The Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna is an unpreserved imperial residence in St. Petersburg, built by B. F. Rastrelli in 1741-1744 on the site where the Mikhailovsky (Engineering) Castle is now located. Demolished in 1796.
Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna (built in 1741, demolished in 1797).
M.I. Makhaev 1756
In 1712, on the southern bank of the Moika, where the pavilion of the Mikhailovsky Garden is now, a small manor house was built for Ekaterina Alekseevna, completed with a turret with a gilded spire, which bore the pretentious name "Golden Mansions". According to him, the Big Meadow (the future Field of Mars) on the opposite bank received the name Tsaritsyn Meadow: it will be used most often in the 18th, and even at the beginning of the 19th century. The territory near the palace is called the 3rd Summer Garden. On July 11, 1721, the chamber junker of the Duke of Holstein Berchholtz, having examined the estate, wrote:
“The garden has been recently planted and therefore there is nothing in it yet, except for already quite large fruit trees. Here, five nearby ponds were dug for keeping live fish brought to the royal table.
In the greenhouses of the queen, the gardener Ekliben grew fruits rare for the northern latitudes: pineapples, bananas, etc.
Even then, the idea appeared to close the alley of the Summer Garden opposite the Karpiev Pond with a palace building. This is evidenced by the project of 1716-1717, preserved in the archives. Its possible author is J. B. Leblon. It depicts a small nine-axis palace, the elevated center of which is completed with a tetrahedral dome. Wide one-story galleries cover the court d'honneur with a magnificent figured parterre, facing the Moika. Behind there is a garden with numerous bosquets of various shapes. Fruit plantings have been preserved on the territory of the current Mikhailovsky Garden.
However, things did not go further than plans.
MAKHAEV Mikhail Ivanovich
Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna and front yard in front of it. View from the south. B. g. Ink, pen, brush
Under Anna Ioannovna, the 3rd Summer Garden turns into a "jagd-garten" - a garden for "chasing and shooting deer, wild boars, hares, as well as a gallery for hunters and stone walls to prevent bullets and shots from flying." At the same time, the “Vegetable Garden” was moved to Liteinaya Street, where the Mariinsky Hospital would later be built.
In the early 1740s. B. F. Rastrelli began the construction of one of the most remarkable buildings of the developed Russian baroque - the Summer Palace in the 3rd Summer Garden for the ruler Anna Leopoldovna.
Ivan ARGUNOV (1727(29)-1802). Portrait of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna.
However, while the construction was underway, a revolution took place, and Elizaveta Petrovna became the mistress of the building. By 1744, the palace, wooden on stone cellars, was roughly finished. The architect, in the description of the buildings he created, spoke of him like this:
“This building had more than 160 apartments, including the church, hall and galleries. Everything was adorned with mirrors and rich sculptures, as was the new garden, adorned with beautiful fountains, with the Hermitage built at the level of the first floor, surrounded by rich trellises, all the decorations of which were gilded.
Summer Palace.
Fragment of the "Axonometric plan of St. Petersburg 1765-1773 by P. de Saint-Hilaire".
Despite the location in the city limits, the building was decided according to the manor scheme. The plan was created under the clear influence of Versailles, which is especially noticeable from the side of the court d'honneur: the successively narrowing spaces enhanced the effect of the baroque perspective of the courtyard, fenced off from the access road by a lattice of magnificent drawings with state emblems.
One-story outbuildings along the perimeter of the cour d'honneur emphasize the isolation of the ensemble, traditional for the Baroque. The rather flat decor of light pink facades (mezzanine pilasters with Corinthian capitals and rusticated stone plinth blades corresponding to them, figured window frames) was compensated by a rich play of volumes.
Complicated in plan, strongly developed side wings included courtyards with small flower stalls. Magnificent access porticos led to stair volumes, as always with Rastrelli, displaced from the central axis. From the main staircase, a series of living rooms, decorated with gilded carvings, led to the most representative hall of the palace - the Throne Room. Its double-height volume accentuated the center of the building.
