From an Ancient Settlement to the City of Vologda

15 points2 km4 hours

This route takes you deep into the city's history, from the first settlements to the heyday of merchant Vologda. Along the way, layer after layer of the city's past is revealed: traces of fortifications, the sites of former squares, and corners with carefully preserved wooden houses and carved front gardens that tell of the everyday life and tastes of Vologda's people through the ages.

Route author

Vologda Tourism

Things to do

📜 Learn the city's history
🌆🌿 Soak up the atmosphere
🍲🎶 Local culture

Route points (15)

Bishop's Court (Little Kremlin) in Vologda

Point on route “From an Ancient Settlement to the City of Vologda”

Point 11

Bishop's Court (Little Kremlin)

🏟️ Architectural landmark • 📜 Historic site

Historical Background

The Bishop's Court in Vologda, also known as the Little Kremlin, is a historic architectural complex that from the 1560s to the 1920s served as the residence of the archbishops and bishops of Vologda and as the administrative and cultural center of the Vologda Diocese. It stands in the city center, on the site of the former Vologda Kremlin, and consists of a stone wall and 17th–19th-century buildings. Today the complex is occupied by the Vologda Museum-Reserve. The bishop's residence originally stood near Lazy Square, next to the Church of the Resurrection, then the city's cathedral. It was moved when fortifications were built on the orders of Ivan the Terrible in the 1560s. The new site was chosen downstream, closer to the Dormition (St. Sophia) Cathedral then under construction. In 1589 Patriarch Job raised the Diocese of Vologda and Great Perm to the rank of an archdiocese, and the bishop's house in Vologda became its center.

Architectural Features

Until the mid-17th century all the buildings of the court were wooden and were rebuilt many times. On September 22–25, 1612, the bishop's chambers, like most of the city, were burned when Vologda was captured by a band of Poles and Tushino rebels. After rebuilding in the 1620s, census books describe a fenced area with double gates crowned by three tent roofs covered with wooden shingles. The court held the wooden Church of St. Stephen of Perm, the archbishop's cell raised on a ground floor, and other buildings. There was also a small pond with crucian carp. The stone walls were built in 1671–1675 under Bishop Simon, right after the stone Bishop's Building was completed. At first the walls had a wooden roof. The name “Little Kremlin” was first used in 1855 by A. N. Muravyov, author of “The Russian Thebaid in the North”. The complex is an irregular quadrangle enclosed by stone walls, with three towers and the Resurrection Cathedral at its corners. To the north of the court stands St. Sophia Cathedral, whose main entrance is reached through the Holy Gates. Emperor Peter I visited the Bishop's Court several times to meet the bishops of Vologda.

Today

Since 1923 the Bishop's Court has housed the Vologda Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve. The complex is a cultural heritage site of federal significance. The court covers about 2.3 hectares, and its walls are 550 m long. The Bishop's Court is one of the best-preserved bishops' residences in Russia.