Zaraysk Kremlin

Zaraysk Kremlin
Part of Great Abatis Line
Zaraysk, Moscow Oblast Russia
Zaraysk Kremlin western wall: 12-sided "corner watchtower" and Egoryev Tower Максим Шанин 2014
Zaraysk Kremlin
Coordinates	54°45′24″N 38°52′9″E / 54.75667°N 38.86917°E / 54.75667; 38.86917
Type	Kremlin
Site information
Condition	Restored
Site history
Built	1528-1531

The Zaraysk Kremlin is a rectangular fortified citadel, built on the orders of the Grand Prince Vasili III, originally constructed between 1528 and 1531, and located in the European part of Russia. It forms the historic centre of the industrial town of Zaraysk, roughly 160 km (100 miles) to the south-east of Moscow.

Around 1503, Zaraysk became part of Moscow when Principality of Ryazan lost its independence and was merged into Muscovy. Till this point, Ryazan had provided a protective buffer for Muscovy against potential attack from Tatars in the south.

Just two years after completion in 1531, in 1533 the new stone-walled kremlin found itself under attack from Crimean Tartars. There was another attack in 1541 from forces under the Crimean Khan Sahib I Giray, which was beaten off by Nazar Glebov. Further attacks by Crimean Tartars took place 1544, in 1570, 1573 and 1591.

The little kremlin had been constructed by a village called Novogorodok-upon-the-Osyotr, but in the seventeenth century the growing surrounding settlement acquired the name Zaraysk. In 1608, during the Time of Troubles, the kremlin fell into the hands of Polish invaders under the leadership of Aleksander Józef Lisowski, but was subsequently liberated by Dmitry Pozharsky. 1673 saw a final attack from Crimean Tartars. After this episode the fortress was placed under the protection of the icon of the Madonna of Kazan.

In 1681 Czar Feodor III authorized the rebuilding of the St. Nicholas Cathedral to replace the existing timber structure which had fallen into disrepair. During the eighteenth century Zaraysk lost its strategic importance with the opening up of new trade routes. At the start of the twentieth century it was decided to rebuild the . Less than twenty years later, with a new secular political régime calling the shots from Moscow, the entire Kremlin enclosure was redefined as a museum complex in 1918. During the Great Patriotic War the region was occupied by German troops, but the Zaraysk Kremlin emerged undamaged.