Church of the Intercession (Rostov-on-Don)

In 1762, after the abolition of the fortress of St. Anne, located near Cherkassk (now the village of Starocherkasskaya ) on the Vasilievsky hillocks, it was decided to transfer the Pokrovsky church located in it to the newly built fortress of St. Dimitry of Rostov. The church building was dismantled, all logs are numbered and transported to the chosen place. The new church received the status of "serf". All of her clergy and most of the parishioners were military personnel. The exact location of the first church building - in the northeast parterre of Kirov Square - was determined in the summer of 2003 during archaeological surveys conducted by the Rostov regional branch of VOOPIiK (expedition leader - P. A. Larenok).

Over time, a need arose for a larger church. In this regard, in 1781, the commandant-general of Major General Semyon Guryev sends to the archbishop Nikifor, head of the Slovenian and Kherson diocese, who was then in charge of the territory of present Rostov, an application "for permission to build a new, larger church, instead of a decrepit one." In 1782, the application was granted. The old church building is dismantled and a new one (also wooden) is being built almost at the same place. The consecration of the church takes place on September 28, 1784.

In 1796, from the materials of the recently abolished Church of St. Demetrius of Rostov, the right southern aisle, which is also dedicated to St. Demetrius, was added to the Intercession Church.

Since 1806, the church ceases to be only military and receives mixed status, being simultaneously in military and diocesan subordination.

In 1818, the clock “with a fight” was installed on the bell tower .

Over a considerable period of time, the Intercession Church served as the main one not only for the fortress of St. Demetrius of Rostov, but also for the settlements that grew around it. In this regard, since the end of the 18th century, the Intercession Church has been called the Cathedral Church. This situation persists until 1822, when the decree of the Holy Synod declares the Church in the name of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the collegiate church .

In 1831, the old bell tower was dismantled and a new one was built.

In 1869, the church finally loses its military status and completely becomes diocesan subordination. In the last quarter of the 19th century, malls began to appear, which later expanded into the Pokrovsky Bazaar. At the end of the 19th century, a new building is being built on the territory of the church, in which a two-year school is opened on September 2, 1890.

On November 2, 1895, due to the carelessness of the watchman, a fire occurred in which the bell tower burned down and the building of the temple itself was damaged.

On August 10, 1897, a new stone building was laid up, which was being constructed by the architect N. M. Sokolov . The new building was located a little to the west of the old one - closer to Bogatyanovsky Lane (now Kirovsky Prospekt). The construction was completed in 1909 and on May 9, according to the old style (May 22 according to the new style), a new church was consecrated, called Novo-Pokrovsky.

However, the old building damaged by fire stood for a long time and was demolished already in 1917.

The building was built in the pseudo-Russian style and had a width of 16 fathoms (34 m), 25 fathoms in length (53 m) and in height, taking into account the cross, 25 fathoms (53 m). The height of the bell tower was 35 fathoms (74.5 m), with the main bell weighing 300 pounds (5100 kg).

The church was a three-seeded church, which included the main - Pokrovsky - throne and two chapels: the right - in the name of St. Demetrius of Rostov and the left - in the name of St. Martyr George the Victorious All marble works were performed by Italian artist E. R. Mintseoni. The floor of the temple was tiled with light colored tiles. The arches, domes, walls of the temple were painted by artists I.V. Lavrov and Y. I. Smirnov. The church was originally provided with electric lighting.

In 1930, the temple was demolished. Subsequently, a fountain was built in its place, and then a square was destroyed by it. Kirov and a monument to S. M. Kirov was erected (they say that during its construction marble slabs left from the temple were used).

In post-perestroika times, the question of rebuilding the temple began to be raised, and on February 3, 2005, a memorial cross was erected and consecrated in Kirov Square, and the first symbolic stone was laid in the foundation of the future church. The construction of the temple was carried out through charitable donations from all over Russia. Fundraising was carried out by the Pokrovsky temple fund. The temple, designed by architect G. A. Shevchenko, was named Staro-Pokrovsky and was consecrated on November 11, 2007 by the Archbishop of Rostov and Novocherkassk Panteleimon.

Shortly before the consecration of the temple, on June 25, 2007, a monument to Empress Elizaveta Petrovna was unveiled in front of the church in Pokrovsky Square. The author of the monument is sculptor Sergey Oleshnya . The height of the monument is more than 7 meters. The figure of Elizabeth and the high reliefs on the pedestal are cast in bronze and weigh about three tons, the weight of the granite pedestal is about 50 tons.

In addition to the Staro-Pokrovsky church on the territory of Rostov-on-Don there are two more churches with similar names:

1. Old Believers Church of the Protection of the Virgin , located at - Rostov-on-Don, st. Ulyanovskaya, 37. The first mention of a wooden church in the name of the Protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary dates from 1813. The building where the church is located today was built in 1913 according to the project of the architect V.A. Pokrovsky and has the status of a monument of architecture.
2. Holy Intercession Church, located at Rostov-on-Don, Orbitalnaya, 10A (at the Northern Cemetery ). The church was built in 2000 by the architect I.V. Ganus.

Archpriest Daniil Azizov

• Virtual tour, Old Church of the Intercession
• Don temporary “Temples of Rostov-on-Don. Church of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin
• Rostov.ru "Pokrovsky temple"
• Monuments of Don - photo of former church buildings