What is the name of the city founded by Peter 1. The city will be founded here

The Russian Tsar, the first Emperor of the Russian Empire Peter I was born on June 9 (May 30, old style) 1672. The only son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich (1629-1676) from his second marriage to Natalya Naryshkina (1651-1694).

As a child, Peter was educated at home, and from a young age he knew German, then studied Dutch, English and French.

With the help of palace craftsmen, he mastered many crafts (carpentry, lathe, weapons, blacksmithing, etc.). The future emperor was physically strong, agile, inquisitive and capable, and had a good memory.

In April 1682, Peter was enthroned after the death of the childless Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich, bypassing his elder half-brother Ivan. However, the sister of Peter and Ivan, Princess Sophia, and the relatives of Alexei Mikhailovich’s first wife, the Miloslavskys, used the Streltsy uprising in Moscow for a palace coup. In May 1682, adherents and relatives of the Naryshkins were killed or exiled, Ivan was declared the “senior” tsar, and Peter was declared the “junior” tsar under the ruler Sophia.

Under Sophia, Peter lived in the village of Preobrazhenskoye near Moscow. Here Peter I showed interest in military activities, he created “amusing” regiments, which later became the basis of the Russian army, and was interested in firearms and shipbuilding.

In the 2nd half of the 1680s, clashes began between Peter I and Sophia, who was striving for autocracy. In August 1689, Peter I received news that Sophia was preparing a palace coup. He hastily left Preobrazhensky for the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, where troops loyal to him and his supporters arrived. Armed detachments of nobles, collected by the messengers of Peter I, surrounded Moscow, Sophia was removed from power and imprisoned Novodevichy Convent, her associates were exiled or executed.

After the death of Ivan Alekseevich in 1696, Peter I became the sole tsar.

Possessing a strong will, determination and great capacity for work, Peter I expanded his knowledge and skills in various fields throughout his life, paying special attention to military and naval affairs. In 1689-1693, under the guidance of the Dutch master Timmerman and the Russian master Kartsev, Peter I learned to build ships on Lake Pereslavl. In 1697-1698, during his first trip abroad, he completed a full course in artillery sciences in Konigsberg, worked as a carpenter for six months in the shipyards of Amsterdam (Holland), studying naval architecture and drawing plans, and completed a theoretical course in shipbuilding in England.

During his reign, Peter I carried out major reforms aimed at overcoming Russia's lag behind the advanced countries of the West.

The transformations affected all spheres of public life. Peter I expanded the ownership rights of landowners over the property and personality of serfs, replaced the household taxation of peasants with a capitation tax, issued a decree on possession peasants who were allowed to be acquired by the owners of manufactories, practiced the mass registration of state and tribute peasants to state-owned and private factories, the mobilization of peasants and townspeople into the army and for the construction of cities, fortresses, canals, etc. The Decree on Single Inheritance (1714) equalized estates and fiefdoms, giving their owners the right to transfer real estate to one of their sons, and thereby secured noble ownership of the land. The Table of Ranks (1722) established the order of rank in the military and civil service not according to nobility, but according to personal abilities and merits.

Peter I contributed to the rise of the country's productive forces, encouraged the development of domestic manufactories, communications, domestic and foreign trade.

The place of the Boyar Duma was taken by the Senate (1711), instead of orders, collegiums were established (1718), the control apparatus was first represented by “fiscals” (1711), and then by prosecutors headed by the Prosecutor General. In place of the patriarchate, a Spiritual College, or Synod, was established, which was under the control of the government.

Administrative reform was of great importance. Peter I initially formed a two-stage system of administrative-territorial division and local government (in 1708, provinces were formed headed by governors or governors-general), and from 1719 - a three-stage system: the provinces were divided into provinces (headed by provincial governors), which included counties, headed by commandants (there were also zemstvo commissars in the cities).

In 1703, Peter I founded the city of St. Petersburg, which became the capital of the state in 1712. In 1721, Russia was proclaimed an empire.

As a military leader, Peter I stands among the most educated and talented builders of the armed forces, generals and naval commanders in Russian and world history of the 18th century. His whole life's work was to strengthen Russia's military power and increase its role in the international arena. He had to continue the war with Turkey, which began in 1686, and wage a long-term struggle for Russia's access to the sea in the north and south. As a result of the Azov campaigns (1695-1696), Azov was occupied by Russian troops, and Russia fortified itself on the banks Sea of ​​Azov. In the long Northern War (1700-1721), Russia, under the leadership of Peter I, achieved complete victory and gained access to Baltic Sea, which gave her the opportunity to establish direct connections with Western countries. After the Persian campaign (1722-1723) it went to Russia West Coast Caspian Sea with the cities of Derbent and Baku.

During the Northern War, Peter I created a regular army and navy. The basis of the structure of the armed forces was conscription (1705) and compulsory military service of nobles who received the rank of officer after graduating from military school or serving as privates and sergeants of the guard. The organization, weapons and equipment, rules of training and tactics, the rights and responsibilities of all ranks of the army and navy were determined by the Military Regulations (1716), the Naval Regulations (1720) and the Maritime Regulations (1722), in the development of which Peter I participated.

Paying much attention to the technical re-equipment of the army and navy, Peter I established the development and production of new types of ships, new types of artillery guns and ammunition, and created a coherent system for basing the fleet on the Azov, Baltic and Caspian seas. Was built a large number of rowing and sailing ships.

Taking care of the morale of the troops, Peter I awarded distinguished generals with the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called, established by him in 1698, and soldiers and officers with medals and promotions (soldiers also with money). At the same time, Peter I introduced severe discipline in the army with corporal punishment and death penalty for serious military crimes.

The principles of organizing the regular army and navy introduced by Peter I and the rules of military art developed by him predetermined the development of military affairs in Russia for many decades and formed the basis of the “Petrine” military school, from which later came outstanding commanders and naval commanders Pyotr Rumyantsev, Alexander Suvorov, Fyodor Ushakov, Mikhail Kutuzov, Pavel Nakhimov and others.

Peter I skillfully took advantage of the favorable circumstances of the international situation and showed the ability to compromise in relations with other states. He repeatedly personally negotiated and concluded agreements, while exploiting the contradictions between European countries. Under him, for the first time in the history of Russia, permanent diplomatic missions and consulates were established abroad, and outdated forms of diplomatic relations and etiquette were abolished.

Peter I also carried out major reforms in the field of culture and education. A secular school appeared, and the clergy's monopoly on education was eliminated. Peter I founded the Pushkar School (1699), the School of Mathematical and Navigational Sciences (1701), and the Medical and Surgical School; The first Russian public theater was opened. In St. Petersburg, the Naval Academy (1715), engineering and artillery schools (1719), and translator schools at collegiums were established.

Peter I ordered the publication of the first Russian printed newspaper, Vedomosti (1702). Replaced the Cyrillic number system with Arabic numerals (1705-1710) and the Cyrillic font with a civil font (1708-1710). Contributed to the development of Russian book printing.

