The Kalyazin Bell Tower is one of the most famous monuments on the Volga. It is located 200 meters from the right bank of the Volga in the center of Kalyazin. After the flooding, the historical sites in the city have not been preserved, but the bell tower in the water is unique, so tourists come to Kalyazin to see it.
The city of Kalyazin appeared on the right bank of the Volga, as the patrimony of Makariev Kalyazin monastery, which was located on the left bank of the Volga. In 1520, the construction of stone temples and fortress walls began in the monastery. By the end of the 16th century, the monastery had become one of the most powerful fortresses on the Volga. However, the city began to develop on the right bank. Transport links with other cities in the region (Moscow, Yaroslavl, Uglich, etc.) were much more convenient from the right bank.
St. Nicholas Cathedral in the historical center of Kalyazin was built in 1694 during the reign of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich. In 1800, a five-tiered bell tower was built next to it. The height of the Kalyazin bell tower reaches 74.5 meters. It was built in the classical style, and at the time of construction the bell tower was one of the tallest in Russia.
In 1940, the construction of the Uglich HPS was completed. It was the first HPS from the Volga Cascade, and the builders were in a hurry to launch it on the eve of the war. The Uglich HPS played a very important role in providing Moscow with electricity during the Battle of Moscow in 1941. 2/3 of the city of Kalyazin fell into the flood zone after the construction of the Uglich HPS. The entire historical center of Kalyazin and the entire Monastyrsky Sloboda village with the Trinity Makariev Monastery went under water.
Usually builders dismantle all buildings in the flood zone, but the water arrived so quickly that they did not have time to disassemble the bell tower of the Nikolsky Monastery. Since the Volga makes a sharp bend in this place, it was decided to leave it as a landmark for ships. It is located 200 meters from the shore.
During the flooding of the Kalyazin Bell tower, only the foundation and about two meters of the lower tier disappeared under the water. The builders could not remove the largest alarm bell weighing more than 8 tons from the bell tower. He did not pass through the openings of its tier, and the builders tried to lower him to the tier below. At this time, the bell broke through all the ceilings, fell into the basement.
The water was coming and the bell went under water. There are stories that before the war, children swam near the bell tower and heard the buzzing of the bell. In June 1941, all residents of Kalyazin heard the sound of the bell under water. The next day the war began. Then people heard the bell ringing before all the main battles of the WWII. Residents of Kalyazin began to believe in the mystical power of the bell, but in 1980 the city authorities decided to stop ringing the bell of the Kalyazin bell Tower.
Previously, the bell tower rose directly out of the water. A dredger near the bell tower washed up a shoal, and then an artificial island was poured here. After that, the ringing of the bell under the water stopped forever. Now people can land on the island by boat and go inside the bell tower. Now services are sometimes held in it, and bells have been re-installed on the upper tiers. During the services, their ringing is heard over the Volga.
