Red building of Kyiv National University 4

Chervonyi Korpus Kyyivsʹkoho Natsionalʹnoho Universytetu (as read in the Ukrainian lang).

Oldest 4-story building of the Kyiv University located at Volodymyrsʹka Street, 60 in Kyiv

The solemn laying of the building took place on July 31, 1837. A medal was left at the site of the foundation, indicating the year of construction. In addition to the medal, a stone from the foundation of The Church of the Tithes (first stone church in Kyiv , was built by the order of Grand Prince Vladimir (Volodymyr in ukrainian lang) the Great between 989 and 996) , a copper plate and three coins: platinum, gold, silver were laid in the foundation. On the occasion of the bookmark, a special medal was issued with the image of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I on one side and a cross in radiance with the inscription: ''Vo svete tvoyem uzrim svet!'' / "In your light we will see the light!" (almost close translate) on the other.

The University building was designed as a huge enclosed square with a courtyard. The length of the facade is 145, 68 m. The architecture of the University has a monumental character of a large public building. When Vincent Ivanovich Beretti was working on the building project, it was not yet known from which side of the building Volodymyrsʹka Street would be laid. That is why the architect made both the eastern and western sides presentable. Today, the eastern part faces Volodymyrsʹka Street, and the western part faces the modern Botanical Garden (one of the oldest botanical gardens in Kyiv and Ukraine. It is a division of Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv.).

Until the 20s. The twentieth century in the Red building in a semicircular facade in its northern part was the Catholic University Church, and in the south - the Orthodox University House Church in the name of St. Volodymyr.

On the fourth floor of the Red Corps, student dormitories were located (as they were called "student cameras"). They were disbanded in 1858. These rooms were intended for training after school hours. There were also a student library, apartments and offices of teachers, a university punishment cell for students. On the second floor was a university cafeteria.

Museums, offices, archives, apartments for employees, a large library were located on the first, second and third floors. Libraries and museums were accessible to outside visitors only with the permission of the deans and the rector.

In 1841, the Botanical Garden was established behind the Red Corps. For some time there was also a Zoological Garden in this territory, but in 1913 it was moved to a new place.

In the 40-50 years. The 19th century, the building of Kyiv University and the nearest streets around its building were called by the residents of the city and the “Latin Quarter of Kyiv” (the area of ​​modern Pankivsʹka Street), by analogy with the traditional Parisian student quarter on the left bank of the Seine near the Sorbonne.
University Square, opposite the eastern facade of the University, was first transformed into the "University Garden". Its laying took place in the 1860s with the assistance of gardener K. Hristiani. Later it was renamed the “Nikolaev Garden”, named after the founder of the University, the Russian Emperor Nicholas I. In 1896, a monument to the emperor was erected in the same park facing the Red Corps.
In 1915-1916, the military unit of the Russian army was located in the university building. Kyiv University itself was evacuated to Saratov at that time.

Since 1920, for six years, the Higher Institute of Public Education worked within the walls of the Red Corps. And from 1926 to 1932 it was renamed the Kyiv Institute of Public Education.
In 1932, the revived Kyiv State University was located here. True, in the same year, a fire broke out at the University, which destroyed the roof, wooden arches above the entrance hall and the assembly hall.
On March 9, 1939, a monument to Taras Shevchenko was erected on the site of the monument to Nicholas I - in honor of the celebration of the 125th anniversary of his birth.

Since 1941, for two years, the so-called National Socialist University of Kyiv worked in the Red Corps. In the courtyard of the University, German troops carried out combat training.

In November 1943, the retreating German troops burned the Red Corps. In total, about 70% of the university’s territory was destroyed after five explosions and fires. Losses in laboratory equipment amounted to 50 million Soviet rubles.
In 1944-1945, Professor Alyoshin Pavlo Fedotovich and his team prepared a project for restoration and reconstruction. The main task was to preserve the style of home architecture and adapt to modern requirements.

