Zheltovodsky Makaryev Convent (formerly Monastery) of the Holy Trinity ( or Свя́то-Тро́ице-Мака́рьево-Желтово́дский же́нский монасты́рь) is one of the convents of Russian Orthodox Church. It is located in the vicinity of the urban-type settlement of Makaryevo in Lyskovsky District of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. History Legendary foundation The Makaryev (Makaryevsky) Convent was founded as a men's monastery. According to the legend, it was founded by the missionary Saint Macarius (Makary) in the early 15th century (1435, or, according to the Nizhny Novgorod Eparchy site, in 1415) by the waters of Zhyoltoye Ozero (Yellow Lake), from where comes the appellation "Zheltovodsky". In 1439, the monastery was burned by Tatar Khan Ulu Mukhammed. Macarius was taken prisoner, but released by the Khan on the condition that he not rebuild the monastery. Macarius then went into the Kostroma forests, where he founded a new monastery on the Unzha River, now known as Unzhensky Makaryev monastery. The monastery and the fair In 1620, the monk Avramy (Abraham) from Murom came to this place to rebuild the monastery, and soon he was surrounded by other monks. In 1624, the first wooden Cathedral of the Holy Trinity was consecrated. Most of the existing major monastery buildings were constructed of stone between 1651 and 1667. The entire complex is surrounded by a fortress-like stone wall with towers, forming a square with each side being about 200 meters long. The notable buildings of the period include the (rebuilt) Cathedral of Holy Trinity (1658), the Church of the Dormition of Our Lady (the Uspensky Church) with the large attached refectory (trapeznaya) (1651), the bell tower (1651), the Church of St. Michael the Archangel above the southern gate, and the monastic cells. The refectory is a large (420 m²), two-storied building. The Church to St. Macarius was built in classical style in 1808. Eventually, the monastery had seven churches and one cathedral where the remains of St. Macarius were venerated. A well in the monastery was said to have been dug by St. Macarius himself. Despite the fortifications, the monastery was captured by Stenka Razin's rebel forces in 1670. The famous Makaryev Fair took place every summer for more than two centuries outside of the walls of the monastery. This was one of the most famous and important merchant fairs in Eastern Europe. Many merchants from Europe and Asia arrived in July to exchange goods. From the 1620s the fair was an