QR-35 - The ensemble of the Vologda Kremlin (the Archbishop's Residence)

Object	The ensemble of the Vologda Kremlin (the Archbishop's Residence)
Dating	16th – 19th centuries.
Type	An ensemble.
Status	a cultural heritage site of federal importance.
Address	15 Orlova St., Vologda, Russia.
A brief description	The Archbishop's Residence, also known as Vologda Kremlin, is a complex ensemble, which consists of monuments of religious, civil and military architecture. During the second half of the 16^th – the beginning of the 20^th century it served as a residence of Vologda bishops and archbishops. The stone construction was carried out during the 17^th – 19^th centuries. By the end of the 19^th century the complex of buildings had received its present design. The Vologda Kremlin comprises five religious buildings: the Cathedrals of Saint Sophia and of the Resurrection, the Chapel of the Nativity of Christ, the Gate Church of the Elevation of the Cross and the bell tower. The complex also includes a number of household structures, the names of which in most cases carry the names of the archbishops who initiated their construction: the Treasury, Simon’s Palace, Gabriel’s Palace, the Nameless House, Irenaeus‘s Palace, the Consistorial House, and the Chambers of Bishop Joseph Zolotoi. Most of the buildings are located in the courtyard surrounded by four walls with towers, the best preserved of which is the Southwest Tower (the name was given by tradition, according to which the altars of temples were directed to the East; but in fact it has a southeast orientation).
Condition	fair.
Contemporary use	Most of the buildings are occupied by the Vologda State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve. The Cathedral of Saint Sophia is used by the Museum together with the Vologda Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Cathedral of the Resurrection houses the Vologda Region Art Gallery.
History The formation of the complex of buildings of the Archbishop's Residence as a home of the archbishops of the Vologda and Perm Provinces began in the second half of the 16^th century. Prior to that, the wooden Archbishop's Court was located near the wooden Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in another place - in the center of the then town on Lenivaya site. The transfer of the Archbishop's house to the modern place is related to the plans of Tsar Ivan the Terrible to turn Vologda into Russia's largest fortress, his northern residence. The construction of the stone fortress with more than twenty towers and a stone cathedral in its center was started. Tsar Ivan the Terrible decided to shift the center of the Vologda and Perm Diocese from remote Ust – Vym’ to growing Vologda, raising its rank up to the Archdiocese. The modern ensemble of the Archbishop's Residence was started with the construction the Cathedral of Saint Sophia in 1568-1570. All other buildings of the Archbishop's Residence remained wooden up to the mid 17^th century. The following stone structure of the Archbishop's Residence, built in 1657-1659 years, is known under its later names of the Chambers of the State Office or the Treasury. In 1654 - 1659 a steepled stone bell tower was built. In 1669 - 1671 Simon’s Palace with the Chapel of the Nativity of Christ was erected. In 1671-1672 there was a severe famine in Vologda, during which the Archbishop Simon «with a small public purse» started the construction of the stone walls and towers, mainly survived up to present time. The construction of them lasted from 1671 to 1675. In 1687 - 1692 the Church of the Elevation of the Cross over the Holy Gate was erected. At the end of the 17^th century Gabriel’s Palace was built. At the beginning of the 18^th century Irenaeus‘s Palace and the Nameless House were built. In 1740 - 1774 the Consistorial House was built. It was erected in two stages. The first floor was built in 1740-1758 under Bishop Pimen. The second floor was built in 1774 under Bishop Joseph. In 1764 - 1769 the main building of the Archbishop's Residence was erected - the Chambers of Bishop Joseph Zolotoi. In 1772-1776 in place of the dismantled northeast tower the heated Resurrection Cathedral was built by the architect Zlatitski. In the same years a passage gallery along Simon’s Palace, leading to the Resurrection Cathedral was built. It was an open gallery till 1850. In 1870 the old stone bell tower was rebuilt. It was doubled in height and decorated in a pseudo-Gothic style. In the early twentieth century under Bishop Nikon (Nikon Rozhdestvensky, 1906-1912) the last building was erected- a wooden summer house of bishops. In 1923, the ensemble of the Archbishop's Residence was transferred to the management of the newly established United Museum of Local Lore.
