| Central House of Officers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine | |
|---|---|
Центральний будинок офіцерів Збройних сил України
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| Former names | House of Red Army |
| General information | |
| Status | Cultural heritage site |
| Architectural style | NeoEmpire |
| Address | Hrushevsky Street |
| Town or city | Kyiv |
| Country | Ukraine |
| Coordinates | 50°26′41″N 30°32′25″E / 50.44472°N 30.54028°E / 50.44472; 30.54028 |
| Groundbreaking | 1931 |
| Inaugurated | 1933 |
| Owner | Ministry of Defense of Ukraine |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Joseph Karakis |
Central House of Officers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Центральний будинок офіцерів Збройних сил України) is a cultural center located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Since its recent reorganization, Central Officers House has become one of the leading cultural centers in the Ukrainian capital city.
The building was initially built between 1914 and 1915 as a military flight school. It was later repeatedly reconstructed up until 1931. It was renamed to the House of the Red Army and Navy in 1933. In the early post-war years, when the whole city of Kyiv was in ruins, and there were practically no audience halls. Many of the original concert halls were rebuilt during the Khrushchev and Brezhnev eras, while new halls were also created. Since Ukrainian independence was achieved in 1991, the house of officers was, for the most part, converted into a museum.
Since October 1995, the Central Museum of the Armed Forces has operated in the building. Prior to this, the museum formerly served as the Historical Museum of Kyiv Military District. More than 100 years ago, on 28 December 1910, the Kyiv Military History Museum was opened in a rebuilt basement of what is now the National Art Museum of Ukraine. That served as the precedent for the military museum. In September 1996, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine gave the museum the status of the seniormost museum in the Ukrainian military museum system. For the first time, the museum opened its doors to visitors on 14 June 1998. On 15 January 2010, it was renamed to the National Military History Museum of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Національний військово-історичний музей України).[1][2]
The building was built in a NeoEmpire style; the facade is decorated under the classics. It has more than 150 rooms, as well as a large concert hall with a maximum capacity of 1,000 people. It also has the following rooms:[3]
