Temples of my city. Simonov Monastery. Mysteries of the Simonov Monastery on Avtozavodskaya - Anar Gasimov Simonov Monastery Tower

On the occasion of City Day in Moscow, a project of free excursions was launched: Walking around Moscow. It turned out that the project was so necessary that they decided to make such walks regular. At the beginning of autumn, I already visited two excursions; I especially liked the visit to the Sviblovo estate. This time I managed to get on the tour of the Mysteries and Legends of the Simonov Monastery. To my surprise, I had not heard of such a place in Moscow, so I happily went to discover the sights of the capital that were new to me. We were also interested in the fact that they promised to show us the burial place of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo and the famous composer A. Alyabyev. We met with the guide near the Avtozavodskaya metro station. And immediately the story began about what used to be located in these places. Many centuries ago there were dense forests here that belonged to the boyar Stepan Khovrin. In 1370, he gave part of his possessions to the nephew of Sergius of Radonezh, Feodor, and he founded a monastery in them. Since Stepan Khovrin also became a monk and took monastic vows under the name Simon, the monastery was named Simonov. After some time, Fyodor left the monastery and founded a new Simonov monastery a little to the side. Its architectural ensemble took centuries to form and almost all of it was destroyed in the 1930s. What can be seen now is only a small part of its former splendor.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

On the way to the monastery, we were shown two unusual buildings on Leninskaya Sloboda Street - these are the former railway stations of the Lizino station, passenger and freight. They were built in 1915 at the expense of the youngest son of a large railroad rich man P.G. von Derviza. Indeed, the silhouettes of the buildings are very reminiscent of the stud farm on the Ryazan estate of Pavel Pavlovich von Derviz in Starozhilovo. Both there and here the buildings were supposedly built according to the design of the famous architect F. Shekhtel. They also told us the story behind the name of the station. The fact is that the famous writer, author of “The History of the Russian State” N.M. Karamzin loved to walk in Simonova Sloboda. In 1792, he wrote a very popular story, “Poor Liza,” which tells about the unhappy love of a girl, because of which she drowned herself in the Sergius Pond near the Simonov Monastery. After the book was published, a real “lisomania” began in Moscow: lovers came to the pond and swore their love to each other, lonely girls and romantic young men wrote poems on nearby trees. Lizina Square, Lizina Dead End and Lizino Station appeared in the area.

Only at the end of the 50s. In the 20th century, this station was closed because the need for it disappeared. Now it would not even occur to an ignorant person that these two beautiful houses were once station buildings. Finally we come to one of the towers of the Simonov Monastery.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

Now there are only three of them left, but previously the monastery was surrounded on all sides by a high wall with five towers. At all times, the Simonov Monastery was a very powerful and well-defended fortress, which was the first to meet the enemy on the approaches to Moscow. Its walls repelled the attacks of the troops of Khan Kazy-Girey, stood in the way of Ivan Bolotnikov, suffered greatly from the Polish-Lithuanian invaders and the Napoleonic army, but were destroyed by their own people. From the former outpost, only the southern wall and three towers have survived: Kuznechnaya, Solevaya and Dulo. They were built in the 17th century on the foundations of more ancient structures.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

At the most powerful tower, “Dulo”, you can see huge boulders left over from the old walls. It turned out that it is currently impossible to enter the territory of the monastery. This is the first time I have seen that ordinary people were not allowed into the monastery. Even my group and I were only allowed to stand against the wall for five minutes. Photography is also strictly prohibited. In general, such secrecy only raises the suspicion that some dark things are going on on the territory of the Simonov Monastery. We had to examine the preserved architectural objects through a barbed wire fence. Two buildings attract the most attention. The first is a huge building called Sushilo.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

It served for the economic needs of the monastery. Some European influence can be traced in its architecture. It is reminiscent of Dutch houses, as is the preserved refectory. This is the second stunningly beautiful building of the Simonov Monastery, which immediately catches your eye. It was built under Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, the elder brother of Peter the Great, who also loved everything European.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

The work was supervised by the famous architect Osip Startsev. In one of the towers of the refectory there were the king’s personal chambers, and in the other the church. Previously, this building was richly painted, let's hope that over time its appearance will be restored. Now the Tikhvin Church is located inside - the only thing that can be freely visited in the monastery.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

The main cathedral of the monastery - the Assumption, as well as the tall bell tower, which at that time was the tallest building in Moscow, were blown up in 1930. Now on the site of the temple there is the ZIL House of Culture. At the same time, one of the oldest cemeteries in Moscow was destroyed, where Peter the Great’s friend and comrade-in-arms Peter Golovin, composer A. Alyabyev, poet D. Venevitinov, representatives of such famous noble families as the Urusovs, Naryshkins, Tatishchevs, Buturlins and many others were buried. Now, on the site of the cemetery, under the walls of the monastery, a small city park has been created, where townspeople walk with strollers, children ride down the slides, not even imagining that many generations of quite famous families are buried under the park.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

