Annunciation Monastery. Kirzhach. Photographer — Serdyuk Tamara
On the left steep and picturesque bank of the Kirzhach River, in the center of the city, is the Annunciation Monastery. The monastery was founded by St. Sergius of Radonezh. Avoiding enmity between his own brother, the monk withdrew from the Trinity monastery and stopped in these places. Soon several brothers from the Trinity Monastery joined him. After living here for four years, the great abbot returned to the Trinity Monastery, and left his disciple, the Monk Roman, to lead the monks.
The Kirzhach abbot was distinguished by great kindness and love for learning. Several books have survived to this day, copied by the brothers of the Annunciation Monastery during the time of Abbot Roman.
In the calendar of the XVII-XVIII centuries. he is called a miracle worker, miracles through the prayers of the saint occur in our days. Rev. died. Roman in 1392. His memory is celebrated on July 29 (August 11).
In 1997, the acquisition of St. relics of st. Roman, which are now kept in the temple-tomb.
The Annunciation Monastery all the time remained subordinate to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, although it itself was populous and well-to-do. In 1562 stone churches of the Annunciation already existed Holy Mother of God and the church of St. Sergius of Radonezh with a refectory. In 1656, the local boyar Ivan Andreevich Miloslavsky built a temple of the All-Merciful Savior with a hipped bell tower over the grave of his parents.
In 1764 the monastery was abolished, the brethren were transferred to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery.
In the middle of the XIX century. local temples were lovingly painted by Alexander Petrovich Solovyov (1862), who was also the founder of the local silk industry.
In 1864-1869. his heirs, Peter and Alexander, at the graves of their parents built a huge church of All Saints of God with a high six-tiered bell tower, in the style of Russian national romanticism.
AT Soviet years the monastery was destroyed. The church of St. Sergius of Radonezh with a refectory, the monastery walls were destroyed, a stone chapel over the source, excavated, according to legend, by St. Sergius. Until recently, a bakery was located in the Church of All Saints.
On July 20, 1995, the monastery was renewed as a convent. It has about 40 sisters. Currently, there are three large churches in the monastery: the main one is the Annunciation Cathedral (active), the Church of the All-Merciful Savior and the Church of All Saints, in a dilapidated state.
Shrines: The relics of St. Roman Kirzhachsky. Also on the territory of the monastery there is a holy well dug by St. Sergius.
Sources: Gold ring of Russia. Handbook-guide. Moscow UKINO "Spiritual projection" 2006.
From the hustle and bustle of the metropolis, the soul of an urban man every time asks to be free. Again and again she strives to fall to the source in order to drink that deep silence and joy, familiar to every pilgrim.
This time, with the blessing of the rector of our church, Father Anthony, the youth club of Devyatinsky visited the Holy Annunciation Convent in the city of Kirzhach, Vladimir Region.
The monastery was founded in 1358 by the Abbot of the Russian Land, St. Sergius of Radonezh. According to legend, the brethren of the Trinity Monastery, headed by Stefan, the elder brother of the monk, murmured against their abbot, and he secretly left the monastery. Having gone around many places, Saint Sergius stopped near the Kirzhach River and set up a cell there in order to remain in peace after the great labor, as the life tells.
The monk labored in Kirzhach for four years. During this time, the brethren who followed him built a cell on the Kirzhachskaya steep and erected a wooden church, consecrated in honor of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos. Returning to the Trinity Monastery at the call of Moscow Metropolitan St. Alexis, the great Sergius chose a successor for himself - a faithful disciple and associate of St. Roman of Kirzhachsky, who put a lot of work on the improvement of monastery buildings and decoration Church of the Annunciation. On July 29, 1392, Saint Roman peacefully departed to the Lord. In 1980, the Church ranked it among the Cathedral of Radonezh Saints.
Reverend Roman Kirzhachsky
The Holy Annunciation Monastery is not often visited by tourists and pilgrims, so we had the opportunity to somewhat feel and plunge into the innermost monastic life, as well as enjoy the surrounding nature, as the monastery is picturesquely located on a hill high above the Kirzhach River.
We got there quickly enough and joyfully our big cheerful company. In the monastery, the sisters greeted us very warmly, immediately fed us tasty food, and before the service we set to work. Since it was cool, the sisters performed their obedience in the refectory and in the temple, the brethren - on the street. In the evening we went to the service, where the sounds of delightful singing seemed to take us to another world.
We were placed in a small cozy house, where the nuns of the monastery lived during the formation of the monastery after the Soviet regime.
