Three Centuries, Two Cathedrals, One Nation.: A Socio-Cultural Analysis on Memory Operations in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia

A holy place, a war monument, a tourist site, and a museum. All these words define a structure that stands today in the center of Moscow: The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Built as a reconstruction of an 18th-century cathedral destroyed during the Soviet regime, the building became a site of heated discussions on the topics of politics, memory, and history in post-communist Russia. While many see it as a static national monument, its agency is left out of these discussions. Drawing on the theories of memory developed by Edward Casey and Katharine Hodgkin with Susannah Radstone, the multiple facets of the cathedral are discussed. By examining the role of the public, the operation of memory, and the digital space, the dichotomy between the “restorative” and the “reflective” forms of nostalgia articulated by Svetlana Boym is challenged. The ubiquitousness of the cathedral is then highlighted and its discourse complicated. Through investigating the cathedral’s current position within...Show moreA holy place, a war monument, a tourist site, and a museum. All these words define a structure that stands today in the center of Moscow: The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Built as a reconstruction of an 18th-century cathedral destroyed during the Soviet regime, the building became a site of heated discussions on the topics of politics, memory, and history in post-communist Russia. While many see it as a static national monument, its agency is left out of these discussions. Drawing on the theories of memory developed by Edward Casey and Katharine Hodgkin with Susannah Radstone, the multiple facets of the cathedral are discussed. By examining the role of the public, the operation of memory, and the digital space, the dichotomy between the “restorative” and the “reflective” forms of nostalgia articulated by Svetlana Boym is challenged. The ubiquitousness of the cathedral is then highlighted and its discourse complicated. Through investigating the cathedral’s current position within the socio-political situation of Russia, the thesis will conclude with a discussion on the role of monuments within the urban landscape and in forming an individual as well as national identity.Show less

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Three Centuries, Two Cathedrals, One Nation. A Socio-Cultural Analysis on Memory Operations in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia