At present. Kazan Kremlin is the medieval fortress with a regular planning and building system of the 16th-19th centuries, with revealed archaeological fragments of fortifications and structures of the llth--12th centuries. It includes several historically shaped architectural-archaeological complexes: this is the complex of fortification structures, the Governor's House with Syuyumbike tower, the Annunciation Cathedral with Consistory and Bishop's House. Public Offices, the Saviour-Transfiguration (Spaso-Preobrazhensky) Monastery, the Military School. and the Artillery (Cannon) Foundry.

Fortification structures.

The complex of fortification structures includes stone walls and towers of the second half of the 16th-18th centuries and archaeological fragments of fortifications of the early llth-16th centuries. The length of the outer perimeter of the walls is 1800 m.

The walls and towers that survived until our days produce a strong impression with their monumentality. They were erected in several steps.

In 1556-1562, the Pskov craftsmen headed by an outstanding Russian architect Postnik Yakoviev and his assistant Ivan Shiryai built the white stone fortifications on the north and south. During the work the wall with the central, Saviour's tower and two corner towers was moved for 120 m. to the south of the parallei wall of the khan's fortress. This has significantly increased the territory of the Kremlin. However, the new walls repeated the configuration and the location of the Boulgar-Tatar fortress, having included in some sections its fragments as part of the newly built fortifications. During the next construction period, at the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the reconstruction of walls and towers was completed. A well-known English traveller Giles Fletcher, who visited Russia in 1588-1589. noted: �Four fortresses. Smolensk, Pskov, Kazan, and Astrakhan, are built quite well and can stand any siege, they are considered to be unassailable.

The Kremlin had 12 towers erected of stone. Their names (from south, clockwise): Saviour's passage tower, South-West round tower, Transfiguration passage tower (Tyumen tower at the time of the khanate; Sergius tower with gate church according to the copyist's book 1566-1568). Pentagonal tower, West (nameless) round tower, Secret passage tower (Nour-Ali gate at the time of the khanate), IMikolskiye gate with gate church according to the copyist's book 1566-1568), North round tower, Resurrection passage tower (Yelbuga gate at the time of the khanate), North-East round tower, Dmitrovskaya passage tower (close to Zboilivye gate at the time of the khanate). Consistory, and South-East round tower.

In the 19th century, the North, North-East, Dmitrovskaya passage, Pentagonal, and the North-West towers were dismantled in view of their dilapidation.

Walls.

The fortress towers were connected by curtain walls, which divide into stone (mid-16th century), brick-stone (late 16th century) and brick ones (18th-19th centuries).

The walls are made of two tiers with the total height, of 8-12 m. They are topped by merlons of rectangular shape on the curtain walls of the 16th - 17th centuries and "swallow-tails" in the sections reconstructed in the 18th century. The thickness of the fortress walls, in the lower tier of which, on the inner side, there are arch-covered niches-chambers with firing ports for cannons, was up to 6 m. In special chambers different ammunition supplies were kept: gunpowder, cannon balls, and barrels with tar, sand, and stones. The wall-walk was protected from outside by a wall with loopholes and covered by hewn roof that rested on poles.

The towers bulge out of the plane of the walls, divided into 2-4 tiers with rectangular and arched loopholes; the upper tiers are topped by rectangular merlons and covered by hip-roofs.

Since the second half of the past century the walls and towers of the Kremlin are being repaired and reconstructed. Besides, the work has been done to strengthen the foundations, reveal the mured up loopholes and embrasures, and reconstruct the merlons, white stone finish and brickwork. In 1977-1986 the wooden hip-roofs on the South-West, Transfiguration, Nameless, Consistory, and South-East towers were reconstructed, as well as the wooden cover of the curtain walls of the 16t.h and 17th centuries. In recent years conserved were the founda � tions of the North-West, North, North-East, and Pentagonal towers revealed in the course of excavations.

Towers

Saviour's tower.

The Saviour's tower with the gate church of the Vernicle is the most ornate of the Kremlin towers. It is located in the centre of the south section of fortifications. It was built in 1556-1562 by Pskov architect Postnik Yakovlev and Ivan Shiryai. The premise of the church, which was located to the north of the tower, was originally used to Keep the field icon of ivan the Terrible and other relics of the assault of Kazan by Russian troops in 1552. The copy of the Vernicle from the tsar's banner was installed outside, on the wall of the tower that faced the town.

