Open the left menu of the nightingale. Northern labyrinths "Babylon". How to get to Solovki in winter

One of the most popular tourist destinations north of the European part of Russia - Solovetsky Islands . Travelers go to Solovki independently and organized group tours, exclusively to the islands or in combination with other attractions, by air and by sea, on small boats and on large cruise ships.

What attracts Solovki? Diversity and richness. amazing northern nature and memorable landscapes are combined here with a living history that opens up at every step, and one of the most “prayed” places of Russian Orthodoxy is now inseparable from the terrible prison and camp times. The significance of Solovki is recognized internationally: the Solovetsky Historical cultural complex in 1992 it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Many tourists notice the special attraction of Solovki, once having been there, from time to time they return to the islands. A special word has even been coined for this phenomenon: they have “become solitary”.

Where is Solovki located?

The Solovetsky archipelago lies in White Sea at the exit from Onega Bay almost at an equal distance from both its shores - the Kemsky coast and the Onega Peninsula.

How to get to Solovki?

There are two ways to the Solovetsky Islands: by sea and by air.

Tamarin mooring on the Big Solovetsky Island is able to receive enough large ships. Regular sea communication with the mainland is carried out with two ports of the Kemsky coast: with Kemyu (or rather, its suburban village of Rabocheostrovsk) and with Belomorsk. From Kemi 2-2.5 hours, from Belomorsk 3.5-4.

And Belomorsk, and Kem - railway stations on the route of the trains Moscow - Murmansk.

By the arrival of President Putin in Solovki in 2001, the runway strip the airport of Solovetsky settlement and at present the islands are reliably connected with the mainland by regular air transportation, depending only on weather conditions. The most popular flights are from Arkhangelsk (50 min.), from Moscow and Petrozavodsk. From Moscow and St. Petersburg it is possible to order private air taxi flights.

Composition of the Solovetsky Archipelago

The main island of Solovki is Bolshoy Solovetsky with an area of ​​246 km2. It is on it that the Kremlin (monastery) and the village of Solovetsky are located. The island is covered with a network of many lakes, some of which are combined into a lake-canal system. The island is wooded, coniferous and broad-leaved trees.

The second largest island of the archipelago is Anzersky (or briefly Anzer), which lies to the northeast of Solovetsky. At present, it is practically completely “under the authority” of the monastery sketes. Tourists get to it only during pilgrimage visits, blessed by the monastic authorities.

To the east of Solovetsky Island are two small islands: Big and Small Muksalma, and to the west - Big and Small Zayatsky Islands. The archipelago also includes more than a hundred small islands.

Attractions Solovki

Of course, the central attraction of Solovki is the Kremlin, that is, the stauropegial male Monastery of the Transfiguration of the Savior, a fortress with boulder walls and huge towers. On the territory of the Kremlin there is the central Transfiguration Cathedral, the Assumption Church with a refectory, a bell tower, the gate of the Annunciation, Nikolskaya and Philippovskaya churches. In addition to the monastery itself, there is a museum in the Kremlin.

In the northern part of the island on Sekirnaya Hill, 12 km from the monastery, there is the Sekiro-Voznesensky Skete with the original lighthouse church.

Botanical Garden, he is the Gorka farm, he is Makaryevskaya Hermitage, also known as the archimandrite's dacha, is located in a hollow sheltered from the winds. Plants unusual for the European North are grown and acclimatized here.

Of the hydraulic structures of the islands, they deserve special attention a system of channels connecting the lakes, a boulder dam connecting the Solovetsky Island with Muksalma, Filippovskiye Sady - a fenced-off sea bay adapted for storing live fish.

The guides will tell you more about sketes and chapels, small museums, historical and natural monuments etc.

Anzer Island is famous for its strict sketes.

On Zayatsky Island, nature is completely different from Bolshoi Solovetsky, mysterious ancient labyrinths and St. Andrew's Church, built by Peter I.

History of Solovki

The Solovetsky archipelago, like the entire north of Europe, received its current appearance with the retreat of the glacier 10 thousand years ago. Gradually, the lands freed from ice are being mastered by man.

The Solovetsky archipelago in calm weather is quite easily accessible by boat from the side of Kem, passing from islet to islet, through the Kem skerries and the Kuzov archipelago, you can get to Solovki, so the islands were mastered a long time ago.

Probably the first people in Solovki were representatives of the same culture of hunters and gatherers that spread through the north of modern Norway and Finland. The seals were found in abundance on the islands, it can be assumed that Solovki served as hunting grounds with seasonal settlements.

On Anzer, the Bolshoi Solovetsky and, especially, the Bolshoy Zayatsky Islands, you can see artifacts from the prehistoric period. Zayatsky Island is simply covered with labyrinths, the largest of which is 25-27 m in diameter. The purpose of the labyrinths is debatable, of the many hypotheses, the connection with the funeral cult looks the most plausible: the soul of the deceased should not find an exit to the world of the living. Although no remains seem to have been found in the labyrinths themselves, burnt remains of humans and game animals dating back to 2-1.5 millennium BC were found in nearby stone pyramids. e. Simultaneity of burials and labyrinths is assumed, although nothing speaks against an earlier or later construction of labyrinths.

