Florovsky Convent. In the St. Florus Ascension Monastery. List of used literature
on Wikimedia Commons Holy Ascension Florovsky Monastery(ukr.
Holy Ascension Florivsky Monastery
listen)) - a convent on Podil in Kyiv, probably founded at the beginning of the 16th century. History of the monastery
Abbess Parthenia
, in the world Apolinaria Alexandrovna Adabash, who came from a noble Moldavian family. The father of Abbess Parthenia A. A. Adabash served with the rank of brigadier in the Russian army and for his services received significant lands in the Novorossiysk region from Empress Elizaveta Petrovna. The nun is known for compiling the church service to Saints Cyril and Methodius and “The Legend of the Life and Deeds of the Elder of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra, Hieroschema Parthenius.”
Monastery architecture
The ensemble of the Florovsky Monastery was formed over two centuries; here you can see buildings dating back to different eras and different styles. The oldest building of the monastery is the Church of the Ascension, built in 1732. The church has three apses and is topped by three domes. The church is very similar to ancient Russian churches, but its central apse has the same height as the church, and the side ones are half as high, the domes are located along the same line, as in wooden Ukrainian churches.
- The terrible fire of 1811 destroyed the entire Old Podol, all that was left of wooden houses, sidewalks, and fences was only coals, all the churches, including those in the Florovsky Monastery, were badly damaged. The restoration of the monastery was carried out by the architect Andrei Melensky, who built a rotunda church, the house of the abbess and a three-tiered bell tower at the entrance to the monastery in the classicist style.
Literature
Historical and statistical description of the Kiev-Florovsky Ascension Convent. - Kyiv: printing house of S. V. Kulzhenko, 1894.
This monastery may not be the most visible and famous in Kyiv, but it is almost the most indicative in terms of the harmonious functioning of an Orthodox monastery within a large city. Why Orthodox? Because, for example, in Lviv, there are many monasteries that harmoniously blend into the city panorama, but these are Catholic monasteries. But Orthodox monasteries always attract more attention and function on the principle of a city within a city. Like the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, or Sophia of Kyiv, or the Trinity-Ilyinsky Monastery in Chernigov. There are many such examples. I’m not saying that this is bad, I’m just drawing attention to the harmony of the urban environment and I want to note that in this harmony, monasteries should be noticeable and invisible at the same time. (There are also inconspicuous Orthodox monasteries, for example in Odessa, but this is an inflection in the other direction, when they simply merge with the urban environment).
Holy Ascension Florovsky Monastery
Monastir on the cob of the 20th century (you can see the pear-shaped baths of the Ascension Cathedral)
Ascension Cathedral (left hand) with sholomo-like baths (photo clickable)
There are many churches in Podol. There are also many monasteries (former and currently active). Ascension Florovsky Monastery is one of the oldest, largest and most interesting. It is an integral part of the landscape of Podol, although at the same time it is one of the most compact and most comfortable large monastery complexes in Ukraine (this is when more than one church and more than one building of cells are successfully located in a limited space). There is a large cathedral, a large bell tower, three auxiliary churches and large cell buildings. And all this operates in a limited space in a busy business part of the city, with constant traffic jams and hundreds (or thousands) of typical office workers.
It is unknown when the monastery in honor of Saints Florus and Laurus was founded in Kyiv. According to some historical documents, it already existed in 1441. Then it fell and was restored by the Kyiv archpriest Jacob Gulkevich, who received the lands of the monastery as lifelong property from the Polish king Sigismund II in 1566. The monastery was already a women's monastery. In 1632, Gulkevich's grandson renounced his rights to the monastery lands and transferred them to the subordination of Abbess Agafya Gumenitskaya. Since then, the monastery existed as a separate monastery, subordinate to the Kyiv Metropolis and the Ecumenical (Constantinople) Patriarchate. But after the annexation of Kyiv to Muscovy, the metropolis was almost by force resubordinated to the Moscow Patriarchate. We won’t talk further about subordination...
