Rozhdestvensky Convent, or the Convent of Nativity of Theotokos (), is one of the oldest

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

neries in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, located inside the

Boulevard Ring The Boulevard Ring (russian: Бульва́рное кольцо́; transliteration: ''Bulvarnoye Koltso'') is Moscow's second innermost ring road (the first is formed by the Central Squares of Moscow running along the former walls of Kitai-gorod ...

, on the left bank of the

Neglinnaya River The Neglinnaya ( rus, Неглинная, p=nʲɪˈɡlʲinːəjə), also known as Neglinka, Neglinna, Neglimna (Неглинка, Неглинна, Неглимна), is a 7.5 km underground river in the central part of Moscow and a tributar ...

Rozhdestvensky Boulevard Rozhdestvensky Boulevard (Russian: Рождественский Бульвар, ''Roschdestvensky Boulevard'') is a major boulevard in Meshchansky District of Moscow, Russia. It begins at Trubnaya Square (west) and ends at Sretenka Gates in the ...

and Rozhdestvenka Street owe their names to the convent. The convent was founded in the

Moscow Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of the kremlins (R ...

in 1386, probably by Maria of

Rostov Rostov ( rus, Росто́в, p=rɐˈstof) is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, one of the oldest in the country and a tourist center of the Golden Ring. It is located on the shores of Lake Nero, northeast of Moscow. Population: While t ...

, mother of Prince

Vladimir the Bold Vladimir Andreyevich the Bold (; July 15, 1353 – 1410) was the most famous prince of Serpukhov. His moniker alludes to his many military exploits committed in the wars waged by his cousin, Dmitri Donskoi of Moscow. Biography A grandson of Ivan ...

.The Encyclopaedia of Moscow
/ref> Among the ladies of royal blood who took the veil in the convent were

Olgierd Algirdas ( be, Альгерд, Alhierd, uk, Ольгерд, Ольґерд, Olherd, Olgerd, pl, Olgierd; – May 1377) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He ruled the Lithuanians and Ruthenians from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his bro ...

's daughter Helen and

Vasily III Vasili, Vasily, Vasilii or Vasiliy (Russian: Василий) is a Russian masculine given name of Greek origin and corresponds to ''Basil''. It may refer to: *Vasili I of Moscow Grand Prince from 1389–1425 *Vasili II of Moscow Grand Prince fro ...

's wife

Solomonia Saburova Saint Solomonia Yuryevna Saburova (russian: Соломония Юрьевна Сабурова) (c. 1490 – 18 December 1542) was the first wife of Grand Prince Vasili III of Muscovy. She was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint ' ...

. The convent was moved to its present location in 1484; the small

katholikon A ''katholikon'' or catholicon ( gr, καθολικόν) or ''sobor'' ( Slavonic: съборъ) refers to one of three things in the Eastern Orthodox Church: * The cathedral of a diocese. * The major church building (temple) of a monastery corre ...

was erected in the last years of

Ivan III Ivan III Vasilyevich (russian: Иван III Васильевич; 22 January 1440 – 27 October 1505), also known as Ivan the Great, was a Grand Prince of Moscow and Grand Prince of all Rus'. Ivan served as the co-ruler and regent for his blin ...

's reign. This is one of the oldest buildings in downtown Moscow, outside the Kremlin walls. The burial vault of the

Lobanov-Rostovsky The House of Lobanov-Rostovsky is a branch of the House of Rurik whose male-line ancestors ruled the Principality of Rostov in present-day Russia. History It originated with Prince Ivan (nicknamed Loban for his wide forehead), who lived at ...

princely family dates from the 1670s. The convent was abolished in 1922, but some of the nuns and lay sisters would continue living in their cells (two of them - Varvara and Viktorina - lived there until the late 1970s). Upon the closure of the convent, the most revered

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

s were relocated to the Church of St. Nicholas in Zvonari. When the latter was itself shut down, the icons were transferred to the church of Saint Sergius in Pushkari and later to the Epiphany church in Pereyaslavskaya Sloboda. The divine service in Rozhdestvensky Convent was resumed in 1992.

References

File:Rozhdestvensky Convent 11.jpg, The

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the La ...

(1904–06) File:Церковь Иоанна Златоуста в Богородице-Рождественском монастыре.jpg, Church of St

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his homilies, preaching and public speaking, his denunciat ...

(1676–78) File:Moscow RozhdestvenskyMonastery J02.jpg, Katholikon of the Nativity of God's Mother (1500–05) File:Moscow RozhdestvenskyMonastery J06.jpg, The Neoclassical belltower (1835–36) File:Rozhdestvensky Convent 12.jpg, Church of

Our Lady of Kazan ''Our Lady of Kazan'', also called ''Mother-of-God of Kazan'' (russian: Казанская Богоматерь, translit=Kazanskaya Bogomater'), is a holy icon of the highest stature within the Russian Orthodox Church, representing the Virgin Ma ...

(1906) {{Cloisters of Moscow Monasteries in Moscow Russian Orthodox monasteries in Russia 1386 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in Russia Convents in Russia Christian monasteries established in the 14th century Cultural heritage monuments of federal significance in Moscow