Description The Archbishop's Residence is situated on the high right bank of the Vologda River, and it is perceived as the core of the historic town centre. The structures similar in size, erected during four centuries in different architectural styles, have created a historically formed ensemble which is based on the principles ascending to the ancient Russian architecture. These circumstances provide the integrity of the perception of the ensemble. A number of buildings of the Archbishop's Court are outstanding architectural structures of that time. The ensemble occupies the quarter, limited by Orlova street from the north, the Kremlin square from the east and Victory prospect from the south. A park adjoins the Archbishop's Residence in the west. The area of the Archbishop's Residence is approximately 2.3 hectares. The main entrance to the Residence today is between the Cathedral of the Resurrection and the bell tower. Before the construction of the Cathedral of the Resurrection there was the Water Gate in that place. The Holy Gate, opposite the Cathedral of Saint Sophia, is now closed. On the south side of the Archbishop's Residence there was a gate in the Pyatnitskaya tower which is now bricked up. Another gate, punched in the western wall, led to the park of the Archbishop's Residence. A plan of the complex of the Archbishop's Residence has a shape of an irregular quadrangle. To the north of it there is the Cathedral of Saint Sophia, opposite the main south entrance of which the Holy Gate is located. The territory of the Archbishop's Residence is divided by its buildings into three unequal parts. They are: the largest central area, the Consistorial courtyard and the Household courtyard. The main central part is a partially forested area formed by the surrounding buildings, which are the most important, both in the architectural and functional relation. All the facades of the buildings, facing this area, are the main ones. This area was finally formed in 1769, when the construction of the Chambers of Bishop Joseph Zolotoi was finished. Opposite them, in the northern part of the area, there is the earliest stone civil building of Vologda – the Treasury, built in 1659. Next to the Treasury there is the Nameless House of the early 18^th century, which is a connecting structure between the Treasury and the Gate Church of the Elevation of the Cross. In the western part of the central area there is Simon’s Palace with the Chapel of the Nativity of Christ (1667-1670) and a gallery, the main facade of which is the most picturesque part of the central area. Between Simon’s Palace and the Chambers of Bishop Joseph Zolotoi, a small Gabriel’s Palace is located. Between Simon’s Palace and the Gate Church of the Elevation of the Cross a covered walkway was built, the lower tier of which represents two large open arches, through which you can get in the neighbouring Consistorial courtyard. This courtyard received its name as a result of the construction there in 1740 the Consistorial House, the main facade of which surrounds this courtyard from the south and west. From the north the Consistorial House is limited by the northern wall, in which in the 19^th century a gate was breached, opening onto the square to the west of the Cathedral of Saint Sophia. In the 19^th century the window and door platbands of the Consistorial House were cut down, as well as of the altar part of the Church of the Nativity of Christ. In the late twentieth century the decor of the altar of the church was restored. The space between the south wall, the west wall and the buildings of Joseph’s Palace, Gabriel’s Palace, Irenaeus’s Palace and the Consistorial House is called the Household courtyard. Different economic structures located along the south wall can also be attributed to it. To get to the Household courtyard from town one could through the Pyatnitskaya tower, the gate of which is now bricked up. The peculiarity of the Archbishop's Residence is that all its temples’ altars, following the Cathedral of Saint Sophia, face north. It is believed that this feature is due to the local topographical conditions. The composition of the Archbishop's Residence is constructed so that from town it is closed by high walls with towers on corners. And the predominating in the artistic sense temples face the high bank of the Vologda River. The vertical dominant of the Archbishop's Residence is the bell tower of 78.5 meters high.
Restoration All the structures of the Vologda Kremlin underwent reconstruction and suffered losses. The Cathedral of Saint Sophia has been repeatedly rebuilt. The walls and towers of the Kremlin particularly suffered heavy losses. The southeast and southwest towers have lost their original tops and some parts of the walls. Also in the 19^th century the northwest tower was considerably rebuilt. The dilapidated second tier of the west wall and the adjoining outbuildings were demolished in the 19^th century. In the same 19^th century the window and door platbands of Simon’s and Gabriel’s Palaces and the Consistorial House were cut down. The tops of the Chapel of the Nativity of Christ and the Gate Church of the Elevation of the Cross were changed. The inner layout of all household premises of the east wall, of all the towers, as well as of the Chambers of Bishop Joseph Zolotoi, Irenaeus’s, Gabriel’s, Simon’s Palaces and the Consistorial House were changed. In 1772 the northeast tower was completely dismantled and the Cathedral of the Resurrection was built in its place. Restoration work in the Achbishop’s Residence was started in 1954. In 1959-1970 upon the project of V.S. Banige the restoration of the Cathedral of Saint Sophia was carried out. During those years, upon the project of I.N. Kaufman, the restoration of the Treasury was fulfilled. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s the southwest tower and the premises of the south walls were being restored. From 1999 to 2007 the Cathedral of Saint Sophia underwent complex restoration work, which was preceded by comprehensive research. In the course of works the destroyed sections of the faced brickwork were rehabilitated, some areas of the foundation and the facades were restored, the roof was repaired, and the central heating was installed. The iconostasis was partly restored too. Text by Alexander Suvorov. Translated by Olga Leonidova.
Information about the partner of the project In 2013, through the funding of our project partner, the communications and mobile operator Tele2, an information plate containing a QR-code was installed on the house.