In the room where the church was located in 1920 , the Museum of the History of Kyiv University was opened (in 1978).
And there, where the Orthodox Church of St. Volodymyr   (at winter) and   (at summer) was located in the same 1920 , a Komsomol (The All-Union Leninist Young Communist League usually known as Komsomol) meeting hall was located. Later, namely in the 1990s, this room was converted into a sports hall.
In 1999, the interior of the Red Corps was reconstructed - the lobby, the halls of the Academic Council, and the assembly hall.
In 2004, the Red Corps was provided with Wi-Fi and free access to the Internet, which could be used by students of Kyiv University.

On October 15, 2009 , the opening ceremony of the memorial plaque to the prominent architect , builder of the Red Corps Vincenzo Beretti (1781-1842) was held on the facade of the Red Building of Shevchenko University (here is a picture of this memorial plaque / it is wonderful sculpture ->  ). with the inscription "from the grateful Ukrainian and Italian peoples"


However, in the evening of the same day, a fire broke out in the Red Corps. Papers and a table were burning, later there was a threat of a fire spreading over a large area. For this reason, about a thousand students were evacuated.

At this point the story in wikipedia about the University for some reason ends , it is not specified whether the fire was stopped and what were its consequences..

But that finish on an interesting note, I want to add information about Vincent's work :

Most of VI Beretti's works are made in the style of classicism. With the direct participation of the architect developed projects of the following university institutions: Astronomical Observatory (1840), Botanical Garden, at the location of which and the construction of greenhouses in it specifically interested in the opinion of prominent Ukrainian scientist Mykhailo Maksymovych. He planned the territories adjacent to the Main Building of the University and new city highways - Volodymyrs'ka Street, University Boulevard (now - Taras Shevchenko Boulevard). 1839 construction of the Beretti project of the Institute of Noble Girls (now the International Center of Culture and Arts). He was also involved in the completion of the construction of the Catholic Church (1837-1839) , The design of the 1st men's gymnasium , and the strengthening of the remains of the Golden Gates. Co-author of the master plan of Kyiv (approved in 1837).

translation from Ukrainian into English 

One of the most controversial issues surrounding the Red Corps is why its walls are painted red? There are a number of versions about this:

1) Ribbons of the Order of St. Volodymyr. The red color of the university walls is associated with ribbons of the Order of St. Volodymyr (red and black), therefore, the building of Kyiv University of St. Volodymyr reflects these colors (this is the official version in the days of the Russian Empire and modern Ukraine).

2) In the days of the USSR, there was another version - the red color of the walls of Kyiv University was associated with imitation of the color of the Winter Palace of the XIX century. in Leningrad.

3) It is connected with the second and first, in the sense that the color of the university walls was planned such as that of the Winter Palace, however, when they brought expensive Italian paint to Kyiv for this, they accidentally messed up something in its ingredients, and the paint turned bright red. Nevertheless, they decided to paint the walls of the University with it, and they “justified” it with ribbons of the Order of St. Volodymyr (This is a version of I.K. Patrylyak, director of the Museum of History of Kyiv University).

4) Among the students of Kyiv University, there is an opinion that the color of the university walls is due to the fact that the students of St. Volodymyr University of Kyiv in pre-revolutionary times were one of the most striking and revolutionary, and in order to shame him, one of the Russian emperors ordered to paint the walls of the university building , in red, as a sign of shame for such student behavior.

5) There is a joke in student folklore that the red color of the walls of Kyiv University is the color of student blood lost in the field of a heavy educational process at the university. And every fall a flock of crows whirls over the Red Corps, which attracts this very student blood.

6) Political versions, according to which the red color of the university’s walls is associated either with the Soviet state symbols (the red color of the October Revolution and the USSR flag), or even with the national socialist (red and black - the official colors of the Third Reich symbolism) and nationalist (red and black - the official flag colors of modern Ukrainian nationalists).

* I think point 4 is the most likely.

the English version of the wiki article about this university has a minimum of data (on today , May 14, 2020) so I did a translation from Ukrainian and supplemented some data in ().

Source : en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Univ… (turn to ukrainian lang)

Name of the photo : DSC03797 -2a (