Chita female Bogoroditsky (Pokrovsky) monastery in the urban architectural landscape of the late XIX – early XX century

Abstract

The article, based on archival sources, characterizes the architectural ensemble of the Orthodox Chita female Bogoroditsky (since 1915 – Pokrovsky) provincial monastery that existed in the late XIX – early XX centuries in the administrative center of the Transbaikal Region, Chita. It is noted that the history of the monastery has not yet become the subject of a serious, diverse analysis. There are some references in the literature that do not give a general picture. At the same time, the monastery was the only city monastery in Transbaikalia, which makes its history especially interesting. The relatively short period of the monastery's existence, the fact that it was insignificant and did not receive funding from the state, did not allow it to become significant in size, capital and fame. At the same time, especially for the Eastern Transbaikalia, where he was the only female, he became a significant cult object for his time. There were no material remains of the monastery buildings, so the research was based on archival documents and photographs. The main milestones of the monastery's history are given. It is noted that, despite the certain fame of the named object of the Orthodox history of Transbaikalia, the stages of its existence have not received a full, comprehensive assessment in the scientific literature. The architectural ensemble of the monastery is recreated, the existing buildings are described. It is noted that the main feature of the monastery is that it was the only city monastery in Transbaikalia. It organically fits into the urban development. Chita at the turn of the XIX–XX centuries had mainly wooden buildings. The architectural ensemble of the Chita Monastery was no exception. The monastery was closed in the early 1920s. Its buildings, which were, in fact, a monument of urban Orthodox architecture of Transbaikalia, were destroyed later.