Trinity Tower at night. Trinity Tower - from a defensive structure to a presidential orchestra

Address: Kremlin

How to get to the Trinity Tower: st. Metro Alexandrovsky Sad

The Trinity Tower of the Kremlin was built by the Italian architect Aleviz Fryazin (Milanets) in 1495 as part of the creation of a fortification line from the northwestern part of the Kremlin from the side of the Neglinnaya River (now the Alexander Garden is located here).

During its existence, the tower has changed many names, it was Bogoyavlenskaya, Rizopolozhenskaya, Znamenskaya (after the Kremlin churches), Karetnaya (in honor of the carriage house located nearby). In 1658, by decree of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the tower received its current name from the Trinity Compound, located on the territory of the Kremlin. The Trinity Tower is located in the middle of the northwestern Kremlin wall, and is the main entrance for visitors to the Kremlin. You can go to the gates of the Trinity Tower along the Trinity Bridge through the Kutafya Tower.

Now the Presidential Orchestra of Russia is located in the Trinity Tower.

Among the 20 towers of the Kremlin, Troitskaya is the highest. From the side of the Kremlin, the height of the tower without a star is 65.65 m, with a star - 69.3 m. From the side of the Alexander Garden, the height of the tower without a star is 76.35 m, with a star - 80 m.

Troitskaya tower is the main one on the western side of the Kremlin. In 1516, a stone bridge across the Neglinnaya River was built from it, which ended with the Kutafya Tower. The Troitsky gates of the tower were the second most important after the Spassky ones. Through them lay the path to the Kremlin to the courts of the patriarch, queens and princesses.

Multi-tiered tent superstructure with decor made of white stone at the Trinity Tower appeared at the end of the 17th century, which made it look like the Spasskaya Tower. At the same time, chimes were installed on the Trinity Tower. They failed in the fire of 1812 and were never rebuilt. When in 1707 the threat of the Swedish invasion loomed over Moscow, the loopholes of the Trinity Tower were expanded, and now heavy cannons could be fired from it.

The Trinity Tower is a six-story building with two-story deep cellars, which were intended for defense purposes. During the 16th and 17th centuries, this two-storey building housed a prison. Along the perimeter of the tower there are stairs connecting all floors of the tower. In the archer of the second tier there is a room with a flat ceiling. The building is crowned with a small quadrangle with an octagon. The octagon has a through looking part, which ends with a high tent. Once upon a time, from the side of the Alexander Garden, the Trinity Tower looked much more beautiful, since decorative turrets and pinnacles (pointed decorative turrets) were located not only at the corners of the parapets, but also on the archer. Above the Trinity Gates in an icon case was placed the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. During the capture of the Kremlin by the Bolsheviks in 1917, the image was damaged, and its further fate is unknown.

In 1870, the archives of the Ministry of the Imperial Court were transferred to the Trinity Tower. In order to accommodate it, the tower had to be rebuilt, and during the reconstruction, many ancient decorative details were destroyed. The archive was located here until 1895. In the 19th century, the Neglinnaya River was hidden in a pipe, and the white stone ramp to the Kutafya Tower was replaced with a brick one. In 1901, a new Trinity Bridge was built.

As well as on the Spasskaya Tower, until 1935 on the Troitskaya Tower there was the old coat of arms of Russia - a double-headed eagle. In 1935, it was decided to remove the eagles, and to install gilded five-pointed stars from the Ural gems on all travel towers. This eagle was made in 1870, and it turned out to be the oldest of all. The structure was assembled on bolts, and it turned out that the double-headed eagle of the Trinity Tower had to be dismantled at the top. In 1937, all the stars on the Kremlin towers were replaced with ruby ​​ones.

Historical reference:

This building is the tallest in the ensemble of Kremlin buildings. The Trinity Tower of the Moscow Kremlin was created by the Italian architect Alois Fryazin and has own history. During its existence, this building was renamed 5 times.

Chronology of the names of the Trinity Tower

The Troitskaya Kremlin Tower is a unique building that has had many names throughout its history. Initially, the building was called Bogoyavlenskaya. Then the tower became known as Rizopolozhenskaya and Znamenskaya, in honor of the Kremlin cathedrals.

Later it was called Karetnaya, after the famous court. In 1658, Emperor Alexei Mikhailovich issued a decree renaming the tower to Troitskaya, after the courtyard of the nearby monastery. The building still exists under this name.

History of the Trinity Tower

The Trinity Tower of the Kremlin begins its history from the fifteenth century. It was designed by an Italian architect. At the end of the 17th century, the tower was supplemented with a superstructure of several tiers, then decorated with fragments of white stone. Somewhat later, the loopholes for the barrels of powerful cannons were expanded. This was done for reasons of increasing security, since there was a threat of invasion by the Swedes.

The Trinity Tower was the completion of the majestic architectural ensemble of the Kremlin, it had five tiers and firing ranges.

