Many beautiful sightslocated in Moscow. Walking through the city center, you can often observe various cultural monuments. Each object keeps a lot of secrets and stories that are always interesting to know. We should also pay attention to the temple in the center called the Menshikov Tower. It is located in the historical center of Moscow, in the area of Chistye Prudy. This object is definitely worth a visit, because it is truly unique and made in a very unusual style, thanks to which it attracts a lot of attention from both tourists and locals.
So, for a start it is worth getting to know morethis unusually beautiful monument of architecture. The object has another name - the Church of the Archangel Gabriel on Chistye Prudy. This is an Orthodox church, it is located in the Basmanny district of Moscow. Interestingly, the building is made in the Baroque style, more precisely - Peter the Great Baroque. In Moscow, there are not many buildings built in this style that would be well preserved to this day. The same building is also the earliest, its construction falls on the year 1707. However, after some time, already in the 1770s, the church was noticeably rebuilt. Interestingly, she acted only in the summer.
Besides the fact that the temple is named after the ArchangelGabriel, you can often hear his second name - the Menshikov Tower. Many wonder why this is so? The answer to this question is very simple. The church was built by order of one person, which was Alexander Menshikov (his personality will be described later). Thus, it becomes clear where the temple got its second name.
As you know, Menshikov played a big role inthe construction of the temple. Therefore, it is worthwhile to separately consider his personality in order to learn more about his projects and other activities. So, this is a well-known Russian leader in the state and military sphere. Menshikov had several titles, such as the count and the prince. For a long time he was the favorite of Peter I. After his death, he participated in the accession to the throne of Catherine I. At this time, he actually became the ruler of Russia. We can say that his career began with the Northern War, where he commanded various types of troops.
Now go to the story of the story.Church, because it includes many events that occurred during the entire existence of this temple. It should be noted that the first mention of the church of the Archangel Gabriel appear in 1551. They are found in documents related to the census. By the middle of the XVII century, the temple was somewhat rebuilt and due to this increased. Somewhat later, in 1701, Alexander Menshikov organized the reconstruction and repair of the church, but after 3 years, in 1704, it was decided to demolish the church. In its place it was planned to build a new church, the construction of which was performed by I.P. Zarudny. The Church of the Archangel Gabriel was gradually revived. Foreign masters were also involved in the construction, among which Domenico Trezzini could be called. Already by 1707 the building was finished. It is worth noting that its height at that time was a little over 84 meters. After some time, Menshikov was appointed to the post of governor of St. Petersburg, in connection with which he ceased to engage in many Moscow projects, and work in the temple was slowed down, or even completely suspended.
The fate of the temple was also quiteuneasy. Lightning struck the church, in connection with which the upper part of the tower burned down almost completely, the interiors of the rooms were destroyed, and the bells fell. This unpleasant event occurred in 1723. In this state, the tower stood for a long time, but in 1773 its restoration began. She went a few years from 1773 to 1779. The famous mason G.Z. Izmailov. However, the churches did not return the original form, in the new version it was a different structure. Since then, the building has been used for various Masonic ceremonies. In 1863, the temple was nevertheless restored on the instructions of Metropolitan Philaret. In the 30s of the XX century it was closed. So, the history of the temple was considered, and now it is worth saying a few words about the style in which the Menshikov Tower was built. This style is a true reflection of its time, so it will be very informative to get acquainted with it.
Таким образом, ознакомившись с историей, it is also necessary to find out in what style the church was built. The Menshikov Tower is a real example of the “Peter's Baroque”. It is also believed that this temple is one of the earliest examples of this style, preserved in Moscow. It is necessary to understand what are the distinctive features of this style, as well as what is its feature.
Basically this term refers to architecturalstyle, which was approved by Peter I. Many examples can be seen in St. Petersburg, where this solution was actively used in the construction of buildings for various purposes. It is worth noting the time frame - from about 1697 to 1730.
This style is mainly based onsamples of German, Dutch and Swedish architecture. Petrovsky baroque can often be distinguished by some characteristic features, such as, for example, the simple execution of three-dimensional elements, clear lines. In this style, unlike other baroque styles, the connection with the classical Byzantine style was broken. This is a very important point, since such a tradition has existed in Russian architecture for more than 700 years.
Thus, the definition was given to this style,and considered its time frame. Now it is worth talking directly about its characteristic features. One of the most important signs of this trend in architecture is the coloring of buildings, including 2 colors, the use of high spiers, as well as the planar execution of decorative details.
Individual attention and deservepalace and park ensembles built in this style. An example is Peterhof, Summer Gardens and many other wonderful parks. Another famous example of this style is the Hermitage Palace.
So, the history of the temple was considered, its stagesconstruction and more. Now it's worth talking about where it is and how to get to it. In general, Moscow Orthodox churches are very popular among both tourists and locals. Of course, you should definitely visit the Church of the Archangel Gabriel.
It is located, as mentioned above, onClean ponds. This place is located in the center of Moscow; getting here is not a big deal. It is located at: Arkhangelsky Lane, 15a. The most convenient way to get here is from Chistye Prudy metro station.