Peter I laid the foundation for the state library business, opening the country's first scientific library in his palace in the Summer Garden in St. Petersburg. Founded the first Russian public natural science museum - the Kunstkamera. In 1700, a new calendar was introduced with the beginning of the year on January 1 (instead of September 1) and chronology from the “Nativity of Christ”, and not from the “Creation of the World”.

In the field of healthcare, Peter I initiated an increase in the number of pharmacies through their opening by private individuals. Founded military hospitals in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kronstadt. For the cultivation of medicinal herbs, he established apothecary gardens in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Astrakhan, etc. He established the position of the chief Russian physician - archiatr (1716), who later headed the Medical Chancellery.

He paid attention to the search and development of sources of medicinal waters in Russia, and founded the first resort in the country - Marcial Waters (1719).

Peter I was married twice. From his first marriage to Evdokia Lopukhina, Peter had two children - Alexey and Alexander. The latter died in infancy. In 1712, Peter married Ekaterina Alekseevna (Marta Skavronskaya; later Empress Catherine I). With Catherine, Peter I had 11 children, seven died in infancy and two more - Peter and Natalya - in childhood; Only Anna Petrovna and Elizaveta Petrovna survived.

Peter I died on February 8 (January 28, old style) 1725, and was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

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The city was founded at the mouth of the river. Neva, on Hare Island, May 16, 1703 by Peter I - after a series of victories in the Northern War with Sweden (1700-1721) for access to the Baltic Sea. “From here we will threaten the Swede. Here the city will be founded to spite the arrogant neighbor. Nature here destined us to open a window to Europe” (Pushkin).

“THE FROM HERE WE WILL THREATEN THE SWEDES”

“After the capture of Kanets, a military council was sent to determine whether it would be more convenient to look for a trench or another place (since it was small, far from the sea and the place was not very strong from nature, in which it was supposed to look for a new place), and after a few days it was found comfortable spot- an island called Lust-Elant, where on the 16th day of the Maya a fortress was founded and named St. Petersburg, where part of the army was left...”

IMPERIAL CAPITAL

On May 1, 1703, during the fighting of the Northern War, Russian troops took the Swedish fortress of Nyenschanz (at the confluence of the Okhta River with the Neva). The military council headed by it decided that this fortress was not suitable for further strengthening: Nyenschanz “is not much strong by nature,” as the tsar himself said. In addition, Nyenschanz was quite far from the sea, and the Swedes still had the opportunity to fortify themselves on one of the islands of the Neva delta. The Russians would then still be cut off from the sea.

Having independently examined the islands of the delta, Peter found exactly what he needed: Hare Island, located at the fork of the Neva into two branches, not far from the sea. The island was washed on all sides by water, which would have become a natural barrier in the event of an assault. From the island it was possible to keep enemy ships at gunpoint, no matter where they entered the Neva.

On May 16 (27), 1703, on the day of the Holy Trinity, a fortress was founded on the island. This day is considered the founding day of St. Petersburg. But the fortress received its name only on June 29, when, on Peter’s Day, the Church of Saints Peter and Paul was founded here. Peter named the new fortress “St. Petersburg,” and the city emerging around Hare Island received the same name. The Apostle Peter, according to Christian tradition, was the keeper of the keys to heaven, and this also seemed symbolic to the Russian Tsar: the city bearing the name of his heavenly patron was supposed to become the key to the Baltic Sea. Only a few years later the fortress began to be called Peter and Paul fortress - after the name of its main cathedral.

The plan for the future fortress was drawn by Peter himself. The fortifications had to be built very quickly in order to be completed in a short summer. And indeed, by the autumn of 1703 the fortress was “roughly finished.” In the first years, its walls were poured out of earth to speed it up, but the construction of stone fortifications began three years later - in 1706.

Immediately after the foundation of the fortress on the banks of the Neva, a wooden house for Peter was cut down in three days. The king wanted his new home to resemble the Dutch buildings he loved, so the walls of the wooden house were painted with oil paint to resemble brick. Peter lived in this house for a short time and only in the summer, but in memory of the founder of St. Petersburg, Peter’s house has been preserved to this day.

The new city began to grow next to the fortress on the neighboring Berezov Island; this island even began to be called Gorodsky (now it is the Petrograd side). Already in November 1703, the first church of the city was opened here - in memory of the fact that the fortress was founded on the day of the Holy Trinity, it was also called Trinity. Rebuilt a few years later in stone, the Trinity Cathedral was for some time the main temple of the capital. It was here in 1721 that Peter I took the title of emperor.

NEW CAPITAL

"And before the younger capital
Old Moscow has faded,
Like before a new queen
Porphyry-bearing widow."

A.S. Pushkin. Bronze Horseman

“THE CITY IS HERE TO BE”

St. Petersburg was founded as a result of a thoughtful plan of Peter I and many people around him. At the end of April 1703, the Tsar, looking for a place for a future fortress, carefully examined the coast of the Neva. He explored the territory not alone, but accompanied by various specialists. The establishment of fortresses at that time required reconnaissance on the ground, analysis of drawings, depth measurements, and discussion of many technical issues with fortifiers, artillerymen and sailors. Feofan Prokopovich wrote in his “History of Emperor Peter the Great” that the tsar, “sat on water vessels, from the Kantsov fortress along the Neva River, take care of its islands even to the sea mouth, and began diligently to reason, not without the advice of others skilled in the matter (people )". We know that Peter’s retinue at that time included two fortification specialists: the French general engineer Joseph Gaspard Lambert de Guerin and the German engineer V. A. Kirschenshein. The first made drawings of the Noteburg-Shlisselburg fortress being restored after the assault of 1702, while the second made the first two plans for the fortress on the Neva island. Until his death in 1705, Kirshenshein supervised the construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress. The role of Lambert, a successor to the school of the great French engineer Vauban, is also great. It is no coincidence that in the fall of 1703 Lambert received the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called as a reward. Peter I was never generous in awarding the highest and only order of Russia of that era. Perhaps this is how he especially noted the services of the general engineer in founding the fortress on the island. In addition, after the Azov campaigns of 1695-1696, the tsar himself acquired extensive experience in fortification. After all, then he had to choose a place for a long time to found Taganrog, as well as the St. Peter fortress at the mouth of the Don. It is no coincidence that one of the working drawings of the fortress on Hare Island was made, as historians suggest, by the hand of the king.

On the night of May 6-7, another memorable event occurred. Thirty boats with guardsmen under the command of Peter I and Menshikov attacked the Swedish ships standing at the mouth of the Neva - a shnyava and a boat - and boarded them. Not only Menshikov, but also the Russian autocrat himself took part in the fast-paced hand-to-hand combat. For this feat, the sovereign was awarded the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.

PETERSBURG - “A CITY ON BONES”?

The idea of ​​St. Petersburg, built on the bones of its first builders, is still stable. Is this myth true? The answer to this question involves solving a number of problems. What categories of the population were involved in the construction of the city in the first ten years? What was the real number of the first builders, and how many of them died at this construction site? What were the main causes of illness and what did the workers get sick with? Of particular interest is the position of the authorities regarding morbidity and mortality in the Neva Delta: did they look at it indifferently or take some measures?..

