What is the height of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the bell tower of Ivan the Great

Religious structures have always been impressive in size. Orthodox churches and bell towers are no exception. Some of them are swept upward by 100 meters and more. The height of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the bell tower of Ivan the Great can compete with the highest Orthodox churches.

One of the great

So rightly you can call St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg. After all, it is one of the most significant and most beautiful dome structures in the world. In size, this temple excels only the cathedrals of St. Peter (Rome), St. Paul (London) and St. Mary (Florence). In Russia, above the St. Isaac's Cathedral is only the newly rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow, its height, along with the cross is 103 meters.

The height of St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg is 101.5 meters. It covers an area of 4000 square meters. The total weight of the temple is estimated at about 300,000 tons. At a time, it can accommodate about 12,000 people. Surrounding the cathedral are 112 monolithic columns. The height of the columns of St. Isaac's Cathedral, or rather, some of them, reaches 17 meters.

This is a five-domed temple, the diameter of the main dome is about 25 meters. Another four small domes are installed over the four belfries located at the corners of the main building volume.

History of creation

Today the existing St. Isaac's Cathedral is the fourth, built on this place.

The first in 1707 was built St. Isaac's Church, simple, wooden, but with a high spire. The church was erected on the orders of Peter the Great, and on the day of his birth, the temple was laid. And since May 30 is also the day of veneration of the Monk Isaakia Dolmatsky, the church received his name. By decision of Peter in two years, the restoration of the temple was carried out. In the same church in 1712 the tsar was married to Catherine.

However, in 1717 the construction of the stone St. Isaac's Church began. Wooden by this time dilapidated. The new stone church was not very beautiful. Very much like the Peter and Paul Cathedral. Its construction was completed in 1727. However, the close proximity to the Neva (subsidence of the ground) and the fire caused by a lightning strike in 1735, eventually brought the structure into an unfit condition. And although they tried to restore it, good results were not achieved. It was decided to dismantle the church and build a new, more significant, ie, not a church, but a cathedral. But then it was still impossible to guess what height of St. Isaac's Cathedral would be final.

The Third Cathedral under Catherine II

The construction of the new cathedral began on the order of Catherine II in 1768. The architect of the project was A. Rinaldi. Five domes and a high bell tower were supposed to have a cathedral according to the architect's plan. However, he could not fully implement his plans. When Catherine II died, the construction was brought only to the eaves of the building. The works were suspended at that time, A. Rinaldi went to his homeland.

The new king Paul soon ordered the construction of the cathedral to continue and was commissioned by the architect V. Brenna, who significantly distorted the original design, especially regarding the domes and spire. The dome was left alone, and it diminished in size. As a result, the height of St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, which was consecrated in 1802, was significantly lower than the designed A. Rinaldi. The temple turned out quite plain.

The history of the construction of the modern St. Isaac's Cathedral

The cathedral did not match the status of the capital at all. Therefore, not even seven years passed, as a tender for the construction of a new one was announced. Alexander the First set the condition for the preservation of the three altars that existed before. One by one the king rejected the proposed projects. In the end, the project was commissioned by the young architect Montferrand, the Frenchman. In early 1818 the project was approved by the tsar.

To manage the construction of a special commission was created, and in 1819 laid the first stone.

However, soon with the criticism of the project was made by the famous architect A. Modui. His main remarks were reduced to the fragility of the foundation and the incorrect design of the main dome. The project had to be remade and modified, but all the comments were taken into account. Only in 1825 the project was finally approved, and the construction of the cathedral continued. It ended in 40 years.

May 30, 1858 consecrated the new church in the presence of the royal family.

By the way, the height of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the bell tower of Ivan the Great in Moscow at that time was considered the most significant.

Sight place of the cathedral

If before 1917 the St. Isaac's Cathedral was considered the main cathedral of St. Petersburg, then after it it became a museum. During the Great Patriotic War the building of the church was not particularly damaged, although it was visited by shell fragments.

Currently, the cathedral is still a museum, but on holidays with the permission of the Directorate there are held divine services. The first was held in 1990.

On the colonnade of the cathedral an observation deck is built, from which a charming view of the city opens. You can see almost all the main sights of St. Petersburg: the Winter Palace, the Admiralty, the Vasilievsky Island with the Academy of Arts, the Senate and the Synod building , and others.

The height of the observation platform of St. Isaac's Cathedral is 43 meters. Above - only the bell tower of the Smolny Cathedral, the viewing platform of which is built at an altitude of 50 meters.

It is noteworthy that on St. Petersburg's white nights, Isaak's site is open around the clock.

From St. Petersburg to Moscow

The height of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the bell tower of Ivan the Great is of interest to many fans of Russian history and monuments. About the St. Petersburg cathedral, that's all for now. It's time to go to Moscow, to its very center.

The bell tower of Ivan the Great is located on the Cathedral Square of the Kremlin. Its full name is the church-bell tower of St. John Climacus. In 2008, she turned 500 years old.

The height of the bell tower of Ivan the Great reaches 81 meters (without the cross).

In the bell tower there are museums, for example, the history of the Moscow Kremlin. There is also an observation deck.

History of the bell tower of Ivan the Great

Some sources testify that at this place in 1329 the church of the Christian theologian John Climacus was erected specially designed for "bells". However, later it was destroyed.

In 1505-1508 the architect Bon Fryazin built a three-story pillar of white stone and brick, the height of which was about 60 meters. In the lower tier was directly the church, in the upper - bells. The construction was erected in memory of Ivan the Third.

Later, the church was rebuilt several times. Thus, under Borisov Godunov, the height of the main pillar was increased. As a result, the height of the bell tower of Ivan the Great began to equal 81 meters. A little earlier, a belfry was built for it, intended for large bells, with one more church.

In the years of the invasion of Napoleon, the bell tower was damaged, partially destroyed. In subsequent years, restoration work was carried out.

The bells of our time

At present, on the bell tower of Ivan the Great, there are 21 bells. Three of them, the largest, are installed on the Filaret Add-on and the belfry - Ouspensky (more than 65 tons), Reut (Revun, almost 33 tons) and Seven-ton (13 tons).

Directly on the belltower are 18 bells, of course, smaller. Six of them are installed on the lower tier. By the way, they have very peculiar names: Bear, Swan, Broad, Novogorodsky, Slobodsky and Rostov. Their weight is also impressive - from 3 to 7 tons.

The second tier houses 9 bells, the size of which is even smaller. Finally, at the last, third tier, three more bells are installed.

Initially, all the bells hung on wooden beams, much later they were moved to metal ones.

All the bells of Ivan the Great bell tower are in force. They call on holidays.

In conclusion, we can add that, of course, the height of St. Isaac's Cathedral and the bell tower of Ivan the Great is impressive. However, even more admiration leads all their appearance, because they are by right are masterpieces of world architecture.