Monastery or convent, this place occupies a very specific place in Russian history. On the grounds surrounded by the Kremlinesque walls, which were built to act as a fortress, are four cathedrals including the majestic four-onion globes of Smolensky Cathedral which dates back to 1524. It was at Novodevichy that Peter the Great imprisoned his sister Sophia and executed her supporters from the Streltsy rebellion. Today it is a magnificent and peaceful cloister with an impressive icon collection. Be sure to look at the fascinating nearby cemetery too while you are here and take a stroll around the picturesque pond beyond the walls.
The Novodevihcy Monastery was founded in 1524 not by Tsar Ivan the Terrible but by his father Grand Russian Duke Vasily III (1479-1533) to commemorate the capture of Smolensk from Lithuanians in 1514. This Convent was built as a biggest ancient fortress on the bank of the Moscow River to became an important part of the southern defenses of the capital, a ring of defenses that included a number of other monasteries. The six-pillared five-domed Smolensky Cathedral is the oldest structure in the convent whose construction dates back to 1524–1525.
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Oleg Mosin
The Novodevihcy Monastery was founded in 1524 not by Tsar Ivan the Terrible but by his father Grand Russian Duke Vasily III (1479-1533) to commemorate the capture of Smolensk from Lithuanians in 1514. This Convent was built as a biggest ancient fortress on the bank of the Moscow River to became an important part of the southern defenses of the capital, a ring of defenses that included a number of other monasteries. The six-pillared five-domed Smolensky Cathedral is the oldest structure in the convent whose construction dates back to 1524–1525.