In Bakhmut, the Russians damaged one of the oldest churches in Donbas

On July 11, a photo of the St. Nicholas Church, whose dome caught fire as a result of Russian shelling, appeared on the channel of Bakhmut volunteer Inna Gaidai. The wooden double throne church in Bakhmut is one of the oldest churches in Donbas. In September 2022, the Russians shelled the Saint Nicholas Church with mortars.

Ihor Kornatskyi – historian, local historian and head of the department of the Bakhmut Museum of Local History – told more about the Bakhmut Shrine.

What is the St. Nicholas Church known for?

According to Igor Kornatskyi, the St. Nicholas Church in Bakhmut was already known in the middle of the 18th century. In 1794, the former Bakhmut salt workers, resettled in the Pokrovsk settlement, took the wooden Mykolaiv Church there from the city.

Subsequently, in 1796, the people of Bakhmut appealed to Metropolitan Gavriil of Katerinoslav with a request for permission to build a new church. The construction of the shrine was completed by the end of 1797, and already on January 28, 1798, its consecration took place.

“St. Nicholas Church, wooden on a stone foundation, is the oldest existing church in Bakhmut, and one of the rare monuments of church architecture of the 18th century in Donetsk region. It has significant artistic and historical value, it is an important part of the cultural heritage of the city and the region,” – notes Ihor Kornatskyi. What preceded? In September 2022, the Russians shelled the Saint Nicholas Church with mortars. Even then, as a result of shelling, the dome of the belfry was damaged. Locals also reported that the windows of the wooden temple were blown out, and the facade was damaged.

“There were only ten arrivals, and they were mines. No one was injured. In particular, there was a guard there, he managed to hide. Shelling damaged the dome of the belfry, it was built in 1861. In the wooden temple itself, and it was built in 1797 and is one of the oldest in Donetsk region, the windows were blown out, the facade was cut,” residents of Bakhmut reported.