The city of Bronnitsy is located in the southeastern part of the Moscow region. The historical city of Bronnitsy is located on the banks of the Moscow River in its lower reaches, 50 kilometers from the Moscow Ring Road. For a city so close to the capital, Bronnitsy has well preserved its provincial way of life, but, on the other hand, there are frankly few attractions and tourist infrastructure here. The city hardly deserves a separate trip, but you can make a short stop for one or two hours while traveling around the southeast of the region in Bronnitsy, especially since the city is very conveniently located at the intersection of major highways.
The main attractions are concentrated in the center around the Cathedral or Central Square. However, no Cathedral Square can be found at the address, this is building 61 on Sovetskaya Street, and the adjacent square with the official name Timofeev Square looks more like a square.
The most interesting is the temple ensemble or ensemble of the
Archangel Cathedral, all three objects of which were built in different
styles, and yet are in harmony with each other:
1 Arkhangelsk
Cathedral (Church of the Archangel Michael), Sovetskaya St., 61. The
Baroque cathedral church in the name of the Archangel Michael and other
ethereal heavenly powers was built in the period from 1696 to 1705.
Famous icon painters Tikhon Filatyev and Kirill Ulanov took part in the
painting of the temple. In terms of architectural composition, this is a
typical posad temple, quadrangular in shape, topped with a five-domed
dome. What makes the temple unusual is the elongated quadrangle and the
dense arrangement of domes of an unusual shape. The facade has
interesting elements of Moscow Baroque. In 1865, the temple was rebuilt,
the refectory was expanded in length, and a new iconostasis was made.
Divine services ceased in 1929, and in 1931 the temple complex was
finally closed. During Soviet times, the Archangel Cathedral housed the
regional archive. The first service after a long break took place only
in 1990. In subsequent years, restoration of the temple complex was
carried out.
2 Bell tower, Sovetskaya St., 61. The eclectic brick
bell tower using elements of Russian patterning is visible already at
distant approaches to the city. The height of the bell tower is 73 m,
which makes it one of the tallest and, of course, the most “slender”
bell towers in the Moscow region. Official historiography gives
authorship to the famous architect M.I. Bove, the project was approved
by Tsar Nicholas I. The bell tower was built in 1851-1853 at the expense
of the honorary citizen of the city, merchant A.K. Kononova. The
consecration took place on September 11, 1853, and in 1860 the main
bells weighing 1,501 and 582 pounds were hung on the belfry. Bells were
cast at the Samgin plant. In the 90s of the 20th century, the bells were
restored (cast at the ZIL plant), and in 2010 a striking clock was
installed.
3 Church of the Jerusalem Icon of the Mother of God,
Sovetskaya St., 61. The church was built in the style of classicism and
fits harmoniously into the temple complex. Consecrated in 1846, from
1868 to 1905 the temple was rebuilt and expanded several times. During
Soviet times, the church housed the All-Union Book Chamber. Currently
the church is not in use.
The city pays close attention to historical
figures whose fate was in one way or another connected with Bronnitsy;
bearers of the surnames Pushkin, Fonvizin and Pushchin occupy a special
place. Near the outer wall of the altar of the Archangel Cathedral are
the burial places of two Decembrists:
4 Grave of M.A. Fonvizina.
5 Grave of I.I. Pushchina.
In the park of Timofeev Square there
are busts of representatives of family dynasties in the western part. In
the center of the square there is a remarkable fountain, covered with
soil and turned into a flowerbed, and in the eastern part there is a
WWII memorial with the Eternal Flame and a bust of the “founding father”
of the Airborne Forces V.F. Margelov. Closer to the bus station there is
a small stone chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker on the site and in
the forms of the old building, destroyed in the 60s of the last century
and restored in 2002.
The remaining attractions are located along
Krasnaya and Sovetskaya streets in both directions from Cathedral
Square.
On the main street of the city you can see some well-preserved
examples of civil architecture. At the beginning of the street there is
a city park with several monuments located here. Until the 30s of the
20th century, the territory of the park was a city cemetery, which was
destroyed. Now the remaining grave of A. A. Pushkin, located in the
center of the park, and one of the memorials, strangely located in the
far corner of the park, makes us think about this. Adjacent to the park
is the former cemetery Assumption Church, which greets those entering
the city from the Ryazan Highway.
6 Grave of A.A. Pushkin,
Sovetskaya St., 2. Grandson of the poet A.S. Pushkin and Governor
Bronnitsy
7 Monument to those killed in the First World War,
Sovetskaya St., 2. Mass grave of 1916.