Outside, curly staircases led to it, complemented by ramps from the side of the garden. Completed the appearance of the palace, giving it baroque splendor, numerous statues and vases on the pediments and balustrades crowning the building.
Rastrelli decorated the space up to the Moika with flower stalls with three fountain pools of complex outlines.
Summer Palace of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna in St. Petersburg.
thin L. F. Bonstedt. (according to the drawing by M.I. Makhaev. 1753). 1847.
As is often the case with the creations of an architect, over time, a logical and harmonious initial plan changes to suit momentary requirements.
In 1744, for the transition of the Empress to the 2nd Summer Garden through the Moika, he built a one-story covered gallery, decorated with paintings hung on the walls. Here, in 1747, near the northwestern risalit, he creates a terrace of a hanging garden at the mezzanine level with the Hermitage pavilion and a fountain in the center of the parterre.
Along the contour, it is fenced with a magnificent gilded trellis grate, they arrange multi-march gatherings in the garden. Later, a palace church was added to the northeastern risalit, expanding it with an additional row of rooms from the Fontanka side.
Bay windows-lanterns appear on the western facade.
On the territory adjacent to the palace, a decorative park was laid out with a huge complex green labyrinth, bosquets, trellis arbors and two trapezoidal ponds with semicircular ledges (which have survived to this day, they acquired a free outline during the reconstruction of the park for the grand ducal residence). About his work in the park in 1745, Rastrelli reports:
“On the banks of the Moika, in a new garden, I built a large building of baths with a round salon and a fountain in several jets, with front rooms for relaxation.”
In the center of the park there were swings, slides, carousels. The device of the latter is unusual: revolving benches were placed around a large tree, and a gazebo was hidden in the crown, into which they climbed a spiral staircase.
Alexey Grekov. View of the Summer Palace of Empress Elizabeth
Another building, located in the immediate vicinity of the north-eastern corner of the palace, is associated with the name of the architect: the water supply system for the fountains of the Summer Garden, made in the 1720s. no longer gave sufficient pressure, and did not correspond to the brilliance and grandeur of the imperial residence.
In the mid 1740s. Rastrelli builds water towers with an aqueduct across the Fontanka.
The technically complex, purely utilitarian building made of wood was decorated with palatial luxury: the wall painting imitated magnificent baroque modeling.
Despite the fact that the palace was the grand imperial residence, there was no direct communication with the Neva prospect: the road that went among the unpresentable random buildings (glaciers, greenhouses, workshops and the Elephant Yard stood on the banks of the Fontanka) turned onto Italianskaya Street, and only bypassing the palace and I. Shuvalov, built by Savva Chevakinsky, the crews through Malaya Sadovaya got to the central transport artery of the city.
A direct connection will appear only in the next century thanks to the work of C. Rossi.
Elizaveta Petrovna was very fond of the Summer Palace. In late April - early May (weather permitting), the solemn transfer of the Empress from the winter residence was arranged with a magnificent ceremonial with the participation of the court, the orchestra, regiments of the guard under the artillery salute of the cannon at the Winter Palace and the guns of the Peter and Paul Fortress and the Admiralty.
At the same time, the imperial yachts, which were on the roadstead opposite Apraksin's house, sailed to the Summer Garden. On the way back, the queen set off in the last days of September with the same ceremonies.
On September 20, 1754, the future emperor Paul I was born within the walls of the palace. After the death of the queen, the palace is still used: the conclusion of peace with Prussia is celebrated here.
In the throne room, Catherine II receives congratulations from foreign ambassadors on her accession to the throne. However, over time, the owner begins to give preference to other summer residences, especially Tsarskoye Selo, and the building deteriorates.
First, he was taken under residence to G. Orlov, then to G. Potemkin. A catastrophic flood in September 1777 destroyed the fountain system of the Summer Garden. The fashion for regular parks passed, and the water cannons were not restored, while the unnecessary Rastrelli aqueduct was dismantled.
