Andriivskyi Descent

(2012) Saint Andrew's Descent begins on the summit of the Starokyivska Hora (Old Kyiv mountain) near the ornate late-baroque Saint Andrew's Church (which gave the street its current name). The street continues on down and descends to the Podil district where it ends at the Kontraktova Square. In the past times, the descent was known as the Borychiv Descent mentioned as "Borichev uvoz" (Old East Slavic: Боричев увоз) by Nestor the Chronicler in his Primary Chronicle and in the 12th century poem, The Tale of Igor's Campaign (Slovo o polku Ihorevim). The descent's current name is derived from the 18th century, at the time when the Saint Andrew's Church was erected atop the hill. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the street was mainly inhabited by merchants and craftspeople. in Kyiv during times of the late Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, the street is once again thriving thanks to its unique topology, architecture, rich history and also many gift shops and small art galleries showcasing various paintings and sculptures by Ukrainian artists. The descent is one of the favorite spots for tourists. The street's location in the city and its landmark attraction has made it lately a highly prestigious area, with several new luxurious restaurants. However, the descent's sewer and water systems have not been upgraded within the past 100 years, thereby underlining the need for a new system to be installed. Although, city authorities have not yet scheduled a new sewer project system to be installed. ==History==

. Note the two cupolas on the building adjacent to the church; they were removed during Soviet times. The descent, located between two hills, is the shortest passageway from the historic Old or Upper Town (; Kniazivs’ka Hora) to the commercial Podil neighborhood. In the 1980s, Saint Andrew's Descent received a thorough reconstruction after years of disrepair. On April 9, 2012, construction workers began demolishing legally protected historic structures, even though earlier that year, their safety was guaranteed at several news conferences and the buildings themselves were included in scale models of the "renovated" descent. The destruction of the buildings took place under the guise of "reconstruction" efforts, which began in October 2011. Preliminary reports indicate that the buildings directly across from, and next to the Museum of Bulgakov, (Buildings 10a, 10b, and 9/11) were all razed to the ground. The land was being redeveloped to make room for a new office and business complex to house Rinat Akhmetov's Kyiv operations. Several hundred protestors, including boxer/politician Vitali Klitschko, gathered outside the main Kyiv office of Akhmetov's SCM Holdings. ==Attractions==

Saint Andrew's Descent contains numerous historic attractions and museums. The 18th century baroque Saint Andrew's Church; the late 19th century Mikhail Bulgakov's house-museum; the 20th century Castle of Richard the Lionheart; the Museum of One Street, chronicling the history of Saint Andrew's Descent; and numerous other monuments attract tourists and Kyiv residents alike to the area. Saint Andrew's Church Another attraction of Saint Andrew's Descent is the baroque Saint Andrew's Church. It is located atop a hill overlooking the Podil neighborhood from Saint Andrew's Descent. The idea to construct the Saint Andrew's Church came from the Russian Tsaress Elizabeth Petrovna. When she visited Kyiv in 1747–1754, she laid the foundation brick of the church with her own hand, after which the church was constructed, to a design by the imperial architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli. Since 1968, the church has been opened as a museum to tourists and visitors. From 2008 to 2018, the church was owned by the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, but since then it was transferred to the Ecumenichal Patriarchate of Constantinople. Castle of Richard the Lionheart The "Castle of Richard the Lionheart" house was built from 1902 to 1904. It was originally supposed to be called Orlov House in reference to its constructor Dmitry Orlov. But because its owner failed to clear the house construction with the city's authorities, a major scandal arose. In 1983, renovation works were started on the building to convert it into a hotel. Also, the museum has a unique collection of various works by Ukrainian philologist P. Zhitetsky, Arabist and professor of the Kyiv University T. Kezma, journalist and public figure A.Savenko, Ukrainian writer G.Tyutyunnyk, which have lived in the house No. 34 in the different periods of the twentieth century. Another main monument on the street is dedicated to the famous Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko, located to the right of the monument to Yaroslav the Wise. The Shevchenko monument is the first monument to Shevchenko in Ukraine and was originally unveiled in Romny on 27 October 1918. Most recently, in 2007, a monument to Mikhail Bulgakov was opened on Saint Andrew's Descent, the first dedicated to the writer in the former Soviet Union. ==Legends==

During its long history, Saint Andrew's Descent has a couple of legends surround it. One legend states that when Andrew the Apostle visited the uninhabited mountains in the mid-stream of the Dnieper River (today's Saint Andrew's Descent area), he put up a cross atop of the hill where the descent starts and prophesied a foundation of a great Christian city. Since that time, wooden churches sprang up around in the vicinity, completing his prophecy. According to another legend, there was once a sea where the Dnieper River now flows. When Saint Andrew came to Kyiv and erected a cross on the place where the Saint Andrew's Church now stands, the sea went away. The only part that remained of the sea is under the mountain on which Kyiv sits today. When the church was built there in the 18th century, a spring opened under the altar. The church has no bells, because, according to the legend, when the first bell strikes, the water can revive again and flood the left bank of Kyiv. ==Panorama==