Description of the attraction
Each city has its own spiritual center; in Veliky Ustyug - this is the Cathedral Courtyard, which combines several beautiful churches. An interesting fact is that churches of the 17-20th centuries are located in a small space, which makes it possible to trace the history of the development of the temple architecture of Ustyug. The complex of the famous Cathedral Courtyard includes churches: Prokopyevsky Cathedral, Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, Cathedral in honor of John the Righteous, Cathedral of the Epiphany, the Church of St. Moscow Metropolitan Alexy and the Bishop's courtyard.
The most important temple of the Cathedral Courtyard is the Assumption Church, built in the 17-18 centuries. The temple has a complex and rich history. The wooden temple was founded in the 13th century, but due to a fire it was rebuilt into a stone one. The cathedral became a copy of the Assumption Cathedral located in the Moscow Kremlin, but became the first large stone cathedral in the Russian North. The interior of the Assumption Cathedral is a typical Baroque interior with a huge number of decorative ornaments, small stucco and carved sculptures. The iconostasis is made according to the tradition of the rather late Baroque.
The second most important is the Cathedral of St. Procopius of Ustyug. This righteous man was German and converted to Orthodoxy, becoming a holy fool; canonized by the Orthodox Church in the 16th century. A stone church was built over the place of his grave in 1668 at the expense of the merchant Guselnikov.
The interior of the Cathedral of Prokopy Ustyug surprises with a majestic iconostasis dating back to the 18th century. Of considerable interest is the icon "Procopius Ustyuzhsky with a life in 40 hallmarks". The icon depicts the details of the life of the famous saint. The wall frescoes by famous Ustyug and Moscow masters look original.
The Cathedral of St. John the Righteous appeared thanks to the holy fool John, who was buried between the Prokopyevsky and Assumption Cathedrals. After a while, a wooden church named after him appeared on this place. In 1656, with the permission of the Rostov Metropolitan, the construction of a stone church in the name of the Origin of the Holy Cross with the border of John of Ustyug began on the site of the wooden church. The construction was completed in 1663. The temple had five domes and an attached bell tower on the south side with six bells. A little later, the bell tower was dismantled.
In 1830, St. John's Cathedral was rebuilt: the dome was redone and the chapters were replaced. In 1859, a refectory was added to the cathedral. In 1912, a limit was laid in honor of the healer Panteleimon and the martyrs: Mother Sophia and her daughters Vera, Hope and Love. The warm winter temple of St. John's Cathedral was the church named after St. Blasius of Sevastia. In 1689, namely on June 13, the Archbishop of Totma and Veliky Ustyug signed a charter for the construction of a one-domed stone church in the name of St. Blasius. After a fire overtook the church in 1772, it was rebuilt and consecrated in the name of the Epiphany of the Lord.
Of the icons that were previously in the Epiphany Church, one can distinguish the icon with the image of the holy martyr Blasius - of Sevatius - the bishop with miracles, as well as the image of John. As for the church utensils, we can note the chased altar cross, on which there is a record of the date of the erection of the cross.
The temple in the name of Metropolitan Alexei - the Moscow miracle worker was originally a wooden church, built in 1495, and was called a temple in the name of the Praise of the Virgin. In 1672, a stone temple was erected, in which the second floor was built after a fire. Then they decided to consecrate the church in honor of Metropolitan Alexy. In 1821, work was completed on the iconostasis of the upper floor, in the creation of icons of which the brothers Sokolov and Protopopov took part. In 1835, the iconostasis was decorated on the lower floor, consecrated in honor of the Church of St. John the Baptist. In 1868, the church service was stopped.
The bishop's house was built by the Reverend Alexander in 1694. This house consists of several parts. The "Cross Chamber" is the main part from where you can get to the famous Church of the Nativity of Christ.
The temples of the Cathedral Courtyard are truly unique, each of which has its own history.
