Peter and Paul Cathedral in Kazan

What to Expect and Is It Worth Visiting

This is one of the most beautiful and unusual cathedrals of Kazan, as well as an architectural monument of federal significance. It is built in the Russian baroque style, which was very popular in the time of Peter I. Actually, as a gift to Peter I on his fiftieth birthday, this cathedral was built. The patron of the building was a local merchant Mikhlyaev. It so happened that Tsar Peter met his fiftieth birthday in Kazan, and the merchant personally on the birthday of the Tsar promised him to build a temple in his honor, which he did.

Initially, the stone building, erected four years from 1722 to 1726 according to the plans of an ordinary church, collapsed due to design errors. After that, Tsar Peter sent builders from Moscow, and in the same year the church was erected and consecrated. During its existence, it burned down many times and was restored, which changed the appearance of the temple, but its style remained unchanged. In Soviet times, the temple was treated barbarously, placing here in turn a party archive, a planetarium, workshops of the State Museum, and even billiards. Only in the late 1980s it was returned to the church.

Today it is one of the most popular religious and architectural attractions of the city, which is visited by tourists and pilgrims. You can see its architecture from the outside and go inside, but it is especially interesting to visit it with a tour. Specially here excursions are not carried out, but his visit is included in the program of some sightseeing tours.

And we advise you to see interesting options for individual and group excursions with reviews on these proven sites:

• 📷 search for excursions in Kazan on Sputnik8.com
• 📷 search for excursions in Kazan on Tripster.ru
• 📷 excursions in Kazan from the tour operator TEZ Tour