In the XI-XII centuries. Pomorye is firmly included in the zone of interests of Novgorod, on the coast White Sea Russian settlements appear, the sub-ethnos of Pomors gradually develops. Orthodox monasteries became centers of Russian expansion. Around the hermits, leaving for the wild desert areas, communities gathered, which eventually took shape in monasteries, which received the surrounding villages and crafts in their possession. Part of this process was the emergence Solovetsky Monastery.

The monks Savvaty (a student of St. Cyril of Belozersky) and Herman arrived on the Solovetsky Islands in search of a desert life. Savvaty soon died, and Herman found himself another companion - Zosima, other brothers gradually joined them, and Zosima in 1436 became the first abbot of the newly formed monastery.

The monastery walls were erected as a reliable fortification, since the monastery at that time was in the zone of Russian-Swedish conflicts. At that time, Solovki was a modern and formidable fortress that covered the entrance to the Onega Bay and further to Onega.

The heyday of the monastery is associated with the name of another hegumen - St. Philip (Kolychev), who later became Metropolitan of Moscow during the time of Ivan the Terrible.

The Solovetsky monk who fled from the monastery was the future patriarch-reformer Nikon.

Under Patriarch Nikon, the Solovetsky Monastery became one of the most important centers of resistance to church reform. An unprecedented moment in history was the eight-year (1668-1676) military siege by the regular tsarist army of its own monastery, which did not accept the books corrected by Nikon. The powerful fortress withstood assaults, digging and artillery shelling until the defector showed a secret path. The monks were brutally executed or sent into exile, and the monastery was populated by new monks from loyal Ukraine.

In 1765 the monastery passed under the direct subordination of the Synod (becomes stauropegial).

During the Anglo-Russian Crimean War, in 1854, the monastery withstood the shelling of English steam 60-gun frigates.

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The Solovetsky Islands are the most large archipelago in the White Sea, located about 165 km from the Arctic Circle. Northern latitudes make its nature unique: white nights come there in summer, and almost polar night reigns in winter. The archipelago consists of more than a hundred islands with a total area of ​​about 300 square kilometers. It's amazing that in the middle salty sea there are absolutely fresh lakes.

The archipelago has a rich centuries-old chronicle of human development; the first people entered this land as early as the 3rd millennium BC. The Solovetsky Islands can tell the story of sea nomads, Orthodox ascetics, the horrors of the SLON concentration camp, the training base for sailors and the junior school.

Thus, the nature admiring its beauty and the land literally saturated with Orthodoxy and history attract millions of tourists and pilgrims flocking to these parts from all over the world. In winter, the path to the archipelago lies through Arkhangelsk; in summer, you can also get there from Kem by ferry or aircraft.

The Spaso-Preobrazhensky Solovetsky Monastery is the most famous landmark of the Russian North. It is the largest monastery with a fascinating and difficult fate.

The monastery occupies a vast territory on the largest island of the archipelago - Bolshoi Solovetsky, and the buildings belonging to it are scattered on the islands of Anzer, Bolshaya Muksalma, Bolshoi Zayatsky. It was opened in the 1420-1430s, and from the 16th century until the beginning of the Second World War, it served as a prison for the country.

Among those imprisoned in the dungeon walls appear Count Pyotr Tolstoy, Ukrainian ataman Peter Kalnyshevsky, philosopher Alexander Meyer and many others. The monastery is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The image of the building in which he stayed as a prison in the first half of the 20th century is depicted on the reverse of a banknote in denominations of 500 rubles.

The Solovetsky fortress is a real pearl of the Russian north. It is a fortification system of stone walls and towers surrounding the monastery. This majestic and unique building is built of granite stones polished by glaciers and sea ​​water millennia, at the beginning of the 17th century.

Due to its impregnability, the fortress was often used as a prison, and in the 20-30s of the 20th century, the first Soviet special-purpose camp functioned there. Now, together with the Solovetsky Monastery, it is the center of spiritual and tourist life. On its territory there are many cultural monuments and significant objects.

The Solovetsky labyrinths are ordinary spiral structures made of mounds or boulders, similar to the enlarged Sami fishing traps. This man-made monument of antiquity, dated by archaeologists to the 1st-2nd centuries BC, is found in many countries of the world, in particular Scandinavia, Ireland, and is one of the most mysterious places that gave rise to many hypotheses.

The purpose of the labyrinths has not yet been established, although scientists are inclined to believe that they served for religious rites. Many such structures are located on Bolshoi Zayatsky Island, and they can also be found on Bolshoi Solovetsky.

The Cape of Labyrinths is located on the coast of the Big Solovetsky Island. There are a couple of mysterious buildings of our distant ancestors here, which, however, were restored in the 19th century.

