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So far, as far as I can find on the internet, the only other webpage which mentions the Opening of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, is the Kremlin web page itself.  This bell tower has been opened since April 2009, it is now Oct. 2009 and not even any of the publishers of travel books have mentioned this on their web pages about Moscow.  As far as I know, I am the only person who has posted photos taken from this bell tower on the internet since it opened in April.  Of course there have been photos taken from this bell tower before and I’m not claiming to be the first or only, but it is almost as if nobody is even aware that this bell tower is now open.  So in that respect I am claiming this to be my first exclusive for American in Russia.
Moscow is the largest city in Europe with an official population of over 18 million people.  Though Moscow is not one of Europe’s oldest cities, it is one of Europe’s historic cities.  Of course everybody who comes here all know about places like the Kremlin, Red Square with St. Basil’s Cathedral and the world famous Pushkin Museum of Fine Art and the State Tretyakov Art Gallery.  But there is so much more to Moscow than only these famous and well known sites. The lovely old churches, monasteries, convents, palaces and mansions which can be found all over the older districts of Moscow.  Sometimes these new discoveries can take place right inside the famous well known areas of Moscow, like the Moscow Kremlin.

The Ivan the Great Bell Tower inside the Moscow Kremlin has been restored and now tourists can go inside and climb up to three levels which houses a museum on each level.  After you reach the highest level, (at present the highest tower level is not open yet), you are able to step out on the walkway and see a fantastic view of the Kremlin Cathedral Square and surrounding territory along the Moscow River.  You are able to go up three stories, then after the tour is over, you step out onto the balcony, then go back down to the next level and go out onto the balcony and then on down to the first level.  I was somewhat shocked when me and my wife took this tour, I was expecting the tour to be filled, but it was only me and my wife, nobody else, which did make for  a pleasant tour because we were not rushed and could take our time and take all the photos we wanted to take.  The guide told us, that hardly anybody takes this tour because nobody knows that the bell tower has been opened.  I guess nobody bothers to read the sites they will be visiting web pages anymore because this tour is listed right with the other Kremlin tours.  I imagine there will be some upset people who will regret not taking a look at the Kremlin’s web page before they came here last summer, but they have no one to blame but themselves, because its right on the Kremlin’s web page.
Rising up in the center of the Kremlin’s Cathedral Square is the snow-white golden-domed tower, known as the Bell Tower of Ivan the Great. This multi-storied tower was built between 1505 and 1508 by an Italian architect Bon Fryazin. The tower’s body is made of brick, and the foundation from white stone. Originally the tower, was formed from two huge columns placed on top of each other. At the top each column is an open terrace and a gallery with bells located in the arches. A round drum and dome crowned the whole structure. This bell tower was built to unite the Kremlin palaces and churches. It was also used as the main watchtower for the Kremlin fortress, providing a good view of the surrounding area.

Until the building of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in the late 19th century, the Ivan the Great Bell Tower was the tallest building found in Moscow, with a total height of 81 meters, or 266 feet.  Up until 1917, it was illegal to build any structure in Moscow taller than that bell tower. In the mid 1500s, a new church was built near the bell tower under the project of another Italian immigrant architect, Petrok Maly. Later this church was taken down and transformed into a belfry named the Assumption Belfry. Later in 1624, another belfry with a marquee top was built on the tower’s northern side.
During Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812, the bell tower complex was blown up by his armies. The belfry was destroyed by the explosion, but the bell tower proper withstood the blast. The architectural complex of the bell tower was restored to its original dimensions during the period from 1818 to 1819. Legend says that Napoleon believed that the cross on top of the bell tower was made of solid gold, so he ordered his engineers to dismantle and take the cross.  The engineers tried in vain to remove the cross, but failed.  Finally a Russian peasant climbed up to the top of the onion dome and removed the cross and lowed it down with a rope.  When the peasant went to Napoleon to get his reward, Napoleon rewarded him by shooting him for betraying his country.  Actually, it was not the cross on top of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower that was soild gold, but the main cross on top of the Annunciation Cathedral that was supposed to be solid gold.

