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Moscow Kremlin


Within a century, the town had risen to become an independent principality within the Mongol empire. By the middle of the 14th century, its princes had gained such pre-eminence that Moscow was made the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church. With Ivan the Great (1462-1505) at its helm, Muscovite rule extended over all of Russia, and the Kremlin became more magnificent, befitting its role as the seat of Russian power. By 1480 the once modest hunting lodge had become an imposing fortress city. Its stone walls were graced by the magnificent Cathedral of the Assumption, where Ivan defiantly tore up the charter binding Moscow to Mongol rule. Over the next two centuries, until Peter the Great transferred the capital of Russia to St. Petersburg, the Kremlin served as the central stage for the magnificent and occasionally horrific history of the Tsars.

 

 

With the shift of power to St. Petersburg, the city and the Kremlin declined. However, the Bolsheviks" choice of Moscow as their capital in March 1918 returned it to preeminence, and during Soviet rule the Kremlin experienced its second life as a great center of power. Although the Soviet state certainly left its mark on the Kremlin, the centuries-old citadel very much retains the aura of early Tsarist Russia. Especially in Cathedral Square, where the spirits of Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, and the early Romanovs loom much larger than those of Stalin or even Lenin himself.

During our excursion you"ll see the beauty of Assumption Cathedral - the oldest, largest, and most important of the Kremlin"s many churches. The Cathedral itself made history almost before the paint was dry, for it was on its steps in 1480 that Ivan tore up the charter binding Moscow"s princes to tribute to the Mongols. In addition to its historical significance as the primary church of Russian Orthodoxy (and thus as the site of all manner of coronations, funerals, victory services, and intrigues), the Cathedral is notable for its accomplished architectural and decorative elements. Its frescoes, icons, and the elaborate Throne of Monomakh are of particular interest for visitors, as is Fioravanti"s archetypal synthesis of traditional Russian ecclesiastical architecture.

 



Also you"ll be surprised by the largest in the world Tsar Cannon and Bell. The 40-ton Tsar Cannon, built during the reign of Ivan the Terrible"s imbecilic son Fyodor in 1586, possesses a barrel in excess of five meters long and a caliber of 890 mm. The gun should in theory have been capable of smiting foolish attackers with projectiles the size of wine casks. As if the cannon"s sheer size were not inspiring enough, the barrel and carriage are adorned with a relief of the redoubtable Fyodor as well as a scene in which a fierce Russian lion devastates a snake symbolizing Russia"s enemies.

The two hundred ton Tsar Bell, though the largest in the world, was never successfully completed, much less rung. A smaller predecessor (weighing in at a mere 130 tons) was built in the middle of the 17th century but was destroyed in the Moscow fire of 1701. Three decades later the Empress Anna ordered the fragments to be recast into a much larger bell, but the resultant wonder cracked in 1737 after having fallen into its casting pit. Another century passed before the bell was lifted and set in its present location. Beside the bell lies a small eleven-ton scrap that fell from the bell during its excavation.

A visit to The Arsenal will be an interesting adventure for those who are interested both in history and in armor history. The Kremlin Arsenal was commissioned by Peter the Great to serve as a weapons depot and manufactory. After Napoleon"s disastrous retreat from Moscow this building became a museum commemorating the Russian victory. Most of the cannons arrayed along its side were captured from the fleeing, tattered remains of Bonaparte"s Grande Army.

 

 

And after a long excursion you go our of the Kremlin"s walls and walk along the famous and wide the Red Square. For most our visitors, Red Square is indelibly associated with images of stonefaced Soviet leaders standing in the bitter cold as a panoply of military might rumbles past their review stand atop Lenin"s Mausoleum. Although the Square is no longer witness to the imposing parades of May Day, it remains a profoundly impressive space.

And at the end of your excursion you take a look at the visit card of Moscow and Russia - St. Basil"s Cathedral that rises from Red Square in an irresistible profusion of colors and shapes. Its montage of domes, cupolas, arches, towers, and spires, each bearing a distinctive pattern and hue, have fascinated the eyes of visitors since its construction in the 1550s.