One of the main Russian pearls of architecture is considered to be the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow. Since the 16th century, the monastery-museum has occupied a place in the bend of the Moskva River, in a historical place called Maiden's Field, and never ceases to attract an endless stream of tourists and pilgrims with its beauty and centuries-old history.
The Novodevichy Convent is covered with secret events and legends. In Moscow, where the ancient monastery is located, during the time of the Tatar yoke, Russian people collected tribute for the Golden Horde. Tribute to the Tatars was paid not only in gold coins and furs. It was here that Russian beautiful girls were brought, whose fate was predetermined by the time of enslavement. Since then, the field was called Maiden's, and the land here, which saw endless grief, remained saturated with tears. It was here that the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow was founded, the history of which goes back centuries, to the time of the strengthening of the power of Russia.
Cometime of unification of Moscow lands
The Novodevichy Bogoroditse-Smolensky Monastery began its history in 1524, and its appearance is due to a landmark event for Russia - the completion of the unification of the Muscovite state. The Great Moscow Prince Vasily III, referred to as the "collector of Russian lands", personified both the inheritance of the Byzantine emperors and the defense of Orthodoxy from the Gentiles.
The great unification of lands in Russia ended with the liberation of Smolensk, a city of strategic importance for the Russian state, from Lithuanian domination. The historic battle took place in 1514, and 10 years later, fulfilling his promise given before the march to Smolensk, the prince founded a monastery with a temple consecrated by the icon of the Smolensk Mother of God Hodegetria (“Guide”).
The Great Way of the Smolensk Icon
The Icon of the Mother of God of Smolensk reached the Russian land in the 11th century, before the appearance of Muscovy. According to legend, written during the earthly life of the Mother of God by the Apostle Luke, it went a long way from ancient Jerusalem to the Byzantine capital of Constantinople, and then to the Russian prince Vsevolod Yaroslavich. She was destined to become a shrine to the family of Russian princes. And for a long time the miraculous image was carefully kept in the Smolensk church of the Assumption of the Mother of God. From that time on, it was called the icon of the Smolensk Mother of God, and the city was now protected from troubles by the Most Holy Theotokos. The annals of the 13th century specifically described the miracle created by the icon when it saved Smolensk from the invasion of Batu's troops.
Since 1398, the miraculous image has been in Muscovy. It was brought by Sofya Vitovtovna, the wife of Prince Vasily I of Moscow. During her visit to Smolensk to her father, the Lithuanian prince, Sophia received the blessing of her parent and was instructed to keep the icon for herself. Her place was determined in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Kremlin.
For many years, ambassadors from Smolensk have been asking Vasily III to return the icon. But only the decision to unite the Russian lands and the desire to attract the inhabitants of Smolensk to the side of the Russian prince allowed this event to happen.
Before sending the shrine on the long journey to Smolensk, at the behest of the prince, the exact list was removed from the icon, which was left in the Cathedral of the Annunciation. It came to the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, where the copy of the icon is today, in 1525.
The shrine was escorted to Smolensk from the Kremlin walls to the Savvin Monastery. And only after the great prayer service did she move along the Smolensk road.
This momentous event has been celebrated every year since then with festive services and a procession to the place where the Novodevichy Convent is located today. Moscow, Russia, all Orthodox Russians glorify the icon of the Smolensk Mother of God on July 28. At this place, after the victorious battle for Smolensk, the first wooden church of the new monastery was laid.
How the name of the monastery on Devichye Pole appeared
The monastery got its name "Novodevichy" for a reason. By the beginning of the 16th century, Moscow already had two women's cloisters - the oldest Zachatievsky Monastery, then called Starodevichiy, andlocated on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin Voznesensky. The original name of the monastery on the Maiden's Field, mentioned in the annals of 1598, is the Most Pure Mother of God Hodegetria New Maiden's Monastery.
There is another version of the appearance of the name. Schematic nun Elena, an old woman and ascetic of the Suzdal-Pokrovsky monastery, was consecrated as the abbess of the monastery. From Suzdal to the new monastery, the abbess sent 18 nuns, who faithfully served her in all endeavors. The life of the nuns in the monastery was based on the principles of the old hostel and was subject to strict regulations. Until now, a unique handwritten document, compiled by the abbess of the Novodevichy Convent, has survived - the charter and routine of the convent of the early 16th century.
