Make up the most suitable heading for each part of the article.

St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral - a Construction Nightmare

1.

Shevchenko Boulevard's spiritual centre is Volodymyrsky Sobor, or St. Volodymyr's Cathedral. The history of its creation and construction is both long and fascinating.

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First of all, it should be mentioned that Prince Volodymyr was of course a prominent figure in the history of Russia, being the founder of the state of Rus. Many epic legends and 'bylinas' (Russian sagas) are devoted to him; he is mentioned in the first Russian chronicles, as well as Byzantine, Arab and Western European written sources. The ancient and modern studies of the man are numerous and contradictory. As a result, the image of the governor of Kyiv has been so distorted that it is easier, when hearing his name, to picture the monument on Volodymyr Hill or the featureless portrait on the Ukrainian one hryvna note.

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One thing is undeniable: for solving a geopolitical problem and introducing Christianity to Rus, Prince Volodymiyr was ranked by the church not only a saint but also as an equal to the apostles, although the exact date of the official acknowledgement of this is left unknown. The ceremony of the foundation-laying of St. Vladimir's Cathedral took place on 15 July 1862 on the day of his commemoration, but the idea actually appeared 10 years before. It is said that Russian Tsar Mykolai I proposed that a monument to Prince Volodymyr Svyatoslavych be built on Mikhailovsky (now Voladymyr) Hill, which still existed. The well-known bronze monument to Volodymyr, four and a half metres high with a cross in his left hand stands on a pedestal bearing the crest of ancient Kyiv and a basrelief depicting the 'Baptism of Rus'.

4.

When the monument was unveiled in 1853, metropolitan Filaret (Amfiteatrov) refused to consecrate the monument saying that it was not right to make an idol of Saint Volodymy r, as he himself 'threw off idols' (pagan gods). Instead, he proposed to build a Christian cathedral and donated seven thousand roubles himself. The Russian Tsar approved this proposal and permitted the collection of contributions throughout Russia. The question of the place of building was left unresolved for a long time. Eventually, during the Tsar's next visit to Kyiv, ordered a square to be created between the Boulevard and Fundukleyevska (now Bogdana Khmelnitskoho) and to construct the new cathedral in the middle.

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The tale of the building process is complex and unclear. A preliminary design of an extraordinary 13-cupola cathedral along the lines of St. Sofia's Cathedral was made by architect Ivan Schtrom. By this design the construction required 700 thousand roubles, but only 100 thousand was found. Then city and church officials commissioned another famous architect, Pavel Sparro, to alter the design to match the available amount of money. Sparro's decision was very simple: he cleared away the 'extra' sides and left only the central part with seven cupolas. Unsatisfied with his own architecture or perhaps due to problems with the contractors, Sparro refused to manage the construction.

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He was replaced by Alexander Beretti, who decided to introduce his own changes to the design. His proposals were received with enthusiasm because he promised a cathedral twice as big for the same cost! Thus, the initial design was completely distorted, the architect taking little care to stick neither to the ideas of his predecessors nor to the integrity of the whole structure. As a consequence, when the structure was erected to the level of the cupolas, the supporting walls could not bear their weight and started to crack. A special investigative commission was appointed, controlled by another commission from St. Petersburg headed by the original designer Schtrom. A real fight broke out between all these famous architects and scientists who offensively accused each other of non-professionalism. The construction was thus halted.

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In 1875 the Russian Tsar, the son of Mykolai I, Alexander II, visited Kyiv to open the railway. Driving in his carriage from the railway station along the then Bibikov Boulevard, the Tsar noticed the half-built cathedral and made known his dissatisfaction. "In such a prominent place? What will be said across Europe? The new railway will bring people from all countries to Kyiv!" Immediately, the latest St. Petersburg architect Bernhardt was appointed to redesign the project, and the chief Kyiv architect Volodymyr Mykolayiv, was appointed construction manager. Only in 1882, 20 years after construction began, Volodymyrsky Sobor was finally completed.

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During the next fourteen years the paintings inside were finished under the general supervision of Professor of Arts Adrian Prakhov. They were painted by a number of famous Russian, Ukrainian and Polish artists including Vasnetsov, Nesterov, Vrubel, Pimonenko, Kostenko, Zamirailo, and the brothers Svedomsky. The portrait of the Blessed Virgin with the Infant and the large historical paintings in the main nave were created by Victor Vasnetsov, while the bronze entrance doors with figures of Prince Volodymyr and Princess Olga were designed by Adrian Prakhov.

?3. Render the text in English.

15 липня 1862 року в Києві відбулася урочиста подія: було закладено Володимирський собор. Це день вшанування пам’яті святого князя Володимира, який окрестив киян. Будівництво храму тривало 20 років. Собор зростав на доброчинні внески жителів міста. Будувався за проектом І.В.Штрома, П.І.Спарро і А.В.Беретті.

Це традиційний шестистовпний, хрестово-купольний храм, увінчаний сімома банями. Центральний купол, що убособлює Ісуса Христа височить над чотирма іншими, що оточують його і символізують учнів-апостолів. Ще два підносяться над вежами, що ведуть на хори. Саме в них побудовані дзвіниці. Дзвони Володимирського собору – повноправні громадяни міста. Вони і зараз малиновим передзвоном сповіщають киян про великі християнські свята та урочисті події, дзвоном жалоби змушують наші серця щеміти за тими, хто пішов із життя, а під час небезпеки вони б’ють на сполох. Споруда має урочистий, святковий вигляд. Розписували собор кращі художники того часу: Віктор Васнецов, Михайло Нестеров, Михайло Врубель, Вільгельм Которбинський, Павло Свідомський, а також талановиті вихованці Рисувальної школи: М.Мурашко, В.Замирайло, С.Костенко, М.Пимоненко. Вони створили цілу галерею біблійних та євангельських образів історичних осіб, прикрасили храм різноманітними рослинними та геометричними орнаментами, неперевершеними за кольоровою гамою та фантазією.

У 1988 р. В соборі Святого Володимира святкували тисячоліття хрещення Русі. Цей храм не тільки є своєрідним літописом часів Київської Русі, а й увіковічнює славетну історію всього українського народу.

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