Opposite the Simonov Monastery, if you walk through the park, you can go to the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

It was in its place that the old Simonov Monastery appeared. The first church was founded here in 1370, and later it was naturally rebuilt many times.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

It was here that the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo were buried, including the famous heroes Peresvet and Oslyabya. After the revolution, the compression workshop of the Dynamo plant was located in the temple building. Only for the Olympics in 1980 did the authorities remember the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo and decided to find their graves. Excavations were carried out on the territory of the temple, and the remains of several dozen people were discovered. A symbolic tombstone was installed above them.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

By the way, adjacent to the walls of the temple are gravestones brought here from the destroyed cemetery near the walls of the Simonov Monastery.

Simonov Monastery in Moscow

Ancient buildings are now tightly surrounded by modern business centers, townhouses and shopping complexes. Therefore, not everyone will be able to navigate and find all the historical sites of Simonova Sloboda on their own. All the more valuable are such public projects that allow Muscovites to get to know their city better.

Simonov Monastery, 1st class, stauropegial, in Moscow, on the edge of the city, on the banks of the Moscow River, opposite Derbenevskaya embankment. Founded by the disciple of St. Sergius Feodor. In 1788 the monastery was abolished; restored in 1795; in 1812 it was devastated by the French. Enjoying almost from the very foundation the advantage of stauropegy and having been enriched by contributions and precious gifts from princes, kings, boyars and citizens, the Simonov Monastery was considered from time immemorial one of the first Russian monasteries. It achieved its greatest prosperity in the last century. The famous chant composed by Hieroschemamonk Victor, which delighted Emperor Nicholas I, brings high spiritual pleasure to every lover of church singing. The main cathedral in the name of the Dormition of the Mother of God has survived from the founding of the monastery. Built in the Byzantine style, it was restored and consecrated in 1896; in the lower tier of the iconostasis there are icons remarkable in their antiquity: the Dormition of the Mother of God, the Life-Giving Trinity and the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God; It also houses the Simonovskaya Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, in a chapel built in Her honor, which formerly belonged to Saint Tikhon of Voronezh and became famous in 1832 for the miraculous healing of a seriously ill woman. In 1839, the monastery was decorated with a majestic bell tower.

Near the Simonov monastery, a pond dug by the Monk Sergius, lined with birch trees and surrounded by a rampart, has been preserved. On the day of the Midsummer, a procession from the Simonov Monastery takes place here. On the site of the original foundation of the monastery, in the parish Church of the Nativity, the monks brothers Peresvet and Oslabya rest; over their tomb there is a tent made of black oak; In its present form, this tomb was built in 1870.

From the book by S.V. Bulgakov “Russian monasteries in 1913”

Simonov Monastery was founded in 1370 by the nephew (according to other sources, student) of St. Sergius, Theodore (who later became Bishop of Rostov), led. book Dimitri Ivanovich. The monastery got its name from Simon, a boyar named Khovrin, who donated land to the monastery. The monastery was founded on the site where the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo is now located, an ancient one-domed temple in which the warrior monks Peresvet and Oslyabya are buried. In 1379, the monastery was moved to a new location, located not far from the previous one, at the same time the Church of the Assumption of the Mother of God was founded, one of the oldest buildings in Moscow that survived into the twentieth century. The church was consecrated in 1405. In different years, St. Kirill Belozersky, St. Job and sschmch. Hermogenes, All-Russian Patriarchs. Many events in Russian history are connected with the Simonov Monastery.

In 1771, the monastery was abolished and, due to the outbreak of the plague, turned into a plague quarantine, but in 1795, at the request of Count Musin-Pushkin, it was restored again. By the beginning of the twentieth century, the monastery was one of the richest and most famous Russian monasteries. On its territory, surrounded by twelve towers, there were 6 churches with 11 altars and a huge bell tower (architect K.A. Ton).

Since 1923, part of the monastery housed a museum. His guidebook was published and restoration work was planned in 1927. The last church of the monastery was closed in May 1929. On the night of January 21, 1930, on the 6th anniversary of the death of V.I. Lenin, the Simonov Monastery Cathedral and the walls around it were blown up. In 1932-1937 on the site of most of the monastery by architects L.A., V.A. and A.A. The Vesnins built the Palace of Culture of the Automobile Plant named after. I.A. Likhacheva.

