At the beginning of the 20th century, the wife of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, Elizaveta Fedorovna, made her dream come true — she created a community of sisters of mercy. To do this, she sold all her jewelry and her mansion on the Fontanka. With the proceeds, she bought a plot of land on Bolshaya Ordynka, which had a large garden.
A hospital was built on the estate and a house church was opened. They dedicated it to Martha the worker and Mary the prayer. The Convent of Mercy differed from the monastery in that while leading a monastic life in everything, the sisters did not take tonsure and could return to secular life at any time. The main task of the monastery was to help the sick. There were hospitals for the poor and consumptives, there was its own outpatient clinic, you could use the library, and the pharmacy made medicine.
The hospital was the best in Moscow. Famous doctors worked there, and sisters received qualified training.
In 1908, the Church of the Intercession was founded. Construction ended in 1912. The temple was painted by famous artists. The style of the church is neo-Russian; it had 2 belfries. The church had a secret staircase leading to the tomb. But Mother Elizabeth could not rest in peace there. In 1918, the Bolsheviks threw her alive into a mine, where she suffered martyrdom. Most of the sisters were sent to Kazakhstan.
The monastery itself existed until 1926, and a clinic operated there for another 2 years. The Church of the Intercession was given over to a house of health education, and the Church of Martha and Mary — to an outpatient clinic. After the war, restoration workshops were transferred to the Church of the Intercession from St. Nicholas Church on Barsenevka.
In 1990, Muscovites paid tribute to Elizabeth Feodorovna by erecting her monument on the territory of the monastery. After another 2 years, the complex was transferred to the Patriarchate. In the same year, services were resumed in the Church of Martha and Mary, and only in 2006 this happened in the Church of the Intercession.
The Cathedral Church of the Intercession needed a lot of restoration. We had to restore the walls, roof, stucco molding, and iconostasis. The restorers approached the matter very responsibly, preserving the original decoration and using the same materials. During the work, all the buildings were repaired and the garden was revived.
Today, the monastery is a stauropegial (subordinate to the patriarch) convent. The sisters continue the work of mercy that Saint Elizabeth began. Nuns and sisters of mercy each carry out their own service.
Charitable Foundation Holy Land
Temples and Monasteries of Russia
