In Yaroslavl, on the banks of the Kotorosli River - the righta tributary of the Volga, there is the Savior-Transfiguration Monastery, founded in the XI century. On both sides it is surrounded by the Temple of the Epiphany and the Church of the Archangel Michael. Yaroslavl is one of the most ancient Russian cities, and these temples are just as ancient. One of them, the one that is consecrated in honor of the archangel-leader of the Heavenly Host, today, as for many centuries, is the place of spiritual nourishment of earthly warriors - defenders of the Fatherland.
About when and by whom was laid the church of MichaelArchangel in Yaroslavl, whose history is inextricably linked with this city, tells us the ancient chronicles and church books that have survived to this day. One of them, compiled in 1530 and containing the lives of princes Vasily and Constantine, for humility and pious life ranked among the saints, also tells that the Novgorod prince Konstantin Vsevolozh laid two churches in his Yaroslavl subordinate. One of them was the Assumption Cathedral, and the second - the church in the name of the Archangel Michael, patron of military people. Knowing the years of the reign of this Novgorod prince and the date of the Assumption Cathedral's laying, it is not difficult to determine that the church referred to in this article was built around 1215.
Also curious information contains and stored inchurch manuscript of the XVIII century. It says that it was built in 1216, and safely stood for eighty years. But then the wife of the Yaroslavl prince Fyodor Rostislavovich CHerny, Anna, deeming her unnecessarily dilapidated, ordered to demolish, and on this place to lay a new temple.
In passing, it is worth noting that with the prince's couple,who was preoccupied with the laying of a new church, has a rather romantic history. The fact is that the Black name used by historians is actually pronounced as Chermnoi, that is, "beautiful". According to annalistic information, he really was a rare handsome man, and one day, during a visit to the Golden Horde, the wife of Nogai himself fell madly in love with him.
It is not difficult to guess what could have resultedjealousy of her husband, if only the slightest occasion had been given to her. But she turned out to be wise and circumspect woman - it was not without reason that she was the daughter of the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Paleologue. Unable to give the Russian prince her heart, she gave to his wife a beloved daughter who adopted the name of Anna in Orthodoxy. Her worries and the church of the Archangel Michael (Yaroslavl) was founded.
About why the Russian princess of the Tatar-Greekorigin decided to consecrate the church in honor of the Archangel Michael, there are several hypotheses. The most likely of them are two. According to one of them, it was done in memory of his father - Michael VIII Palaeologus. Another hypothesis sees in her decision grief for the beloved, but the earliest died stepchild Michael - the son of Prince Fyodor the Black from his previous marriage.
Up to now, several icons have been preserved,kept in the temple since the time of Princess Anna. This is the image of the Archangel Michael, who was in the Soviet period in the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery, two theotokos of Vladimir the Mother of God and Smolensk, and the image of St. Anthony the Great, in the opinion of the researchers, which in previous centuries was a temple icon, consecrated in honor of this saint.
In the XVII century, the area surrounding the church waswas given to the settlements of the streltsy, that is, the military people, for whom the Archangel Michael, the leader of the Heavenly Host, was the patron. It is only natural that since then the church has received the status of a garrison temple, which is still there. At the same time, the old church building was decided to be renovated and partly rebuilt.
It should be noted that the transfer of the church to the militaryThe department brought him more honor than money needed for perestroika. The Yaroslavl governors were very stingy people, and the work dragged on for a quarter of a century. They ended only in 1682, at the very beginning of the reign of Peter I - the great commander who brought the heavenly patron of his army a lot of trouble.
Because of the meager military funding of the workwere mainly made on the donations of Yaroslavl merchants, but the one who pays, he, as you know, orders music. Everything was done according to the desires of the donors, whose tastes changed for a quarter of a century. As a result, the Church of the Archangel Michael (Yaroslavl) absorbed the features inherent in several temple architectural styles.