8 Church of the Assumption of
the Blessed Virgin Mary, Sovetskaya St., 2. The brick church in the
pseudo-Russian style was built in 1867-1871 on the site of the former
wooden cemetery Ilinskaya Church. The patterned façade elements are made
of white stone. The church, like many Bronnitsy objects of that time,
was built at the expense of the local philanthropist, merchant Alexei
Kononov. By his death, a central chapel dedicated to the Dormition of
the Virgin Mary was built, and the side chapels were completed in 1872
by the merchant’s son Ivan. One of the chapels is dedicated to Alexei,
the man of God, the second - to Elijah the Prophet, as a connection with
the former Elias Church. Now there is a functioning church and a Sunday
school; in Soviet times, the church housed a hardware store; the
interior decoration has been lost.
When moving from Cathedral
Square in the opposite direction in ascending numbering of houses, among
the attractions you can note the bust of A. A. Pushkin near the city
administration building, and another block away, a rather original
memorial consisting of five military vehicles on pedestals.
9 Monument to scientists and warrior motorists.
Behind the temple complex on Krasnaya Street there is an
architectural monument - an ensemble of public places. Only the main
building, which is currently occupied by the traffic police department,
faces directly onto the street, so it is unlikely that you will be able
to see other objects of the ensemble. The exception is the fire shed
built in the 2nd half of the 19th century, which, oddly enough, still
serves as a garage for the fire department of the Ministry of Emergency
Situations.
10 Ensemble of public places, Krasnaya St., 57.
1810s
When moving towards decreasing the numbering of houses
along Krasnaya Street, next to the public offices building there is a
state school of the Olympic Reserve and a children's park with
attractions. It is worth walking another block in this direction to
explore the well-preserved provincial one or two-story buildings,
sometimes interesting for the carved wooden elements of the facade.
11 Priest’s estate, Krasnaya st., no. 12-14. Residential building
and outbuilding.
It is hardly advisable to walk in the other
direction from the temple complex along Krasnaya Street. Theoretically,
in house 83 there is a very interesting architectural monument: the
barracks of a cavalry regiment (1st half of the 19th century, architect
V.P. Stasov), however, the building is located on the territory of a
military unit, it will not be possible to examine it, at best you can
see the edge roofs over the fence.
1 Museum of the History of the City of Bronnitsy, Sovetskaya St.,
71. ✉ ☎ +7(496)46-65-986, excursion department - +7(916)070-77-69.
Tue–Fri 9:00–17:00, Sat–Sun 10:00–16:00, the last Wednesday of the month
is a sanitary day. The museum is located in a two-story stone building,
adjacent to the children's library. Entrance from the yard.
2 Belskoye Lake. Between the central part of the city and the Moscow
River is Lake Belskoe, an oxbow river. There is a walking and cycling
path around the lake, a solid bridge is built across the lake, and
athletes from the nearby Olympic Reserve kayaking and canoeing school
regularly train on the water. The walking route is popular with locals.
The lake offers wonderful panoramic views of the city.
The most convenient way to get to the city is by car or bus.
By plane
The nearest large passenger airport is Moscow Domodedovo
Airport. The direct distance is just over twenty kilometers; when
traveling by car, the length of the trip will vary from thirty to fifty
kilometers depending on the route option.
By train
Although
the Kazan direction of the Moscow Railway has the Bronnitsy railway
station of the same name, when choosing an electric train for a trip,
you need to understand that the station is located 13 km north of the
city and is separated from its center by the Moscow River. The station
and the city are connected by buses and numerous minibuses, but such a
route is unlikely to be convenient. An alternative would be to take the
train to Ramenskoye, although then you will also have to change to a
bus.
By car
In the immediate vicinity of the city there is the
federal highway M5, which continues towards Kolomna, Ryazan and even
Samara. The distance from the Moscow Ring Road is 50 km; access to
Bronnitsy is possible either along the Ryazanskoe highway, which turns
into st. Sovetskaya, or further along the highway from Moscow through
the interchange with the Moskovsky small ring. The Moscow Small Ring,
also known as the A107 highway or Small (First) “betonka”, connects the
city with Noginsk, Elektrostal and other cities to the north, with the
city of Domodedovo in the west, etc.
There are no problems with
parking in the city. Near Cathedral Square, some of the parking lots
indicated on the maps actually have “No Stopping” signs, which, however,
does not prevent local residents and visitors from ignoring them. If you
look around, you can park legally without any problems, especially
considering the fact that the traffic police department is located
directly behind the cathedral complex on Krasnaya Street.
By bus
Bronnitsy is connected by main bus routes to Moscow, Ramenskoye and
Kolomna. There are also more exotic routes: for example, along the MMK
to the Belye Stolby station in the Paveletsky direction of the Moscow
Railway. In addition to the main routes, there are a sufficient number
of local routes.
