Just thirty kilometers from Moscow is the city of Pushkin. It was first mentioned in documents of 1499. True, in those days it was a village that was located on the trade route to Yaroslavl, Pereyaslavl and Vologda.
This small city is world famous for its palaces and parks. Tourists from all over the world come to the former Tsarskoye Selo to admire architectural masterpieces and delightful parks and gardens. In this article we will talk about them.
Separate park
If you are interested in which parks in Pushkin you can see, then we recommend starting your acquaintance with the Separate Park located in the southern part of Pushkin, to the right of Sofiysky Boulevard. He reaches all the way to Pavlovsk. Today it is more often called the Lower Park. In Pushkin, its territory is limited by the Pavlovsky and Moscow highways, the railway line.
Unlike other parks in the city, the former Imperial Park was divided into a separate, separate territory. Therefore, he got his name. In 1825, to drain the territory, a Kolonistsky pond was dug here, and a little earlier, an English-style palace was built on the opposite side for Prince Boris Vladimirovich.
Park Babolovsky
This is the youngest park in Pushkin. Babolovsky Park is the largest of the imperial gardens located in Tsarskoye Selo. Its name comes from a village nearby, which bore the Finnish name Pabola. Over time, it transformed into Babolova.
Basically, it was compositionally formed in the 1860s. The park is considered the most "English" in Tsarskoye Selo. It was created by several generations of owners, investing huge amounts of money in this work. This park in Pushkin (photo you see below) was a favorite vacation spot of emperors Alexander II, as well as the great empress Alexandra Fedorovna.
Architecture
Initially, the architectural objects of the park were few: first of all, the Babolovsky Palace, the Alexander and Staro-Krasnoselsky Gates (now lost), a stone bench at the palace, the Crimean column and a milestone. An important role was played by engineering structures: the Baur Canal, the grotto "Monk", Silver Pond, Babolovsky Pond with a dam bridge, the grotto at the Babolovsky Palace, bridges.
Not far from the Milestone you can see the Siberian Crimean column. The elegant building is made of a single piece of blue Ural marble with white veins. It belonged to the architectural ensemble of monuments that were dedicated to the victories of Russia over Turkey. At first, the column was installed in the Catherine Park, and later (1817) part of it was reunited with Babolovsky.
This picturesque park in Pushkin stores on its territory the ruins of the Babolovsky Palace, which are located to the right of the Babolovsky clearing. Here, before the war, the school of the 100th assault aviation brigade was located, which was based at an airfield located nearby. Therefore, from the first days of the war, the palace was bombarded and was heavily destroyed.
In 2015, this park in Pushkin was taken to the balance of GMZ Tsarskoye Selo. Today he has a real chance of recovery.
Catherine Park in Pushkin
It consists of two parts: a landscaped English garden and a regular Old Garden. The latter was built in 1720 on two ledges in front of the palace. Famous gardening masters J. Roosen and I. Focht worked on its creation. Around the same time, Mirror Ponds appeared on the third ledge in the park.
During the reign of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, this park in Pushkin was expanded, its layout changed, marble sculpture appeared. She was mostly represented by the work of Venetian sculptors. In front of the palace appeared lace stalls and sheared bosquets. According to the Rastrelli project, the Grotto and Hermitage pavilions were built in the garden.
In the second half of the 18th century, interest in the regular park gradually began to fade. For this reason, in the 1770s, a landscape or English garden was formed southeast of the Old Park. To create it, the best examples of English landscape parks were used. The garden was filled with architectural structures, sculptural compositions that testified to the greatness of Catherine II.
Park after the war
During the Second World War, the Catherine Park in Pushkin was badly damaged. However, already in 1948 it was again opened for visits. Walking in this picturesque park in early spring or summer, you will enjoy the view and aroma of flowering alleys, see artificial ponds, inhale the smell of needles, lilacs and rose hips. And for sure you will enjoy meeting with cute squirrels. We are sure that you will be satisfied with the walk.
Alexandrovsky park
This park in Pushkin adjoins the Catherine Palace and occupies a vast territory - about 200 hectares. Back in the time of Catherine I, the plot located behind the palace (natural forest) was fenced and organized in it a menagerie for wild animals. It was a royal hunt. In the middle of the XVIII century it was surrounded by a stone wall and built on the corners of the bastions. Amusement pavilions appeared in two of them. Between the menagerie and the palace, they began to create a new garden with alleys crossed crosswise.
The new, or Upper Alexandrovsky, park in Pushkin appeared in 1740. A part of the menagerie entered it. The composition of the New Garden blends perfectly with the composition of the Catherine Palace. In 1749, the Cross Canal appeared in the central part of the park. In 1778, the Upper Garden was decorated with numerous ponds of original shapes. And from 1760 to 1770, a complex of original Chinese-style structures was built in this park. These are not only the buildings that were called the Chinese Village, but also bridges and pavilions.
Redevelopment
In 1792, the Alexander Palace began to be built on the northeastern section of the New Garden. He became a gift to Alexander from his grandmother, Catherine the Great, on the occasion of his marriage. In this regard, the park complex was redesigned in the fashionable at that time English style.
During the life of Peter the Great, the palace complex, like the whole Tsarskoye Selo, was only in its infancy; part of the coniferous forest that grew on the site of the present Alexander Park was surrounded by a deep moat.
In 1819, the territories where the menagerie used to be were started to be brought into proper shape, which park visitors can see today. Paths and landscape alleys were laid, deciduous trees were planted, which transformed the park territory. At the same time, the boundaries of the Alexander Park expanded significantly. After some time, the Alexander and Egyptian gates were installed on the border of the park. Until 1823, the stone wall was dismantled, which once surrounded the royal menagerie. Today, only one fragment of the wall has been preserved, now it is part of the park greenhouse.
During the Second World War, many bridges and pavilions of the Alexander Park were damaged, because there were fights. Many pavilions are still not completely restored, but nevertheless they are harmoniously combined with the renewed buildings.
Amusement park in Pushkin
Pushkin residents are very proud of their historical sights. But soon a new park may appear in this city. Near the Tsarskoselskaya station, it is planned to build a theme park of attractions. It is assumed that it will be made in historical style and will be located next to the Small October Railway. Everything in this park will be created for children so that they can not only play, but also learn.
As planned by the designers, these will be two huge white-stone Kremlin. There will be nothing on the territory of the park, except for attractions and informative exhibitions (permanent and temporary) that tell about history, science and culture. We hope that these plans will come true, and the wonderful city of Pushkin will acquire another beautiful park.