Originally the tower, which was made of white stone, had a square foundation (23 x 23 m.), two tiers with a hip roof and a small lookout tower. The passage was L-shaped with the iron gate and the portcullis. In front of the tower, on the side of the town, a deep ditch was dug. Over the ditch was a wooden drawbridge, which was substituted by stone one in the late 18th century.

In the 70s of the 17th century, most probably after the fire of 1672, two brick octagonaf tiers were added to the tower topped by hip-roof. In the 18th century, the musical clock was installed on the Saviour's tower. The hand of the clock did not move, so it was the face of the clock that was turning around it.

After the fire of 1815, when the vaults of the Saviour's gate church collapsed, it was somewhat expanded; the southern wall of the church was dismantled and extended to the northern wall of the tower (originally they were independent structures).

In 1820. the stairs were built for those who wanted to come close to the Vernicle icon installed as early as in 1552 on the southern facade of the tower. The stairs lead very close to the icon on both sides.

In 1857, the main entrance was reconstructed: the L-shaped passage was substituted by straight passage and the ditch was filfed. in the curtain wall of the fortress wall that adjoined the tower from the east, a lancet arch was made, over which a shield was installed with the image of Zilant, i.e. the coat of arms of Kazan. Later, in the 1880s, the dragon was substituted by the icon of Our Lady of Kazan.

In 1910, the stairs that lead to the Vernicle icon were substituted by an octagonal hip-roofed bell-tower, which almost completely hid the ancient tetragonal tier of the tower. It was not until 1930 that the bell-tower was destroyed.

In 1963, the electric clock with the striking mechanism was installed on the tower with faces on three out of its eight facets. The tower was topped by octagonal gilded star.

The South-West tower.

The South-West tower was built in the second half of the 16th century by Pskov craftsmen. It has three tiers of loopholes, a castellated parapet and is topped by cone-shaped wooden hiproof. Its height is nearly 18 m. Two arch-shaped passages on the first and the second tiers lead to the wail-walk of the adjoining fortress wall.

The Transfiguration passage tower.

The Transfiguration passage tower, also built by Pskov masons, is one of the strong towers of the fortification system of the Kremlin. It is located approximately on the place where the corner Tyumen tower was situated at the period of the khanate. It was also called Sergius tower, since the St. Sergius gate church was located on it.

The Pentagonal tower.

The Pentagonal tower was built in the late 16th or early 17th century by the south-west branch of the Tezitsky ravine where the fortress wall bent. The place for its construction was not very well chosen (its western part stood on a steep slope of the hill], for which reason it was regularly repaired and strengthened by buttresses. The tower completely collapsed in the second half of the 18th century, which is connected with the events of 1774, in particular, with the great fire during the siege of the Kremlin by troops of Yemelyan Pugachev.

The revealed remains of the foundation were conserved in 2002.

The West nameless tower.

The West nameless tower with two rows of round firing ports has four tiers, its height is almost 14 m. And it was also built in the late 16th or early 17th century. Its western half is round, while the eastern half is hexagonal.

The North-West tower.

The North-West tower was situated 100 m. southward of the Secret tower, presumably on the place of the earlier tower of the khanate period.

The Tainitckaya (Secret passage) tower.

The Secret passage tower is situated approximately on the same place as the Nour-Aii tower of the time of the khanate, it got its name from the secret spring that was connected to the Nour-Ali tower by an underpass used by citizens of the besieged town. The underpass was blasted in September 1552 with the help of a sap that was dug from the Oair's stone steam-bath on Bulak. It was from here, through the Nour-Ali gate, that Ivan the Terrible entered the conquered khan's fortress on 4 October 1552.

The square two-tiered structure with L-shaped arched passage and hip-roof was built in the second half of the 16th century simultaneously with the Saviour's tower. The impressive square lower tier with firing ports that faced the Kazanka is topped by the low and smaller square tier with modest flat pilaster-strips and small arched windows. From the open gallery that surrounds the upper tier opens a magnificent view of the Kazanka and the area across the river.

The North tower.

The North tower, the only stone (rectangular) tower of the khanate period, was seriously reconstructed at the late 16th or early 17th century and acquired a round shape. The archaeological excavations of the recent years revealed the rectangular (9.5 x 8 m.) foundation, 4 m. high. and the lower part of the tower dating from the khanate period. The object was conserved in 2004.