O.G. Ageeva, considering Peter's Petersburg through the prism of Russian social consciousness of the early 18th century, dwells in detail on the issue that interests us. For the first time in historiography, the author goes against the generally accepted opinion and claims that there was no high mortality rate in St. Petersburg. The researcher derives his calculations of overall mortality in St. Petersburg from a document for 1716, according to which, out of 3,262 working people, 27 people died during the construction of the future Nevsky Prospect, which is 0.74 percent. Based on this percentage, O.G. Ageeva calculates that the St. Petersburg construction site claimed about 150 people annually, which is 1703-1715. amounted to approximately two thousand people. Thus, the author comes to the conclusion that the figures reported by foreigners are 50-100 times inflated, and this phenomenon is nothing more than rumors, a myth, reflecting the population’s reaction “to the discomfort of St. Petersburg life”

BETWEEN EAST AND WEST

The founding of a new capital on the western border of the state was not only the embodiment of the plans and ideals of the founder, but also determined the entire future fate of the city in the historical and political reality of Russia, and in its cultural and state mythology. Starting from this era, such opposing characteristics as ancient/new, historical/mythological, received features of the opposition concentric/eccentric, primordial/foreign. Behind this opposition was the antithesis of two indigenous state-cultural models.

“East” and “West” in the cultural geography of Russia invariably appear as rich symbols based on geographical reality, but in fact imperatively ruling over it. It is characteristic that in Russian literature geography becomes one of the dominant artistic means of expression. So, for example, in Dostoevsky’s work, the development of the author’s basic ideas naturally leads to an expansion of geographical space. In the work of the young Dostoevsky, St. Petersburg, as it were, embraces the entire artistic space and, accordingly, receives the right to represent Russia. In the final work - "The Brothers Karamazov" - Petersburg rather embodies the illness of Russia, its "fears and horrors" (Gogol's expression), - accordingly, "recovery" is thought of as Russia overcoming the Petersburg origin within itself. Dostoevsky’s work begins as a natural development of the St. Petersburg myth and is no less connected with the “St. Petersburg space” than Pushkin’s “The Bronze Horseman.”

RETURN

ABOUT RETURNING THE CITY OF LENINGRAD ITS HISTORICAL

NAMES ST. PETERSBURG

The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR decides:

Return the city of Leningrad to its historical name - city

Saint Petersburg.

First Deputy Chairman

Supreme Council of the RSFSR

R.I.KHASBULATOV

Literature:

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Peter I

The personality of Peter the Great stands apart in the history of Russia, since neither among his contemporaries, nor among his successors and descendants was there a person who could make such profound changes in the state, so infiltrate the historical memory of the Russian people, becoming at the same time semi-legendary, but the most vivid her page. As a result of Peter's activities, Russia became an empire and took its place among the leading European powers.

3 Comments

Zemtsov Anton Vyacheslavovich/ CEO zemant.com | Member of the Russian Military Society

This was not a struggle for access to the Baltic Sea, but the conquest from the Swedes and the liberation of the ancestral lands of northwestern Rus', lost as a result of the Time of Troubles and due to the atrocities and extravagance of Ivan the Terrible.
This land has always been ours, even when Rurik was invited to Veliky Novgorod in 862. This was and is Novgorod land.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich

On March 14, 1730, during the reign of Empress Anna Ioannovna, the coat of arms of St. Petersburg was approved by decree of the Governing Senate. It is believed that its prototype was the coat of arms of the Vatican, the City of St. Peter. The prototype of the coat of arms appeared back in 1712. The historical coat of arms of St. Petersburg was subsequently confirmed in 1780, supplemented in 1857 and, in our time, re-adopted in 1991, in connection with the return of the city to its historical name.

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

On May 27, St. Petersburg will celebrate its 311th anniversary. Born of the genius of Peter, St. Petersburg - Petrograd - Leningrad - St. Petersburg, the cultural capital of Russia, has always played an important role in the history of our Motherland. A unique life, a difficult fate, an unbending will form the special character, the soul of our city. Petersburg is a city of warriors, a city of workers, a city of scientists. The past, present and future are inextricably combined here. Living in St. Petersburg and being worthy of its glorious deeds and traditions is a great honor for every person and citizen. Happy holiday, happy birthday, beloved city!

Valuev Anton Vadimovich/ Candidate of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences

From December 14 to 16, 2015, the regular IV International Cultural Forum, created on the initiative of the Government, took place in St. Petersburg Russian Federation, Ministry of Culture and Government of St. Petersburg. The forum was solemnly opened by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. In his speech, the President outlined the main priorities of our country in the field of culture, science and education, creativity in general - in the context of modern challenges to these foundations of every civilized society from international organized crime and terrorism. The main idea of ​​the message addressed to Russia and the world was that world culture and its monuments should be under special international protection, and any encroachment on historical and cultural monuments should be considered a particularly serious crime. Many figures of Russian and world culture took part in the Forum, among them the head of UNESCO Irina Bokova. As a result of the forum, numerous important decisions and projects were reached on the development of cultural policy in Russia, the Anatoly Vasilyevich Lunacharsky Prize was awarded, and the initiative to hold the International Delphic Games in St. Petersburg in 2016 was approved. In addition, on December 16, during the final plenary meeting of the Forum in St. Petersburg, in the Atrium of the General Staff of the State Hermitage, the first version of the Declaration on the Protection of Culture in Zones of Armed Conflict was presented. Russian Minister of Culture Vladimir Rostislavovich Medinsky was named the main newsmaker of Russian culture.

One of the most beautiful and majestic Russian cities, St. Petersburg, began 310 years ago. It was on this day, May 27 (according to the old calendar - May 16), 1703, that Peter the Great decided to begin construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress.

The question of the need to create a defensive fortification, the main task of which was to protect Russian lands from the encroachments of the Swedes, was long overdue. The constant rivalry between the two powers for access to the Baltic, accompanied by military actions of 1700-1721 (Northern War), required urgent measures, because old fortress Nyenschanz (Slottburg) could no longer provide reliable protection. For the construction of a new defensive structure, an island with a length of seven hundred and fifty meters and a width of about four hundred was chosen, which the Finns called Hare (Yenisaari), and the Swedes called Merry (Lust-Eiland). From this territory, all approaches from the Gulf of Finland to the Neva were best viewed.
Exactly Peter-Pavel's Fortress became the starting point for the construction of the first Russian port on the Baltic coast. On the Day of the Holy Trinity in 1703, the construction of the initial wood-earth defensive structure began, the drawings for the construction of which were drawn up personally by Peter I. He entrusted the management of the work to his first assistant A. Menshikov. The fortress was created in accordance with the rules of the Western European bastion system accepted at that time: the outlines of the structure repeated the shape of the island on which the construction was carried out, and well-fortified protruding bastions were located along the edges of the elongated hexagon. The engineering supervision of the construction of the fortress in 1703-1705 and subsequent modifications was carried out by the military engineer Kirstein from Saxony.

