At first glance, the question "Why is St. Petersburg so named?" - it sounds, at least, strange. What can be called a city founded by Peter I, who, in the current language, was a "Westerner"? Passing training in Europe, which was already embarking on an industrial path of development, the great tsar did not bow before her, but wanted to transfer all his achievements to the land of Russia.
Traditional answers
Why is St. Petersburg so named? Because for 22 years - from the day the first brick of the Peter and Paul Fortress was laid until the day of his death - Peter I was engaged in the construction of his paradise, his “paradise”, the city of his dreams. Before laying the fortress for three days, with the participation of the emperor himself, the Dutch architect and several soldiers, from May 12 to the 15th, the Peter House was built - the summer royal residence.
Why is St. Petersburg so named? Because thanks to this man’s iron will, a strategically necessary city for Russia, a new “sea gate”, was built on deserted marshy swamps at the cost of the lives of thousands of people. Because the first bridge over the Neva’s sleeve was erected by Peter and named after his name, the first passenger boat-rope was launched by him, the first merchant caravan, on which he himself was a pilot, moored at his “house”, which he himself erected.
So in whose honor is St. Petersburg named? People who studied in Soviet schools, who still remember poems about Napoleon’s vain expectation of kneeling Moscow residents with keys to the Kremlin, couldn’t get the idea that they don’t know who and what the lines were dedicated to: “... the city will be laid here ... ”This is also strange because the Internet makes it possible to take a step-by-step excursion to historical places.
Blame Soviet ideology
The fact is that in the USSR it was not customary to emphasize the significance of religion in the life of pre-revolutionary Russia. Even the thought that the construction of Leningrad, the “city of revolutionary glory," could initially be dedicated to some apostle, was never allowed to focus on why St. Petersburg was so named. It was only admitted that it was founded by Peter. Hence the questions that arise among young people, who are not very familiar with the meaning of all renaming. Moreover, the city was originally conceived as a large educational center, where immediately in parallel with churches and temples, training centers were erected and the best teachers of Europe wrote out for big money. And all this was done under the personal supervision of the king. How may the question arise Why is St. Petersburg so named? The answer lies on the surface: because Peter built it, sometimes even with his own hand, in order to raise the spirit of builders driven from all over the country.
True state of affairs
Another thing is that the name of the city was given by the great reformer himself, devoting his brainchild to the Apostle Peter, the elder brother of St. Andrew, the patron saint of fishermen and sailors. Who else but him, the beloved disciple of Jesus, could dedicate a fortress, erected at the exit to the Baltic Sea, especially since the apostle was the guardian angel of the king himself. So the city of St. Peter was laid and erected. That is why St. Petersburg was so named. It's just that this is a more acceptable translation of the Russian name for the ear of European merchants. Conceived as a “window to Europe”, the city was supposed to be as attractive as possible for trade, designed to push the development of manufacturing industries in Russia, which before that had no access to the northern seas.
The historical need for the city
In October 1702, the Swedish fortress of Notenburg was taken; by May 1 of the same year, the Nienstants fortress fell - the path to the Baltic Sea was open. But the Northern, or Twenty-Year War, which began in 1700, continued until 1721. Russia advocated a coalition of states that fought against the hegemony of Sweden. To open the way to the countries of Northern Europe was not enough; it was necessary to gain a foothold on the Baltic shores.
The Peter and Paul Fortress, erected on Hare Island, at the junction of two large Neva arms, was conceived as an object of strategic purpose. The city being built around was declared as the northern and cultural capital of Russia. World history knows few examples when the ruler in the conquered territories erected such a fabulous city in such a short time, where every stone and air is saturated with the name of the great Russian emperor. It is a fact that the northern capital is dedicated and named after the holy apostle, but when the question arises as to why the city of Petersburg was so named, the first thought that comes to mind is connected only with the image of Great Peter.