The history of the cathedral’s construction started with a groundbreaking ceremony on September 10, 1839.
Russia’s main cathedral, a monument of combat glory, was barbarously destroyed 80 years ago, at noon on December 5, 1931. The cathedral withstood the first explosion and a new demolition charge had to be planted. Everything was finished several hours later. Photo: Removing bells from Christ the Savior Cathedral. 1930.
The history of the cathedral’s construction started with a groundbreaking ceremony on September 10, 1839. The construction of the embankment and square in front was completed by 1881, when the interior decoration had almost been finished. Photo: view of the Christ the Savior Cathedral, 1917.
A monument to Emperor Alexander III was erected in the nearby square in the spring of 1912. The monument was created by professor of architecture Alexander Pomerantsev and sculptor Alexander Opekushin (it existed only for six years and was destroyed in 1918).
Its general appearance was reminiscent of ancient Russian churches built in the Byzantine style.
White marble from a pit near the village of Protopopov in the Kolomesnky District was used to decorate the cathedral’s outer walls and relief images.
An open-air swimming pool, Moskva, appeared in place of the cathedral in 1960 and existed until 1994.
A movement for restoring the Christ the Savior Cathedral started in the late 1980s. Its activists began collecting signatures for the restoration of the destroyed shrine.
A granite stone was laid into the foundation of the future cathedral on December 5, 1990. A fund for its construction was established in 1992 and work began in 1994.
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© RIA Novosti . Boris Prihodko
Christ the Savior Cathedral under construction, 1995.
On the Transfiguration Day in August 1996, Patriarch Alexy II conducted a service of consecration of the lower Transfiguration Cathedral and the first liturgy in it.
The Big Bell was consecrated and raised to the belfry of the restored Christ the Savior Cathedral in 1997. The ceremony was attended by the late Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II and ex-Mayor of Moscow Yury Luzhkov.
The interior of the Christ the Savior Cathedral.
At its meeting on March 14, 2004, the Public Supervisory Council on the Restoration of the Christ the Savior Cathedral announced its transfer to the Russian Orthodox Church for an indefinite term and established a council of trustees.
