St Andrew's Church, Kyiv

St Andrew's Church, Kyiv
Андріївська церква
St Andrew's Church is located at the top of the
Andriyivskyy Descent in Kyiv
50°27′32″N 30°31′5″E / 50.45889°N 30.51806°E / 50.45889; 30.51806
LocationKyiv, Ukraine
DenominationPatriarchate of Constantinople
Previous denominationUkrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
TraditionEastern Orthodoxy
History
DedicationAndrew the Apostle
Architecture
Architect(s)Bartolomeo Rastrelli, Ivan Michurin
StyleBaroque
Groundbreaking1744
Completed1767; rebuilt in 1949-1960
Specifications
Length31.7 m (104 ft)
Width20.4 m (67 ft)
Height50 m (160 ft)
Official nameАндріївська церква (St Andrew's Church)
TypeHistory, Architecture, Monumental Art
Reference no.260071-Н

St Andrew's Church (Ukrainian: Андріївська церква, Andriivska tserkva) is an Orthodox church in Kyiv, constructed between 1747 and 1754 to a design by the Italian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli. It is a rare example of Elizabethan Baroque in Ukraine. Situated on a steep hill, where Andrew the Apostle is believed to have foretold the great future of the place as the cradle of Christianity in the Slavic lands, the church overlooks the historic Podil neighborhood.

The building of St Andrew's Church is government-owned. In 1968, it was designated as a museum, part of the National Sanctuary "Sophia of Kyiv" as a landmark of cultural heritage. From 2008 to 2018, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church was allowed to use it as its mother church. In October 2018, in anticipation of the unification council of the Eastern Orthodox churches of Ukraine, the Ukrainian state decided instead to allow its direct use by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

At the beginning of the 21st century the building faced serious problems due to the unstable foundation and it underwent major renovation at the end of the 2010s.