The Greek Church of Sts Constantine and Helena (russian: Церковь Константина и Елены), also known as the Greek Church and Greek School, was a

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...

church and school located in

Taganrog Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: History of Taganrog The ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

from 1781 to 1938.

History of the Greek Church

The construction of the Greek Church in Taganrog was started in 1781 and the church was already

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

by March 1782, with the first service held by the priest Nikita Aguros.Г.Н.Орлов, Л.И.Найговзин, А.А.Цымбал "Памятники архитектуры, истории и культуры Таганрога на старых открытках и фотографиях". Таганрог. Лукоморье, 2008 When leaving Taganrog in 1826, the Empress consort of All the Russias

Elizabeth Alexeievna (Louise of Baden) Princess Louise of Baden (13/24 January 1779 – 4/16 May 1826) was, later known as Elizabeth Alexeievna ( rus, Елизавета Алексеевна), the Empress of Russia during her marriage with Emperor Alexander I. Princess of Baden Eliz ...

left the church money for a reconstruction. In 1830, a new stone church was built to replace the wooden one. The public worship was made in both

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

and

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

. In 1855, the

Cossacks The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

and the volunteer corps repulsed the attack of the British and French landing party from the territory of the church during the

Siege of Taganrog The siege of Taganrog is a name given in some Russian histories to Anglo-French naval operations in the Sea of Azov between June and November 1855 during the Crimean War. British and French forces were implementing a strategy of destroying the ...

. The Greek Church was shut down in 1938 by

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

authorities and was demolished soon after. In the 1940s, an

apartment block A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdictio ...

was built on the site of the church.

Greek School

The wooden building behind the Greek church was built in early 19th century, and was later covered with bricks. In the early 19th century the building was used by the Greek city council, which co-existed with the Municipal city council. In the 1850s the building was returned to the Greek church, and in 1862 was opened as a parochial school for preparation of choristers. The Greek school was financed by the Greek Church of Taganrog and by rich Greek merchants. Among the disciplines were

Greek language Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

, and

singing Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

. In 1882 the building was given back to the clergy of the Greek church

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

attended the school in 1866-1868, until at the age of eight he was sent to the Gymnasium for Boys. After the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

, the building was given to the families of factory workers, and the front and layout of the former school were completely changed.

Photos

File:Греческая улица Церковь.jpg, The Greek Street (Ulitsa Grecheskaya) in Taganrog with Greek Church of Sts Constantine and Helena on the right File:Greek school Taganrog.jpg, The former Greek school (photo of 2008)

External links and references

* Чеховские места в Таганроге. Путеводитель. Таганрог, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Greek Church And Greek School (Taganrog) Destroyed churches Buildings and structures in Taganrog Greek diaspora in Russia 19th-century churches in Russia Former churches in Russia Churches completed in 1830 Buildings and structures demolished in 1938 History of Taganrog 1781 establishments in the Russian Empire Greek Chapel, Southern Russia/* фотограф - Уилльям Рау. автор текста Кэрил Пэрротт. Слайд №11 "Греческая часовня на Юге России".