Smolensk fortress - war and peace. 2\3\4 hours. By foot or by car.

The cost is indicated from ...; for 1 hour of excursion without renting transport, depends on the season and the number of people.

Smolensk fortress is sometimes called the Kremlin, but it is not. This powerful defensive structure, at one time having a length of more than 6.5 kilometers, protected the whole city, not only its administrative part.

Of the surviving brick fortresses in the world, Smolenskaya is the largest.

On the tour you will learn about the history of the construction of the fortress wall.

The construction of the Smolensk fortress began in 1696, and even the approach to construction was unique for that time. For the first time in history, the labor of civilian workers was used on a large scale, the mobilization of masters throughout Russia was announced for the first time; any other stone construction and craft was prohibited - from buildings to pots, jugs and tombstones.

The construction of the fortress was completed in 1602. 38 towers were built, 17 have survived to this day.

On the role of the Smolensk fortress in the preservation of the Russian state - in the war with the army of the Commonwealth (17th century); in the victory over the army of Napoleon -1812; victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.

Learn about the importance of the fortress in the peaceful life of Smolensk, as well as secrets, beautiful legends, solved and unsolved mysteries of our ancient city with a difficult fate; closely intertwined with real events of its unique history.

The eastern section of the Smolensk fortress is the longest, most beautiful and mystical section of the wall with the legendary towers of Orel, Zaaltarnaya, etc.

The tour begins at the monument to the soldiers, defenders and liberators of Smolensk on Victory Square.

You will see the Mach Tower on Victory Square, and the place where the Molokhov Gate Tower was located, keeping in memory the events of the death of the famous General Scalon and the hero of the partisan movement Engelhardt.

Examine the Sheinov bastion - earthen rampart at the former Faceted Tower of Smolensk fortifications, destroyed during the siege of the city by the troops of Mikhail Shein in 1632-1634; learn about the tragic fate of the voivode and members of his family, about his death; about his invaluable contribution to the defense of Smolensk and the history of the Fatherland.

Admire the tower Nikolsky gate - through them in 1812 in burning Smolensk drove Napoleon on a white horse;

and a stunning view of the longest surviving sections of the Smolensk fortress with 5 towers - Zimbulka, Dolgachevskaya, Voronin and Zaaltarnaya.

Walk along one of the most mystical Smolensk hills on the left bank of the Dnieper - Avramievsky.

Here you will be amazed by the beauty and power of the Eagle Tower - its history is unique even by Smolensk standards. Only in the 17th century, the tower, along with the whole of Smolensk, suffered three wars - repelling the blows of the Poles (1609-11), the troops of the voivode Shein (1632-34), and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (1654). And no one, including Napoleon’s army, during the assault of Smolensk in 1812 failed to break the defenses on this section of the fortress wall.

And in peacetime, the tower became famous for its mystical history, which turned out to be criminal - you will surely hear it during the tour.

Admire the view and no less mystical tower Veseluk, you will hear a terrible legend about walled in it the most beautiful girl of the city.

Visit the Savior-Transfiguration Avramievsky monastery, founded in the XIII century. You will learn about his first abbot, St. Abraham of Smolensk, who saved the city from hunger. You will also hear the complex history of the monastery, you will see an unexploded cannonball that has survived since 1812.

You will see the Avramievsky Gate Tower - before the construction of the Godunovsky stone wall, the monastery was located behind a wooden fortress.

Here our 2-hour tour ends or the 3-hour tour continues.

Next, we will examine the Pozdnyakov Tower, which gave its last battle in July 1941, becoming a stronghold of anti-aircraft gunners defending Smolensk;

and the most mystical tower of the fortress wall - Veseluhu, near which is the Pokrovsky Church of the 18th century, in which the Smolensk Spiritual Seminary is now located.

Further, our way lies along the Dnieper, past the small Kostyrevskaya tower and the Volkov tower, through which a huge crack passes, with a story about the Frolovskaya tower, on the site of which the Odigitrievskaya church is located, and about the Godunovskaya icon.

And will end on the Vladimir Embankment (the tour includes the Armenian Embankment), with a story about the Pyatnitsky Water Gate tower - one of the blown up by Napoleon's army.

From the great Smolensk fortress to the present day there are 17 towers and fragments of walls.

The fortress, whose history is closely intertwined with the history of our state, is recognized as a monument of Russian architecture of the XVI-XVII centuries.