The Artillery Museum in St. Petersburg is one of the largest in the world and the oldest in Russia. It was founded by order of Peter I, and opened on August 29, 1703 in the Peter and Paul Fortress. The tsar ordered the construction of a Zeichhaus, which translates as “a house for equipment” or a “weapon house”, the caretaker of which was called a captenarmus. Weapons and ammunition were stored here. But Peter I, who was eager for all sorts of wonders, by a special decree ordered that artillery pieces “memorable and curious” and trophy be brought here from all over Russia.
First Petrovsky Museum of Artillery
The second impulse in its development was received by the Museum of Artillery in St. Petersburg in 1756, when by decree of Elizaveta Petrovna and the efforts of general-feltsdeichmeister (chief of artillery) P.I. Shuvalov, the Memorial Hall was opened on the territory of the Foundry, into which the Peter's Zeughaus was transformed. Already at the end of the XVIII century, the collection of this repository totaled 8,000 copies.
The Peter and Paul Fortress, built in accordance with the rules for erecting bastions, had a crown, or crown-shaped fortification, erected in front of the central part of the fortress (curtain wall) and connected to it by two long corridors.
Close relationship with Nicholas I
When in 1868, by decree of Nicholas I, the rooms in the east wing of the crown, located in the mezzanine and lower floors, were transferred to the Museum of Artillery, its new history and more active life began. Part of the courtyard was set aside for heavy guns. The Kronverk of the Peter and Paul Fortress is notorious for the execution of the leaders of the December uprising. On July 13, 1826, five Decembrists were hanged over the curtain ditch: P.I. Pestel, S.I. Muravyov-Apostol, M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, K.F. Ryleyev and P.G. Kakhovsky.
New Museum Building
In 1849, Nicholas I decided to transform a place that reminded him of unpleasant events. He issues a decree on the construction in the crown of a two-story stone building, which will have a horseshoe-shaped shape with a length along the central axis of 472 meters.
On the second floor of the newly built building are embrasures and loopholes. Ravelin, whose external walls are 1.8 meters thick, makes a worthy impression. The unique collection that the Museum of Artillery in St. Petersburg had was replenished in 1963 with the funds of another large museum, and in 1965 - another. Thus, of the three arises the current Military History Museum of Artillery, Engineering and Signal Corps, the name of which indicates which museums are included in its composition. It occupies a fairly large area on which numerous tanks, combat vehicles and guns are located. The united museum, whose age is approaching 150 years, today has 850,000 exhibits in its funds.
Museum wonders
The Museum of Artillery in St. Petersburg has been known to every resident of the city since childhood due to its unique specimens, among which there is a funny but functioning cannon, donated by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich to little Peter. There are also mattresses firing shots and taking part in the defense of Moscow from the troops of Tokhtamysh, who besieged the capital in 1380. There is also a mortar of the Imposter, cast by the famous gunsmith Andrei Chokhov. The unique collection is famous not only for relics, its exhibits include modern missile systems and self-propelled guns (self-propelled artillery mounts).
The Museum of Artillery in St. Petersburg has not only artillery weapons in its funds , there are awards of all Russian emperors, personal weapons of Alexander I, Nicholas I, M.I. Platov and Napoleon.
Museum address and ticket price
The priceless presents presented to the units of the Russian army, consisting of silver, gold and crystal products of the best masters of the world, were concentrated in their storerooms by the Artillery Museum (St. Petersburg), whose address is 7. Alexander Park, 7. The nearest metro station is called Gorkovskaya. The map clearly shows that the ravelin horseshoe is turned towards the Kronverksky Strait, along which the eponymous embankment passes.
The museum receives the most enthusiastic reviews. Of course, heavy equipment exhibited in the courtyard is especially popular. But both the collection of banners and the thematic exhibitions held here, temporary and permanent, are interesting both for residents of the city and for many foreign tourists who are very eager to visit the Artillery Museum (St. Petersburg).
The cost of a ticket giving the right to examine the entire exposition for an adult will be 300 rubles, and students and schoolchildren will pay 150. The museum management approaches the price of tickets differentially - for Russians and residents of the CIS countries, the cost is reduced by half for adults, and for schoolchildren, students and pensioners will have to pay only 50 rubles. There are other benefits, the details of which, like the opening hours of the museum, are widely available.