Church of Our Lady of Kazan
Refectory Church
Resurrection Church
At first, all the buildings of the monastery (which was very poor) were wooden, so they suffered greatly from frequent fires. Only at the end of the 17th century the first stone building appeared in the monastery - the abbess's house.
The heyday began in 1711, after Peter I closed the Ascension Convent (the oldest convent in Kyiv) and transferred the nuns to the Florovsky monastery. The city arsenal was subsequently built on the site of the Ascension Monastery.
The Ascension Monastery was considered the most elite convent in Kyiv. Most of the nuns here came from princely and gentry families. As the famous French engineer Boplan (who served the Polish crown for a long time) noted, the nuns (seen by the engineer on walks) have extremely beautiful faces.
Dzvinitsya
Monastery buildings (photo clickable)
In 1683, after the appointment of Mary Magdalene Mazepa (Mokievskaya), the mother of the future hetman, as abbess of the Ascension Monastery, the monastery began to flourish. It became the main center of liturgical sewing, expanded and expanded. But Emperor Peter closed the “Mazepa” monastery. The stone churches and monastery buildings were subsequently dismantled, and the nuns were transferred to the Florovsky Monastery.
Numerous estates of Voznesensky were also transferred to the Florovsky monastery. From one of the poorest he became one of the richest. Since 1732, it began to be called the Holy Ascension Florovsky Monastery. This happened after the completion of the construction of the Holy Ascension Cathedral - the main church of the monastery.
The cathedral was built in the Ukrainian Baroque style. It is interesting that later in church circles this style was called “an archaistic form that corresponds to the folk building tradition.” It was restored several times after fires. So in 1811, a fire destroyed almost all the paintings in the temple. The restoration work was led by the chief architect of Kyiv, Andrey Melensky. On his initiative, the original pear-shaped domes of the cathedral, characteristic of the Ukrainian Baroque, were restored. But the Soviet “restorers”, after the destruction of the domes in 1941-43 (during the occupation), did not restore their shape, putting strange helmet-shaped endings on the drums. The cathedral then lost some of its beauty. But still, this is still one of the most majestic temples in Podol. The interior of the building is especially impressive (which I was not allowed to photograph - it is not blessed).
In 1759, the first stone building of the monastery (the abbess's house) was turned into a refectory church (now the Church of Our Lady of Tikhvin). A little earlier (in 1740), a three-tier bell tower was erected, with the top two tiers being wooden.
By the end of the 18th century, most of the buildings of the Florovsky Monastery remained wooden, so the terrible fire of 1811 destroyed them. How he destroyed the upper tiers of the bell tower. Under the leadership of Melensky, a major reconstruction of the monastery was carried out. New cell buildings were built. The bell tower was completed with two stone tiers in the Empire style (the bell tower had a high spire, distorted by Soviet restorers). In the same style, the Resurrection Church-rotunda was erected in 1824 (now considered one of the best empire-style buildings in Kyiv).
In 1840-44, the Church of Our Lady of Kazan was built. The author of the project is considered to be Pavel Sparro. The church is a mixture of classicism and historicism (the classicist building is complemented by elements of Russian-Byzantine architecture).
In 1929 the monastery was closed. The Trinity Church, which stood on the monastery cemetery, was destroyed, and the remaining buildings were distributed to various institutions. So, in the Church of Our Lady of Kazan, a workshop of a prosthetic factory was located, in the Ascension Cathedral and the Resurrection Church - workshops of “Ukrproektrestavratsiya”, in cell buildings - a housing cooperative... Well, etc.
During the German occupation, the monastery was reopened; in the future it was no longer closed (officially), although most of the buildings were returned to the nuns only in the 90s of the last century.
Now the monastery can be said to be thriving, even despite the continuation of restoration work in many buildings. This is a significant tourist site, included in most excursion programs in Podol. We recommend visiting this corner of comfort in the middle of a noisy city. You will not regret.
Text and photos by Roman Malenkov
Hello!
