The ensemble of the Monastic Complex in the village of Hamaliivka (17th–18th centuries), is an architectural and urban planning monument of national importance (protection No. 180065). The architectural complex comprises the Sobor Rizdva Bohorodytsi (1719–1735), Tserkva Harlampiіa (1714–1722), Gate Bell Tower (1781–1794), and defensive walls (1781–1794).

The Hamaliiv Monastery is situated on an elevated bank of the Shostka River in the village of Hamaliivka, which is now a suburb of the city of Shostka.  

The history of the monastery is closely associated with the activities of the Cossack elite of the Hetmanate period, particularly with the figures of General Osavul Anton Hamaliia and Hetman Ivan Skoropadsky. The first wooden church — the Church of St. Charlampii — was built in 1702 at the expense of Anton Hamaliia. Around it soon arose the Charlampii Hermitage, a small nunnery. In 1713, through the efforts of Hetman’s wife Nastya Skoropadska, the hermitage was transformed into a fully functioning convent with the appropriate rights and property.

Traditionally, it is believed that the idea of founding the monastery originated with Hetman Ivan Skoropadsky in 1713, as evidenced by the foundation charter dated that year. However, primary sources indicate that as early as 1712, local residents were aware of the Hetman’s intention to establish a new monastery. Encouraged by the nobility, they began to sell and donate their possessions—forests, meadows, and homesteads with gardens—to the monastery. In 1714, Hetman Skoropadsky declared himself the titular patron of the monastery. The active phase of construction of this spiritual center under the patronage of the Skoropadsky family began in 1718. The realization of such a large-scale project required considerable resources—both human and material—including large quantities of building materials such as brick, timber, and lime, which were prepared in advance.

In constructing the masonry ensemble of the Monastic Complex in the village of Hamaliivka, the defensive-type Spaso-Preobrazhenskii monastery in neighboring Novhorod-Siverskyi served as a model.

The monastery had a clearly defined defensive structure: a perimeter wall with four corner and three central gate towers, massive fortress-like ramparts, and powerful walls, which, despite the monastery’s female status, symbolized a spiritual stronghold.

Hetman Skoropadsky died in 1722 before the completion of the entire complex. Anastasia Skoropadska died in 1729. In his will, the Hetman ordered that the convent be transformed into a men’s monastery, a decree that was implemented in 1733, when monks from the Mutyn Monastery near Krolevets were transferred here.

The first abbot, Hieromonk Herman Konashevych, oversaw the completion of the brick buildings, including the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin (now an architectural monument of national importance, protection No. 180065/1). The cathedral was designed by the “mason” Danylo Moiseievych.

In 1735, Archimandrite Mykola Lenkevych, Konashevych’s successor, consecrated the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin. The cathedral had four side altars (chapels): that of St. Barbara the Great Martyr, the Synaxis of the Twelve Apostles, St. James the Confessor, and St. Nicholas. The cathedral forms the central dominant element of the ensemble. The vast five-domed structure impresses with its austere monumentality, solid unbroken planes, and complete absence of ornamentation. Architecturally, it is a three-nave, six-pier, triple-apsed basilica, replicating the Old Rus’ three-nave cross-domed type common in the monastic architecture of the Mazepa era. The façades are articulated with pilaster strips; the main and side entrances feature distinctive portals. The principal entrance on the western façade is flanked by massive pylons joined by a semicircular arch.

The cathedral was adorned with a magnificent Baroque four-tiered iconostasis spanning the full width of the nave, featuring the Skoropadsky family coats of arms, gilded carved columns, and vine motifs. The cathedral also housed portraits (parsuns) of the Skoropadsky family painted by Yakym Hlynsky. In the 19th century, these portraits were moved to the abbot’s chambers, later transferred to the Hlukhiv Museum of Local Lore, and subsequently to the N. Onatsky Sumy Art Museum. Some art historians believe that the original paintings have not survived and exist only as later copies. The main shrine of the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin was the miraculous Kerbutiv Jerusalem Icon of the Mother of God in a silver riza, as well as a copy of the Chernihiv Ilyinska Icon of the Mother of God. The cathedral also contained silver-gilt lamps donated by the Skoropadsky couple—outstanding examples of Ukrainian metalwork of the 18th century. The monastery’s liturgical books were primarily printed editions from the first half of the 18th century, produced in Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Moscow.

