. Another important regional centr was Suzdalia, located in the northeast of Russia in the upper reaches of the Volga River,
in an area that had been colonized by the Slavic tribes in the 1O th century. Among these early Suzdalian churches was the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin (1165)-about 1.6 kilometers away from the city of Bogolyubovo and commissioned
by Andrey Bogolyubsky who led a military
. campaign on both Kiev and Novgorod and who subsequently established his power as the grand prince of all Russia. The Church of the Intercession was built on an artificial hill overlooking the Nerl River. Paved with stones, the hill protects the church from flooding
on its marshland site and also accentuates the verticality of the church arrangement The massing consists of a square base on which the church seems to rest, with a tall drum and dome rising from the center. The elegancof the design is further achieved
by retaining a sense of proportion through
the use of pilasters on the facade and the high apses that extend to the vaults of the zakomary