By 1990, the following buildings were preserved in the monastery: fortress walls (three spindles); Salt Tower (corner, southeast); Blacksmith tower (pentahedral, on the south wall); "Dulo" (corner, southwestern tower); "Water" gate (1/2 of the 17th century); "Kelarsky building" (or "Old" refectory, 1485, XVII century, XVIII century); “New” refectory (1677-1683, architects P. Potapov, O. Startsev); "Sushilo" (malt, 16th century, 2/2 17th century); Treasury cells (1/3 of the 17th century). One closed temple with 5 thrones was preserved, while five other temples with 6 thrones were destroyed.

In 1923, a museum was established in the monastery, occupying the Tikhvin Church with a refectory. Since 1931, there was a film club in the refectory. It was restored from 1955 to 1966. and from 1982 to 1990. The community of the deaf and hard of hearing of the Tikhvin Church was registered in 1991 and held prayer services on the territory of the Simonov Monastery. In 1995, the remains of the monastery ensemble were transferred to the Church.

Source: http://www.ortho-rus.ru/cgi-bin/or_file.cgi?5_1581

Palace of Culture ZIL, built in the 1930s. on the site of the destroyed part of the monastery is the largest and final architectural monument of Soviet constructivism by the Vesnin brothers. Located in Moscow on Vostochnaya Street, 4. Construction 1930-1937. Built on the territory of the necropolis of the Simonov Monastery in the 1930s. destroyed by the Bolsheviks. Numerous representatives of ancient Russian noble families were buried at this place, including the Vadbolskys, Golovins, Durasovs, Zagryazhskys, Islenevs, Muravyovs, Naryshkins, Olenins, Soimonovs, Tatishchevs, Shakhovskys and many others. The burials were not preserved because they were demolished during working clean-up days. To promote the oblivion of Russian history, the Bolsheviks built the ZIL Palace of Culture on the site of the Simonov Monastery necropolis.

Drying (XVI-XVII centuries). According to surviving documents, it was intended for storing food supplies and drying malt and grain. The building was built simultaneously with the refectory by the architect Parfen Potapov (according to other sources, Parfen Petrov) and was originally surrounded by a gallery on pillars. The first floor of the building is occupied by two identical chambers; on the second and third floors there are large pillarless halls.

Treasury cells (XVII century). The Treasury Corps (1620-1630s) at the Water Gate - which were instead of the current iron ones. Simonov Monastery, Vostochnaya street 4, bldg. 7

Old refectory (XV-XVIII centuries). The Old Refectory - the name of the 20th century, the Cellar Building - the name of the 19th century, the Bread Chamber - the name of the 18th century. In 1485, the “kelarsky” building was built - a two-story building near the southern section of the wall, which was the old refectory. It is one of the oldest buildings not only of the monastery itself, but also of Moscow in general.

Enclosure walls (1640s). The new walls of the monastery, which have partially survived to this day, and some of the towers, which can still be seen today, were built in 1630, while the new fortress included fragments of the old fortress built by Fyodor Kon. The circumference of the monastery walls was 825 m, the height was 7 m. Of the surviving towers, the corner tower “Dulo”, topped with a high tent with a two-tier watchtower, stands out especially. The other two surviving towers - the pentagonal "Kuznechnaya" and the round "Salt" - were built in the 1640s, when the monastery's defensive structures, damaged during the Time of Troubles, were being rebuilt. The Watchtower and Tainitskaya monastery towers have been lost.

Blacksmith Tower (1640s). One of the three towers of the Simonov Monastery that have survived to this day. The tower has a pentagonal shape and is located on the southern only surviving wall of the monastery. This smallest tower of the monastery was erected in the 1640s, and its high tent was completed over the next 40 years. The tower has a single-tier observation post, unlike other towers, where it is two-tiered.

Churches of the Simonov Monastery: St. Alexander of Svirsky 1700, Honest Trees 1593 - above the western gate; Nicholas the Wonderworker - above the eastern ones and in the name of John, Patriarch of Constantinople, and Alexander Nevsky - in the second tier of the five-tier bell tower, built by Ton in 1839.

Based on materials from http://oldboy.icnet.ru/SITE_2103/MY_SITE/Monast/SIM_MON_MOS/SUSH.htm

The ancient Simonov Monastery was founded in 1730 with the blessing of Sergius of Radonezh (Bartholomew) (between 1314-1322 - 1392) by his student and nephew - the Monk Fedor (Ivan) (c. 1340-1394), a native of Radonezh, who took monastic vows at the Intercession Khotkov Monastery. At the head of the Simonov Monastery, the Monk Fyodor became famous as a spiritual mentor; he was the personal confessor of Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy. In 1338, Saint Fedor became Archbishop of Rostov. He died on November 28, 1394 and was buried in the Assumption Cathedral of Rostov the Great.