All six bastions were named by Peter in honor of his associates, who not only oversaw the construction, but also participated in its financial support: Menshikov, Trubetskoy, Naryshkin, Golovkin and Zotov. Also, one of the bastions was named Sovereign, in honor of Peter the Great himself. The fortress was originally called St. Petersburg, but even then some residents called it Peter and Paul, after the name of the Cathedral of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, which was being built on the territory of the new citadel. This name became official only in 1917. Status cathedral, rebuilt later and also renamed Petropavlovsky, received only in 1731. It is also known to contemporaries as the tomb of all the emperors of the Romanov dynasty. It is within its walls that the remains of Russian sovereigns are kept, starting from Peter the Great and ending with Nicholas II. When at the beginning of the 20th century there were not enough places for burial of members of the Romanov dynasty, it was decided to build the Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky next to the temple, which became the grand ducal tomb.

The bastions of the fortress were connected to each other by high curtains or walls called Petrovskaya, Vasilievskaya, Nevskaya, Kronverkskaya, Ekaterininskaya and Nikolskaya. In addition, for forays into the enemy’s camp, if he manages to position himself near the walls of the fortress, saps and sorties were equipped and carefully camouflaged ( underground passages) with passages (patterns) in the walls. In each of the walls, except for Catherine, there were gates of the same name, but the main one was always considered the Petrovsky Gate, intended for entry into the city. Inside the Catherine Curtain, barracks were made, as well as special casemates in which they were stored. The history of the Nikolskaya curtain, which received its name due to the fact that it was facing the Church of St. Nicholas, is interesting. In the 18th century, an expedition to separate gold from silver was stationed here, and employees of the commandant’s department also lived here. Today the left part of the Nikolskaya curtain belongs to the Mint.

In 1704-1705, for additional strengthening on the sea side, triangular ravelins were built from the earth. Peter named one of them in honor of his father Alekseevsky, and the second in honor of his brother Ioannovsky. Then, in 1705-1709, the fortress was strengthened on the land side by building a crownwork - an earthen rampart shaped like a crown. Also in 1705, a pentagonal earthen cavalier was built to provide the ability to conduct overhead fire at the enemy. Looking ahead, it is worth noting that in 1850 all the earthen ramparts were demolished, and in place of the crownwork, a building was built in which all Russian military relics were stored and stored: banners, awards and various types of weapons.

According to historical data, mathematical calculations during construction according to the sovereign’s drawings were carried out by the Frenchman Lambert, a specialist in the construction of forts he hired. With the help of soldiers, captured Swedes, as well as peasants sent for construction by each province, the construction of the earthen fortification was completed by October 1703, but the flood that occurred soon showed the fragility of the structure, part of which was simply washed away by water. Therefore, there was an urgent need to clothe the fortress in stone. This work began in 1706 by the architect Trezzini and engineer-general Lambert de Guerin, who replaced the chief engineer of the project, Kirshtein, who had left Russia. From 1727 until the end of the main alterations in 1740, all reconstruction work in the fortress was led by the military engineer Christopher Minich. Officially, the construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress was completed in 1740.

In 1707, the main Peter's Gate underwent a thorough reconstruction; the wooden gate was replaced by a stone arch with an upper tier made of wood, on which a statue of the Apostle Peter was installed. Then, in 1717, all wooden elements were finally replaced with stone ones, and a plot bas-relief and a lead double-headed eagle appeared on the façade. From 1731 to 1740, significant changes took place in the appearance of the Peter and Paul Fortress. First, the ravelins were built from stone, then dams (botardo) were built, enclosing ditches that isolated the ravelins from the main part of the island. The cavalier, named after Empress Anna, was also rebuilt in stone. The following significant transformations were carried out already during the reign of Catherine II. From 1779 to 1786, the façade of the fortress from the south was lined with granite slabs; the Neva Gate, which was decorated with a portico, was reconstructed.

Active improvement and changes in the layout of the fortress were observed during the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna. First, in 1748, the Main Guardhouse building was built, which was reorganized only in 1906, and then in 1749, the Engineering House appeared on the territory of the fortress. In the years 1743-1746, it was erected from stone main building The commandant's house, intended for the residence of the commandant of the Peter and Paul Fortress and family members, as well as for his office. It was in the Commandant's House, built between the cathedral and the Naryshkin bastion, that the verdict on the Decembrists was announced in 1826.

Along with the fortress, the first church in St. Petersburg also underwent significant changes, which, during the period from 1712 to 1733, by order of Peter, was built of stone to replace the former wooden Peter and Paul Cathedral. However, the spire of the multi-tiered bell tower of the temple, which is one of the tallest architectural structures in St. Petersburg, was still made of wood. A weather vane installed at the very end, made in the form of a soaring angel, as well as a clock with chimes located at the top, gave the building a distinctly secular appearance, which was inherent in all the art of the Peter the Great period.

The appearance of the fortress and the cathedral, as its central and main part, changed under the influence of natural disasters. So on the last day of April 1756, lightning struck the spire, which caught fire and fell down. As a result of this, the roof, dome and spire of the temple were completely destroyed. The bell tower was restored only ten years later, and it was possible to recreate the wooden spire “exactly as it was before” only by 1780. In 1830, local roofer P. Telushkin, without scaffolding, using only a rope, managed to climb to the very top of the spire and fixed the damaged weather vane on it. Almost a century later, in 1857-1858, according to the design of architect Konstantin Ton, the spire was finally replaced by a metal one, made according to the system of engineer D.I. Zhuravsky, who further increased the height of the bell tower to one hundred twenty-two and a half meters. More than eight kilograms of red gold were spent on gilding the entire structure, along with the figurine of an Angel.

A new era in the formation of the architectural ensemble of the territory of the Peter and Paul Fortress began in 1761 with the start of construction of the Botny House, made in the style of early classicism. This building was intended to store one of the first ships of the Russian fleet, the old boat of Peter the Great, on which he studied maritime affairs in his youth. In 1799, construction began on the Mint, a whole series of buildings that introduced new dominant features into the layout of the fortress. In 1801, according to the design of Alexander Briskorn, the Artillery Workshop was erected. Initially, a fortress artillery team was stationed there. After the abolition of a number of artillery batteries, the fire department was first located in the armory (in 1865), and then - an arena for military training in inclement and cold times (since 1887). At the same time, a warehouse of items belonging to the emergency reserve of the Personnel Battalion of the Life Guards of the Reserve Infantry Regiment was set up here. During the reign of Emperor Nicholas I, a stone three-story Arsenal building was built on the site of Kronverk, which became a more powerful and modern defensive structure compared to the previous bastions. These measures were taken before the Crimean War, during which ships of the states hostile to Russia, England and France, were in the Gulf of Finland.