Mikhailovsky Castle from the side of the embankment. Fontanka.
Benjamin Patersen.
At the end of the 1770s. The palace was dismantled by order of Paul I for the construction of the Mikhailovsky Castle, the laying of which took place on February 28, 1797.
There are two legends of the founding of the Mikhailovsky Castle: according to one, Paul I said: “I want to die where I was born”, according to another, the soldier standing on the clock in the Summer Palace, when he dozed off, the Archangel Michael dreamed and ordered to hand over to the king to build a church on this place .
Beggrov K.P.
View of the Engineer's Castle from the Summer Garden. 1830s
Be that as it may, in February 1796, due to dilapidation, the Elizabethan dwelling was broken down and the construction of a new imperial stronghold began. And today, only the volumetric construction of the facade of the castle facing the Summer Garden (perhaps at the request of the monarch) and the magnificent drawings of M.I. Makhaev remind of the disappeared building.
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St. Petersburg and suburbs
With the death of Empress Anna Ioannovna, which followed in 1740, Biron became regent for the young emperor John Antonovich, who was 2 months old at that time. However, his reign was short-lived. Biron was arrested for abuse and exiled. The reign of the mother of the young emperor Anna Leopoldovna, who was appointed regent under him, was also short-lived. On November 25, 1741, as a result of a palace coup, the daughter of Emperor Peter I, Elizabeth Petrovna, ascended the throne. The time of her reign is the time of a powerful take-off of St. Petersburg architecture. She herself loved pomp and splendor, Elizaveta Petrovna wanted to see her father's brainchild decorated with beautiful buildings and therefore was very concerned about the front building in St. Petersburg and its suburbs. Having ascended the throne, Elizaveta Petrovna mainly lived in the Summer Palace on the site of the current Mikhailovsky Castle, which soon became cramped for the expanded imperial court. During her reign, the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, the Winter Palace were built, the ensemble of the Smolny Monastery was built, Tuchkov and Sampsonevsky bridges were erected, and, finally, Moscow University, the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg and the Corps of Pages were opened. She invited the best architects of Europe to St. Petersburg, and among them the brightest was Bartolomeo Rastrelli. He erected the best buildings in St. Petersburg. This is the Winter Palace, twice rebuilt by him, Anichkov, Vorontsovsky, Stroganov palaces; Great Peterhof Palace, Tsarskoye Selo (Catherine) Palace, Smolny Monastery and other buildings. Looking at the cathedral of the Smolny Monastery, Quarenghi, who did not like the architecture of the Elizabethan baroque, with the words: “Well, the church!”, He took off his hat.
Upon arrival in St. Petersburg, Elizaveta Petrovna ordered the construction of two palaces for herself at once, one temporary, wooden near the Police Bridge, the other stone on the Neva embankment. Both palaces were built according to the project of B. Rastrelli. The wooden palace, although built as a temporary one, was decorated with great luxury.
Nevsky Prospekt by that time had become the best street in the city. Elizabeth oversaw its improvement. Decrees were issued prohibiting the construction of wooden buildings on the main street of the city. Only stone houses were erected on the avenue. But they were not like the current ones. As a rule, these were two-storey buildings with an obligatory front garden in front of the facade, fenced with a patterned cast-iron lattice. In 1755, Gostiny Dvor began to be rebuilt. Rastrelli's plan, which was notable for the great splendor of the building's decoration, was not implemented due to lack of funding. Now we see the Gostiny Dvor building, designed by the architect Valen-Delamote, who retained the layout of Rastrelli, but built the building in the style of early classicism.
