Day Trips from Moscow - Moscow - page 316

History
In 1340 St Sergei of Radonezh founded the Trinity Monastery of St Sergius (Troitse-Sergieva
Lavra; GOOGLE MAP ; 496 544 5356; www.stsl.ru ; 5am-9pm) , which soon became the spir-
itual centre of Russian Orthodoxy. St Sergei is credited with providing mystic support to
Prince Dmitry Donskoy during his improbable victory over the Tatars in the battle of Ku-
likovo Pole in 1380. Soon after his death at the age of 78, Sergei was named Russia's patron
saint.
Spruced up on the occasion of St Sergius' 700-year anniversary in 2014, the monastery is
an active religious centre with a visible population of monks in residence. This mystical
place is a window into the age-old belief system that has provided Russia with centuries of
spiritual sustenance.
Trinity Cathedral
Built in the 1420s, the squat, dark Trinity Cathedral ( GOOGLE MAP ) is the heart of the
Trinity Monastery. The tomb of St Sergei stands in the southeastern corner, where a me-
morial service for St Sergei goes on all day, every day. The icon-festooned interior, lit by oil
lamps, is largely the work of the great medieval painter Andrei Rublyov and his students.
Cathedral of the Assumption
The star-spangled Cathedral of the Assumption ( GOOGLE MAP ) was modelled on the
cathedral of the same name in the Moscow Kremlin. It was finished in 1585 with money left
by Ivan the Terrible in a fit of remorse over killing his son. Outside the west door is the
grave of Boris Godunov ( GOOGLE MAP ) , the only tsar not buried in either the Moscow
Kremlin or St Petersburg's Sts Peter & Paul Cathedral. Another notable grave is that of St
Innokenty , known as the apostle of America. He founded the Russian Orthodox community
in Alaska.
Nearby, the resplendent Chapel-at-the-Well ( GOOGLE MAP ) was built over a spring that
is said to have appeared during the Polish siege. The five-tier baroque bell tower (
GOOGLE MAP ) took 30 years to build during the 18th century, and once had 42 bells, the
largest of which weighed 65 tonnes.
Vestry
The Vestry ( GOOGLE MAP ; 10am-5.30pm Wed-Sun) , behind the Trinity Cathedral, displays
the monastery's extraordinarily rich treasury, bulging with 600 years of donations from the