Postern of the Peter and Paul Fortress

Until the beginning of the 20th century, many buildings for various purposes were erected on the territory of the citadel: from “provision stores” to premises where the archives of the War Ministry were located (from 1892 to the 1900s). And the final design of the appearance of the Peter and Paul Fortress, familiar to our contemporaries, occurred at the beginning of the last century, when the building of the Main Guardhouse was rebuilt in 1906-1907. Under Nicholas II, all northern curtains and bastions were plastered and painted “to resemble granite.” Initially, the island was connected to the main part of the city by three bridges, but Nikolsky, built in 1820 and in 1853 - Kronverksky bridges were demolished at the beginning of the 20th century. All that remains is the Ioannovsky Bridge, which has been in its usual place for St. Petersburg residents since 1736.

Thus, built according to the plan as a defensive structure, the Peter and Paul Fortress quickly turned into one of the main places of the great Russian city, but not a single shot was fired from its walls. But it was here that all the most interesting events took place, from church and city holidays to magnificent fireworks in honor of the victories of the Russian army. Under Peter I, a ceremonial opening of the Neva was held annually on Hare Island. All the townspeople were looking forward to this event, because navigation during the icebreaker period was prohibited, and permanent bridges across the waters of the Neva did not exist until almost the middle of the 19th century. The celebration of the Epiphany of the Lord was no less magnificent, when on January 6, with the ringing of bells, townspeople gathered in front of the fortress to witness the illumination of the Neva waters. A temporary chapel was installed right on the ice, and a cross-shaped Jordan made its way near it. Members of the royal family always took part in the baptism ceremony.

There was another traditional and unforgettable holiday called the Day of Midsummer of Holy Pentecost, celebrated on the twenty-fifth day after Orthodox Easter. On this day, all the clergy of the city gathered on the pier near the Peter and Paul Cathedral to make a religious procession around the fortress, carrying in front of them the miraculous icon of the Savior, the Image Not Made by Hands, which belonged to Peter the Great himself. In addition, on this day, prayer services were held at each of the bastions, and a water blessing ceremony was held near the Neva Gate.

Having lost its predominant importance in 1770 due to the inaccessibility of the temple during the icebreaker, the Peter and Paul Cathedral was transferred to the Ministry of the Imperial Household, and since 1883 it actually became the imperial court temple, in which memorial services and funeral services for the deceased were held on established days members of the royal house. Even before construction was completed, the cathedral became a necropolis for Peter's children who died in infancy. Until 1909, when an official decision was made to bury only crowned heads in the cathedral, almost all representatives of the Romanov dynasty were buried here. The only exceptions were Peter II, who was buried in Moscow, and John VI, who was laid to rest in Shlisselburg.

Since 1715, lavish funeral ceremonies began to be held during burials. On such days, the entire cathedral was dressed in mourning decoration, to create which the best Russian sculptors, artists and architects were brought in, and the movement of the procession of removing the body was accompanied by the incessant ringing of bells and cannon fire from the walls of the fortress. An interesting fact is that since 1915, for more than seventy years, there were no burials in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, but on May 29, 1992, the Great Russian Prince Vladimir Kirillovich, the great-grandson of Alexander II, was buried in the Tomb. Then in March 1995, the remains of his parents were transported here. In July 1998, the remains of the last Russian Tsar and members of his family, found near Yekaterinburg, were buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

In addition to various numerous functions, the Peter and Paul Fortress from the very first days of its existence played the role of a military garrison. From June 22, 1703 to October 1, 1926, the history of this stronghold is inextricably linked with the history of the military units stationed in it. Its own garrison first appeared here in October 1703, immediately after the earthen and wood fortifications were erected and the first guns were installed. And during the first years of the Northern War, the fortress was a permanent stronghold of military formations defending the Neva delta. But only at the beginning of the 19th century was the independent structure of the Petropavlovsk garrison determined, which until then was only part of the St. Petersburg military formation with one common commandant. It was based on one company of fortress artillery, numbering one hundred and sixty-eight people, armed with forty-five guns, a significant proportion of which were intended only for salute firing. There was one disabled team, which included military personnel unfit for field service due to illness or injury. They, as a rule, carried out guard duty, guarding the cathedral, gates and premises for prisoners. There was also an engineering team whose responsibilities included organizing and carrying out all construction and repair work on the territory of the fortress. But in 1920, the need for the existence of a garrison disappeared, and its structure was irrevocably abolished.

Almost until the beginning of the 20th century, the Peter and Paul Fortress was considered in fact the main political prison of Russia, due to which it was called the “Russian Bastille”. The first “honorary” prisoners of the citadel in February 1718 were Tsarevich Alexei and other individuals arrested in his case. Later, in the 18th century, it was here that all the famous freethinkers, participants in palace intrigues and coups were kept: A.P. Volynsky, P.I. Eropkin, the so-called “Princess Tarakanova”, B.Kh. Minikh, A.N. Radishchev, T.B. Kosciuszko and Yu.U. Nemtsevich, as well as the founder of the Chabad movement, Rabbi Shneur-Zalman. Paul I imprisoned several prominent military leaders in the fortress: A.P. Ermolov, M.I. Platov and P.V. Chichagov. Under Nicholas I, the Decembrists awaited their verdict here. And in the 19th century, F.M. visited the dungeons of Peter and Paul. Dostoevsky, M.A. Bakunin, N.G. Chernyshevsky, N.N. Miklouho-Maclay and K.M. Stanyukovich.

In 1760, the Prison House was built for prisoners who were previously kept in casemates, which was later replaced by the Secret House (in 1797). From 1870 to 1872, a prison was built in the Trubetskoy Bastion, which later became a “shelter” for participants in all Russian national liberation movements: populists, Socialist Revolutionaries and Social Democrats. Among the prisoners of this formidable prison were also A.M. Gorky and Lenin's older brother, A.I. Ulyanov. After October 1917, members of the Tsarist and later the Provisional Governments, as well as all dissatisfied citizens and political figures who rebelled against Soviet power, were imprisoned in the Trubetskoy Bastion. Here in 1921 all the survivors and captured participants of the rebellion in Kronstadt ended up.

In 1917, during the October Revolution, the Bolshevik field headquarters was located in the Peter and Paul Fortress, and its guns fired Winter Palace. On November 8, 1925, the Leningrad Soviet decided to raze the entire stronghold from the face of the earth and build a stadium in its place. Fortunately, this decision was soon reversed and museums were organized in some buildings of the fortress. During the Great Patriotic War, anti-aircraft guns were installed on the territory of the Peter and Paul Fortress. The cathedral spire was covered with a camouflage net. During the war years, not a single shell hit the cathedral, but the walls of the fortress themselves were badly damaged. From 1950 to 1980, a complete restoration of all monuments, walls, buildings and territories of the Peter and Paul Fortress was carried out. The original decoration of the cathedral was restored. On December 25, 1975, on the day of the 150th anniversary of the Decembrist uprising, a granite obelisk was erected at the site of the execution of the main participants in the events. During the years of stagnation, protests by writers and artists took place near the walls of the fortress. After one of them, a memorable inscription appeared on the wall of the Sovereign Bastion: “You crucify freedom, but the human soul has no shackles.” In 1991, a monument to Peter the Great was erected on the square directly in front of the guardhouse, and soon, in 1993, the fortress became a historical and cultural reserve.

