No other attraction of the city is associated with so many legends as the mysterious Monastery Island, famous even outside Ukraine. Here come believers and psychics, just fascinated by history tourists. According to legends, the first inhabitants of the island appeared in the IX century, and long before that a disciple of Jesus Christ visited the island.
Monastery Island has a very interesting fate, the plausibility of certain moments of which historians have not been able to establish.
One of the first significant events in the history of the island is the stop there of the apostle Andrew, who in the first century traveled to the eastern countries to preach Christianity. According to legend, this place became the northernmost point of his route, and believers call it the eastern outpost of Christianity, the citadel of the Orthodox faith. The history of the stay on the island of St. Andrew is known from the writings of Bishop Theodosius in 1880.
It is reliably known, including from the works of Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus in 948-952, that in the times of Ancient Rus, when the legendary «Way from the Varangians to the Greeks» passed along the Dnieper, the island was a stopping point before the Dnieper rapids. Here people gained strength and offered prayers to the gods asking for help in overcoming the difficult part of the river route and even made sacrifices. Therefore, it is believed that originally Monastery Island was a pagan sanctuary.
It is also known from the works of Bishop Theodosius that in the IX century on the island was laid Byzantine monastery — hence the name of this amazing corner of Dnepropetrovsk. According to legends, in 957 Grand Duchess Olga, who was on her way to Constantinople, took refuge from bad weather in this monastery, in 988 Prince Vladimir visited the monastery on his way to Chersonesos, and in 1152 Prince Mstislav, who was returning from a campaign against the Polovtsians.
No traces of the ancient monastery were found on the island, as well as there is no reliable evidence of the fictitiousness of its existence. It is believed that it was destroyed during the invasion of the Tatar-Mongols, when in 1240 Khan Batyi visited the island. Mention of the monastery can also be seen in the records of the architect de Beauplan in 1651.
The more definite history of the island becomes from the middle of the XVIII century, when its owner K. Krasovsky gives it to Novomoskovskiy Samara Pustynno-Nikolayevsky Monastery. The further fate of Monastery Island is prosaic: before the nationalization by the Soviet power it changed hands, and then in the middle of the last century the last dilapidated buildings of the former owners were demolished and the island became a part of the Shevchenko Park.
The main attractions of Monastyrsky Island are its historical monuments.
The main attractions of Monastery Island today are a cable car from the right bank of the Dnieper, which offers a magnificent panorama of the city and a view of the river, as well as one of the largest monuments to T.H. Shevchenko in Ukraine and the Church of St. Nicholas built in 1999. Another attraction leads to the island — a pedestrian bridge, from the side of the city in front of which you can see a magnificent sculptural composition — the Bench of Lovers and a huge Tree of Happiness. The bench is considered to be healing, and the bridge is considered to connect hearts: newlyweds fix locks on it and throw the keys into the Dnieper to join their destinies forever.
The fame of Monastery Island as a unique energy-information center has spread far beyond the country’s borders, psychics and contactors even from Western Europe come here, believing that it opens entrances to parallel worlds and that the island was the sacred capital of the Scythians, where Zarathustra visited.
Whatever the truth or fiction, Monastyrsky Island has been and remains a favorite destination for city dwellers and visitors, with a zoo, aquarium, children’s attractions, beach, equestrian club, restaurants and cafes. The atmosphere of this attraction of Dnipropetrovsk is really unique and romantic, and a walk along Monastyrsky Island gives the most unforgettable and vivid impressions.