Modern and original view of the tithe church. The first temple of ancient Russia

Tithe Church - the first cathedral of Kievan Rus after baptism. This is a shrine of such magnitude, its role is so great that after its destruction, the idea to restore this temple arose more than once.

Detinets of Ancient Kyiv was a fortified princely settlement: the palace of Kiya, the palace of Princess Olga were located there, Prince Vladimir was born and raised there. And there were pagan temples and the idol of Perun.

Even before the baptism of Prince Vladimir, after his victory in one of the military campaigns, when they were supposed to sacrifice to idols, the lot fell on the Christian baby John. So the first martyrs who confessed Christ were killed - the Varangian Fedor and his son, the infant John. The place of their martyrdom was chosen for the location of the altar of the first cathedral.

The Cathedral of the Tithes was built by Prince Vladimir at his own expense. He gave this church a tithe of his income, which is why it is actually called that.

The tithe church was dedicated to the Most Holy Theotokos. And not to any of her images or holidays, but to the Most Holy Theotokos as a person. As there is the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow, so was the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Kyiv. Kyiv is the lot of the Mother of God, and the dedication of this temple tells us that from the very beginning, Holy Ancient Russia chose the Most Holy Theotokos as its patroness.

In addition, the Cathedral of the Tithes was a princely tomb. When Prince Vladimir rested, his relics in the sarcophagus stood in the middle of this temple, along with the remains of his wife, the Byzantine princess Anna. The relics of Princess Olga, the grandmother of Prince Vladimir, were also transferred there. And there were many other princely remains there - the Church of the Tithes was the first tomb of the Kyiv princes, as the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin later became the tomb of Russian sovereigns.

This church was a testament to the symphony of state and church authorities, a demonstration of the belonging of Kievan Rus to Christianity. She was a symbol of the fact that the new state accepted Christ and now already sees its future with Him.

The temple of the tithes was built by Byzantine masters, according to chronicle evidence, immigrants from Greece. It was richly decorated with marble details and due to this it was even called the “marble” temple.

Touching are the words of the prayer-promise of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir, uttered by him at the entrance to the newly built church: “... If anyone in this church prays, then hear his prayer, and forgive all his sins, prayers for the sake of the Most Pure Mother of God”. These words are always remembered and prompted to action.

Simultaneously with the Church of the Tithes, new palaces were also erected. This place was the center of state life. According to chronicle evidence, a monastery operated here in the 10th century. Archaeological research shows that this is the most interesting, original, most significant part of the city, its undoubted center. Probably you, if you have been with us, have seen a stone with the inscription: “Where did the Russian land come from.”

The first and second revivals - St. Peter Mogila and architect Vasily Stasov

The first well-known restorer, under whom liturgical life was revived on the site of the Tithes Cathedral, was St. Peter Mogila. In the 17th century, in the southwestern part of the ancient temple, partly using the ruins of its walls, he arranged a small temple with a dedication to St. Nicholas.

Church built by Metropolitan Peter Mohyla

Much later, in 1828, by the highest order of Emperor Nicholas I, St. Petersburg architect Vasily Stasov designed a new church in classical forms on the site of the Church of the Tithes, which did not repeat the plan of the ancient one. It was built on part of its foundations.

In 1842 the temple was consecrated. But less than a hundred years later, in 1936, it was destroyed by the godless authorities. Brick from him went to the construction of the school No. 25 erected nearby.

Tithe church in the 19th century

It must be said that from the time of its destruction to the present day, the ancient remains of the Church of the Tithes have been repeatedly investigated. Under St. Peter Mogila, the first excavations were carried out. In the 19th century, research was continued by the amateur archaeologist Kondrat Lokhvitsky, then by the St. Petersburg architect Nikolai Efimov. They also own the first fixation of the monument. It was in the 20s of the XIX century, then a lot of things remained on the site of the destroyed temple.

Generally speaking, scientific studies of the remains of the Temple of the Tithes were flagship in archeology and played a large role in the development of this science. This also applies to research in the 20th century, when the restorer Dmitry Mileev for the first time made a professional fixation of the remains of the eastern part of the ancient temple. And after the destruction of the Stasov temple, the remains of the Church of the Tithes were deeply investigated by archaeologist Mikhail Karger.

In the 1980s, stone traces of the outlines of the foundations of an ancient temple were made on the surface of the earth. And we know many examples when people came both singly and in groups and prayed here for the revival of this glorious ancient shrine.

So the aspiration to erect and revive the Church of the Tithes is not an idea of ​​today. This is not a momentary desire of some group of people, a separate community, or some ambitious aspiration of architects and builders. This is the aspiration of all the fullness of the Orthodox Church. And it was and will be until the Church of the Tithes of the Most Holy Theotokos regains its proper significance. It was and will be. A shrine cannot be in the abomination of desolation.

Nun Elena (Kruglyak). Photo: Efim Erichman

Tithe Church: “This work is pleasing to God…”

The anniversary year 2000 from the Nativity of Christ has become a landmark in the history of this place. Then President Leonid Danilovich Kuchma issued a decree on the revival of the Church of the Tithes, given its exceptional importance for Ukraine, along with the Assumption Church of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery. But the matter did not move, did not move into a practical plane. I see in this the providence of God, which prepared this shrine to be revived in due time.

Then, in 2000, we happened to meet with His Beatitude Vladimir. The perspicacious elder listened to us, took out the icons of the Most Holy Theotokos Abbess of Mount Athos and said: “This matter is very pleasing to God and the Most Holy Theotokos, but it is of such a scale that only the Most Holy Theotokos herself knows how to do it and can organize it. Therefore, I entrust your wish to Her.". And he gave us such small icons. I still have this icon.

In 2005, His Beatitude Vladimir blessed Archimandrite Gideon to be engaged in the revival of the Church of the Tithes in order to light the lamp of love in this shrine again.

His Beatitude Vladimir blesses the project of museumification of the Church of the Tithes

It is significant that in 2005 permission was received from the district authorities to install the chapel right on the foundation of the Church of the Tithes. And when they came to the main department for the protection of monuments, its head said: “Wait, you can’t put it there, there will be excavations, and then you will interfere. And when will we restore a large church, this small one - what, break it? No, you should be there and help us prayerfully.”

As a matter of fact, he pointed out the place where the small church of the Tithes Monastery now stands, but it turns out that God chose this place. Because then the parishioners living nearby said that even before the installation of the tabernacle temple, birds were surprisingly persistent, flying in eights around this place ...

The small temple was erected in 2006 for Easter, and on Friday of Bright Week, April 28, the Most Holy Theotokos appeared in it.

