Church of St. Basil The Blessed

Church of St. Basil The Blessed

Church of St. Basil The Blessed, is a historical church in Red Square in Moscow, the church is also called Pokrovsky Cathedral.  The Church was built from 1555 to 1561 after orders from the Prince Ivan The Terrible. The Prince Ivan or Ivan VI, the Grand Prince of Moscow.  According to Mental_floss.com, the Prince order constructors to build the church in honor to his military after defeating the independent Tatar khanates of Kazan and Astrakahn in the early 1550s.  

The war that defeated the independent turned Ivan to a hero and he was appreciated by his people as Richard said in HistoryToday, “The Grand Principality of Moscow gained its independence from the Mongol Golden Horde in the fifteenth century under Ivan III, the Great, who vastly extended Muscovite territory. His grandson Ivan IV, already known in his own time as the Terrible (meaning ‘awesome’) and described by a contemporary as ‘cruel, bloody and merciless’, succeeded as grand prince at the age of three. He survived the hazards of his minority under competing boyars, or nobles, and in 1547, when he was sixteen, at his own insistence he was crowned not only grand prince, but Tsar, ‘emperor’, of all Russia.” Richard Cavendish.

At the beginning the church was made by eight chapels only, however, the design has changed shortly after the completion of it. The church’s design, nowadays, is about nine chapels, eight small chapels around one central chapel. The eight chapels are all with different shapes and colors and linked by an elevated gallery. In 1568, according to Awesome Stories, the ninth chapel was built over Basil’s grave and this is how the Cathedral Church got its name, The Church of St. Basil the blessed. People used to come to his grave after his death and pray the phrase of “Praying at St. Basil’s”.  

The church was designed by two blinded architects as it’s mostly known. The idea of having it built by them is that they won’t be able to built a similar one anywhere else.

Barma and Postnik, the two architects are only known by building this spectacular church and there is, most likely, no other work for them still remain today. And we can see what’s been written about the architects by The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica “The church was designed by two Russian architects, Posnik and Barma (who may in fact have been one person). According to popular legend, however, it was built by an Italian architect who was blinded so that he could never create anything that was similar or equal.”  The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Basil-the-Blessed

Beside the great history and stories behind this church, the design and coloration of it makes it a remarkable buildings and one of the most famous churches around the world. every single chapel have a slightly different shape and size also added to that a different taste of color. In addition, the design of it reflects the powerful history of its origins and also the location of it that is somehow between Asia and Europe. The church, apparently, is colorful and also full of history and interesting facts.

References:

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Basil-the-Blessed

http://www.historytoday.com/richard-cavendish/kazan-falls-ivan-terrible

https://Mental_floss.com

https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/ARCHITECTS-BLINDED-Ivan-the-Terrible