St. Petersburg is the northern capital of vast Russia, accustomed to surprise us with its special individuality, originality of tastes and ambition. Hundreds of magnificent sights annually attract the views of many tourists and indigenous people. One of them is the Winter Palace, which is an invaluable monument of history and architecture of the past.
Description
Like many buildings in St. Petersburg, this building is distinguished by pomp, successfully combined with the special style and handwriting of the author, which we will talk about later. The St. Petersburg Winter Palace is a cultural heritage of Russia, one of the main attractions of the country, which contains interesting historical events and facts. There are many legends and myths around the Palace, some of them can be fully justified by historical facts.
Due to the splendor of the building, being next to it or inside it, you can fully experience the imperial spirit and features of social life several centuries ago. You can enjoy andmagnificent architectural solutions, which to this day are considered the standard of beauty and sophistication. The design of the Winter Palace has changed more than once over these centuries, so we can observe the building not in its original form, which, however, does not make it less significant and worthy of attention, since all the main features conceived by the author of the project, Francesco Rastrelli, were carefully preserved and transferred by architects of different times. This majestic building is located on the Palace Square of the northern city and perfectly reunites with the surrounding landscape.
History of the creation and development of the palace
The building is made in a style called "Elizabethian Baroque". Since the times of the USSR, its territory has been equipped for the main part of the State Hermitage. In earlier times, the Winter Palace has always been the main residence of the emperors of Russia. To fully experience the greatness of this place, you need to turn to the history of its creation.
Under the government of Peter I, in 1712, according to the law, it was impossible to give land at the disposal of ordinary people. Such territories were reserved for sailors belonging to the upper class of society. The site where the Winter Palace is located today was taken under the control of Peter I himself.
From the very beginning, the emperor built a small and cozy house here, near which a small ditch was dug closer to winter and which was given the name Winter. Actually, the further name of the palace came from this.
For many years, the Russian emperor convened various architects,so that they would be engaged in the reconstruction of his house, and now, after years, from an ordinary wooden house, the structure turned into a large stone palace.
Who built the Winter Palace? In 1735, Francesco Rastrelli was appointed the chief architect working on the building, who came up with the idea of buying out neighboring land plots and expanding the structure of the palace, which he told Anna Ioannovna, the ruler of Russia at that time.
The task assigned to the architect
It was this architect who created the image of the Winter Palace that we are all used to seeing. However, it is worth remembering that some features of the building have changed over time, but still the main ideas and works of Francesco Rastrelli have remained unchanged to this day.
The Winter Palace acquired its modern look with the advent of Elizabeth Petrovna to the imperial throne. As the ruler considered, the building does not look like a Palace worthy of Russian emperors staying in it. Therefore, for Rastrelli, the task appeared - to modernize the structure and design of the building, because of which he acquired a new look.
During the construction of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, the hands of 4 thousand workers were used, many of the masters of whom Rastrelli personally invited to cooperate. Each detail, which differs from other elements of the building, was personally thought out by the great architect and successfully implemented.
About the architecture of the building
ArchitecturalThe component of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg is truly multifaceted. The great height of the structure is emphasized by weighty double columns. The chosen baroque style in itself brings notes of splendor and aristocracy. According to the plan, the Palace occupies a territory in the form of a square, which includes 4 outbuildings. The building itself is three-story, the doors of which open onto the courtyard.
The main facade of the palace is cut through by an arch, the other sides of the building are made in an exquisite style, which is expressed in the unique sense of Rastrelli's taste and his unusual decisions, traced everywhere. These include the extraordinary layout of the facades, differences in the design of the facades, noticeable risalite ledges, uneven construction of the columns, and the author’s special emphasis on the stepped corners of the building attracts attention.
The Winter Palace, the photo of which is presented to your attention in the article, has 1084 rooms, where in total there are 1945 window structures. According to the plan, there are 117 stairs in it. Also, unusual and memorable facts include the fact that at that time it was a building with a very large, by European standards, amount of metal in the structures.
The color of the building is not uniform and is made mainly in sandy shades, which are Rastrelli's personal decision. After several reconstructions, the color scheme of the palace changed, but today the authorities of St. Petersburg came to the conclusion that the best solution is to recreate the appearance of the palace exactly in the version that was originally conceived by the great architect.
A littlewords about the architect
Francesco Rastrelli was born in the capital of France in 1700. His father was a talented Italian sculptor who had no difficulty in recognizing his son as a future skilled architect. After graduating in 1716, he and his father come to live in Russia.
Until 1722, Francesco worked only as an assistant to his father, but by 1722 he was ripe for an independent career, which at first did not develop very well in a country that was very unfriendly for him. Rastrelli Jr. spent 8 years traveling around Europe, where he did not work most of the time, but received new knowledge in Germany, Italy, France and other countries. By 1730, he had formed his own vision of the Baroque style, which was reflected in his most ambitious project - the Winter Palace.
The architect has repeatedly worked on the creation and reconstruction of buildings in Russia. His main work fell on the period from 1732 to 1755
Exclusive facts about the Winter Palace
The building is the richest building in St. Petersburg, and the value of its exhibits still cannot be accurately calculated. The Winter Palace has many secrets and interesting stories, of which the following can be highlighted:
- During the war against the German invaders, the color of the palace was red. The building acquired its current white and green color only after the war in 1946.
- At the end of construction work, so much construction waste had accumulated in the square in front of the Palace that it could take whole weeks to clean it up. Howeverthe king came up with an interesting idea: he allowed absolutely anyone to take any thing from these building materials left after work. The area in front of the building was cleared in no time.
Fire
In 1837, all the efforts of Francesco Rastrelli and other architects almost came to naught. A terrible event happened: a considerable fire broke out in the palace due to a malfunction of the chimney, and 2 companies of specialists were called to extinguish it. For 30 hours, firefighters tried to reduce the flames by blocking windows and other openings with bricks, but this did not bring any result. The fire died down only a day after the start of the fire, incinerating almost all the beauty of the structure. From the former palace, only walls and columns remained, which were singed under high temperatures.
Restoration work
Restoration work was started immediately and lasted 3 years. Unfortunately, the masters of that time did not have any drawings from the first buildings, so they had to turn on improvisation and come up with a new style literally on the go. As a result, the “seventh version” of the palace appeared with a predominance of light green and white shades and gilding inside.
Electrification came to the palace along with the new look. The largest power plant in all of Europe (considered as such for 15 years) was installed on the 2nd floor and provided electricity to the entire building.
Not only the fire knocked on the doors of the Winterpalace with bad news. So, this building at one time survived the assault, and the attempt on Alexander II, and numerous bombings of the Great Patriotic War.
For modern tourists
Today you can walk through the halls of the Winter Palace by ordering one of the many excursions, individual or in a group. The doors of the museum are open to visitors from 10:00 to 18:00 and are closed only on Monday - the official holiday.
You can buy tickets for a tour of the Winter Palace directly at the museum's box office, or by ordering them from a tour operator. They are not always available due to the high popularity of the building, especially during the tourist season. Therefore, it is better to buy tickets in advance.