The service had already ended, and clergy friends from Elias Church had just come to Fr. Gideon to support him. They stood on the street, and two women parishioners prayed in the temple. Entering the temple, the clergy felt awe and learned from the women that the Most Holy Theotokos had just entered the temple. The Queen of Heaven stopped at the central lectern, prayed with raised hands, and then entered the altar through the open royal gates.

Tears flowed spontaneously from six clergymen; grace was palpable in a physical way. The appearance of the Most Holy Theotokos greatly strengthened the community and to this day inspires confidence that through the prayers of the Most Holy Theotokos God will accomplish the impossible for man.

In 2009, the Holy Synod of the UOC issued a decree on the formation of the Tithe Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos Monastery.

Existing Church of the Tithes Monastery

Our work is based on research

In 2005, the state made a new decision about the fate of the Church of the Tithes. A decree was issued on the museumification of the foundations and on the decision to recreate the temple after the excavations were completed. Museumification is giving a monument of history and culture such a state when it is ready to be exhibited, to be visited by tourists and pilgrims. And a lot has already been done to date.

In 2005-2014, a large amount of research, survey and design work was carried out. In 2011, an all-Ukrainian competition for museumification and revalorization of the Church of the Tithes was held. By the grace of God, our project became the winner of this competition.

Comprehensive archaeological excavations carried out in 2005-2011 provided invaluable evidence of this monument and made it possible to compile its integral characterization. For example, it used to be believed that at first a six-pillar core was built, and then the Church of the Tithes was built with galleries.

However, it turned out that the temple was immediately built with galleries, this is the original plan. After all, at that time it was the Grand Duke's Cathedral. And the cathedral itself was part of an even more complex complex, the full name of which now sounds like an archeological monument of national importance "The Detinets of ancient Kyiv of the VIII-X centuries with the foundation of the Church of the Tithes of the X century."

Now we know where in the stain of the Church of the Tithes there is an archaeological layer, and where it is not. According to the results of archaeological research, the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine determined the possible places for the installation of supports for the museumification of the Church of the Tithes. After all, we do not have Cairo or Jerusalem, we cannot demonstrate authentic archaeological remains in the open air. Therefore, a room must be created where the appropriate temperature and humidity conditions will be maintained, and proper ventilation should be provided. This will save the monument.

In addition, there are many archaeological finds made on the site of the Temple of the Tithes, which are now scattered in various museums, partly in St. Sophia of Kyiv, in the National Museum of the History of Ukraine. Even in the Hermitage there are material fragments that belonged to the Church of the Tithes. And, of course, it is logical that all this be exhibited in one place and give a complete picture of this monument.

Scientific and technological, topogeodetic, engineering and geological studies were also carried out, a comprehensive engineering survey of the state of the remains of the foundations of the Church of the Tithes and the buildings adjacent to the monument was made.

Specialists conducted historical, archival and bibliographic research, systematized written evidence about the Church of the Tithes and its surroundings, as well as about the history of research that was carried out here at different times.

In December 2011, temporary conservation of the foundations of the Church of the Tithes was carried out, which makes possible further work on complex museumification.

Our idea is to preserve all archaeological material: both the remains of the Church of the Tithes of Prince Vladimir, and other archaeological layers, including the remains of the 19th century Stasov Church. This will allow you to vividly demonstrate the entire history of the temple.

Nun Elena (Kruglyak). Photo: Efim Erichman

Tithe church above the museum: how to do it

The remains of the ancient temple are now below the surface of the earth, so the museum will be in the stylobate. Visitors will be able to enter there, and there it will be possible to conduct regular lectures for students and schoolchildren. Pilgrims and tourists will view the remains of the Church of the Tithes from special bridges, and only scientists will have direct access to the remains themselves, for whose work all conditions will be created in the museum.

A reinforced concrete slab is designed on the supports. It is calculated in such a way that at the top it would be possible to erect a temple of the same size as the Church of the Tithes of the era of Prince Vladimir.

As already mentioned, in the spot of the Temple of the Tithes, places were identified where we can put up supports painlessly for the cultural layer. The technology that exists now allows you to do this completely safely. It is planned to use bored reinforced concrete piles with a depth of twenty meters in casing pipes as column supports. According to the current building codes, their use is permissible in the conditions of the close location of the monuments, it will not cause any movement of the soil at all. And this is not some new technology - it has been tested for decades. Any designer will say that already fifty centimeters from the installation site of this pile there are no ground movements, which means that the preservation of the ancient remains of the Church of the Tithes is ensured.

The layout of the supports is made in such a way that the space of the museum is as free as possible. Now we are armed with such scientific capabilities that all loads are calculated in advance. The remains of the foundations of the Church of the Tithes are a monument of national importance, and all work here is carried out exclusively with scientific support.

To bring the project to life, it will be important to choose a high-quality contractor, a direct contractor. The responsibility is enormous. This issue will require detailed study in the future.

It's good that we live in the 21st century. According to the results of archaeological excavations in the 10th century, the builders of the Church of the Tithes, when faced with such soils as in Kyiv, laid wooden beds under the foundations, they were fastened with wooden pegs. This is clear to us now - in order to harm the monument, nothing worse can be imagined: the tree rots, then voids form, and, naturally, subsidence is inevitable ...

At present, an invaluable experience in the museumification of archaeological sites has been accumulated. Of the world analogues that we focus on, the most successful and modern, in our opinion, is the archaeological museum of the Acropolis in Athens.

Nun Elena (Kruglyak). Photo: Efim Erichman

Reconstruction, replica, re-creation of the Church of the Tithes

If we talk about the future temple, it is logical to want to get as close as possible to the image of the Church of the Tithes under Prince Vladimir, as far as possible. I want to immediately answer your question directly: this is not a reconstruction, not a replica, this is revival of the shrine of world significance. We must be aware of two important tasks - the careful preservation of the authentic remains of the ancient temple, a symbol of the adoption of Christianity by Ancient Russia, and the revival of liturgical life in this holy place. To make it clearer, let's turn to world analogues.

You and I know that the Jerusalem Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which was built by Queen Helena, was once destroyed and rebuilt by the Crusaders. Even his Holy of Holies - Cuvuklia was destroyed several times. And is it even possible to admit the thought that this shrine would not have been revived? The expression of the will of God in this case can be considered the descent of the Holy Fire, confirming the presence of the Living God. The temple in Bethlehem, which was built by Queen Helen over the cave of the Nativity of Christ, was also destroyed. And in its place, a few centuries later, a new temple was also built, in which services are held to this day.

