The history of the Moscow Kremlin
First Moscow Princes in the Kremlin
(2nd half of the XIIIth – 1st half of the XIVth century)

The Moscow princes dynasty was founded by Daniel - the younger son of Vladimir Prince Alexander Nevsky. His name was first mentioned in a manuscript in connection with Moscow in 1382. After the Tartar-Mongolian invasion Russia began paying tributes to the Horde, and princes were to get in the Horde special letters (charters) for possession of their lands. Since 1243,  Vladimir Princes were given the title of Great  Princes.

 

In 1328 the letter for the “Great Vladimir throne” was received by Ivan Kalita (Money-bag), son of Moscow Prince Daniel. However, he did not move to the city of Vladimir, but remained in Moscow. The Head of the Russian Church - Metropolitan Peter, the authority of who was extremely high, moved to Moscow to Prince Ivan Kalita.

 The Moscow Kremlin became a residence of the Great Prince and Metropolitan. Ivan Kalita achieved the right to collect tributes from all Russian lands. Probably, that is why he was nicknamed "kalita", meaning in the Old Russian language "money-bag".
Under Ivan Kalita, Moscow was actively growing, and his residence on the Borovitsky  hill started to be realized as a separate and main part of the city. Erection of either wooden or white-stone constructions was started in the Kremlin.

In 1326-1327, the Assumption Cathedral, the main temple of the state, was built. In 1329, the Church of Ivan the Ladder was constructed.

In 1330, Cathedral of the Saviour on the Bor (Forest), and in 1333 – the Cathedral of  Archangel Michael, where Ivan Kalita and his descendants were buried, appeared. In

 

1339-1340, Ivan Kalita erected a new, bigger oaken  fortress on the Borovitsky hill.Dying, Kalita  left his spiritual letter (will). It left to his sons not only the Moscow lands, but also symbols of authority of Russia of that time. Among them for the first time was mentioned  “the golden cap”, identified with the well-known Monomakh’s crown, the main crown of Russian sovereigns. That way, in the first half of the XIVth century, formation of Moscow Great Princes’ treasury was started.