I combined the Vladimir Cathedral and the Florovsky Monastery into one post, since there are not very many photographs, but I still want you to be imbued with the charm of these places and want to visit them in person: 
The idea to build a cathedral in Kyiv Cathedral in honor of St. Vladimir
arose in the early 1850s. Then a monument to the prince was built in the city on Vladimir Hill. Nicholas I approved this idea. In September 1852, a committee of representatives of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra was created, which began to collect funds for construction, choose the location of the cathedral and prepare the project(Temple of Extraordinary Creations).
While money was being collected, the project was being prepared, time passed, and the foundation ceremony for the cathedral took place only on July 15, 1862, on the day of the celebration of the memory of Prince Vladimir.
The cathedral was conceived in the Old Byzantine style, the same as churches were built in Rus' during the time of princes Vladimir and Yaroslav. According to the original design, the huge cathedral was supposed to have the shape of a cross and be crowned with thirteen domes. The bold idea was not destined to come true: the available funds were not enough, and the project was reworked. As a result, we have a smaller version of the cathedral with seven domes():
The history of the construction of the cathedral is very long. We would call this a long-term construction project. Either there was not enough money, then the architect turned out to be extremely busy, and the construction was transferred to another specialist. And in 1866, when the cathedral was almost built, the walls suddenly cracked, the vaults came apart, and there was a threat of collapse. Naturally, the construction was frozen again. The architect Beretti (in whose hands the construction of the cathedral was at that time) experienced such stress after this that his career collapsed, and he himself died in a psychiatric hospital.
And in the unfinished cathedral, no work was carried out at all for nine years. During this time, the wood and masonry began to deteriorate. The tsar intervened in the matter - during a visit to Kyiv in 1875, Alexander II, seeing the abandoned building, expressed a desire to complete the construction of the cathedral. The construction of the temple passed into the hands of the state. In 1882 the temple was finally built. To test the strength of its structure, 640 tons of sand in bags were placed on the roof of the building. The test was successful. And subsequently, throughout the history of the cathedral, no cracks appeared on it.(Temple of Extraordinary Creations).
The most beautiful thing about the cathedral is its interior decoration. Famous painters were involved in the painting: Viktor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov and others. Some of the ornaments were made by Mikhail Vrubel.
Vasnetsov signed a contract to work in the cathedral for two years. In fact, it took two years just to create the altar image of the Mother of God, and the entire cathedral required Vasnetsov 11 years of continuous work(Cathedral of St. Prince Vladimir in Kyiv).
The most majestic image created by the artist is the altarpiece of the Mother of God with the little Christ raising his hands, blessing the world. The pose in which the Son of God is depicted was suggested to the artist by his own son. When Vasnetsov’s wife took their son out into the yard one morning in early spring, the child clasped his hands when he saw the sky and birds. The artist took this as a sign from above ( Temple of Extraordinary Creations):
The iconostasis of the cathedral is made of smoky gray Carrara marble - the best in the world. The depths of Carrara, a mountainous area in the Italian province of Tuscany, gave rise to the material for Michelangelo's masterpieces and the unique Florentine cathedrals. Multi-colored marbles from Italy, France, Belgium, Russia and Spain decorate the interior of St. Vladimir Cathedral. The mosaic floor of the temple is also made of marble. Craftsmen from Venice also took part in decorating the interior of the cathedral with mosaics.(Cathedral of St. Prince Vladimir in Kyiv):
The consecration of the cathedral took place on August 20, 1896, only 34 years after the start of construction. So, the majestic Temple-monument was born on the initiative of Nicholas I, built during the reigns of Alexander II and Alexander III, completed and consecrated under Nicholas II(Cathedral of St. Prince Vladimir in Kyiv).
Fortunately, the cathedral managed to survive during Soviet times, although there were more than once attempts to destroy it.
