Description of the attraction
The main temple of the city of Melitopol, as well as one of the two cathedrals of the Zaporozhye and Melitopol dioceses of the UOC-MP, is the temple of Alexander Nevsky. Earlier on this place stood the Armenian-Gregorian church, erected in 1884 by the Evpatorian bourgeoisie Averik Khlebnikov. It was closed after the revolution and in its building in the 30s. housed a dairy research laboratory.
In 1941, during the occupation of the city, an Orthodox cathedral was opened on the site of the Armenian Gregorian church. The temple was named in honor of the Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky, in memory of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, which was built in 1861 in Melitopol. This temple was located 300 meters south of the present one and at first was a stone structure with a wooden dome. In 1867 a stone bell tower was completed, and in 1899 a new building of the cathedral was erected. In the mid-30s, during an active anti-religious campaign, the temple was destroyed to the ground.
After the war, the Soviet government decided that it was opened in 1941. under the Germans, the cathedral occupies the building illegally. Therefore, in the summer of 1946. made several attempts to evict him, but still the Christian community managed to keep the building of the temple. Until 1973, the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral remained the only functioning temple in Melitopol.
In 2003-2004. a major reconstruction of the cathedral was carried out, while it was decided to leave only the building from the old building. The walls were painted with new frescoes, the iconostasis was changed, and a heating system was constructed under the floor. The shape of the old domes was changed, and an additional dome was erected over the altar. One floor was added to the old bell tower.