Every year on the day of its foundation, May 27, the Peter and Paul Fortress becomes the center of the City Day celebrations held in the Northern capital of Russia. And the daily cannon shot fired at noon from the walls of the Naryshkin Bastion has rightfully become one of the main symbols of St. Petersburg.

Information sources:
http://palmernw.ru/mir-piter/petropavlovskaya/petropavlovskaya.html
http://walkspb.ru/zd/petrop_kr.html
http://family-history.ru/material/history/place/place_27.html
http://www.e-reading-lib.org/bookreader.php/90373/Balyazin_-_Taiiny_doma_Romanovyh.html

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The founding father of which cities was Peter I? and got the best answer

Answer from Olga Kislyunina[guru]
The most beloved brainchild of Peter the Great is St. Petersburg.
The city was founded on May 16 (27), 1703 by the first Russian emperor, and at that time Tsar Peter I. This event took place on Hare Island, in the presence of Peter I.
On the same day the Peter and Paul Fortress was founded and wooden church Supreme Apostles Peter and Paul.
On May 24, construction began on the first city building, the house of Peter I, and was soon completed.

Peter the Great founded more than a hundred settlements.
1. Lipetsk
Historians still debate about the founding date of Lipetsk. Official version claims that this city, famous for its factories mineral waters, is a kind of “sister city” of St. Petersburg, since both cities were founded by Peter the Great.
The city was founded by Peter the Great and begins its history in 1703, when, on Peter’s orders, the construction of iron factories began on the Lipovka River.
2.Petrodvorets (until 1944 - Peterhof),
3.Petrokrepost (until 1944 - Shlisselburg)
4. Taganrog July 27, 1696
Here in 1698, Peter the Great founded the first Russian port in the Azov-Black Sea Basin.
At one time, Peter even intended to move the capital of the country here. But the fate of the city was decided by the unsuccessful war with Turkey for Russia. According to an agreement with the Turks in 1712, Taganrog was destroyed.
5.g. Petrovsk is an ancient merchant city, founded by decree of Peter the Great in 1698, who, according to legend, visited here in 1707.
The architectural appearance and historical flavor of the city are given by the church built more than 100 years ago in the name of the icon of the Kazan Blessed Virgin Mary, the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Ustinov estate, the building of the hospital, station, fire department, city administration, which to this day are in good condition and protected by law like monuments architecture of the 19th century century.
6. Petrozavodsk was founded on September 9, 1703 as Petrovskaya Sloboda.
Not far from Petrozavodsk there is the oldest Russian resort "Marcial Waters", founded by decree of Peter I in 1721 in honor of the end of the Northern War, where the Church of the Apostle Peter, built according to the design of the tsar, and, of course, the springs themselves have been preserved. mineral water. Currently it is a modern balneological sanatorium.
7.Biysk was founded in 1709 by Decree of Peter the Great, it was part of the Biysk-Kuznetsk Cossack line, which guarded the southern borders of Russia.
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8.Novosibirsk
At the beginning of the 18th century, under Peter the Great, the development of both banks of the Ob began. Here, by decree of the sovereign, servicemen founded the village of Krivoshchekovo in 1701. This event can be considered the conception (foundation) of the future city, and Peter - its founder.
9.Strelnya
The city was founded in 1707 by Peter the Great and began with the Travel Palace and the Church of the Transfiguration. The palace miraculously survived to this day, but the temple was destroyed during the Second World War.
Until 1917, several more churches were erected on the territory of the seaside resort town, including the beautiful St. Nicholas Chapel, which stands on the shore of the sea bay and welcomes everyone arriving in Strelna along the Gulf of Finland. The chapel, consecrated more than a hundred years ago, is still in use today.
10. Lodeynoye Pole - a city founded by Peter the Great in 1702.

Answer from Irina[guru]
St. Petersburg May 16 (27), 1703.
Peterhof (Petrodvorets). The history of Peterhof begins a little later than the history of St. Petersburg: in 1705, on September 13, Peter the Great ordered an anchor to be dropped against a manor in the south of the Gulf of Finland. This place was chosen as a transshipment point between St. Petersburg and Kronstadt, and a pier was laid at the same time. Peter liked the place, and in 1709 the construction of palaces began - Monplaisir, Marly and the Hermitage. After a brilliant victory over the Swedish fleet at Gangut in 1714, it was decided to turn Petrodvorets into architectural monument, a luxurious symbol of the victorious actions of the Russian fleet in the struggle for access to the sea.
The city of Omsk, one of largest cities Russia. It was founded by decree of Peter I as a fortress at the confluence of the Om and Irtysh rivers in 1716, and in 1782, by decree of Catherine the Great, it was approved as a city.
Lipetsk. It was Peter I who founded the city. In 1702, at the confluence of the Lipovka River and the Voronezh River, he ordered the establishment of factories for the smelting of cast iron, steel, and the manufacture of cannons. The choice of where to found the city was influenced by the proximity of iron ore deposits. Thanks to the source of mineral waters and the most beautiful southern landscapes, Lipetsk resorts were favorite place recreation of the St. Petersburg aristocracy. Yes, yes, Lipetsk, it turns out, is the first Russian resort. It was founded in 1703 by Peter himself. The sources have still been preserved and are in perfect condition.
Petrozavodsk was founded on August 29, 1703 by decree of Peter I, but the territory of today's city began to be populated about 8,000 years ago. The first ancient settlements began to appear in today's places of Peski, Solomennoye, Saynavolok, Devil's Chair, historical Center cities. In the 16th century, the Shuya Pogost appeared on the territory of the city and its surroundings, in which the settlements of Sulazh-gora (now a microdistrict of the city of Sulazhgora), Salminsky (now a microdistrict of the city of Solomennoye), Shuya, Zheselga and others were formed. On August 29, 1703, Y. Vlasov and Peter I’s associate A.D. Menshikov founded a cannon factory, which was also called Shuisky, like the settlement that arose around the factory. Since 1712, the plant and settlement received a new name - Petrovsky. Already in 1714, “Petrovskaya Sloboda” became the administrative center of the military factory district of Olonets district. On March 21, 1777, Catherine II renamed the settlement of Petrovsky Plants into the city of Petrozavodsk.
Taganrog. The city was founded in 1698 by Peter the Great and became the first naval base Russia. According to an agreement with the Turks in 1712, Taganrog was destroyed.
Yekaterinburg was founded in 1723 by Russia's greatest monarch, Peter the Great, and named after his wife.
The city of Petrovsk in the Saratov region was founded by order of Peter the Great in 1698.
Biysk was founded by the Decree of Peter the Great on February 28, 1708.
Boguchar. The district settlement of Boguchar, founded in 1704 by order of Emperor Peter I, was renamed a city in 1777 by order of Empress Catherine II.
Kronstadt was founded by Peter I on a small shallow island south of Kotlin Island as Fort Kronshlot, which blocked the main fairway leading to the mouth of the Neva, where the new capital of the empire, St. Petersburg, was being built for a potential enemy. On May 7, 1704, the fortifications, which included two batteries on Kotlin Island, came into operation (the date of the founding of Kronstadt).
In 1723, a fortress was founded on Kotlin and given the name Kronstadt. Peter considered Kronstadt part of the capital.
Oranienburg - In 1703, Peter I, passing through the estate of A. Menshikov, the village of Slobodskoye, founded the Oranienburg fortress in it. The name first became Raninbur

