Dormition Knyaginin Monastery (Vladimir). Knyaginin Assumption Monastery: description, history and interesting facts

One of the main cities of the Golden Ring - Vladimir was once the mighty capital of North-Eastern Russia. Several historical buildings have survived to our times, remembering the reign of the great princes, the founders of the Vladimir principality. Temples, monasteries and other religious buildings are best preserved. One of the oldest sights of Vladimir is the Knyaginin Monastery, founded presumably in 1200.

Its emergence is associated with the names of Grand Duke Vsevolod the Big Nest and his wife Maria Shvarovna. Their family was very prolific, twelve children were born in marriage, for this the prince received the nickname "Big Nest". Maria Shvarovna was distinguished by special piety, therefore, when, after her last birth, she became very ill, she asked her husband to found a monastery, which was named after her Knyaginin. Feeling imminent death, the princess took the veil as a nun in the created monastery and soon died.

As many chroniclers write, all the inhabitants of the Vladimir principality bitterly mourned the death of their beloved princess. And the Knyaginin Monastery has since become the family burial place of the Grand Duchesses. The sister and daughter of Maria Shvarovna, both wives and the daughter of Prince Alexander Nevsky, who was the grandson of the pious founder of the Assumption Monastery, were buried here.

Since this monastery was very rich, during the Tatar-Mongol invasion, it suffered more than once from raids and devastation. Then objectionable princesses were repeatedly exiled to the Knyaginin Monastery. So, one of the wives of Tsarevich Ivan, the son of Ivan the Terrible, lived here for some time, who was taken here for childlessness, and later Princess Xenia, the daughter of Tsar Boris Godunov, found shelter in the same monastery.

From the time of Peter the Great, the decline of monastic life began, and after the Bolsheviks came to power, the ancient Knyaginin Monastery was generally closed and given a new name - the village of Vorovsky.

Only in 1992 did monastic life resume. The monastery was returned to its main shrine - the icon of the Bogolyubskaya Mother of God, which is considered the first icon painted by Russian masters. Prior to that, all the icons were brought from Byzantium. It is believed that it was written at the behest of Andrei Bogolyubsky, and, therefore, it is about 850 years old. They placed it in the Assumption Cathedral.

In addition, another important relic is kept here - a particle of the relics of St. Abraham of Bulgaria. This saint initially professed Islam, but then converted to Orthodoxy. Not succumbing to numerous persuasions to renounce the Christian faith, he was executed. Later, Prince Yuri of Vladimir, son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, transferred the relics of the saint to the Knyaginin Monastery. They say that miraculous healings from mental and eye diseases occurred from them.

The Assumption Cathedral, which can now be seen in the monastery, was built in the 16th century on the foundation of an earlier church. Fragments of ancient walls have been preserved behind the brickwork. In the middle of the XII century, the interior of the church was decorated with wonderful frescoes made by Moscow masters. Fortunately, they are generally preserved.

The restoration of the Knyaginin Monastery, which keeps the history of the great princes of the Vladimir land, continues. It remains to be hoped that nothing will interfere with the former prosperity of this holy place.

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The Dormition Knyaginin Monastery in Vladimir is an Orthodox nunnery founded at the beginning of the 13th century and is still active today. convent Vladimir and Suzdal diocese. The white-stone Assumption Cathedral of the monastery is an architectural monument included in the list of objects of the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve.

Princess Convent

XII century ... The time of the rapid flourishing of Vladimir, a city that at that time was not only the capital of the Vladimir-Suzdal principality, but also the main city of all northeastern Russia. The prosperity of the capital of the principality is associated with the name of Prince Vsevolod Yuryevich the Big Nest, who headed the Vladimir principality in 1176. Thanks to Prince Vsevolod, the capital of the principality was adorned with many architectural monuments that have survived to this day - the Assumption and Demetrius Cathedrals, the Mother of God-Christmas Monastery.

But a special place in this list is occupied by the Assumption Knyaginin Monastery, founded by the first wife of Vsevolod the Big Nest, Maria Shvarnovna (daughter of the Czech prince Shvarn). According to the chronicles, in 1197 after the birth younger son Ivana (in the future - the appanage prince of Starodub), the pious and wise princess became very ill, so she vowed to found a maiden's monastery in Vladimir. Yielding to the urgent requests of his wife, Vsevolod Yuryevich allocated an undeveloped plot in the northwestern part of the city and in 1200 a new monastery was founded and dedicated to the feast of the Assumption Holy Mother of God. And soon after its foundation, the monastery received a second name - Knyaginina, which was preserved after many centuries.