From Moscow, bus route No. 324 departs from the
Kotelniki metro station from early morning to late evening with a
frequency of 15 minutes to half an hour. There is also a frequent bus
service from Ramenskoye. A bus runs to Kolomna to the Golutvin bus
station four times a day.
Bus station.
On the ship
The
city has a pier on the Moscow River. There appears to be no passenger
traffic.
Bronnitsy is a small town, all interesting objects are within walking distance. As a last resort, a minibus outside the city or a taxi can be found at the bus station.
The traveler will have to run around a lot and look for cheap
souvenir trinkets and magnets with a view of the city, which, in
general, is understandable: Bronnitsy is not a tourist city.
Bronnitsy's fame in terms of consumer goods is created by two
enterprises - a glove factory and a jewelry factory. The first one is
located in the city center near the bus station, but it is unlikely that
you will be able to buy its products here. The situation with the
products of the Bronnitsky Jeweler plant is completely different: the
direction to the enterprise is indicated on all relevant signs, and in
the city there are a number of shops selling jewelry products.
1 Brand store-showroom at the Bronnitsky Jeweler plant, Komsomolsky
lane. 53. 8:30–19:30.
Industrial goods stores are concentrated
around Cathedral Square, here you can find a couple of department stores
and a fairly large shopping arcade with a central building and
surrounding shopping arcades.
2 Shopping center “Bronnitsky
Passage”.
3 “Yar” shopping center.
Grocery stores in the city are
traditionally represented by small shops and rare supermarkets of famous
chains. On the outskirts of the city, near the junction of the M5 and
MMK highways there is:
4 Hypermarket “Perekrestok”.
There are several ordinary establishments scattered around the city, sometimes called cafes or canteens. Unfortunately, there are no high-quality catering outlets or at least coffee shops in Bronnitsy.
There is nowhere to spend the night in the city, and this is unlikely to be a good idea. The nearest hotels are located in the surrounding cities: Moscow, Lyubertsy, Ramenskoye, Voskresensk, Kolomna and even Domodedovo Airport. There are also rare hotel complexes in nature located in the vicinity of Bronnitsy.
The bank of the Moscow River is blocked by fences from sports centers and highways leading to sports centers, so you won’t be able to walk along it, as it might seem from the maps.
Located on the Moscow River and its right tributary Kozhurnovka, 52 km southeast of Moscow and 13 km from the Bronnitsy railway station, at the intersection of the M5 Ural federal highway and the Moscow Small Ring. Pier on the Moscow River. The territory of the city is 2100 hectares.
“Projected” plan of the city of Bronnitsy in 1784 from the “Complete
Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire. Book of drawings and drawings.
City plans."
Bronnitsy was first mentioned in the spiritual charter
of Sofia Vitovtovna from 1453 as the purchase village of Bronniche on
the Astrakhan Highway. The village was the patrimony of the Moscow
princes, then of the Russian tsars. At the end of the 17th century,
under Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, a stud farm was founded in Bronnitsy.
In 1618, the city was ravaged by the Cossacks of Hetman Sagaidachny,
who were in Polish service.
Under Peter I, the village was
transferred to Prince Alexander Menshikov. In 1727 it again went to the
palace department.
By decree of Catherine II of October 5, 1781,
in connection with the establishment of a new administrative division,
Bronnitsy received the status of a district town, becoming the center of
the newly formed Bronnitsy district of the Moscow province.
The
French army, which left Moscow in the fall of 1812, caused great damage
to the city.
On April 16, 1964, mass riots occurred in the city -
about 300 people destroyed the bullpen, where a city resident died from
beatings. 8 people were brought to criminal responsibility.
In
1990, Bronnitsy was included in the list of historical cities of Russia.
In 1992, the city of Bronnitsy received the status of a city of
regional subordination and a new city boundary, according to which the
city area increased from 600 hectares to 2216 hectares.
Currently, a master plan for the development of Bronnitsy has been
adopted. The development of the city is planned within the existing
territories at the expense of currently unused areas. It is predicted
that by 2020 the area of the city's housing stock will increase from
449.2 thousand m² to 750.7 thousand m². At the same time, the population
will increase to 25,000 people.
Since 2009, freight traffic on
the road bridge across the Moscow River within Bronnitsy has been
closed; in 2011, construction began on a new bridge 30 meters
downstream. Near the city, in December 2011, the construction of a
two-level traffic interchange was completed at the intersection of the
M-5 Ural highway with the Small Moscow Ring. In October 2014, a section
of the M-5 highway bypassing the city was opened.