🏛 Cathedral of Christ the Saviour

Russia's largest Orthodox cathedral, rebuilt in the 1990s, with white walls and golden domes.

The idea of a cathedral-monument to the victory over Napoleon was put forward in December 1812 by General Pyotr Kikin.
The first cathedral was laid down in 1817 on the Sparrow Hills to a design by Karl Witberg, but construction was halted and Witberg was exiled to Vyatka.
The cathedral on Volkhonka was built to Konstantin Thon's design until 1860, and consecrated only in 1883 under Alexander III.
The names of officers killed in the war of 1812 and the foreign campaigns are inscribed on the cathedral's walls.
On 5 December 1931 the cathedral was blown up to make way for the Palace of Soviets, which was never built; the Moskva swimming pool was made on the site instead.
The current building was recreated in 1994–1999 on the old plinth, but from different materials.

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