The Horse Guards Manege in St. Petersburg is a single architectural composition with St. Isaac's Cathedral. The ancient building is perfectly preserved and is not only one of the attractions of the city, but also a fashionable exhibition complex.
Construction of the Horse Guards Manege
At the time of Peter I, on the site of the modern Horse Guards Boulevard, there was the Galer Channel, through which the forest was delivered to the Admiralty shipyard. At the beginning of the 19th century, the barracks of the Life Guards of the cavalry regiment were transferred from the outskirts of St. Petersburg to the center.
For the privileged guard company returning from the Napoleonic wars, which was patronized by the emperor himself, a whole complex is being built next to St. Isaac's Cathedral: barracks for soldiers and housing for officers, a regimental church, and also a room for training horses.
The architect of the Horse Guards arena was Giacomo Quarenghi, who created many beautiful buildings in St. Petersburg. He builds a riding ground for the Life Guards in 1804-1807, providing that stalls will be located nearby. By the way, they have survived to this day on the street. Yakubovich.
Quarenghi had to solve a difficult problem: how to fit into the narrow space of the former canal a building with a certain functional purpose, while maintaining the architectural and style unity of St. Isaac's Square?
The architect finds a brilliant way out. The side facades of a rectangular elongated building are simply designed without any frills, but the facade overlooking the square is decorated in a spectacular classic style. It is decorated with an elegant proportional portico crowned by a triangular pediment. On the pediment there were bas-reliefs made according to the drawings of Quarenghi, they depicted the distribution of prizes after equestrian competitions.
The double row of columns forming the front portico underlines the solidity of the entire building, looks solemn and elegant.
The inside of the arena was a huge hall for training horses and training guards in horse riding. To make the horses more comfortable to start, ramps were added to the entrance.
Decoration of the Manege
Only in 1817 the portico was finally decorated: on both sides of the entrance put sculptural images of young men taming horses.
Picturesque statues from the best Carrara marble were copied from Roman samples by the Italian sculptor Tricorni specifically for the Manege in St. Petersburg. The figures depicted the mythological characters of Castor and Polux, inseparable brothers, sons of Zeus.
But marble sculptures did not decorate the front part for long. Already in 1840, at the request of the priests of St. Isaac's Cathedral, the figures of naked pagans were rearranged to the rear, to the barracks gate.
Only after almost a hundred years, in 1954, sculptural compositions returned to their place.
Reconstruction of the building
In the 70s of the XIX century. It was decided to rebuild the Horse Guards Manege. The order was commissioned by the architect D. Grimm. He made an extension on the western side, expanding the inner part, and turned the usual box into the imperial one. The building is also decorated outside: bas-reliefs made of terracotta by sculptor D. Jensen are placed on the pediment. The bas-reliefs corresponded to the purpose of the building and depicted horse racing in ancient times. Contemporaries recognized them as unsuccessful.
Iron horses in the Manege
After the revolution of 1917, the building was empty.
In the 30s of the last century, a fire broke out, destroying the interior. The architect N. Lansere, who divided the room into 2 floors, was commissioned to rebuild the building, removed Jensen's bas-reliefs and added ramps, after which the building of the Horse Guards Manege turned into a garage for the NKVD fleet.
Soviet time
During the blockade of Leningrad, the arena was damaged. After repair work, the building was given to Leningrad artists for exhibitions.
In 1973, a large-scale reconstruction of the external and internal decoration began. The restorers P. Arkhipov, M. Bratchikov, A. Tulkov did this, they tried to return the Manege on St. Isaac's Square to the look that D. Quarenghi conceived. The spacious interior has turned into an exhibition area.
The hall was inaugurated in 1977, timed to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the revolution. The first was the exhibition "Art belongs to the people."
In 2000, and then in 2001-2003, the facade and sculptures of the Manege were restored again.
A bit of mysticism
Any remarkable building in St. Petersburg will certainly be fanned by a legend or has a couple of signs associated with it. Horse Guards Arena is no exception.
Although the Alexander Garden is located between the building on Isaaevskaya Square and the Winter Palace, it was believed that both buildings were connected underground by a tunnel through which the horse would ride. The inhabitants believed that in this way the emperor unnoticed penetrates the arena and looks at the training of his favorites, the life hussars.
Modernity of the Manege
Today, the Horse Guards Manege is a beautiful modern exhibition complex. Its area is more than 4.5 thousand square meters.
This largest exhibition space in the city holds lectures, symposiums, round tables and seminars on a variety of relevant topics, film screenings, artists give master classes, and unique exhibitions are held. The Manege is an indispensable venue for an international cultural forum.
Exhibitions are held not only inside the building, but also occupy the area around, acquainting Petersburgers and visitors with the phenomenon of street art.
In addition, the Manege in St. Petersburg is also a concert venue where a chamber choir, jazz, folk tunes, electroacoustics and much more sounds.
The Central Exhibition Hall "Manege" is open from 11 to 20 hours, and on Wednesdays until 21 hours.
For the convenience of visitors, a cafe and a bookstore are open, wi-fi is available. For relaxation and Internet surfing on the 1st floor there are comfortable bench parapets.
How to find
The Horse Guards Manege is located in the center of the Northern capital, on St. Isaac's Square, 1. It’s more convenient to pass from the station m. "Admiralteyskaya".