Moscow is attractive for tourists not only as a megalopolis and capital of the Great State, but also as a city-history, a city-museum. Countless excursions for both foreign guests and compatriots will enrich their knowledge of the White Stone and help to create their own idea, which can be very different from that imposed in the West.
Foreigners will retain the image of our capital, which has been formed over centuries. Surely they will take to distant lands memories of the Kremlin, Tsar Bell, Red Square.
Park Alexander Garden, where there are a number of attractions of the capital, will not only become an occasion for an educational walk, but will also allow you to feel the tranquility of old Moscow. It is located between the Kremlin wall and Manege street, is an integral part of the capital’s appearance, which invariably attracts tourists who have visited and seen many countries and capitals in all corners of this busy world.
History
The park zone, which is the Alexander Garden, stretches from the northwest side of the Kremlin. Zeleny Boulevard is not only a historical attraction for guests, but also a place for Muscovites to walk, many of which often spend their free time here. But first of all, the Alexander Garden Park in Moscow is a place that identifies some important milestones in the history of Russia. On its territory is a national memorial and monuments that embody the past.
At the end of the eighteenth century, the Kremlin was surrounded by water on three sides. Neglinka waters flowed along a deep ditch on the side of Red Square, taking them to the Moscow River, and its channel also passed through the territory of the present garden. Neglinka at that time was a river that was quite suitable for fishing. An interesting fact - the police monitored its cleanliness. It was strictly forbidden to wash and bathe horses in these places. In winter, ice from unpolluted sources replenished Moscow glaciers.
The address of the park is Alexander Garden: Manezhnaya Street, 13/1.
There will be a garden!
Stopping and throwing the French out of Russia in 1812, starting the restoration of Moscow from significant damage caused by fires, Alexander I decided to hide Neglinka underground. It was decided to plant gardens on the site of the filled riverbed. The work was carried out for three years, and showed Moscow a park, which is now loved by Muscovites and guests of the capital.
Project
Even under Alexander the First in the project, which later became the favorite place of Muscovites, the Green Zone was laid, which would include three separate parks. They should have been connected by a single landscape and called the Kremlin Gardens. After the accession to the throne of Alexander II in 1856, they were renamed Alexandrovsky. Nowadays, the area on which the Alexander Garden Park is located is 10 hectares, and its length is 850 meters with a width of up to 130. Neglinka today can only be reminded of itself of itself by the bridge called Trinity.
Upper garden
Manezhnaya Square and Trinity Bridge connect the northern part, which is called the Upper Garden. Its length is 350 meters. A massive cast-iron fence separates it from the Historical Museum, which is located in a building built of red brick. Evgeny Frantsevich Pascal, whose sketch formed the basis of this fence, was a famous architect of his time. The gates are decorated with symbols of Russian victories over the French conquerors.
The opening of the Upper Garden took place in 1821. It is drawn by several avenues located parallel and perpendicular to the Kremlin walls. Walking paths are separated by flower beds. Starting to bloom in spring, a variety of flowers delight visitors with bright colors, and only autumn stops this riot of colors. And what a garden without trees and shrubs! They are its integral part: oaks and maples, blue spruce and linden. Shrubs complement the floristry of the garden.
Beauvais contribution
The upper park, more precisely, its central part, is represented by the Ruins memorial. A memorial was created on the basis of the project of the famous Russian architect Bove O. I. It must be said that Beauvais took a direct and active part in the reconstruction of Moscow after its burning. The memorial recalls the events of World War II. The stone cores of the times of Peter the Great, along with the fragments of buildings destroyed during the war, became part of the artistic composition conceived by the master in the design of the grotto. Interestingly, at the beginning of the 19th century, during various ceremonial events, the bosom of the arch was provided to the orchestra, which entertained the public. Ascent from the southern part of the grotto leads to a platform with figures of two lions.
What's next?
