Arbatskaya Square

Arbatskaya Square or Arbat Square () is one of the oldest squares of

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 millio ...

, located on the junction of

Gogolevsky Boulevard Gogolevsky Boulevard (russian: Гоголевский бульвар) is a boulevard near the Arbat District, Moscow, Russia, named after the writer Nikolai Gogol. It was named Prechistensky Boulevard (russian: Пречи́стенский б ...

Znamenka Street Znamenka Street is a street in Khamovniki District of Moscow. It runs from Borovitskaya Square to Arbatskaya Square, lies between Kolymazhny Lane and Vozdvizhenka Street. The numbering of houses is carried out from Borovitskaya Square. Etymolo ...

and

Arbat Gates Square Arbat Street (Russian ), mainly referred to in English as the Arbat, is a pedestrian street about one kilometer long in the historical centre of Moscow, Russia. The Arbat has existed since at least the 15th century, which makes it one of the o ...

(in 1925–1993 – part of Arbatskaya Square). The square is home to the Arbatskaya

metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urb ...

station, on

Filyovskaya Line The Filyovskaya line (russian: Филёвская ли́ния, ), or Line 4 and 4A, is a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major western districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow-City ...

. Present-day square is dominated by the wide avenue of New Arbat, however, prior to redevelopment of the 1960s, the square was located south from this avenue, on the line of Arbat Street and the vestibule of Arbatskaya subway station. Arbat Gates of

Bely Gorod Bely Gorod ( rus, Бе́лый го́род, p=ˈbʲelɨj ˈɡorət, "White City") is the central core area of Moscow, Russia beyond the Kremlin and Kitay-gorod. The name comes from the color of its defensive wall, which was erected in 1585–15 ...

were located here; the wall of Bely Gorod was demolished in the 1750s-1770s, the tower in 1792, creating the original

. There was no straight connection between Vozdvizhenka and Arbat: westbound coaches had to make a sharp turn south into Nikitsky Boulevard, past a corner block on this boulevard, then make a turn west into either Arbat,

Povarskaya Street Povarskaya Street (russian: Поварская улица), known from 1924–1991 as ''Vorovsky Street'' (улица Воровского), is a radial street in the center of Moscow, Russia, connecting Arbat Square on Boulevard Ring with Kudr ...

, Bolshaya Molchanovka, Malaya Molchanovka or Merzlyakovsky Lane. All these four streets fanned out west from the square. In 1807–1812, it hosted , which perished in the

Fire of Moscow (1812) Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames are pr ...

, as well as most of the neighborhoods around it. The Arbat Fountain, originally a fire reservoir (1840s), later a decorative fountain, was located in the south of the square, on the line of Maly Afanasyevsky Lane. In 1945, it was refitted with sculptures and granite slabs in stalinist style, only to be destroyed in the 1960s. {{commonscat, Arbatskaya Square Squares in Moscow Arbat District