The Voskresenskaya (Resurrection) passage tower.

The Resurrection passage tower with the gate church is situated approximately on the place of the Yelbuga gate of the khanate period.

The North-east round tower.

The North-east round tower was built in the second half of the 16th or early 17th century. The white stone square tower with diameter of nearly 7 m. collapsed as early as already in the 18th century (because of the poor quality of construction) and was not rebuilt afterwards. In 2002. the remains of the tower were conserved.

The Dmitroyskaya passage tower.

The Dmitroyskaya passage tower was situated, most probably, on the place of The Zboilivye gate of the khanate period. It got its name from Dmitry Solunsky church located nearby. The tower did not survive and. so far. did not become a subject of excavations.

The Consistory round tower.

The Consistory round tower, the four-tiered white stone/brick tower in the eastern part of the Kremlin, was built in the 17th-18th centuries by local craftsmen in the course of extending the fortress south ward.

The South-East round tower.

The South-East round tower, a typical specimen of the Pskov fortification art, was built in 1556-1562. The white stone structure with a strong ground floor has four tiers and is topped by high hip roof.

The complex of the Governor's Palace.

The complex of the Governor's Palace is located in the northern part of the Kremlin, in its highest, section, on the place of the palace complex of Ka^an khans, the remains of which preserved untii the end of the 18th century. The complex of the Governor's Palace includes: the Governor's Palace, Syuyumbike tower, and the palace church.

The Governor's Palace was built in 1845-1848 by design of a well-known architect Konstantin Ton, author of the Church of Christ the Saviour and the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow. Construction works were supervised by Alexandr Peske. and interior work has been performed under the guidance of Mikhail Korinfsky.

The Palace consists of the main building and a low semicircular office building that adjoins the main building on the north side with a passage to the inner courtyard. The building is two-storeyed, with the attic storey and the basement. The main building is connected to the palace church by a passage on the first floor. The inner layout has been arranged as enfilade.

The main (south] facade faces the mini-park and has a symmetrical composition. The central part is emphasised by the risalite with an attic consisting of three small keel arches. They rest on paired three-quarter columns with Corinthian capital. On two sides of the risalite there are two entrances decorated by porticos with broken pediments. The faHade has a clear horizontal division.

The decoration of interiors is dominated by motifs of the late Russian classicism. The entrance hall on the first floor is covered by a vault with large bays transforming into deep niches with window apertures fit into them. The vault abutments are emphasised by profiled gilded lis-tel. The grand hail with flat plafond is banded by two rows of chaplets and a rich laced cornice.

In 1996-2002 the work has been done to reconstruct the U-shaped building extension and the main building. At present, it houses the residence of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan.

The palace church is an interesting monument of architecture of Kazan Kremlin. It is situated on the western side of the Governor's Palace. According to some sources, a church with the altar of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary was built on its place as early as already in 1565. In 1749. the church burned down and was reconstructed after 1768. However, it was virtually destroyed by fire of 1815 and stood haif-ruined for a longtime. It was reconstructed again in 1859 by order of Nicholas I and consecrated anew as the Advent church.

In literature one could tind opinions that the church stands on the place of the Nour-Ali mosque that existed at the khanate period (indeed, in the legend of the town plan of 176S it is indicated as a church reconstructed from a mosque). The archaeological excavations of 2001 did not confirm that point of view.

The two-tiered single-cupola square body (chetverik) of the church with three apses rests on a high ground floor and is surrounded by covered gallery. The square body is arched over by the coved vault. The walls of the church are made of brick and are plastered. The corners of the square body are decorated by bunches of columns with magnificent capitals, and its windows are framed by baroque cases. The gallery, to which runs a broad external staircase, is covered by an arcade that rests on facetted pillars. The cupola of the church rests on a high drum and is onion-shaped. Its surface is decorated by vegetative garlands and wreathes.

The latest repair and reconstruction works were performed in 2001-2004. The building will house the Museum of History of Statehood of the Tatar people.

