TOP-5 ancient fortresses in Russia. Part 3
To protect Russian cities from all kinds of invaders who attacked our lands from all sides, a large number of fortifications were built in Russia. The first fortifications were built of wood. Later, due to the unreliability and flammability of such structures, they were rebuilt from stone. One of these stone fortresses that have survived to our time is Smolensk.
The Smolensk Wall (fortress) was built to protect the city from the Poles in the 17th century. Later, during the war with Napoleon and the German fascist invaders, the fortress walls were repeatedly used to defend the city.
Over time, some of the loopholes were destroyed, but long sections of walls with some defensive elements still rise above the city outskirts.
Initially, as in many other cities of Russia, a wooden fortification was built on the site of the Smolensk fortress. It appeared under Ivan the Terrible. Later, Fyodor Ioannovich ordered to rebuild the structure of stone. The foundation stone of the new fortress took place in 1595. It was a real "construction of the century", which became the largest in Russia at that time.
Stone was brought to the construction site from all over the country. Warehouses were erected for materials, and special furnaces (factories) for making bricks. The builders for the Smolensk fortress were attracted by the tsar's decree from different cities, and the famous architect from Moscow, Fyodor Kon, worked on the development of the project.
When the fortress was laid, the famous boyar and the future tsar Boris Godunov, who was born in these places, was present.
The fortification was built relatively quickly, given the scale of the work. 7 years later, in 1602, the building was solemnly consecrated, and the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria was placed above its main gate.
For the defense of the fortress, guns of various calibers were installed. The garrison included nobles, townspeople, archers, gunners, each of whom was assigned to a separate section of the wall.
The fortress included 38 towers, of which 29 were blind, and 9 were equipped with gates. Between them stretched the spans (fortress walls), the average thickness of which reached almost 5 meters, and the height, excluding the battlements, was about 10 meters.
Selected fired brick, from which the fortress was built, stretching for 6.5 km, allowed the structure to be well preserved to this day, despite numerous battles. Today the Smolensk Wall is a monument of history, culture and architecture of the 16th-17th centuries and one of the most visited sights of the country.
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