Borisoglebsky Monastery

The Borisoglebsky Monastery stands on the Ustye River, eighteen kilometres from Rostov Veliky. The monastery was founded in 1363 by the monks Theodore and Paul, and the site, according to tradition, was pointed out by Sergius of Radonezh. The main Cathedral of Boris and Gleb was built in 1522-1523 by the Rostov master Grigory Borisov, who was working all over the district at the time; next he put up the Church of the Annunciation with its refectory chamber. The stone walls with fourteen towers were raised in the 1670s under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, and in sheer strength they are a match for the fortresses of Rostov and Yaroslavl: the walkway along the walls runs for about a kilometre, and the towers, for all the thickness of their masonry, are decorated with bands and window surrounds, since no real siege was expected here any more. Inside, the late seventeenth-century gate churches of the Presentation and of St Sergius survive, along with a belfry of 1690. The monastery is associated with the recluse Irinarch, who wore heavy chains and blessed Minin and Pozharsky before their march on Moscow; his cell has survived and is part of the visit. The monastery was closed in 1924 and handed over to a museum; monastic life returned here in 1994.

On the map