In 1555, Moscow’s most feared ruler — Ivan IV, the man history would call “Ivan the Terrible” — decided to build a cathedral unlike anything the world had ever seen. He’d just conquered the city of Kazan, delivering a crushing blow to the remains of the Mongol Empire that had dominated Russia for centuries. This was more than a military win. It was the moment Russia announced itself as a world power. And Ivan wanted a building to match.
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Ghosts & Curses·1/2·1′
The place
Saint Basil's Cathedral
The Blinded Architects
A building so beautiful, its creators paid with their eyes
1561Saint Basil's Cathedral
Moral of the Story
“Tyrants destroy what they cannot control, but art outlives its oppressors”
Characters
I
Ivan the TerribleP
Postnik YakovlevB
BarmaSource
Russian folk tradition, first recorded in the 17th century, disputed by some historians