Cathedral of the Assumption

cathedral, Moscow, Russia

Also known as: Dormition Cathedral, Uspensky Sobor

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June 18, 2026

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The Cathedral of the Assumption, located in Moscow's Kremlin, is a significant example of Russian church architecture from the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Built between 1475 and 1479, it was constructed in an Italianate-Byzantine style. The cathedral is noted for its pure, simple lines, elegant arches, and five golden domes. It served as the burial place for Orthodox metropolitans and patriarchs from the 14th to 18th centuries. The cathedral's design was largely modeled after churches in Vladimir, incorporating Byzantine planning while also showing Italian influences in its exterior decoration. It is one of the most striking architectural ensembles within the Kremlin.12

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Moscow
The Kremlin of Moscow
The Cathedral of the Assumption is the oldest, built of white stone in 1475–79 in the Italianate-Byzantine style. Its pure, simple, and beautifully proportioned lines and elegant arches are crowned by five golden domes. The Orthodox metropolitans and patriarchs of the 14th to 18th centuries are…
Read More
The Cathedral of the Assumption is the oldest, built of white stone in 1475–79 in the Italianate-Byzantine style. Its pure, simple, and beautifully proportioned lines and elegant arches are crowned by five golden domes. The Orthodox metropolitans and patriarchs of the 14th to 18th centuries are…
Read More

Western architecture
Kievan Rus and Russia
These churches, the Assumption (Uspensky) Cathedral and the cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel, were largely modeled after the churches of Vladimir. The Italians were required to incorporate the basic features of Byzantine planning and design into the new cathedrals; it was only in the exterior decoration of…
Read More
These churches, the Assumption (Uspensky) Cathedral and the cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel, were largely modeled after the churches of Vladimir. The Italians were required to incorporate the basic features of Byzantine planning and design into the new cathedrals; it was only in the exterior decoration of…
Read More

Dionisy
…Volokolamsk—decorated the walls of the Uspensky Sobor (Dormition Cathedral), the main cathedral in the Kremlin. In 1481 Ivan III, grand prince of Moscow, ordered Dionisy—who at the time was head of the iconography workshop—to work on the iconostasis (the screen that separates the altar from the nave in Eastern churches)…
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…Volokolamsk—decorated the walls of the Uspensky Sobor (Dormition Cathedral), the main cathedral in the Kremlin. In 1481 Ivan III, grand prince of Moscow, ordered Dionisy—who at the time was head of the iconography workshop—to work on the iconostasis (the screen that separates the altar from the nave in Eastern churches)…
Read More