Moscow Kremlin

The Moscow Kremlin is the oldest part of Moscow and Russia's principal fortress, situated on Borovitsky Hill at the confluence of the Neglinnaya River and the Moskva River. In plan the fortress forms an irregular triangle covering 27.5 hectares: its southern wall faces the Moskva River, its northwestern wall faces the Alexander Garden, and its eastern wall faces Red Square. Since 1991 the Kremlin has been the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation, and since 1990 it has been included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The earliest chronicle mention of a fortification on the hill dates to 1156, when a wooden fortress was built on the orders of Yuri Dolgoruky. It was destroyed by the Mongols in 1238. From 1264 the hill became the residence of the Moscow appanage princes. In 1339, under Ivan Kalita, oak walls were erected, and in 1366–1368, under Dmitry Donskoy, they were replaced with white limestone walls — it was then that Moscow acquired the name "the white-stone city." These walls twice withstood sieges by the Lithuanian prince Algirdas, and in 1382 Khan Tokhtamysh took the fortress by deception.

The Kremlin acquired its present appearance in the second half of the 15th and early 16th centuries under Ivan III, who invited Italian architects to Moscow. Aristotele Fioravanti built the Dormition Cathedral in 1475–1479, modeling it on the cathedral in Vladimir; Marco Ruffo and Pietro Solari built the Palace of Facets (1487–1491); and Aloisio the New built the Archangel Cathedral (1505–1508). The current brick walls and 20 towers were built in 1485–1516 by the same Italian masters; their swallowtail merlons recall the Sforza Castle in Milan. The total length of the walls is 2,235 meters, and the tallest tower is the Trinity Tower (79.3 meters).

After the capital was moved to St. Petersburg under Peter I, the Kremlin lost its status as a permanent residence. In the 18th–19th centuries the Senate building was built here to a design by the architect Matvei Kazakov (1776–1787), and, to a design by Konstantin Ton, the Grand Kremlin Palace (1839–1849) and the Armoury Chamber (1844–1851) were erected. In 1812 Napoleon's retreating army blew up part of the towers and the Arsenal, which were later restored.

After the Soviet government moved to Moscow in March 1918, the Kremlin once again became the country's political center, and free access for the public was closed off. In 1929–1930 the ancient Chudov and Ascension monasteries were demolished; in total, 17 churches were destroyed during the Soviet period. In 1935 the double-headed eagles on the towers were replaced with stars, which became ruby-red from 1937. Since 1955 the Kremlin has been partially open to visitors as a museum reserve. On its grounds are kept the Tsar Cannon and the Tsar Bell, and the Dormition, Archangel, and Annunciation cathedrals remain active.