Beautiful European-styled city in the North - Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments 540
What and Why
Founded by Peter I (Russian: Пётр I, Pyotr I, né Пётр Романов, Pyotr Romanov) in 1703 CE, Saint Petersburg (Санкт-Петербург, Sankt-Peterburg) is definitely one of the most cosmopolitan and culturally significant cities of Russia (Россия, Rossiya). Upon completion of the city within ten years, Saint Petersburg became the Russian capital until the empire collapsed in 1918 CE.
The city was designed specifically to reflect an ambition of being a major political power plus openness to Europe. The site was chosen because Peter I was very knowledgeable
in maritime affairs. Sweden (Swedish: Sverige) had setup a military seaport near the mouth of the River Neva (Нева́) and he saw a pressing need to counter this threat by building a new seaport closer to the estuary to open trades with Europe.
The city's identity as the 'Window to Europe' is hence characterised by a very European architectural grandeur which is very different from other cities of Russia, for instance older cities like Moscow (Москва, Moskva) or Suzdal (Суздаль) (See our corresponding blogs in Moscow (Москва) | Kremlin and beyond and Suzdal (Суздаль)). With this openness, the city has also become the birthplace of countless cultural and artistic achievements, firmly establishing itself as a major cultural centre of prominence.
When Peter I became Tsar (царь), he was probably one of the most educated and open-minded of all previous tsars. He was the first Russian king to travel outside Russia and brought in, amongst many other ideas, architectural ideas from Europe, in particular Netherlands (Dutch: Nederland), Germany (German: Deutschland) and Italy (Italian: Italia). He brought back many architectural books and plans from these countries and developed a very specific idea of how the city would look like, to the extent of mandating the designs. This particular design or style is called Petrine Baroque (Петровское барокко, Petrovskoe barokko), which deviated from the then Naryshkin (Нарышкинский, Naryshkinkiy) style favoured in then Moscow.
While the city now looks very French, it was not exactly intentional. In fact Peter I had explicitly shown dislike to the French and Italian Baroque architecture, and favoured the Dutch style, especially trying to mimick the canal-laden cityscape within his envisioned city. However the recruitment of designers, artisans and builders from the Netherlands was not very successful and most of the designers came from France and Italy instead and turned the direction to what we witness today.
Toponymy
Counter to common belief, Saint Petersburg was not named after Peter I, but rather Saint Peter (Greek: Πέτρος, Petros, né Σίμων (Greek), Simōn). In fact the city foundation was laid at a small church which later became the Peter and Paul Fortress (Петропавловская Крепость, Petropavlovskaya Krepost').
See
We walked roughly from West to the East along a walking path.
Mariinsky Theatre (Мариинский Tеатр)
Named after tsarina Maria Romanova (Мария Романова, née Wilhelmine von Hessen-Darmstadt (German)), wife of Emperor Alexander II Romanov (Алекса́ндр II Романов, Aleksándr II Romanov), the world-acclaim historic Mariinsky Theatre (Мариинский Tеатр, Mariinsky Teatr) is renowned for its ballet company, Mariinsky Ballet (Балет Мариинского театра, Balet Mariinskogo teatra), although it is equally Russia leading opera houses (See our blogged Moscow (Москва) | Kremlin and beyond). Many of the Russian operas were premiered here.
We shall discuss about ballet performances in Saint Petersburg a bit later.
Saint Isaac Cathedral (Исаа́киевский Собо́р)
Built in the early 19th century CE, Saint Isaac Cathedral (Исаа́киевский Собо́р, Isaákiyevskiy Sobór) is actually one of the world's largest cathedrals. The construction of this colossal building was a major engineering feat as the cathedral was built on marshy ground and hence a large number of piles were sunk into the ground to support the building.
The cathedral was named after Saint Isaac (Greek: Ἰσαάκιος, Isaakios), a patron saint of Peter I, whose birthday coincided with feast day of that saint. The current cathedral is now a museum when it was converted by Soviet Union (Советский Союз, Sovetskiy Soyuz) due to its stance on atheism. Interestingly the government of Saint Petersburg had offered to return the cathedral back to the Russian Orthodox Church (Русская Православная Церковь, Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov'), but this was strongly opposed by its citizens.
In front of the Saint Isaac Cathedral is the Saint Isaac Square (Исаа́киевская Пло́щадь, Isaakiyevskaya Ploshchad) where the statue of Nicholas I (Николай I, Nikolai I, né Николай I Романов, Nikolai I Romanov) graces. One of the most luxurious hotels in Russia, Hotel Astoria (Асто́рия) stands on the east side of Saint Isaac Cathedral. The square is one of the most popular meeting and hangout areas of Saint Petersburg.
Bronze Horseman
Winter Palace
Hermitage
Cathedral of Spilled Blood
Our Lady of Kazan Cathedral
Russian Museum
House of Faberge
Summer Palace
Buy and Do
Ballet (Балет)
A trip to Saint Petersburg or Russia for that matter cannot be called complete without watching a ballet show. Admired throughout the world, Russian ballet traces its origin back in 1738 CE when a French dancing master Jean-Baptiste Landé established a dancing school in Saint Petersburg to train the children of the palace staffs. This eventually became the Mariinsky Ballet Company and produced countless of world-class ballet dancers.
Following the collapse of the Russian Empire (Россійская Имперія, Rossiyskaya Imperiya) in 1918 CE, a reaction against classicism led to a large number of defections, including the famous Rudolf Nureev (Рудольф Нуреев), to either abroad of some private companies.
Ballet has seen a revivial recently and the Mariinsky theatre seems to be picking up past glories.
Eat and Drink
Getting There and Around
UNESCO Inscription
The 'Venice of the North', with its numerous canals and more than 400 bridges, is the result of a vast urban project begun in 1703 under Peter the Great. Later known as Leningrad (in the former USSR), the city is closely associated with the October Revolution. Its architectural heritage reconciles the very different Baroque and pure neoclassical styles, as can be seen in the Admiralty, the Winter Palace, the Marble Palace and the Hermitage.
References
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