Excursions to the Peter and Paul Fortress are incredibly popular. How could it be otherwise, after all, up to a dozen exhibitions and museums are located here, not counting temporary expositions. Most of them are connected with the history of the city, but there are those that have nothing to do with it. Despite the fact that there are many museums and exhibitions in St. Petersburg itself, the majority of people visiting the city want to see the Peter and Paul Fortress, first of all, as a unique historical building.
Peter and Paul Fortress today
It is impossible to imagine a city on the Neva without a gun shot at noon, the spire of the Peter and Paul Fortress. Tours on it can be done in a group or alone, making a route yourself. In any case, the time spent here will not be wasted. First of all, it will be an informative and active holiday. The fortress can be visited with children, as events are held here for them.
Today, the historical complex Peter and Paul Fortress is the center of the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg, one of the largest and most visited in the Northern capital, with museums in other parts of the city with its own mode of operation, at the cost of a ticket. Peter and Paul Fortress is a symbol of the city and a unique architectural monument.
Its dominant, uniting the entire ensemble around itself, is the Peter and Paul Cathedral. The symbol of the former capital is the tomb of the imperial Romanov family. In the buildings of the ensemble of the Peter and Paul Fortress are museums, exhibitions, temporary expositions. Excursions around the Peter and Paul Fortress will bring a lot of positive emotions.
The foundation of the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg
The idea of founding a museum of old Petersburg in which documents, collections, books, photographs, household items, fragments of some old parts of buildings would be collected, occupied many representatives of the foremost intelligentsia of the city. It was brought to life in 1908, when a museum of old Petersburg was opened in the mansion of Count P. Suzor. Its first leader was A. Benoit. Amazing exhibits came here, which laid the foundation of the modern museum of the history of St. Petersburg.
In 1938, the Museum of the History of Leningrad was created. Its component was the partially preserved exhibits of the museum of old Petersburg. It is located in the Rumyantsev mansion. In 1954, it was renamed the State Museum of the History of Leningrad. This included the Peter and Paul Fortress, which moved the center of the museum. Excursions on it to this day are the most popular. With the return to the city of its historical name, the name of the museum underwent a partial change. The word Leningrad was replaced by St. Petersburg.
History of the foundation of the fortress
St. Petersburg began with the Peter and Paul Fortress, which served as an outpost of Russia on lands conquered from Sweden. The official date of laying is considered to be May 27, 1703. There is a legend according to which Peter I chose the place for laying the fortress. They became Rabbit Island, located at the widest point of the mouth of the Neva River. The creation of the project was attended by J. Lambert, a French engineer and future Emperor of Russia Peter I. Now in the Peter and Paul Fortress is a museum in St. Petersburg.
Fortress Plan
In terms of plan, the fortress had the shape of a six-pointed star, on the edges of which there were six curtain walls (wide fortified walls) connected by bastions to which Peter I gave the names of his associates: Gosudarev, Menshikov, Golovkin, Zotov, Trubetskoy, Naryshkin. From the eastern and western sides, the Alekseevsky and Ioanovsky ravelins close the defensive system. Two bridges were thrown across the Neva to the island:
- Ioanovsky. Today it is possible to go to the Gorkovskaya metro station on it.
- Kronverksky. Exit to the Sportivnaya metro station.
In the center of the fortress is a cathedral built and consecrated in honor of Saints Peter and Paul. The purpose of the Peter and Paul Fortress as a land structure is to repel the onslaught of the enemy. To protect the sea borders, the fortress of Kronstadt was laid.
Gates in the Peter and Paul Fortress
There are four of them. They are located on the cardinal points:
- East. The most beautiful and famous are the Petrovsky Gate, arranged in the Petrovsky curtain, connecting the bastions of Gosudarev and Menshikov. They are built in baroque style.
- South. In the Nevsky curtain, connecting the Sovereign and the Naryshkinsky bastions, the Nevsky gate is arranged, which goes to the Nevsky pier, you can only get into the fortress by mooring to it.
