[1] Like other Russian kremlins, it was originally a fortress or citadel which was the religious and administrative center of the city.

Together with several structures in the neighboring city of Vladimir, it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

The fortress was strategically located on a bend of the Kamenka river on three sides and a moat to the east.

It was surrounded by earthen ramparts that remain to the present day.

[3] A settlement (posad Russian: посад) to the east became home to the secular population - shopkeepers and craftsmen, while the Kremlin proper was the home of the prince, the archbishop, and the high clergy.