Description of the attraction
The first church, built on the site of the current Church of the Nativity of John the Baptist in Presnya, was a small wooden mono-altar church, which was erected on the territory of the Novinsky monastery. The construction of the church was carried out in the 80s of the 17th century, at the same time the temple icon "The Nativity of John the Baptist" was painted.
At the beginning of the 18th century, a petition was made that the wooden building had become dilapidated, and now a new stone building needs to be built. Permission for rebuilding was obtained, but in 1714 Peter's decree was issued banning stone construction outside St. Petersburg, and work was suspended until 1728. The consecration of the temple took place in 1734, and before that, a chapel in honor of John the Warrior was arranged and consecrated in it.
In the first half of the 19th century, a new stone bell tower was erected near the church to replace the burnt wooden one, a refectory was built and another chapel was built in honor of Sophia the Wisdom of God. At the end of the same century, a parish school and an almshouse were established at the temple. Both institutions were located on different floors of the same building, specially built for the needs of the temple.
In Soviet times, the temple was not closed, although it was deprived of its valuables and bells. They were thrown from the belfry of the belfry in the 30s. In the 60s, priests and parishioners managed to carry out repairs and restoration of the church, during which even a baptismal was arranged. In the 90s of the last century, another renovation of the temple was carried out, a more significant one.
The church gave its name to Maly Predtechensky lane, in which it is located. The temple building has been declared a cultural heritage site.