The botanical garden on Bolshoi Solovetsky Island is unique in its kind. Despite the fact that the archipelago is adjacent to the Arctic, there are no signs of permafrost on it. This fact made it possible to organize a wonderful garden on the island, which includes many plants atypical for the Russian north, such as apple, bird cherry, acacia, and various flowers.

Although the first plantings, which Archimandrite Macarius had a hand in back in 1822, have not survived to this day, the garden was constantly replenished with new representatives of the fauna. Now in it you can find plants planted by monks in the 9th century and by prisoners in the first half of the 20th century.

Filippovskiye gardens are located on Bolshoi Solovetsky Island near the Spasso-Preobrazhensky Monastery. They are mounds of stones, which are separated by a small area of ​​the sea.

It is assumed that these dams were erected in the 16th century. The attraction was named in honor of its founder hegumen Phillip Kolychev, who, with the help of creating an artificial sea ​​pond managed to establish year-round fishing in the archipelago. According to some reports, cod were grown and bred in cages until the 19th century.

Monastery sketes

Monastic sketes are outbuildings in which food or feed for livestock was harvested. Many similar structures were built on the archipelago. Each skete had its purpose. For example, Voznesensky served for harvesting berries, Isakovsaii for fish and hay, and gardens for growing vegetables were organized in Savvatievsky.

Andreevsky Skete (pictured above), located on Bolshoy Zayatsky Island, was not only a warehouse for food, but also a real harbor of the archipelago. Nowadays, many buildings have been restored, and monastic life has resumed in them.

The negotiating stone is a monument dedicated to the Crimean War. As you know, in 1854, a squadron of English ships approached the shores of the archipelago and invited the authorities of the fortress to surrender.

Having been refused, the flotilla unsuccessfully bombarded the islands for two days. The British were afraid to land on land and were forced to leave the archipelago. The stone was installed at the alleged place of negotiations between the rector of the Spasso-Preobrazhensky Monastery and the officer of the attacking squadron.

The boulder dam was a bridge about 1 km connecting two islands: Bolshoi Solovetsky and Bolshaya Muksalma. Its need arose for the reason that the charter of the monastery established a ban on keeping livestock near residential premises. Thus, the household yard (Sergievsky Skete) was organized on neighboring island. For the convenience of moving between the two banks, a boulder dam was built, which has a road with a width of about a meter.

The lake and canal system of the Spasso-Preobrazhensky Monastery had two purposes: shipping and delivery drinking water. With the help of channels, more than 50 reservoirs were connected, which made it possible to change the water level in the Holy Lake. This was necessary for the operation of watermills and other mechanisms built in the monastery.

Gradually, the system developed, the waterways expanded, and this led to the possibility of organizing small-scale shipping. Ultimately, routes were created along the canals connecting the sketes in the northern and central parts Big Solovetsky Island.

Solovetsky maritime museum was founded in 2007 in one of the premises of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery. It contains exhibits that are directly related to the history of Solovetsky shipping and the development of the north. The museums have a lot of maps, drawings, photographs dedicated to various expeditions.

The Archimandrite's house was built in 1860 from larch. Due to the fact that this tree only gets better and stronger with age, the building has survived to this day. It is located in beautiful place on a low hill between two lakes. The two-story house was the home of Archimandrite Macarius, who liked this picturesque calm land in the Makaryevskaya desert.

The Church of St. Andrew the First-Called was built back in 1702, shortly after Peter the Great visited the archipelago. It is worth noting that there were only three similar temples with such a design, and only this building has survived to this day. The location of this attraction is Andreevsky Skete on the Big Zayatsky Island.

Sekirnaya Hill is the highest point on the Solovetsky Islands. At its top is a thirty-meter church (Ascension Skete) with a functioning lighthouse on the dome, which is visible from a distance of up to 15 km. In the 20-30s of the 20th century, a punishment cell for a special purpose camp operated within its walls.

From the mountain you can admire magnificent views of the sea, forests and lakes of the northwestern tip of the island. At its foot, in memory of the new martyrs, a venerable cross was erected, from where a long wooden staircase rises to the church.

Cape Beluga, located on Bolshoi Solovetsky Island, is famous for the fact that rare marine mammals live near it - White Sea beluga whales, which can sometimes be seen from the shore. In the sea, at a distance of several meters from land, an observation tower was erected especially for observations.

In total, there are more than a thousand archaeological sites and about a quarter of a hundred historical objects on the Solovetsky Islands, and the archipelago itself is a protected area.

Solovki is a truly unique and original place. To see all the beauty of a few days is definitely not enough. Read about the main attractions of the archipelago in this article.

Spaso-Preobrazhensky Solovetsky Stauropegial Monastery

Of course, let's start from the central place on the islands. The buildings of the monastery are located on four islands of the archipelago. The architectural ensemble is located on the shore of the Prosperity Bay of the Bolshoi Solovetsky Island.

The territory of the monastery is pentagonal - it is surrounded by large massive walls, up to 11 meters high, their thickness is up to six, with seven gates and eight towers. The monastery attracts most tourists and pilgrims here. During its long history of several centuries, it has been both a symbol of Orthodoxy and a symbol of the most severe imprisonment.

