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| Moscow Red Square | |
|---|---|
| Name | Red Square |
| Native name | Красная площадь |
| Location | Moscow, Russia |
| Coordinates | 55°45′21″N 37°37′01″E |
| Area | 23,100 m² |
| Built | Established 15th century |
| Architecture | Russian medieval, Russian Revival, Soviet architecture |
| Governing body | Moscow City Duma, Federal Protective Service |
Moscow Red Square Red Square is the central plaza of Moscow adjoining the Moskva River and the Moscow Kremlin and fronting landmark buildings such as Saint Basil's Cathedral and GUM. It has functioned as a marketplace, parade ground, execution site, and ceremonial space from the Tsardom of Russia through the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union, and into the Russian Federation. The square's complex of monuments and administrative buildings makes it one of the most visited and photographed urban sites in Europe and a focal point for national rituals.
Red Square's origins date to the 15th century when Ivan III ordered expansion of the Moscow Kremlin and creation of an open trading and assembly area adjacent to the Kitay-gorod wall. During the Time of Troubles, the square witnessed events involving Boris Godunov, False Dimitriys, and the 1612 popular movement led by Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin. Under the Romanov dynasty, tsarist ceremonies featured entries by Peter the Great and displays related to the Great Northern War and the Napoleonic Wars after Napoleon's occupation of Moscow in 1812. The square was transformed in the 19th century with construction of GUM and the relocation of funeral and commemoration practices for figures like Vladimir Lenin after the Russian Revolution of 1917. During the Russian Civil War, Red Army parades crystallized the square's role in Soviet iconography; leaders such as Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, and Nikita Khrushchev staged events there. World War II saw rallies tied to the Great Patriotic War, while the late Soviet period and the post-Soviet era included state funerals, protests involving Solidarnost, and international visits by leaders including Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin, and foreign dignitaries.
The square is bounded by a sequence of architecturally significant structures and urban fragments: the fortified walls and towers of the Moscow Kremlin, the multicolored domes of Saint Basil's Cathedral commissioned by Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible), the late 19th-century iron-and-glass façades of GUM designed by Alexander Pomerantsev and Vladimir Shukhov, and the austere massing of the State Historical Museum by Vladimir Sherwood. The paving combines stone setts and granite slabs laid in phases overseen by municipal planners linked to the Moscow City Hall and engineers influenced by Eugène-Henri-Paul Grandjean de Montigny and later Soviet architects such as Alexey Shchusev. The open rectangular plan aligns with the main arteries of Kitay-gorod, Ilyinka Street, Tverskaya Street, and the Alexander Garden promenade, creating axial relationships used during processions and military parades.
As a symbolic heart of Moscow and Russia, the square has hosted religious ceremonies tied to the Russian Orthodox Church and state rituals from coronations of the Romanov dynasty to Soviet May Day and October Revolution commemorations. It has served as a stage for propaganda spectacles of the Soviet Union, including displays of T-34 tanks and strategic missiles during parades attended by Politburo members such as Leon Trotsky (in earlier revolutionary contexts) and Georgy Malenkov. Cultural events have included performances by artists associated with institutions like the Bolshoi Theatre, film festivals involving directors such as Andrei Tarkovsky and Sergei Eisenstein retrospectives, and exhibitions featuring collections from the Hermitage Museum and the Tretyakov Gallery. The square figures in literature by Nikolai Gogol, Leo Tolstoy, and Fyodor Dostoevsky and in artworks by Ivan Aivazovsky and Ilya Repin, reinforcing its presence in national memory and international scholarship.
The ensemble includes Saint Basil's Cathedral (cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos), Lenin's Mausoleum containing the embalmed body of Vladimir Lenin, the State Historical Museum, GUM, and the Kazan Cathedral rebuilt after demolition under Soviet anti-religious campaigns. Adjacent monuments include the Monument to Minin and Pozharsky by Ivan Martos, the towers of the Moscow Kremlin such as the Spasskaya Tower with its historic clock, and the Alexander Garden with the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Nearby administrative and cultural institutions connected to the square encompass the Presidential Administration of Russia, the State Duma, and museums like the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts and the Museum of the Patriotic War of 1812.
The square hosts the annual Victory Day military parade commemorating the Great Patriotic War, May Day demonstrations historically associated with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and state funerals for leaders including Joseph Stalin and Leonid Brezhnev (ceremonies evolved over time). It has been a site for major concerts featuring performers connected to institutions such as the Moscow Conservatory and international stars during events like the Moscow International Film Festival. Contemporary public gatherings include national celebrations led by the Presidential Administration of Russia and civic demonstrations organized by groups such as Yabloko and The Other Russia. Sporting-related spectacles have included fan zones for tournaments involving FC Spartak Moscow and state-sponsored exhibitions like military hardware displays attended by delegations from NATO and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation partners.
Conservation of the square's fabric involves collaboration among the Ministry of Culture, the Federal Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation, and international bodies that have engaged via partnerships with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre following inscription of the Kremlin and Red Square as a World Heritage site. Restoration campaigns have addressed deterioration of masonry on the State Historical Museum and Saint Basil's Cathedral, conservation of Lenin's remains at Lenin's Mausoleum, and repair of the Spasskaya Tower clock mechanism under specialists influenced by restoration programs from the Hermitage Museum and conservationists trained at the Imperial Academy of Arts. Urban management by the Moscow Urban Planning Committee and security measures coordinated with the Federal Protective Service balance tourism—driven by visitors from United Kingdom, China, United States, Germany, and Japan—with heritage protection and event logistics.
Category:Buildings and structures in Moscow Category:Squares in Russia