Koromyslova Tower is a round tower of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, located in the upper part between the Nikolskaya and Taynitskaya towers. If you look at the structure from the opposite side of the Zelensky Descent, you can notice that the tower together with the adjoining curtain walls resembles the shape of a woman with a yoke.

The distinctive feature of the tower is that it is entirely made of white stone, including the interior rooms. In terms of preservation of its original appearance, Koromyslova is the best among all the round towers of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin.

Like all towers of the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, Koromyslova has four combat tiers. The ground-level fire (the lowest tier), now buried under soil, is equipped with loopholes located 30-40 centimeters above ground level, allowing for direct fire to "clear the moat" of enemies. The two middle combat tiers have firing chambers where small-caliber hand cannons were placed. For example, in 1622 and 1663, one copper hand cannon on wheels was installed on Koromyslova Tower. The upper tier housed a fighting platform with embrasures and battlements. Additional combat chambers were arranged within the thickness of the fortress walls adjoining the tower. The loopholes are arranged not one above another but in a fan-shaped order, which reduces the "dead" (unreachable) space — the area adjacent to the tower inaccessible to the fortress defenders' fire. Two loopholes were used for firing along the curtain walls, and one combat chamber facing the "field" was intended for flanking the enemy approaching the Kremlin. Koromyslova Tower has two entrances: the lower one is arranged within the wall thickness to the left of the tower, and the upper one leads from the fighting platform.

The curtain wall stretching between Koromyslova and Taynitskaya towers is the longest in the Kremlin (205 meters). This is explained by the fact that the steep ravine was extremely inconvenient for the attacking enemy, and the builders only reinforced the slopes with fortress walls. In the past, the steep ravine began directly at the foundations of the Kremlin wall; it was landscaped in the 1830s and turned into a fairly wide park. The lower part of the curtain wall and the tower up to the height of the belt semi-oval is made of white limestone to increase the citadel's strength. The rest of the walls, as in the entire Kremlin, are built of dark brown brick.

In the 1700s, the tower tilted due to soil erosion in front of it. The danger of collapse was eliminated in the mid-19th century when city authorities arranged the Zelensky Descent and reinforced the ravine slope with soil. Until 1886, an archive was housed within the walls of the ancient structure. During the 1965 restoration, the upper tier floors and the tent roof of Koromyslova Tower were restored.

There is a notable legend associated with the tower's name. In 1520, the Astrakhan Tatars led by Said Giray besieged the city. The legend tells: "An innumerable hostile force besieged Nizhny Novgorod. Day after day, the defenders repelled the enemy's heavy assaults, and their forces began to dwindle. The city was running out of food supplies, and most importantly — water was scarce. The defenders began to think that they would have to surrender to the mercy of the victor. Among the besieged was a brave girl. She volunteered to bring water from the Pochayna River. Early in the morning, under the cover of fog, she was lowered from the wall. Carefully, she passed the Tatar patrols, descended to the Pochayna, drank herself, filled the buckets with water, and began to climb the steep hill with them. Friendly hands were already close, ready to catch her, when a Tatar patrol appeared. The enemy raised the alarm. A fierce fight broke out between the Tatars and the girl, who defended herself with her yoke. The girl killed several Tatars with it but was herself killed. The girl's bravery confused the enemies. They reasoned: 'If such brave women are in this fortress, and one of them without weapons killed several of our warriors, then what must the men be like?' The siege was lifted. The dead girl was buried with honors under the tower, with the buckets and the yoke laid with her. Since then, that tower has been called Koromyslova."

The most well-known version of the legend is summarized as follows: "In Nizhny Novgorod, masons began building the Kremlin. The next morning, they came and saw that everything they had built had collapsed. The masons were surprised, shook their heads, but continued working. The next day, they again saw everything collapsed. The masons decided to ask the elders for advice. The elders said: for the Kremlin to be strong, durable, and not taken by enemy forces, it must be built on the blood of the first living being to approach the construction site. Near the place where the Kremlin was being built lived a townsman. He had a young wife — the beautiful Alyona, who was expecting a child. That morning, Alyona went early to fetch water from the Pochayna River. She took buckets and a yoke, descended to the river, filled the buckets, and began climbing the steep hill. Alyona saw that people were standing near the Kremlin construction site waiting for something. She approached the builders. The gray-bearded boyar waved his hand. They seized Alyona and walled her alive under the tower's foundation. Along with her, they placed buckets and a yoke. Since then, the tower has been called Koromyslova. Alyona's husband, learning of his wife's terrible death, committed suicide — he threw himself into the Volga." Another Nizhny Novgorod legend says that the builders supposedly pitied the girl and instead buried a dragonfly ("the insect yoke") to observe the ancient custom.

Similar legends are common not only in the Nizhny Novgorod region but throughout Europe. In honor of the legend of the brave Alyona, who killed Tatars with a yoke, a stone monument was erected near the tower.

Sources:

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koromyslova_Tower

http://www.unn.runnet.ru/rus/volgovyt/nizhobl/nizhnov/kreml/korom.htm