Transfiguration Cathedral in the city of Bendery – Orthodox Church, a monument of architecture of XIX century, one of the main attractions of the city.

The history of the Cathedral began in 1814, when the assumption and St. Nicholas Church, located on the territory of the castle Esplanade, were destroyed. It was then decided to build a new Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Lord in place of the former Turkish barracks. A year later, namely, on August 22, 1815, took place the ceremony of laying the first stone of the temple. The event was timed to the anniversary of the liberation of Bessarabia from the domination of the Ottoman Empire. The author of the project was Archimandrite Ioanikii, who proposed to the temple complex is divided into three chapels, two of which were named after St. Nicholas and the Church of the Dormition, respectively, and the third - Central - Preobrazhensky was named.

Fully the building of the temple was completed in 1840. The Transfiguration Cathedral was built in the best traditions of Russian classicism, with its design elements were present Moldovan decorative art. One of the most interesting and impressive parts of the Cathedral is its main dome. Since that time the Cathedral was conceived as a symbol of victory over the Turkish yoke, it was decided to make the main dome in the form of a helmet ancient warrior.

Between 1918 and 1944, the Cathedral belonged to the Romanian Church, its interior is at this time considerably decayed. Only in 1934 were carried out reconstruction work, upgraded interior, murals on the walls.

During the Second world war, the Cathedral suffered greatly. After one of the shellings in the room caused a fire that destroyed the famous iconostasis of seven wooden columns and archives, which contained significant information about the lives of the residents of Bandar in the prewar period. In 1948 there was a reconstruction of the temple, it was given the official title of the monument of architecture of XIX century.

1992 was another tragic milestone in the history of the Cathedral. During the fighting were damaged, the roof and dome of the Transfiguration Cathedral.
Today, Transfiguration Cathedral – one of the major centres of spiritual life in Transnistria.