Uspenski Cathedral

The Uspenski Cathedral sits atop the rocky outcrop of Katajanokka, defined by its thirteen golden cupolas and deep red brick walls. Built in the eighteen sixties when Finland was a Grand Duchy of Russia, it remains the largest Orthodox church in Western Europe. Architect Aleksei Gornostajev modeled the design after a sixteenth century Russian church. Construction crews hauled the bricks for the massive exterior from the ruins of the Bomarsund fortress in the Åland Islands after it was destroyed during the Crimean War.