For the English-speaking reader, the Kremlin has long meant not a fortress, but power. Roughly speaking, it’s like the White House or Downing Street: the Kremlin is said to mean decision-making. Upon request, kremlin russia’s English-language search today returns more often policy than architecture.
In the Russian language, the word works differently. «Kreml» here is not a name, but a type of building: a fortified core of an old city. Such fortified centers existed in many ancient Russian cities, and some of the stone Kremlin buildings have survived to this day.
So it would be more honest to start the discussion about the Kremlin not with Moscow.
The word that was common
Until the fourteenth century, such a fortress was more commonly called a fortress. Later, the word "Kremlin" took root, and it became fixed as the name for the central, oldest, and most fortified part of the city.
They are built in roughly the same way. The walls with towers on the perimeter, the cathedral inside, the prince's or voivode's court, warehouses, and sometimes a monastery. During sieges, the population of the surrounding area had to leave their homes behind these walls.
The Novgorodite is considered the oldest; it is still called that by the chronicles: in the chronicle it is mentioned as dating from 1044, although the current walls date mainly from the end of the fifteenth century. The Pskov bastion stands in the center of the fortress, built by Pskov masters after Ivan the Terrible took the city. Today, because of its white walls, minarets rise from it. The Rostov bastion, despite its formidable appearance, was built as a grand residence for the metropolitan, and we have written about it in material about the Golden Ring.
Who built the current walls of the Moscow Kremlin?
The walls and towers that are referred to in English-language guidebooks as the Moscow Kremlin were built by the Italians.
Ivan the Third initiated reconstruction at the end of the fifteenth century and invited craftsmen from northern Italy. Aristoteles Fioravanti was the first to arrive and built the Assumption Cathedral. The walls and towers began to be built in 1485, and the construction of the complex continued until the beginning of the sixteenth century. Anton Fryszin, Marco Fryszin, Pietro Antonio Solari, and Alewiz Fryszin the Elder supervised the work. The tiles were laid on the site of the former white stone fortifications of the time of Dmitry Donskoy.
The Italian trace can still be seen, most notably in the ridges. The bifurcated shape, similar to a dove's tail, is well known from the fortresses of northern Italy, and similar ridges can be found in Milan and Verona.
Twenty towers, and almost each one has its own date and its own history.
Buildings worth knowing by name
| The tower | When it is installed | What is it known for |
|---|---|---|
| Tyantskaya | 1485 | the first one was laid; a hidden well was hidden under it |
| Beklemishevskaya | 1487 and 1488 | angular round, it covered the approach from the river |
| Waterborne | 1488 | through it water was supplied to the Kremlin, the star since 1937 |
| Borovitskaya | 1490 | Passage, named after a boulder on a hill |
| Spasskaya | 1491 | the main gate and those same trumpets |
| Nikolskaya | 1491 | It goes up to Red Square, named after an icon |
| Angular Arsenal | 1492 and 1493 | the most powerful of the corner cannons; there was also a well inside |
| Troitskaya | 1495 and 1499 | The highest tower of the Kremlin |
| Kutafia | The beginning of the sixteenth century | low, stands separately in front of the bridge; today tourists pass through it |
There are a total of twenty towers. Three are angular round in plan, the other four are rectangular, and Kutafia itself stands separately, behind a wall. Almost all of them were erected over the course of fifteen years between the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Why is it sometimes white and sometimes red?
The brick was originally red; no one painted it. But in the following centuries the walls were repeatedly painted, and the whitewash was regularly renewed. It changed the appearance of the walls and also protected the surface. Hence the old paintings, which show the Kremlin in a very different state from today.
Over time, they abandoned regular whitewashing, and the Kremlin returned to its red-brick appearance. In the twentieth century, this style became the standard.
At the same time, the expression «Moscow is white stone» becomes more understandable. It dates back to the Kremlin of Dmitry Donskoy, who was indeed made of white stone.
What's inside
Inside the Kremlin there are not only walls and towers.
What lies within the walls
It is worth mentioning separately that what stands out first is the Tsar-cannon, which, judging by what we can see, was never fired; and the Tsar-bell, which never rang: it was still in the foundry pit when, in the 1737 fire, it cracked and a piece of it weighing eleven and a half tons broke off.
Part of the territory is closed to visitors: that’s where the president’s residence is located.
The Kremlin was not just a defensive wall. Inside were the main city shrines, supplies, and government institutions, so its appearance changed along with the history of the city and the state.
Stars instead of eagles
The Kremlin’s several main towers were adorned with double-headed eagles. In 1935, they were replaced by the first five-pointed stars with Ural gemstones, and in 1937, rubys were installed, which still glow there today.
Why the Kremlin came to mean power
Power in Russia has sat behind these walls for centuries, first the Grand Dukes and Tsars, then the Soviet government. For Western newspapers of the twentieth century, it was convenient to call the source of decisions at a single address; Kremlin said became roughly equivalent to Washington says. The approach is standard; it works with both the White House and Downing Street and the Elysee Palace: the building replaces those who sit in it.
In the Russian language, there has been almost no such substitution. There are many Kreml words, and the word itself remains a common noun; we tend to refer to the power structure by its address less often.
How to talk about it with a child
To a child growing up abroad, the Kremlin is usually presented in its raw form, from the news where the word means politics.
It’s easier to start a conversation with a question that breaks this mold: how many Kreml buildings are there in Russia? As it turns out, there are many, and Moscow’s is simply the most famous. Next, it becomes clearer: why does the city have a wall, why is the cathedral inside, what is siege warfare, and why did the foreigners build the fortress.
