Red Square

The Red Square is considered to be the center of Moscow. Symbolically, it separates the Kremlin citadel and the a merchant neighborhood known as Kitai Gorod (Chinatown). Most of the important streets in Moscow start from the Kremlin and extend to different parts of Moscow in a sun-like, radiating fashion.

Originally, the area of Red Square was called Pozhar (burnt-out place) as it was covered in wooden buildings that often caught fire. As a part of a grand project to renovate the Kremlin in 1493, the square was cleared out.

Interestingly, the name Red Square is derived neither from the color the Kremlin walls nor from the link to the Soviet era. Rather, the name came about from the Russian word krasnaya that means "beautiful" in the older, classical version of the Russian language. The name was originally used to describe St. Basil's Cathedral standing on this square.



You have probably seen video footage of Soviet military parades on the Red Square (and subsequent Russian military parades), but did you know that during the Great Patriotic War (World War II), when German forces were just 60 miles away form the Kremlin, Stalin commanded the official parade in a celebration of the Communist revolution of 1917? Russian troops were brought in from the battlefields to march on Red Square and then moved back to the front lines. Every year since the defeat of Hitler, the Red Square hosts the official "victory parade" and in 2005 it celebrated the 60th anniversary of victory over the Nazis. This event was attended by 60 leaders from the countries that took part in World War II and was the largest gathering of world leaders in history.



Each building in the Red Square is a legend in its own right: Lenin's Mausoleum, the Iberian Gate Chapel, Kazan Cathedral and more. Red Square separates the Kremlin - the symbol of the Russian state - from Kitai Gorod, the symbol of commerce. St. Basil's Cathedral stands on the third edge of the Square representing the Russian Orthodox religion. Interestingly, the Iberian Gate Chapel, which has been turned into a Bolshevik Revolution museum, stands on the remaining side.