In general, it is similar to other Yaroslavl temples,built in the same period. It is based on the right quadrilateral with three apses - semicircular projections, inside which the altars are located. The whole structure is mounted on a high base, the lower part of the building. It stored goods intended for sale in a market located nearby - the merchants were baked about their souls, but they did not forget about the mammon either. Originally on the north and west wall there were covered galleries, to which led two high porches, decorated with openwork carvings. Until now, only the western gallery has survived.
And, of course, the general view is complemented by the bell tower,built at the request of the merchant-donors in the favorite Yaroslavl style - heavy, squat, culminating in a small tent. In the temple there are two chapels, and the northern, consecrated in honor of Solovetsky miracle-workers, is crowned with a picturesque turret. The facade of the temple is elegantly decorated with window frames and pants - square depressions in the wall, in the middle of which were placed colored tiles.
The Church of Michael the Archangel in Yaroslavl is alwayswas famous for its wall painting, made in 1731 by an artel of icon painters under the direction of Fedor Fedorov. Their frescoes, which are somewhat simplistic in the transmission of the plot, in some ways resemble Russian splint and are very characteristic for the late period of development of this picturesque genre.
Stored in the temple book, called "Keleinoyrecord ", compiled during the period 1761-1825 by priest Semyon Yegorov, tells that in the church, besides icons that came from ancient times, silver crosses with the relics of saints shining in Yaroslavl lands were also kept. In addition, his work in full detail tells about the events witnessed in these years by the church of Archangel Michael (Yaroslavl).
During the Soviet period, the arena of a wide antireligiouscampaign, deployed in the country, became Yaroslavl. The Church of Michael the Archangel - garrison, in which many generations of Russian soldiers prayed, going into battle, was closed and turned into a warehouse. In 1925, her bells were seized and sent to the remelting, and all utensils and other valuables were simply looted. A very small number of them have already been found in our museums in our country.
The situation has changed for the better insixties, when the church of Michael the Archangel (Yaroslavl) was transferred to the care of the city museum-reserve. It was partially restored, but the state did not have enough funds, and the former merchant benefactors had long ago sunk into oblivion.
So the temple remained a museum exhibit,used for economic needs, until 1992, until finally was returned to the Orthodox Church. During this period, in view of the changed state policy in relation to religious issues, many churches and monasteries, previously taken away from believers, returned to their former owners. Among them was the church of Michael the Archangel (Yaroslavl).
Schedule of services in those years, and todayYou can see only on the doors of its southern limit - the warm part of the church, the restoration of which is completed. The rest of the building is still locked and waiting for its hour. It only produced plastering works and restored window stained-glass windows.
There is still much to be done, because over the yearstotalitarian battle against the temple was caused considerable damage. In 1995, again, like in the old days, she was given the status of a garrison temple. But the restoration work did not accelerate. Apparently, without the bounty of voluntary donors, the Church of Michael the Archangel (the city of Yaroslavl) can not be fully revived.
However, statistics show that in our daysthe Russian land did not become impoverished by voluntary donors. Officially, the percentage of the funds invested by them from the total amount of funding for restoration works is not disclosed, but judging by the rates with which the shrines that were previously in desolation take their true shape for the past decades, it is quite large.
Holy places - Yaroslavl and other cities,included in the Golden Ring of Russia - today are the most visited both pilgrims and tourists. The historical center of Yaroslavl is listed in UNESCO, because it represents a significant historical and artistic value. Thousands of people come here from all over the country and from abroad to breathe in with the incomparable air of antiquity. But not only the cultural heritage of the past centuries is glorious this Volga city.
He is famous for his temples, a prominent placeamong which the church of Michael the Archangel, whose description today can be found both in printed guidebooks, and on its own Internet sites. Here, in the walls that witnessed so many services, prayer becomes especially blessed.
It is important to note that in order to return the people to itsoriginal spiritual roots are not only the services performed in it, but also concerts of choral and bell music, held here every August in the framework of the All-Russian festival "Transformation". Participation in them is taken by professional collectives and church choirs created by the forces of individual parishes. Their singing, accompanied by the ringing of the bells, becomes a symbol of holiness, reborn after decades of spiritual darkness and desolation.
