Anichkov Palace

Anichkov Palace is an old resident of Nevsky Prospekt and one of the most recognizable symbols of the Northern Capital. Changing owners like a glove, survived a record number of large-scale redevelopment, which turned a pathos representative of the early Baroque into a strict and ascetic example of architectural classicism, this historical ensemble has managed to perfectly adapt to modern realities.

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For almost a century Anichkov Palace has been literally prevented from growing old by youth organizations and all sorts of sections that have occupied its spacious halls. Today one of the most beautiful imperial residences of St. Petersburg bears the name of the Palace of Youth Creativity, daily gathering hundreds of St. Petersburg schoolchildren in its hobby groups and clubs. Where once there were organized lavish balls that rattled all over the capital, nowadays there are held subject Olympiads, school celebrations and youth conferences.

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Video: Anichkov Palace

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History of Anichkov Palace

At the beginning of the XVIII century, the land between Sadovaya Street and Fontanka, where Anichkov Palace now stands, belonged to St. Petersburg’s Chief Policeman General. However, soon the arrogant nobleman went into exile, and his estate went to the timber merchant D. L. Lukyanov, who temporarily placed the yard of the Preobrazhensky Regiment on the newly acquired territory. It is possible that over time the land on the banks of the Fontanka River would have gone to another owner, if there had not been another coup d’état in the country, as a result of which the Russian throne was occupied by Peter the Great’s daughter Elizabeth.

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The newly minted sovereign zealously embarked on the improvement of the Northern Capital, ordering to lay a new imperial residence on the former regimental court. According to the official version, the main mission of the Anichkov Palace was to make the entrance to St. Petersburg more spectacular (in those days the Fontanka embankment was something like a city suburb). In fact, the pathos construction was conceived for the favorite and morganatic husband of the Empress – A. Razumovsky.

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The construction of the building was entrusted to a popular at that time St. Petersburg architect Mikhail Zemtsov, who, as a bad luck, died suddenly, having had time only to sketch the project of the future residence and erect the first floor. As a result, the architect G. D. Dmitriev had to continue the work, well, and the final point in this long construction was set by B. Rastrelli himself.

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For the tsar’s gift had to dig a separate channel branching off the Fontanka River and connecting it with a small harbor, equipped right at the front entrance to Anichkov Palace. This improvised port was to be used by the “cream of St. Petersburg” to sail their ships to participate in all sorts of festivities. The architectural ensemble itself was conceived as a multi-storey and consisted of a two-storey main building and two three-storey wings on the sides. The territory adjacent to the palace was ennobled in the taste of Elizabeth Petrovna, who was fond of everything bright and flamboyant, i.e. by analogy with Peterhof parks. The location of the architectural structure in relation to Nevsky Prospekt is also interesting: in those days the central street of the Northern Capital was not an interesting sight, so the facade of the building does not “look” at the avenue.

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In 1756, Anichkov Palace was finally completed, and since Razumovsky himself had “ordered a long life” by that time, the estate passed to his brother Cyril. Well, and then began an endless series of redemptions, gifts and re-registration of “royal real estate.”

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In 1776, the residence was bought by Catherine II and, according to the tradition established by her predecessor, presented it to her lover – Count Potemkin. Together with the construction, the favorite received 100,000 rubles. The favorite received 100,000 rubles “for the acquisition of the household”, which he immediately spent on the reorganization of the estate. By the forces of the new owner Anichkov Palace lost its harbor, and also lost its famous multi-storey and stucco, but acquired a greenhouse with exotic plants. Having enjoyed his new possessions, Potemkin sold the estate to the merchant Shemyakin, which, apparently, thoroughly hurt the crown prince’s passions. Otherwise, how else to explain the fact that the empress repurchased the building, again handing it to the ungrateful favorite.

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Since 1785 the estate on the Fontanka was returned to the state treasury, and in 1794 it was turned into the Tsar’s personal chancellery, because of which the palace was once again redesigned.

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From 1803 to 1805, next to the building appeared the buildings of the shopping rows, the lower tier of which was an open gallery. The projects of the new premises were designed by the legendary D. Quarenghi.

In 1809, the residence was presented as a wedding gift to the sister of Alexander I, who turned out to be a very enterprising lady. After the death of her first husband, the august personage again sold Anichkov Palace to the Treasury for a fantastic sum for those times – 2,000,000 rubles.

In 1817, the estate passed to Nicholas I, at that time still walking in the grand dukes. The next owner did not miss the opportunity to make and his modest contribution to the design of the palace. This time K. Rossi was appointed in charge of the project, who built the Service Building and two garden pavilions on the palace grounds. Of the interior rooms were changed Dance Hall, Divan and Music Room, study and boudoir.

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Since 1830 Anichkov Palace became the center of social life and court gossip of St. Petersburg – almost all major balls in the capital were held in the halls of the imperial estate.

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Since 1842, the residence was owned by Alexander II and Alexander III, and, finally, it was within its walls that Emperor Nicholas II spent his childhood. By that time, the building had moved far ahead in terms of comfort – it was plumbed and equipped with a sewage system. Well, the last owner of the Anichkov Palace was the wife of Alexander III – Maria Fyodorovna.