The Syuyumbike tower is the architectural emblem of the city. It is situated on the highest point of the Kremlin hill (70 m. above the Kazanka level). Its name is connected with the name of the Tatar tsarina Syuyumbike, daughter of the Nogai murza (prince) Yusuf and wife of Kazan khans Jan-Aii, Safa-Girey, and Shah-Ali. Syuyumbike was brought to Kazan in 1532 and stayed there until 1551 when she was captured and sent to Moscow together with her little son. Utyamysh-Girey. Noteworthy is that there is another name of the tower, widely used by the Tatars, the Khan Mosque minaret.

This tower gave birth to numerous legends. One of them runs that it was built on the place where Moslem saints were buried and the local people come to for praying.

Not far from that place there was a grave of Safa-Girey khan, the favourite husband of Syuyumbike, who cited in 1549, According to one of the legends, a mausoleum or a memorial mosque, i.e. the Syuyumbike mosque, was erected over his grave. Another legend handed down by the Tatars from generation to generation tells about the all-people's grief about the tsarina's capture by the Russians and her crying over the grave of her husband before being taken to Moscow together with her son, little Utyamysh-Girey.

The legends show Syuyumbike as an inexpressibly beautiful and clever woman and a wise ruler. They run that when Ivan the Terrible learned about it, he sent his ambassadors with proposal to become his wife. But the proud Syuyumbike rejected his proposal. The angry tsar came with a huge army to conquer Kazan, When the enemy troops besieged Kazan, Syuyumbike agreed to marry the cruel tsar on condition that his builders erect a tower within one week that would be higher than all minarets of Kazan. The Russian craftsmen built one tier every day. By the end of the week the wish of the tsarina was fulfilled. During the bridal banquet Syuyumbike askeo! Ivan for permission to look at the native town for the last time before departure for Moscow. Having his consent, she ascended the top tier of the tower and threw herself down.

The period of construction of the Syuyumbike tower has long been unidentified, which sometimes caused heated discussion. The tower was considered as the architectural monument of the khanate period of Kazan dating from the mid-16th century not only by the Tatar, but also Russian scientists. According to a group of other researchers, the tower was buiit not earlier than the late 17th or early 18th century and originally was the entrance to the courtyard of the commandant's house that replaced the old tsar's court.

In recent years the archaeological excavations and surveys were carried out by the northern and eastern wails of the Syuyurnbike tower. It was established that a mosque stood on its place at the khanate period, the remains of which were still visible at the late 17th century. Now it became clear why the Tatar population still considers the Syuyumbike tower as the minaret of the khan's mosque. It turns out that the tower was constructed in the early 18t.h century.

The tower has seven tiers. It is built of oversize red bricks. Its height is 58 in. Its three lower square tiers rise stepwise and are bordered by perimeter by open galleries. The first tier (its area is 140 sq. m.) has an arched passage. The octagonal tiers Ivosmeriks) that follow the square ones are topped by a hip roof with an observation tower-lantern with a spire atop of it. The brick vaults arch over the premises in the upper square tier and in the first octagonal body.

The lower storey is decorated by capitals in the form of stalactite-shaped corbels. The galleries of the square tiers are surrounded by parapets with decorative finishing. According to experts, the decoration of tlie Syuyurnbike tower is. in general, in the spirit of Moscow school, but the motifs of the Boulgar-Tatar tradition can be found on its facades and in its silhouette.

In the early past century the vertical deviation of the tower was recorded, which was gradually increasing until recently. Today, the inclination of the tower is 1.8 m,

Over the past few decades of the past century the works have been performed to underpin the tower foundation with the help of root piles: its facades and interiors were restored with the use of an original technique of brickwork surface strengthening and wall tinting. In 1991, a crescent was installed atop the tower.

The complex of the Annunciation Cathedral is situated in the north-east part of the Kremlin. This area was forming as a centre of the Orthodox administration of the region starting from the second half of the 16th century. The complex includes the Annunciation Cathedral, the Bishop's House, and the Consistory, Besides, the archaeological fragments of stone buildings dating from different periods were revealed here.

The Annunciation Cathedral.

The Annunciation Cathedral is one of the largest structures in Kazan Kremlin and the oldest among the preserved stone structures in Kazan, It was built in 1556-1562 by Pskov craftsmen headed by Postnik Yakovlev and Ivan Shiryai. Originally it was a small wooden church, the construction of which was started on 4 October 1552 by Ivan the Terrible himself in commemoration of the victory over the Tatars, which was also considered as victory of Christianity over Islam, It was consecrated on 6 October 1552 in the honour of the Annunciation. The temple became the cathedral-and collegiate church in 1555 after the arrival in Kazan of Bishop Gury.