The monastery got its name from the name of the monk Simon, in the world of the boyar Stefan Vasilyevich Khovrin, who donated the land for the monastery. On these lands - south of Moscow, ten miles from the Kremlin - the monastery was founded. Initially, the Simonov Monastery was located slightly lower along the Moscow River, near the high road to Moscow, and Fyodor, trying to find solitude, chose another place for the monastery, not far from the old one. In 1379 the monastery was moved to its current location. Only the parish church of the Nativity in Stary Simonovo remained in the old place, under the bell tower of which in the second half of the 18th century the graves of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo Alexander Peresvet (d. 1380) and Rodion Oslyabi (d. 1380 or after 1389) were discovered. Having survived terrible destruction and for a long time served as a compression station at the Dynamo plant, this church is now operational again.

The Monk Sergius of Radonezh considered the Simonov Monastery to be a “branch” of his Trinity Monastery and always stayed there when he came to the golden-domed one. From the walls of the Simonov Monastery came a whole galaxy of outstanding ascetics and church leaders: St. Kirill Belozersky (Kozma), St. Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow, Patriarch Joseph (Vladimir), Metropolitan Gerontius, Archbishop John of Rostov (d. 1525), the famous figure of non-covetousness Vassian, in the world Prince Vasily Ivanovich Kosoy-Patrikeev. Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich Romanov (1661-1682) especially loved to visit the Simonov Monastery; cells were built here for him. In 1771, under Catherine II (1729-1796), the monastery was abolished and, due to the spreading plague epidemic at that time, turned into a plague quarantine. In 1795, at the request of Count Vasily Vasilyevich Musin-Pushkin, the monastery was restored.

The towers and walls of the monastery were built in the 16th century. They were erected by the “sovereign master” Fyodor Savelyevich Kon, an outstanding Russian architect and builder of the Smolensk Kremlin. Fortified under Boris Fedorovich Godunov, the monastery repelled the raid of the Crimean Tatars of Kazy-Girey. New walls of the monastery and part of the towers were built in 1630, while parts of the old fortress were included in the new fortress. The circumference of the monastery walls was 825 m, the height was about 7 m. Of the surviving towers, the corner tower “Dulo”, topped with a high tent with a two-tier watchtower, stands out. The other two surviving towers, the pentagonal Kuznechnaya and the round Solevaya, were built in the 1640s, when the monastery’s defensive structures, damaged during the Time of Troubles, were being rebuilt. Three gates led to the monastery: eastern, western and northern. In memory of repelling the attack of the Crimeans in 1591, the gate church of the All-Merciful Savior was built. In 1834, the Gate Church of St. was erected above the eastern gate. Nicholas the Wonderworker.

In 1832, a decision was made to build a new bell tower of the Simonov Monastery. The funds for the construction were provided by the merchant Ivan Ignatiev. The initial project in the style of classicism was drawn up by the architect N.E. Tyurin. The bell tower was founded in 1835, but then its design was changed; it was erected in the Russian style according to the design of K.A. Tones. Construction was completed in 1839. In its appearance and location, the bell tower repeated the bell tower of the Novodevichy Convent. Its height was more than 90 m. The largest bell hanging on the bell tower weighed 1000 pounds. A clock was installed on the fourth tier.

Back in 1405, a stone cathedral church was built in the monastery in the name of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In 1476, the dome of the cathedral was severely damaged by a lightning strike. At the end of the 15th century, the temple was rebuilt by one of Fioravanti’s students according to the model of the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin. At the end of the 17th century, the cathedral was painted by an artel of Moscow royal masters. At the same time, a gilded carved iconostasis was made, in which the main shrine of the monastery was located - the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, with which Sergius of Radonezh blessed Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy for the Battle of Kulikovo. A golden cross studded with diamonds and emeralds was also kept here - a gift from Princess Maria Alekseevna. The son of Dmitry Donskoy, Konstantin Dmitrievich Uglitsky, the princes Mstislavsky, Tyomkin-Rostovsky, Suleshov, and the boyars Golovins and Buturlins were buried in the monastery cathedral.

The refectory of the Simonov Monastery was built in 1680 at the expense of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich by an artel of masons led by Parfen Petrov. It included parts of the previous building in 1485. When constructing the new building, Parfen Petrov used details of early Moscow architecture that the monastery authorities did not like. They filed a lawsuit against the master, and three years later the refectory was rebuilt. This time the work was supervised by the famous Moscow master Osip Dmitrievich Startsev, who built a lot in Moscow and Kyiv. Along with Yakov Grigorievich Bukhvostov, he is the second outstanding architect of the 17th century. The names of Startsev and Bukhvostov often appear side by side in documents of that time: they were a kind of “friends-rivals” who worked in the Moscow Baroque style, but had a pronounced originality. The new refectory of the Simonov Monastery became one of the most significant buildings of the late 17th century. The lavishly decorated building was brightly painted "checkerboard" - a painting style similar to faceted stonework. The Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit at the refectory was built in 1700 at the expense of Princess Maria Alekseevna, sister of Peter I Alekseevich. In the 19th century, two chapels were added to it.