Let's remember the basilica in Nazareth: it was built in 1969 over the archaeological remains of the house where the Holy Family lived. Divine services are held there, this is a very revered place. And the Basilica of the Martyr Clement in Rome, where are there four levels of layers? Temple of Demetrius of Thessalonica, where myrrh-streaming relics were kept in an ancient crypt, and which was revived after destruction. Now there is a beautiful basilica on top. And there are dozens of such examples in the world ...

The new temple in Kyiv is not a reconstruction or a replica. The etymology of these words is completely unsuitable for conveying the meaning that we now want to put into our works. We should revive this place.

Incidentally, according to international legal norms for the protection of cultural heritage, the main goal of protecting a monument is the revival of its functions and the introduction of a monument into modern life.

This place cannot be just a monument, it is wrong to make it only a museum or, even worse, leave the ancient foundations under wraps. When the tracing of the foundations was already done, animals were walking there ... And what is the meaning of this, what is the spiritual meaning?

And how can we interrupt the liturgical thread that began at this place many centuries ago? As His Beatitude Vladimir said when the small church was erected: “You have finally lit the lamp of love that was in this place.”

This is what the goal is. We are not a dead child, not a doll, not a coffin erected. This is not a mausoleum, not a cardboard box, not a model of something. This is an active, living House of God. Only our task is to make it as close as possible to the image of the Byzantine temple built by Prince Vladimir.

If the task were simply to build a temple, it would cost nothing to accurately recreate it in the forms of Stasov, there are graphic materials, there are many photographs left. But then the spiritual, cultural and historical significance of this place will not be conveyed. After all, it was Prince Vladimir who built this first temple here.

It is completely logical that the recreated temple will be designed in the motives of the 10th century. We invite everyone to cooperate - archaeologists, architects, scientists, museum workers. Our business requires deep study and the right compromise. This is exactly what we are doing, exploring the results of archaeological excavations and all the existing historical information about the Church of the Tithes.

One of the projects of the Church of the Tithes

Tithe Church. business of life

I realized for myself that the revival of the Church of the Tithes is a matter of life. This will be the fruit of common, conciliar efforts - creative and scientific workers, historians, Byzantologists.

At one time, state money was allocated for museumification. Now the community is taking the initiative to revive the temple. The project will not be done with public money, the current situation in the country is not like that. Probably, this is the will of God, so that out of love for the Most Holy Theotokos, out of a great desire to serve God, this deed is accomplished ...

Once upon a time, Prince Vladimir gave a tithe of his income to the Church of the Tithes. Imagine with what a pure heart, with what love for God he did it. Therefore, my personal opinion is that it is a great honor to participate financially in this matter. Naturally, this is a nationwide affair, it will be necessary to collect people's money. Anyone can be a part of this process.

If we talk about the temple ... Probably King Solomon would have been shocked by the possibilities of today's temple building and what materials can be used. We try to make the most of all the achievements of science. After all, a lot has now been studied, including those monuments that were created in the same era with the Church of the Tithes and before it.

To work on the project, it is necessary to study the fullness of the heritage that the builders of the Church of the Tithes in the 10th century could only see, as well as later churches, the models for which the Church of the Tithes became after its construction. Previously, it was very difficult for an architect to simultaneously see and study the temples in Constantinople, Greece, and Bulgaria. Now there is such an opportunity.

The issue of museumification and revival of the Church of the Tithes must be addressed in conjunction with the study and museumification of other structures in the city of Vladimir.

Nun Elena (Kruglyak). Photo: Efim Erichman

Everything has its time. We consider it providential that the Church of the Tithes was not restored earlier. They probably weren't ready for it yet. Neither spiritually nor technically.

The revived Church of the Tithes will be the fruit of the joint efforts of the Church, the state, architects, scientists and artists, museum workers, and most importantly, all those who pray for the success of this Cause, pleasing to God. After all, the most important thing is to fill them with burning hearts for the Lord, thirsting for enlightenment, union with God and forgiveness of sins, along with the construction of the walls. We consider this work of ours as a contribution to achieving peace on our Ukrainian soil.

In modern architectural practice, it is the restoration of an object with the reaffirmation of its value, its rethinking and updating.

With God, a thousand years are like one day...

Archimandrite Gideon (Charon)

Word of the Vicar of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos of the Tithes MonasteryArchimandrite Gideon (Charon):

On the millennium anniversary of the blessed Assumption of Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir, we offer the Bloodless Sacrifice at the place where St. Vladimir once erected in the name of the Most Holy Theotokos the first cathedral in Kievan Rus - the Church of the Tithes.

The chronicler testifies about the prayer of the holy prince, with which he entered the built temple:

“Oh my God! Look from heaven and see, and visit Your vineyard, and do it, plant Your right hand, these new people, with them you turned hearts into reason, know you the true God; and look at this church, which you have created, your unworthy servant, in the name of the Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary the Mother of God; and if anyone in this church prays, then hear his prayer, and forgive all his sins, prayers for the sake of the Most Pure Mother of God.

With God, a thousand years are like one day and one day is like a thousand years… More than a thousand years have passed since the new Church of Christ was born in the firmament of heaven after the Baptism of Russia, and Saint Prince Vladimir erected a cathedral in honor of the Most Pure Theotokos. And now the heavenly Church and the earthly Church in this triumph gather together.

The Patriarch of Jerusalem, addressing me, the rector of the Church of the Tithes, said: “The city of Kyiv is the second Jerusalem. It also stands on seven hills. Just as in Jerusalem the greatest shrines are the Holy Sepulcher and Golgotha, and all other shrines are united with them by history and grace, so in the city of Kyiv the greatest shrine is the Church of the Tithes of the Most Holy Theotokos. After all, it was built on the spot where for the first time in the Slavic land blood was shed for Christ by the holy first martyrs Theodore and his infant son John. And just as legislation was given to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai, so from here, from Starokievskaya Mountain, the place “where the Russian land came from,” the light of Christ’s truth, the light of the Holy Gospel spread from south to north and from west to east to all corners of Ancient Russia, to where Ukraine, Russia, Belarus now stretch.

There is no future without a past

This place should not be in the abomination of desolation. According to the blessed memory of His Beatitude Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine Volodymyr, with whose blessing the process of reviving the Church of the Tithes began: "... the lamp of divine love has been lit again in this place." And her fire must be maintained. We need to enlighten the people of God regarding the exceptional role of the Temple of the Tithes in history. It is necessary to unite our efforts for the revival of this shrine.

Revival in every sense of the word has already begun: prayer is going on at this place, sacraments are being performed. Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine prays for the success of this work and blesses it, and supports all the fullness of the Orthodox Church. Here, prayers must be constantly lifted up for our people, for our Orthodox Church, for peace on our land and throughout the world.