The monastery was founded here by Saints Zosima, Savvaty and German of Solovetsky, the date of its appearance is considered to be 1436. And sometimes the heyday can be called the 16th century, then the abbot was Philip Kolychev. Large public funds appeared, which made it possible to build two magnificent temples - in honor of the Assumption Holy Mother of God and the Transfiguration of the Lord.

The monastery in those years became a large and one of the richest centers in the north, industrial and cultural, it owned salt works, forges, novices bred and caught fish, hunted fur-bearing animals, opened a botanical garden with exotic plants and fruits for the north.

I had to survive the siege, it lasted eight years, from 1668, the reason was that he called Nikon's church reform a heresy. The fortress was captured due to the betrayal of one of the monks. also in different years both the British and the Swedes attacked the shrine, but the attempts were never successful.

For most of its history, from the 16th to the 20th century, the monastery was also a place of detention, usually for ecclesiastical and political criminals. The monastery did not work as a religious institution under Soviet rule, then it was only a camp where prisoners were sent for forced labor. But since 1990, monastic life has been in full swing here again.

Today, a lot of excursions are held here, the main flow of tourists and pilgrims is from June to September, when you can sail to the island by sea. The guides tell about the life of the saints, and about what historical events saw the abode.

Sekirnaya mountain

One of the most picturesque places on Solovki, a place that was feared and revered at different times. Located on the Bolshoi Solovetsky Island and one of its most high points- the height of the mountain is more than 73 meters. In the 60s of the 19th century, the Holy Ascension Skete was founded there, along with a white one-domed church of the Ascension of the Lord. His unique feature- a small tower of a real lighthouse is installed on the head.

At one time, he showed the way to many fishermen and sailors. It still works today, its light spills over the water surface 40 kilometers ahead. Near the church there is a fraternal building, outbuildings are a well and a bathhouse. Unfortunately, the skete chapel has not survived to this day.

In the years when there was a special purpose camp on Solovki, a punishment cell was organized on Skitskaya Gora. Even for the most, and so terrible camp, it was the most creepy place: they were sent here to be tortured and doomed to certain death. In those years, even the saying was known: All Russia is afraid of the Solovki, and all the Solovki are afraid of the Sekirnaya Mountain. In 1992, a worship cross was erected near the mountain in honor of those who were tortured here. Another one was installed in 2008 at the site of the mass execution of prisoners.

You can climb the mountain by a dirt road, or by a steep staircase. There is a belief that the traveler is forgiven the sin for each step passed, of which there are 294 in total.

stone labyrinths

Perhaps the most mysterious place on islands. They are older than the world-famous Stonehenge, and, according to research, trace their history back to the Iron Age, from the 1st-2nd centuries BC. How the "northern labyrinths" appeared and why - no one knows. In one of the structures, the remains of human bones were found, perhaps these places were associated with ancient burial customs.

Another version is that the purpose of the labyrinths was for catching fish - it could not get out at low tide and remained on land. Labyrinths are spiral figures, including various systems of passages made of small boulders. Their structure is simple - labyrinths have one entrance and exit. On Solovki there are more than three dozen labyrinths, a significant part - 12 - are located on the Big Zayatsky Island, you can get there only with a special excursion.

There is no free access, since the labyrinths are guarded and their destruction cannot be allowed. There are several labyrinths on the Big Solovetsky Island in free access, you can easily walk there on your own.

Botanical Garden

The botanical garden is located on the Gorka farm (Makarievskaya Pustyn) on Bolshoi Solovetsky Island, four kilometers from the monastery. The location of the botanical garden in the forest-tundra and tundra zone is amazing. But the area is as if specially created by nature for the garden. Mountains shelter from the winds, the temperature in summer here is usually 2-4 degrees higher than the average for the island, the landscape is hilly.

The monks began planting plants here in the early 19th century. Then the greenhouses were heated with hot water, which flowed underground through pipes laid from neighboring factories. They grew here, very close to the Arctic Circle, watermelons, peaches, grapes and oranges. But, of course, medicinal plants useful in everyday life were the main goal.

Now there you can find already wild aconite, valerian. Until now, cedars and apple trees bear fruit here. Flower beds, amazing for the north, grow here, lush acacias, lilacs, honeysuckle, St. John's wort, hawthorn, majestic poplars and larches. Here is the northernmost rose garden in the world, where there are four dozen species of this flower, some of them are especially rare, for example, the wrinkled Himalayan rose.

In the Soviet years, the garden was not empty, it was used for the needs of the camp and grew herbs and vegetables in it. And the prisoners left a mark in the history of the garden - they planted the central alley.

In winter, the garden, of course, rests from tourists, but this place looks like a picture from a fairy tale, and locals love to ski here.

The Solovetsky Botanical Garden is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

talking stone

The only monument of its kind. A large boulder is located on the spot where, in the summer of 1855, negotiations were held between the abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Alexander, and the officer of England, Anton, which were successful for the monastery: they managed to avoid the invasion of enemy troops, the naval squadrons, standing right off the coast, and demanding to give them the bulls, retreated. A monument was erected at this place a year after this event. The stone lies two kilometers from the village itself, on the seashore, on the way to Cape Pechak.

