An important historical, architectural and engineering monument of St. Petersburg is the Peter and Paul Fortress. The museum’s working hours give everyone the opportunity to visit this unique object at any time. Let's talk about it in more detail in this article.
About the fortress: history and modernity
The most beautiful city in Europe, without a doubt, is St. Petersburg. But in the city itself, you should first visit the so-called Hare Island. It is here that the historical core of St. Petersburg - the Peter and Paul Fortress is located. The museum is open daily, which is very convenient for Russian and foreign tourists.
In 1703, Peter the Great began to build powerful fortifications on Hare Island, which gave impetus to the development of the city - the first port of the Russian Empire on the Baltic Sea. There is a version that an approximate plan drawing of a future fortress was sketched by the king himself. Mathematical and engineering calculations were carried out by the famous French architect Lambert.
At first, the fortress was wooden-earthen, but it was badly damaged after the first severe flood. Therefore, by the middle of the century she was “dressed” in stone. In the center of the fortress territory, the Cathedral of Peter and Paul grew up, which gave the name to the entire fortification system on the island.
The Peter and Paul Fortress today is a grandiose open-air museum, within which historical buildings - architectural monuments: the cathedral, the Grand Duke's tomb, the Botanical House, the Mint, the system of bastions and gates, as well as a number of other buildings are preserved. Various exhibitions are regularly held on the territory of the fortress; the richest funds of the Museum of the History of St. Petersburg are also stored here . Every year on May 27, City Day is celebrated within the walls of the fortress.
Peter and Paul Fortress: mode of operation and location
The fortress is located on Hare Island, in the historical part of St. Petersburg. Getting to her is not difficult. The easiest way is to get to the Gorkovskaya metro station and walk a bit along the Alexander Park in a southerly direction. You can also get here by tram (route number 6) or a trolleybus (number 7).
Before every tourist and visitor to the city, the Peter and Paul Fortress will open its powerful doors with joy. The mode of operation of the complex is from 9.00 to 21.00. Most museums and exhibitions receive visitors every day, except on Wednesdays.
Peter and Paul Fortress: ticket prices
Entrance to the fortress is free today. To visit museums or exhibitions, go into separate buildings, you have to pay a certain amount.
So, the entrance to the Peter and Paul Cathedral costs 250 rubles (130 rubles - for schoolchildren and students). To visit the Turkish bastion with a prison or the bell tower of the temple, you need to pay 150 rubles for a ticket.
Entrance to the permanent museum exhibitions of the complex ("History of the fortress", "History of Petersburg-Petrograd") is still free (but only until the end of October 2015).
"The battle is not Neve"
"Battle on the Neva" is a grand festival in the Peter and Paul Fortress, which recreates spectacular mass battles. This year it was held on July 18 and 19 and attracted a huge number of tourists and participants.
The Battle of the Neva festival is an excellent opportunity to visit several historical epochs at once: to visit the Middle Ages, to see real knightly battles, to follow the battles of the Napoleonic war. Each visitor of a grandiose action can not only try his hand at fencing or archery, but also do ancient crafts.
Various intellectual lectures are organized for intellectuals at the festival, as well as venues for historical discussions.