Cathedral of The Roman Catholic Church of The Immaculate Conception of The Blessed Virgin Mary is one of two Catholic cathedrals in Moscow, and the biggest Catholic cathedral in Russia as well. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century at the request of the Roman Catholic counsel of Moscow. Authorities gave their permission, although asked to observe some terms, like, for example, to build this Catholic cathedral far away from the city center and Moscow Orthodox churches.
The construction of the Cathedral of The Roman Catholic Church of The Immaculate Conception of The Blessed Virgin Mary took ten years. The money for it was collected by Polish Catholics who lived near Malaya Gruzinskaya street where the cathedral is located and worked for the Moscow Smolensk railroad. The new cathedral was built in neo-Gothic style, with massive decoration elements.
In 1938, due to the uneasy situation in the country, the Cathedral was closed, and a dormitory was organized inside it. During the Great Patriotic War, the cathedral suffered from some bombings when some spires and turrets were demolished. After the war, in 1956, the building was given to ‘Mosspetspromproekt’ research institute, and its interior was completely different. Only at the end of the 80s, Moscow Polish society raised an issue considering the cathedral’s return to Catholic church people.
Now the Cathedral of The Roman Catholic Church of The Immaculate Conception of The Blessed Virgin Mary attracts people from all over Moscow who love to listen to organic music. It’s also very beautiful, and it’s always a pleasure to pass it by.
