Cathedral of Christ the Saviour

구세주 그리스도 대성당

The main cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church: Konstantin Thon's Russian-Byzantine design (completed 1883), demolished in 1931 and rebuilt in 1995–2000; a white cube with kokoshnik gables under five gilded domes, 103 m to the top cross.

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At a glance

Country: Russia
Location: Moscow, Russia
Built: 1839–1883; rebuilt 1995–2000
Height: 103 m
Type: Religious building

Quick answers

Where is Cathedral of Christ the Saviour?

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is in Moscow, Russia.

How tall is Cathedral of Christ the Saviour?

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is about 103 m tall.

The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is the main cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church. It stands on the north bank of the Moskva River in Moscow, a short walk from the Kremlin. A white building topped by five golden domes, it rises about 103 metres to the tip of its highest cross and can hold roughly 9,500 people.

It is famous for its story as much as its looks. The first church was built in the 1800s to thank God for Russia's survival of Napoleon's invasion of 1812. It was blown up in 1931, and the site later became a huge outdoor swimming pool. After the Soviet Union ended, Muscovites helped pay to build the cathedral again, and it was reopened in 2000.

Why was it built?

Tsar Alexander I ordered a great church after Napoleon's army left Russia in 1812. The first design did not please the next ruler, Nicholas I, so he asked the architect Konstantin Thon to start again in a Russian-Byzantine style inspired by Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. Work began in the 1830s and the church was consecrated, meaning formally made holy, in 1883.

Destroyed and rebuilt

In 1931 the Soviet government pulled the church down with dynamite, because it wanted to put a giant Palace of the Soviets on the spot. That palace was never finished, and in 1958 the flooded pit became the open-air Moskva Pool. In the 1990s plans were made to rebuild the cathedral, and about a million Muscovites gave money. Building ran from 1994 to 2000, and the new cathedral was consecrated on 19 August 2000.

Fun facts

Demolished in 1931, it was rebuilt from 1995 to 2000.
The cathedral is about 103 metres tall, making it one of the tallest Orthodox churches in the world.
After the first church was demolished, its site became the Moskva Pool, a huge open-air swimming pool that opened in 1958.
Some of the original marble reliefs were saved and can still be seen at the Donskoy Monastery in Moscow.
About a million Muscovites donated money to help build the new cathedral.