The Troitskaya Tower was considered a very important defensive structure on the side of the Neglinnaya River. At the base of the building there were two underground tiers, the walls of which consisted of bricks. In the river, by building dams, the water level was artificially raised. As a result, the structure was surrounded by water on all sides.

Features of the tower in the Kremlin ensemble

The architectural ensemble of the Kremlin includes 20 towers. On its western side, the Troitskaya tower is the main and highest. From the side of the Alexander Garden, its height is 76.35 m, together with the star - 80 m. Without it, the height of the Trinity Tower from the Kremlin side is 65.65 m.

The stone bridge, which was built from it across the river. Neglinnaya, appeared in 1516. After the Spassky Gates, the Troitsky Gates are the second in importance. The road to the royal and patriarchal courts passed through them.

All the imperial persons entered through the Trinity Gates, and processions of the clergy were carried out through them. The tsar drove up to this passage to the Kremlin, who returned from distant military campaigns and was escorted with honor to the Spassky Gates.

Trinity tower is main entrance to the Kremlin. You can approach the central gate through Kutafya, along the bridge. On this moment The tower houses the Presidential Orchestra of the Russian Federation.

Description of the tower

The structure was erected as a six-story structure, has deep two-tier basements built for defense purposes. The tower is surrounded by stairs that connect all its floors. On the second tier, in the archer, there is a room with a flat ceiling. The tower is crowned with a small quadrangle with an octagon. It has a through inspection hole.

Previously, the Trinity Tower looked very beautiful from the side of the Alexander Garden. At one time, decorative decorations of the structure in the form of turrets and pointed pinnacles were located both in the corners of the parapet and on the archer.

Around the 17th century, large chimes were installed on the Trinity Tower. In 1812, a fire broke out in the building. As a result, the clock was severely damaged and could not be restored. Instead of chimes, the tower began to be decorated with the icon of the Kazan Mother of God, which was later badly damaged and disappeared after the Bolsheviks captured the Kremlin. Instead of an image, a double-headed eagle appeared on the tower - a symbol Russian Empire. On one of the anniversaries of the October Revolution, the government decided to replace the double-headed eagle with a red star.

It turned out to be difficult to carry out the plan. The eagle turned out to be the oldest of all made and was bolted on. It had to be disassembled right on the spot - at the very top of the structure. Nevertheless, the red star was installed and adorned the tower until 1937. Then it faded. It was decided to change it to a ruby ​​counterpart. So the building began to be decorated with a precious star.

Building use

In 1870, the Troitskaya Tower was given to the Ministry of the Tsar's Court for the archive, which was located in this place in the period until 1895. To accommodate it, the building was rebuilt. During the work, many ancient decorative elements of the tower were completely destroyed.

In the 19th century the Neglinnaya River was enclosed in a pipe along its entire length, and the white stone ramp was replaced with ordinary bricks. In 1901, a new Trinity Bridge appeared.

Last restoration

A complete restoration of the Trinity Tower has not been carried out since the 19th century. The work was carried out partially, locally. To prepare the structure for the latest restoration, which included strengthening the walls, preserving the white stone decoration and repairing the tent, its foundation was examined in 2014 and found to be in excellent condition.

A separate stroke of the restoration touched the star. It was necessary to clean its frame, replace the lamps and the turning mechanism. As a result, all incandescent lamps were updated. The old product was transferred to the museum, and the new star was assembled very carefully, literally piece by piece.

Between the 16th and 17th centuries. in the cellars of the Trinity Tower there was a prison. In 1612, the Poles with the boyar government took refuge in it. The Kremlin was attacked by Dmitry Donskoy, and those who were hiding still had to surrender. In 1812, Napoleon entered the Kremlin through the Trinity Tower.

This structure is the only one with a preserved moat across the bridge. In 1821, the construction of the Alexander Garden began. At the same time, the bridge acquired stairs and ramps (sloping descents) for access to the square.

Trinity Tower, Trinity Bridge and Kutafya Tower

And now let's turn our attention to the Trinity Tower of the Kremlin - more precisely, to that architectural ensemble of which it is the main part.

Let's start with the tower itself. During its history, it has changed several names - Epiphany, Znamenskaya, Rizopolozhenskaya, Kuretnaya. This last name, which sounds somewhat strange to modern ears, usually raises the most questions. Let's start with him. What does "Kuretnaya" mean? And V. A. Nikolsky and M. N. Zagoskin use another version of this word, which is even more inconsistent with the tall and beautiful tower - Kuryatnaya ... The fact is that the tower from the inside adjoined the back, economic courtyard of the royal choir, and on poultry houses were located in this yard. You should not smile dismissively: chicken dishes were very revered in Rus', and fried chicken served as an indispensable attribute of the first meal of the bride and groom after the wedding (an echo of pagan traditions, when the bird was generally perceived as a symbol of procreation, and chickens were considered to bring good luck, since singing rooster, according to popular belief, drove away evil spirits). In addition, the royal poultry houses contained not only banal chickens, geese and ducks, but also exotic guinea fowls and even peacocks. The Epiphany, Rizopolozhenskaya and Znamenskaya towers were named after the temples located near it in the Kremlin.

