This place
The sky-blue dome illuminated with golden stars rises to a height of 80 meters and can be seen at a distance of 20 km. An architectural masterpiece, it can be barely missed by anyone visiting St. Petersburg. The dome belongs to the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Life-Guards of the Izmailovo Regiment, one of the oldest in Russia that took part in numerous wars.
In the 18th century the settlements of the Life-Guards Regiments were located in the Fontanka river area as it was the southern border of the city. Each regiment had to have its own church where the soldiers prayed and kept their military trophies and relics. Initially constructed of wood, the church was significantly enlarged and rebuilt in stone by the architect V. Stasov in the 1830s.
In memory of the fallen soldiers, their names were carved on the memorial slabs. In 1886, a monument “The Column to the Military Glory” was put up in front of the cathedral. The column resembles a large cannon that is actually made of 140 trophy cannons taken in battles in Bulgaria during Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878.
In 1938, the cathedral was closed for worshippers and served as a warehouse until 1990s when the reconstruction began. In 2006, when they almost finished the works, a devastating fire destroyed the original dome, and the restoration was only completed in 2008.
The cathedral possesses several Orthodox shrines such as 600-year-old icon of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity painted in 1406. In the Soviet time the icon was initially kept in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow and was then sold to a private American collector. In 2000s, it was purchased at Christie`s and donated to the cathedral by the President V. Putin on the occasion of the 300s anniversary of St. Petersburg.
Another unique item is an icon of Saint Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg, one of the most venerated city`s saints. The icon has become the first to be painted using a lifetime portrait of the saint which is kept in the Hermitage archive.
Interesting fact: The central dome is decorated with 280 gilded stars while the minor domes have 208 each. Legend has it that the colour of the domes was chosen by the colour of the badge of the Izmailovo Regiment, which is a blue St. Andrew cross covered by a monogram of Anna Ioanovna, Russian Empress who established the regiment in 1730. It was here that Fyodor Dostoevsky married his second wife, Anna Snitkina, on February 15, 1867. The famous writer had lived a few years just beside the cathedral.
This day in the History of St.Petersburg
On February 9 (January 28 old style), 1881, 140 years ago the world-famous Russian writer F. M. Dostoevsky died of a pulmonary bleeding that was possibly caused by a tough conversation with relatives or a visit of the Tsar`s secret police to his neighbours. His widow was offered to bury the writer at the cemetery of Alexander Nevsky Lavra, one of the most prestigious monasteries in Russia.
Friends and admirers of Dostoevsky carried the coffin along the Nevsky prospect up to the Lavra. From forty to sixty thousands of people joined the funeral procession silently saying goodbye to the writer. At the time of his death, Dostoevsky was at the height of his career in Russia, and many Russians mourned his death.