The princess took care of the maiden monastery, therefore, in the same year, 1200, the construction of the majestic Assumption Cathedral, the main monastery church, was started in the new monastery, completed in 1202. In addition to the cathedral, cells of the abbess and nuns, outbuildings appeared in the monastery. And three years after the consecration of the cathedral church, Princess Maria Shvarnovna, feeling her imminent death, took tonsure with the name Martha and retired to the Dormition Convent founded by her, where, after her death, she was buried in the Annunciation chapel, arranged on the northern porch. Since then, the Assumption Knyaginin Monastery has become the family burial place of princesses, sisters and daughters of the princely Vladimir family, and the most famous burials there were the graves of the sister of Princess Anna, both wives of Prince Alexander Nevsky (Alexandra and Vassa), who was the grandson of Maria Shvarnovna, and his daughter Evdokia.

In 1230, in memory of his mother, Vladimir Prince Yuri (George) Vsevolodovich brought the relics of the holy martyr Abraham of Bulgaria from the Bulgarian campaign to the Assumption Monastery and installed them in the Annunciation chapel. The relics rested there until 1711, when they were solemnly transferred to the main aisle of the cathedral and placed in a new richly decorated shrine.

Soon after its foundation, the Knyaginin Monastery became the richest and most famous convent in Russia, and its nuns became a model of piety and obedience. Life in the comfortable and well-decorated maiden Knyaginin's monastery flowed slowly and measuredly, but the thick walls of the monastery could not protect the nuns from worldly storms. In February 1238, after an eight-day siege, the Tatar army of Batu broke into the city and the monastery located near the Golden Gate was plundered and almost completely burned, but was soon completely restored.

More than once, the Assumption Monastery was completely destroyed, but each time, like the mythical Phoenix bird, it was reborn from the ashes. But after the most massive rout perpetrated by the horde of the Tatar prince Talych in 1411, life in the Knyaginin Monastery stopped for a whole century. The monastery was revived only at the beginning of the 16th century, when a new brick church was built on the foundation of the destroyed Cathedral of the Assumption. Built in the style of early Moscow architecture, the cathedral became the decoration of the monastery. The unknown architect girded the facades of its massive quadrangle with three high apses with a gallery, completed it with zakomaras, framed the base of the light drum with tiers of kokoshniks and crowned it with a powerful helmet-shaped dome with a cross on an apple. There is no information about the interior decoration of the cathedral of those years, but it can be assumed that it was quite luxuriously decorated with icons and church utensils.

The documents of the 16th century contain written references to another monastic warm church, consecrated in the name of John Chrysostom, but about his future fate Nothing more is known until the 19th century.

In the middle of the 16th century, a tradition arose to present letters of commendation to the maiden's monastery. For example, Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible not only granted land to the Knyagina monastery, but also personally took care of the improvement of the monastery, and during the years of his reign, the queen’s mansions were equipped in the monastery, for the maintenance of which the Vladimir governor was personally responsible. Royal guests periodically appeared in the mansions - the daughter-in-law of John IV Vasilyevich (wife of Tsarevich Ivan) Theodosia (in some sources - Pelageya) Mikhailovna and Xenia (daughter of Tsar Boris Godunov).

In the 1540-1550s, when the primate of the Church was the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Joseph, the maiden's monastery began to improve. Thanks to the personal donations of Patriarch Joseph, a new iconostasis was built in the Assumption Cathedral of the monastery, icons were painted, vestments of priests and church vessels were purchased for worship, and the sacristy was replenished with rich utensils. The patriarch also donated for the repair of monastery buildings - the roofs were covered on all churches, the walls were decorated with paintings, a bell tower was built, especially for which two bells were bought, and the entire complex of monastery buildings was surrounded by a fence. Apparently, at the same time, a school of gold embroidery was created in the monastery, which existed until the abolition of the monastery at the beginning of the last century.

About the fate of the monastery in the XVII-XIX centuries

With the death of Ivan the Terrible, the era of the reign of Rurikovich ended and the Russian kingdom was swallowed up by the Time of Troubles - a cruel and bloody time that brought many troubles and suffering. Lithuanian and Polish invaders, who scoured the vast Russian expanses in search of easy money, could not ignore the maiden monastery - the Knyaginin Monastery was plundered and life in it died out for many decades.

