Trinity-Sergius Lavra

The spiritual heart of Russian Orthodoxy, founded by St. Sergius of Radonezh around 1345 near Moscow. The holiest monastery in Russia. St. Sergius blessed Dmitry Donskoi before the Battle of Kulikovo (1380). Rublev painted his Trinity icon here. Houses the Moscow Theological Academy. The Laura survived the Soviet era and remains the center of Russian spirituality.