Church of the Smolensk Mother of God at the Oryol hospital on Khitrovka

Local History

The history of this region is closely connected with the life of the Moscow benefactor, Major General N.Z. Khitrovo and his idea of ​​creating a new city square, which later became known by its creator - Khitrovskaya Square .

On the site of Khitrovskaya Square (Khitrov Market) there were two possessions that were burned out in the Moscow fire of 1812 . The estates have not been restored for almost a decade, and their owners were not able to pay taxes. In 1824, Major General Nikolai Zakharovich Khitrovo, whose mansion was preserved in the courtyard of the current “Stalinist” house (architect I. A. Golosov ) on the corner of Yauzsky Boulevard and Podkolokolny Lane , bought the property of the victims of the fire from the auction, arranged a new square in their place and gave it to the city.

Work on creating a new square was carried out at the expense of N.Z. Khitrovo by the military workers with the permission of the then Moscow Governor General D.V. Golitsyn . On the territory of his property, stretching from Yauzsky Boulevard to the Peter and Paul Lane , he built a shopping arcade with a courtyard for traders in the meat and green market ( south side of Khitrovskaya Square ).

Temple Construction

The church was built in 1698 by F. A. Golovin at his town house in the White City . The throne was consecrated in memory of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God . Architecture - octagon on a quad with a short refectory, an open porch with a belfry, on an arched basement.

In 1757, Princess N. S. Shcherbatova built a new house with a wing on the site of the burnt choir of F. A. Golovin and connected it to the church by a passage.

In 1821 , after the death of N. A. Karpova, the owner of the estate, the Kazan Church was abolished, and church utensils and the iconostasis, according to the will of the owner, were transferred to the New Jerusalem Monastery .

“From the inventory of the property of the closed church, it is known that its three-tiered iconostasis was painted and gilded in places. In his local row, to the right of the Royal Gates, was the image of the Savior the Almighty in a silver setting, and on the left - the Kazan icon "with different Lord and Mother of God holidays in the hallmarks." In the second tier, five icons were placed, and in the third - three large and two small images. The inventory also mentions a copper gilded chandelier with crystal pendants . ” ^[one]

In 1822, Major General N.Z. Khitrovo rebuilt the old Shcherbatov house in the Empire style. The house has been preserved in this form to this day. On the pediment, one can still see the coat of arms of the Khitrovo clan.

In 1823, after the resumption of the church, the throne was consecrated in memory of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God . The Khitrovo family especially revered this icon and already had a Tikhvin temple in its Kaluga estate.

Here is the text of the request of N.Z. Khitrovo to the Moscow Spiritual Consistory:

“According to my jealousy for the splendor of the temple of God, but most importantly for the long duration of its existence, not wanting to abolish it and to use it for home use, I most sincerely ask Your Eminence to allow me to continue to arrange in it an iconostasis in the name of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God and provide all necessary decent utensils . " ^[2]

In 1826, the estate of Khitrovo was bought by the tradeswoman A.N. Nemchinov. Then the church was again abolished.

In 1843, the estate passed to the guard Colonel Vladimir Ivanovich Orlov. According to his will in 1889, the estate was transferred to the disposal of the Moscow Board of Trustees of the poor of the Imperial Humanitarian Society .

In the manor house, a hospital for the poor was established, called the Oryol. The patron saint of the hospital was Prince Alexander Petrovich of Oldenburg .

"Oryol hospital in Podkolokolny per. The Moscow Committee on the Poor, for the coming poor, is under the auspices of Prince Alexander Petrovich of Oldenburg. Open daily from 10 to 2 hours. At the hospital there is a special department for 5 beds for operative patients and a pharmacy with free dispensing of medicines . ” ^[3]

In 1892, the church was consecrated for the third time in honor of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God . In the church cellar a dining room was arranged for the poor.

Soviet period

In 1919, the Smolensk church was closed, and in the house of the Oryol hospital, Klara Zetkin organized a feldsher school.

Smolensk church was demolished around 1932 . In its place in 1934 a multi-storey residential building was constructed according to the design of I. A. Golosov .

Now in the building of the former Oryol hospital is located Medical School No. 2 named after Klara Zetkin.

• Khitrovo House

• Palamarchuk P.G. Forty magpies. A brief illustrated history of all Moscow churches. In 4 volumes. Volume 2 - M., 1994.
• Church archeology of Moscow. Temples and parishes of Ivanovo Hill and Kulishek. / Under the general editorship of Dr. A. L. Batalov - M., 2006. ISBN 5-91150-014-0