Sviyazhsk, Republic of Tatarstan Russia
Russian Orthodox
St. Nicholas Church, built during 1555-56, is the oldest church in the monastery. The bell tower was added in the 17th century. Sviyazhsk was the first Christian town in the Kazan area and was located at the confluence of the Volga and Sviyaga rivers. In the 1920s the monastery was raavaged, closed, and then used as a forced labor camp. When a dam was built, forming a resevoir, the river level was raised, making the monastery area into an island. The monastery was returned to the church in 1997 and is under restoration as a monasteryk for men.