And of course, in this holy place, with special solemnity and trepidation, we remember the Assumption of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir. Here he lived, here he erected his offspring - a temple in honor of the Most Pure Mother of God. It was in this temple that the relics of the holy prince were kept after his dormition.

Tithe Church of the Most Holy Theotokos - the mother of Russian churches

We cannot be Ivans who do not remember kinship. For without the past there is no future. The fifth commandment of the Lord says: "Honor your father and your mother, and it will be good, and you will live long on earth."

The Church of the Tithes of the Most Holy Theotokos is the mother of Russian churches. And we must pay due respect to it, because it was destroyed by the godless authorities and is in desolation. Right now the Church of the Tithes of the Most Holy Theotokos needs our help. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of this activity.

The time has come for all of us to take care of the mother of Russian churches - the house of the Most Holy Theotokos. And our Most Holy Lady Theotokos will take care of the faithful servants of our Lord, and with Her Maternal prayers peace will reign on our land.

The revival of our first Cathedral of Ancient Russia is important for the establishment of Orthodox spirituality and the unification of the East Slavic peoples around the Gospel truths. This is all the more important now, when there is a war in Ukraine.

Just as scattered Slavic principalities once burned in the fire of civil strife, so now our peoples are subjected to a similar division. And it is precisely the Cathedral of the Most Pure Mother of God, erected by the Holy Prince Vladimir, now, as then, can and should become a unifying symbol for our peoples.

Tithe Church. Road map:

Movies about Tithe Church:

The first temple of ancient Russia

One of the most famous monuments of architecture and history in Kyiv is the remains of the foundation of the Church of the Tithes. The first stone temple of Ancient Russia was built in the 10th century. He witnessed many historical events and trials that befell the mother of Russian cities. And even those few traces that have survived to this day can tell a lot to an attentive observer.

The Church of the Tithes is the first stone church in Russia, built in 989-996 with funds from the princely income (that is, for the tithe). Interestingly, the funds allegedly allocated for the construction of the temple were actually intended for the development of the entire church infrastructure of the then Russia, and the church only played the role of the treasury. The church, erected after the baptism of the pagans, was consecrated in honor of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. According to historians, it was here that Vladimir the Baptist and his wife, the Byzantine princess Anna, were buried. And also the brothers of Grand Duke Vladimir - Yaropolk and Oleg. His grandson, the son of Yaroslav the Wise Izyaslav, also rests here.

In memory of the martyrs

Chronicles say that the place of construction of the temple - on Starokievskaya Hill, near the princely chambers - was not chosen by chance. It was there that the court of the first Varangian Christians stood - Theodore (Tour) and his son John, who were killed by pagans in 983. Prince Vladimir decided to atone for the death of the Kyiv martyrs and began the construction of the Church of the Tithes.

During excavations in 1908, below the foundations of the main ledge of the church, archaeologists found the remains of a 10th-century log house, which they suggest could be the home of Theodore and John. It is possible that their relics were in the newly erected Christian shrine.

It is believed that the first stone church of Kievan Rus became a tomb for many Kievan princes. True, the opinions of historians and archaeologists are divided on this issue. Scientists admit that, yes, burials were found that are identified with the graves of Princess Olga and Vladimir Svyatoslavich, as well as the brothers of Vladimir - Yaropolk and Oleg - and the son of Yaroslav the Wise Izyaslav. But the relics have not been preserved, and the tombs that are on display in Sofia are also not completely identical. Where which was, outside or within the cathedral, is an open question. The idea that it was the remains of the princes that were found, the researchers were prompted by marble sarcophagi. And almost no more facts ...

Church of the Tithes, designed by Vasily Stasov. 1911

Until the appearance of the St. Sophia Cathedral, the church of Prince Vladimir served as a cathedral church. Like the brainchild of Yaroslav the Wise, she had her owntotype in Byzantium. The tithe was built on the model of the church at the imperial palace in Constantinople. But the masonry technique is already the merit of the master builders of Kyiv. Mixed laying of plinth and stone in the technique with a hidden row was not recorded in the Byzantine buildings of that time.

None of the researchers dare to say exactly what the Tithe Church was originally. Their cautious assumptions are based on written sources, as well as materials from archaeological excavations. Many fragments of marble columns, slabs, carvings, mosaics and frescoes were found in the ground. Now they are stored in the funds of the National Reserve "Sofia Kyiv".

Unfortunately, from the very beginning, this majestic temple was plagued by troubles. The first damage to the Church of the Tithes occurred in the distant 11th century, during a great fire. Subsequently, it was rebuilt and surrounded on three sides by galleries.

After 100 years, in 1169, the church was damaged during the attack on Kyiv by the troops of Andrei Bogolyubsky, and in 1203 by Rurik Rostislavich. In 1240, Kyiv was captured by the Mongol-Tatar Horde. The tithe church became the last stronghold of the city's defenders. The people of Kiev hid there along with their property. But the structures of the building, considerably weakened by the recent earthquake, could not stand it and collapsed. Other sources claim that the church fell under the onslaught of the infidels.

Memorial stone on the restored foundation of the Church of the Tithes

A holy place is never empty

In 1635, the Metropolitan of Kyiv Peter Mohyla "ordered the Church of the Tithes of the Blessed Virgin to be dug out of the darkness of the underground and opened to the light of day." That is, the Nikolskaya Church, as it was called by the people, was erected on the site of the old one. But was it really so? During the time of Peter Mohyla, the southwestern corner of the Church of the Tithes was completely preserved. At the end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th centuries, the rear opening was closed with a wooden wall, forming a small chapel, in which, according to a document of 1616, they served only on holidays.

It was this old wooden wall that Mogila dismantled, replacing it with a new, brick one. The dismantled wall dates back to the time of ancient Russian repairs, made several decades before the invasion of the Mongol commander Batu.

Metropolitan Petro Mohyla

Consequently, Metropolitan Peter Mogila did not build a new church, but, on the contrary, “mothballed” and preserved the remains of the Old Russian church, dismantling the old wooden structures and strengthening the remaining remains of the medieval walls. By the way, just under his leadership in 1635, marble sarcophagi with male and female skeletons were found, which the Grave proclaimed the relics of Prince Vladimir and Princess Anna.

In the 19th century, the Bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan of Kyiv and Galicia Eugene (Bolkhovitinov) made his contribution to the study of the temple. He organized excavations, thanks to which the foundations of the Church of the Tithes were discovered. Based on archeological data, the story about the discovery by Metropolitan Peter Mohyla of the remains of Prince Vladimir cannot be true. The relics, now given out by the Orthodox Church as the remains of Prince Vladimir, most likely belonged to one of his distant descendants.