The stone temple was consecrated on 15 August 1562. It was a five-pillar and three-apse temple with two aisles connected by parvis, which enveloped the central cube-shaped body of the cathedral. The cupolas of the temple were helmet-shaped.

In the early 17th century a separately standing six-tiered bell-tower was built. It was round and its height was slightly less than that of the Syuyumbike tower. In 1694, a winter stone Nativity church was built close to the cathedra! (on its north-western side).

The cathedral was many times repaired and experienced three large-scale reconstructions after fires of 1672,1742,1749. 1757 and 1815.

On 20 August 1836 Kazan was visited by Emperor Nicholas I. He was asked to allocate funds tor repair of the winter Nativity church that stood in dilapidated condition. Emperor ordered to destroy the church arid prepare a plan for expansion of the Annunciation Cathedral.

According to design by Foma Petondi, which was approved by Nicholas I. the cathedral was expanded in 1841-1846 west-, north- and southward. The former aisles became part of the main temple. Two warm aisles were added, which were separated from the main temple by walls and had independent entrances. The right one was consecrated in the honour of the Nativity, and the left one - in the honour of Boris and Gleb. Since that time, the external view of the cathedral did not change materially. In 1869-1870 the cathedral was frescoed anew. In 1906-1909 the capital reconstruction of the interior was performed by design of Fyodor Malinovsky.

The original work of the 16th century preserved in the central space with the middle drum, the apses, side aisles: in traces of interior frescoes in the altar section; and in a number of decorative elements. The interior pillars in the temple are round, just like in the Assumption Cathedra! of Moscow Kremlin. The sail vault of the main cupola is substituted by pendentives, a technique typical for oriental architecture and unique for temple construction of that time. The decoration of [he facades includes the figured bands (tumbled brickwork, bricks laid edgeways) connected with rows of false arches. The walls have keel-shaped crowns and keel-shaped gabies. The central baroque pear-shaped cupola is gilded; side cupolas are onion-shaped, blue in colour and decorated by gilded stars. On the western side there is a spatial two-tiers-high refectory. The refectory is built of bricks, its walls are plastered and have keel-shaped gables, and its facades are decorat-ed'by flat pilasters.

Bishop's House.

The Bishop's House is situated further to the south-east of the Annunciation Cathedral. It was built in 1829 to replace the dismantled palace of Kazan bishops of the second half of the 16th and 17th centuries. The Bishop's House was the residence of the head of the Orthodox Church in the Kazan region.

The building has three storeys, is built of bricks, its walls are plastered, and it has a gam-brei roof. The rectangular main body is adjoined on its eastern side by three strong risalites. The entire composition is strictly symmetric along the axis of the central risalite, in which the house church was situated. The facades are decorated in the style of late classicism.

Consistory.

The Consistory (Spiritual Board] concludes the complex of the Annunciation Cathedral on its southern side. Its south-eastern wing adjoins the Consistory tower. The building was rebuilt in the ISth century from the previous Bishop's Stable Court. The facades of the Consistory were reconstructed in the 19th century.

The building has two storeys, is built of bricks and consists of several parts dating from different times that form an open square with inner courtyard. The main part stands along the central street of the Kremlin, in line with buildings of the Public Offices. The first storey in its oldest part is arched over by coved vaults and is cut through by the passage arch. The eastern wall of the courtyard part includes the remains of the fortress white-stone wall of the 16th - 18th centuries.

The facades are plastered, decorated by window cases done in shapes of Russian fancy architecture.

Archaeological fragments of stone buildings dating from 16th - 18th centuries.

The remains of a large building dating back to the khanate period were revealed in the mini-park in front of the Annunciation Cathedral. It preserved only at the level of the foundation and its basement floor. The walls were built of well dressed stone blocks bound by limestone mortar. Dimensions of the find are 16 x 14 m. The entrance was situated on the eastern side, where a stair platform was revealed. According to scientists, the building formed a part of the complex of Kul-Sharif Mosque.

In the 18th century its foundation was used for construction of a factory building. Deep pits were revealed in the middle of the structure, the walls of which were made of bricks. According to experts, these pits were used to found copper bells. Indeed, copper slag and parts of ore were found during the digs.