After the advent of Soviet power, in 1929, the Vladimir Cathedral “gave over for industrialization” all its bells (1,100 poods). And in 1941, German sappers pulled out tens of kilograms of TNT from the basements of the building and cleared the mines of the grandiose structure, preserving it, paradoxically, for us(My Kyiv).
Currently, Vladimir Cathedral is the main temple of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate.
While visiting the cathedral I saw a couple getting married:
And this is one of the priests of the cathedral:
on in Kyiv is not only a historical monument, but also an active convent. According to the official website of the Kyiv diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, currently in the Florovsky monastery, under the leadership of Abbess Antonia (Filkina), 230 sisters are asceticizing, among them 1 abbess in retirement (of the Ovruch monastery), 6 schema nuns, 121 nuns, 4 nuns, 42 novices and other workers:
The Holy Ascension Florovsky Monastery in Kyiv existed back in 1482, but the first documentary mention of the holy monastery dates back to 1566. The monastery was quite poor. But in 1711, a radical reorganization took place in the monastery. By the will of Emperor Peter I, the Ascension Convent (founded at the beginning of the 17th century), located opposite the Holy Gates of the Lavra, was annexed to the Florovsky Monastery.(RestInfo).
The fact is that the abbess of the Ascension Monastery for a long time was the legendary Mary Magdalene - the mother of Hetman Ivan Mazepa, Marina Mazelina-Kaledinskaya.
The Ascension Monastery was considered elitist - princesses, noblewomen, and girls from the families of Cossack elders came here. There was a school at the monastery; her pupils received quite good wages for the 17th century. education, and in addition mastered the unique art of gold embroidery. After the Battle of Poltava, this monastery was abolished, and all the nuns were transferred to Florovsky. They brought with them their rich contributions, their art of gold embroidery. The monastery became the real heir to all the property of the Ascension Monastery and acquired a new, double name - the Holy Ascension Florovsky Monastery. And powerful stone construction began(Tourist educational program).
One of the first stone churches built was the Ascension Cathedral (1722-1732):
A refectory, cells, and outbuildings are erected, a garden is laid out, and the cemetery is decorated.
And then came a new blow: the terrible fire of 1811, which contemporaries remember with shudder. The hem then seemed to come on all at once. The famous Kiev historian N. Zakrevsky recalls: “It burned for almost three days.” They claim that on the streets of Podolsk bricks exploded from the heat and their fragments flew to the Kiev Pechersk Lavra; and scraps of burnt paper were found near Vasilkov, 36 versts from Kyiv. About 40 nuns died in the cathedral church - they suffocated in smoke. All the wooden buildings of the monastery burned to the ground; Only the lower tiers survived from the stone ones, the upper ones burned down. The nuns were left in the ashes (Tourist educational program). So the buildings of the monastery, except for the restored Church of the Ascension, were made in the 19th century.
Bell tower over the Holy Gate (1732-1821):
Church of St. Nicholas of Myra (until 1857 - St. Flora and Laurus; first tier - 17th century, second - 1818):
The Resurrection Church-rotunda, crowned with a green hemispherical dome, was designed by the first chief architect of Kyiv A.I. Melensky:
And the Church of Our Lady of Kazan is already the work of the diocesan architect P. Sparro, and it was erected in 1884. In Soviet times, it was taken away from the monastery, the dome was destroyed and a factory workshop was set up in the church. Now the church, like some other buildings, has been returned to the monastery and the monastery ensemble is actually being completely revived(Tourist educational program):
The territory of the monastery is very calm, beautiful and cozy:
Wonderful flower garden fence:
There are also places that have not yet been brought into the appropriate form. The passage there is closed, but you can take a peek at:
On the wall of the St. Nicholas Refectory Church there is a recently restored monumental pictorial composition “Prayer of Seraphim of Sarov”. It would seem, why did she appear here? The fact is that around 1760, the ascetic Alexandra Melgunova accepted monasticism in the Florovsky Monastery, and then the schema. Here, on the holy mountains of Kyiv, she had a vision that, with her blessing, the fourth inheritance of the Most Pure One on earth would be founded in Russia. And the Mother of God showed her the place of this destiny - the village of Diveevo. The youth Prokhor, the future great ascetic of the 19th century, went there, at the behest and blessing of Mother Alexandra, who turned to her for guidance. Seraphim of Sarov. And from here, from the Florovsky Monastery, the illustrious Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery begins its history.(Tourist educational program):
At different times, many historically famous people in Russia and Ukraine were residents of the monastery.
