Restoration of Kazanchi Orthodox Church Completed in Shusha

Local sources confirmed on Sunday that the restoration of the historic Kazanchi Church, located on a hilltop in the culturally significant city of Shusha, has been completed. Despite the apparent completion of the restoration project, Azerbaijan's Ministry of Culture has yet to release an official statement regarding the work.

Known as Gazanchi in Azerbaijani, the church has been a focal point of contention between the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities, both of which claim historical ties to the site. Armenians refer to the cathedral as Kazanchetsots, named after settlers from the Nakhchivan village of Kazanchi who established the area in Shusha during the second half of the 19th century.

The church was built and inaugurated to mark the coronation of Emperor Alexander III on May 15, 1883, as noted in the inscription above the southern portal. The church’s architecture conforms to the Russian Orthodox canon, highlighting Shusha’s strategic role within the Russian Imperial Army’s garrison network in the South Caucasus.

The restoration of Kazanchi, initiated in 2021 by Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Culture, involved significant reconstruction, notably replacing the building’s sharp spire—characteristic of the Armenian Monophysite tradition—with the original spherical dome typical of Russian Orthodox churches. This change has drawn criticism from Armenian groups, who perceive it as an attempt to erase Armenia’s historical and cultural presence in Karabakh.

“This church was built for the Russian garrison after the annexation of the Karabakh Khanate by the Russian Empire in 1805,” said Adalat Mustafayev, a historian from Baku. “Prior to this period, there were no Christian places of worship in Shusha, the capital of the Karabakh Khanate.”

Following the restoration, ownership of the church was transferred to the Baku Christian Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church, aligning the structure with Russian church authorities. This move has further solidified Azerbaijan’s control over the site, which many Armenians continue to regard as part of their cultural heritage.

The completion of the restoration comes amid ongoing tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan over territorial and cultural claims in the Karabakh region, of which Shusha—founded in 1752 by Panah Ali Khan as a fortress capital—is a key city.