Zaslavl. Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior.

Initially, the Transfiguration Church functioned as a Calvinist church, then it was transformed into a church, and later into a Uniate church.

Today, this monument of Renaissance military and religious architecture is one of the main attractions of the city of Zaslavl and the entire Minsk region. The building was conceived not only as a cult object, but also as an important element of the city's fortifications. A series of loopholes ran along the upper part of the walls, which are currently hidden under the apse belt. The formidable 35-meter tower, which gives the temple the appearance of a miniature castle, was erected in 1678.

By that time, the church had already become the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, and in 1833, the Transfiguration of the Savior Uniate Church. However, the building was soon transferred to the Orthodox community. In the middle of the 19th century, it underwent major repairs.

With the advent of the Stalin era, the fate of the temple changed: a flour warehouse was located on its territory, and later a Museum of Crafts and Folk Crafts. It was only in the 1990s that divine services resumed in the Transfiguration Church, which became an important event for the local Orthodox community.

Today, the Transfiguration Church continues to be an important historical and cultural site, attracting the attention of both locals and tourists.

The city of Zaslavl is one of the oldest cities in Belarus, founded in 985 by Grand Duke Vladimir, the Baptizer of Rus. The city received its name from the eldest son of Vladimir and his wife Rogneda from Polotsk – Izyaslav, Prince of Polotsk (1001).

Princess Rogneda (960-1000), daughter of the Polotsk prince Rogvolod, was one of the wives of St. Prince Vladimir during his time as a pagan; by him she gave birth to princes Izyaslav Vladimirovich of Polotsk, Yaroslav the Wise (from 1019, the prince of Kyiv), Vsevolod of Vladimir-Volynsk and Mstislav of Tmutarakan. According to the Tver Chronicle (16th century), in 976 Rogneda was forcibly married to Prince Vladimir of Novgorod, who killed her father and brothers. After a failed attempt on the prince's life in the late 980s, Rogneda and her two sons Izyaslav and Yaroslav were exiled to the dominions of her late father, the Polotsk principality. They were settled in a fortress founded by Prince Vladimir and named in honor of the eldest son. The place where Rogneda lived with her sons has survived to this day and is located on the northwestern outskirts of the city of Zaslavl between Kirov and Minskaya streets on a hill.

In 988, Prince Vladimir received Holy Baptism, and soon all his sons were baptized, including Izyaslav and Yaroslav. Rogneda was also baptized, and with sincerity and love, Rogneda accepted the new faith, becoming a nun under the name Anastasia. Thanks to her and her sons, the faith of Christ spread from Zaslavl to the entire Polotsk Land.

In the 11th century, the city center was moved to the current castle-rampart, where the Transfiguration Church now stands, and the residence of the Zaslavl princes, the descendants of Izyaslav, also moved there, and, of course, in the new place, as was customary, a new church was built.

In the 16th century, Zaslavl was owned by representatives of the Glebovich magnate family. One of them, Yan Yanovich Glebovich, became interested in Calvinism and instead of the princely church in the castle in the 90s of the 15th century, he laid a stone Calvinist church. The Calvinist community in the city operated from the 1570s thanks to the high patronage of the Glebovichs. The son of Yan Yanovich, Nikolai Glebovich, unlike his father, converted to Catholicism. Under him, the Calvinist church was rebuilt into the Church of the Archangel Michael, and a bell tower was added to it at the same time. In 1833, the Mikhailovsky Church was re-consecrated as the Transfiguration Uniate Church. In 1839, at the Polotsk Cathedral, the Uniate Church joined the Orthodox Church. In the same year, the Transfiguration of the Savior Uniate Parish in Zaslavl converted to Orthodoxy and was annexed to the Minsk Diocese.

In 1921, the state border between Poland and the USSR passed near Zaslavl, and the church was plundered. In addition to various valuables, the ancient relic of the temple was stolen - a silver altar cross from the 17th century. During the Great Patriotic War, the church in Zaslavl began to operate again. During the war, the church was severely damaged by direct artillery hits. In 1968-1972, it was restored and adapted for a museum. In the 1980s, the temple was returned to the Orthodox Church.