St. Petersburg is the second-largest city of Russia and houses several historical and significant attractions of Russia. It was at the beginning of the 18th century when Peter I had decided to move the capital to the northwest of the country where the Swedish Empire controlled at that time. St. Petersburg is also called the City of Museums by the locals because of the number of historical sites and museums inside the city and its suburb. As you can see, there are lots of reasons why St. Petersburg is significant in Russia tour and why many tourists choose the city as their travel destination in travel to Russia.
One of the main reasons that convince tourists to take a trip to St. Petersburg is the architecture of the city and palaces. As it was the capital of Russia for around 200 years, many tsars and members of the imperial family have built several mansions and palaces for themselves in or outside the city. You can visit most of these palaces in your tour to St. Petersburg because most of them are still main attractions of Russia in St. Petersburg tours, but since there are lots of them, you should choose to visit which one of them on your travel to Russia; to pick the places that you want to visit on your trip to Russia, you need information about those spots; here, we’re going to introduce the first-ever palace that has been constructed in St. Petersburg, the Summer Palace of Peter the Great to you.
Peter I’s Summer Palace was the first-ever imperial palace and one of the first structures that had been built in St. Petersburg, and Peter the Great had chosen its location himself. The place that Peter had chosen as the site of his first palace in St. Petersburg was located between the Neva River and the Fontanka River, and it was formerly a farmstead that belonged to a Swedish officer named Konow. Peter the Great ordered Ivan Matveev to construct the Tsar’s first mansion on the former Swedish officer estate, but, likely, Peter had lived in Konow’s mansion for a while until his mansion got ready. The first mansion was a wooden building that is described in the book “The description of St Petersburg and Kronshlot” as “a small dwelling of Dutch architecture with a garden, brightly painted, with shiny window panes and bold decorations.”
The wooden house was replaced by a stone building in 1710, and Swiss Italian architect Domenico Trezzini was in charge of the construction. Trezzini had designed a two-story Petrine-Baroque building for Peter the Great, and in 1712, Peter I had moved into his new house with his wife Catherine I. The Summer Palace had remained the home of Peter the Great until he died 1725, and following the death of his wife, Catherine I in 1727, their children had left the palace.
The Summer Palace was a simple mansion parallel to the palaces of other capitals in Europe during that time, but it was the first palace in St. Petersburg, the city that soon was going to surpass the other cities of Europe in terms of magnificent architecture and palaces. The lower level was taken by Peter himself, and the second floor was occupied by his wife and their children. The palace had several rooms, including the reception hall, where Peter I greeted his guests and held ceremonies; the great hall, which was the place where Peter personally prosecuted, locked up, and discharged prisoners, and Peter I’s workshop where he often spent time during his stay at the palace.
Alongside Domenico Trezzini, the German architect and sculptor Andreas Schluter had carried the interior decoration and sculptural design, including the famous red bas reliefs that run all around the building. The garden behind the palace that had been laid out in 1704 was also reconstructed and used as the palace’s garden.
After Peter and Catherine I’s death, the palace was evacuated by the descendants and occupied by the palace servants. In Elizaveta Petrovna’s reign at the end of the 18th century, she ordered to restore the palace to be used as the summer residence for the administrators of the imperial court. The interior of the palace was changed in 1826 when the Italian architect Carlo Rossi had turned it into a Coffee House, but at the end of the 19th century, the palace once again was abandoned.
Following the October Revolution, the Summer Palace recognized as national heritage and soon after had turned to a museum. At first, the small exhibition that held there had nothing to do with the history of the palace; but in 1934, it turned to a museum about the everyday life of Peter I since the original exterior of the palace and the decoration inside it were survived. The exhibit at that museum was composed of the clothes of Peter the Great, rare paintings and prints, furniture of the palace, and a collection of applied art.
During the second world war, the palace and garden were severely damaged by the bombing raid of the Nazi army but were soon repaired and reopened as a museum to the public in 1947.
In the 1960s, the final restoration of the palace during the Soviet Union had begun by A. Gessen, who was in charge of supervising the reconstruction of half of the historical places of St. Petersburg. During this final restoration, the interior had restored as its original layout; the carved oak panels and the Dutch tiles repaired; the Stucco decoration of the fireplaces have been restored.
Today, the Summer Palace has been a branch of the State Russian Museum. It shows the original interiors and layout of the palace, personal belongings of Peter and Catherine, including clothes and formal dresses; personal stuff and daily used items and furniture; unique items of the 18th century; rare paintings and prints; portraits of Peter the Great and Catherine I.
Though the palace gives an amazing opportunity of witnessing the life of Peter the Great and St. Petersburg in about 300 years ago to the tourists and people who visit St. Petersburg on their travel to Russia, it’s currently closed for restoration and reconstruction. In case that the Summer Palace is in your interest, verify with your St. Petersburg tour administration or the State Russian Museum to see if the palace is open for a visit or not.
If you have plans to visit Russia, we at the Star Travel Group would suggest you visit our weblog to learn more about Russia and its tourist destination places. We have some useful information about the top attractions of Russia, the best places to visit during your trip to St. Petersburg, and some tips and pieces of advice on how to travel to Russia.
