The Bogoroditsky Palace, or, as it is often called, the Tula Peterhof Palace is one of the most beautiful historical monuments of the city of Bogoroditsk. As in past times, the architectural ensemble of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park continues to captivate with its beauty and pacifying atmosphere, I want to come back here again and again.
Address, how to get
You can plunge into the magical atmosphere of the eighteenth century easily in our modernity. To do this, just turn off the main highway Moscow - Don immediately, passing the sign "Bogoroditsk". After about fifteen minutes drive, the traveler will be in the former family estate of the Counts of Bobrinsky.
Previously, travelers and guests of the Tula province referred to this marvelous corner as a place worthy of curiosity. The first owner of the Bobrinsky estate is the son of the Empress of All Russia Catherine the Second and Grigory Orlov, who became the ancestor of the surname.
Address of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park in the Tula Region: the city of Bogoroditsk, in the park, building 1.
Work mode:
- from Tuesday to Friday - from 9:30 to 19:00;
- Saturday, Sunday - from 9:30 to 18:00;
- Monday is a day off.
Every month, on the last Thursday, a sanitary day is held in the complex.
You can get to the Bogoroditsky Palace by personal transport or as part of a tourist group from the city of Tula. The road will take a little more than an hour.
The beginning of the history of the Bogoroditsky Museum
The cultural and historical complex of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park was founded in 1918 in the former estate of the Bobrinsky family. In 1925, shortly after the end of the war, guard troops settled in the palace, the museum was closed, and most of the exhibits were lost.
In World War II, the palace was partially destroyed and rebuilt only in 1975. Then, a branch of the Tula Art Museum was opened here, which was more concerned with the organizational issues of exhibitions in regional houses of culture.
In the late seventies, restoration work was carried out in the palace. After their graduation, the Main Department of Culture of the city of Tula decided to combine the art museum with the local history museum, which was founded in 1964 and was located in one of the public baths.
In 1979, pipes burst in the museum of local lore. Fearing for the integrity of the collection, it was transferred to the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum, a photo of which can be seen in the article.
In July 1980, the Tuloblispolkom decided to establish the Bogoroditsky Museum of History and Art on the basis of the Bogoroditsky Local History and Regional Art Museum. Exhibitions from own reserves and with the participation of Tula regional centers were opened in the building.
The revival of the complex
In July 1984, a resolution was adopted by the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR "On measures to preserve the natural and palace-park ensemble and the development of the city economy of Bogoroditsk." In order to enforce this decision, in 1986 the estate was closed for restoration. Already in 1988, by decision of the executive committee of the Tula Regional Council of Deputies, the History and Art Museum was renamed the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park.
In honor of the 250th anniversary of the birth of the writer and agronomist Andrei Timofeevich Bolotov, on October 16, 1988, the opening of a new museum consisting of seven halls took place. Three years later, in 1991, a gazebo and front door were opened, the number of exhibition halls increased to thirteen.
More recently, in 2012, the museum switched from the municipal budget to the balance of the regional and became the state budget cultural institution of the Tula region. And at the beginning of 2013, the State Cultural Institution of the Tula Region “Museum of Local Lore and Art” included the complex as a branch.
The birth of the estate
The history of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park dates back to ancient times. At the end of the eighteenth century, at the invitation of Sergei Vasilievich Gagarin (the manager of the estates of the city and its environs), A.T. Bolotov, one of the first Russian agronomists and gardeners, came to Bogoroditsk. The proposal sounded a request to assume responsibility for the review of all possessions entrusted to the Sovereign Gagarin.
After carrying out a number of main works on the estate, in 1784, Bolotov began the large-scale construction of the park. It was divided into two parts - regular and landscape. The first adjoined the palace and was in the French style of the 13th century, the landscape part was created in the image of the English garden and was located along the shore of the pond.
Creating a landscape piece was especially difficult. Here Andrei Timofeevich applied a special technique with ingenious undertakings. About two hundred people worked on the creation of the park. Some were busy digging land, others uprooted and transported trees from the forest, others planted and looked after plants. Bolotov considered aspen, elm and oak to be unsuitable for the park, now birch, linden and maple mainly grow on its territory.