A comparison is made here. Place three pictures side by side: the Moscow Kremlin, the Novgorod Kremlin, and any European castle, and ask what they all have in common. The walls and towers are the same in all three, so the answer will be quick. Things get more complicated: what is behind these walls? One house with the owner and their family and servants, or an entire old part of the city, with temples, courtyards, and warehouses? Who left there during the siege, the owner’s family, or the citizens?
A short answer is enough here. «It’s the Kremlin because inside there’s a cathedral and a warehouse, not just a house» is already an explanation.
You can practice right here; the instructions are short, and after each answer there is a sign that shows you which one it is.
Kremlin, castle or just fortress
Strengthening is everywhere; the walls and towers are present in all three. The question is who is behind them: the core of the city, the residence of a single owner, or just a garrison.
With children aged four and up, there’s no need to go any further: the tower, the wall, the gate, and the question of what’s inside. It’s too early to divide the Kremlin, the castle, and the fortress into different sections; it’s enough to look for the common and the different. For a schoolboy, it’s easy to figure out who hid behind the walls and why important buildings were built there. For those a little older, the story of the Moscow walls—from white stone to brick and back to red—is interesting, along with the question of why the Russian sovereign’s fortress was built by the Italians. And with a teenager, up to the end of high school, the conversation turns to language: let them look for other instances when a building replaces power and explain why we say that less often.
The topic of traveling to Moscow is easy to relate to; we have it in common. A three-day route through the city, In Moscow, the Kremlin is the first stop. But if you travel further from Moscow, the Kremlin can be found in a dozen other cities.
Where else to go for a Kremlin tour
| City | Where is that? | What is interesting about it |
|---|---|---|
| Veliky Novgorod | Northwest, between Moscow and St. Petersburg | The country's oldest Kremlin, mentioned in the chronicles as early as 1044, is still called the "Child" |
| Pskov | west, at the border | The moat in the center of the fortress consists of five defensive belts |
| Kazan | The Volga region | White walls of the work of the Pskov masters and minarets inside |
| Tula | Two hundred kilometers south of Moscow | The Kremlin is not located on a hill, but in a low area, right by the river |
| Kolomna | Moscow Region | part of the walls and towers have survived; inside is an ordinary urban district |
| Nizhny Novgorod | The Volga region | The walls slope down, and the height difference between the towers is visible to the naked eye. |
| Astrakhan | the lower reaches of the Volga | The southern border of the country: the Kremlin was built from bricks of dismantled Ordaian buildings |
| Rostov the Great | Yaroslavl Region, the Golden Ring | It was built as a grand residence for the metropolitan, not as a fortress |
How this topic is discussed in classes
There is a convenient feature about this topic. The word Kremlin is already known in families abroad in its political sense, according to English-language news reports. The conversation does not start from scratch; it starts with a familiar word that needs to be given a second meaning, the original one.
The comparison is good because without language you can’t make it. To say what the Kremlin is like a castle and what it isn’t, you need words too: fortress, siege, fortified, surrounded; and structures that don’t exist in everyday speech: unlike, it served for, it differs in that. One picture can be called that, but two already have to be described, and here’s where the very speech begins, for which we at the Palme School take on cultural topics.
You can find out if this is right for your child at two free lessons. The first one is held with a methodologist, who gets to know the child, determines their level, and talks about the program. The second one takes place like a real group lesson, with a teacher and other children.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a kreml?
The fortified core of the old Russian city, its central and most protected part. Until the fourteenth century, such fortresses were called "detyntsy". Inside they usually contained a cathedral, the governor's palace, and warehouses, and the walls with towers extended around the perimeter.
Which cities have kremls?
Fortified centers were found in many ancient Russian cities, and some of the stone structures have survived. The Kremlin can be seen in Novgorod, Pskov, Kazan, Tula, Kolomna, Nizhny Novgorod, Astrakhan, and Rostov-on-Don.
Who built the current walls of the Moscow Kremlin?
Masters from northern Italy invited by Ivan the Third. The current walls and towers began to be built in 1485; the work continued until the beginning of the sixteenth century, and they were led by Anton Fryszin, Marko Fryszin, Pietro Antonio Solari and Alevizo Fryszin the Elder. Aristoteles Fioravanti, the most famous of the visitors, had no relationship with the walls; he built the Assumption Cathedral.
Why is Moscow white-stoned, if the walls of the Kremlin are red?
The expression dates back to the walls of Dmitry Donskoy’s Kremlin, built of white stone in the 1660s. The Italian walls were built of red brick, but they were then long-term whitewashed, and the red brick appearance was restored in the 20th century.
What is inside the Kremlin?
The Cathedral Square with the Assumption, Archangel and Blagoveshchensky cathedrals, the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, the Tsar-Puschka and Tsar-Kolokol Bells, as well as the Armoury with the Royal Treasury. Part of the territory is occupied by the presidential residence.
Why does the word "Kremlin" mean "power" in English?
Because for centuries those who made decisions sat behind these walls, from the grand dukes to the Soviet government. The Western press began to refer to the power in question as the White House or Downing Street. In the Russian language, there has been almost no such replacement: there are many Kreml buildings, and the word has remained a generic term.
Why stars on the towers?
The double-headed eagles were removed from the main guard towers in 1935 and replaced with stars with Ural gemstones, and the rubies appeared in 1937. They became a symbol of Soviet power and remain on the towers to this day.
How is the Kremlin different from a castle?
The castle was usually built as a fortified residence of a ruler or feudal lord. The Kremlin was a fortified center of an ancient Russian city, where the most important temples, courtyards, and supplies were located, and where the inhabitants could take refuge in case of an attack.
