In 1723, by decree of Peter I, not far from St. Petersburg, on the island of Kotlin, a fortress was laid. Her project was developed by a military engineer A.P. Hannibal (France). It was planned that the structure will comprise several bastions, united by a stone fortress wall.
City Kronstadt
This legendary city is located on the island of Kotlin and the adjacent small islands of the Gulf of Finland. This is the only municipality in the Kronstadt district of St. Petersburg. The population of the city is more than forty-three thousand inhabitants.
For a long time (until 1995) this city was closed. In 1996, the Government of the country decided on the free entry here of Russian citizens, as well as foreign guests. By the way, tourists like to visit this place. Indeed, in this small city there are many attractions - temples and cathedrals, museums and sculptural compositions, monuments to famous people.
I must say that the temples of the city are not only places of worship, they are the guardians of priceless relics related to the history of the Russian fleet. Many tourists are attracted to the museums of the city. They keep within themselves an echo of past days. One of the most famous of them in our country is the Kronstadt Fortress Museum. We will tell you more about him today.
Kronstadt fortress: history
In the fall of 1724, Admiral P.I. Sivers led the construction of the fortress. Six bastions were built in the western part, which were named in honor of the Preobrazhensky, Butyrsky, Semenovsky, Ingermanlandsky, Marine and Lefortovo regiments. The soil for the embankment on which the construction work was carried out was manually extracted on the mainland. Over the base, large-scale fortifications were carried out. A wall was built, guns placed, barracks towers built, etc. It was planned to erect two bastions in the eastern part of the fortress, and four in the northern part.
Under Peter I, this plan was not implemented, and Peter II greatly simplified the fortress. In 1732, a severe storm destroyed the fortifications of the western part. It took several years to repair the structures damaged by the elements. Construction work in the northern part of the fortress was completed by 1734. The Kronstadt fortress was in constant combat readiness due to the constant threat from the Swedes. The wars of 1805 with France and 1806 with Turkey indicated the need to strengthen the walls. This was done so that the Kronstadt fortress could withstand open fire.
After the victory over the French in 1812, peaceful life began here. However, the constant onslaught of the elements forced to regularly update the wooden fortifications that protected the fortress. Kronstadt in 1824 suffered a devastating flood. As a result, military guns were seriously damaged, fortifications were destroyed, and some buildings were washed away.
The Kronstadt fortress was restored for more than six years. The fence was completely rebuilt. Two barracks with attached stone half towers appeared in the western part. Three more half-towers (single-tier) were erected from the north side. Four defense barracks were set up here. An impressive fortress wall and earthen rampart were erected on the eastern side. At the beginning of the XIX century, the number of the garrison of the fortress totaled more than seventeen thousand military personnel, and after reconstruction the barracks fund was increased to thirty thousand places.
Fortress today
During the years of the most terrible war in the history of mankind, the road linking the besieged Leningrad with the country began in Kronstadt. And today the remains of fortifications of that time are carefully stored here. Today, the Kronstadt fortress within its walls houses the naval school of the Navy (in the defensive barracks), the naval cadet corps. In the rest of the barracks, Navy services are located. A protective dam, batteries No. 1-7, half towers No. 1-3, defensive barracks No. 1-5 are historical and architectural monuments that are protected by the state.
How did the museum appear?
In early October 1953, an exhibition exposition dedicated to the history of the legendary city was opened on the basis of the Marine Club. So the museum was born. At the very beginning of 1973, he became a branch of the Central Maritime Museum of the city. Part of its exposure after the fire at the Marine Club was temporarily transferred to the building of the Marine Cathedral. I must say that the exposition aroused great interest among citizens and guests. The Kronstadt Fortress Museum (St. Petersburg) opened its doors to visitors in May 1980, on the eve of Victory Day. Today it is the most popular and visited attraction of the city.
St. Petersburg. Museum "Kronstadt Fortress": description
First of all, I would like to note that this unique museum was created with the active participation of the indigenous inhabitants of the city. They showed an amazing interest in preserving and perpetuating the history of Kronstadt. Locals donated old household items, historical documents, photographs stored in family archives, like expensive relics.
Today the Kronstadt Fortress Museum in St. Petersburg has a unique collection fund with more than seven thousand exhibits. It consists of seven halls with a total area of ​​almost six hundred square meters, in which exhibits are displayed reflecting the history of the city, as well as the Baltic Fleet. In addition, there are two dioramas that very accurately illustrate the two most important military events.
Dioramas
One of them tells about the defeat of the Swedish landing in 1705 on the island of Kotlin. In the center of the composition you can see the commanders of the regiments of the Russian army: Gamontov and Mikeshin, as well as Colonel Tolbukhin. On the right is a trench, and therein lies a bleeding soldier. A red flag is visible in the background, which signals the start of hostilities. The second diorama refers to the events of 1941, when Kronstadt heroically defended itself against fascist invaders.
Expositions
The entire museum collection can be divided into four historical stages. One of them tells about the foundation of the city and its existence before the October Revolution. The second part tells about events that relate to the period from 1917 to 1939. At this time, one of the largest uprisings in the history of Russia took place here, which took place under the slogan "Power to the Soviets, not to the parties." As a result, not only the rebels, but almost all the inhabitants of the city were punished. About two thousand people were shot. Another six thousand inhabitants were sentenced to imprisonment. In 1922, residents of the city began to be forcibly evicted from their native land. In memory of all the victims of this tragedy, a mass grave was created, which always has the Eternal Flame burning.
Then visitors can get acquainted with the next historical period, covering perhaps the most terrible time in the modern history of our country - the years of the Great Patriotic War. During the shelling of the German air force Luftwaffe (1941), the city was almost wiped off the face of the earth. Many ships were sunk, houses were blown up, and the Marine Plant was destroyed. Surrounded by fascist troops, the city lived without food. Through Kronstadt during the war, the Small Road of Life passed, which connected it with the Fox Nose and Orienbaum.
Another historical stage reflects the modern life of the legendary city, as well as the history of its restoration after the war. Among the museum’s most valuable exhibits, the Decembrist’s and publicist’s chest D.I.Zavalishin’s treasure chest, a fragment of the water pipe that has been preserved since the 19th century, a spyglass belonging to Admiral M.P. Lazarev himself, and a unique photo album of the Kronstadt military port should be noted.
Today in the museum there is an interesting exhibition entitled “The history of shipwrecks”. Here are collected items that were lifted from ships that sank at different times in the Gulf of Finland.
Interesting Facts
Between the forts of Kronstadt in 1854 a mine-artillery position was built (the only one in the world at that time). Contemporaries recalled that her presence alone frightened off enemy ships. The forts of the fortress in 1990 are included in the World Heritage List of St. Petersburg. On the territory of the forts Alexander I and Konstantin in the nineties started the festival "Fort Dance", which lasted 9 years.
How to get to the museum?
If you decide to visit the Kronstadt Fortress Museum, you need to know its address: Yakornaya Square, house No. 2. Bus No. 101 will take you to the sights from St. Petersburg (the metro station "Staraya Derevnya"). From the "Black River" you can take shuttle bus number 405, and public transport number 407 will take you from Enlightenment Avenue. In summer, you can get to the museum by train from the Baltic Station. You should go to the Oranienbaum station, then transfer to a ferry or meteor, which departs from the Makarov embankment.