The next and last restoration of the Church of the Tithes took place on August 2, 1828 - based on the project of the St. Petersburg architect Vasily Stasov. The project of Andrey Melensky from Kiev (the author of the project of the church on Askold's grave and Gostiny Dvor on Podol) was rejected.

The construction of the temple, which lasted 14 years, took more than 100 thousand rubles in gold, but the resulting "monument of Russian Orthodoxy" was subjected to crushing criticism. Firstly, they built it with deviations from the intended Russian-Byzantine style and did not save the old masonry due to fear of precipitation. Secondly, the church turned out to be rather heavy, especially in comparison with the neighboring Andreevskaya. In 1936, the church was dismantled on the occasion of the construction of a government quarter in this area. Fortunately, then managed to save the St. Sophia Cathedral.

Illumination of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kyiv. Miniature from the Radziwill Chronicle, 15th century

mystical connection

The destinies of many people who were related to the Church of the Tithes developed dramatically. Its founder - Prince Vladimir - died, intending to go to war against his son Yaroslav. And after the death of the Baptist of Russia, his sons immediately got involved in a bloody fratricidal war.

It is worth remembering the Kursk landowner Alexander Annenkov, who initiated the restoration of the Church of the Tithes in the 19th century. Even then, historians had suspicions that his good intentions were only a cover. In fact, he was driven by the desire for material gain - he was looking for the legendary ancient Russian treasures. And even, according to rumors, found. However, the treasures found did not bring happiness to Annenkov: he himself drank himself, squandered his property, did not leave a good memory, and his only pride - the rebuilt church - was destroyed.

Archaeologist Kondrat Lokhvitsky in his essays did not at all hide the fact that he began to engage in amateur archeology for the sake of fame, honor and awards. However, his plan for the restoration of the Church of the Tithes was not recognized by either Metropolitan Eugene or the imperial commission due to numerous shortcomings. But the Russian professor of architecture Nikolai Efimov made a really quite accurate plan for the foundations of the church. However, his project did not pass.

The fate of a number of archaeologists who explored the shrine at the beginning of the 20th century was completely tragic. Dmitry Mileev died of typhus during excavations. Sergei Velmin and Theodosius Molchanovsky were repressed in the 1930s. The only "lucky one" from this group of researchers of antiquity was the Leningrad archaeologist Mikhail Karger. But his archive with all the results of the excavations of the Church of the Tithes disappeared without a trace.

Alexandra SHEPEL

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Tithe Church. 10 questions - 10 answers

The Church of the Tithes is the first stone church built during the reign of Prince Vladimir after the adoption of Christianity. Unfortunately, it was destroyed by Batu in 1240 and was never restored.
10 questions and answers on this architectural monument, which will help in preparing for the lessons and the exam in history.

Material prepared: Melnikova Vera Aleksandrovna

tithe church

Inscribed outlines of the foundation of the Church of the Tithes.

Ruins of the Church of the Tithes. Picture of 1826. The author is not exactly identified.

Tithe church in the 19th century.

A silver coin issued in 1996 in honor of the 1000th anniversary of the construction of the Children's Church.

If you, while traveling around Kyiv, are going to walk along Andreevsky Descent, see St. Andrew's Church, walk along Volodymyrska Street, admire the domes of St. Sophia of Kyiv and St. of the ancient stone temple of Kievan Rus Church of the Tithes.

This year marks the 1020th anniversary of the founding of the first stone temple of Kievan Rus - the Church of the Tithes, the fate of which turned out to be the most dramatic among all the known temples of Ukraine. Erected at the end of the 10th century, at the time of the establishment of the Old Russian state, it stood for almost two and a half centuries on Starokievsky Hill, being a symbol of spirituality and the main shrine of ancient Kyiv. But even after the destruction, the Mother of God of the Tithes left an eternal memory of herself for all the coming centuries ...

Over the years of its existence, the church has repeatedly been subjected to the destructive effect of fires, destruction and outrage: for the first time, the Tithe Temple burned in 1017 during a great fire in the upper city. But after that, Prince Yaroslav the Wise rebuilt it, surrounding it with galleries on three sides and decorating the inside even more.
In 1169, the church was plundered by the troops of the Suzdal prince Andrei Bogolyubsky - "robbed the whole city in two days: Podolia and Gora, and monasteries, and Sophia, and the Tithe Mother of God",- so it is written in the annals.
And in 1203 the church suffered again during the defeat of Kyiv by Rurik Rostislavich, which "not only did you take one Podolia and burn it, you took another Mountain and plundered the Metropolis of St. Sophia, and plundered the Tithe Holy Mother of God, and all the monasteries, and icons of odrash, and others caught, and honest crosses and sacred vessels, and books ..."
But all these destructions and robberies were indicated mainly on the interior decoration of the temple. And the most tragic year for the Church of the Tithes was 1240, when Kyiv was surrounded by hordes of Batu Khan.
For several months, the brave defenders of Kyiv, led by governor Dmitry, held back the attackers, not letting them into the city, but the enemies managed to get inside and turn it into complete ruins. "The next day (Tatars) came against them, and there was a great battle between them. Meanwhile, people ran out to the church and to the vault of the church with their belongings, the church walls fell down with them from the burden, and so the fortifications were taken by (Tatar) soldiers Dmitry was taken out (to Batu), wounded, but they did not kill him through his courage. This is how this ancient Kyiv shrine perished, within the walls of which the heroes-defenders of Kyiv found their last refuge: "one cup of death, writing all together dead lying."
It happened on December 6, 1240 on Nikolin's day. But that's not the whole story of this famous temple...

Defense of the Kyiv Church of the Tithes from the invasion of the horde

So, back to the very beginning. The history of this ancient church began with the famous event of the Baptism of Russia-Ukraine, which determined the fate of our entire state and people for the coming centuries.
“Vladimir created the Church of the Holy Mother of God - Our Lady of the Mother of God in Kyiv”,- Nestor wrote about the Church of the Tithes, which in the days of Vladimir the Great began to be called "mother of Russian churches", in his "Reading about Boris and Gleb".

This is what the Church of the Tithes could have looked like (illustrative reconstruction)

Chronicle reports about the Temple of the Tithes quite clearly indicate the time of its foundation. It is known that in 988, Prince Vladimir, together with his retinue, was baptized in Chersonese and married the Byzantine princess Anna, and when he returned home, he baptized all the people of Kiev. This chronicle story has become a textbook.
Immediately after Christianity became the official state religion of Kievan Rus, Prince Vladimir began to destroy the old pagan traditions, throw down idols and destroy temples.