But already the first sovereigns of the Romanovs - Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich not only began the gradual revival of the maiden monastery, but also continued the tradition of presenting the monastery with letters of commendation. The new kings made rich contributions to the monastery sacristy and donated large sums to maintain temples and buildings in proper condition. So, in 1647-1648, the Assumption Cathedral was decorated - an artel of craftsmen under the leadership of the famous Moscow painter Mark Matveev painted all the walls and vaults with fresco paintings on gospel stories, and in 1665 the Nativity of Christ chapel was added to the cathedral.

By the beginning of the 18th century, the Assumption Knyaginin Monastery was one of the most comfortable women's cloisters, its inhabitants did not feel the need for anything - vast lands and patrimonial villages provided a good income, and generous donors helped maintain the buildings of the monastery ensemble in order.

Information for visitors

• Assumption Knyaginin Monastery is open for pilgrims and tourists every day from 8.00 to 20.00. Every day, on Sundays and holidays, divine services are performed in the temples of the monastery and church services are sent.
• For everyone, every day from 11.00 to 17.00 hours, excursions are held in the monastery, which can be ordered by phone listed on the official website of the monastery.

The monastery was founded around 1200 by Maria Shvarnovna, the wife of Grand Duke Vsevolod Georgievich (Yurievich), better known as Vsevolod the Big Nest. She was the daughter of the Czech King Schwarn.

At the same time, the Assumption Church was being built, which has not survived to this day. In its place in the XV-XVI centuries. a new building of the cathedral was erected on the old foundation with the preservation of part of the ancient walls, but on the model of Moscow architecture of the 16th century.

The monastery was the burial place of the Vladimir princesses and princesses: in addition to Mary (in the monasticism of Martha), her descendants are also buried here - the wife and daughter of Alexander Nevsky. Alexander Nevsky was the grandson of the princess.

In ancient times, the Knyaginin Monastery was one of the most famous and richest. In 1411, during another invasion of Vladimir Tatars, the monastery was devastated. The revival begins only in the 16th century. Among the "sponsors" of the monastery are Ivan the Terrible, Mikhail Feodorovich, Alexei Mikhailovich. For some time, the wife of Tsarevich Ivan (the son of Ivan the Terrible, who was killed by the Terrible Tsar) - Pelagia Mikhailovna, stayed in the Knyaginin Monastery for some time. Since 1606, the daughter of Tsar Boris Godunov, Xenia, lived in the monastery. In the 17th century, the monastery had special tsarina's mansions, the maintenance of which was the responsibility of the Vladimir governor.

In the XVIII century, in connection with the reforms of Peter I, then Catherine II, the monastery was in decline. V late XIX century, the development of the monastery begins again, a hospital for the poor and a needlework school for girls from poor families were opened here. In 1923, the monastery was liquidated by the Soviet authorities, the nuns were expelled, the monastery cemetery was destroyed, and the monastery itself was renamed the village of Vorovsky.

In 1992, the Dormition Knyaginin Monastery was again revived as a convent for women. In the Assumption Cathedral, wonderfully painted in 1647-1648. An artel of famous masters headed by Mark Matveev, there are the greatest spiritual shrines of the Russian people - the icon of the God-loving Mother of God (the first Russian icon-painting image, created at the direction of Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky) and the relics of the holy martyr Abraham of Bulgaria.

Assumption Monastery was founded by Grand Duchess Maria in 1199. Maria was the first wife of the Grand Duke Vsevolod the Big Nest (the prince received such a nickname for his rare fertility, he left behind a huge number of children). Maria bore Vsevolod Yurievich eight sons and five daughters. The princess decided to devote her life to serving God and took the veil as a nun, receiving the name Martha. Uspensky was founded by her will convent.

The creation of the monastery began with the construction of the Assumption Cathedral - the main temple of the Knyaginy Monastery. The temple inside is richly painted from the dome to the floor. The frescoes depict a picture of the Last Judgment. The iconostasis contains the icon of the Savior and the Vladimir icon of the Mother of God, the Kazan icon of the Mother of God and the icon of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, all of which were received by the monastery as a gift from Patriarch Joseph.

