The Church of the Holy Spirit, also known as the Peter and Paul Church, is a Greek Catholic and later Orthodox church in Minsk. It was built at the High Market of Minsk, now Freedom Square, back in the 16th century.
Originally, the church belonged to the Uniate Church, but after the third partition of Poland in 1795, it was transferred to the Orthodox Church and became known as Peter and Paul.
In 1617, a male Holy Spirit Monastery was founded next to the church, and in 1641, the construction of a female monastery began. Thus, a magnificent complex of Uniate Basilian monasteries was formed in Minsk, which remained its adornment until the 19th century.
During the war with Russia from 1654 to 1667, the Minsk Basilian monasteries were used for defensive purposes, serving as a kind of fortress. The male building with the church formed the southwestern side, while the female building formed the northeastern side. They were connected by a covered gallery with small arrow-slit windows, which also served as the entrance gate. On the fourth side, the monastery courtyard was likely enclosed by a stone wall mentioned in 17th-century documents. It was a unified completed complex.
In 1835, the church was damaged by fire and was significantly rebuilt. In 1839, the Orthodox relic, the Minsk Icon of the Mother of God, was returned to the cathedral.
In 1893, the appearance of the building was changed beyond recognition due to the addition of a tented bell tower and five onion domes. In 1930, the cathedral was closed and handed over to a grain collection organization, and the ringing of bells was banned in the city that same year. In 1936, the church was blown up, and a zoo was established in its place.
In 2009, the reconstruction of the church building began under the project of architect Sergey Baglasov, which was completed in 2011. The rebuilt church now houses a children's philharmonic. The ancient foundations of the church can be viewed by descending to the basement level of the building.
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