V. Vasnetsov. The Baptism of Prince Vladimir and the Baptism of Kievan Rus. Painting in the Vladimir Cathedral.

As the chronicler Nestor testifies in The Tale of Bygone Years, Prince Vladimir "He ordered to build churches and put them in the places where idols used to stand. And he put a church in the name of St. Basil (Vladimir received this name at baptism) on the hill where the idol of Perun and others stood. And in other cities they began to put up churches and appoint priests there and bring people to be baptized in all cities and villages."
And already in the next (989) year, the first stone church in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos was laid in Kyiv: "later, when Vladimir lived in the Christian law, he decided to build a stone church of the Holy Mother of God, and, having sent (ambassadors), he brought masters from the Greeks, and began to build ... And when he finished building, he decorated it with icons, and entrusted it Anastas-Korsunian, and assigned the priests of Korsun to serve in it. He gave here everything that he took in Korsun - icons, and church utensils, and crosses "- this is how the chronicler described this event.
According to legend, the place for the construction of the future church was chosen by Vladimir not by chance. Once upon a time there lived and were martyred by the pagans Christian Varangians John and his son Fyodor. Once, while still a pagan, Prince Vladimir wished to make a human sacrifice to Perun. To choose a person for this sacrifice, lots were cast and he pointed to Fyodor. But when they turned to John with a demand that he give up his son, John not only did not give up Theodore, but also delivered an ardent sermon about the true God and with a sharp denunciation against the pagans. An angry crowd rushed at the old man and destroyed the house of John, under the rubble of which both father and son died.

Vereshchagin V. "Laying the Church of the Tithes in Kyiv in 989".

So, in 989, Greek masters arrived in Kyiv "stone cutters and builders of Polat stone", and the construction of the first Russian stone church began, which lasted 7 years (at that time it was the usual time for the construction of large stone churches) and ended in 996. Confirmation of this is contained in the same chronicle of Nestor under the year 996: "When Vladimir saw that the church was completed, he entered it and prayed to God, saying:" Lord God! Look from heaven and look, and visit Your garden, and do what Your right hand has planted, these new people, whose heart You turned to the truth, (could) know You, the true God. And look at the Church of the axis, which I created, Your unworthy servant, in honor of the Mother who gave birth to You and the Ever-Virgin Mary the Mother of God. And if anyone prays in this church, then hear you prayer and forgive all the sins of his prayers of the advice of the Most Pure Theotokos.
And already on May 12 (25), 996, the new church was consecrated in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God, and since then this day has become the "angel's day" of the temple.

To explain the second name of the church - the Tithes, which stuck to it shortly after the consecration, let's turn again to the annals of Nestor, which actually says that after praying in the new church, Vladimir said: "I give this church, holy Mother of God, from my local and from my gardens a tenth part." And having written, he swore an oath in this church, saying: "If anyone cancels this, let him be damned." And he gave a tithe to Anastas, a Korsunian, and then made a great holiday that day for the boyars, and the elders of the city, and distributed a lot of good to the poor. It was under the name of the Church of the Tithes that it went down in history.

The Mother of God Tithes immediately became a symbol of the greatness of the capital of the ancient Russian state and the main shrine of the grand-ducal center, because, first of all, it was built as a cathedral. Unfortunately, we cannot reliably find out what this first stone temple built by Greek masters looked like. But it can be confidently asserted that there were no such structures in Kyiv and throughout the territory of Kievan Rus. Only St. Sophia of Kyiv, founded by Yaroslav the Wise, could surpass this stone structure. But this happened almost 40 years later.

According to researchers, even surrounded by luxurious princely palaces, the Church of the Tithes stood out for its size and was a significant building on the territory of the city of Vladimir. Contemporaries compared it to heaven, probably because of its impressive size: it was more than 35 m high, and its internal space was 32x42 meters.
Modern research has proven that the Church of the Tithes was surrounded by covered galleries, through which it probably connected with the southwestern princely palace. In architectural terms, it looked like a cross-domed six-pillar structure, however, some written sources of the 14th century indicate that the temple was multi-domed. For example, in the "List of Russian cities near and far" it is written: "Kyiv of the Drevlyans, on the Dnieper, and the churches: the Holy Mother of God, tithe, stone, was about half a third of versions, and Hagia Sophia - about twelve versions." Most scholars believe that the compiler of the List probably exaggerated the number of baths in the main church of Kyiv, but there can hardly be any doubt that the Church of the Tithes actually had many baths. In any case, the first stone church could not but arouse reverent surprise among the then Kyivans and numerous visitors to the "mother of Russian cities."

City of Vladimir with princely palaces and Church of the Tithes (model)

But this temple amazed and surprised not only with its size, but also with its interior decoration. Inside the church was painted with frescoes, and in the central part it was decorated with wall mosaics. The floor was decorated with mosaic slabs made of various types of marble, slate and other valuable types of stone (the remains of these materials were found during numerous excavations carried out at different times). That is why, for its luxurious decoration, the Church of the Tithes was also called "marble".
The main shrine of the church was the miraculous image of the Mother of God, which is mentioned in the "Reading about Boris and Gleb" by Nestor the chronicler. This icon, known as an ancient shrine of Kyiv, was brought from Korsun by the wife of Prince Vladimir Anna with a dowry. The image, at the behest of the Greek princess, was placed in the Church of the Tithes. The further fate of this icon is not exactly known. It is believed that later the icon of the Mother of God of Constantinople was given by one of the Kyiv princes as a dowry for a daughter or sister who went to the Belz principality. According to another version, it was taken out of Kyiv in 1270 by Prince Lev Danilovich, who placed it in the church of the city of Belza, and in 1382 this Kyiv shrine came to Czestochowa and became the main shrine of Poland under the name of the miraculous image of the Mother of God of Czestochowa.

The Czestochowa Icon of the Mother of God or the "Black Madonna", which is worshiped by both Catholics and Orthodox.

Other sacred relics were kept in the Mother of God of the Tithes. In particular, the head of the Hieromartyr Clement, his disciple Thebes and the relics of other saints brought from Korsun.
The church had three altars: the central altar was dedicated to the Mother of God, the second - to St. Nicholas, and the third - to St. Clement.
It is also known about the miraculous icon of St. Nicholas, brought by Vladimir from Korsun (it was in memory of this icon that at the beginning of the 17th century, the people of Kiev erected a small wooden chapel on the ruins of the temple, which they called "Nikolai Desyatinny"). True, the researcher of Kyiv antiquity K.V. Sherotsky had his own version of this shrine: allegedly this image was taken by Prince Vladimir from the Nikolaev church at Askold's grave, when the body of St. Olga was transferred from there (1007). So, over time, the Church of the Tithes became the family burial vault of the first Kyiv princes. Here his patrons found their resting place: the wife of Vladimir, the Greek princess Anna, who died in 1011, and in 1015, Prince Vladimir the Great himself, whose body was laid in a marble sarcophagus.
In 1044, Grand Duke Yaroslav the Wise transferred the bodies of his uncles Yaropolk and Oleg Svyatoslavovich, brothers of Vladimir the Great, to the Church of the Tithes. Also here were the burial places of princes Izyaslav Yaroslavich and Rostislav Mstislavich, as well as the first Kyiv Metropolitan Mikhail.

