Kazan Kremlin
A white-stone fortress where a large mosque and an Orthodox cathedral stand within the same walls.
About
The kremlin of Kazan crowns a hill above the Kazanka River. Within its white walls the bright blue domes of the Annunciation Cathedral stand a few hundred metres from the Kul Sharif Mosque, one of the largest in Europe, with its tall slim minarets.
A leaning tower, the Syuyumbike Tower, rises near the entrance, and there are museums on Tatar history and culture. The setting says a lot about the city: Tatar and Russian traditions live side by side.
After the kremlin, walk the pedestrian Bauman Street and try Tatar pastries.
History
The fortress goes back to the Khanate of Kazan. The city was captured by Ivan IV in 1552, and the Russian-built walls followed. The current Kul Sharif Mosque was completed in 2005 and recalls an earlier mosque lost at the time of the conquest. The site was listed by UNESCO in 2000. After 1552 Ivan IV ordered new white-stone walls and the Annunciation Cathedral, built by masters from Pskov in the 1550s and 1560s. In the 1990s the complex was restored and turned into a museum reserve. It is also the seat of the government of the Republic of Tatarstan.
UNESCO World Heritage: Inscribed 2000.