Conception stauropegic women's convent

You can find Conception stauropegic women's conventat the following address: 2-d Zachat’evskiy pereulok 2.

It considered to be the first women’s convent called as “Old-maidish” Starodevichy. It was burned to the ground in 1547 and received new place from Ivan the Terrible. In 1548 at the old site Conception convent was founded from Conception church of St. Anna.

Centuries passed but convent was destroyed and built up again and again. Many events were inside of those convent: people’s rescue from horde invasions or plague; married couple of Tzar Fyodor Ioannovich pleaded for successor to the throne; Troubled times and fighting of Pozharsky militiamen with a troop of Polish hetman Khotkevich; sister of Kozma Minin who came to the convent as nun and known as aged-nun Sophia; prisoner sister of heretic boyarynia Feodosia Morozova; Frenchmen who robbed chests and altars, took off icons; Bolshevik in 1920es who did the same “respectable” job; dismantling of churches.

Viktor Rozov was living in communal rooms made from Convent’s cells. He has got serious wound in a war and later wrote piezas about his time. His piezas were performed in all theatres but his highest recognition came after pieza “Eternally alive” and it’s movie version “The Cranes Are Flying”.

In 1995 Convent resumed operation of its main function – starting from the beginning.

Barbican church in honour of the Holy Savior’s Image was founded in 1696 by stolnik of Peter the Great Alexander Rimsky-Korsakov to be used as a house, friendly looking “terem” under the style of Moscow baroque as well as front entrance to convent.

Church of Conception of St. Anna is not similar to traditional Russian churches due to Protestant type of red-brick design.

Church of Descent of the Holy Spirit has a wide black “Russian-Byzantine” dome and was constructed at the middle of XIXth century by architect Mikhail Bykovsky.