Sights of Moscow: Borovitskaya Square

Borovitskaya Square is the youngest square in the center of Moscow. Her age is about 80 years. It is territorially related to Khamovniki and Tverskoy districts. Its borders pass through the streets: Znamenka, Mokhovaya, Volkhonka and Manezhnaya, as well as along the Great Stone Bridge. If you stand near the Kremlin (with your back to the Borovitsky gates), then just the whole area opens up. At present, this territory is a large-scale transport interchange.

A bit of history

The Borovitskaya Square emerged by expanding adjacent narrow streets for better access to the Kremlin. The most significant event was the demolition of the church of St. Nicholas Streletsky in its western part. It is worth noting that many were against such actions. However, it was not possible to save the structure. The temple could not stand the laying of the metro, and it was forced to demolish it in 1932. The last ones who suffered destruction were residential buildings in the east in 1979. And it was from this time on that the area gained its current borders.

About the title

By its name, Borovitskaya Square owes its name to the Kremlin gate of the same name. And those, in turn, were named after the main hill Borovitsky, on which the Kremlin was built. The area covers an area of 22 thousand square meters.

Interesting Facts

The first loud mention of this square is connected with the attempt on Leonid Brezhnev and the Soviet cosmonauts. In 1969, it was here that Lieutenant Ilyin attacked the motorcade of the head of state. The territory with a capacity of 45 thousand people allowed the killer to go unnoticed before the start of the shots.

Monument on Borovitskaya Square

In the autumn of 2016 a monument to Prince Vladimir, the ancestor of the Christian faith, should appear here. This decision was made because of an important event - the 1000th anniversary of the baptism of Rus. There were two places where they wanted to install the monument. These are Vorobyovy Gory and Borovitskaya Square. Through long disputes and persuasion it was decided to choose a place near the Kremlin.

The height of the monument will be about 24 m without a pedestal. In order to understand the scale of the structure, you can compare it with the wall at the gate. Its height is about 17 m. The installation of such an impressive structure causes many disagreements. Many believe that the monument does not fit into the overall architecture of the Kremlin and its grandeur will eclipse many other structures that are in the area. But as long as the controversy continues, the first stone was laid in the fall of 2015, and the builders began to install a new architectural monument.