The Water Supplying (Vodovzvodnaya) Tower

The tower stands at the south-west corner of the Kremlin. Built in 1488 by Anton Fryazin it had a specific importance in the Kremlin’s fortification system as it protected shallow waters near the Neglinnaya River’s mouth. The tower’s name is linked to the boyar Sviblo’s name, who was in charge of its construction.

The Vodovzvodnaya Tower had a well and a secret underground passage towards the Moskva River. In 1633, Christopher Galloway installed a water-pumping machine inside the tower to take water from the Moskva River and send it along lead-coated pipes to the Kremlin Gardens. After that, the tower was called the Vodovzvodnaya, i.e. Water-Supplying.

In 1672-1686, the tower was overbuilt with an extra stone level and a marquee. In 1770, architect Vassiliy Bazhenov suggested to dismantle the tower, but the suggestion was refused. However, it was dismantled in 1805-1806 and later reconstructed anew on the project of I. Yegotov.

During the Napoleon’s invasion of 1812, the tower was blown up. Later it was rebuilt under the supervision of architect Ossip Bove.

In 1937, the Vodovzvodnaya Tower was crowned by a ruby star.

Its height without the star is 57,7 m, with the star – 61,25 m.