Temple of the Twelve Apostles (Tula)

In 1898, the first wooden church in honor of the Holy Twelve Apostles was erected on Horse Square. ^[1] The church was consecrated on December 17, 1898. Bishop of Tula and Belevsky Pitirim. The place of the holy throne of the wooden temple is indicated by the chapel at the western entrance doors of the temple. The wooden church was dismantled and transported to the village of Tovarkovo, Bogoroditsky district .

On July 8, 1903, a new temple was laid down, next to the wooden church of the Twelve Apostles. The builder of the temple is considered to be a local pastry chef Vasily Evlampievich Serikov , who was later buried near the southern wall of the temple. Construction was completed in 1908, and the tent bell tower was completed in 1909.

The temple has three thrones: the central - the Twelve Apostles , the right - Nicholas the Wonderworker , and the left - the Great Martyr Catherine . The choirs of the temple are located at the western gate on cast-iron pillars. The five-domed temple is built of red brick. The general style of the temple is characteristic of many temples in central Russia built at that time. “Window frames (each window is framed by two pilasters with capitals and completed with a helmet arch), kokoshniks, balusters, an arkatur belt (made of white limestone or painted white) form a white-stone lace on the brick-red background of the temple, emphasizing the severity and monolithicity of architectural forms , massiveness and at the same time lightness and grace of the whole structure. ” ^[2]

The iconostasis of the temple is wooden, three-tiered, gilded and decorated with carvings. The floors of the temple and the altar are tiled with metlakh tiles. The walls of the temple are painted.

The temple is decorated with copies of paintings, among them are: V. M. Vasnetsova (Crucifix, St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir and St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess Olga), A.T. Markov (Lord of Hosts), Evgraf Semenovich Sorokin (four evangelists in the sails of the church) , Heinrich Hoffmann (12-year-old Jesus among the teachers, the salvation of the drowning apostle Peter, the preaching of Christ from a boat), Bernhard Plokgorst (Christ at Martha and Mary, Christ's Entrance to Jerusalem, Christ blesses the children).

The revered relics of the temple are the icons: the Holy Savior, the Mother of God of Tikhvin , the Assumption of the Virgin, St. Nicholas, which were transferred from the Assumption Convent, which was abolished in the 1930s. And Mary, Christ's Entrance to Jerusalem, Christ blesses the children) and others. Icons transferred from the Tula Assumption Monastery; the icon of the Mother of God “Three Hands” was transferred from the Church of Great Martyr George on the Rust; Icon of the Mother of God of Bogolyubsky - from the Church of Flora and Laurus.

In 1912, a parish school and an almshouse for the elderly were equipped at the church.

The dimensions of the temple: the height of the dome inside the temple is 21.5 meters, the ceiling height in the main altar is 8 meters. The temple seats from 900 to 1350 people.

During the years of Soviet rule, the temple did not close. Its rector Archpriest Mikhail Ponyatsky, who served in it during the Great Patriotic War, in 1944 was awarded the medal "For the Defense of Moscow" ^[3]

• Temple of the Twelve Apostles on the site "Russian Churches"