The architecture of Kievan Rus' comes from the medieval state of Kievan Rus' which incorporated parts of what is now modern Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, and was centered on Kiev and Novgorod. Its architecture is the earliest period of Russian and Ukrainian architecture, using the foundations of Byzantine culture but with great use of innovations and architectural features. Most remains are Russian Orthodox churches or parts of the gates and fortifications of cities.
After the disintegration of Kievan Rus' followed by Mongol invasion in the first half of the 13th century, the architectural tradition continued in the principalities of Novgorod, Vladimir-Suzdal, Galicia-Volhynia and eventually had direct influence on the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian architecture. The Old Russian architecture of churches originates from the pre-Christian Slavic zodchestvo (Russian : зодчество - construction).
The great churches of Kievan Rus', built after the adoption of Christianity in 988, were the first examples of monumental architecture in the East Slavic lands. The architectural style of the Kievan state, which quickly established itself, was strongly influenced by Byzantine architecture. Early Eastern Orthodox churches were mainly made of wood with the simplest form of church becoming known as a cell church. Major cathedrals often featured scores of small domes, which led some art historians to take this as an indication of what the pagan Slavic temples should have looked like. The 10th-century Church of the Tithes in Kiev was the first cult building to be made of stone. The earliest Kievan churches were built and decorated with frescoes and mosaics by Byzantine masters.
Another great example of an early church of Kievan Rus' was the thirteen-domed Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev (1037–54), built by Yaroslav the Wise. Much of its exterior has been altered with time, extending over the area and eventually acquiring 25 domes.
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod (1045–1050),[ citation needed ] on the other hand, expressed a new style that exerted a strong influence on Russian church architecture. Its austere thick walls, small narrow windows, and helmeted cupolas have much in common with the Romanesque architecture of Western Europe.
Even further departure from Byzantine models is evident in succeeding cathedrals of Novgorod: St Nicholas's (1113), St Anthony's (1117–19), and St George's (1119). Along with cathedrals, of note was the architecture of monasteries of these times. The 12th–13th centuries were the period of feudal division of Kievan Rus into princedoms which were in nearly permanent feud, with multiplication of cathedrals in emerging princedoms and courts of local princes ( knyazes ).
By the end of the 12th century, the divide of the country was final and new centers of power took the Kievan style and adopted it to their traditions. In the northern principality of Vladimir-Suzdal the local churches were built of white stone. The Suzdal style is also known as "white-stone architecture" ("белокаменное зодчество"). The first white-stone church was the St. Boris and Gleb Church commissioned by Yuri Dolgoruky, a church-fortress in Kideksha near Suzdal, at the supposed place of the stay of knyazes Boris and Gleb on their pilgrimage to Kiev. The white-stone churches mark the highest point of pre-Mongolian Rus' architecture. The most important churches in Vladimir are the Assumption Cathedral (built 1158–60, enlarged 1185–98, frescoes 1408) and St Demetrios Cathedral (built 1194–97).
In the western splinter of Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia churches in a traditional Kievan style were built for some time, but eventually the style began to drift towards Central European Romanesque tradition. The white stone masonry of Galician school of architecture was likely the inspiration of the development of a similar style in Vladimir-Suzdal. [1]
Celebrated as these structures are, the contemporaries were even more impressed by churches of Southern Rus', particularly the Svirskaya Church of Smolensk (1191–94). As southern structures were either ruined or rebuilt, restoration of their original outlook has been a source of contention between art historians. The most memorable reconstruction is the Piatnytska Church (1196–99) in Chernigov (modern Chernihiv, Ukraine), by Peter Baranovsky.
There were very few examples of secular (non-religious) architecture in Kievan Rus. Golden Gates of Vladimir, despite much 18th-century restoration, could be regarded as an authentic monument of the pre-Mongolian period.
In Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, no secular monuments survived aside from pieces of walls and ruins of gates. The Golden Gates of Kyiv were destroyed completely over the years with only the ruins remaining. In the 20th century a museum was erected above the ruins. It is a close image of the gates of the Kievan Rus period but is not a monument of the time.
One of the best examples, the fortress of Bilhorod Kyivskyi, is still lying under the ground waiting major excavation. In the 1940s, the archaeologist Nikolai Voronin discovered the well-preserved remains of Andrei Bogolyubsky's palace in Bogolyubovo, dating from 1158 to 1165.
A kremlin is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. The word is often used to refer to the Moscow Kremlin and metonymically to the government based there. Other such fortresses are called detinets, such as the Novgorod Detinets.
Yaroslav I Vladimirovich, better known as Yaroslav the Wise, was Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 until his death in 1054. He was also earlier Prince of Novgorod from 1010 to 1034 and Prince of Rostov from 987 to 1010, uniting the principalities for a time. Yaroslav's baptismal name was George after Saint George.
