ADMIRALTY.
Hi. Let's go on a tour of the Admiralty, Haymarket, and some places in between.
We will begin this tour at the...
The first Admiralty building marked the edge of the dockyards and gave onto the Neva. The Admiralty was rebuilt in brick in 1738 and was made up of two major constructions separated by an inner canal which was used for the transportation of goods. The government occupied the first building, while the second contained carpentry shops, forges, the cordwainers' shops, the general workshops, and the reserve supplies needed for each body of craftsmen. In 1718 the Admiralty became the Headquarters of Peter I's General Staff. (Knopf 190-191).
In 1823 the Admiralty was rebuilt again as the administrative headquarters of the Russian navy. It was designed by Andreyan Zakharov and is known for its central tower and crowning gilt spire. It rises to a height of over seventy meters and overlooks the trees and sculptures of the Admiralty gardens (Insight City ?).
We will now go to DECEMBRISTS SQUARE, originally known as SENATE SQUARE.
This square lies between St. Isaac's Cathedral and the Neva River It was the sight of the Decembrists uprising in 1825 Because of this event, the square earned a new name during the socialist era as the Decembrists were canonized in communist propaganda as visionaries and precursors of socialism. (http//win.www.online.ru/sp/fresh/sights/senate.html).
The Decembrist Square consists of an equestrian statue of Peter, Riding school, Victory columns, Senate and Synod, and Alexander Garden. (Knopf 194).
The equestrian statue of Peter has the Czar represented neither as a Roman emperor nor as a prince. He wears a long black robe, a mantle, soft leather boots, and a simple sword at his side. The only thing that reminds us of his rank is the crown of laurels on his head, sculpted by a pupil of Falconet's, Anne-Marie Collot. On either side of the plinth are four words, which translate: "To Peter I, Catherine II". (Knopf 194).
The riding school was designed by Quarenghi (1804-1807), with sculpted decoration by Paolo Triscorni, the Riding School is a low quadrangular building not unlike a Greek temple, with a double colonnade and pediment (Knopf 194).
Following the disappearance of the Admiralty dockyards the canal connecting the site with the New Holland district was covered by a brick arch which became the Horseguards Boulevard. The Victory figures in bronze, modeled by Christian Rauch (1845-1846) stands on a granite pedestal. It was presented to the Czar by the King of Prussia in commemoration of their joint victory over Napoleon. (Knopf 194).
By creating new institutions for Russia Peter the Great managed to disarm those of his opponents who were obstructing his reforms. He suppressed the Patriarchate which had complete power over the Church, and replaced it by a Synod, with authority to settle all religious questions. Likewise in 1711 he outmaneuvered the Duma of the Boyars by setting up a nine-member Senate to manage affairs of state in his absence. The architects Rossi and Stasov designed twin buildings for these institutions (1829-1834), which were connected by an arch spanning Galernaya Street. The columns are set forward, with an entablature decorated with statues of angels. In the direction of the Neva, the Senate building is distinguished by a colonnade which curves round to meet the embankment. (Knopf 194-195).
The Alexander Garden was planted for the two-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Peter the Great, and covers the fortifications which formerly defended the Admiralty. The statues here are mostly copies of antique original made in the 18th century. (Knopf 195).
Decembrist Square is the second of St. Petersburg's great squares. [The first is Palace Square in front of the Winter Palace.] It is named after the Decembrists' revolt. On December 14, 1825 a small group of reformist officers entered the square at the head of their troops in order to prevent the Senate from ratifying the accession of Nicholas 1. The officers did not know, but the senators had anticipated such an action and had already taken their oath to the Tsar in secret. The reformers found no senators in the senate building, they did run into thousands of loyalist troops who had been called into action by the Tsar. The rebels were attacked, captured, and soon afterward executed. (Insight City ?).
From here we will go and visit...
The first St. Isaac's Cathedral was a small wooden church and was located near the Admiralty. Peter 1 and Catherine 1 were married in it in 1712. Afterwards, it was agreed that the cathedral did not fit in with the growing St. Petersburg . In 1717 a stone St. Isaac's Cathedral was built on the spot now occupied by the Bronze Horsemen. In the 1760's Catherine II decided she wanted a huge marble cathedral. Therefore, in 1768 construction began on the St. Isaac's Cathedral. It was finally completed in 1802, but the result was different then was originally planned and was neither pretty nor well built. (Insight City ?).