Another building of the khanate period preserved as traces of wood piles used to compact earth under the stone foundation of the wall. It was a rectangular building with dimensions of some 12bl8 m. When clearing the building, archaeologists found two treasures in its northeastern and north-western corners consisting of silver coins. The larger treasure consisted of 1449. and the smaller one of 456 coins. The major part of them were minted at the time of Ivan IN (1462-1505) and Vasily III (1505-1533]. The treasures also included coins from Pskov and Veliky Novgorod dating from the period oftheir independence and some appanage principalities,

The building was completely dismantled as early as already in the 18th century for building stones. Its foundations were also used duringthe Russian period in structures of buildings of the Bishop's courtyard.

Public Offices.

The complex of Public Offices in the southeastern part of the Kremlin extends from the former Spiritual Consistory {at present, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Tatarstan) almost to the Saviour's gate. Historically it shaped as the centre of the administrative power. The complex consists of the Public Offices and the Guardhouse.

The building of the Public Offices was built in the 70s of the 18th century by design ofVasily Kaftyrev, the author of the first regular plan of Kazan. It included the building of the Governor's Office, previously built by design of the same architect. The facades were reconstructed in the 40s of the 19th century.

The building is situated along the thoroughfare that leads, inside the Kremlin, from the Saviour's tower to the Secret tower. Between the building and the eastern curtain wall of the fortress walls, standing in parallel to it, is a narrow and long courtyard space. To connect the courtyard to the Kremlin thoroughfare, the building of the Public Offices has two passages at the level of the ground floor. The resulting three sections have their own entrances with lobbies and stairs leading to the first floor. On the second floor, the buildings are connected by central corridor, on both sides of which are public offices with high ceilings. The basement storey arched over by vaults is lit by daylight, with the help of window areaways along all facades.

The main facade, significantly reconstructed in the 19th century, is decorated in the late Classicism style. The courtyard faHade preserved in some of its sections the original look of the late 18th century.

Guardhouse.

The building of the Guardhouse is situated in the south-eastern corner of the Kremlin, to the right of the Saviour's tower, where, in the second half of the 16th century, the Tsar's Courtyard was situated. The building was erected in the rnid-19th century.

The building has three storeys, is buiit of bricks, and is L-shaped. Its southern wall adjoins the curtain wall of the Kremlin wall between the Saviour's tower and the South-East corner tower. The eastern wall of the Guardhouse does not fully adjoin the wall between the South-East tower and the Consistory tower, forming a narrow passage to the corner tower.

The facades have no decorative elements, are smoothly plastered, and have only large rectangular window apertures, a simple cornice and a low span-roof.

Saviour-Transfiguration Monastery.

The complex of the Saviour-Transfiguration Monastery is located in the south-eastern part of the Kremlin, near the Saviour's tower. The construction began in 1557. The monastery was the centre of missionary activity in the region, and the place where local sanctifiers and most respected nobles of Kazan were buried. The complex includes the architectural-archaeological fragments of the Saviour-Transfiguration Cathedral, the Nicholas the Warrior church, the Monks' Building, and the Small Cave of the Saviour-Transfiguration Monastery.

The architectural-archaeological remains of the Transfiguration Cathedral are situated in the centre of the complex. It was built in 1595-1601. It was a white-stone temple with six-pillars, three apses and five cupolas, whose dimensions and artistic properties did not yieid to the Annunciation Cathedral.

The Transfiguration Cathedral was one of the first to be rumed in the period of the fight against religion in the mid-1920s. Only the basement (podklet) with floor structure has preserved until our clays. The walls of the basement are made of white stone; the close fitting blocks are smoothly dressed. The vaulted ceiling is also made of white stone and rests on the walls and two rows of square pillars.

The Nicholas the Miracle-Worker (Nicholas the Warrior) church

The Nicholas the Miracle-Worker (Nicholas the Warrior) church, situated on the western side of the Saviour-Transfiguration Cathedral, adjoins the western wall of the Kremlin. It was built in 1558 on the place of a gap made by a powerful blast in September 1552. Originally it was used as the white-stone two-storeyed refectory chambers with the church: a rectangular two-storeyed building with a single-pillared refectory chamber on the first floor and a similar premise used as the bakery on the ground floor; on the east, the refectory was adjoined by a church with a semicircular apse. In the 17th century, the first floor was reconstructed in bricks and arched over by the barrel vault; on the north, the Dean's Chamber was added to the refectory. In 1815, the church was rebuilt by design of architect Alexandr Schmidt.

