THE HISTORY OF THE GAMALIIV (KHARLAMPIIV) MONASTERY (1676-1795)

Abstract

The article analyzes in detail the history of the foundation of one of the most controversial architectural monuments of the Left Bank of Ukraine – the Gamaliivskyi (Kharlampiivskyi) monastery. The prehistory of the monastery's origin is clarified, and the events that served as an impetus for the creation of the beginning of a small church, as well as a large ensemble of the Gamaliv Monastery, which still has no analogues in the architectural heritage of Ukraine, are described. The work comprehensively examines the figures who contributed to the establishment of the monastery, were its patrons and in every way contributed to cultural, educational and spiritual development. The idea that the Gamaliivsky (Kharlampiivskyi) monastery was similar to the Trinity Church of the Chernihiv Illinsky Monastery has been refuted. The role played in the foundation of the monastery by one of the most famous families of that time, with which the monastery is associated – Ivan Ilyich Skoropadskyi and his wife Anastasia – has been determined. The wealth that the Skoropadskyi family transferred to the ensemble is outlined, so that in the future the monastery would not feel material needs. The territory and the stages of the multi-year construction of sacred structures on the territory of the ensemble are described in detail. Information about the first transition of the Gamaliiv (Kharlampiiv) monastery from a female to a male one is highlighted, the reasons and prerequisites for this decision are given. The history of the Kharlampiyiv church, next to which the Skoropadsky family is buried, is highlighted. The consequences of a larger fire are described in detail on the territory of the Gamaliv monastery. The abbots are characterized and their role in the formation and development of the monastery is determined. Based on the analysis of a number of historical sources, the article covers important moments from the foundation to the fire of 1795 on the territory of the ensemble of the Gamaliv Monastery.