- North. St. Nicholas Gate is located in St. Nicholas Curtain. It connects the Zotov and Golovkin bastions. They were not in the original wooden version. Only after the reconstruction of the curtain into the stone did the gates appear.
- West. Here is the Vasilievskaya curtain, connecting Zotov and the Trubetskoy bastions. It contains the Vasilyevsky Gate.
Peter's Gate
Through them, you can go to the Ioanovsky bridge, through which the path lies to the Gorkovskaya metro station. At the entrance to the fortress, statues depicting “courage” and “prudence” are installed in niches. Above the gate arch is a double-headed eagle cast from lead. Above it is a bas-relief made of wood, which depicts the holy Apostle Peter, who overthrows Simon the sorcerer. In this bas-relief, the last personifies the king of Sweden, Charles XII.
Grand Duke's Tomb
Having passed the Petrovsky Gate, we step onto an alley paved with paving stones, which will lead to Cathedral Square. Until 1708, burials in the Peter and Paul Fortress took place in the Cathedral of Peter and Paul. After the tomb was built near the cathedral, the remains of members of the imperial family from the Peter and Paul Cathedral were transferred to it.
By order of Empress Anna Ioannovna, in 1731 the coffin with the body of Peter I, standing in a wooden chapel located in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, was transferred to the royal tomb. The tomb of Peter 1 in the Peter and Paul Fortress and his wife Catherine I, located nearby, are small crypts, and are located under a stone floor. Above the graves are white marble sarcophagi with golden crosses.
Monument to Peter I
Opposite the entrance to the tomb in 1991 a monument was erected to the Emperor of the Russian state Peter I, the work of the American artist M. Shemyakin. Probably, its controversy will exist as long as the monument stands. It is striking in its imbalance.
The disproportion of huge legs, arms and a small bald head, the size of which will be with the fist of sculptural hands, is amazing. Although his face, as Shemyakin himself admitted, is fully consistent with the intravital mask made by Rastrelli, according to which the great architect made a bust of the emperor. The caricature of the monument to Peter I Shemyakin may remain on his conscience.
Continuing along the alley, we exit to Cathedral Square, which served as a parade ground for the garrison standing here. The main buildings overlook it, which include the Peter and Paul Cathedral, the Mint, the Botanical House.
Peter and Paul Cathedral
From its bookmark in 1703, on the feast of the apostles Peter and Paul, the birth of the fortress began. Together with the spire, its height is 122.5 m, it was the tallest building in the city until 2013. It does not look like Orthodox churches.
This happened at the request of the emperor, who saw in him the symbol of a new Russia. It looks more like European cathedrals and belongs to the style of Peter the Great Baroque. A thin spire pierces the sky and is crowned with a gilded angel bearing the cross with which the city overshadows. The building was built under the leadership of an architect from Italy D. Dresine.
Construction began with a multi-tiered bell tower with pilasters, which is crowned with a spire. So decided Emperor Peter I. The construction was completed in 1733, after his death. In the interior, jasper, marble and rhodonite were used. The floor is covered with lime slabs. The carved, gold-plated iconostasis is 20 meters high. It is made in Moscow. The stucco work was done by Rossi and Quadrigo. Wall painting was done by Russian artists.
Trubetskoy Bastion: Prison
You can walk around the fortress for free, but you already have to pay for visiting exhibitions and expositions. Reviews of tours of the Peter and Paul Fortress are mostly positive. It employs people for whom the history of the city has become part of life. Here you can get interesting information. But the fortress itself will remain the main exhibit. Its walls have witnessed many events.
Initially, there was no prison in the fortress, since there were guardhouses for the military serving here. In 1872, a prison was established in the Trubetskoy bastion. For this, its inner walls were destroyed. As a result of redevelopment, a two-story prison appeared on the site of the five-sided tower, inside which was a courtyard with bathhouses.