Elder Elena was reputed to be “an all-round teacher of the virginal rank” and had the nickname Devochkina among parishioners because of her special attention to the guardianship of girls. The abbess's love and care over them was so great that she became entrenched in the old Moscow name of the women's shelter.
From the history of the Novodevichy Convent it is known that during the time of Peter the Great there was organized a shelter for baby girls born illegally. The nuns raised and raised them in strictness, instilling in them humility and obedience. It was Peter I who came up with the idea of teaching the novices of the monastery how to weave lace in the Dutch manner. The orphanage became the first prototype of the future Moscow Orphanage for high-class girls.
The history of the convent for women and the shelter fororphan girls were subsequently continued by the Resurrection Novodevichy Convent, founded by order of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna in 1746. At that time, she decided to transfer the experience of Moscow nuns to St. Petersburg. And this monastery became especially popular during the heyday of monasticism among women in the 19th century.
One of the reasons why the monastery was founded
Historians almost unanimously agree that one of the reasons for the founding of the new convent was the personal drama of Vasily III. A parallel is drawn between the construction of the monastery and the prince's divorce proceedings. Solomonia Saburova, chosen by him, for 20 years of marriage could not give the prince an heir. Fearing his brothers claiming the reign, he obtained permission from the church to remarry. Basil III forced his wife Solomonia, who could not cope with her marital duty, to take tonsure and exiled her to the Nativity Monastery. In 1525 she was christened Sophia.
Many historians believe that the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, where the list of the Smolensk Icon is located, was intended specifically for Solomonia. And Vasily III, the "pioneer" of the monarchs in the forcible removal of his wife behind the walls of the monastery, thereby tried to mitigate his guilt.
From the Kremlin to the Novodevichy Convent was only three versts. But nun Sophia was never able to move to a picturesque place near Moscow, spending her days in Suzdal, outside the walls of the Intercession Convent. With her righteous life, she deserved to be ranked among the saints, and today she is revered by believers as Sophia of SuzdalReverend.
Godunov in the Novodevichy Convent
The sad practice of exiles of royal families was continued by Ivan the Terrible. He hid his brother's widows and his own son here. The monastery also received the widow of Fyodor I Ioanovich, Irina Godunova, who also protected her brother Boris from death. Her decision to retire to a monastery after the death of her husband was then tantamount to abdication. But here the queen nun continued her government work, making the monastery a royal residence. It was here that the boyars, who asked Boris for the kingdom, came to bow three times.
It was Boris Godunov, who assumed power in 1598, who began to provide special attention and patronage to the Novodevichy Convent. For his sister Irina Fedorovna, he built new spacious cells, a house church and a refectory. Subsequently, they will be called the Irininsky chambers. Additionally, funds were allocated for the complete renovation of the Smolensk Cathedral, the murals and iconostasis were restored, and the miraculous images were dressed in new settings with precious stones.
Prisoners of the royal family
The series of inhabitants of the monastery from the boyar and princely families turned out to be endless. Among them were those who found themselves behind strong walls against their will.
Continued the imprisonment of relatives and Peter I. In 1689, Princess Sofya Alekseevna, the monarch's sister and the instigator of the Streltsy uprising, was hidden here. The fate of her companions was notorious. They were executed in front of the Novodevichy Convent, and their heads were strung on stonebattlements of the walls of the monastery. The first wife of Peter I, Lopukhina Evdokia, was also exiled here, according to legend, she cursed the city on the Neva, beloved by his heart.
“The Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, where there are many persons of a noble family, is the richest and intended for persons of the highest”, Patriarch Nikon testified. As in the old days, wives of tsars, widows, daughters and sisters of boyars arrived here in Starodevichy.
To the untold riches received by the monastery at the time of its founding, the jewels of future nuns and deeds of gift for the possession of their lands were constantly added.
Home or fortress?
