MANEZHNAYA SQUARE

Description

Essentials about Manezhnaya Square in brief

Besides Red Square, Manezhnaya Square is the second important square in the center of Moscow. It is the northern extension of Red Square towards the busy Tverskaya Street. Around Manezhnaya Square stand some of Moscow’s most important buildings and landmarks: the Moskva Hotel to the east, the State Historical Museum and Alexander Garden to the south, Moscow Manege to the west, and Moscow State University to the north. As a junction of the Moscow Metro and a pedestrian zone, Manezhnaya Square is also one of the busiest squares in the Russian capital.

The history of Manezhnaya Square

The origins of Manezhnaya Square date back to the late 18th century. In 1798, after the demolition of the medieval Moiseyevsky Monastery, a first square was laid out in its place (named Moiseyevskaya Square after the monastery). The area around the square was one of the centers of Moscow’s gastronomic scene until the early 20th century, with a large number of restaurants, and was accordingly called “Moscow’s belly” by the locals.

The area, which also included a Grand Hotel and several city palaces, was a thorn in the side of the Communists. They rather wanted to create a larger area right in the center for holding communist celebrations. In 1932, therefore, the decision was made to significantly enlarge the square and to demolish numerous buildings for this purpose. Now that the new square bordered on the Moscow Manege, it was in this context that it received its current name.

Today’s Manezhnaya Square

In the 1990s, Manezhnaya Square underwent a major renovation. The new centerpiece of the square is a four-story underground shopping center topped by a rotating glass dome with a world clock. Another novelty is the creation of an ensemble of fountains and fairy-tale figures along the course of the Neglinnaya River, which now runs underground. And since 1995, Manezhnaya Square has been home to the imposing equestrian statue of Marshal Zhukov, Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army during World War II.