On the territory of the Simonov Monastery there was an extensive cemetery where the poet Dmitry Vladimirovich Venevitinov, the writer Sergei Timofeevich Aksakov, his son Konstantin Sergeevich Aksakov, the composer Alexander Alexandrovich Alyabyev, the famous bibliophile and collector merchant Alexei Petrovich Bakhrushin, Nikolai Lvovich Pushkin, as well as numerous representatives of ancient history were buried. Russian noble families - Zagryazhskys, Olenins, Durasovs, Vadbolskys, Soimonovs, Muravyovs, Islenevs, Tatishchevs, Naryshkins, Shakhovskys.

In the early 1930s, all the main buildings of the Simonov Monastery were destroyed. The Assumption Cathedral, bell tower, and gate churches were destroyed. Watchtowers and Taininskaya towers, all the graves on the territory of the monastery were destroyed. All that remained of the monastery were the southern wall with towers, the refectory church with the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, and an outbuilding - the “malting room” or “drying house”. On a place sacred to Russian people, the ZIL “palace of culture” was built.

From the book by A.Yu. Nizovsky "The most famous monasteries and churches of Russia." 2000. Veche.

One of the most damaged Moscow monasteries and one of the most significant in the history of the capital. Simonov Monastery was lost by more than two-thirds; in the 20th century, its cathedral, one of the oldest in Moscow, was destroyed. And yet, fragments of his story have survived to this day, as if showing what an insatiable thirst for destruction can lead to.

Initially, the Simonov Monastery was founded in 1370 a little further from its current location - where the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Old Simonov is now located. Its founder was St. Feodor, the disciple and nephew of St. Sergius of Radonezh. And the monastery received its name not from the temple, but from the monastic name of the boyar Stepan Khovrin, who donated land to create the monastery and accepted monasticism there with the name Simon. In 1379, the monastery was moved slightly to the north and never changed its location. At the same time, construction began on the stone Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God, completed by 1405. The existing stone walls were built in the 16th century: the architect was presumably Fyodor Kon, the creator of the Smolensk Kremlin, the walls of the White City in Moscow and the Small Cathedral of the Donskoy Monastery. The walls and towers of the Simonov Monastery are a masterpiece of Russian fortification; it took part in battles more than once and withstood enemy sieges. The Dulo, Solyanaya and Kuznechnaya towers that have survived to this day were rebuilt in the 1640s. The monastery was abolished in 1771 to accommodate a plague quarantine within its walls, but in 1795 it was restored again at the request of Count Musin-Pushkin.

The center of the monastery ensemble was the massive five-domed Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God. To the south there was a refectory, built in 1677 at the expense of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich with the Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God on the basis of an old building. Architecturally, it was a very unusual building: in addition to the quadrangle of the church, what stood out was the wide observation tower, from which the tsar admired the views of Moscow and the surrounding area. Its facades were decorated with windows with complex-shaped frames; on the west, it was crowned with a decorative stepped composition with Dutch motifs. Above the western gates stood the Church of the All-Merciful Savior, built in 1593 in memory of the victory over the Crimean Khan Kazy-Girey, and above the eastern gates stood the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. From the north, as part of the monastery wall, there was a bell tower, built at the expense of the merchant Ivan Ignatiev in 1835-1839 according to the design of the architect K.A. Ton - the creator of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Finally, next to the building of the monastery hospital there was a one-domed church of St. Alexander of Svirsky.

A number of Russian saints and famous bishops who went down in history began their monastic path in the Simonov Monastery: Metropolitan Jonah of Moscow, Patriarch Joseph, St. Kirill of Belozersky. The monastery necropolis was full of famous names of Russian literature and art:, S.T. and K.S Aksakovs, A.A. Alyabyev and many others.

Near the Simonov Monastery there was a pond, which, according to legend, was dug by the Monk Sergius of Radonezh himself. However, it entered literature and popular memory under the name “Lizin’s Pond” thanks to the book by N.M. Karamzin “Poor Liza”: the main character of the work committed suicide due to the betrayal of her lover by throwing herself into this pond.