Such was the story of the Mother of God of the Tithes before the invasion of Batu in 1240, which became disastrous for the whole of Kyiv. After this sad event, the temple lay in ruins for almost four centuries. Until the 30s of the XVII century, when the Kyiv Metropolitan Peter Mohyla said: "The tithe Church of the Blessed Virgin, located at the gates of Kyiv, to be dug out of the darkness and opened to daylight."
At that time, only ruins remained from the Church of the Tithes, and only part of one wall slightly towered above the ground.
The description of the ruins of the Church of the Tithes by the French engineer Guillaume de Beauplan, who traveled around Ukraine in the late 20s - early 30s of the 17th century, has been preserved, where he noted that its walls were covered with Greek inscriptions and reached a height of only 5-6 ft.

The ruins of the Church of the Tithes in the drawing by A. Westerfeld, XVII century

Peter Mohyla, having spent a lot of money, dug up the ruins of an ancient church, finding two ancient tombs among them, and after a while built a small church on this site, which was consecrated by his associate and successor Sylvester Kosov in 1654. P. Mogila failed to complete the restoration of this shrine, so he noted in his will: "For the restoration of the church, called Tithes, which I began to restore, so that the restoration was completed, I assign and write down a thousand gold pieces from my casket ready."
In the same year, a refectory was added to the church and a second wooden floor with the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul was added. In this form, the Church of the Tithes stood until 1758, when another repair was made, which was financed by the nun of the Florovsky Monastery, Nectaria (in the world, Princess Natalia Dolgorukaya).
But, when in 1810 and 1817 her grandson, Prince M. Dolgorukiy, visited Kyiv, in his "notes" he complained about the lack of people who could acquaint him with Kyiv sights, and remarked about the Church of the Tithes: "Never would I have thought that she was so abandoned and despised as I found her."

Nun Nektaria - the old woman of the Florovsky Monastery (in the world, Princess Natalia Dolgorukaya).

The next construction work around the Church of the Tithes began already at the beginning of the 19th century. In 1824, the then Metropolitan of Kyiv Yevgeny Bolkhovitinov instructed the amateur archaeologist Kondrat Lokhvitsky to clear the foundation of the Church of the Tithes. In particular, he secured permission to rebuild the temple at his own expense and allocated money for excavations, during which many interesting artifacts were revealed. In particular, the remains of columns, frescoes, mosaics, many silver and gold ancient Greek and other coins, two ancient elongated bells and two stone tombs were found.
Under the lid of one of them was found a female skeleton, probably Princess Anna, with a cross around her neck and a scarlet gold chain, as well as other gold jewelry. In another stone tomb were the relics of Prince Vladimir, which were found during the reign of Metropolitan Peter Mogila (the bones were preserved in the sarcophagus, except for the head and right hand, and the remains of decayed brocade clothing, a golden button and men's shoes.) At the same time, a third tomb was found - to the north Grave church near the wall. This sarcophagus was of particular value: it depicted carved weaving with rosettes and a number of Byzantine four-pointed crosses. With this ornamentation, it was very similar to the sarcophagus of Yaroslav the Wise in Hagia Sophia. It contained the remains with undecayed clothes and a velvet coverlet, through which one could clearly see the preserved appearance of a woman, who was probably Princess Olga. These generous finds and research aroused great interest in local and metropolitan government circles, where they spoke with inspiration about the restoration of the Church of the Tithes.

By order of Emperor Nicholas I, a committee for the construction of the temple was created and a competition for the best project was announced, in which famous architects of the Russian Empire and, in particular, Kyiv, took part. It is known that the well-known Kyiv architect Andrei Melensky presented his project of the Church of the Tithes, but the project of the St. Petersburg architect Viktor Stasov won, who presented the Church of the Tithes in the imperial, Byzantine-Moscow style, which had nothing to do with the original building.
On August 2, 1828, the beginning of construction was consecrated, as a sign of which a stone of red granite was placed at the base of the throne with an inscription about the day of the founding of a new church in honor of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. (Interestingly, several bricks from the foundation of the old Church of the Tithes were also laid in the foundation of the Red Building of Kyiv University on July 31, 1837). The construction of the temple cost more than 100,000 rubles in gold and lasted for 13 years, and on July 15, 1842, Metropolitan Filaret of Kyiv solemnly consecrated the new Tithes of the Dormition of the Mother of God Nicholas Church.

Tithe Church. Architect V. Stasov.

The new Church of the Tithes was popularly called Annenkovskaya. It was much smaller than its area for the ancient Vladimirskaya and occupied only the southwestern part of the old foundations of the altar apses, while parts of the foundations of the galleries adjacent to them remained unbuilt.
Outwardly, the remains of ancient relief letters of the former Greek inscription from the original structure of the Church of the Tithes were built into the southern wall of the new church in no particular order. Separate fragments of the old Vladimir Church were also kept in the new temple: a mosaic floor made of different varieties of marble and raspberry-colored Volyn slate, precious remains of mosaics, ceramic tiles, fragments of fresco drawing, brick with the family banner of the Kyiv princes - a trident, other details of an ancient building and an old bell . Despite this, architecturally, the church looked too pompous: with squat Moscow domes and cibulist domes, for which the amateur researchers of Kyiv's antiquity called it the "stupa" and considered it an insult to the memory of the great Vladimir temple.

However, this building was also unlucky. A new misfortune came along with the new power of the Bolsheviks, who declared "religion is the opium of the people" and stubbornly set about destroying religious objects. At first, the Church of the Tithes was planned to be included in the list of attractions, to place a museum exposition in it and to declare it among the objects of the state historical and cultural reserve called the Kyiv Acropolis. But already in 1929, there were other plans for its use: in particular, it was proposed to rebuild it into a club. But the Society for the Protection of Monuments protested such plans and insisted on transferring the church to the jurisdiction of the Kyiv Regional Inspectorate. At the same time, the well-known researcher and memorialist Fyodor Ernst joined the rescue of the Tithe Church, who turned to Ukrnauka with a letter about the inexpediency of the urgent withdrawal of the Tithe Church from the use of the religious community. But it was too late...

