Sergiev-Posad , which is situated  70 km from Moscow , in 1997 celebrated 215 years from its foundation.

Sergiev-Posad began from the Trinity-Sergius monastery which was founded in the middle of the 14^th century. Due to its historical record and architectural merits, the Sergiev-Posad Laura (monastery of the first rank) has become one of the famous and popular treasuries of Russian antiquity. Its founder Sergius, once a boyar in Rostov , after taking orders was known under the name of Sergius of Radonezh.

Much attention was attracted to the protection and to the rebuilding of the historical and cultural monuments especially of the ensemble of Trinity-Sergius monastery – State art-historical museum.

Trinity-Sergius monastery, which appeared in the hard time of foundation of Russian State and the battle for national freedom of the Russian people, took a place of Moscow fortress in the early period of its existence.

In the beginning its walls were wooden. In 1408 the fortress was burned down by the Tatar prince Edigey. And it was reconstructed only in 3 years.

In 1513 the first stone gates of Trinity-Sergius monastery were built. And in 1540-1550 all wooden walls were rebuilt into stone like the walls of China-city.

The walls present a wrong quadrangle with the length of 1120 meters, 7-15 meters high and with the thickness of 3-10 meters. In the foundation of the walls and towers blocks of limestone were laid, on which  huge slabs  were placed. Under the turrets  there were made the passages cellars climbings out and listeners through which the earth was listened to - whether the enemy was digging a sap. Widening upwards, the walls  were divided into deep cells for gun and harquebus battles thus looking similar to honeycombs.  From the outside tha walls presented impregnable smooth surface for the enemies. The walls were strengthened with 11 towers. they do not strike with their variety or some special decoration of the form their purpose is first of all to serve in the matter of war.

In the Trinity-Sergius monastery the great Moscow prince Dmitry Donskoy got parting wishes for the battle with the Mongol-Tatars. The Victory on the Kulikovo field promoted the authority of the monastery.

In the beginning of the 17^th century, during the Polish-Lithuanian intervention, Trinity-Sergius monastery took part in the battle with enemies. On the 23d of September of 1608 it was besieged by Polish armies. During 16 mounts 3000 defenders of monastery successfully repulsed all attacks of interventors. In 1610, when the army of prince M.V.Skopin-Shuysky approached the monastery the enemies ran away.

In 1744 Elizaveta Petrovna gave the Trinity-Sergius monastery the title of a laurel. In 1814 Moscow spiritual academy was transferred into the monastery. In 1782 (by the decree of Ekaterine the II) 3 suburbs of the monastery were named as the Sergius Posad city. During 19^th – the beginning of the 20^th centuries the development of the city as before was closely connected with the service of the monastery and pilgrims who visited it. In the Posad worked a lot of workshops and productions, among which the special fame got the masters of toys from the tree and from papier-mache.

In most buildings of the monastery the museum expositions are opened, where ancient icons, decorative needle-work, jewelry from silver and gold are widely represented.