It looks like this: it is a rectangular slab with an inscription on top of it, which tells about the events that happened here. They made a monument in the workshop of the monastery.

boulder dam

It was built between the islands of Bolshoi Solovetsky and Bolshaya Muksalma, connecting them. This amazing building, more than a kilometer long, it was built in order to provide a stable connection between the islands. Bolshaya Muksalma is the third largest island in the archipelago. Its surface is swampy, uneven, there are no lakes on the island, and there are no heights either. Meadows and fields have made this island indispensable for pastures, for walking cows, horses and calves.

The overpass between the islands was built in 1827, in 1865 the dam became what we can see it now. This is masonry, the width at the base is about 8 meters, huge boulders are covered with sand, and one of the parts of the structure is in the form arch bridge. The dam has five bends - it passes through the smallest places in the strait. Thanks to this shape, the dam has other functions - ice-cutting and wave-cutting.

There are other corners on the Solovetsky Islands where it will be interesting for you to look: these places are far from being limited to the monastery, as it seems at first glance. Come to see a lot of amazing things with your own eyes.

Lake-channel system

There are more than four hundred lakes on Solovki, and the water levels in them differ greatly from each other. For example, between two neighboring ones - Zeleny and Lapushechny - the difference is more than 20 meters. Some are over 25 meters deep. And the peculiarity of the islands is that they do not have a single river. Therefore, during the construction of the monastery, it became necessary to build canals to connect the lakes - there was a great need for drinking water.

The lake-canal system was built four hundred years ago under. 78 reservoirs became a single "drinking" system, all the water flowed into holy lake, and to this day it is the main source of fresh water for the entire village. This water went through the plumbing, moved the millstones, and then went into the sea.

In addition to the drinking system at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, another system was created - shipping. It became a road connecting the monastery and its sketes. Thanks to the locks, even large vessels could pass through the canals. Bricks, stones, firewood, hay, logs were transported along the canals. Partially, the remains of the piers are still preserved. In total, at present, about two dozen local lake-channel systems can be preserved on the island, the main of them is the system of the Holy Lake.

You can come to Solovki and see the sights, as you can see.

The Solovetsky Islands are a unique place. A unique natural, historical and cultural complex has developed on a small archipelago, which has no analogues in the world. The largest and richest in sights is Solovetsky Island, on which the famous Solovetsky Monastery has been operating for more than one century.

Nature

The islands arose 9000 years ago at one of the stages in the formation of the White Sea, when, after melting large glacier compensatory uplift occurred. 2/3 of the entire area of ​​the archipelago is occupied by Bolshoi Solovetsky Island.

The archipelago is located in the taiga zone. The landscapes of the islands are unusually picturesque and varied: high hills are replaced by lakes, flowering meadows - vast swamps. 70% of the area is covered with forests, mainly spruce and pine. About 5% of the area is occupied by tundra complexes. Dry crowberry tundras are characteristic of coastal zone, where they are followed by a strip of crooked birch forests (winding birch). In the central part of the islands, birch and aspen forests appear at the site of clearings and fires. Meadows on the coast and in the center of the islands occupy 0.1-0.2% of the total area and are characterized by a rich species composition of meadow vegetation. About 15% of the territory of the islands are swamps with a predominance of riding and transitional varieties. Such a wide range of landscapes, presented in an area of ​​​​only about 300 km², is one of the amazing natural features. Solovetsky archipelago.

There are over 550 lakes on the islands. They differ in size, shape, origin, color of water, but all of them are very picturesque.

Where are the Solovetsky Islands

The Solovetsky archipelago, consisting of six large islands and over a hundred small ones, is located in the western part of the White Sea, 290 kilometers northwest of the city of Arkhangelsk, the center Arkhangelsk region. total area islands is 300 km². They include such islands as:

• Solovetsky (Big Solovetsky) - 218.72 km²;
• Anzersky - 47.11 km²;
• Big Muksalma - 18.96 km²;
• Malaya Muksalma - 1.2 km²;
• Big 3ayatsky - 1.25 km²;
• Small Zayatsky - 1.1 km².

Story

The history of the Solovetsky Islands begins with their development by man in the Late Mesolithic. In the III millennium BC. sea ​​hunters and fishermen discovered the Solovetsky Islands and began their development, which continued until the Middle Ages. Numerous traces of their economic and utilitarian and religious activities were found on Solovki: more than 20 settlements, sites and workshops, four sanctuaries in combination with ancient sites, many single stone labyrinths, thousands of artifacts.

The primitive inhabitants of Solovki were engaged in specific hunting for sea animals and island lake-forest game, fishing, coastal gathering, and the manufacture of stone tools. Collections of arrows, darts, hunting anchors, ceramics, a unique cult drilled ax and many other items were found at their sites. The ancient inhabitants of the archipelago were engaged in the construction of stone labyrinths in which they built sanctuaries.