Celebrating the three hundredth anniversary of the reign of the imperial dynasty, in 1913 a magnificent obelisk was erected, which rises next to the memorial. Having undergone some changes during the Soviet era, it was restored recently. The symbol of the Russian Empire in the form of a double-headed eagle crowns it.
Patriarch Germogen played a tremendous role in maintaining the unity of the country in the 17th century - its sculptural embodiment stands next to the obelisk.
Sculptures and fountains adorn the artificial pond created during the reconstruction of Manezhnaya Square.
The reservoir itself imitates the bed of the Neglinka River. The names of the fountains are curious. The most famous is given the name "Geyser", followed by "The Veil", "Ivan Tsarevich and the Frog", "Fox and the Crane", "Fisherman and the Fish", "Sleeping Mermaid" - the names of these fairy-tale characters can be seen in the water of the reservoir. Bronze horses recall four seasons.
Everlasting memory
For the older generation, and for the modern too, there is a place in the park that is holy like no other. Before the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War, in the northern part of the garden, over the reburied remains of a soldier, whose name remains unknown, an eternal flame caught fire. It became an unquenchable memory of those defenders of Moscow who laid down their lives on its approaches, remaining unknown heroes in the memory of their descendants.
A bronze banner, a soldier's helmet and a laurel branch are located on a tombstone, in the center of which there is a five-pointed star with a flame escaping from it, which does not fade, day or night. Shokshinsky quartzite lining the wall located to the left of the memorial, to the right - an alley with curbstones installed along it, on which the names of hero cities are carved.
In 2010, they joined the stele, in which forty-five cities. Their names are marked with the status of a city of military glory. Soldiers from the Presidential Regiment are serving in the protection of the memorial complex. For tourists, changing the guard, passing once an hour, is one of the attractions of the park, and many people are going to look at it.
Middle garden
A year later, in 1822, after the Upper, the Middle Garden was opened, stretching from Trinity Bridge to the street leading to the Borovitsky Tower of the Kremlin. Its length is 382 meters, it is territorially the largest of the three gardens. It originates from the Kutafia tower, which stands, as it were, separately from the Kremlin walls. Since the beginning of the XVII century, when it was built, its purpose was to protect the western approaches to the Kremlin. At the end of the same century, the tower acquired its current form. Then its top was redone, and it appeared in the form of a gear "crown"
In the Middle Park there are Kremlin ticket offices, where they sell tickets to the Armory, the Diamond Fund and other attractions.
Not so long ago, in 2014, in the central part, what was long ago needed to be done. The founder of the gardens, Alexander I, now stands in the form of a bronze statue on a pedestal. The cloak covers the shoulders of the autocrat, and the left hand squeezes the sword and, as a result, the weapon of the defeated enemy thrown at his feet. Near the monument there are bas-reliefs depicting scenes of battles and commanders directly related to the victory over the French, led by Napoleon. A few more expensive images for Russian history are carved on them.
Lower garden
It is the third component of the complex, located in its southern part. It is the shortest section - only 132 meters. This part of the park was presented to residents of the capital in 1823. Here you will not find alleys for pedestrians, and today it is accessible only through the fence for inspection.
Alexandrovsky Garden Park in Moscow, the photo and address of which is known to almost all visitors and residents of the capital, is incredibly popular thanks to numerous guidebooks. How to get to the park Alexander Garden? Four metro stations are located in the immediate vicinity of the park. These are “Alexander Garden”, “Borovitskaya”, “Lenin Library” and “Okhotny Ryad”. For example, when leaving the Aleksandrovsky Sad station exit from the junction, travelers go straight to the Kremlin walls.
Ground transportation from anywhere in the city will take you to this place - a place where the foot of a person who has visited Moscow for the first time always steps. Or those people who, having been here once, cannot deny themselves the pleasure of wandering around in this cozy place, where the spirit of history and modernity reigns.
Conclusion
Alexander Garden causes only positive emotions in most tourists. Many travelers from different countries come to Moscow just to take a peek at its grandeur and beauty. We hope that our article helped you understand many issues and only sweetened the already existing image of the Alexander Garden.