So, from 1758, Princess Natalia Dolgorukova (1714-1771, buried in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra), daughter of Peter I’s associate B. Sheremetev, worked here until her death, taking monastic vows with the name Nektaria. When Prince I. A. Dolgoruky, who had wooed her and was beloved by her, found himself in disgrace from Bironov, she did not refuse to become his wife and went into exile with her husband. In 1739 I. A. Dolgoruky was executed. Having courageously endured all the suffering, the princess described it in “Handwritten Notes” (published in 1810) and became the first Russian memoirist whose life was an example of great humility.
N. Dolgorukova, according to legend, threw her wedding ring into the Dnieper before her tonsure.
Blessed Irina Zelenogorskaya also began her monastic path at the Florovsky Monastery (RestInfo).
So if you find yourself in Kyiv, I highly recommend visiting this monastery.
The first written information about the existence of a monastery in the name of saints Flora and Laurel in Podol date back to the 16th century. A century later, in 1710, at the behest of Peter I, women's Ascension Monastery, which stood opposite the Holy Gate of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, was closed because the space it occupied was needed for the construction of an arsenal Pechersk fortress. The nuns who were there were placed in the Florovsky Monastery on Podol; he was given all the immovable estates of the closed monastery, of which especially many were received under the abbess Mary Magdalene- mother of the Ukrainian hetman Ivan Mazepa.
Since then, it has existed, which the nuns glorified with their good deeds. So, in the 19th century, on the territory of the monastery there was a school for girls from poor families, an almshouse, and a hospital. The monastery was closed in 1929 and revived again in 1941; in it today more than two hundred sisters and many novices; Daily services are held here.
The inhabitants of the Florovsky Monastery were at one time famous personalities. From 1758 until her death, the princess led a life dedicated to the Lord here. Natalia Dolgorukova, daughter of Peter I's associate B. Sheremetev. Having become the wife of the disgraced prince I.A. Dolgorukov, she was not afraid of a difficult life and followed her husband into exile. After the execution of her beloved prince, she took monastic vows at the Florovsky Monastery under the name Nectarias, according to legend, throwing his wedding ring into the Dnieper. The suffering Natalia endured and her great humility were described by her in her memoirs entitled “Handwritten Notes.”
One of the most revered inhabitants of the Florovsky Monastery was also nun Elena, in the world Ekaterina Bekhteeva(1756-1834). She was not canonized, but during her lifetime she was dearly loved and revered by elders and laymen for her good deeds and ability to console in sorrow, as well as for the fact that she “knew how to forgive.” The grave of nun Elena is on the territory of the monastery, behind Ascension Cathedral.
At all times, the nuns of the Florovsky Monastery were famous for their rare skill embroider with gold threads faces of saints. People from everywhere knew about these marvelous works that decorated the monastery’s churches and came not only to pray, but also to admire the images embroidered in gold.
Among shrines The Florovsky Monastery is distinguished by: a copy of the miraculous image of the Rudensky Icon of the Mother of God, two icons of the Mother of God - Tikhvin and "Quick to Hear", the image of "Look at Humility" - a copy of the famous miraculous icon of the Holy Vvedensky Monastery in Pechersk.
The main architectural sights Florovsky Monastery are: the bell tower with the Holy Gates, the Ascension Cathedral, the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, the St. Nicholas Refectory Church. At the stage of revival - the Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, in the building of which in Soviet times there was a garment factory.
The monastery is located at the foot of Florovskaya Mountain, where the deceased nuns were buried. There is an ascent to it from the Ascension Church.