The name "Knyaginin" was given to the monastery due to the fact that, firstly, it was founded by the Grand Duchess of Vladimir, and secondly, according to tradition, all women of the princely family (wives of grand dukes, their daughters and sisters) were buried in the main temple of the monastery , thirdly, the monastery was consecrated in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The necropolis of the main cathedral of the Assumption Monastery stores the remains of Princess Martha (founder), her own sister, daughter of Alexander Nevsky Evdokia, his two spouses, the wife of the great traveler and discoverer M.P. Lazarev and many other women.

The Assumption Convent has always been closely associated with all significant events for Russia. With their good deeds, the nuns glorified their monastery throughout Holy Russia. The monastery for a long time was the richest and most famous among all the women's monasteries in Russia. However, this did not save him from ruin. In 1411, the troops of the Tatar prince Talych broke into the monastery, destroyed the buildings and plundered the temples. For more than half a century the monastery remained devastated. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, under the leadership of the Grand Duke Vasily III himself, the restoration of the monastery began. Subsequently, the Russian tsars (Ivan the Terrible, Mikhail Fedorovich and his son Alexei) carefully kept the peace of the monastery, took care of the nuns and the well-being of churches and buildings.

The position of the Assumption Convent deteriorated greatly with the publication of the reforms of Peter the Great. For nearly a hundred years, the nuns have been in need. Only at the end of the nineteenth century the monastery began to return to a full life. The nuns opened a hospital for the poor on the territory of the monastery, a school for girls, where children were taught sewing, knitting, embroidery and much more.

With the coming to power of the Communists, the Assumption Monastery was closed. The nuns were evicted, and their cells were placed at the disposal of the administration. Party workers settled on the territory of the monastery, churches and cathedrals were closed, and in 1923 the Assumption Knyaginin Monastery was renamed the village of Vorovsky. Only in 1992 the monastery was revived again. To the great surprise of the nuns, the great Orthodox shrine- icon of the God-loving Mother of God. This icon was painted by order of the Grand Duke of Vladimir Andrey Bogolyubsky. The imperishable relics of the martyr Abraham of Bulgaria have also been preserved.

After 800 years - our time

In 1992, with the blessing of the ruling bishop of the Vladimir and Suzdal diocese, Archbishop Evlogy, the Holy Dormition Knyaginin Convent was opened and the revival of monastic life began.

A legend has been preserved that St. Athanasius, foreseeing the revival of the monastery, said: “First, the Mother of God will come to the monastery, then the martyr Abraham, and after that the monastery will open.”

In 1992, on Great Wednesday, at the request of Archbishop Evlogy, the miraculous Bogolyubskaya Icon of the Mother of God, painted at the command of the Holy Right-Believing Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, was brought from the Vladimir Museum of Local Lore to the Annunciation side chapel of the Assumption Cathedral of the monastery, in memory of the appearance of the Most Holy Theotokos to him. Weekly prayers were performed before the image of the Queen of Heaven.

In December 1992, the first nuns arrived from the Assumption Monastery in the city of Alexandrov: the future abbess, nun Anthony (Shakhovtseva) with a novice. On Lazarus Saturday, April 10, 1991, the solemn consecration of the Assumption Cathedral of the monastery took place. A reliquary with a particle of the relics of the holy martyr Abraham of Bulgaria, the heavenly patron of the monastery, was transferred from the Assumption Cathedral in a procession.

After decades of desolation, the abbess of the monastery and the first sisters crossed the threshold of the temple, under the arches of the monastery Assumption Cathedral, the words of church prayers and the singing of the monastic choir again sounded. In the newly opened monastery, under the blessed protection of the Queen of Heaven, thirsty souls were drawn.

Priest Yakov Yakovlev (now Archimandrite Innokenty, rector of the Alexander Monastery in Suzdal) performed the first monastic services. Batiushka selflessly helped the young and then small sisterhood. His fine artistic taste was very useful during the restoration of the Assumption Cathedral, he created a project for the iconostasis of the main church.

On May 23, 1993, on the Sunday of the Blind Man, the miraculous God-loving icon of the Mother of God was transferred from the Annunciation chapel to the main church and placed in the northern part of the iconostasis.

On April 14, 1995, the feast day of the holy martyr Abraham, the superior of the monastery, nun Anthony, was elevated to the rank of abbess.