In 1782, the most famous monument Petrou - the famous “Bronze Horseman” by Etienne Falconet

PHOTO: wikipedia.org

Peter Romanov inherited the Russian throne at the age of 10, in 1682, and began to rule Russia seven years later. The young tsar was the first of the Russian monarchs to make a detailed trip around Western Europe, and having returned from foreign lands, he began to reshape Russia in a European way, so large-scale, controversially and urgently that he became known as a grandiose reformer, who also expanded the territory of the empire in the Baltic region and strengthened the authority of the Russian state in the world. Therefore, Peter the Great was nicknamed the Great.

The beginning, it would seem, did not promise a dizzying career for this man. He was born the fourteenth child of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, but was the firstborn of his mother, Tsarina Natalya Naryshkina. One-year-old Peter was given to be raised by nannies, and his education at the time of succession to the throne was weak; he even wrote with errors throughout his life. But the boy was unusually inquisitive and successfully mastered many sciences, both in childhood and in adulthood, in practice. The story of how Tsar Peter, in simple clothes, along with the peasants, planed and sawed at foreign shipyards, learning the ship craft, is indicative.

In the likeness of foreign systems, Peter made the Russian Empire a regular police state and divided it into provinces; He dressed the shaven gentlemen in foreign clothes, changed the calendar, founded the first Russian newspaper and in 1724 founded the Academy of Sciences. The progressive emperor also ordered the founding of new cities, not like those usual for free Mother Rus', chaotic and variegated, but according to civilized laws - pre-planned, topographically verified, adapted for communications and roads. The sovereign "tested" the project in the southern coastal city of Taganrog, and was going to build the capital there, but the war with the Turks there adjusted the plans. After the first fitting in the likeness of Taganrog urban planning, Peter the Great erected his glorious brainchild - St. Petersburg.

What other cities arose in our country thanks to this emperor? Peter also put his royal hand to several settlements, sometimes noble, but which did not become cities. "Evening Moscow" found information about the creations of the Petrovs, which received the status of cities in ancient times or in modern history. Let's arrange them according to the chronology of their foundation.

1. Petrovsk, Saratov region

The successful campaign against Azov inspired the young tsar to build a fortress on the Medveditsa River, a tributary of the Don-Batyushka in the Saratov region. It was necessary to protect the territory from attacks by Crimean Tatars and roaming robbers. The sovereign issued a corresponding decree on November 15, 1697. And six months later a quadrangular fortress was founded there. Merchants and handicrafts began to develop there, and an entire Petrovsky district was formed. now this administrative center Petrovsky district of the Saratov region with a population of approximately 30 and a half thousand inhabitants. And the main attractions of the townspeople are the monument to Peter the Great on the station square, created by the sculptor A. Drozdov, the century-old church in the name of the icon of the Kazan Blessed Virgin Mary and the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

2. Taganrog, Rostov region

In the story about this city, there is an incredible number of uses of the word “for the first time.” Taganrog was founded in 1698 by Peter the Great and became the first naval base of Russia, the first Russian port on the open sea ​​coast, the first city in Russia built according to a regular plan, Taganrog harbor is the first in the world built not in a natural bay, but on the open sea, it is the first city of the Russian Empire, where a commercial court was introduced in 1808, it was the only non-capital city with Italian opera, and in 1699 the first hard labor camp in the history of Russia was established in the region, and Taganrog became its center. The city is located on the Mius Peninsula of the Taganrog Gulf of the Sea of ​​Azov, the historical part is on Cape Tagany Rog with a lighthouse. In fact, this is a fairly large peninsula city, except for one direction, wherever you go - you will come out to the sea. Once upon a time, nobles, officials and clergy were exiled there, as well as captured Turks and Tatars, Swedes and Balts. Greek and Italian merchants, Armenian and Jewish merchants and nobility flocked there by sea. So the national flavor of the population of about 300,000 current residents is unique. In Taganrog, researchers identified Pushkin's Lukomorye; Many world-famous celebrities were born or lived there, from emperors and military leaders to writers, composers, and artists. During the Great Patriotic War, during the three-year occupation, the most powerful anti-fascist underground in the South operated there; on November 3, 2011, Taganrog was awarded the honorary title “City of Military Glory.”

3. Kamensk-Uralsky, Sverdlovsk region

The city was founded in 1701 by decree of Emperor Peter the Great and at first for two centuries it was known for the Kamensk state-owned iron foundry, which produced the best cannons in the world. The ore in those places lay close to the surface and was easily mined by hand. The servants of the Dalmatovsky monastery noticed this and legally registered the lands for themselves. But soon Tsar Peter realized the easy accessibility of the ore so necessary for the state; his specialists rated the Ural ore highly; the emperor returned state lands to the treasury and issued a decree on the construction of an ironworks there, the foundation of the future city. In January 1774, the Kamensky plant participated in the peasant uprising of Emelyan Pugachev. The workers left the power of the factory owners and cast ten cannons and three hundred pounds of cannonballs for the Pugachevites. The Tsar's regiment defeated the rebel detachment and returned the plant to the state. During the Great Patriotic War, the only aluminum plant in the country operated in Kamensk-Uralsky, thanks to which Soviet aviation existed. The city is notable for the fact that the border of the Urals and Siberia passes through it. Today the population of the city is more than 172,000, mainly Russians and Tatars.

4. Lodeynoye Pole, Leningrad region

In 1702, it arose as a shipbuilders’ settlement at the Olonets shipyard founded by Peter the Great. The choice of location is clear - three-quarters of the entire area is covered with forests in Lodeynoye Pole; for a long time, residents of small settlements there were engaged in logging, and there was also shipbuilding. Over the 130 years of operation, the Olonets Shipyard has built about 450 ships. They built quickly then - spurred by the Northern War with Sweden. And near the shipyard, forges, workshops, and residential barracks arose, and that’s how the town was formed. There was also a temporary house for Tsar Peter. The settlement grew and in 1785, Catherine the Second ordered it to be granted city status. During the Great Patriotic War, Lodeynoye Pole held the defense for 1000 days, not allowing the Nazis to approach Leningrad, guarding the Road of Life. Now it is the administrative center of the Lodeynopolsky district of the Leningrad region with a population of 20 and a half thousand people.

