14 The Kremlin building, built in the Soviet years on the site of the demolished temple and monasteries, suffered the same fate. But why did they do it? What do experts, archaeologists and the president say? Let's figure it out together.
What was the 14th building of the Moscow Kremlin built and intended for?
The building you are interested in is the former building of the presidential administration, built next to the Senate Palace and the Spassky Gates on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin. The facade of the building was facing the Tainitskaya tower and the garden of the same name, and the building also had an excellent view of the Moscow River. The 14th building of the Kremlin used to be among the buildings that formed the Ivanovskaya square of the citadel. April 2016 was the last month for this building.
Historical background
The authorities of the Soviet Union decided to develop the state without the participation of persons directly related to religion. Also included in this policy was the demolition of churches, monasteries and other religious sites. Unfortunately, in 1929, the Chudov and Ascension monasteries, as well as the Small Nicholas Palace, were destroyed on the territory of the Moscow Kremlin. In their place in 1934 they built the same14 building of the Kremlin. It so happened that the authorities did not name this building in any way, but only assigned the dry serial number "14". Two decades later, the Palace of Congresses was built.
For many years it was believed that the administrative building was designed by I. I. Rerberg. But in 2014, papers were found indicating that the building was designed by Moscow architect Vladimir Apyshkov. Rerberg, in turn, controlled the construction process.
Until 1935, the building housed the First Soviet Military School, but then it was transferred to Lefortovo.
Then, in 1938, the Secretariat of the Presidium and the Kremlin administration were located in the building.
After 20 years, the premises of the building were rebuilt for the Kremlin Theater. The architects calculated the auditorium for 1200 seats! Three years later, it was closed, as the theater was unsuitable for large events.
In the following years, another reconstruction took place. Now the 14th building of the Kremlin belonged to the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Until 1991, meetings of the Supreme Council were held in the building.
In the summer of the same year, the first president of the Russian Federation, B. N. Yeltsin, began his work on the fourth floor.
From 1991 to 2012, this building housed some units of the presidential administration, protocol and foreign policy services, and the press office.
How did the reconstruction of the building end?
In the first year of the second millennium, it was decided to begin the reconstruction of the building. By 2011 alldepartments of the presidential administration were transferred to another building. This gave impetus to large-scale repair and construction work. For this, more than 8 billion rubles were allocated from the budget. For three years, the 14th Kremlin building was hidden behind a cloth from curious visitors.
In 2015, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin issued a decree in which he decided to demolish the building. By April 2016, there was nothing left of the 14th building. A little later, President of the Russian Federation V. V. Putin proposed to lay out a square on the site of the former administration with possible subsequent development. Moscow Mayor S. Sobyanin agreed with this proposal. But before setting up the park, archaeologists worked on the ground. They found various objects of everyday life of the Russians of the 10th century: iron writing, glass fragments of bracelets, book fasteners, as well as fragments of a golden flask from the era of the Golden Horde.
Today, on the site of building 14, there is a public garden filled with various paths, benches and elegant Pushkin lanterns. Arborvitae, lilac bushes, roses and begonias are planted along the sidewalks. The park does not currently have a name. The presidential administration promised to correct this shortcoming.
Square with possible future development?
In parallel with the decree on the demolition of the 14th building, President Putin asked to develop a project for the construction of monasteries and a palace that were previously located on the site of the building.
