Volgograd, Sarepta: history, photo

This wonderful historical and architectural complex will be able to see all who come to Volgograd. Sarepta is located on the southern outskirts of the city. This miraculously survived the construction of a settlement of Lutheran colonists, which was founded and was a religious community of the Hernguters.

History of Sarepta (Volgograd)

Today, the largest district of the city, both territorially and by population, is Krasnoarmeysk. But 230 years ago on this earth there was a small town, which was founded by immigrants from Germany. He was called Sarepta.

In the XVIII century, Empress of Russia Catherine II invited her compatriots to take part in the development of the empty southern outskirts of Russia. At her request, the first responders were the Hernguthers living in Saxony. They were Christians, descendants of the Moravian and Czech brothers, who were forced to leave their homeland after the suppression of the Hussite revolution. A few decades before they moved to Russia, the Czech brothers received shelter in Saxony in the settlement of Gerngut. During this period their society has significantly expanded. New adherents joined them.

The Hirguters agreed to resettlement, provided they were given the opportunity to engage in missionary work. They wanted to carry the Word of God to all the suffering, to care for the sick, destitute and crippled. They chose the place of settlement themselves from many proposals. When the time came to call the settlement somehow, the brothers turned to the Bible. They read the Lord's words, which he addressed to the prophet Elijah, sent to Sarepta Sidon. The Lord made it so that in the house of the widow, who had stopped the prophet, the flour was never depleted in the tub, and the oil from the jug did not decrease. This saved the woman and her son from starvation.

Probably, this is a wonderful coincidence, but our Sarepta (Volgograd) was famous for the production of vegetable oil and flour. Even today you can see on the shelves goods with the name "Sarepta".

Development of the settlement

Years passed, the colony flourished. Several plants appeared in it, gardens, vineyards, and melons were planted. Sarepta was considered one of the best resorts in Russia, she became famous for her mud baths and mineral springs. It seemed that the Lord himself protected the inhabitants of the settlement from epidemics and natural disasters. It was only missionary activity that was decreed by the tsar's decree several decades later. This was explained by the fact that the spread of the Gospel is a hindrance to trade and economic development.

Since that moment, life in Sarept has begun to fade. Most of the colonial gernuters left the settlement, and those who stayed joined the Lutheran community. Their descendants were destroyed or exiled to Kazakhstan and Siberia during the repressions of the 20th century.

The creation of the museum and its purpose

In September 1990, the Council of Ministers of the Russian Federation decided to create a huge open-air museum on this territory. At that time he occupied five hectares. The main purposes of its creation was the preservation of a unique historical model of urban development of the XVIII-XIX centuries. In addition, it was planned to revive traditional technologies and industries, national traditions of peoples, who had long inhabited this land. Today, Sarepta (Volgograd) is a museum that has become one of the leading research institutions in the country. He popularizes the cultural and historical heritage of Russia.

In the museum "Sarepta" (Volgograd) there are centers of German, Russian, Ukrainian, Tatar, Byelorussian and Kalmyk peoples. Here, conditions for the preservation of the ethnic multiculturalism of this region, the development of interethnic communication and folk traditions have been created and are constantly being modernized.

With the active participation of local residents in a relatively short period of time, the museum became the owner of beautiful collections in ethnography, archeology and numismatics. The pride of the museum is the archive of photographs. His expositions present materials that highlight the peculiarities of life and culture of German immigrants, Kalmyks and Russian peasants.

Museum-Reserve "Sarepta" (Volgograd)

Today, the museum-reserve has become a major tourist, cultural, research and methodological center of Volgograd. Now it covers an area of more than 7 hectares. On its territory there are 26 buildings. And 23 of them are monuments of the XVIII-XIX centuries of federal significance. The Sarepta Museum (Volgograd), whose photo you can see in our article, has qualified staff and high scientific potential, which allows you to preserve, study and popularize the legacy of the peoples of the Volga region.

Kirch

One of the main architectural objects of the Sarepta is the church. It is located in the north of the central square of the village and separates the settlement from the cemetery, thus symbolizing the fine line dividing life and death.

The first hall, intended for prayer, was consecrated Bishop Nichman in 1766. However, a year later the church was transferred to another building, which was previously intended for the house of assembly. Later, an outbuilding with living quarters for the head of the colony and the pastor was attached to him.

The construction of the new church was begun in 1771 with funds that the colony received as a gift from Catherine II. In addition, the donations of the brothers were used. A new building was consecrated in a year (1772).

The church hall in Lichtenburg served as an example for the kirkh in Sarepta. The building is distinguished by an extremely ascetic architectural style. It fully corresponds to the canons of the "Gherngut Baroque". The church was a rectangular two-story building with a gable roof and practically devoid of architectural decor. On the one hand, an outbuilding was attached to it. There were apartments of the chairman of the colony and priests.

After the October Revolution of 1917, divine services continued for almost 20 years. But still in 1930 a decree was issued on its closure. In fact, this happened in 1937. After the Second World War in the building, the cinema "Kultarmeets" was organized. During the rebuilding, the tower was demolished, the organ was dismantled, the bells were removed, and some window apertures were laid. From the north side there was an extension, where the foyer of the cinema was located. In 1967, the cinema was closed, and a warehouse was located in the premises of the church.

Today, for many tourists who come to Volgograd, Sarepta is on the mandatory tour list. They can see the significantly altered building of the church, which became part of the museum in 1991. Four years later (1995), the solemn divine service was held here for many years.

Organ

Many unique historical monuments are famous for Volgograd. Sarepta occupies a worthy place among them. One of the main attractions of it is the organ that is installed in the church.

It was donated by the community of the city of Vechtersbach (Germany). Its pedals allow you to switch registers during the game. In the church there are constantly held instrumental and organ concerts. Today it is the only organ in the region that has live sound, without electronic effects.

Sculpture Equilibrio

On the territory of the museum you can see the symbolic sculpture of harmony and balance - Equilibrio. It is a gift to the hero-city from his sister Cologne. It was established in 2004 during the celebration of the days of German culture.

The work is done in stone, author Rolf Schaffner is a well-known sculptor from Germany. This is part of the grandiose composition, consisting of five elements. They are installed in five European cities - Cologne (Germany), Cork (Ireland), Santia (Spain) Cronheim (Norway). Now the composition is in Volgograd.

Educational activities

On all tourists who come to Volgograd, Sarepta makes a huge impression. And not only preserved historical monuments. The Museum-Reserve regularly conducts interregional scientific seminars, round tables, conferences, publishes its own scientific yearbook and the newspaper Sarepta News.
The museum houses the best experimental German library in the region, Russian, German and Kalmyk cultural centers operate.