Alexander I decided to get the St. Isaac's issue resolved for good after rotten ceiling plaster fell during an Easter service in 1816. Everything was done on a grand scale. The portico columns, cut from red granite, are seventeen meters high; the mosaic inside has twelve thousand shades and colors; the walls are five meters thick; the cupola is coated with on hundred kilos of gold; and the whole thing weighs three hundred thousand tons (http://alt.www.online.ru/sp/fresh/museums/st-isaac.html).
Inside are paintings, sculptures, and mosaics by 19th century Russian and European masters, including a fresco on the inside of the cupola by Karl Bryullov and a bust of Montferrand made of different colored marbles and other minerals. (Insight City?). Also are the beautifully sculpted bronze doors, the white marble central iconostasis with its columns of malachite and lazurite, and huge stained-glass Jesus in Catholic colors of blue. (http://www.interknowledge.com/russia/peter04.htm). The cathedral dominates the skyline of the city. Its dome, covered with 100 kilograms of gold, stands over 100 meters into the air. Overall, the cathedral costs more than 20 million Rubles. (http://www.interknowledge.com/russia/peter04.htm).
Now we will go and see the...
This theater is also known as the Kirov Ballet, but just recently returned to being called Mariinsky Theatre. The Mariinsky was built in 1860 as an opera house, but it is normally associated best with ballet which was added two decades later. The peak of its fame was during the earliest days of modern ballet after the turn of the century. The choreographer of the Mariinsky at the time, Michael Fokine (1880-1942) is considered to have been the founder of modern ballet He was the choreographer for several of Mariinsky's best dancers The most known include Vasily Nijinksy, Anna Pavlova, and Tamara Karsarvina During the Cold War era, the Mariinsky maintained its reputation despite numerous problems, including the loss of a number of its best dancers to the West. These dancers include Rudolf Nureyev, Natalia Makarova, and Mikhail Baryshnikov. Most of Mariinsky dancers were trained at St. Petersburg's Vaganova School of Choreography, the world's premier ballet school in the Classical Tradition. (http://www.interknowledge.com/russia/peter03.htm).
Let's go now and see the YUSUPOVSKY PALACE.
This palace was home of the very rich Yusupov family, who from the mid-18th century until the Revolution, moved in the most powerful circles in Russia. In addition to being movers and shakers, the Yusupov's were great art collectors, and their collection was known well beyond Russia. After the Revolution, most of their art was moved to the Hermitage, making this just another palace, though at one time a lot of wealth existed in it. Recently, the palace opened an exhibit attempting to make up for the loss of the art collection, an exhibit concerning the assassination of Rasputin in the palace in the winter of 1916. The exhibit shows the two rooms where it all happened. The first room has photographs fro the early 20th century showing all the principle characters in the drama including several shots of Rapsy himself. In the cellar where the assassination took place there are wax figures of Yusupov and Rasputin as well as table filled with personal goodies (Insight City ?).
Finally we will go to the HAYMARKET SQUARE
At the end of the 18th century there was a huge market here where hay, oats and straw were sold . The Haymarket used to be one of the worst parts of St. Petersburg, but today the old buildings have been replaced by buildings constructed after World War Two. The only original building still standing is the Police Station, with its four-columned classical portico. (Knopf 206).
The Church of the Assumption, now demolished, was built in the mid-18th century to a project by A. Kvasov, in which Rastrelli had a hand. It was built as the architectural focus of the square. The church was closed in 1938 and was knocked down in 1961 to make way for the Sennaya metro station. (Knopf 206).
I hope you have enjoyed your little tour. See ya!
Knopf Guide. St. Petersburg.New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1995.
Insight City Guides. St. Petersburg.Singapore: Hofer Press Ptc.Ltd, 1992.
http://www.interknowledge.com/russia/peter03.htm
http://www.interknowledge.com/russia/peter04.htm
http//win.www.online.ru/sp/fresh/sights/senate.html
http://alt.www.online.ru/sp/fresh/museums/st-isaac.html
ADMIRALTY - http://www.tibet.demon.co.uk/jpg/01.jpg
ST. ISAAC'S CATHEDRAL - http://www.arcom.spb.su/~anna/museums/isaac.jpg
MARIINSKY THEATRE - http://www.spb.su/pictures/images/m-3.jpg
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