Buildings in the Kremlin
The Church of Our Lady’s Nativity on Anteroom
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It was built in 1393-1394 on the order of Great Princess Eudokia, the widow of Prince Dmitriy Donskoi, to the memory of the Kulikovo Battle of 1380. The Church was devoted to Our Lady’s Nativity as it coincided with the date of the Battle on the Kulikovo Field.
The new church was built on the place of the wooden Church of Lasarus’ Resurrection. It was situated on the princesses’ and tsarinas’ part of the Princes’ palace and was used as a home church.
In 1395, the white-stone church was painted by Theofan the Greek and Daniyl Cherniy with garzones. Unfortunately, wall-paintings have not survived.
In 1514, during the construction of the new stone Great Prince’s Palace, the Church of Our Lady’s Nativity was rebuilt by Aleviz Novy. The architect saved the church as a podklet and overbuilt it on the level of living quarters with a new area, where he placed the high altar. The podklet housed the Lasarus’ Resurrection chapel.
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In 1681-1684, under Tsar Fyodor Alexeevich, the church became one-domed, the Lasarus’ chapel was abolished.
In 1838, when the construction of the Grand Kremlin Palace was started, the chapel Lasarus’ Church was restored and decorated with eclectic details in the XVIIth century style.
In 1923-1928 and 1949-1952, the oldest Kremlin and Moscow’s monument saved on the podklet’s level was reconstructed.
