Solovki

Solovki is a shortened name for the Solovetsky Islands, White Sea, Russia. Historically it has been a location of the famous Russian Orthodox Solovetsky Monastery complex, which repelled foreign attacks during the Time of Troubles, the Crimean War, and the Russian Civil War.

Related Topics:
Solovetsky Islands - White Sea - Russia - Russian Orthodox - Solovetsky Monastery - Time of Troubles - Crimean War - Russian Civil War

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By Lenin's decree, the holy buildings were turned into Solovetsky Lager' Osobogo Naznachenia (SLON), Solovki Special Purpose Camp. The acronym of the camp name is a sullen word play for those who speak Russian: slon means "elephant". It was one of the first "corrective labor camps", a prototype of the Gulag system.

Related Topics:
Lenin - Acronym - Russian - Labor camp - Gulag

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In 1926 the Solovki camp was turned into a prison, which was closed in 1939 because of the construction of a naval base.

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The Orthodox Church reestablished the monastery in 1992, the year when the ensemble was included into UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Related Topics:
1992 - UNESCO - World Heritage List

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As stated in the UNESCO's evaluation of this patrimony, "the Solovetskii complex is an oustanding example of a monastic settlement in the inhospitable environment of northern Europe which admirably illustrates the faith, tenacity, and enterprise of late medieval religious communities".

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