In 1920, the monastery was abolished, but the buildings were initially preserved: in some of them a fortification museum was set up. However, by 1930, it too was closed, and on the night of January 21, 1930, most of the monastery, along with the Assumption Cathedral of the early 15th century, was blown up. This is the largest loss of Moscow's cultural heritage in the 1930s. At the same time, the monastery necropolis was completely destroyed, only some graves were moved to the Novodevichy cemetery. On the site of the destroyed part of the monastery, the Palace of Culture of the ZIL plant appeared, created according to the project.

Today we can see no more than a third of the monastery ensemble: out of six churches, only one remains - in the name of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. Also preserved are three towers with dilapidated fragments of the monastery walls, the cellar building, the refectory, the malthouse and the treasury cells. These buildings have been used for industrial purposes for a long time, fishing hooks and tackle were made here, so they are all in very poor condition. The building of the Tikhvin Church with its refectory, distorted by reconstruction, was handed over to believers in 1995, and restoration has been ongoing since then. The community here is special - for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Results from a walk 2 weeks ago.

Simonov Monastery- a male stauropegic monastery, founded in 1370 by the disciple and nephew of St. St. Sergius of Radonezh - St. Fedor on the lands that were donated by boyar Stepan Vasilyevich Khovrin (monastic name - monk Simon - from which the name of the monastery comes).
In 1379 the monastery was moved to its current location; in the same place (in Old Simonovo) the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary has been preserved (there will be a separate post about it).
1.

From the walls of the Simonov Monastery came a whole galaxy of outstanding ascetics and church leaders: St. Kirill Belozersky (1337-1427), St. Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow (?-1461), Patriarch Joseph (?-1652), Metropolitan Gerontius, Archbishop John of Rostov. In the 16th century, the theologian St. Venerable lived and worked in the monastery. Maxim Grek.

In former times, the monastery was one of the most famous and revered in Russia: a huge number of people and rich material contributions flocked here. The monastery was especially loved by Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich (the elder brother of Peter I), who had his own cell here for solitude.

In 1771, the monastery was abolished by Catherine II and, due to the spreading plague epidemic at that time, it was turned into a plague isolation ward. Only in 1795 was it restored to its original quality at the request of Count Alexei Musin-Pushkin.
After the arrival of Soviet power in 1920, the monastery was abolished. In 1923, a museum was established in the monastery, which existed until 1930. The director of the museum, Vasily Ivanovich Troitsky (1868 - 1944), established relations with the church community: he allowed services in one of the monastery churches in exchange for the provision of watchmen and janitors at the expense of the community.

In January 1930, a government commission recognized that some of the ancient buildings on the territory of the monastery could be preserved as historical monuments, but the cathedral and walls should be demolished. The explosion occurred on the night of January 21, exactly on the sixth anniversary of the death of V.I. Lenin. Five of the six churches were blown up, including the Assumption Cathedral, the bell tower, the gate churches, as well as the Watchtower and Tainitskaya towers with their adjacent buildings. All the walls of the monastery were dismantled, except for the southern one, and all the graves on the territory of the monastery were wiped off the face of the earth. On the site of the ruins of the “fortress of church obscurantism,” as Ogonyok magazine wrote, in 1932-1937 the Palace of Culture of the Moscow Automobile Plant (DK ZIL) rose.
2.

The new walls of the monastery, which have partially survived to this day, and some of the towers, which can still be seen today, were built in 1630, while the new fortress included fragments of the old fortress built by Fyodor Kon. The circumference of the monastery walls was 825 m, height - 7 m. Of the surviving towers, the corner tower “Dulo”, topped with a high tent with a two-tier watchtower, stands out especially.
3.

The other two surviving towers - the pentagonal "Kuznechnaya" and the round "Salt" - were built in the 1640s, when the monastery's defensive structures, damaged during the Time of Troubles, were being rebuilt.
5.1979

Simeon Bekbulatovich, the baptized prince of Kasimov, was buried in the monastery cathedral. Blinded in 1595 through the machinations of Boris Godunov, in 1606 he was tonsured on Solovki and died in the Simonov Monastery under the name of the schema-monk Stefan. The son of Dmitry Donskoy, Konstantin Dmitrievich (monastically Cassian), the princes of Mstislavsky, Temkin-Rostov, Suleshev, and the boyars Golovins and Buturlins were also buried here.

On the territory of the Simonov Monastery there was an extensive necropolis, where the poet D. V. Venevitinov, the writer S. T. Aksakov, his son K. S. Aksakov, the composer A. A. Alyabyev, the famous bibliophile and collector A. P. Bakhrushin, were buried. uncle of A.S. Pushkin - N.L. Pushkin, as well as numerous representatives of old Russian noble families.

