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St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral

Nikolskaya Square, Russia · built 1753

St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral (Nikolskiy morskoy sobor) is a major Baroque Orthodox cathedral in the western part of Central Saint Petersburg. It has always been closely associated with the Russian Navy, serving as its main shrine until the Russian Revolution. In the upper church there are numerous memorial plaques for the crews of the sunken Soviet submarines, including K-278 Komsomolets. The crew of the submarine K-141 Kursk has also been commemorated there. The marine regimental church was built on the bank of the Kryukov Canal in 1753–1762 to a design by Savva Chevakinsky, the main architect of the Russian Navy, in place of an earlier wooden church. A freestanding four story bell tower with a tall gilded spire was erected in 1755–1758. The main church is dedicated to Saint Nicholas (a patron saint of seamen) and the feast of the Epiphany. St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral consists of two separate churches. The Saint Nicholas Church is located at ground level, while the Epiphany Church is on the floor above. The altar of the upper church was consecrated in the presence of Catherine the Great. The main shrine of the cathedral—a Greek icon of St. Nicholas made in the 17th century with a portion of his relics—is located in the lower church. In 1908 the Tsushima obelisk was erected in the garden in front of the church in memory of those killed at Battle of Ts

Church data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).

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