The entire territory of the monastery is magnificent garden with rose garden, fruit trees, magnolia, creating a picturesque picture of “earthly paradise” in combination with ancient temples. You can see all this, as well as learn about the life of the inhabitants of the Florovsky Monastery in Kyiv, by visiting.
The legend of Saint Casian and Saint Nicholas.On the wall of the main temple Florovsky Monastery- Ascension Cathedral - images of Saints Kasian and Nicholas. According to legend, Saint Casian, who controls all the winds and keeps them under twelve locks, complained to God about Saint Nicholas, whom people loved and respected more than him. Then God told the angels to call Saint Nicholas to him. No matter how much the angels searched, Nicholas was not in heaven, he was still walking on earth, helping people. Either he saves ships from storms, or he protects people from fire, or he rescues people from captivity. When God finally waited for Nicholas, he appeared before the Lord in a simple retinue, in the mud, tied with a rope, as he was helping a man pull a cart out of a swamp. “You see, Kasian,” said God,“Do the same as Nikolai, and people will respect you the same way.” It is not for nothing that St. Nicholas's Day is celebrated four times a year, as a sign of gratitude for his deeds, and St. Kasian's Day - only once every four years, on February 29. |
Photo of the Florovsky Monastery in Kyiv
Church of the Resurrection
Image of Seraphim of Sarov
Bell tower over the Holy Gates of the monastery
Nuns take care of animals
Little heaven on earth
The image of St. Cassian on the wall of the Ascension Cathedral
Next to him is Saint Nicholas
The Kiev-Florovskaya convent has been mentioned in documents since the 15th century. For some time, the mother of Hetman Ivan Mazepa was the abbess of the convent. In the Florovsky Monastery there is a refectory church in the name of Saints Florus and Laurus. During Soviet times, an industrial enterprise was located on the territory of the monastery. Now the monastery has been restored to its original form. A functioning source of holy water has been preserved on the territory of the monastery.
04070, Kyiv, st. Florovskaya, 6/8, tel. 416-01-81.
Directions: metro to the station. "Kontraktova Square.
Patronal holidays. Ascension Cathedral with the southern aisle in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. The days of remembrance of the martyr are celebrated as patronal holidays. Flora and Laurel (August 18/31), St. Nicholas, as well as the Rudenskaya (July 13/26) and Tikhvin (July 27/August 9) icons of the Mother of God.
Shrines. In the Ascension Cathedral: locally revered icons of the Mother of God of Kazan (with a particle of the relics of the Great Martyr George), Tikhvin and Quick to Hear.
In the altar there is a reliquary with particles of the saint’s relics. Pechersky.
Icons with particles of the relics of St. Job Pochaevsky and VMC. Barbarians.
On the territory of the monastery there is the grave of the locally revered ascetic of piety nun Elena (Bakhteeva, †1834).
The abbess is Abbess Antonia (Filkina).
Worship is daily. The monastery does not switch to "summer time". Divine service: evening - 16.30 (in summer - 17.30), Liturgy - 7.00 (in summer - 8.00). On Sundays and holidays - 2 Liturgies: 7.00 and 9.30 (respectively, in the summer at 8.00 and 10.30).
At the monastery there is an “Orthodox Pilgrim” service, which carries out pilgrimages to the shrines of the East. Tel. 416-54-62.
It has been documented since 1566 as consecrated in the name of Sts. Flora and Laurel. In 1712, the nuns of the abolished Ascension Monastery, which stood opposite the Holy Gate of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra, were among the local nuns. The Florov sisters also inherited the lands of the Ascension Monastery, which it received especially in abundance under Abbess Maria Magdalene Mazepina, the mother of Hetman of Ukraine Ivan Mazepa. In the XVIII-XIX centuries. outstanding ascetics of piety in Russian history lived in the Florovsky monastery. From 1758, Princess Natalia Dolgorukova (1714-1771; buried in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra), daughter of Peter I’s associate B. Sheremetev, worked here until her death, taking monastic vows with the name Nektaria. When Prince I.A., wooed and beloved by her, Dolgoruky found himself in disgrace from Bironov, she did not refuse to become his wife and went into exile with her husband. In 1739 I.A. Dolgoruky was executed. Having courageously endured all the suffering, the princess described them in “Handwritten Notes” (published in 1810) and thus became the first Russian memoirist whose life was an example of great humility. N. Dolgorukova, according to legend, threw her wedding ring into the Dnieper before her tonsure.
