The temples of St Petersburg

        All over the world St Petersburg is famous for its ar­chitectural ensembles. The temples of St Petersburg are the main decorations of these ensembles.

        After the foundation of the city the first small wooden church was laid on the 29th of June 1703 in the centre of the Peter and Paul Fortress. That church was dedicated to the apostles Peter and Paul. St Peter became the pa­tron of St Petersburg. The city was named in honour of this saint.

        We can’t imagine wonderful ensembles of Nevsky Prospect and many splendid squares without their mag­nificent temples.

        The famous Russian and European architects designed the most beautiful temples of St Petersburg. Domenico Trezzini, Yury Felten, Bartolomeo Rastrelli, Ivan Starov, Andrey Voronikhin, Vasily Stasov, Mikhail Zemtsov, Auguste Montferrand created the best examples of the world’s architecture in St Petersburg.

        People from all over the world come to St Petersburg to see such outstanding ensembles as the Smolny Mon­astery and the St Trinity Alexander Nevsky Monastery. They are impressed by the magnificence and splendour of these structures and their inner decorations. The icons, paintings, iconostases were executed by the world famous artists. Andrey Rublev, Alexander Ivanov, Karl Bryullov, Mikhail Vrubel, Victor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov and others created their masterpieces for the temples of St Petersburg.

        The temples of St Petersburg play an important role in the life of the citizens. People always can get help and support there. Many citizens come to the temples during the Christian holidays.

        During the 20th century after the revolution a lot of churches were closed. Some temples were ruined. At the end of the 20th century many temples were restored and returned to the believers. Now we can see the real beauty of these masterpieces.