Description of the attraction
The Novodvinsk fortress in Arkhangelsk was built during the reign of Tsar Peter I. Russian soldiers were proud of it for a long time, and the foreign army was afraid of it. Until our time, the fortress has been partially preserved and remembers the history of fierce battles.
In 1700, Peter I ordered to build a military fortress on the banks of the Malaya Dvinka River. Arkhangelsk was the first city in which a Russian admiralty was built and a shipyard was founded. The tsar knew that the only place where the Swedish army could attack the Russian lands was the large port of Arkhangelsk, therefore, the fortress, in his opinion, had to be absolutely impregnable and accommodate at least 1000 soldiers.
The architect was appointed Georg Ernest Reze, who decided that the best place for the construction of the fortress would be the island of Linskoy Priluk. In 1701, in the spring, the construction of the Novodvinsk fortress began. The site for its construction was prepared in almost 1 month. In June 1701, the foundation of the fortress was laid. At the same time, Swedish troops tried to attack the port. Fortunately, a sufficient number of guns were delivered here, and, thanks to the correct conduct of the battle on the water, the Russians defeated the Swedes.
For the construction of the Novodvinsk fortress, white natural stone from Orletsov was delivered to Arkhangelsk on wooden barges. Local monasteries took an active part in the construction.
In 1702, Peter personally came to Arkhangelsk to supervise construction work, the bulk of which was completed in 1705. The walls of the fortress and watchtowers were erected. The king ordered to equip the fortress with 108 cannons. In 1711 all the necessary fortifications and defenses were built around the fortress walls. Only in 1731 the Novodvinsk fortress was added to the list of defensive fortresses in Russia. But in January 1863, she lost this status, because the military port in Arkhangelsk was disbanded.
During the Crimean War, in 1854-1856, the Novodvinsk fortress was besieged. In her history, this was the last time she fulfilled her direct role.
In 1864, the fortress was transferred to the jurisdiction of the Arkhangelsk diocese, which decided to set up a women's school here, but abandoned this idea, because at that time a railway line was being built connecting Vologda with Arkhangelsk. A lot of stone was needed to build the stations. The clergy decided to sell part of the walls of the fortress for construction needs. Thus, the once majestic fortress turned into an ordinary building material.
In 1898, the Arkhangelsk governor banned the sale of the fortress walls and ordered the commission to assess the condition of the fortress. At the beginning of the 20th century, a team of historians, researchers and architects-restorers began a detailed study of the architectural monument. In 1913 (in other sources in 1911) Novodvinskaya fortress was included in the list of sights of Russia.
In the late 1940s, a children's colony was located here, in which juvenile offenders were kept. Then, a plant producing water technology was based here, where the same juvenile delinquents worked. In the 1990s, major restoration work was organized.
Despite numerous military actions that severely destroyed the walls, the Novodvinsk fortress managed to maintain its original appearance. Its uniqueness and originality lies in the fact that it became the I fortress of the bastion type, formed in the northern region of Russia. It was built in the Dutch style. Similar buildings can be seen in America, Holland and the former colonies of these countries. The fortress is a structure in the shape of a square with 4 bastions: Rogatochny, Flag, Sea and Grave. The length of the walls is 300 meters, the height is 5, the thickness is from 2.5 to 3.5 meters. The distance between the bastions is about 120 meters.
You can get inside the Novodvinsk Fortress by passing three gates: Letnie, Dvinskie and Ravelinnye. Once they were richly decorated, and the fortress could be left by walking along underground passages, of which there were more than 10 (from many of them nothing remained). The military all the time lived on the territory of the fortress in the buildings located at the Summer and Dvina gates. In the center of the bastion was the Church of Peter and Paul, which was consecrated in 1702, and, according to all the canons of those years, the fortress was to be called Peter and Paul (in honor of the church), however, the name "Novodvinskaya" was assigned to the bastion. After a while, the church became Novodvinskaya.
