Building an Image:
The Architecture of the Moscow Kremlin,
15th-16th Centuries
Text and photographs by Jack Kollmann
Comments welcome: contact <jack.kollmann@stanford.edu>
The Kremlin: site of the earliest fortified settlement of Moscow, central citadel of a city that grew over the centuries to command a huge Eurasian empire. Architecturally speaking, the Kremlin's "classical" period was in the 15th and 16th centuries. This site explores that rich architectural heritage, focusing on its major surviving examples.
In
examining the major structures of the Kremlin from this period -- 
fortification walls, churches, cathedrals, bell tower, palace -- this photographic
essay will present them in historical context. Among the questions addressed:
who commissioned these buildings? Under what circumstances? Who were the architects?
Where did their ideas come from? How were the buildings used? What influence
did these structures have on subsequent Muscovite architecture?
A major theme
of this photographic essay is that Kremlin edifices of the 15th/16th centuries
reflect 
and
incorporate the styles of regions which Muscovy either incorporated -- for
example, Kiev, Novgorod, Pskov, Vladimir/Suzdal' -- or was in contact with,
such as Italy. In addition, traditional wooden architecture of the Russian
village played an influential role. In other words, Kremlin architecture of
the period reflected what historians have referred to as "the gathering
of the Rus' lands" -- that is, Moscow incorporated regional architectural
styles from regions it "gathered." Although that verb implies a
benign incorporation of East Slavic regions that "belonged" to Muscovy
(the principality of Moscow), the process frequently involved warfare and
shrewd military alliances.
Among the
number of 15th/16th-century Kremlin edifices, this essay will include St.
Basil's 
Cathedral.
Standing outside the Kremlin walls at one end of Red Square, this startling
edifice at once
embodies all of the influences named above and yet is like nothing that came
before it. Sorting out its architectural roots will complement our examination
of structures inside the Kremlin walls.
A final section of this photographic essay will trace the influence that these Kremlin structures had on subsequent Muscovite architecture. Given the political and ecclesiastical significance of Kremlin buildings, it should come as no surprise that one finds traces of them throughout Muscovy, as regional cities sought to embody elements of the capital city. If Moscow "gathered" regional architectural styles, the regions in turn "gathered" them back.
Organization of Web Site
This photographic essay is organized into eight sections, as follows:
II. Cathedral of the Dormition
III. Cathedral of the Archangel Michael
IV. Cathedral of the Annunciation and Church of the Deposition