At the behest of Vasily III, the monastery was to become a miniature copy of the Moscow Kremlin. Court architects and painters worked not so much on the defensive capability of the walls as on their beauty. Boris Godunov decided to turn the walls of the monastery into fortifications, starting after ascending the throne, the architectural transformation of the monastery. New stone strong walls with new towers and loopholes surrounded the territory of the monastery. Their height has now increased to 13 meters, and their length - almost a kilometer. A garrison of 350 sabers was placed on the territory of the monastery to guard the monastery. By the 17th century, the monastery had become a real guard fortress on the border of Moscow.
Engravings with views of Moscow and the Novodevichy Convent tell us about the times of the Great Troubles, when the fate of the monastery fortress was tragic. Standing on the edge of the city, it was subjected to numerous raids by foreigners,rebellious detachments of archers and ordinary robbers. By 1612, the walls of the monastery were practically destroyed, and the monastery was plundered. It was under the destroyed walls of the Novodevichy Convent that a historic battle with the Polish army took place, after which Prince Pozharsky led his squads to the Kremlin.
New life of the monastery: restoration and flourishing
Restoration of the Novodevichy Convent began with the advent of the first Romanovs. Mikhail Fedorovich, who freed the monastery from taxes, by 1650 cleared the monastery of traces of the war, restored and strengthened the walls. He turned the monastery into a place for the prayers of the royal people. Since then the Novodevichy Convent was located outside the city, tents were pitched under its walls, where they stayed for the night, "so as not to miss the morning prayer." Thanks to the monastery, Moscow got the name of Prechistenka Street - the current symbol of the old city. It is on it that parishioners go on holidays.
The custom of festivities near Novodevichy has come into the life of Muscovites since those times. And today thousands of people strive to get to the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow. How to get to the place where the festive festivities are held?
Festival celebrations in the historic center
Over time, the place of festivities was moved from the walls of the monastery to Presnya and Devichye Pole. The first festivities were held only on church holidays. The appearance of the famous Prechistenka Street is also associated with the Novodevichy Convent.
The road that believers walked from the walls every yearKremlin to the monastery, existed before. But by the royal decree of 1658, she began to be called the name of the Most Pure Virgin, whose miraculous face accompanied every holiday.
Slowly, mundane important events began to be celebrated in this historical place. Until the 18th century, the territory of the Maiden's Field remained undeveloped. Gardens bloomed here and apothecary gardens were planted. Country houses of the nobility began to appear on this site only towards the end of the century.
Today, the territory of the Maiden's Field is completely built up, and the main streets of this historical center are considered to be Bolshaya Pirogovskaya, Malaya Pirogovskaya and Pogodinskaya. Folk festivals are held in several places, within walking distance from each other, so these streets will serve as a guide for finding places to hold them.
How to get to the Novodevichy Convent
None of the capital's tourist routes ignores the Novodevichy Convent. Moscow is the starting point for those wishing to travel along the Golden Ring.
As a cloister the monastery existed until 1922. It was preserved by the Soviet government as an architectural monument until the 1930s, when, by decision of the People's Commissariat, the buildings of the monastery complex were given to the State Historical Museum (branch). Even before the end of the war, theological schools began to revive on the territory of the convent. And only in 1994 the monastic life in the monastery was revived.
Travel guides always provide information forthose who wish to visit the Novodevichy Convent. They indicate the address and how to get there in full detail with diagrams. It will be difficult to get lost.
Since today it is the historical center of the capital, and many sights are located at a short distance from each other, it is better to take a 10-minute walk from the Sportivnaya metro station along the street. 10th Anniversary of October.
The territory of the monastery complex is limited by Novodevichy Embankment, Luzhnetsky Proyezd and Khamovnichesky Val. In addition to visiting the architectural complex, tourists and fans of many great people are interested in visiting the Novodevichy cemetery. It also refers to the special sights of Moscow. Many outstanding personalities of our country are buried here: military leaders, prominent representatives of science and culture, politicians.
The legacy of Russian history and the spirituality of the faith combined a landmark place for Russia - the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow. Address: Sportivnaya metro station, Novodevichy proezd, 1.