Elizaveta Petrovna, according to her contemporaries, was very beautiful, lively and flirtatious. Her palaces were lined with mirrors in which she constantly saw her reflection repeated over and over again. For her, the most expensive outfits were bought up in large quantities in Europe. After her death, the Empress had 15,000 dresses in her wardrobe, some of which had never been worn. She herself has never worn the same dress twice. And she demanded the same from the courtiers, whose appearance she monitored very much, issuing decrees one after another regulating the appearance of her entourage. For example, a decree was issued forbidding court ladies to wear dark dresses, a decree that 
to go to the masquerade only in a good dress, and not "in a vile one." And in the winter of 1747, a “hair regulation” came out, which ordered all court ladies to cut their hair bald and cover their heads with “black tousled wigs”, which she herself issued. The reason for such a tough establishment was that the powder from the empress's hair did not want to go off, the empress decided to dye her hair black, but for some reason this did not work out, and then she had to be the first to cut her hair and put on a black wig. And she did not like anyone to surpass her in beauty and perfection. Well, how was it not to publish a "hairy decree"?
The time of Elizabeth is the time when the baroque style reigned in art, which was a match for the cheerful character of the empress with her whims and love of luxury. The architectural masterpieces of Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, which still amaze us with grace, luxury and splendor, are a monument to that time. And one of them is the Smolny Monastery, which was built by the Empress for herself. At one time she had a desire to abdicate and go to a monastery. Thousands of soldiers and artisans were rounded up for the construction of the monastery. It was built on a grand scale. And a few years later it was outwardly ready. But then the seven-year war began, and construction stopped due to lack of money. Soon, Elizabeth's desire to enter a monastery also disappeared. 
G. R. Derzhavin called the reign of Elizabeth "the age of songs." Elizaveta Petrovna really loved music and herself had extraordinary musical abilities: she played many instruments and composed songs. Thanks to her, Russia got acquainted with the guitar, mandolin, harp and other instruments. Opera, ballet, and also the drama theater, which she loved very much, flourished under her. Shakespeare, Moliere and, of course, the plays of the first Russian tragedian Alexander Sumarokov were played on the stage of Russian theaters. In 1750, Fedor Grigoryevich Volkov created a theater in Yaroslavl, the performances of which were a great success. Having learned about the "Yaroslavl comedies", the Empress summoned Volkov and the troupe to St. Petersburg by a special decree. The initiative of Sumarokov and Volkov in 1756 officially established the Russian Theater for the Presentation of Tragedies and Comedies, which marked the beginning of the creation of the Imperial Theaters of Russia. The theater was initially located in the Menshikov Palace, where in 1732 the Gentry Cadet Corps for minor nobles was opened. The first Russian tragedy "Khorev" was staged here, and in 1752 the actors of the troupe of Fyodor Volkov were placed here.
With the active secular life that Elizabeth led, sometimes she simply did not get around to governing the state. Ministers ran after her for months so that she could sign some document between dressing for a ball or a masquerade. Fortunately, the bureaucratic machine, launched once by Peter, continued its work, and things went on as usual. In addition, she had wonderful assistants. She could well rely on P. I. Shuvalov in domestic policy, in external policy on A. P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, in the field of education on I. I. Shuvalov. .jpg)
Balls and masquerades succeeded each other, competing with each other in splendor and splendor. But against the backdrop of this seemingly endless holiday, important events took place in St. Petersburg. Petersburg of this time is the Petersburg of Lomonosov, the founder of Russian science and poetry, this is the Petersburg of important geographical research and discoveries. In 1743, the eleven-year Second Kamchatka Expedition ended, and two years later the Academic Atlas was published with maps of the vast territory from Baikal to Anadyr and northwestern America.
Creating at one time the Academy of Sciences, Peter I thought of it as a center of higher education in Russia. This can be seen from the draft “Regulations of the Academy of Sciences and Arts”, which stated that the members of the Academy, working “on the perfection of the arts and sciences”, had to “publicly teach those arts and sciences”, that is, teach. That is, Peter thought of the Academy as a university. In 1745, M. V. Lomonosov became a professor at this Academic (or Petrovsky) University, who insisted that not only nobles could study at the university: “Not a single person is forbidden to study at universities, no matter who he is, and at the university, that student is more honorable, who has learned more. Such an attitude of a professor of the first higher educational institution in Russia, the founder of domestic science, opened the way to education for many talented young people. Among the first "natural Russians" who graduated from Petrovsky University were Antioch Kantemir, Ivan Magnitsky, Pyotr Remizov. The poetic "Satires" of Antioch Cantemir were very popular at that time and went from hand to hand in the lists.