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Soviet period and modernity

After the October Revolution, the “bourgeois heritage” on the Fontanka was nationalized, alternately housing all sorts of useless ministries and museums. Soon all the more or less valuable property of the Anichkov Palace went under the hammer, and the building itself was converted into the Palace of Pioneers.

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With the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the buildings of the estate housed a military hospital, which existed for a year and a half. During an artillery bombardment in the fall of 1941, a shell hit its territory, destroying the winter garden.

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In 1990, the Palace of Pioneers was renamed the Palace of Youth Creativity, which it still remains.

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Interiors of Anichkov Palace

A standard tour begins with the front entrance and the palace staircase. The decoration of this part of the Anichkov Palace is relatively modest – moldings, decorative vases, green marble columns supporting the ceiling vaults. From here one enters the anteroom, where titled visitors used to languish while waiting for the emperor. The room is decorated with green panels and the windows are covered with curtains to match. The only decorative element that reminds of the former luxury of this room is an elegant chandelier with a pineapple-shaped base. In the middle of the XIX century, a separate room was separated from the reception area, where there was a platform for a lifting machine – the ancestor of the modern elevator. Before the Great Patriotic War this partition was demolished, completely destroying the machine and disguising traces of its presence with a new painted ceiling and two columns.

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The winter garden, destroyed during German shelling, has long since been restored. In the spacious hall with wide windows, as hundreds of years ago, palm trees and monsterae are sprawling, among which sculptures of Bacchus, Cupid and other ancient characters are hidden.

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Almost unchanged are the interiors of the palace library, which has a non-standard octagonal shape. Oak-clad walls, a carved balcony-gallery, bookcases and exquisite, ornamented wooden niches form the main part of the decoration of this room. There are also secret doors with ladders, which were once silent witnesses to imperial secrets and pranks. The only element of the library interior, which was completely lost after the nationalization of the palace, is a stained glass window with the coat of arms of the Russian Empire.

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The most visually expensive room of Anichkov Palace is traditionally considered to be the Golden Hall, decorated in the classical Baroque style – ruthless in its pretentiousness and eye-popping luxury. The walls draped with shiny yellow corkscrews, human-sized mirrors in gilded frames and an abundance of small decorative elements in the same color scheme are balancing on the edge of kitsch.

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The Crimson Drawing Room with a huge mirror and intricate ceiling bas-reliefs, which once belonged to Maria Feodorovna, looks solemn and romantic at the same time. From it you can get to the next hall of the palace – the Blue Hall, the interior design of which is not burdened with kilograms of fanciful stucco and is made in calmer colors. You can see unusual lamps and chandeliers of bizarre shapes in the Torscher Hall, and in the Dancing Hall (Belokolonnoye) you should fantasize on the theme of Nicholas’ balls. If historians are to be believed, it was at them that Natalia Goncharova liked to come, which made her genius husband very angry. Connoisseurs of folk art will be interested to look into the former tsar’s dressing rooms: you won’t be shown imperial outfits here, but you will see wall paintings in Palekh style on the theme of fairy tales by Alexander Pushkin and M. Gorky.

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Visitors

Single tourists are not allowed to enter the premises of Anichkov Palace. You can get here only with an organized tour (from 10 to 25 people), buying a ticket at the ticket office, or leaving a preliminary request by e-mail. You can arrange the time of visiting the architectural monument by phone: 310-93-80, or by writing to the museum’s e-mail address: anichkovmuz@mail.ru. Besides, in order not to spoil the floor covering of the premises, you will have to get a change of shoes or booties: the latter can be bought right in the palace. The cost of an adult “pass” to the imperial residence is 200 rubles, children’s – 80 rubles. Sometimes the route of the trip may change due to events and planned reconstructions in the building.

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Interesting facts

  • The Anichkov Palace had its own apartments of V. A. Zhukovsky, who was the tutor to the young Alexander II.
  • At different times, the youth sections of the palace were visited by such celebrities as Sergei Yursky, Boris Spassky, Elena Obraztsova, Alisa Freindlich, Dmitry Medvedev and Stanislav Zhuk.
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  • At the end of the 19th century, the first silent movies were shown in the palace halls.
  • In front of the main building of the estate grows a birch tree, which was planted by Soviet cosmonauts G. Titov and V. Komarov. Komarov.
  • One of the urban legends claims that the Anichkov Palace was haunted by the ghost of the White Lady, who adored conversations with Russian emperors. According to a well-known tale, it was the White Lady who predicted Nicholas II’s tragic fate.
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How to get there

The address of the Anichkov Palace is 39 Nevsky Prospekt, St. Petersburg, Russia.

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The easiest way to get to Anichkov Palace is by metro. Get off at Gostiny Dvor or Mayakovskaya stations and walk along Nevsky Prospekt in the direction of Fontanka, i.e. orienting yourself according to the descending numbering of houses.

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