On the hills, arbors were arranged with stairs going down to the pond, flowers and bushes grew along them. Here was a beautiful cascading waterfall, without which at that time not a single landscape could do. In Bogoroditsky Park, Bolotov thought of a unique hydraulic system with large and small ponds, in the largest of them he bred fish. At that time, the park was not only considered a “local miracle”, but was also famous for its abundance of living creatures.
The current state of the park
Thanks to the sketches and sketches of Andrei Timofeevich, one can imagine how beautiful the park was during the reign of Catherine the Great. It is regrettable to admit that over the course of many decades it has undergone a lot of changes, only shady alleys in its regular part remained from the former splendor.
Currently, the park operates an art school. Pyotr Andreevich Kobyakov. It is located in the building of the volost school, which was built by the Tula architect Kozma Semenovich Sokolnikov. Near the school is the existing Holy Kazan Temple.
In one of the most picturesque places of the park in 1989, a monument was erected to Bolotov decorating the complex of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum. The park, the photo of which is presented in the article, rightfully bears the name of the great scientist and encyclopedist A.T. Bolotov and is considered a monument of federal significance.
The appearance of the fortress
In 1663, on the site of the current city of Bogoroditsk, a fortress was erected as a southeastern fort of the Russian state. A hundred years later, together with all the surrounding lands (about 90 thousand acres), she became the property of Catherine the Great.
In 1765, the empress signed a decree on the transfer of all these lands to her illegitimate child Alexei Grigoryevich Bobrinsky, giving him the title of count.
In 1771, the architect I.E. Starov came to Catherine II, who was commissioned to complete the design of the palace in Bogoroditsk, and already in 1773 its construction began.
Today, like more than two hundred years ago, the snow-white palace above the river meets its guests.
Manor composition
The Bobrinsky estate, now the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum, was erected in the style of early classicism. This is a simple and strict building with a semicircular facade in its western part. On the east side, large Tuscan columns support a small balcony. The crown of the building is a belvedere with amazing views from it. From the whole palace the spirit of the Italian palazzo blows.
The composition of the estate was complemented by two outbuildings that have not survived to our time, and a bell tower. It was considered the main entrance to the estate complex and the belfry of the Kazan Church, built by an unknown architect in the Baroque style. To this day, the temple was erected in 1774-1783 by I. E. Starov.
The Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park, a description of which can be found in the cultural heritage directories, was a family estate of four generations of the Bobrinsky family. He greeted his visitors with beautiful furniture of the 18th century, expensive porcelain and paintings by the master G. Robber, Bassano, V. D. Polenov. Guests of the estate at different times were Khan Shagin-Girey, Alexander II, V. A. Zhukovsky, L. N. Tolstoy and other eminent persons.
The death and rebirth of the palace
In the first half of 1918 the estate was nationalized. During the revolution, Red Army troops were sent here.
In 1934, the Krasny Shakhtar medical sanatorium was opened in the palace. He was later reorganized into a hospital and worked until October 1941.
In December of that year, the palace was destroyed by fascist troops. For more than twenty-five years, he stood in such a sad form, towering above the city.
In 1967, the estate began to be restored. In 1975, it functioned as an exposition, but restoration work was still partially completed. Only in 1988, the restored manor complex was opened for visiting as the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park.
Today, the complex includes a palace with an area of 630 m2 with 13 halls, where you can see valuable exhibits, 49 hectares of parkland and the main multi-tiered tower.
Reviews and impressions
Tula Peterhof is not only a historical and architectural monument. This is a place with a special atmosphere, saturated with the spirit of history. None of those who visited these places did not remain indifferent to the beauties of the Bogoroditsky Palace Museum and Park.
The reviews of those who visited the estate indicate that people are ready to return here more than once. Some are struck by the simplicity and grace of the decoration of the palace, while others admire the park surrounding the building.
There are those who liked the collection of minerals, which the count enthusiastically collected. Tourists are also attracted by the art exhibition located on the walls of the rooms.
Absolutely all who visited the historical complex gratefully note the worthy content of the architectural monument. This makes it possible for everyone to see it.