The cultural demands and interests of the empress and the court, proximity to Europe, the very spirit of the city, which from birth was intended to be a “window to Europe”, also contributed to the increase in interest in culture and education. Gymnasiums, both public and private, appear in the city. In 1757, the "Academy of the Three Most Noble Arts" was formed in St. Petersburg - painting, architecture and sculpture. The construction of the building for the Academy of Arts on University Embankment will begin only in 1764, and from the moment of foundation until that time it was located in the house of the initiator of its creation, I. I. Shuvalov, in the Shuvalov Palace on Sadovaya Street, between Nevsky Prospekt and Italian Street. Her first students were Ivan Starov, Fedor Rokotov, Vasily Bazhenov. As a mosaic artist, M. V. Lomonosov became an honorary member of the Academy. Mosaic panel by M. V. Lomonosov "Poltava battle" is now in the building of the Academy of Sciences.
In 1751, on the Nikolaevskaya embankment of the Neva, the current embankment of Lieutenant Schmidt, the Naval gentry cadet corps was opened, which later became the Naval Academy. From the pier, where the monument to Kruzenshtern stands, all the outstanding Russian navigators and admirals went to sea. 
St. Petersburg of the noisy Elizabethan era already bore little resemblance to Peter's modest "Paradise". By that time, a favorable environment for the development of the economy had developed in the city. He no longer required exceptional measures to attract the population and finances. The ever-increasing needs of the new capital transformed the whole region for many kilometers around. Thousands of wagons with building material, food, various products of local crafts were drawn from the Novgorod, Pskov, Olonets provinces. Hundreds of ships from Europe, barges, boats, rafts were looking for mooring places near the city's piers.
During her twenty-year reign, Elizaveta Petrovna did not sign a single death warrant. And perhaps that is why the internal life of the country as a whole during this period was stable - there were neither riots nor bitterness in the country. Some cruel amusements were forbidden: in Moscow and St. Petersburg it was forbidden to have bears, to shoot guns. In the field of foreign policy, this time was also a time of rest: out of 20 years of Elizabeth's reign, 15 years were peaceful. And four years of Russia's participation in the Seven Years' War (1756-1760) revealed the combat readiness of the Russian army, which defeated the hitherto invincible troops of Frederick the Great. And this is despite the eternal Russian confusion, theft in the rear, ill-conceived strategic plans.
Founded by Peter I of the royal estate. Here, near the junction of the Moika and the Fontanka, shortly before her death, Empress Anna Ioannovna ordered the architect F. B. Rastrelli to build the palace "with extreme haste." During her lifetime, the architect did not have time to start this work.
In late 1740 - early 1741, Anna Leopoldovna, who took power into her own hands, also decided to build her own house on this site. On her behalf, Governor-General Minich ordered Rastrelli to draw up an appropriate project. The drawings were ready by the end of February 1741. But the architect was in no hurry to provide them to Munnich, but took the documents to the Hof quartermaster's office, which delayed the approval of the project for several weeks. Probably, Rastrelli guessed about the imminent change in power and was in no hurry to carry out the order. The architect was right. On March 3, Petersburg was informed of Minich's resignation. On November 24, a palace coup took place, as a result of which the daughter of Peter I, Elizabeth, came to power. By this time, the Summer Palace had already been laid.
