The Church of Saint Nikita the Martyr was constructed in the 18th century. Money for the construction were donated by a local businessman Lazarev. Some believe the church was initially intended as a personal residence for the family of the businessman that later was donated to the Russian Orthodox Church for unknown reason.
History of creation
The Vladimir merchant, a
member of the Vladimir city magistrate, Semyon Lazarev, built a
church at his own expense on the site of the Kosmo-Damianovsky
monastery, known since the death of Andrei Bogolyubsky (the abbot of
the monastery Arseny performed a funeral service over the body of
the Grand Duke). There is information that in the 17th century there
was a wooden church in the same place, consecrated in honor of
Cosmas and Damian, as well as John the Baptist, it is not known
whether the monastery survived by that time.
The new Nikita
church was consecrated by Bishop Pavel of Vladimir and Murom. Two
thrones on the first and second floors of the temple were
consecrated in honor of John the Baptist and Cosmas and Damian.
The first building was somewhat different from the one that has
survived to this day. In 1849, at the expense of the merchant Pyotr
Vasilyevich Kozlov, the owner of the first soap factory in Vladimir,
side two-story chapels were attached to the church. However, a
number of mistakes were made during the construction - the room was
damp and dark, since there were no lower windows in the aisles.
The merchant of the 2nd guild Nikolai Lvovich Filosofov invested
funds (about 50 thousand rubles in total) for the reconstruction of
the extension. He bought two plots of land for the temple, built
stone buildings for the clergy and the church school, and erected a
fence. After his death, he was buried next to the church.
At
that time, the famous parishioner of the temple was the architect
and archaeologist Nikolai Artleben. It was he, as an architect in
the Vladimir Treasury Chamber, and later the Vladimir diocesan
architect, who supervised the reconstruction of the church.
In 1899, the merchant of the 2nd guild Dmitry Petrovich Goncharov
was elected the church head of the Nikitsky church. With his
donations, new carved gilded kliros were arranged in the upper
church, the middle iconostasis in the lower floor was gilded.
After 1917 the church was closed several times. In 1936-1937,
the city authorities carried out a series of arrests of church
priests accused of anti-Soviet activities. In 1938 the church was
closed.
In 1970—2015. there was a restoration workshop in the
temple. The open area on the bell tower was glazed and used as an
observation deck.
Architectural features
Nikitskaya Church
is a unique architectural monument for Vladimir, built in the
provincial baroque style. The composition of the church is based on
the traditional for Russia of that time refectory type of temple,
but outwardly the church looks more like a civil structure.
The building with a white and green facade is divided into three
tiers by large windows, which are framed by baroque platbands (each
window has its own pattern). The corners of the building are
decorated with pilasters with order capitals.
According to
local historians, before the revolution, the Nikitskaya Church was
visible anywhere in the city.
A similar temple is located in
Dmitrov. In 1794-1801, the Trinity-Tikhvin Church was built there in
the image of the Nikitskaya Church, which is still in use today.
Interior decoration
Already during the construction, the main
attraction of the temple was the iconostasis with the carved Royal
Doors, similar in shape to the iconostasis of the Vladimir
Assumption Cathedral.
The builders placed the windows in
three tiers in such a way that during divine services in sunny
weather they created an atmosphere of light and celebration.