The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-06-08
WHAT THE KREMLIN WAS AND Is,
within Its Huge walls Are Church
IS. Palaces and Forts.

The Kremlin Of Moscow is to RUSSIA
what the AcropoHs of Athens was 10
Greece or the capitol TO the Roman en-
pire. The word itself NOR properly
"Kreml." is literal Russian 4"Nalent
in use and derivation TO ARK the de-
Tended citadel. the stronghold of a town.
1t is not name peculiarly belonging TO
Moscow. The ancient town of Novgorod
has also its Kremlin; so. TOO. has Mini
Novgorod. the site Of the great Russian
fair every year, and there are others.
Bllt the Kremlin Of Moscow IS the ctta-
del of the empire, ana ~ ana 'hc Hte
Russia down to the early days OF the pres
ent century it has had its part as me
nerve center of the ever-Widenns empire
When Napoleon, fooled in his hopes OF
bringing Alexander 20 his knees py &C.
cupying the ancient palaces or tne eur
retired from Moscow ana me hlehiilh'
like the tiger that had missed his apflaE,
Marshal MOrtier, In command OK me rear
guard, received orders 20 blow up the en-
tire structure. The bastiOus, the palace,
even The sacred edihces themselves, wore
undermined; but, considering the extent
Of the prepare tons made, me G9hds
actually done was small. III Us sald tlal
heavy torrents of rain damped the pow
der. or. more probably, perhaps Moftlef
was not such a vandal as ms master,
and purposely spared the most important
stroying sufficient to escape a charge %
disobedience 10 orders
The holy places within the Kremln walls
were then closed entirely, for he hrst
time i'm their history. while cu mig ar
lists made good the ravages OF the de-
stroyer. For about thirty years Supse~
quent TO the retreat from Moscow build
ing operations were going on, ana lne
Kremlin now Is to some extent a resto-
ration and reproduction Of It's ancient
form.
The Kremln is an irregular triangle of
high brick walls, crenelatcd, with battle
ments of an original pattern, termlna ting
at the summit in a slightly forked shape,
like a fish tail. 1t is built around one or
the prOverbial seven hills and commands
a wide view of the country on all sides.
The south wall was anciently washed by
the Moscow river: the longest side faces
northwest by a stream which mas long
since disappeared, and the northeast face
is bounded by the Grand square, along
which the imperial procession passes on
the day of the triumphal entry INTO the
Russian capital preceding the coronation.
The entire circuit OF the walls is about a
mile and a half. and within that space is
inclosed all that Is most sacred and most
ancient in the history of Russia. To use
a comparison, 1t is Westminster aDbey
and the tower in one.
Almost in the middle of the space en-
closed by the walls rises the lofty tower
known az Ivan Nelkiy, the belfry com
mon to all the cathedrals of the kremlln.
1t was built nearly four centuries ago,
and has stood through siege and fire, even
through that awful night in the autumn
of 1872, when il was cracked by the con-
cussiOn of neighb0riDg mines from top TO
bottom. Built orig nally 10 serve the dou-
BILE purpose of a belfry and watch tower,
whence to give warning of the approach
of an enemy, and afterWard used as a
fire-signal tower Ivan Nelikiy Is now the
favorite place of-observat.on for all Wis
itOrs TO ancient Moscow, ana the view,
from a hight of about 3JD feet, over the
entire city and for twenty miles around,
is not one to be forgotten by the most
jaded sightseer.
The tower is polysonal in the lower
stages and circular above, eliminating
in the usual gilded bulb, surmounted by
a huge cross. the successor 10 that when
was pulled down by Napoleon's soldiers
god. Just below the dome ar three col
lars or bands of black, bearing q legend,
IN large gold letters, winch tells OF t4e
Guvunov in 1900.
At the foot Of this huge steeple, and
much dwarfed by such proximity, stands,
on a granite pedestal, the broken Great
Bell Of MOscoW"-a costly wonder which
has no rival from here to Mandalay. The
huge bell, weighing sixty-four tons, which
rings on Easter eve ana on STATE ana SOL
emn occasions hangs in an upper story
over the Church of ST. John, built much
later, against the Ivan Velikiy tower.
The broken bell which was never hung,
is Of more than three times the CALDER,
and, perhaps, affords more pleasure to
the eye in its present state, that II ever
could have given TO the ear-eVen az
distance of half mile. The sixty-four-
ton bell covers with its boom the din Of
all the bells Of ali the churches Of Mos
COW when ringing at one time as will
be the case during the remainder OF the
coronation day, after the service is over.
Taking the Ivan Nelikiy tower, them as
a point of observation, the view OF the
Kremlin. spread out ike map below, re-
solves itself into fairly simple lines.
Looking northeast to the Grand square,
one notes first the Nikoskiy Gate, a
mixed Gothic tower, painted, as are all
the towers once We're, pure white. From
this gate runs the Nlkolskaja street,
branching out later into the highway to
Jaroslavi and the famous st. Sergius
Laura and the nowadays still more fire.
quented road to the railway stations for
St Petersburg and the south. This gate
opens into the Grand square, within a
few yards of and at right angles to the
archWay leading from the shrine of the
At the other end of the Grand square,
opposite the cathedral known as Vastly
the Blessed, is the Gate Of the Savior,
through which the car viii make his
entry into the Kremlin. Between these
two gates, within the walls, stand the
rary quarters for various officials. and,
nearer to the CO Of the Savior a nun
merry and the very ancient Chudoy mo-
mastery. Here too, the Nicholas pail
ace usually appropriated for the occu-
patton of tine czarOWitch.
Turning now to the south, one sees be-
low a broad road, running almost parallel
with the south wall and the river beyond,
from the Gate Of the Savior past the nun
merry and the Nicholas palace, TO the
square in which Ivan Velkiy stands, and
further away to the right past the Arch
angel Cathedral and the grand palace of
the Kremlin to the Borovitskiy gate,
whence runs the road over the Moscow
river 10 the Alexandriyskiy palace. The
outer side of this broad road is marked
by a railing, beyond which Is the steep
slope down to the Kremlh3 south wall
with the Taynitskiy bastion In the CEN
ter. and the embankment and Moscow
river beyond.
The view in this direction is on a clear
day magnificent and characteristics for
:. IN The. $780, ~ $780,.