At the present the Ivan the Great Bell Tower has twenty-four bells, most dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries. The largest bell weighing 65 tons is called the Assumption or Festive Bell made in 1760.  The bell was damaged by the invading Napoleon’s army and was re-cast in 1819. The bells were named which often characterized their particular sound, for example, the Bear, the Swan, and the Hollow-Voice. For many centuries church bells were a big part of Russian life, giving warning during the times of trouble, calling people to battle, or ringing during Orthodox feasts. Today the Kremlin bells can be heard on Orthodox feast days during solemn church services in the Kremlin’s cathedrals.
Stretching beyond the Bell Tower of Ivan the Great is Ivan Square, where in times past government offices were located. The Tsar’s decrees were proclaimed to the public here. On display in Ivan Square are two unique works of ancient Russian casting – the Tsar Bell and the Tsar Cannon. The Tsar Bell stands on a stone pedestal in front of the Bell Tower of Ivan the Great. It was cast in the Kremlin in the 1730s by a famous foundryman Ivan Motorin and his son Mikhail.

In 1737 a devastating fire in Moscow engulfed the Kremlin as well as Moscow.  When the fire was being extinguished, some cold water splashed onto the Tsar Bell which caused a huge 11 ton piece to break off.  The bell remained in the casting-pit for almost a century. In 1836, it was lifted and mounted for display on a pediment designed by French architect August Montferrand. The giant Tsar Bell is considered the largest bell in the world. It weighs over 200 tons and is over 6 meters high. The surface of the bell is adorned with relief portraits of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and Empress Anna Ioannovna, by whose order the bell was cast, and also with inscriptions outlining the story of creating this unique bell which never rang.”
Another remarkable specimen of Russian metalwork on display in the Moscow Kremlin is the Tsar Cannon. This canon is the world’s largest-caliber fortress gun and was cast in bronze by Andrei Chokhov in 1586 at the Moscow Cannon Yard. The Tsar Cannon was an up-to-date 16th-century weapon, and its name is customarily associated with its formidable size and the depiction of Tsar Fyodor, who was a son of Ivan the Terrible.  The cannon was designed to fire crushed stone, but there’s no evidence that this canon has ever been fired. The biggest cannon in the world, the Kremlin’s Tsar Cannon weighs 40 tons. Its ornate gun carriage and the cannon balls piled up near it were cast in 1835 in St.Petersburg. The cannon balls weigh a ton each.

The Ivan the Great Bell Tower truly is a must see site which is sadly overlooked by most tourists.  I would highly recommend anybody going to the Kremlin to take time and go up the bell tower.  It really is not that bad of a walk since you stop at each level before moving on to the next.  The view is fantastic as you can see from my photos.  Below you will find  a link to the Kremlin’s English language web page and a copy of the info found there.  If you are going to the Kremlin and pass up going up the bell tower, especially if your a photographer, you’ll always regret that you did not do it, take it from a photographer who knows. Be forewarned, you have to phone and make reservations for the bell tower tour ahead of time, you just can not pop over to the Kremlin a decided you want to go up the bell tower, unless your an important socialist like Obama who can just show up and do as they please.  What frightens me the most is I’m afraid that tours of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower will end unless people start taking these tours, I mean there will be no reason to keep the tower open and staffed if nobody starts taking these tours.  That would really be a shame because the view of the Kremlin from this bell tower is something else.

Tickets for the Kremlin and its museums
THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY OF THE KREMLIN ARCHITECTURE IN THE IVAN THE GREAT BELL-TOWER
The exposition in the Ivan the Great Bell-Tower is open daily, except Thursday, according to exhibit sessions at 10:00, 11:15, 13:30, 14:45.
The enterance is timed by the session mentioned in purchased tickets.
Excursion with audio-guide lasts for 45 minutes.
It must be ordered in advance by telephone: (495) 697-03-49, (495) 697-44-22, (495) 697-46-11.

Ticket price - 500 rub.
When ordering the excursion please pay attention to the height of ascent which is 25 meters and quantity of the stairs - 137.
Children under fourteen are not permitted to visit the Bell-Tower.