Taynitskaya Tower is a round tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, built in the 16th century. It is located in the Upper Part section of the fortress, between the Koromyslova Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin and Northern Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin towers. It is a federally protected cultural heritage site (reg. no. 521410066380036).[1]
Description and Features
The tower has a circular base and differs from most other round towers of the Kremlin by having a watchtower atop its tent roof — a feature shared by the Clock Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin.[1] At various times the tower was also known under the names Mironositskaya and Pochainskaya.[1]
The Secret Passage and Legends
The tower's current name derives from a "secret passage" — an underground tunnel leading to the Pochaina River, dug beneath the fortress walls. In the event of a prolonged siege, defenders could use this passage to reach the river and replenish their water supply. In the 19th century, during excavation works to lay out Zelensky Congress, the tunnel was filled in, and the Pochaina was channeled into a collector of wooden pipes to drain the water.[1]
A local legend is associated with the site: at the foot of the Kremlin hill, at the source of the Pochaina, lies a boulder, and if it ever shifts, the modest little river will burst free and surge in wide torrents, sweeping the city away. The restoration architect S. L. Agafonov, author of the monograph The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin — which remained virtually the only publication on the Kremlin's architecture and history until the 2020s — makes no mention of a secret passage in Taynitskaya Tower, casting doubt on the widely held account of an underground tunnel to the Pochaina. The name "Taynitskaya" is borne by towers in many Russian kremlins and is traditionally associated with a hidden cache or underground passage: in the Taynitskaya Tower of the Moscow Kremlin there was a partitioned chamber containing an ancient well; in the Kolomna Kremlin the secret passage ran all the way to the water's edge; in the Kazan Kremlin a secret passage to the river — a water source for the besieged — is likewise mentioned.[2] Beyond the secret passage, the tower harbored a very real danger as well: gunpowder was stored within its walls.[1]
The Kremlin as Architectural Context
Taynitskaya Tower forms part of the Kremlin fortress, built between 1508 and 1515. The perimeter of the walls, including the towers, measures 2,045 meters; the Kremlin has 13 towers in total. Taynitskaya Tower is one of the eight round blind towers of the Kremlin; all five square gate towers and all eight round blind towers were erected within a single construction period.[2] The stretch of the defensive wall above the slope of the Pochaina Ravine is the only section where the general principle of alternating round and square towers is broken: here four round towers — Koromyslova, Taynitskaya, Severnaya, and Chasovaya — stand in an unbroken row.[2] The walls range from 12 to 22 meters in height and reach up to 4.5 meters in thickness.[3] The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin is the only kremlin in Russia with a circular wall-top route open to visitors. In 1958 the Kremlin became a branch of the Gorky Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve.[2] Since December 16, 2019, Taynitskaya Tower has been open to visitors: following roof repairs in the summer of 2019, the fourth tier became accessible — the tower's drum with its observation platform, which had previously been off-limits even to museum staff. The interior spaces of Taynitskaya Tower had been inaccessible not only to tourists but also to researchers for much of the time following the completion of restoration work in the 1960s, which significantly hindered its study.[2][3][2]
On the observation platform of the fourth tier, staff of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin museum have displayed vintage photographs showing panoramic views of Nizhny Novgorod from the late 19th century, allowing visitors to compare the city's historic appearance with its present-day form. The tower is entered through the Dmitrievskaya Tower along the Kremlin wall; opening hours are: October through April — 10:00 to 15:00, May through September — 10:00 to 20:00.[5]
The name "Mironositskaya" is explained by the tower's proximity to the Church of the Holy Myrrh-bearing Women, which stands on the opposite side of the Pochaina Ravine, while one of its historic names — "na Zelene" — derives from the "Zeleyny Dvor" (gunpowder yard): in the 17th century, a gunpowder factory was located in the ravine beside the tower.[6]
Like the other round towers of the Kremlin, Taynitskaya Tower has three tiers with embrasures fitted with firing chambers and one tier with merlons; the tower's height from the lowest tier to the guard turret is 30 meters.[6]
In the 17th century, one copper pishchal (a type of early cannon) was installed on the tower; between 1785 and 1790, by order of Nizhny Novgorod Governor I. M. Rebinder, the structure was converted into a food storehouse, and from 1826 to 1887 it served as a battalion armory for storing military equipment and weapons; later it housed the archive of the Nizhny Novgorod voivode.[6]
During the Great Patriotic War, the tower's tent roof was demolished and anti-aircraft guns were installed in its place to defend the city against air raids; during the restoration work of the 1960s, the tent roof was rebuilt.[6]
In 1924 the wooden pipes of the collector were replaced with reinforced concrete ones; today only the ravine and Pochainskaya Street remain as reminders of the river.[6]
The name "Taynitskaya" is a later designation: in 17th-century documents the tower was called "Mironositskaya" and "na Zelene," and the name "Taynitskaya" did not appear until the 18th century.[2]
The Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin served as the largest military base supporting military operations against the Kazan Khanate and enclosed a territory that was vast by 16th-century standards, providing a secure refuge for the local population.[2]
Sources
- Wikipedia (ru) — Taynitskaya Tower (Nizhny Novgorod) (archive)
- nasledie-journal.ru — Taynitskaya Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin: a historical and architectural overview — Archive — Journal of the Heritage Institute — The name "Taynitskaya" is a later designation: in 17th-century documents the tower… (archive)
- Kommersant (Volga Region) — Taynitskaya Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin opens to visitors (archive)
- ngiamz.ru — Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin — Official museum website (archive)
- bolshayastrana.com — Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin: history, description, location, interesting facts — Bolshaya Strana (archive)
- putidorogi-nn.ru — Taynitskaya Tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin: history, description, photos — One of the tower's historic names — "na Zelene" — derives from the "Zeleyny Dvor" (gunpowder yard): in the ravine beside the tower in…