Church of Michael Archangel (Baku)

 church, orthodox christianity

Church of Michael Archangel (Russian: Михайло-Архангельский храм; Azerbaijani: Mixayil Arxangel kilsəsi) or Flotskaya (Church of the Fleet) is a Russian Orthodox church in central Baku, Azerbaijan, on Zargarpalan street. The church is dedicated to St. Michael. The church is serviced by Hegumen Serafim (Bideyev), 3 priests and 1 deacon.The church used to be among the military churches and belonged to the Caspian Flotilla and was therefore called Flotskaya. Although the exact date of the church's establishment is unknown, the approximate date is 1850, as described in writings of the "Kavkaz" (Caucasus) newspaper published in 1855. The church was built by the Caspian fleet officers in honor of the chief of the navy Alexander Nikolayevich Tsesarevich who along with Russian Emperor Nikolay I visited Baku in 1851.