absence of any documentary information, they are forced to be content with the legends that appeared in connection with this extraordinary incident.
Two versions of the reasons for what happened
According to the most popular of them, during the service, the tsar noticed in the iconostasis the image that he ordered for the Peter and Paul Cathedral from the St. Petersburg artist Louis Karavak and allegedly overbought by Stroganov for his Nizhny Novgorod brainchild. Inflamed with anger, Peter ordered the church to be closed, which was done immediately.
There is another version of what happened, this time belonging not to popular rumor, but to the famous writer-publicist and church historian P.I. Melnikov-Pechersky. He claimed that the cause of the king’s wrath was whip sectarians who, according to the denunciations, performed their divine meetings in the premises of the recently consecrated church.
Second Temple Opening and New Disasters
Whether any of these versions is true is difficult to judge, but it is documented that after the ill-fated visit of the tsar to Nizhny Novgorod, the Stroganov Church stood locked until his death in 1725, and only with the accession to the throne of Catherine I reopened her doors. By this time, all members of the Stroganov family moved to the capital closer to the court and the mercies of the new empress. As for the temple, founded by the late Grigory Dmitrievich, in terms of its status it became an ordinary parish, although it stood out among its brethren with extraordinary beauty and sophistication.
Since the time of its second discovery, the Stroganov Church deservedly gained fame as the most beautiful temple building in the city. This was a great honor for her, since in Nizhny Novgorod there were many outstanding examples of Russian architecture. Despite the fact that one of the thrones of the church was consecrated in 1719 in honor of the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary, it was popularly called Rozhdestvenskaya or, after the founder, Stroganovskaya.
Fires, the first of which occurred in the church before the completion of construction, did not leave it in subsequent years. The records of the fire disasters of 1768, 1782 and 1788 were preserved in the historical archive. Each time after them they had to make major repairs of the building, but fortunately, they were carried out quite skillfully, and did not distort its original appearance.
A peculiar and unique bell tower
As a result of the work, the Stroganov Church met the beginning of the 20th century in its original appearance. His only violation was the covered passage connecting the main building with the bell tower, which in itself was a vivid attraction of Nizhny Torg - the area where it was located.
In its architectural solution, the bell tower was a traditional construction for Russian architecture - an octagon (upper part) on a quadruple (massive base). Its spire, crowned with a golden cross and a weather vane in the form of a flag, towered above a cluster of city houses and from afar attracted glances.
Miracle Clock
Of particular interest were tower clocks placed on the bell tower. In addition to time, they showed phases of the moon, which caused respectful surprise among the inhabitants. Another curious feature was stone slabs with Slavic letters on them, dividing the dial into 17 parts, which corresponded to the old Russian time.
It is said that it was these watches that aroused interest in technology in I.P. Kulibin, who was born in Nizhny Novgorod. Once he happened to repair their mechanism, which in the post-revolutionary years disappeared without a trace, and today is replaced by a modern device. The watches themselves today can be seen in their former place.
Falling bell tower
However, the troubles that persistently followed the Stroganov Church of Nizhny Novgorod throughout its history did not pass over the bell tower so beloved by all. In the early 50s of the XIX century, it was noticed that she began to slowly deviate from the vertical axis, and over the next 20 years its peak shifted to more than a meter. The reason was soon established - it was adversely affected by groundwater, which was not taken into account by designers at the time.
Not claiming the glory of the Leaning Tower of Pisa and fearing a sudden collapse, the city authorities took all necessary measures to solve the problem. In 1887, the bell tower was almost completely dismantled, and then reassembled taking into account all the features of the soil. This work, stretching for almost five years, entailed the need for major repairs and the temple building itself, which had become very dilapidated by that time, which was striking against the backdrop of the recently erected bell tower. This issue was especially relevant on the eve of the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty, celebrated in 1913.
The necessary funds were found, and the Stroganov Church met all-Russian celebrations in all its pristine splendor. According to contemporaries, the golden brilliance of the iconostasis was adequately set off by the grace of stone carving, which served as a decoration of the interior and exterior walls, and the festive color of the facade competed with the nobility and sophistication of architectural forms. So, in an atmosphere of universal admiration, the Stroganov Church (Novgorod) met the events of 1917, which introduced a radical turning point in its fate.
On the brink of doom
Everything that was valuable in the eyes of the Bolsheviks was confiscated as early as the first years of Soviet power, but the Stroganov Church itself remained operational until 1934, after which it was closed and defined as demolished as a "hotbed of religious obscurantism." No arguments based on the artistic and historical value of the building acted on the “masters of the new life”, and the unique architectural monument was almost doomed.
He owes his salvation to the abbot, Nizhny Novgorod priest, Father Sergius (Veisov). Having collected a large number of archival documents and photographs, he gave more than a dozen lectures in the offices of senior party functionaries and finally achieved what he wanted.
The path to the revival of the shrine
The decision to demolish the Stroganov Church was canceled. Moreover, inside the building, which was not rebuilt during all the decades of Soviet rule, and therefore did not lose its original appearance, they first placed a pharmacy warehouse, and then a branch of the Museum of Religion and Atheism, the director of which was appointed Sergius himself. Thanks to such a happy combination of circumstances, a significant part of the interior decoration of the temple remained intact. Suffice it to say that of the forty-six icons of the ancient iconostasis, only three were irretrievably lost.
The transfer of the Stroganov Church to the ownership of the Russian Orthodox Church became possible only with the advent of perestroika, which introduced radical changes in the attitude to religion, both of the government elite and of the broad masses of citizens brought up during the years of Soviet power in the spirit of Marxist-Leninist materialism. In 1993, the signing of the relevant documents, culminating in the consecration of the newfound temple.
Stroganov Church in Nizhny Novgorod. Schedule of Divine Services
Today, a unique monument of Russian temple architecture has regained its status as a major spiritual center, the religious life of which has resumed after many decades, overshadowed by the country's policy of total atheism. At the end of the article, we present for all who wish to visit the Stroganov Church the schedule of services held in it. On weekdays, they start at 8:30 and then continue at 12:00 and 13:00. Evening services are performed at 16:00. On Sundays, they are preceded by confessions starting at 6:00. In addition, at 15:00, another additional service is held.