OK. 1760 In the monastery she accepted monasticism and in a vision received instructions from the Mother of God to found in Russia the fourth inheritance of the Most Pure One on earth - the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery - ascetic Alexandra Melgunov. Blessed Irina Zelenogorskaya also began her monastic path at the Florovsky Monastery. An ascetic of piety was the Florovian tonsure (since 1856) and abbess (since 1865) Parthenia (Adabash; 1808-1881, buried in the monastery) - the spiritual daughter and first biographer of the Venerable. Hieroschemamonk Parthenius of Kyiv (d. 1855), spiritual poetess, author of the approved Holy. Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church for the Service of Sts. Cyril and Methodius.
Among the Florov ascetics is the nun Elena (Bakhteeva; +1834).
In 1929 the monastery was closed, and in 1941 it was revived. The first miracle occurred at the monastery (healing of a deaf-mute girl) from a cell kept here in 1961-1992. the great Kyiv shrine - the icon of the Mother of God "Look at Humility", which became famous in 1993 for transferring its negative imprint onto the glass of the icon case (see article about the Kiev Vvedensky Monastery).
In the central part of the monastery on one axis are located (from northeast to southwest): the bell tower above the Holy Gate (entrance from Pritisko-Nikolskaya Street; erected in several stages in 1732-1821; classicism), the Ascension Church ( 1722-1732; three-domed, combines the features of a cross-domed church with the arrangement of domes along one longitudinal axis, characteristic of wooden Ukrainian architecture) with the right side chapel in the name of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (in the past - in the name of the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary) and the Church of St. Nicholas of Myra (until 1857 - St. Flora and Laurus; the oldest surviving building of the monastery, rectangular in plan, with a single head on the apse protruding near the southwestern corner; the first tier is the 17th century, the second is 1818). West of the St. Nicholas Church is a single-domed rotunda church in the name of the Resurrection of Christ (1824, classicism; after the revival of the monastery, the throne inside was not restored). At the north-eastern wall, under a glazed canopy, is the grave of nun Elena (Bakhteeva). The coffin in which the ascetic rests was made for himself by Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk. When the festive bishop's vestments were placed on the body of the deceased hierarch, this coffin turned out to be too small and, replaced by another, when the saint's property was distributed to the poor, it went to the nun Elena.
From the Church of the Resurrection there is an ascent to Castle Hill. Having steep slopes on all sides, it is separated from neighboring heights by wide ravines and at one time was very convenient for building a fortress. There is reason to believe that it was on this mountain that Kyiv was founded. In the XIV century. she again becomes a city child - a Lithuanian wooden castle appears here. All R. XVII century The mountain received a second name - Kiselevka - after the head of the Polish administration of the city, A. Kisiel, who lived in the castle. Then the castle was burned and the mountain was empty. Over time, it became the property of the monastery and began to be called Florovskaya. In 1854-1857. Here they built the stone Church of the Holy Trinity (only the foundations have survived) and founded a monastic cemetery with it (from the 19th century until 1960, there was also a civil cemetery on the mountain).
In the southeastern part of the monastery, a single-domed church in the name of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (1841-1844), rebuilt in Soviet times as a factory, is being restored.
Pilgrimage trips to the Kiev-Florovsky Ascension Convent
- Trip from Dmitrov to the Kiev-Florovsky Ascension Convent
- A trip from Moscow to the Kiev-Florovsky Ascension Convent
