Many tourists want to see the Italian Palace in St. Petersburg. But you should not look for an attraction in the city on the Neva. After all, the palace, which will be discussed in this article, is not in St. Petersburg, but in Kronstadt. The magnificent building is also called the Menshikov chamber, since it was built for the “Most Holy Prince”. It is worth noting that a close friend of Peter the Great had three palaces. The first was located in St. Petersburg itself, the second in Oranienbaum and the third in Kronstadt.
And it is the last chamber that overshadows the first two in beauty. Paradoxically, Menshikov did not have time to enjoy all this luxury. He was arrested and exiled, and the estate was transferred to the state treasury. But why did Kronstadt become the base for the construction of the palace? What was attractive about the island of Kotlin, which was at that time fifty kilometers from St. Petersburg? You will learn from this article.
Sights of Kronstadt
The place where Peter the Great decided to lay the city abounded with islands. On one of them, Kotlin, the king ordered the construction of a fortress. She was supposed to protect the entrance to the mouth of the Neva from Swedish ships. This citadel was erected in May 1704. They called it Kronshlot, the royal castle. But the military fort gradually acquired housing for civilians. Twenty years later there was already a shopping gallery around which the merchants settled. So the name was changed to Kronstadt - the royal city. He was surrounded by forts, which are now his main attractions: “Emperor Alexander I”, “Kronshlot”, “Totleben” and “Obruchev”.
There is also a summer garden on the island . Of the churches of Kronstadt, mention should be made of the Vladimir and St. Nicholas Cathedrals. And, of course, a significant attraction of this island city is the Menshikov Palace. The address of this building with a complicated history is as follows: Makarovskaya street, house 3. Today Kronshtadt ceased to be an island in the strict sense of the word: in 1984 a dam connected it with a highway to St. Petersburg. But the historical center of the city is under the auspices of UNESCO, being a World Heritage Site.
Why is the Italian palace so called?
One gets the impression that Alexander Menshikov attracted architects from the Apennine Peninsula to build his chambers. However, this is the wrong opinion. German architects were in charge of the work. The construction project was created by architect I.F. Braunstein. Supervised the work of G. Schedel. The Germans took the palazzo as a model, which Italy is so rich in. It is believed that the role of ordinary workers in the construction of the palace came from the Apennine Peninsula, but this version seems unlikely. Most likely, Menshikov just liked the Italian Baroque style, and German architects adapted it to the harsh conditions of the island in the Gulf of Finland.
The building was built from one thousand seven hundred and twenty to twenty-fourth. The Italian palace often changed owners. Schools were located in it, which, as you know, is very harmful for buildings of historical and cultural value. The reconstruction of A. N. Akutin and E. Kh. Anert, which was carried out in the mid-nineteenth century, was especially modified by the appearance of the palace.
History: eighteenth century
Towards the end of the construction of the Italian Palace, Russia and Sweden entered into a truce, while Menshikov fell into disgrace. His property was transferred to the treasury. In the 1740s, the palace was called the Own House of His Imperial Majesty. Twenty years later, the Admiralty College moves to the Italian Palace. Kronstadt at that time had regular communication with Petersburg only in the warm season by sailing boats. Therefore, the state institution did not occupy the building, although it was listed in its jurisdiction. Then the palace building was transferred to the navigator school, which was led by Stepan Malygin. From 1771 to 1798, the building was run by the Naval Cadet Corps.
Nineteenth century rebuilding
In 1815, finally, regular communication was established between Kronstadt and St. Petersburg. Sailing boats of private cabmen were replaced by "Passenger boats", specially designed by Charles Bird. It was the first public water transport in Russia. Kotlin Island has become more accessible. And from 1798 to 1872, the Sturm School of Petersburg moved to the Italian Palace. Later this educational institution was renamed the Marine Technical, and before the October Revolution itself it was called the Engineering.
Staying students in a historical building most sadly affected its safety. And time and windy climate did not spare the building. In the forties of the nineteenth century, a radical restructuring of the palace was started. The work was carried out according to the plans of the architects Akutin and Stasov. The Cadet Garden was laid out against the western wall of the palace, and the Admiralteysky in the place of the main courtyard. At the very end of the century, the construction was significantly expanded (project by L. Novikov).
What did the Italian Palace (Kronstadt) look like?
Initially, it was a three-story building, designed in the style of Italian Baroque. Its facades were decorated with pilasters, bas-reliefs, decorative stone vases. The roof was crowned with a balustrade with a sculpture. Around the same time as the Italian Palace, a pond was dug in front of the main facade of the building. The architect Giovanni Fontana decorated it with dozens of fountains.
This pond, named after the palace Italian, continued Merchant's harbor. She served for the wintering of ships. Two cranes worked on the shore, which removed the masts from the ships, and with the beginning of navigation put them in place. Ships bringing fish from Lake Ladoga also entered the Merchant Harbor. For trade, a structure was erected on the shore, reminiscent of a structure from antiquity. This building was called in the style of classicism Fish rows. In the mid-nineteenth century, the fourth floor was built on the Italian palace.
Modern building
The fire that happened in 1926 destroyed what students had not ruined. The building was restored, but it is not much like the original construction. The palace was visited by the House of the Red Army, the Sailor's Club, and the Headquarters of the Baltic Fleet. Then there was a theater. Since the end of 2011, the Italian Palace in Kronstadt was transferred to the Naval Museum as a branch. The working hours of this cultural institution are quite simple. It is open from 8:15 to 17:15, with an hour-long lunch break. The building is closed on Saturday and Sunday.