5. St. Petersburg

The grandiose, most famous creation of Peter the Great. Until January 26, 1924 - Petrograd, until September 6, 1991 - Leningrad. He was named Emperor in honor of the Apostle Peter, keeper of the keys to the gates of heaven. The metropolis is located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland and at the mouth of the Neva River. St. Petersburg was the capital of Russia for two centuries, starting in 1710. It was founded in 1703, when the first stone was laid on Hare Island, and began to grow new town; At first there was the Peter and Paul Fortress. It was built by the forces of serfs, who were forcibly herded for construction; several thousand people died from malnutrition and overwork. In 1710, by order of the Tsar, 15 thousand different artisans from all over the country were resettled there, and land in the city was given to them for free. Therefore, the central part of the city was formed very quickly. The city was built by foreign specialists according to European canons both in architecture and in infrastructure - according to a clear layout. But until the mid-18th century, almost no attention was paid to decorating the city. But Empress Elizabeth introduced a new landmark - majestic buildings worthy of the capital. And under Paul the First, the most mystical building in St. Petersburg was built - the Mikhailovsky Castle, densely overgrown with legends. In the 20th century, they came to grips with the comfort of St. Petersburg: they built dozens of bridges, built railway lines, and launched a tram. And then the Russians poured there in a stream, the population grew faster than New York. The most tragic period of the city was the siege of Leningrad, 900 heroic days in 1941-1945. Now the city's population is more than 5 million inhabitants, it is the 4th largest city in Europe. St. Petersburg is notable for the fact that the total length of all watercourses on its territory is 282 km, their water surface is approximately 7% of the total area of ​​the city.

6. Petrozavodsk, capital of Karelia

In 1703 on the shore Lake Onega near the mouth of the Lososinka River, by decree of Tsar Peter, the Shuisky ironworks and cannon foundry were built. And the ore for it was taken from the lake itself. A two-story wooden palace and a camp church were built there for the royalty. Then a copper smelting and metal processing plant was opened. Of course, a settlement grew up around such a large production. In 1920, Soviet Petrozavodsk became the capital of the Karelian Labor Commune, and soon - the capital of the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In October 1941, the city was occupied by Finnish troops, renamed Jaanislinna, and at that time seven concentration camps were set up there. A system of rivers and canals connects Petrozavodsk with the Baltic, White, Barents, Caspian and Black seas; the city also has five lakes. The current population of Petrozavodsk is 270,600 inhabitants, mostly Russians. But the city is also a place of compact residence of Karelians (20% of the Karelians of the republic) and Vepsians (more than half of all Vepsians of Karelia and a quarter of all Vepsians of Russia).

7. Lipetsk, regional center

In ancient times there stood the village of Malye Studenki Lipetsk. And in 1703, Tsar Peter looked at this place at the confluence of the Lipovka River with the Voronezh River for the location of iron and steel smelting plants, so that they would provide products for the Russian army and navy. And factory workers were moved in with the villagers, calling the settlement Lipskiye Zheleznye Zavody. In 1779, it became a district city of the Tambov governorship, and then Lipetsk. There would have been no luck, but misfortune helped - in 1806, a strong fire destroyed part of the city, and instead of chaotically arranged barracks and houses, new buildings were erected according to master plan- with wide straight streets between mansions. And even a complex of resort buildings appeared. Lipetsk became a regional Soviet center in 1954. It is located on the banks of the Voronezh River (Don basin), at an altitude of about 160 meters above sea level. It's dynamic now developing city Black Earth Region - over the past 50 years its population has quadrupled, exceeding 500,000.

8. Biysk, Altai region

The history of Biysk began in 1709 with the Bikatun fort, one of the defensive structures of the southeastern borders of Russia against raids from the Dzungar Khanate. Just a year later the Teleuts destroyed it. A new fort was built nearby, on the Biya River, so the fort had to be renamed Biysky. The relevance of the fortress disappeared and in 1846 the city was transformed from a military-administrative one into a commercial and industrial one; a tannery, a distillery, brick and sawmills, a shag and flax weaving factory, a steam mill, and a refrigerator were built there. Biysk is famous for the fact that, being the center of the Altai Spiritual Mission, it gave birth in 1830-1840 to one of the first scientific translations of the Bible from Hebrew and Greek into Russian in Russia. Currently, 205,250 residents live in Biysk. This is a city of scientific and production enterprises of the defense industry. The Institute of Chemical-Energy Technologies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences is located in Biysk. On November 21, 2005, the city was awarded the status of a science city of the Russian Federation.

9. Peterhof (Petrodvorets), Leningrad region

This country residence Russian emperors founded by Peter the Great in 1710 on south coast Gulf of Finland near St. Petersburg. The grandiose fountain system of Peterhof is famous all over the world. And once there were three little ones Finnish villages. But by 1714, the Bolshoi was built on the site Peterhof Palace, Large grotto with cascades, Monplaisir and other structures of the Lower Park. At first, the settlement at the Palace was built chaotically, most of the peasants even lived in dugouts. In the 1730s, the famous architect M. Zemtsov created a clear layout for Peterhof. The world-famous hydraulic system of Peterhof was created 10 years earlier according to the design of hydraulic engineer Vasily Tuvolkov. To supply the fountains, a 40 km long water pipeline was built, along its length there are 18 storage ponds with almost one and a half million cubic meters of water. The water cannons that gained popularity worked on the principle of communicating vessels. In the mid-1850s, entrepreneur A. Stieglitz financed the construction of the Peterhof railway 30 km to St. Petersburg. Peterhof became a city in 1762, a wonderful landmark of which to this day is the Peterhof Museum-Reserve, a monument of world architecture and palace and park art. In 1944, the city was renamed Petrodvorets, a science city of the Russian Federation since 2005, population more than 73,000.

10. Sestroretsk, Leningrad region

In 1721, the sovereign decided to build another weapons factory and remembered the place where in 1703 Russian troops defeated the Swedish army in order to open at least one exit to the Baltic Sea for Russia. It was near the Sestra River, and the harbor remained there. And Peter ordered to build nearby, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, summer palace with a garden. The sovereign's desire was realized by 1724 using locally produced bricks (however, the palace was dismantled in 1781). Well, they began to build a plant not far away. For a long time he then provided Russian soldiers with gunpowder, pistols, muskets and cannons. From the peaceful assortment, his door handles, copper buttons and gratings for the Fontanka River of the Catherine Canal are memorable. In 1735, the Chernorechensky Iron Foundry was built on the Dibun Swamp to help the Sestroretsk plant, and things went even better. Sestroretsk craftsmen became famous for making the famous “Daddy’s car” based on the drawings of M. Lomonosov. And starting from 1922, the Soviet Sestroretsk plant was converted into a tool plant. In the 1960-1980s, the city was massively built up with multi-storey buildings and a mud bath was opened there. The city has become a seaside climatic balneological mud resort with its own mineral water and healing mud. Several watercourses now flow through Sestroretsk, connecting Lake Sestroretsky Razliv and The Gulf of Finland. Local residents About 37,250 people are registered there.