Foundation of the stauropegial male Solovetsky monastery

Solovetsky Island became the site of the founding of the monastery in the 30s of the XV century by immigrants from Kirillo-Belozersky and the monks Savvaty, Herman and Zosima as the monastery of the Savior and Wonderworker Nicholas. During the XV-XVI centuries. the monastery gradually grew, acquiring large islands of the archipelago in its possession.

By the end of the 15th century, the monks erected three wooden churches: Assumption, Nikolskaya and Preobrazhenskaya, numerous wooden cells and outbuildings, surrounded by a wooden fence.

Spiritual stronghold of the Russian North

In the middle of the 16th century, the monastery entered a period of serious economic transformations associated with the name of hegumen Philip (Kolychev), a reformer, architect, energetic and talented business executive. Roads were built here in the 1550s-1560s, but a “milk yard” with deer and cattle was founded on the island of B. Muksalma. To provide the population of the monastery with running water, 52 lakes of the Solovetsky Island were connected by drinking canals. For defense in 1582-1594. a stone fortress wall with towers and gates was erected. Annunciation (Gate) Church was built in 1596-1600.

Throughout the 17th century, the Solovetsky Monastery continued to take shape as an administrative, economic, spiritual, military-political and Cultural Center White Sea. In the XVIII-XX centuries. it was one of the places of exile and imprisonment of state criminals.

After the revolution of 1917 began to take shape new Russia. The Solovetsky Islands ceased to be a spiritual center, and the monastery was abolished. In April 1920, the Arkhangelsk provincial commission began the nationalization of the monastery property. The Administration of the Solovetsky Islands was organized and at the same time the Solovki state farm was organized, which existed until 1923. The establishment of the state farm did not mean the elimination of monasticism. About 200 monks were civilian workers, a religious community was organized, the activities of which were controlled by the Administration of the Solovetsky Islands.

Gulag Archipelago

From 1923 to 1939, the territory of the islands and all the buildings of the former Solovetsky Monastery were occupied by the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camps of the OGPU-NKVD (SLON). Organized on the basis of Kholmogorsk, Pertominsk and Arkhangelsk, the Solovetsky camps were among the largest in Russia. Composition of prisoners in SLON different time changed. Among them were representatives of the Russian aristocracy, the church, the intelligentsia, all pre-revolutionary political parties, criminal elements convicted on domestic matters, representatives of national parties, and many others.

Among those exiled to the SLON were scientists and cultural figures, writers, poets, religious figures of Russia: professor, art historian A.E. Anisimov, historian I.D. Antsiferov, inventor B.A. Artemiev, Professor S.A. Askoldov, historian B.B. Bakhtin, artist I.E. Braz, a descendant of the Decembrists A.B. Bobrischev-Dushkin, poet M.N. Voronoi, ethnographer N.N. Vinogradov, writer 0.B. Bolkov, historian G.O. Gordon, poet A.K. Gorsky, academician priest, scientist-encyclopedist D.A. Florensky and others.

Sights of the historical and cultural complex

The historical and cultural complex of the Solovetsky Islands is the only one of its kind, unique in the integrity and completeness of the ensembles and complexes preserved in it, religious, residential, defensive, economic, hydraulic structures, a network of roads and irrigation systems of the Middle Ages, as well as archaeological complexes, monuments reflecting ancient and medieval pre-monastic island culture. They are concentrated in different parts of the large islands of the archipelago, but, geographically and historically interconnected, they form a single, inseparable whole. Its various components represent all periods of the history of the archipelago and of the Russian North as a whole.

The components of the historical and cultural complex of the Solovetsky archipelago are:

• Monastery-fortress of the 15th-20th centuries, a former monastic settlement of the 16th-20th centuries, hermitages and deserts of the 16th-20th centuries;
• Fishing huts, island hydrotechnical and irrigation systems;
• Complexes "sanctuary-parking" III-I millennia BC on Bolshaya Zayatsky and Anzersky islands;
• Groups of memorial buildings of the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp 1923-1939. on the territory of the village and on the site of a brick factory;
• natural landscapes.

The center of the historical and cultural complex of the archipelago is the Solovetsky Monastery - an integral and unique architectural ensemble. Its buildings are distinguished by their rare monumentality, the bright individual appearance of many structures and, at the same time, the integrity of all its parts.

Other attractions

archaeological and historical places and almost all the Solovetsky Islands are famous for their amazing objects. Sights worthy of special attention are located on the following islands:

• Anzersky: Trinity Skete (XVII), Trinity Church (1880-1884), Golgotha-Crucifixion Skete (XIX).
• Big Zayatsky: Zayatsky (Andreevsky) Skete (XVI), boulder harbor, Stone Harbor (XVI), Church of St. Andrew the First-Called.
• Bolshaya Muksalma: Sergiev Skete (XVI), a boulder dam that connected Muksalma with the large Solovetsky Island (XIX).