In the 1930s, the necropolis was completely destroyed by the Bolsheviks. The remains of the poet D.V. Venevitinov and writers S.T. and K.S. Aksakov were transferred from his devastated cemetery to Novodevichye. The workers who opened the graves were struck by the fact that from the left side of Sergei Timofeevich Aksakov’s chest, in the area of his heart, the root of a huge birch tree was growing, covering the entire Aksakov family grave.

The refectory of the Simonov Monastery was built in 1680 at the expense of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich by an artel of masons led by Parfen Petrov. It included fragments of the previous building in 1485. During the construction of the new building, Parfen Petrov, a master who built in the traditions of the first half of the 17th century, used details of ancient Moscow architecture that were not to the liking of the monastery authorities. They filed a lawsuit against the master, and three years later the refectory was rebuilt in the bright, individual style of the Moscow Baroque. This time the work was supervised by the famous Moscow master Osip Startsev, an outstanding architect of the late 17th century who built a lot in Moscow and Kiev.
The new refectory of the Simonov Monastery became one of the most significant buildings of the late 17th century. The lavishly decorated building was brightly painted “chessboard” - a painting style that imitates faceted stonework.
8.1910s

9. 1979

10.current state

11.View of the altars of the Tikhvin Church from the east, 1979.

12.current state

13.window decor

14.entrance to the temple

Nowadays there is a community for the deaf and dumb in the church; services are held with sign language interpretation.

15. old buildings on the territory of the monastery

16.malt

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Mother of God - blown up in 1930. Now here is the cultural center "ZiL"
- c. All-Merciful Savior - blown up in 1930.
- c. Nicholas the Wonderworker - blown up in 1930.
- c. John the Patriarch of Tsaregrad - blown up in 1930.
- c. St. Alexandra Svirsky - blown up in 1930.

Bibliography
-P.G. Palamarchuk "Forty Forties", Volume I

Only our own photographs were used - shooting dates 04/26/2010 and 03/21/15

M. "Avtozavodskaya"
Address: East Street, 6.

Simonov Monastery was founded in 1370 by the Monk Theodore, a disciple of Sergius of Radonezh. It received its name from the name of the monk Simon (in the world of the boyar Khovrin), on whose lands it was built.
In 1380, in the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, the remains of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo, monks Peresvet and Oslyabi, were buried.
The Simonov Monastery played a vital role in the defense of the southern approaches to Moscow. Perhaps none of the guardian monasteries had such powerful fortifications. He repeatedly had to withstand attacks, first by the Tatar hordes, and then by the Polish-Lithuanian invaders.
In the 16th century Maxim the Greek lived and wrote his works here. The architectural ensemble of the monastery was impressive. Suffice it to say that there were 6 churches in the Simonov Monastery. The main attractions of the monastery were the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, built in 1389-1405, and a five-tier bell tower more than 94 m high, built in 1839 according to the design of the architect K.A. Ton. The territory of the monastery was surrounded by a wall with five towers.
There was a large necropolis in the Simonov Monastery. S.V. Khovrin and many Khovrin-Golovins, the son of Dmitry Donskoy Konstantin (1430), were buried in the cathedral.
The cemetery was located near the eastern fence, behind the Assumption Cathedral and the Tikhvin Church. The following were buried there: writer S.T. Aksakov (1859) with his family, composer A.A. Alyabyev (1851) with his family, poet D.V. Venevitinov (1827) with his relatives (related to A.S. Pushkin), A.S. Pushkin’s uncle N.L. Pushkin (1821), collector A.P. Bakhrushin (1904) and many other outstanding figures of our history and culture.
The Simonov Monastery was closed in 1923, the vacated monastery premises were given over to housing for workers of the Simonovskaya Sloboda. The Simonov Monastery was gradually destroyed. The last church was closed in May 1929. The monuments in the monastery cemetery remained until November 1928, then the necropolis was demolished and a park was laid out in its place.
In 1930, the walls of the monastery, as well as five of its six churches, were blown up. In subsequent years, the Palace of Culture of the ZIL plant was built on its territory.
From the fortifications of the monastery, only three southern towers remained, connected by the remainder of the wall. Among the survivors is the corner tower "Dulo", built in the 16th century. famous architect Fyodor Kon, builder of the fortifications of the Moscow White City. The Church of the Tikhvin Mother of God, built in 1677, the refectory of the monastery, built in 1680, as well as a number of outbuildings survived, although they were badly damaged.
Currently, the Church of the Tikhvin Mother of God has been handed over to believers. An Orthodox community of the deaf and hard of hearing was formed here.
The Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary (“in Stary Simonovo”) has also been preserved, which in the 1930s ended up on the territory of the Dynamo plant and was used as production premises. Currently, the church, the current building of which was built in 1509, has been restored and returned to the Russian Orthodox Church, the graves of Peresvet and Oslyabi have been restored.

