The Pokrovsky complex on the southern side of the Okolny city is a very in-teresting place you must visit. It is on the bank of the river Velikaya, just opposite the Myrozhsky monastery.
The walls of the Okolny city were erected in 1465 and the Pokrovskaya (Intercession) tower always played an important role in the defense of the city. The Pokrovsky complex also includes the Church of the Intercession and the Nativity at the Breach, as well as the Svinuzskaya tower. Earlier, it also included a male monastery, but it didn’t survive to our days.
The Pokrovskaya tower was one of the biggest towers in the medieval Europe. Its height is 40 meters, with the width of the walls being 6 meters in the lower part and 3,5 meters in the upper part. The tower has a circumference of 90 meters so you can easily ride a horse within it.
The main events of the siege and the storm of Pskov by the troops of the Polish king Stephen Báthory in 1581 took place just near the Pokrovskaya tower. By that time the Livonian War had lasted for over 20 years and it was very important for the Poles to capture Pskov. However, a long siege followed by a strong storm gave no results. Even though the wall between the Pokrovskaya and Svinuzskaya towers was de-stroyed and the towers themselves got very serious damages, the Poles could not break into the city through these breaches. As a result, Stephen Báthory had to retreat and sign the Treaty of Yam-Zapolsky with Ivan the Terrible a year later. By the terms of the truce Russia got significant territories in the Eastern-country.
Now the Pokrovsky complex, which was restored after the Great Patriotic War, also includes the Church of the Intercession and the Nativity at the Breach. It was the same breach where the Pskovians fought with the Poles at the end of 16 century. The church was built in 1581, just after the retreat of the Polish troops from Pskov. It was the main church of the Intercession monastery, which didn’t survive to our days.
