Transfiguration Cathedral

Five domes rise above the broad building, and large porticoes stand at the entrances. This site was once occupied by the city's main church; the present cathedral received its name and dedication from it. The name refers to the Gospel Transfiguration, when Christ revealed his divine glory to three disciples. The cathedral has now been handed over to Borisoglebsky Monastery, and restoration work is underway inside it.

Karl Rossi's original plan did not include semicircular windows above the entrances. They appeared after a request from Efrem Morozov, the elected head of the municipal administration, who sought funding and changes for the construction. Morozov chose a moment when Aleksandr I was passing through Torzhok and obtained the emperor's consent.

By then, the people of Torzhok had already taken a serious risk. The city's main church had stood on this site since ancient times, but by the beginning of the nineteenth century, bricks were falling from its vaults. In eighteen eleven, Nikanor, abbot of Borisoglebsky Monastery, who had experience with major construction projects, took charge. He wanted to demolish the dangerous building and erect a new cathedral to Rossi's plan.

Nikanor had no capital ready. He asked for permission to collect donations, use income from candles, and dismantle three abolished churches: the stone Church of the Myrrhbearers for its brick, and the wooden Church of St. Philip and Church of St. Nikita for fuel to fire lime and new brick. The invasion by Napoleon's army and the death of Georg of Oldenburg, the governor-general of Tver who supported the project, prevented work from beginning.

The old cathedral was dismantled after all. In the spring of eighteen fifteen, when about one hundred thousand rubles were needed, Nikanor had roughly four thousand. The city no longer had its main church, and there was not enough money for the new one even under the most cautious estimate.

Another danger emerged in the foundation layout. Ivan Mokoshev, an apprentice architect, transferred the drawing to the ground with errors. Fyodor Ananyin and Vasilii Ananyin, brothers and merchants who earned their living through construction contracts, returned to Torzhok, noticed the inaccuracies, and redid the layout. Mokoshev demanded that everything be left according to his calculations and filed a complaint. Nikanor and the construction commission supported the Ananyin brothers; Mokoshev was removed, and the brothers began laying the corrected foundation.

A year later, the walls had already risen noticeably, but the collected funds were running out. Morozov then appealed to the passing emperor, asking permission for semicircular windows beneath the pediments, which Rossi's design had not provided for. Torzhok merchants then submitted a petition to Aleksandr I for help. The emperor ordered fourteen thousand rubles to be issued. The grant was spent by the spring of eighteen eighteen, but the work continued. That same summer, Nikanor died. The cathedral was completed only in eighteen twenty-two.

The main altar was dedicated to the Gospel Transfiguration, the event when Christ revealed his divine glory to three disciples. The present cathedral inherited its name from the former church that had stood here for centuries. The building now belongs to Borisoglebsky Monastery and is undergoing restoration. The semicircular windows above the entrances remain in place—a change by Efrem Morozov, approved by Aleksandr I while passing through Torzhok.