ARKHANGELSK, September 30. /TASS/. Traces of shelling off British ships on the Solovetsky Monastery in 1854 during the Crimean War will be marked and preserved during the fortress walls' restoration, the Foundation for Conservation and Development of the Solovetsky Archipelago (Solovki) told TASS.

"One of the most important tasks that has emerged during the restoration is to preserve evidence of historical events of the Crimean War of 1854 - the traces of shelling by the British artillery. In the passage between the Pryadilnaya (Spinning Mill) Tower to the Belaya (White) Tower, we can see traces of damage to brickwork and boulders by metal cores. The restorers face the task to mark the places to where the cores have fallen, to identify them, and to preserve them under the restoration process, leaving the traces for future generations."

At the height of the Crimean War, on July 6, 1854, the Brisk and the Miranda British warships approached the Solovetsky Monastery. The British fired several warning shots, which the monastery perceived as the beginning of hostilities. The return salvo's core from the Solovetsky walls hit the English ship, damaging it quite badly. The squadron commander demanded the garrison surrendered, but the Solovetsky abbot refused to obey.

The intense shelling of the monastery continued for several hours in a row. The British ships rained down about 2,000 cannonballs and bombs on the monastery. However, the sheer superiority of the British in weapons and ammunition proved powerless before the defenders' courage and the fortress walls' power. The monastery's inhabitants resisted skillfully, forcing the British ships to retreat from the archipelago. The fortress walls still have traces of the attack: in the passage between the Pryadilnaya (Spinning Mill) Tower to the Belaya (White) Tower, there are traces of damage to brickwork and boulders by metal cores.

The Solovetsky Monastery restoration is due to be completed in 2029 - by the 600th anniversary of the first monastic settlement on Solovki. The boulder-brick masonry system is a specific feature of the Solovetsky Fortress. The main walls and towers are made of boulders of various sizes, while the structural details - the upper loopholes, the curtain walls' pillars and parapets, arches in the aisles, and vaulted lintels in cannon loopholes - are made of brick. The brickwork features white lime mortar. The used gray-blue natural stone, red brick and white mortar give a bright, unusual and rich color to the walls.

The Solovetsky Monastery is a unique monument of the Russian North, founded in the 15th century. In 1992, UNESCO put the monastery on its World Heritage List.