Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Inessa Armand
Lenin's rumoured lover. The director of Zhenotdel, an organisation
fighting for equality for women within the Communist Party.
John Reed
American author of
Ten Days that Shook the World,
a first-hand account
of the revolution.
Resurrection Gate
provides a great vantage point for your first glimpse of Red Square. With its twin red towers
topped by green tent spires, the original 1680 gateway was destroyed because Stalin thought
it an impediment to the parades and demonstrations held in Red Square. This exact replica
was built in 1995. Just outside the gateway is the bright
Chapel of the Iverian Virgin
, ori-
ginally built in the late 18th century to house the icon of the same name.
Kazan Cathedral
Ryad)
was founded on this site at the northern end of Red Square in 1636 in thanks for the
1612 expulsion of Polish invaders. Three hundred years later, the cathedral was completely
demolished, allegedly because it impeded the flow of celebrating workers in May Day and
Revolution Day parades. The little church that occupies the site today is a 1993 replica.
GUM
bustling shopping mall with hundreds of fancy stores and restaurants. With a skylight roof
and three-level arcades, the spectacular interior was a revolutionary design when it was built
in the 1890s, replacing the Upper Trading Rows that previously occupied this site. Pro-
nounced
goom,
the initials GUM originally stood for the Russian words for 'State Depart-
ment Store'. When it was privatised in 2005, the name was officially changed to 'Main De-
partment Store'. Fortunately, the words for 'state' and 'main' both start with a Russian 'G'.
Saviour Gate Tower
The Kremlin's 'official' exit onto Red Square is the stately red-brick
Saviour Gate Tower
(
tsarist times. The two white-stone plaques above the gate commemorate the tower's con-