Concerning the date of laying the palace in local lore literature, there are different versions. Historian Yuri Ovsyannikov in the book "The Great Architects of St. Petersburg" writes that it took place on July 24, 1741 in the presence of the ruler Anna Leopoldovna, her husband Generalissimo Anton Ulrich, courtiers and guards. Georgy Zuev in the book "The Moika River Flows" calls the month of laying the Summer Palace not July, but June. The same opinion is shared by K. V. Malinovsky in the book "St. Petersburg of the 18th century".
The new house became known as the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna. Immediately after her accession to the throne, she entrusted Rastrelli with the completion of its interior decoration. The draft building was ready by 1743. The palace became the first own home of Elizabeth Petrovna, in which no one had lived before her. As a reward for this work, the empress raised the architect's salary from 1,200 to 2,500 rubles a year.
The Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna was connected to Nevsky Prospekt by a road running along the Fontanka. The approach to the building was flanked by a one-story kitchen and guardhouse. Between them were gates decorated with gilded double-headed eagles. Behind them is the front yard. The main facade of the palace faced the Summer Garden, to which a covered bridge-gallery led through the Moika since 1745. The first floor of the building was made of stone, on it rested wooden walls of light pink color treated with plaster. Against their background, white window trims and pilasters stood out. The ground floor of the palace was lined with greenish granite.
In the central building there was a two-height Grand Hall with the royal throne against the western wall. The Empress lived in the eastern wing of the palace, on the side of the Fontanka. Courtiers lived in the west wing. Rastrelli wrote about the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna:
"The building had more than one hundred and sixty apartments, including here the church, hall and galleries. Everything was decorated with mirrors and rich sculpture, as well as a new garden, decorated with beautiful fountains, with the Hermitage built at ground floor level, surrounded by rich trellises, all decorations which were gilded" [Cit. according to 1, p. 264].
In the aforementioned Hermitage, built in 1746, according to Jacob Stehlin, paintings of exclusively religious and biblical content were kept. Some of them are now in the State Hermitage and the Pavlovsk Palace. The halls of the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna were decorated with Bohemian mirrors, marble sculptures and paintings by famous artists.
Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli was not completely satisfied with this work of his. Ten years after the end of construction, he was still finishing and reworking something. The walls of the building were decorated with figured window frames, atlantes, lion masks and mascarons. In 1752, Rastrelli added "a new large gallery hall" to the northeast corner of the palace. The owner of the palace had little interest in the architectural integrity of the building. The main thing for her was only the luxury of the surrounding space.
On April 30, the Empress moved to the Summer Palace from the Winter Palace with her entire court. Return - 30 September. Here Elizabeth took a break from her public service. In the Summer Palace, she preferred only to relax.
Here, in 1754, Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich, the future Emperor Paul I, was born and spent the first years of his life. The Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna in 1762 became the site of celebrations on the occasion of the conclusion of peace with Prussia after the end of the Seven Years' War.
For Catherine II, the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna became the place where she received official congratulations from the diplomatic corps on her accession to the throne. Within its walls, she heard the news of the death of Peter III.
In the very first month of the reign of Paul I, on November 28, 1796, a decree was issued: " for the permanent residence of the sovereign to build with haste a new impregnable palace-castle. He should stand on the site of the dilapidated Summer House". The emperor did not want to live in the Winter Palace. He preferred to live in the place where he was born. So, allegedly, the decision was made to build a new palace, which replaced the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna.
During the time of the first Romanov, Mikhail Fedorovich, Rubtsovo belonged to his mother, nun Martha. Having become king, Mikhail liked to spend summer time in Pokrovsky. In 1615, a wooden Temple in the name of Nicholas the Wonderworker, Mikhail erected it in gratitude for the salvation of Moscow from the Poles and in honor of the release of his father, Patriarch Filaret, from Polish captivity. Eight years later, the wooden temple was replaced by a stone one, and a palace was built where family celebrations were held.
IN 1619 in memory of the deliverance of Moscow from the troops of the Polish prince Vladislav the stone temple of the Intercession was laid Holy Mother of God. According to the temple, the village began to be called "Pokrovskoye, Rubtsovo, too", and then simply Pokrovskoye.
