The Nicholas-Zaretsky Church (''Николо-Зарецкий храм'') is a church in
Tula in
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
. It contains the family vault of the
Demidov
The Demidov family (Russian: Деми́довы), also known as Demidoff or Dimidov, is a prominent Russian nobility, Russian noble family that rose to immense wealth and influence during the 18th and 19th centuries. The Demidovs became a wealth ...
family of industrialists. Its usual name is the Nicholas-Zaretsky Church, though it has held various others over time.
History
The church originated as two separate 17th century wooden churches on the site, replaced between 1730 and 1734 by a new double-nave church.
Akinfiy Nikitich Demidov
Akinfiy Nikitich Demidov () (1678 Tula - 5 August 1745 Yatskoye Ustye, Menzelinsky Uyezd, Orenburg Governorate) was a Russian industrialist of the Demidov family.
Life
He was the eldest son of Nikita Demidov and increased the family fortune, ...
, son of
Nikita Demidov
Nikita Demidov (full name Nikita Demidovich Antufiev), (5 April 1656 Tula – 28 November 1725 Tula) was a Russian industrialist who founded the Demidov industrial dynasty.
Peter I of Russia charged the enterprising blacksmith Nikita with casti ...
, is considered to be the founder of the new church.
It has several side chapels, with paintings of the
Nativity,
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...
,
Andrew the Apostle
Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus.
The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Chu ...
and
Tikhon of Kaluga
Tikhon of Kaluga (died 16 June 1492) was a Russian Orthodox hegumen and saint. He grew up in Moscow and was tonsured a monk as a young man. He then moved to a forest near Medin in Kaluga, living in the hollow of an oak tree. It was on that spot t ...
. In 1734 a new crypt chapel was built for burials of the Demidov family. A bell tower in the
Yaroslava-Suzdal style was built near the church.
In Soviet times the church was closed and used as a warehouse, although it is now back in use as a church.
External links
Russian Church*{{in lang, ru}
Diocese of Tula and Belevskoy
*
Churches in Tula Oblast
Baroque church buildings in Russia
1734 establishments in Europe
Russian Orthodox church buildings in Russia
Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Tula Oblast