The building has two storeys, is L-shaped, and consists of two temple spaces dating from different times with the refectory and the Dean's Chamber. The basement preserved from the 16th century; it is made of white stone, has a vaulted single-pillared premise and the cellar arched over by the barrel vault. The shape of the temple with the refectory is rectangular, with asymmetrically situated apse. The Dean's Chamber adjoins the refectory on the north. The western wall rests on the wall-walk of the curtain wall between the South-West and the Transfiguration towers. The temple part is topped by square tier covered by roof, which covers the whole building. The cupola that topped the square tier was lost at the Soviet period. The original decoration of the facades of the basement did not survive, and the windows of the facades of the second tier are decorated by sem'i-circular fascia with images of the cross.

The Monks' Building.

The Monks' Building is located to the north-east of the Saviour-Transfiguration Monastery and adjoins the monastery fence. The building consisting of cells was built in 1670. In the 18th century the Treasurer's House and. in 1892. The gallery were added to it.

The building has two-and three-storeyed is built of bricks, L-shaped, and is clearly lengthwise orientated from the east to the west. A num-Its extensive facade is orientated along the thoroughfare. The building has a clear symmetric plan, toll and light premises along the central corridor, austere and monumental external look typical for Jate Russian classicism. Its facades are modestly decorated by profiled window cases and rustication of the ground floor. The main entrance is emphasised by forged metal hood made by master Chebaksin.

The interiors draw attention with the intricate three-flight stairs resting on brick arches and vaults.

The Manege.

The Manege is situated on the southern side of the main building of the Military School, with its flank to the thoroughfare. It was built in the 1880s by design done in St.-Petersburg. During the construction, the builders used the foundations of the building of the monastery fence (the western wall).

The building is rectangular in plan, (56 x 17 m.l: its height to the comb of the roof is 10 m. The bay of 17 m. was covered by the suspended ceiling attached to the frame system of the building. Its original function was to be an exercising area for practice.

The building was restored in 2003-2004.

The Cannon Foundry.

The Cannon Foundry occupies the northwestern part of the Kremlin and adjoins the fortress wall on the west.

The complex emerged in the 17th century. It consisted of the main building, situated along the Sheinkmana Street of the Kremlin, and two adjoining buildings that enclose the courtyard from the north and south. The entrance to its territory was through the passage gate in the centre of the main building. This period is represented at present by the South building and the archaeological remains of the production facilities inside the existing main building.

In the early 19th century the Cannon Foundry was one of the largest in the country. Its reconstruction was performed with direct participation of a well-known engineer Sethencourt, the author of the Manege in Moscow near Moscow Kremlin. In 1812, a new (western) building was erected that adjoined the Kremlin wall. Here, the new smith-shops were situated, in 1815, the fortress suffered from fire, which damaged all buildings in the Kremlin, including the Cannon Foundry. After it. production of weapons in the Kremlin was stopped.

In 1825. the former arsenal and foundry buildings were reconstructed for the school that trained battalions ot military cantonists. The reconstruction of the complex was finished in 1837. The previous considerable difference in the level of the relief of the courtyard was terraced, the buildings were repaired, the northern facade of the complex was reconstructed, and the new two-storeyed building was erected between the main building and the building of the 17th century. The new building became part of the southern wing.

In 1866, the buildings of the school for military cantonists were transferred to the newly established Kazan Military Infantry School.

Kazan Kremlin is a unique complex of monuments of history, archaeology, and architecture, and symbolises the thousand-year-old history of the capital of Tatarstan, the glorious past of the multimillion Tatar people. The uniqueness of the monument is manifested, first of all, in the fact that it is the only Russian-Tatar fortress of the 15th-16th centuries in our country, which preserved in its main parts the more ancient Boulgar town-planning traditions.

The peculiar and unique, in its way, architectural and artistic image of the Kremlin ensemble, whose formation took centuries and became the result of a synthesis of the Tatar and Russian styles, makes it different from ail the rest, not less interesting, medieval monuments. Obviously, it is this uniqueness that formed the basis for including the Kremlin on the World Heritage List. This decision was made at the 24th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, which took place on 30 November 2000 in Cairns, Australia.