Sevastopol is one of the most beautiful cities in Crimea, which went down in history thanks to the exploits of Russian sailors and ordinary people, who always stood on their chest to defend their native land. Although many of its historical and architectural monuments were repeatedly destroyed during the fighting, in peacetime they were restored. Thanks to the efforts of the townspeople today, like 150-160 years ago, the guests of the city arriving from the sea are met by the Count's Quay. Sevastopol is proud of this attraction, photographs of which adorn almost all tourist avenues.
History of the construction of the marina
The first boat pier in the area of modern Nakhimov Square was built in 1783. On the eve of the arrival of the Empress Catherine the Second to Sevastopol, hastily carried out work to improve the city. Their result was also the replacement of the wooden steps of the pier with stone. By order of Prince Grigory Potemkin, the new main marina was called Catherine.
After the departure of the empress, Count M. Voinovich usually went ashore from his boat. At that time, this brave admiral held the post of commander in chief of the Black Sea Fleet of Russia and lived on his farm on the North side. So the people got the name "Count's Quay", which continued to exist even in the Soviet period.
60 years after visiting the city of Catherine the Great, the authorities of Sevastopol decided that the city needed a front door from the sea.
Colonel engineer John Upton was commissioned to create a project for such a structure. He submitted his work for approval in October 1844 and, having received approval, took up the construction of the pier, which lasted about 2 years.
Count's pier (Sevastopol): history before the start of the Second World War
Although the construction was originally intended to decorate the city center, throughout its history he had to repeatedly “fight”. So, in the days of the first defense of Sevastopol, according to the decision of the command of the Russian army, through the Count's pier, the bastions of the city were supplied with ammunition and food. She was even “wounded” like a real soldier. This event occurred at the end of August 1855, when the enemy’s missile hit a powder barge that moored at the pier, which caused an explosion and caused significant damage.
Grafskaya Marina (Sevastopol, address: Nakhimov Avenue, 4) witnessed the sad events in the Russian Empire. For example, in November 1920, units of the Red Army commanded by M.V. Frunze broke through the Perekop area and moved to Sevastopol. Lieutenant General P. Wrangel, trying to avoid big casualties among the military personnel of the south of Russia, ordered them to evacuate. Within a few days, up to 150,000 people left Crimea, including about 70,000 soldiers and officers.
In 1925, Grafskaya Marina (Sevastopol) was renamed the Marina of the Third International.
During the Great Patriotic War
In the middle of autumn 1941, near the Count's pier, there was a firing artillery position of the cruiser Chervona Ukraine. For 20 days, the ship fired at the enemy. It inflicted particularly heavy damage on the enemy on November 11, when 3 of the enemy’s batteries were crushed by its guns, 18 armored personnel carriers were destroyed and three companies of German soldiers were destroyed. However, the next day the Luftwaffe aircraft dropped 6 bombs on the cruiser. The struggle for the survivability of the ship was unsuccessful, and it sank.
He remembers the marina and a joyful day on May 9, 1944, when the Naval flag of the USSR was hoisted again over the Colonnade of the Count's Quay.
In the postwar years
In the course of the restoration of the dilapidated city, the Count's Quay was repaired. Reconstruction of the stairs was carried out according to the project of V. Artyukhov and A. Mikhailenko, and in 1987-1988 the colonnade was restored. Sevastopol made it its main architectural symbol and business card, which was shown to guests with pleasure. Since then, nothing has changed, except that after the entry of Crimea into Russia , the number of tourists who want to see this dumb testimony of the military exploits of their grandfathers has increased.
Sevastopol, Grafskaya Marina: how to get
Since this building is one of the main tourist attractions not only of the city, but of the whole Crimea, it is easy to reach it by public transport. In particular, from the railway or bus station of Sevastopol to Grafskaya pier can be reached using trolleybuses No. 1, 3, 7, 9 or minibuses No. 109, 110, 112, 4, 84 and proceeding to the stop “Ploshchad Nakhimova”.
Description
At the moment, Grafskaya Marina (Sevastopol) consists of a colonnade and a staircase. John Upton took as a basis examples of ancient architecture, giving the construction of a classic style. In particular, the double colonnade is made according to the canons of the Doric order and forms propylaea. The columns carry an entablature, which is crowned by the attic. Convex figures indicating the date of construction are fixed on it. Before the colonnade, with 4 marches in the direction of the sea, a rather wide front staircase made of Inkerman stone descends. It is decorated with marble lions by sculptor Ferdinando Pellicchio.
Commemorative plaque
Many fragments of the history of the Count's wharf and Sevastopol are reflected on memorial plates fixed on the construction site. They are set in memory of the liberation of the city from the Nazi invaders, as a reminder of the tragedy of those who were forced to leave their homeland during the Civil War, in honor of the heroes of the cruiser Chervona Ukraine and others.
The architectural ensemble of Nakhimov Square
Count's pier is surrounded by many famous sights of the city of Sevastopol. In particular, it is part of the ensemble of Nakhimov Square, which is decorated with a monument to the famous admiral, the building of the Marine Station and the former Catherine Palace. There is also a memorial to the heroes who defended Sevastopol during the Second World War, a memorial sign erected in honor of the bicentennial of the city, and Portoflotskie moorings.
Now you know the history of the famous landmark of the city of Sevastopol - Count's pier. This architectural monument is beautiful both in daylight and in the rays of decorative night illumination. Therefore, if you happen to visit this city of Russian military glory, be sure to go to Admiral Nakhimov Square . Then you can admire the magnificent views of the sea and the sailing ships, as well as take a couple of photographs as a keepsake and to decorate your tourist album.