On the southeastern side of the Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra lies Pyatnitskoye Podvorye, on whose grounds stand the two oldest churches built outside the Lavra walls. This place was once called "Podol"; there was a bustling market square here, through which the trade route from Moscow to Aleksandrovskaya Sloboda passed.
The stone Pyatnitskaya and Vvedenskaya churches were built in place of the old wooden church, erected back under Venerable Nikon, with funds from the boyar Khabarov in 1547.
For some time, the churches in Podol were an independent parish formed in the 18th century. But a century and a half later, in 1896, Pyatnitskoye Podvorye returned to the monastery's fold.
The Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra was closed in 1919, but services continued in the churches of Pyatnitskoye Podvorye until 1928. But later they too were closed, and a grain warehouse with a mill was set up on their grounds.
Pyatnitskoye Podvorye returned to the fold of the Lavra for a second time in 1991. True, by then the condition of the churches looked depressing, so restoration work continued here for more than 20 years.
Nowadays, services are held daily in the podvorye churches, and a Sunday school is open for children.
