Belozersk on Beloye Lake

by | Oct 31, 2014 | Russian North | 0 comments

Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Saviour

On the territory of the Belozersk fortress in 1668-70 the Transfiguration Cathedral was built.

In the late 18 th – early 19 th centuries the surface of the Cathedral was redone into a hipped roof; window openings were enlarged. Later, the bell tower and the winter church of the Cathedral were lost.

Church of the Merciful Saviour

The Church of the Merciful Saviour was built relatively recently, in 1723. The Church since has become a symbol of the city. The building is not heated, and it is open from May to September. The bell tower is open year-round. It is picturesquely situated on the shores of the Beloye Lake and surrounded by small wooden houses.

Church of the Merciful Saviour and low-rise buildings of Belozersk

Church of the Merciful Saviour and low-rise buildings of Belozersk. Behind the church – a frozen Beloye Lake, which, as you can see, is really white

Cyril-Belozersk Monastery

The monastery is located in an hour’s drive from the town of Belozersk – in the city of Kirillov. The monastery was founded in 1397.

The monastery remained virtually unchanged from the times of the Moscow Russia.

Cyril-Belozersk monastery is divided into the Big Assumption Monastery, the Small Ivanovsky monastery and the New City. In the ensemble of the Big Assumption Monastery special attention is drawn to the Cathedral of the Assumption built in 1497with wall paintings dating back to 1641 – 1650.

Next to the cathedral there is the largest for that time Refectory with the Church of the Presentation of Mary to the Church (1519).

Next to the Refectory there is a massive bell tower and the Church of the Archangel Gabriel (1531 -1534).

In the New City there is a wooden Church of the Deposition of the Robe (1485) from the village of Borodava – the oldest wooden structure of the Russian North.

Church of the Deposition of the Robe from the village of Borodava Church of the Deposition of the Robe from the village of Borodava. Drawing from the album by A.N. Martynov (mid-19 th century)

This is by far not a complete list of all the buildings in the Cyril-Belozersk monastery.

Event : On June 13 and 14 on the territory of Cyril-Belozersk monastery the annual Festival of military and historic reconstruction takes place: The siege of the Cyril-Belozersk Monastery (17 th century):

How to Get to Belozersk

You can fly to St. Petersburg and then rent a car. But this option is tedious – more than 10 hours on the road.

Another option – to take a train from St. Petersburg to Vologda. You can spend some time exploring Vologda (an old Russian town, first mentioned in the chronicles in 1147, the same as the first mention of Moscow), and then go to Belozersk for 1-3 days. You can get from Vologda to Belozersk by car (about 3 hours) or by bus (cheap, several buses a day, departure – from the bus station; staff does not speak English, but if we remake a Russian saying: “Your tongue will get you to Kiev,” which means that you will not have any problems if you have a desire to get there).

From another train station – Cherepovets – Belozersk is located twice as closer than Vologda. Cherepovets today is a major industrial center of Russia (iron and steel industry).

фото1-фотобанк Лори