Mother Anthony (in the world Antonina Matveevna Shakhovtseva) was born in 1951 in the city of Efremov, Tula region, in an Orthodox family. In January 1986, with the blessing of her spiritual mentor and according to her sincere desire, she entered the Riga Holy Trinity Sergius Convent, on August 30, 1988, Metropolitan Leonid of Riga and all Latvia was tonsured into a mantle with a name in honor of St. Anthony the Great. Abbess Magdalina (Zhegalova), who is now deceased, was the recipient of the vows. In January 1992, at the request of the abbess of the Dormition Convent in Alexandrov, nun Antonia was transferred to help her restore the Alexander Assumption Convent, from where she arrived in Vladimir to create a new monastic community.

The Knyaginin Monastery was gradually reborn to a new life. The first nuns became novices, nuns, learned obedience, prayer, and learned monastic life. It was gratifying to complete the first, after a 73-year break, the mantle monastic vows. Again, under the vaults of the cathedral, the chant “The Embrace of the Father…” so beloved by all monastics sounded, and the words of monastic vows from the lips of the nun brought up in the monastery.

Life in the monastery goes on as usual. Although the lessons in the school of salvation are sometimes difficult, there are also joyful moments of joint work, prayer, and holidays. The help of God and the Protection of the Queen of Heaven, the prayerful help of the heavenly patrons of the monastery and her deceased sisters are undoubted.

The main place in monastic life is occupied, of course, by the temple. Divine services are performed in a full church circle. Akathists are read in front of the miraculous Bogolyubskaya icon of the Mother of God and the relics of the martyr Abraham. The reading of the Indestructible Psalter is being performed.

The sisters decorate the church with love and care, especially on the feasts of the Theotokos. Vestments for the holy throne and the altar, for the clergy and for other needs of the temple are sewn by the sisters themselves. The art of church embroidery, for which the monastery was so famous before the revolution, is being revived. The sisters embroider covers, icons, details for the Shrouds of the Savior and the Mother of God.

In 2007, an icon-painting workshop was opened in the monastery.

The sisters are working tirelessly on the restoration of churches and other buildings on the territory of the monastery.

Pastoral obedience in the monastery is carried out by three priests. The oldest of them is the miter archpriest Vladimir Vedernikov, rector of the Assumption Cathedral and all the temples of the monastery. For many years he has been obedient to the diocesan confessor, he is the oldest cleric in it: in 2007, he celebrated 50 years of his pastoral service and 75 years since his birth. In service, he is an example of reverent, tremulous, prayerful standing before the throne of God.

The confessor of the monastery is the priest Valery Dubovik. His priestly consecration was performed at the Cathedral of the Assumption in May 1997, on the feast day of the martyr Abraham, the patron saint of the monastery. Since 2002, with the blessing of Vladyka Evlogii, he has also been the head of the Diocesan Regency School at the monastery.

Priest Mikhail Morychev has also served in monastery churches for many years; since 2003, he has been in charge of an orphanage set up at the monastery.

In 2007, the Vladimir Diocesan Regent's School at the Knyaginin Monastery celebrated its tenth anniversary. Over the years, the school has produced more than seventy choir directors and psalmists. Many of the graduates are obedient in the parishes of Vladimir and other dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church. Eight of them remained in the monastery. There are currently about forty students in the school. They not only study theological and musical disciplines, but also sing on the kliros during monastic services, and carry out labor obediences in the monastery.

In June 2000, the monastery solemnly celebrated its 800th anniversary. The celebrations were led by His Eminence Evlogii, Archbishop of Vladimir and Suzdal. The guests of the celebration were Archbishop Micah of Yaroslavl and Vicar Bishop Kirill of the Tula diocese, Archimandrite Alexy (Polikarpov), the abbot of the St. Danilov Monastery in Moscow, and Abbot Nikon (Smirnov), the rector of the Athos metochion in Moscow.

On the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the monastery, a life was compiled, an icon, a troparion, a kontakion and stichera were written for the Blessed Princess Maria.

In 2003, the tenth anniversary of the resumption of monastic life was celebrated within the walls of the Dormition Knyaginin Monastery. During the festive Liturgy, the ruling bishop, Vladyka Evlogii, mother abbess Anthony was awarded a pectoral cross with decorations.

After the Liturgy, Bishop Evlogii led the celebrations, which were attended by the head of the regional administration, the mayor of Vladimir, trustees and guests of the monastery. Director of the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve A.I. Aksenova and the abbess of the monastery Abbess Anthony. Festive spiritual chants were performed by students of the Regency School and girls from the monastery shelter.

