| |
When he commissioned the construction of
the Cathedral of the Assumption
in Vladimir, 1158-1160, prince Andrei wanted it to be the finest that
Russia had ever had. The hill on which it was built dominated the whole area
and the golden cupola of the cathedral could be seen from far away. The
Chronicle says that "masters from all counties" participated in the
construction, with the exception of those from Kiev, whom Andrei purposefully
ignored. In fact their knowledge of how to make and use bricks was not needed
because the cathedral was built of lime-stone. The phrase "Masters from
all countries" has been interpreted by Russian historians that builders
from Western Europe were also included. Indeed, the portals are of the
Romanesque style. Since several other churches in the region resemble each
other, some historians tend to believe that they were all built by the same
masters.
Originally the cathedral was smaller than it is today, with six cruciform
piers, three naves ending in apses and just one large helmet-shaped cupola.
Twelve windows of the cupola bring a profusion of light from all sides. Similar
to other churches built by Russian princes, the cathedral also had a gallery
and an adjoining room on the western side for the use of the prince and
dignitaries. The great fire of 1185 that swept through the city ravaged the
cathedral, but in the same year Prince Vsyevolod III, Andrei's brother, started
its reconstruction which was finished in 1189. The problem was solved in a very
interesting way by enclosing the entire original church by new outside walls.
The space between the old and new walls on the northern and southern sides gave
the cathedral two additional aisles without apses. To unify them with the other
three, large arched openings were made in the old walls. The new cathedral
received galleries on all three sides and the altar space was made considerably
deeper. (From outside pilasters, which reflect the inside vaulting,
"Partitions," divide the two lateral and the western facades into
five panels). At the level (height) of the galleries the facades are
horizontally decorated with blind ornamental arcades. The same decoration is
repeated around the tops of the three apses on the eastern side. Tall and
narrow windows, one in each panel, above the ornamental arcades, are deeply
recessed and decorated with several semi-circular voussoirs. On the top, four
smaller cupolas (helmet-shaped) were added at the corners. The new silhouette
of the cathedral reminds us of the first stone churches in Kiev (Desyatinaya).
When Tatars took Vladimir in 1238 many people rushed to the cathedral for
protection. Among them were the princess with her three sons and a daughter.
Bishop Mitrophan celebrated mass in the hope that this would discourage Tatars
and spare their lives. Nevertheless, Baty-Khan set a fire inside and around the
cathedral and all perished in flames. In 1410 the cathedral was empty when the
Tatars again set fire to it. A third fire damaged it in 1536, and each time the
cathedral had to be restored. In 1810 a new separate bell-tower of mixed styles
was built to the west of the cathedral to replace the old one, and in 1862 the
Chapel of Saint George in between the cathedral and the tower was also added.
Both the tower and the chapel detracted from the appearance of this remarkable
Russian architectural monument. In 1888-1891 the cathedral was restored for the
last time when, fortunately, it again received most of its original appearance.
The cathedral was decorated in 1161 for the first time. Some fragments of
decorative ornaments on the northern inside wall are believed to date from that
time. The frescoes of two saints, Artemii and Avramii, were most probably
painted in 1189 after the cathedral was enlarged and restored for the first
time. A fragment of a fresco representing a soldier that can be seen on the
wall of the southern gallery is believed to date from 1237.
|
|