Flora

The labyrinths of the Solovetsky Islands have become home to 500 plant species. Among the natural-territorial island complexes there are habitats for endangered and rare plant species. Scientists study, preserve and increase them. Arriving on the island, you need to take care of the local flora, because an unusual flower plucked can be a rare species. The following representatives of the flora need special protection: common wolfberry, two-leaved lyubka, spotted orchis, male shield, broad-leaved orchid, Siberian pine, northern girtwort, recumbent lauseleuria, sea arctic mustard and others.

The coastal waters of the White Sea are one of the richest in algal flora and the most productive region of the basin (there are 160 species of bottom algae).

Fauna

Animal world in force insular position Solovki and the northern location of the archipelago are not distinguished by a large variety of mammals. Two of their species appeared here thanks to man. These are the reindeer, brought to the islands in the 16th century, and the muskrat, which appeared here in the 1920s.

The avifauna of the islands is richer in terms of the number of species. Nearly 200 species of birds have been recorded on Solovki. Among them are the "Red Book": white-tailed eagle, osprey, shelduck, puffin. Of exceptional interest is one of the largest colonies of Arctic tern in Europe and the largest colony of black-backed gulls in Russia. Greatest variety species stands out the island of Solovetsky.

From marine mammals ringed seal, white whale, bearded seal and harp seal are common in coastal waters. On the coast of Anzer Island there are mass haul-outs of pinnipeds, and herds of beluga whales numbering up to several hundred individuals approach the western part of the Big Solovetsky Island.

Ecotourism

The archipelago presents big interest for people, nature lovers. Tourists come to the Solovetsky Islands not only to visit the famous monastery. Sights of nature are also worthy of attention. Surprisingly diverse landscapes will allow you to wander through the taiga in a compact area, enjoy the greenery of meadows and the beauty of lakes, and watch the wildlife.

The bays of the archipelago are unique. The most beautiful, with many small islands, Long Bay is a unique reservoir inhabited by relic arctic forms of invertebrates, representing a practically closed ecosystem. The Trinity Bay is beautiful, almost cutting Anzersky Island in two.

The nature of the Solovetsky Archipelago is of outstanding value, as it reflects the main periods of the post-glacial geological history of the North, the history of interaction with humans, contains amazingly beautiful landscapes and is a habitat for rare bird species and large bird colonies. People who are passionate about their native nature are strongly recommended to visit the Solovetsky Islands.

How to get to Solovki in winter

The direction of the route depends on the vagaries of the weather and seasons. In winter, movement is severely limited, get ordinary tourist The islands can only be reached by air from Arkhangelsk:

• From the airport "Talagi" on Tuesdays and Sundays, the plane of the airline "Nord Avia" (AN-24) flies. Flight time - 45 minutes.
• From the airport "Vaskovo" on Fridays, the company "2nd AOAO" (L-410) operates flights.

How to get to the islands in summer

As the weather improves, the number of possible options for visiting the Solovetsky Islands increases significantly. Let's take a closer look at how to get to the archipelago in the spring-autumn period. In addition to flights from Arkhangelsk, routes from Karelia also open at this time.

It is recommended to get to Arkhangelsk from the regions by plane or train. For vehicles, local roads will be a real test. As in winter, Solovki can be reached by air. Flights from Talagi Airport (NordAvia) operate on Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. From "Vaskovo" (2nd JSC) - on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

The most romantic way is to travel by boat to the Solovetsky Islands from the Karelian cities of Kem and Belomorsk. In directions from Moscow and St. Petersburg, these cities can be reached by the Murmansk train. From the pier Rabocheostrovsk (Kem), the motor ships Metel and Vasily Kosyakov sail daily to Solovki. From Belomorsk the ship "Sapphire" goes. The islands also run "river minibuses" - small boats delivering pilgrims and unorganized tourists. Airplanes and ships deliver passengers to the main island - Solovetsky.

Geographically, the Solovetsky Islands do not belong to Karelia. But to get to them the shortest way through Karelia, or rather through the cities of Belomorsk and Kem. The group of islands isin the White Sea, near the entrance to the Onega Bay, they are more than 60 kilometers away from the mainland. This group of islandsincludes six large islands and more than a hundred small ones. Big Solovetsky Island, with an area of ​​246 sq. km, the most famous of all. The rest of the islands are much smaller. There is one village on the main island, and with it many museum treasures accumulated over five centuries.

Big Solovetsky island once visited V. I. Nemirovich-Danchenko, who after wrote: “The whole Solovetsky Island was spread far below with its forests, lakes, glades, churches, hermitages, chapels and mountains. What gentle play of colors, what soft curves of lines. It's dark green pine forest, there is an emerald expanse of floodplain meadows and everywhere - silver shields of graceful lakes ... The Solovetsky Islands are the crown, and Sekirnaya and Golgotha ​​are the adamants of this crown, the monks told me about these areas.