In 2006, the monastery celebrated the 800th anniversary of the death of Grand Duchess Maria Shvarnovna. Readings dedicated to the history of the Holy Dormition Knyaginin Monastery and the Vladimir land were held in the Diocesan Library. Abbess Antonia spoke about the life of Grand Duchess Maria, the founder of the monastery. The sisters of the monastery with the students of the regency school and the children of the monastery shelter presented a literary and musical composition.

In conclusion, Bishop Evlogii addressed those present with words of congratulations and edification.

On November 3, 2007, the consecration of the second church and its central chapel in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God took place in our monastery. The festive divine service was attended by guests from the city administration and the benefactors of the monastery. Before the start of the Liturgy, Vladyka Evlogii awarded the benefactors participating in the restoration of the temple with hierarchical letters. The next day, November 4th, patronal feast, in the newly consecrated church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, for the first time after many years of desolation, the Divine Liturgy was solemnly served.

From the very beginning, the monastery was conceived as a family burial vault for the princesses of the Vladimir household. In the XIII century. Maria Shvarnovna, her sister Anna, daughter of Vsevolod III Elena, wife and daughter of Alexander Nevsky and others were buried here. Of the later burials, one can single out the burials of the daughter and mother of the Vladimir governor P.G. Lazarev - the father of the outstanding navigator M.P. Lazarev.

In the center of the monastery ensemble is the Assumption Cathedral. It was founded in 1200 by Prince Vsevolod Yurievich, and consecrated in 1202. This temple, unfortunately, has not been preserved. In the beginning. 16th century the cathedral was built anew on the old foundations with the preservation of the ancient walls to a height of up to three meters. Currently, these walls are hidden under brickwork from the early 16th century.

The Assumption Cathedral is a single-domed cross-domed church, built in the forms of Moscow architecture of the 15th century. Its main cubic quadrangle, clearly dissected along the facades by flat blades into spindles, ends with three tiers of keeled zakomar-kokoshniks carrying the head drum. The temple is illuminated by narrow slit-like windows. The external decoration of the temple is very laconic. The main means of architectural expressiveness is the majestic proportional structure of the building. In 1647-1648, Moscow masters under the guidance of the famous painter Mark Matveev painted the church inside with frescoes. On the southwestern pillar are images of Vladimir-Suzdal princes - Andrei Bogolyubsky, Vsevolod Yurievich, Yuri and Konstantin Vsevolodovich and others.

Outside, several later buildings adjoin the main volume of the cathedral today. These are the Nativity chapel of 1665 in the north and the Annunciation chapel of 1749 in the south. In 1823, a porch was added to the cathedral from the west.

The external decoration of the temple is very laconic, but the interior impresses with a grandiose and unified ensemble of fresco paintings. They were made by Moscow masters by order of Patriarch Joseph in 1647-1648 under the guidance of the famous Russian painter Mark Matveev.

Like a giant colorful carpet, frescoes cover the vaults, walls and pillars of the cathedral. Bright, lively, multi-figure painting creates a sense of festivity.

Restorers in the 20th century (1924 and 1961) restored the original appearance of the temple, especially its upper part. Kokoshniks, hidden for many years by late roofing, were restored in the process of restoration work carried out under the guidance of architects-restorers A.V. and I.A. Stoletovs.

The temple was closed in 1923 and was used as a granary. In May 1945, the Vladimir Special Production Workshop was located in the cathedral. And since 1958, the monument has been included in the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve. Since 1985, the Museum of the History of Orthodoxy and Atheism has been located here, in 1990 it was renamed the Museum of Orthodoxy and Russian Culture. In March 1993, the cathedral was returned to the revived community of the convent and is a functioning temple.

The shrines of the cathedral are the Bogolyubov Icon of the Mother of God, painted in the 12th century after the apparition to the former prince Andrei Bogolyubsky in 1155, and the relics of the martyr Abraham of Bulgaria.

To the west of the Assumption Cathedral is the Kazan Church. It was erected in 1789 using the foundation and walls of the Church of St. John Chrysostom Ser. 17th century Along the perimeter of the monastery territory there are cells built in the 2nd half of the 19th century.

The Dormition Knyaginin Monastery was founded in 1200 on the territory of the so-called New Town, near the features of the ancient ramparts facing the Lybid River by Vladimir Prince Vsevolod. The appearance of the monastery is associated with the name of Vsevolod's wife - Maria, who was the daughter of the Ossetian prince Shvarnovna. Maria Shvarnovna was a faithful assistant to her husband and a selfless mother who raised twelve children.

