St. Nicholas Church is the oldest building in Hlukhiv and an architectural monument of national significance. It stands in the middle of the central Sobornyi Square, and it was right in front of it in the 18th century that Ivan Skoropadskyi, Danylo Apostol, and Kyrylo Rozumovskyi were invested as hetmans. The church was built by the Kyiv architect Matvii Yefymov, and it is the only one of his numerous churches that has survived to the present day.
Artel from Kyiv
The previous wooden St. Nicholas Church burned down in 1695 during the fire of the Hlukhiv castle. Back in 1693, the city invited an artel of architects from Kyiv led by architect Matvii Yefymov; the contract was concluded on February 8, 1693. The craftsmen brought bricks, lime, and iron themselves, and the city paid them 600 karbovantsi in "kopiikas" and 500 in "cheks" and provided them with food.
Square of Hetman Elections
When Hlukhiv became the capital of the Hetmanate, St. Nicholas Church became one of the main churches of the Left Bank. On November 6, 1708, Ivan Skoropadskyi was invested as hetman on the Rada Square in front of it, on October 1, 1727 — Danylo Apostol, and in 1751 — Kyrylo Rozumovskyi. Ivan Pikovets, scribe of the General Military Court, and General Khorunzhii Mykola Khanenko were buried in the church cemetery.
Architecture
The church is a masonry three-part structure built according to the traditions of folk wooden architecture: the square narthex, the octagonal nave, and the faceted altar are lined up from west to height. The height of the central top is 30 meters. Originally, each part had its own octagonal tent-like completion with breaks. In 1871, the dome above the narthex was dismantled and, according to the project of Oleksandr Gross, a narthex with a high tiered bell tower was added — this changed the traditional appearance of the church. The five-tiered iconostasis of the mid-18th century featured lush gilded carving. In 1967–1978, the church was restored by the Sumy Workshop.
How to get there
The church is located on Sobornyi Square in the very center of Hlukhiv. Nearby are the Three Anastasias and Spaso-Preobrazhenska churches and the local lore museum.
What to consider
Hlukhiv lies approximately 15 km from the border with Russia and regularly suffers from shelling. Before your trip, check the security situation and the restrictions of the Sumy RMA.