Church of the Intercession in Rubtsovo.
Mikhail Fedorovich himself was engaged in the arrangement of the royal estate. Nearby were stables, kitchens, beehives, a brewery, a mill and other facilities.
The built wooden palace was facing the road and the river Gnilushki. IN 1632 d. it was dammed, which formed Rybinsk pond, (the remains of which were buried in the 1920s). An orchard was laid out on the shore of the pond, where a few years later unique trees, shrubs, medicinal herbs and flowers were planted and a stone gazebo was built.
In Pokrovsky in 1627, the eldest daughter of Mikhail Fedorovich, Grand Duchess Irina Mikhailovna, was born, in honor of whose heavenly patroness a Church of the Martyr Irina. It was Irina Mikhailovna who got into the ownership of Pokrovskoye. Her brother, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, did not particularly favor the family estate, although he regularly visited the estate, especially in spring, summer and during the hunting season.
The young Tsar Peter II also liked to hunt here. IN 1728 he came to Moscow with his young aunt Elizaveta Petrovna, and she very soon introduced him to dog and falconry in the vicinity of the Mother See. With their retinue, they often went hunting in Sokolniki and stayed at the old Pokrovsky Palace. The royal hunt became the theme of the famous painting by Valentin Serov.
However, at the beginning 1730. Peter II died. The niece of Peter I Anna Ioannovna ascended the throne. Elizaveta Petrovna fell into disgrace, was expelled from St. Petersburg to Moscow and settled in the Pokrovsky Palace, which she loved, with her relatives Skavronsky and Gendrikov. The palace became the residence of the princess for more than ten years.
There is a legend that Elizabeth, having a cheerful disposition by nature, participated in festive round dances made up of intercession girls. She loved to dress up in a satin sundress and kokoshnik, weave a bright ribbon into her braid and sing ditties. This is very similar to Elizabeth, who, already becoming an empress, loved to organize metamorphosis carnivals, dressing in a man's costume to demonstrate her slender legs.
Ascended to the throne 1741, after the death of Anna Ioannovna, Elizabeth ruled for 20 years and all this time did not forget her beloved Pokrovsky. Already at the end of February 1741, having arrived in Moscow for the coronation, scheduled for April 25, and having barely visited the Kremlin cathedrals, Elizabeth left for Pokrovskoye, "to her winter home on the Yauza." In the autumn of the same year, on the orders of Elizabeth, her nephew Duke Peter of Holstein was brought there, whom she declared her heir to the Russian throne as the closest blood relative.
At the same time, the heir accepted the Orthodox faith and became known as Peter Fedorovich (Peter III). In February 1744, the Princess of Anhalt-Zerbst arrived at the Intercession Palace with her 14-year-old daughter Sophia-August-Frederica, who was destined to be the bride of Pyotr Fedorovich. On June 28, the chrismation of Sophia-Augusta, who received the name Ekaterina Alekseevna in Orthodoxy, was performed, and the next day she was betrothed to the heir to the throne.
Elizabeth visited Pokrovskoye from time to time and lived there for a long time, almost a year. In place of burned in a fire 1737 years, she built herself palace of stone. It was a risalite block with a front two-height hall and a system of enfilades intersecting at right angles. Typical, in general, for its time layout. But at the same time, the rooms were decorated in the “Chinese taste”, in the same style there were a lot of dishes in the palace.
In 1752, Pokrovskoye became part of the city. The state of the estate at that time no longer satisfied the imperial court. Here is how the architect Ivan Yakovlev described the palace: “In this palace, the ceilings and roof, covered with boards, came into great disrepair; and the soap house with the chambers, due to considerable dilapidation, must be rebuilt: and the palace will not be re-covered, will it be for strength with iron: and in addition to all the reconstruction, will it not be ordered what to attach again?