We were lucky to communicate with the sisters of the monastery, and sometimes it was embarrassing from the care and attention that they provided us. The nuns seemed to glow with joy and love, which made their souls very warm and calm. Some of the nuns seemed very young, but despite this, they felt the wisdom of experience and humility, which are so rare in our lives. We were allowed to read the evening prayer rule together in the lower church near the shrine with the relics of St. Roman.
On Sunday, after the service, Sister Maria gave us a very interesting excursion with love, which lasted more than two hours. We were taken to places that are not usually shown to pilgrims, which, of course, was another pleasant surprise. In addition to the history of the founding and restoration of the monastery, we heard stories about the feat of the sisters who labored here earlier, invisible to the world, about miraculous healings through the prayers of St. Roman and the miraculous finding of his relics. We really did not want to leave, but each of us must continue our ministry in our place, strengthened by living fellowship and an example of ascetic monastic life. On the way back, we shared our impressions of the trip and many expressed their sincere desire to come here more than once.
And again, we, like every pilgrim, are faced with the task of trying to carefully preserve that quiet light and joy of Christian life, reflected in the bright gaze of the nuns. No wonder they say monks are the light of the world!
Our Reverend Fathers Sergius and Roman, pray to God for us!
You can see a photo report of the trip.
The Annunciation Monastery was founded by Sergius of Radonezh in the middle of the 14th century. Due to a conflict with his brother, Sergius left the Trinity Monastery and retired to the banks of the Kirzhach River. He chose this place on the advice of his friend, Stefan of Makhrishchsky, whose monastery is located a few kilometers to the north (we did not get there that day due to inconsistency with the dress code). Soon Sergius was joined by several more monks from the Trinity. The Church of the Annunciation was erected, and a new monastery arose. Later, the monk returned to the Trinity, but the Kirzhach monastery continued to exist. Its first abbot was the Monk Roman of Kirzhach, now revered in the monastery as a locally revered saint.
From the time of its foundation until the abolition, the monastery was dependent on the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, and was officially called the "Trinity-Sergius Monastery, the Monastery of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos on Kirzhach."
Kirzhach owes its existence to the Annunciation Monastery. It was from the monastery settlement in 1778 that the city of Kirzhach was formed by Catherine's decree. True, by that time the monastery itself had already been abolished for twelve years after three hundred years of existence - as a result of Catherine's reforms. such is the dialectic.
In 1995 the monastery was revived as a convent.
Passing under the gate with the icon of the Reverend Founder, we will begin to get acquainted with the monastery buildings
The oldest building of the monastery is the Church of the Annunciation, erected in the middle of the 16th century.
More than a hundred years after secularization, in 1876, the parish Church of the Annunciation was elevated to the rank of a city cathedral.
Now the cathedral is being actively restored, so it was not particularly possible to photograph it in all its glory. 
apparently, the remains of a gallery around the temple. 
From the pre-Petrine era in the monastery there is another interesting temple -
in honor of the Origin of the Holy Trees of the Cross of the Lord, 1656 
Even in the last century, an inscription was preserved on the wall, which read:
in this monastery he built this church of the All-Merciful Savior with all church utensils
Boyar Ivan Andreevich Miloslavsky with his treasury over his parents
and according to his soul in eternal commemoration and he was buried under this church
As you know, the Miloslavskys were relatives of the first wife of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, and held leading government posts under him.
Boyar Ivan Andreevich Miloslavsky (+1663) owned the village of Fedorovsky near the Kirzhachsky monastery.
The temple "like under the bells" of rather unusual shapes looks very expressive. Tried to capture it from all angles 
the gate with the gate church was also built in the 17th century, rebuilt in the 19th century. 
In 1865-1866, the traditions of the boyar Miloslavsky were continued. The Solovyov merchant brothers, owners of a local textile factory, erected the All Saints Church with a bell tower over the grave of their parents.
Heavily damaged, she, fortunately, survived 
Until the middle of the 19th century, the inhabitants of Kirzhach were buried inside the former monastery fence.
Now at the altar of the Church of the Savior, a few surviving tombstones have been collected 
The goalkeeper's house is already a modern building 
to the right of it - most likely a renovated fraternal building, based on a building of the 17th century 
Wonderful views open from the monastery to the Kirzhach valley. 
On the cliff above the well, dug, according to legend, by St. Sergius himself, a chapel was restored 
Well, that's actually all about the Kirzhachsky Annunciation Monastery.
Finally - one more photo 