Vladimir-Suzdal, formally known as the Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal or Grand Principality of Vladimir (1157–1331), also as Suzdalia or Vladimir-Suzdalian Rus', was one of the major principalities emerging from Kievan Rus' in the late 12th century, centered in Vladimir-on-Klyazma. With time the principality grew into a grand principality divided into several smaller principalities. After being conquered by the Mongol Empire, the principality became a self-governed state headed by its own nobility. A governorship of the principality, however, was prescribed by a jarlig issued from the Golden Horde to a Rurikid sovereign.
Vladimir is a city and the administrative center of Vladimir Oblast, Russia, located on the Klyazma River, 200 kilometers (120 mi) east of Moscow. It is served by a railway and the M7 motorway. Population: 349,951 (2021 Census).
Chernihiv is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, which serves as the administrative center of Chernihiv Oblast and Chernihiv Raion within the oblast. Chernihiv's population is 282,747.
Vladimir may refer to:
The Christianization of Kievan Rus' was a long and complicated process that took place in several stages. In 867, Patriarch Photius of Constantinople told other Christian patriarchs that the Rus' people were converting enthusiastically, but his efforts seem to have entailed no lasting consequences, since the Russian Primary Chronicle and other Slavonic sources describe the tenth-century Rus' as still firmly entrenched in Slavic paganism. The traditional view, as recorded in the Russian Primary Chronicle, is that the definitive Christianization of Kievan Rus' dates happened c. 988, when Vladimir the Great was baptized in Chersonesus (Korsun) and proceeded to baptize his family and people in Kiev. The latter events are traditionally referred to as baptism of Rus' in Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian literature.
Andrey Bogolyubsky, was Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal from 1157 until his death. During repeated internecine wars between the princely clans, Andrey accompanied his father Yuri Dolgorukiy during a brief capture of Kiev in 1149. 20 years later, his son led the Sack of Kiev (1169). He was canonized as a saint in the Russian Orthodox Church in 1702.
The architecture of Russia refers to the architecture of modern Russia as well as the architecture of both the original Kievan Rus', the Russian principalities, and Imperial Russia. Due to the geographical size of modern and Imperial Russia, it typically refers to architecture built in European Russia, as well as European influenced architecture in the conquered territories of the Empire.
The White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, have been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The patrimony embraces eight medieval limestone monuments of Zalesye from the late 12th and early 13th centuries. They include Russian Orthodox churches and a monastery, as well as a castle and gate:
The Saviour Monastery of St. Euthymius is a monastery in Suzdal, Russia, founded in 1352.
The inner Principality of Kiev was a medieval principality centered on the city of Kiev.
Ukrainian architecture has initial roots in the Eastern Slavic state of Kievan Rus'. After the Mongol invasion of Kievan Rus', the distinct architectural history continued in the principalities of Galicia-Volhynia and later in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. During the epoch of the Zaporozhian Cossacks, a style unique to Ukraine developed under the influences of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The Council of Liubech was one of the best documented princely meetings in Kievan Rus' that took place in Liubech on October 19, 1097. The council ended the Chernihiv war of succession (1093–1097) between Sviatopolk II of Kiev, Vladimir II Monomakh and Oleg I of Chernigov who fought for the heritage of his father Sviatoslav II of Kiev.
Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus', was the first East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century. Encompassing a variety of polities and peoples, including East Slavic, Norse, and Finnic, it was ruled by the Rurik dynasty, founded by the Varangian prince Rurik. The name was coined by Russian historians in the 19th century to describe the period when Kiev was at the center. At its greatest extent in the mid-11th century, Kievan Rus' stretched from the White Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south and from the headwaters of the Vistula in the west to the Taman Peninsula in the east, uniting the East Slavic tribes.
Oleg III Svyatoslavich was a Kievan Rus' prince. His baptismal name was Feodosy. He was prince of Vshchizh, of Novgorod-Seversk (1200–1201), and of Chernigov (1201/1202–1204).
Piatnytska Сhurch is a functioning church in Chernihiv, Ukraine.
The Metropolis of Kiev and all Rus' was a metropolis of the Eastern Orthodox Church that was erected on the territory of Kievan Rus'. It existed between 988 AD and 1440s AD. The long lasting "tug of war" between bishops from the Great Duchy of Lithuania and Ruthenia and bishops of the Great Duchy of Moscow resulted in reorganization of the metropolis as the bishops from Moscow refused to recognize decisions of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. Canonically, it was under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The metropolitan seat (cathedra) was located in the city of Kiev until it was moved to Vladimir-na-Klyazme in 1299 and then Moscow in 1325.
The sack of Kiev took place on 8–12 March 1169 when a coalition of 11 princes, assembled by prince Andrey Bogolyubsky of Vladimir-Suzdal, attacked the Kievan Rus' capital city of Kiev during the 1167–1169 Kievan succession crisis. The conflict, caused by the death of grand prince Rostislav I of Kiev, was between rival branches of the Monomakhovichi clan: the Iziaslavichi of Volhynia on the one hand, and the Rostislavichi of Smolensk, the Yurievichi, and the Olgovichi of Chernigov on the other. Prince Mstislav II of Kiev sought to defend Kiev against the Rostislavichi–Yurievichi–Olgovichi coalition.
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