It was a special prison, there were 73 solitary confinement cells in which people were completely isolated from the world and other prisoners. Here political prisoners - populists, Socialist-Revolutionaries, public figures who were members of a deputation opposing the execution of 1905 - were serving their sentences. The most famous are Alexander Ulyanov, sentenced to death, M. Gorky, L. Trotsky, ministers and officials of the interim government.
Neva panorama
If you want to look at the fortress and the city from above, you need to visit the Neva panorama. It is located on the Nevsky curtain, which is located between the fortress bastions - Gosudarev and Naryshkin. It is from the last that every day at noon the cannon makes its famous shot. In the Peter and Paul Fortress, for a tour of the city, the citadel and the river from the Nevsky Curtain, you must purchase a ticket at the box office. The route along the Neva Curtain is called the Neva Panorama.
The movement begins from Naryshkin to the Sovereign's bastion. By the way, it was built the very first. In the Nevsky Curtain there are Nevsky Gates, through them you can go to the Commandant’s pier, to which sightseeing boats moor.
Lecture Hall of the Peter and Paul Fortress
The State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg holds a series of lectures on the history of the city and on the topics of the exposed expositions. They pass in the Ivanovo ravelin of the Peter and Paul Fortress. This structure was intended to protect the bastions of the Sovereigns and Menshikov, and the Petrovsky curtain, in which the Petrovsky Gate is located. Ravelin is named after John Alekseevich, the father of Anna Ioannovna and brother Peter. The lecture hall of the Peter and Paul Fortress has been operating since the last half of the 20th century. Lectures are given by researchers at the Museum of the History of Petersburg and the Hermitage.
By helicopter over the Peter and Paul Fortress
Today you can take a tour that you could not even imagine some time ago. If you had a desire to see the Peter and Paul Fortress from above, to look at every corner from above, then you can book a helicopter tour of the Peter and Paul Fortress. A ticket costs 3,000 rubles.
Botanical house
In 1721, after the end of the Northern War, Peter I transported his boat Saint Nicholas to Moscow from Petersburg. He was originally placed in the Peter and Paul Fortress under a canopy. Later, the Senate decides to build a special house for him in which he would be placed. This has been accomplished. It was erected near the bell tower of the Peter and Paul Cathedral. The house, along with the bot, has survived to this day, and you can look at the "grandfather of the Russian fleet."
Excursions for children
The staff of the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg has a lot of exhibitions and excursions for children. The Peter and Paul Fortress is the story of the founding of the city, you can convey it to the child through the game. Therefore, children from 7 to 10 years are offered:
- Travel is a game with the fascinating title “100 Steps of the Fortress”. It is designed for children 7-10 years old.
- Lessons-tours of the Peter and Paul Fortress. This includes visiting the exhibits in the Commandant’s House, Nevsky Curtain, Peter and Paul Cathedral, Trubetskoy Bastion.
- "The Adventure of Baron M". Quest game to find treasures on the territory of the Peter and Paul Fortress.
- “Amusing Academy” - master classes for children and adults. Passes in the fortress.
And much more will allow you to have fun and unforgettable time with your children.
Peter and Paul Fortress: opening hours, ticket price
The schedule of various objects located on Hare Island will vary slightly in time. We will try to talk about this:
- Hare Island is open for tourists from 6 to 21 hours.
- The fortress opens its gates from 9-30 to 20 hours.
- Information Center, Peter and Paul Cathedral, Trubetskoy Bastion are open from 10 to 18 hours.
- Expositions, existing exhibition halls, the Cosmonautics Museum are open from 11 to 18 hours.
- The day off is Wednesday.
There are four ticket offices in the fortress; they are located in the Ioanovsky ravelin, the Botany House, the Trubetskoy Bastion and work from 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. At the Cosmonautics Museum, the ticket office is open from 11 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. The price of a ticket to the Peter and Paul Cathedral is 450 rubles for adults (250 - students, 200 - pensioners). The cost of each exposure varies from 50 to 150 rubles.