Spaso-Preobrazhensky Solovetsky Monastery

Solovetsky monastery isthe main attraction of the Solovetsky Islands. This monastery is one of the most significant and well-preserved monuments of domestic architecture. It was built in the first half of the 15th century. The heyday of the monastery is associated with the activities of hegumen Philip, who was elevated to the rank of hegumen by Novgorod Archbishop Theodosius in 1548. Philip put a lot of effort into internal and external improvement. The Assumption Church with the Refectory and the Kelar Chambers (1552-1557) and the Transfiguration Cathedral (1558-1566) were built according to the projects of Abbot Philip. Thanks to the activities of Philip, the monastery turned into a rich industrial and cultural center of northern Pomerania. The monastery gradually turned into a fortress with stone walls and towers, the shape of the structure resembled big ship. During the Crimean War, an Anglo-French squadron approached Solovki, the monastery had to defend itself and withstand a siege in 1854.

By the beginning of the 20th century, there were already 19 churches and 30 bell towers on the archipelago. Together with the monks, there were more than 1,000 pilgrims and hired workers on the island. The monastery was known and revered throughout Russia. In 1923 on Solovki was establishedSolovetsky Special Purpose Camp, transformed in 1937 into the Solovetsky Special Purpose Prison, disbanded in 1939. A significant part of the prisoners were clergy, officers of the white movement, intelligentsia.

IN In 1967, the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve was created on the Big Solovetsky Island, which 1974 turned into Solovetsky State Historical, Architectural and Natural Museum-Reserve. In October 1990, the Holy Synod blessed the opening of the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery.

Sekirnaya mountain

WITHekirnaya mountain– the most high mountain on the Big Solovetsky Island. The height of the mountain is 73.5 meters. The mountain is named in memory of the angels who carved the fisherman's wife. According to legend, in ancient times, when the monks Savvaty and Herman lived on the island, and fishermen with their families lived at the foot of the mountain. The fishermen tried to expel the saints from the islands. But one day two “bright-faced angels” appeared in the form of young men, they flogged the fisherman’s wife with rods and drove her off the mountain, saying that this island was intended for monks and that “the habitation of the monastic rank will be arranged here and many monks will gather in the name of God.”

Pine Bay is visible from the mountain, to the shore of which Saints Savvaty and Herman landed in 1429. In 1627, a miraculous icon appeared on a pine tree in this bay. Mother of God with a baby. The icon was transferred to the monastery and installed in the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior, and a chapel was built in honor of the Korsun Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos on the site of the appearance of the icon. The cross erected in 1812 has survived to this day in Pine Bay.

Botanical Garden of the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve

On the bigSolovetsky Island, four kilometers from the village of Solovetsky is the Botanical Garden, which was founded in 1822 Archimandrite Macarius. The Garden was originally calledMakarievskaya desert.Area is 5 hectare. The territory of the Botanical Garden is surrounded on three sides by hills covered with forest. Over the 200 years of the Garden's existence, hundreds of plants have been acclimatized here. Today, more than 30 species of woody plants, about 500 species and varieties of ornamental, medicinal and fodder plants will melt in the Botanical Garden. But no matter how hard the workers of the Garden tried, cereal crops were able to take root here. The Botanical Garden on the island can be reached on foot along the forest road or by sightseeing bus.

Big Zayatsky Island

Peter the Great visited the Solovetsky Islands twice. On his instructions, in 1702, the church of St. Andrew the First-Called, the patron saint of the Russian fleet, was built on Bolshoi Zayatsky Island. On this island, one of the largest sanctuaries was found, which is represented by funerary monuments, which include 13 stone labyrinths, more than 600 stone mounds. It is known that these islands were considered sacred long before the appearance of the monastic community. The archipelago was visited by Proto-Sami tribes starting from the 4th-3rd millennium BC, they buried their chosen persons here.

Where to stay on Bolshoi Solovetsky Island

Historical reference

The settlement of Solovki begins in 1436, when the monks Zosima and Herman built their first cell here. Later, the Monk Zosima with his disciples founded a temple and a monastery and was elected abbot. INXVIcentury, the monastery was replaced by the abbot, and with him the general spirit of the inhabitants.Metropolitan Philip II began the construction of stone temples, his own fleet appears and trade develops. The inhabitants of the island start breeding livestock and sea fish. Therefore, there is a need to organize pastures, cattle yards and artificial ponds. Philip's activities were aimed at creating business relationships with investors. It was decided to build a brick factory, attract craftsmen and expand stone construction. Over the years, the monastery has significantly strengthened and became the largest in the North.

During the Livonian War, the Swedes were furious when they learned that merchant shipping was developing rapidly, and sent their ships to the Russian shores. In this regard, the Solovetsky inhabitants began the construction of a wooden fortress, which at the endXVIcentury was replaced by stone.

XVIIcentury in the history of the Solovetsky Monastery was marked by the growth of moral and political influence on the territory of the entire state. But for resisting Patriarch Nikon and his reforms, Solovki suffered an unprecedented rout that claimed numerous lives.

In the middle XIXcentury, the monastery was suddenly bombarded by England. Two frigates unsuccessfully dropped shells on the island. This incident played a big role in strengthening the authority of the monastery among believers.