And the tower received its final, familiar name to us today in 1658 after the courtyard of the Trinity Monastery that stood in the Kremlin. “This farmstead is memorable in that the election of Mikhail Feodorovich Romanov to the kingdom took place in it. Directly from it, the cellar Avraamy Palitsyn, with all the clergy and state dignitaries, went to the Lobnoye Mesto to announce to the people about the election of the tsar, ”M. N. Zagoskin cites such an exciting story in his book Moscow and Muscovites.

Huge - 76.35 m, massive, supplemented by a diversion archer from the Neglinnaya side, it was built last - in 1495. The Trinity Tower is connected by a bridge with watchtower and Kutafya. In the old days, the Trinity Tower was covered with a hipped wooden roof.

Through the gates built in the Trinity Tower, those heading to the court of the patriarch traditionally entered. When the tsars returned from campaigns, the solemn processions of the clergy went out through the Trinity Gate to round the Kremlin and meet the sovereigns at the Spassky Gate. He lay through the Trinity Gate and the path to the mansions, in which the queens and princesses were placed. There was one more, gloomy purpose at these gates: funeral processions left the Kremlin through them.

In those days, there was a clock on the tower - in any case, they are mentioned in the documents of 1585. And in 1685, the Trinity Tower was built on - that beautiful multi-tiered top with white stone decor appeared above it, which we see today. A brick tent rose high above the tower. And a year later, in the belfry arranged under its canopy, the clock bells began to sound: the Trinity Tower again acquired a clock, but not the same, but new. True, today we cannot see them: the clock burned down during the fire of 1812 and was not restored.

A high superstructure was also made on the outlet archer, but, unfortunately, in the 18th century. she was disassembled.

Inside the Trinity Tower is divided into 6 floors. And in 1851, its deep two-story cellars were explored. In the pre-Petrine era, it was impossible to describe them, but some people had a chance to examine them. True, such an acquaintance was hardly pleasant: originally intended for military purposes, in the 16th-17th centuries. they were used as dungeons.

A stone bridge, equipped with merlons, which connects the high Trinity Tower with its squat sister Kutafya, was built in 1516 on the site of another - according to some versions, the first stone bridge built in Moscow. In those days, it was part of a complex hydraulic complex: with its north side a system of dams was equipped, with the help of which the water level in Neglinnaya was regulated. As already mentioned, these dams also served to supply water to the moat from Red Square. Now we can see this bridge almost the same as it was immediately after construction - except for the dams, of course.

And in order to enter the Trinity Bridge and get into the travel gate of the Trinity Tower, the traveler had to first pass through another gate + into different time they were sometimes called Borisoglebsk, then Vladimir, and then, for obvious reasons, Patriarchs. What is this gate? They were located in the bridgehead guard tower Kutafye.

The origin of its name is still controversial among historians and philologists. In some dialects, this word was called kvashnya (a squat and wide tub for making dough); It also had a figurative meaning - “kutafya” meant a squat fat woman (or just an overly wrapped woman). As you can see, both of these options hint at some awkwardness of a low tower. Another version of the origin of the name from the word "kut" - "corner" - seems much less likely. After all, the Kutafya tower does not stand at all in some corner, on the contrary, it is carried far forward beyond the line of walls. It is a embodied reminder of those times when all the Kremlin towers had bastions. Indeed, Kutafya was erected at the beginning of the 16th century. for the defense of the Trinity Bridge. At that time, it was surrounded by its own moat, through which it was possible to get into the tower via drawbridges located on both sides, at two side gates that led inside Kutafya. Traces of embedded grooves, through which the levers of the lifting mechanism were passed, are still clearly visible on one of the side facades.

During the repair in 1686, the tower acquired a more convenient through passage to the Trinity Bridge through the front facade, and the side gates were laid - the tower no longer had a defensive value, in the name of which it was necessary to make it difficult to travel in a straight line. In 1901, the side passages in the tower were opened again, but in 1930 they were laid again. Today, Kutafya is open from all sides; as a gazebo - the side gates in it were restored in 1976.

Initially, the Kutafya tower had 2 combat tiers (the overlap between them was dismantled in 1760), on the upper platform there were machicols, which made it possible to shoot through the space at the very foot of the tower.

In 1685, an openwork decorative top was built over Kutafya, resembling a red crown with white stone decorations, and the former “fat little man” became much taller and more elegant. At present, its height is 13.5 m. This is not much, of course, compared to the rest of the Kremlin towers, and against the background of its older sister, the Trinity Tower, Kutafya, and today it looks small, but you forget about it, standing in space, surrounded by its walls - such ancient power emanates from them.

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