Weekly “Arguments and Facts” No. 01-02. Why did Kazakhstan burst into flames? 12/01/2022
They say that in the 1930s they wanted to blow up St. Basil's Cathedral, and it was only possible to save it thanks to Stalin. Is this true?
Expert Answer 0 + –
Alexander Bayramov, Candidate of Historical Sciences, answers:
– The legend is this: when the plan for the transformation of Moscow was being adopted and Kaganovichmoved the temple on the model, Stalin pulled it back: “Lazar, put it in its place!” It was launched by the poet Andrey Voznesensky. He studied at the Architectural Institute and heard a story there about the restorer Pyotr Baranovsky, who at a critical moment allegedly sent a telegram to Stalin asking him not to touch the temple, after which the incident occurred.
Heself Kaganovich, in a conversation with the writer Felix Chuev, recalled: “It was proposed to widen the streets, demolish those houses that interfere with traffic, but not at all destroy such valuables as St. Basil’s Cathedral. And now Voznesensky writes that at a meeting of architects according to the General Plan of Moscow, this temple was removed from the model, and Stalin came up and returned it to its place. It was as if Zholtovsky was telling this. Yes, Zholtovsky was never with Stalin!
Indeed, the architect Ivan Zholtovsky in the 1930s. worked mainly in Sochi, and the meetings of the Architectural Council were held without the participation of Stalin. The participation of Peter Baranovsky in this story is also doubtful. The planning department of the Moscow City Council, which was involved in the development of the General Plan for specific areas, including the historical center, was created in 1933. However, by that time Baranovsky was arrested, convicted, and did not appear in Moscow until 1936. And the General Plan was approved in 1935