Description of the attraction
The first mention of the temple of St. John the Warrior dates back to 1625. The legend about St. John the Warrior says that he was an excellent warrior in ancient Rome, but the Emperor Julian sent him to fight the Christians, and since he was a Christian himself, he helped them in every possible way and saved many. They seized him and were about to execute him, but Julian died and he was released.
The old temple of John the Warrior was located on the banks of the river and was often flooded. There is a legend that Peter I, seeing that the temple was in the water, and learning that this temple was dedicated to Saint John the Warrior, said that he would like to see this temple made of stone and on a dais. Having promised help, Peter left. But two months later he arrived with a plan of the church and praised the priest for the fact that work on the construction of the new church had already begun.
The author of the main volume of the temple was Peter's favorite architect - I. P. Zarudny. He created a number of buildings, which are characterized by the processing of the "Naryshkin" baroque in the spirit of the traditions of European architecture of that time (European "baroque").
The new Church of St. John the Warrior was built on Yakimanka. This is one of the best temples of early Petrine architecture in Moscow. The temple belongs to the traditional type of "octagon on a quadruple". But there is also a second octagon installed here.
The first octagon has a semi-domed shape, inside it corresponds to an octahedral vault. The faces of the first octagon are processed with projections. Each projection includes a window with a semicircular end, which is framed by a portico and a triangular pediment. The second octagon is more like a lantern. Semicircular pediments, balustrades bypassing the two lower tiers are typical of Peter's architecture.
In the eastern part of the refectory there are several side-altars - Sts. Guria, Simon and Aviv and St. Demetrius of Rostov.
The bell tower is much more modest than the temple.
A beautiful wooden carved iconostasis was built in 1708 for the Church of the Three Saints at the Red Gate and moved from there to the church of St. John the Warrior in 1928, when the Church of the Three Saints was demolished.
The baroque fence of the temple with a beautiful wrought-iron lattice was installed in the middle of the 18th century.