The defensive structures enclosed the quadrangular territory of the monastery (an irregular trapezoid approximately 170 × 180 meters). The brick wall, 2.2 meters high and 1.3 meters thick, originally had a gabled roof and four corner octagonal towers with pilasters at the edges. Numerous loopholes were positioned about 1.2 meters above ground level. In the southern wall stood another octagonal tower containing a gate used for utility access. All towers featured battlemented chambers with loopholes, covered with domed or octagonal vaults; after 1794, the roofs were rebuilt with spherical forms. In the western section stood a gate tower–belfry (now lost), aligned with the cathedral’s longitudinal axis and serving as the main entrance. Constructed before 1735, it replicated in simplified form the Holy Gate of the Novhorod-Siverskyi Spaso-Preobrazhenskii Monastery. Originally three-tiered, it was crowned with a developed Baroque top. Another two-tiered four-sided gate tower, resembling an ancient zahab, stood at the bend of the northern wall. The surviving defensive structures are now listed as an architectural monument of national importance under the name “Defensive Wall of the Hamaliiv Monastery” (protection No. 180065/4).

The Church of St. Charalampii with its adjoining two-story refectory (now an architectural monument of national importance, protection No. 180065/2) adjoins the western part of the northern wall. The church has a rectangular plan, three-part composition, single dome, and hall-type interior with a faceted altar apse. A large summer refectory hall was added to the south in the 1770s. The altar is surmounted by a spherical dome on a light octagon; the interiors are covered with closed vaults. The refectory building, rectangular in plan with an enfilade layout, is covered by a single hipped roof. The façades facing the main courtyard exhibit secular stylistic treatment, while numerous loopholes pierce the northern wall. One of the corner towers adjoins the building’s northwestern corner. The Church of St. Charalampii became the burial place of six members of the Skoropadsky family.

To the southwest of the cathedral stands an L-shaped two-story cell building (now an architectural monument of national importance, protection No. 180065/3). Originally wooden, the monastic cells were rebuilt in brick between 1780 and 1795 as single-story structures; the second story was added in the mid-20th century. The building is arranged in sections, each containing five chambers: halls with two exits (to the main and service courtyards) and a four-room residential block attached on one side. The corner section has a more complex layout. The façades are articulated with rusticated pilasters and topped with a projecting cornice.

The laconic and monolithic architectural masses of the monastery ensemble create the impression of a stern, impregnable fortress.

Over its three-hundred-year history, the Hamaliiv Monastery has suffered repeated fires (in 1738 and 1794), reconstructions, restorations, and eventual decline due to the administrative policies of the Russian Empire and later the Soviet authorities, reflecting the complex historical dynamics of its existence.

The 20th century brought the greatest destruction. After its closure in 1920, the monastery buildings lost their sacred function: they were first transferred to an artel, and later, in the 1930s–1950s, to a collective farm. The Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin was used as a granary; the Church of St. Charalampii served as the parish church for the village, while people lived in the monastic cells.

In 1956, the Monastery in Hamaliivka was declared an architectural monument of republican significance. The scholar of Left-Bank Ukrainian architecture, Mykhailo Tsapenko, who visited the site in the late 1950s, wrote:

“In the small refectory church (…) Skoropadsky and his wife are buried. The graves are decorated with well-preserved carved white stone slabs. These slabs, remarkable works of art, are an exceptional rarity to have survived in such a remote place. The monastery buildings are neglected, but it is fortunate that at least they have endured.”

Tsapenko’s observation proved prophetic. In 1962, the Sumy Regional Executive Committee transferred the monastery to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which converted it into a high-security correctional facility (Enterprise 319/66). The following year, the complex was removed from the state register of monuments and handed over entirely to the penal administration for exploitation. The defensive walls and towers were demolished, including three gatehouses; the Sobor Rizdva Bohorodytsi and the Church of St. Charalampii were transformed into industrial workshops. Reinforced concrete floors and columns were installed in the cathedral, and a water tank was placed in the central dome. In the Church of St. Charalampii, the carved Skoropadsky tombstones were encased in concrete. The monastic cell block was converted into prison quarters.

In 1987, the surviving remnants of the monastery were once again placed under state protection as an architectural monument (protection No. 1553).

On June 19, 2019, recognizing the exceptional cultural, historical, and architectural value of the Hamaliiv Monastery ensemble, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted a resolution establishing the State Historical and Cultural Reserve “Derzhavotvortsi Sivershchyny.”

References

1. Vecherskyi V. V. Orthodox shrines of Sumy region. Kyiv: Technika, 2009. P. 174 –183.
2. Chukhno V. Hamalievsky Kharlampievsky monastery: history and present. Local history, 2011. Vol. 2. P. 156 –170.
3. Chernyakova Ya. V. Hamalievsky Kharlampievsky monastery: an architectural monument or a prison?