in Stary Simonovo
Website of the Church of the Nativity
The current stone Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo was built in 1510. There is a legend that the temple was built by Aleviz the New, but it is not confirmed by chronicle data.
In the 18th century The burials of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo were discovered near the church.
In 1785-1787, instead of wooden ones, a stone refectory and bell tower were built, in 1849-1855. they were rebuilt. There are two chapels in the refectory: St. Nicholas and St. Sergius.
In 1870, a cast-iron tombstone of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo, Alexander Peresvet and Andrei (Rodion) Oslyabi, was installed in the Sergievsky chapel.
In 1928 the church was closed.
In 1932, the bell tower was demolished, and the cast-iron tombstone of the heroes of the Battle of Kulikovo was scrapped. Subsequently, during the expansion of the Dynamo plant, the church ended up on the territory of the enterprise. Access to the temple was closed. The church building housed the compressor workshop of the Dynamo plant - a powerful motor was dug into the floor of the church, which, when working, shook the walls. As a result, the church was on the verge of destruction.
In 1989, the church was handed over to believers.
In 2006, the bell tower was restored, on which the Peresvet bell (2200 kg) was placed, accepted as a gift from the governor of the Bryansk region, the homeland of the monastic heroes Peresvet and Oslyaby. In the 20th century they were canonized.

Factory "Dynamo" named after Kirov (Leninskaya Sloboda St., 26)
The Moscow Dynamo plant named after S.M. Kirov was one of the largest electrical machine-building enterprises in the USSR. He produced electric motors and equipment for electric urban transport, crane-lifting devices, excavators, rolling mills, sea vessels, etc. Some of the products were exported abroad.
The plant was founded in 1897 on the basis of a Belgian joint-stock company and was the Russian division of the American company Westinghouse. At first it was called the “Central Electric Society in Moscow”. He produced electrical equipment using a semi-handicraft method according to foreign technical documentation.
By 1932, the plant produced the first traction electric motors for electric locomotives in the USSR, and on November 6, the first Soviet-designed electric locomotive, “Vladimir Lenin” (VL19), was built.
During the Great Patriotic War, he produced weapons and repaired tanks. The main technological processes were mechanized and automated: there were more than 100 conveyor and production lines with a total length of over 3.5 km.
Since 2009, the plant does not exist. Production has ceased, the premises are dismantled for scrap or rented out. Mostly car repair shops are located here. Some of the equipment was moved to sites in other cities.

Simonov Monastery, view from the Moscow River

Salt tower. Built in the 1640s, when the monastery fence, destroyed during the Time of Troubles, was rebuilt. The octagonal tent of the tower with rumored windows rests on an intermediate octagon cut by arches. The tent ends with a two-tier observation tower.	Forge tower.	Dulo Tower. Built in the 16th century. famous architect Fyodor Kon, builder of the fortifications of the Moscow White City.
Old Refectory Chamber. Built in 1485. One of the oldest buildings in Moscow.	The refectory building with the Tikhvin Church was built by Parfen Petrov in 1680. However, the master’s work style did not satisfy the customer, and three years later the refectory was rebuilt under the leadership of the famous architect Osip Startsev. The lower part of the structure has a much more ancient history: fragments of a building from the late 15th century were discovered in the basement of the temple. The building, built by Osip Startsev, has the shape of the “Moscow Baroque”. The western facade of the refectory, decorated with a figured stepped pediment, looks especially picturesque. In the middle of the 19th century. Two chapels were added to the church, and then, in 1840, the temple was reconsecrated in honor of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God.	Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God
Drying or Solodezhnya. It was intended for storing food supplies and drying malt and grain. The building was built simultaneously with the refectory by the architect Parfen Potapov and was originally surrounded by a gallery on pillars. On the second and third floors there are large pillarless halls.	The stone is on the site where the monastery's holy well was.	Remains of old burials and the entrance to the church.
salt tower	Fragment of the monastery wall	Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God
Recesses in the monastery walls	Decoration of window frames of the Tikhvin Church icon of the Mother of God	Gate of the Simonov Monastery
Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God		Forge Tower
Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God	Stained glass windows in the windows of the Church of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God	Stones at the base of the Dulo tower
	Ancient tombstones that were used as curbstones in Soviet times	Poems condemning the desecration of ancestors' graves
Vostochnaya st., 6. Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo	Vostochnaya st., 6. Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Stary Simonovo.	Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary	Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, bell tower	Recreated tombstone of Peresvet and Oslyabi. Sculptor V.M. Klykov, 1988
Instead of the destroyed bell tower, a small stone belfry was erected in 1991, and the restoration of the bell tower was completed only in 2006.	Church building