In 1198 after the birth last son, the Grand Duchess fell ill and for 7 years meekly endured suffering. During her illness, she vowed to found a monastery, and in 1200, Vsevolod, at her insistence, founded the Assumption Knyaginin Monastery. In 1206 grand duchess became a nun under the name of Martha. After she was tonsured, Mary died and was buried in a monastery.

In the name of Princess Maria, the monastery was named Knyaginin. Then the main temple of the monastery became a family tomb. Here are buried the sister of the princess - Anna, Elena - the daughter of Mary, two wives of Alexander Nevsky, as well as his daughter and other noble women. In a later period, the sister of Admiral M.P. was buried here. Lazarev, the discoverer of Antarctica, - Lazarev V.P.

The organizer of the monastery was an image of Russian holiness. Her descendants also became famous as saints. Among them are her sons Yaroslav, Georgy, Konstantin, Svyatoslav Vsevolodichi, grandchildren Theodore and Alexander Nevsky, Vasilko, sons of George, Daniil of Moscow and others. Princess Maria herself was also glorified in the Cathedral of Saints who shone in the land of Vladimir.

The monastery suffered more than once from the Tatar-Mongolian and Horde raids. In 1411, during the invasion of Vladimir by Tatars under the control of Tsarevich Talych, the monastery was devastated. The revival of the monastery began only in the 16th century. Among those who participated in the restoration of the monastery are Grand Duke Vasily Ioannovich, Ivan the Terrible, Mikhail Fedorovich and Alexei Mikhailovich. For some time, the wife of the son of Ivan the Terrible, Pelagia Mikhailovna, was in the monastery. Since 1606, the daughter of Boris Godunov, Xenia, lived here, who later accepted monasticism.

In the 17th century in the monastery there were special tsarina's mansions, their content was monitored by the Vladimir governor. From the beginning of the 18th century during the times of Peter the Great and the reign of Catherine II, the Knyaginin Monastery experienced some decline. The revival of the monastery begins only in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In 1876, a hospital for the poor was established in the monastery. And in 1889, a handicraft parish school for girls was opened here.

In 1923, the monastery was forcibly closed by the repressive bodies of the Soviet government. The liquidation of the monastery took place within 8 months and was accompanied by the looting of the monastery property. The nuns were expelled from their cells. The premises were occupied by senior officials of the Communist Party and the leadership of the Soviet government. Due to the closure of the monastery and the creation of a settlement for the Soviet bureaucratic elite, the monastery cemetery was also liquidated. In 1923, the monastery as a territorial unit was renamed into the village. Vorovsky.

In 1992, the Knyaginin Monastery began to revive as a female monastic cloister of the Vladimir diocese. The abbess of the monastery was the nun Anthony (Shakhovtseva).

On the territory of the Knyagininsky Monastery there are two stone churches: Kazansky and Assumption Cathedral. The Assumption Cathedral is a magnificent example of early Moscow architecture. In Vladimir - this is the only building in this style. The outer walls of the temple are completed with zakomaras. Above them, in two rows, are keeled kokoshniks, which are the basis for a drum with a helmet-shaped dome. The smooth forms of the building's silhouette are riveted by flat blades dividing the façade into curtains and narrow slit-like windows. The walls of the Cathedral of the Assumption are painted with frescoes (1648), which were made by Moscow painters on the order of Patriarch Joseph. The foremen were supervised by Mark Matveev.

The temple in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God has two aisles: one in honor of John Chrysostom, the other in honor of the martyr Abraham. The Kazan Church is distinguished by the ancient royal gates with virtuoso carvings of the 16th century.

One of the few pre-Mongolian icons that have survived to our time is located in the Assumption Cathedral. The image of the Bogolyubskaya Mother of God, which is miraculous, was painted by order of Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky in honor of the miraculous appearance of the Mother of God to him. In addition to the icon of the Mother of God, the shrine of the monastery are particles of the relics of martyrs. Abraham of Bulgaria. Saint Abraham was from the Volga Bulgars, he professed Islam, and then converted to Orthodoxy and began active missionary work. Abraham's brothers in the Muslim faith urged him to renounce Christ, but in his new faith he was adamant and chose martyrdom. In 1230, Prince Georgy Vsevolodovich of Vladimir, the relics of Abraham were transferred to the Assumption Cathedral, where numerous miracles of healing began to take place.