Chesme Church

Coordinates: 59°51′24″N 30°19′51″E / 59.85667°N 30.33083°E / 59.85667; 30.33083
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Chesme Church
Church of St John the Baptist Chesme
Church of Saint John the Baptist at Chesme Palace
Gothic Revival
Demolishednot demolished
Specifications
MaterialsBrick with white stone

The Chesme Church (

Russo-Turkish War
of 1768–1774.

The church and Chesme Palace were the earliest Neo-Gothic constructions in the St Petersburg area.

Gothic Revival influence in Russian church architecture.[5][6][7][8]

Etymology

The church was named "The Church of the Birth of St. John the Baptist" as it was consecrated on the birthday of

Battle of Chesme which the Russians won in 1770, the church is also popularly known as the "Chesme Church".[6][8]

Geography

The church is located in Red Village, which was a country estate of the Sergey Poltoratski family, friends of

Moskovsky Prospekt,[2] approximately halfway between Park Pobedy and the Moskovskaya metro station.[9] While the church was built at a very ordinary location in 1770, over the centuries, it became part of the city of Saint Petersburg.[6][10] Located between St. Petersburg and the Summer Palace in Tsarskoye Selo, it served as a traveler's resting place.[6]

History

In 1777, King

Empress Catherine II chose the site as it was here that she got the news of the Russian victory over the Turks.[7] Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor was present at the church's consecration.[3]

The knights of the Order of St. George were also in possession of the church at some point when it was given the third name, "St. George’s Church".[11]

Chesme Church in Saint Petersburg, interior nowadays (2014)

The church and the Chesme Palace became a labour camp when the Soviet government occupied it.

Second World War, the Institute of Aviation Technology took possession of the Church and the Chesme Palace. During 1970–75, it was fully restored under the supervision of the architects M.I. Tolstov and A.P. Kulikov. In 1977, the church became a museum of the Battle of Chesme (with artifacts from the Central Naval Museum). Religious control was restored to the Russian Orthodox Church in 1991, and regular church services have been held at the church since then.[1][6][10]

Architecture

Close architectural view of the Chesme Church

The church, built in

Gothic Revival style faces southwest. Painted pink and white, the church appears like a "candy cone, with long, vertical white stripes (embossed vertical string cornices drawn together with figured horizontal fascias) giving the impression that it’s rising straight up from the earth like a mirage and shooting upwards".[6][7] The church was built by Yury Felten who was the court architect to Catherine the Great.[citation needed
]

The inspiration for adopting the pseudo-Gothic style of architecture was a symbol of "the exoticism of the Turkish architecture but also reflected the

Anglomania that significantly influenced the design of Catherine’s palaces and the parks surrounding them". While the Chesme Palace was built on these lines, the Church of John the Baptist was also built in a similar style. This style introduced during Catherine's time came in vogue in Russia in the subsequent centuries as well.[13] It is also said that the choice of the Gothic Revival architecture style was indicative of "triumph for ancient northern virtues in the spirit of the crusaders".[14]

The church was built with brick and white stone.

Christ’s arrival in Nazareth.[7] When it was a naval museum, there was a vivid painting, in rich colours, depicting the sea battle and Russian victory over the Turks, in place of the "Christ the saviour in the iconostasis-less altar apse".[15] Nothing remains of the original interiors.[6]

The exterior views of the church are impressive. The lanterns on the roof are stated to be similar to those seen on the Gothic temple at Stowe House.[14]

Grounds

Chesmenskoe War Veterans' Cemetery & Chesme Church in Saint Petersburg
Chesme Palace opposite Chesme Church - under reconstruction (2015)

The church precincts have been used as a resting place for war heroes since the time of its consecration and during the Siege of Leningrad. The cemetery is known as the "Chesmenskoe War Veterans' Cemetery",[7][10] and contains unnamed graves dated 1812–1944 of those who died in Russian wars.[2]

Notable people

The coffin of Rasputin rested in Chesme Church before his burial at Tsarskoye Selo in 1916.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b "Chesme Church". St Petersburg Encyclopedia. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  2. ^
    ISBN 978-1-4262-0050-2
    .
  3. ^ a b c "The later history of the Green Frog Service". State Hermitage Museum. 2006. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  4. ISBN 978-1-74059-827-9
    .
  5. ^ a b c "Village of Red. Transfiguration Church". narod.ru. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Church of the Birth of St. John the Baptist (Chesme Church)". Saint-petersburg.com. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  7. ^
    ISBN 978-1-74104-169-9
    .
  8. ^
    ISBN 9785730000940. Retrieved 6 February 2011. The Chesme Church, built in 1777— 80 by Yury Felten, is one of the few pseudo-Gothic structures in Leningrad architecture. Its name comes from the great naval victory of 1770 over the Turks in the Aegean at Chesme. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
    )
  9. ^
    ISBN 978-1-900639-40-8
    .
  10. ^ a b c d e "Chekushi". Chesme Church. St Petersburg Encyclopedia. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  11. ^ a b "La chiesa: Chesmenskaja". Intours.com. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  12. ^ "Church of the Birth of St. John the Baptist (Chesme Church), St. Petersburg, Russia".
  13. ^
    ISBN 978-90-5699-536-2
    .
  14. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7112-2430-8.[permanent dead link
    ]
  15. ^ Contemporary review. 1990. Retrieved 7 February 2011.

External links

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