On October 2, 1929, the Church of the Tithes was closed, but the museum was never created due to lack of funds. And in March 1936, the Presidium of the Kyiv City Council decided to demolish the Church of the Tithes as such, which has no historical value. The only thing that was saved was archival materials that were in the premises of the Church of the Tithes - they were transferred to the Sofia Museum of Architecture and History. In the same year, the Church of the Tithes, like most Kyiv churches and shrines, was gone...

Another important page in the history of this temple is associated with archaeological excavations. The first scientific research was carried out around the church as early as 1908-1911. Petersburg Archaeological Commission. Archaeologist D. Milyaev, who supervised the work, was the first who, on the basis of scientific measurements, drew up a plan of the primitive structure of the church that was close to the real one. During these excavations, a valuable treasure of gold and silver jewelry was also found, the most valuable items of which (earrings, kolts, bracelets, rings, silver coins, hryvnias, etc.) ended up in St. Petersburg museums, where they are there to this day. .

The next expedition appeared on Starokievsky Hill after the "new" Church of the Tithes of Stasov was destroyed. In 1938-1939. An expedition of the Institute of the History of Material Culture of the USSR Academy of Sciences under the leadership of M. Karger worked here, which conducted a fundamental study of the remains of all parts of the Church of the Tithes. During the excavations, fragments of the mosaic floor, fresco and mosaic decoration of the temple, stone tombs, remains of foundations were found ... And next to the Church of the Tithes, the ruins of princely palaces and dwellings of the boyars, as well as craft workshops and numerous burials of the 9th-10th centuries, were found. These archaeological finds are now kept in the Sophia Kyiv National Reserve and the National Museum of the History of Ukraine. Pre-war studies gave archaeologists an exhaustive picture of the foundations of the old Vladimir Church, after which the researchers set about reconstructing the appearance of the old temple, but now only on paper. M. Holostenko, the American researcher K. Conant, A. Reutov, Yu.

Church of the Tithes (reconstruction by Y. Aseev)

After the post-war archaeological expeditions, the foundations of the church were mothballed, reviving their contours and arranging individual details of the ancient foundation under glass. And human skeletons, of which quite a few were found by archaeologists, were buried in a mass grave, where they installed a memorial cross with the inscription: "The mass grave of the defenders of Kyiv, who died in 1240 during the invasion of Batu".

Contours of the foundation of the Church of the Tithes in the twentieth century.

A few years ago, interest in restoring the Tithes Church returned again.
The first archaeological exploration in the XXI century. were carried out back in 2005, and in 2008 archaeologists began the main work. During this time, in the excavation area, scientists made a detailed description of the remains of the foundation of the church, and also found a number of artifacts: coins from the 15th-18th centuries, stone whorls of ancient Russian times, ceramic dishes of the 10th century, rings made of non-ferrous metal, bone arrowheads. Scientists call a tip with a Scandinavian type carving, which was found on the territory of a pagan burial site of the 10th century, a unique find. This is the first such find on the territory of former Russia. But no matter how many finds archaeologists have at hand, it will never be possible to recreate the Church of the Tithes with an accuracy of a millimeter. First of all, only a fifth of the foundations have survived from the former huge structure, the rest were dismantled as building material at the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th century.

Pavilion at the site of excavation of the foundations of the Church of the Tithes

The further fate of the Church of the Tithes remains uncertain. Whether the excavations will continue, whether the original foundation will be left, whether a new temple will be erected - the discussion on these topics does not stop from the moment the excavations begin ... But in whatever form the people of Kiev and guests of the capital have a chance to contemplate the ancient temple, it will always remain ours national shrine and pride.

In 988, an epoch-making event took place for Kievan Rus. Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir baptized Russia. So, what is next? That's all? Such a question may seem fair to the uninitiated reader. But "The Tale of Bygone Years" says the following: "In the summer of 6497 ... Volodimer thought about creating the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos and sending great masters from the Greek." 6497 from the creation of the world corresponds to 989 AD. That is, the next year after the baptism of Russia, the construction of the first stone church began in Kyiv.

The construction of the cathedral church of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos began at the site of the death of the first martyrs Theodore and his son John. Construction was completed in 996 AD. Then the first rite of consecration of the church was performed. In 1039, the second consecration of the Church of the Tithes took place under Yaroslav the Wise. The reasons for the second consecration are various. But a more likely reason for the re-consecration was the failure to observe the rite at the first consecration.

The name "Tithing Church" was assigned to the Church of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos after Prince Vladimir determined a tenth (tithe) of his income for the maintenance of the temple. Byzantine technology and the richness of the decoration of the church made it the most significant church of Kievan Rus at the turn of the 10th-11th centuries.

The Church of the Tithes became the place of storage of the relics of the martyr Clement, transferred from Korsun. In the church there was also a princely tomb, where the remains of Princess Anna and Vladimir himself rested. The remains of Princess Olga from Vyshgorod were also transferred here.

After the earthquake of the 12th century, the Church of the Tithes was repaired and fortified on the western side. In 1169, the troops of Mstislav Andreyevich, the offspring of Andrei Bogolyubsky, entered Kyiv and plundered the church. The next attack on the church came from the troops of Rurik Rostislavovich in 1203. A series of acts of vandalism against the church ended in 1240 during the siege of Kyiv by Batu Khan. A heroic legend describes the collapse of the Church of the Tithes as the destruction of the last refuge of the defenders of the city, which could not stand the people who had taken refuge in the vaults. Archaeologists tend to believe that battering rams were used to destroy the church.

The ruins of the Church of the Tithes did not disturb until 1635. Metropolitan Peter Mogila undertook excavations of the temple. Before the start of the excavations, a small church was erected on the southwestern side of the Church of the Tithes and consecrated in the name of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. As a result of excavations in 1635, a princely tomb was discovered. The skull of Prince Vladimir was transferred first to the Church of the Savior on Berestovo, and later to the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. The rest of the remains found shelter in the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv. In 1650, Peter Mohyla bequeathed 1,000 gold pieces for the restoration of the Church of the Tithes.

Interest in the Church of the Tithes manifested itself in 1824. Metropolitan Evgeny (Bolkhovitinov) blessed the continuation of excavations and the construction of the Second Church of the Tithes starting in 1828. The new church, built in 1842, did not look like the original of the tenth century at all. This church stood until 1928 and was demolished by the Bolsheviks. The remains of the bricks were taken away until 1936.

Since the beginning of the 2000s, there have been frictions between representatives of the Kyiv and Moscow Patriarchates in the UOC for the right to use the remnants of the tithe church. The question of the restoration of the Church of the Tithes is being discussed. However, there are significant obstacles - there are not even drawings of the original Church of the Tithes, so that we can talk about rebuilding. The second significant obstacle was UNESCO and ICOMOS, which strongly oppose the construction of a third church.