Kreshatik is the central street of Kiev city. It goes through Starokievskiy and Pecherskiy districts and then from European square to Bessarabian square. At the end of !8th century a part of Kreshatnaya Valley from Horse square (now European square) where horse market usually was held to Proreznaya street is becoming a street with the building only on one (right) side.
In 1803 the buildings on the left side also appear. It's interesting that there were only apartment houses there exept the one - the first theater in Kiev built under the project of architect A. Melenskiy in 1802-1805. So in that time the street was called Teatralnaya (The Theater Street). The shape of the street as we know it today forms in 1837. Under the project the street is prolonged up to today's Bessarabskaya square.
In 1851 under the project of architect A.B. Beretti the first huge stony building for provincial assembly of nobility was built. Today on this place there is the House of trade unions. In 1838-42 the three floor building of The Noble Maidens Institute was built also under his project. In that time architect Beretti was also the owner of two floor hotel on the corner of Kreshatik and Bessarabskaya square, where the cinema "Orbita" now stands. The great poet Taras Shevtchenko has stayed there in autumn of 1846. He has also stayed on the other side of kreshatik in the house of Sukhostavskiy family, where the meetings of Kirill-Mefodiy cultural society took place.
From 1870 the trade and business life of the city gradually passes to Kreshatik. The building of the street becomes more active. In 45 years the solid wall of houses was raised. It were mostly three store houses with shops, banks and offices. In 1870-1914 on the former Kreshatinskaya square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti - The Square Of Independence now) the house of State Parliament was built under the project of architect Shilli.
The examples of the best architectural art of that time are houses: ¹ 6 (architects Zektzer and Torov), ¹8 - The Bank Of saint-Petersburg building (architect Benois), ¹12 architect A. Beretti), ¹16 (unknown architect), ¹32 - Russian International Trade Bank, one of the few buildings that has remained (architect Lidval). In 1902-1903 on the corner of Proreznaya street the house of Russian Insurance society (architect Godetskiy). In 1913-1914 under the project of architect Andreyev the Passage which consisted of two cases was built. The Passage was destroyed during the war and after the war was rebuilt and reconstructed. In the 1910 the market building on Bessarabskaya square was constructed. At the very end of Kreshatik on the place of contemporary European square there was the three floor building of Merchant Guild. Now The philarmonic hall which is famous for its acoustic is situated there. In the middle of 19 century in the beginning of Kreshatik the decorative garden Vladimirskaya Gorka was settled down. The stony 2-3 floor houses appear on the street. Building successfully emphasizes features of a landscape and is placed along street by separate houses in individual manors. In the beginning of 20th century there was canalization, the water drain, gas, electricity and tramways (first in tsarist Russia) on Kreshatik.
In the year of1936 the rails of tram lines were removed, the street was covered with asphalt and the trolley lines began to function. The sphere-shaped trees were planted on the sides of the street and the lanterns were settled down. 1936-1939 on the corner of Grushevskaya street the Central Mall was built under the project of architect Fridman.
During the war Kreshatik was partly destroyed during the war and then renovated. During the renovation it was transformed into wide highway. The changes also took place on the main square of the city - Maidan Nezalezhnosti. The huge building with the tower and courants was constructed there. The Trade Uninon Association office is situated there.
The left side of Maidan was covered with granite and terraces filled with water which go to the 16 floor building of hotel "Ukraine". The beautiful panoramis view of Old Kiev opens from there. You can see domes of Sophia Cathedral (built in 11 century) and Andretevskaya Church (built in 18 century There are bulding of City Parliament, The Central Mall, "Kreshatik" and "Maidan Nezalezhnosti" metro stations, a lot of administrative buildings, shops hotels and cafes are situated there.
The district of contemporary Kreshatik a long time ago was the deep valley with the streaming spring covered with woods. In North-West destination the valley was coming to dnepr river and in South-West destination to Lebed river. It is called the Kreshataya valley. It's where the name of the street (Kreshatik) comes from. The road which was situated near the spring was important for the city in all periods of its history.
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