To draw up a new project for the expansion of the palace, he was invited F.-B. Rastrelli. A the architect wanted to add another floor, elevate the central part of the building and enrich the facades with baroque decor and semicircular ramps adjoining the protruding central risalit. However, the project for the reconstruction of the building was not implemented, and it remained in its original form until until the second half of the nineteenth century.
But of great interest was the garden in Pokrovsky - one of the best in Moscow (planned by the same Rastrelli). Located in the form of a rectangle with a church in the center, it is pierced by longitudinal and transverse fan-shaped alleys diverging from the oval area around the church. The basis of the garden was fruit trees and shrubs. The parterres were planted with pears, apples, plums, cherries and hazels. Walking along them, you could relish to feast on.
Already in 1760, Elizabeth undertook a search for the Rastrelli project and asked if building materials had been stockpiled in connection with it? However, the matter stopped there.
Project for the reconstruction of the Pokrovsky Palace. Main facade. F.-B. Rastrelli, 1752 B., pen, ink, aq. RGADA.
The reign of Elizabeth I was marked by a new stage in the development of architecture in the state, the emergence of the Elizabethan (Russian) Baroque. Built under the guidance of the chief architect Empress R.F. Bartolomeo's architectural monuments had a clear European influence, however, they were characterized by Russian scope and monumentality. One of these masterpieces was the Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna in St. Petersburg, which, in style, lightness of architectural forms and richness of decoration, was compared with the French royal palace in Versailles.
Geographical location and architectural features of the Summer Palace of Elizabeth
We can get an idea of what the Summer Palace of Elizabeth looked like from paintings and engravings, as well as the memoirs of contemporaries. The imperial residence was located on the site between the street. Italian, Ekaterininsky canal, Moika and Fontanka rivers. The palace was built in the 3rd Summer Garden, where the Mikhailovsky (also known as Engineering) Castle is located today.
According to the project, the palace provided for the presence of two facades overlooking the Moika (main) and in the direction of Nevsky Prospekt. In front of the main entrance to the building, a regularly operating park was laid out with trees and figured flower beds, benches and fountains. Visitors entered the courtyard through a wrought-iron gate.
The Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli had a second name - the Wooden Palace. Only the basement and walls of the first floor were made of stone, the second floor was completely made of wood. The pink and gray exterior walls looked elegant and light. Inside the room was decorated with rich stucco with gilding, sculptures and a large number of mirrors. The luxurious and elegant palace included more than 160 rooms, including a hall for ceremonial receptions and galleries.
Favorite residence of Elizabeth Petrovna
The entire court of Elizabeth I moved to the Summer Palace from the Winter Palace as soon as it got warmer: in April - May. The move was arranged solemnly, with a cannon salute and an orchestra, accompanied by a guards regiment. The return to the winter residence at the end of September was no less pompous.
Elizabeth loved her Summer Palace. It regularly hosted official receptions and balls. The future Emperor Paul I was born here.
Summer Palace of Elizabeth: the history of construction
The idea of erecting a summer imperial residence appeared during the reign of Anna Leopoldovna, regent under the young Ivan VI, to whom the throne passed after Anna Ioannovna. The architect began to develop drawings at the end of 1740, and in July 1741 construction work began. In the same year, a coup took place and Elizaveta Petrovna, the youngest daughter of Peter the Great, came to power. The new empress approved the continuation of the construction of the palace and the work was carried out from 1741 to 1744. Historically, the construction was carried out not exactly according to the project. So, at the direction of Elizabeth through the river. Moika, a covered gallery was built for the transition from the palace to the 2nd Summer Garden.
After the death of Elizabeth I, the palace remained an imperial residence, festive events took place here at the end of the seven-year war with Prussia, and Catherine II accepted official congratulations on her coronation from foreign ambassadors, although she spent most of her time in Tsarskoe Selo. By decree of Paul I, the Summer Palace was destroyed in 1797 (officially - due to dilapidation), and in its place the modern Mikhailovsky Castle, known to us, was built, which became the residence of the emperor.
