Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh on the Kulikovo field

The initiative to create a memorial church on Kulikovo Field belongs to Stepan Nechaev , who founded the first museum of the Battle of Kulikovo in his estate. As early as 1820, he wrote a letter to the Tula governor Alexander Balashov with a proposal to build a temple on the Kulikovo field in honor of St. Sergius of Radonezh, who blessed the Russian soldiers to victory in the Battle of Kulikovo . In 1836, the architect Alexandru Bryullov prepared the first design of the temple, which at that time was not approved by the emperor.

In 1902, Count Aleksey Olsufiev donated about 40 acres of land belonging to him for the construction; The construction committee was led by his son, Yuri . In 1904, the bishop of the Tula diocese of Pitirim received the approval of the Synod and Nicholas II for the construction of the temple. The tsar donated 5 thousand rubles in gold to the temple of St. Sergius. The design of the temple was completed by architect Alexei Shchusev in the style of pre-Petrine churches. One of the domes is made in the form of a military helmet of the XIV century.

The temple was laid on June 16 (29), 1913 . The construction of the temple was completed on the eve of the 1917 revolution. Consecrated in 1918. Icons for the church were painted by artists Dmitry Stelletsky and V. A. Komarovsky. Only a part of the watercolor sketches of the iconostasis of 1914 has been preserved, according to which later modern masters recreated the appearance of the interior of the church on Red Hill. ^[one]

The church service on the Kulikovo Field was accomplished until 1940. After closing, the temple was partially looted. By 1992, the temple was restored and church service was resumed. Currently, the temple is the compound of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra . ^[2]

• About the Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh on the Kulikovo Field