Mikhailovsky castle

Mikhailovsky Castle owes its name to the temple of Michael the Archangel , the patron saint of the Romanovs’s house, and the quirk of Paul I, who took the title of Grand Master of the Order of Malta , to call all his palaces “castles” ^[2] ; the second name - "Engineering" came from the General Engineering School, which had been there since 1819.

A number of memoirists claim that the name is connected with the appearance of the Archangel Michael or his envoy to the guard soldier at the place where the castle was subsequently erected ^[3] . At least, this is how contemporaries interpreted the emperor’s urgent demands to call the castle “Mikhailovsky” immediately after the bookmark. It is possible that the legend of the vision was spread by the emperor consciously in order to justify the very dubious need for an urgent construction of a new residence by the direction of the saint ^[4] .

The only known case in the history of Russian architecture when a secular architectural structure was not named after the owner, by the name of the territory or destination, but in honor of the saint.

The general idea of ​​creating the castle and the first sketches of its layout belonged to Paul himself. Work on the project of the future residence began in 1784, when he was the Grand Duke. In the design process, which lasted almost 12 years, he turned to various architectural samples that he saw during his overseas travel of 1781-1782 ^[1] . One of the possible places for the construction of a new palace was called Gatchina . By the time construction began, the project folder of the emperor totaled 13 different options for the future palace ^[5] .

The decree on the construction of the castle , a long-term dream, was issued in the very first month of the reign of Paul I, November 28 ( December 9 ), 1796 : “for the permanent sovereign to live, build with haste a new impregnable palace-castle. Stand him in the place of a dilapidated Summer House. ”

This palace occupies the place where the Summer Palace, built by Peter the Great in 1711, at the confluence of the Moika and the Fontanka, stood before.

- "Kotzebue A.F. von. A brief description of the imperial Mikhailovsky Palace in 1801"

The building was erected on the site of the wooden Summer Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna , created by the architect Rastrelli , where on September 20 ( October 1 ), 1754 , Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna gave birth to Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich and where his mother was proclaimed empress during the coup in 1762 ^[6] .

The castle was built in 1797-1801, its first stone was laid on February 26 ( March 9 ), 1797 . As a result, the palace was designed by the architect V. I. Bazhenov on behalf of Emperor Paul I , who wanted to make it his main front residence. The construction was led by the architect V. Brenna (who for a long time was mistakenly considered the author of the project) ^[7] . Brenna redesigned the original design of the palace and created the artistic decoration of its interiors.

In addition to Bazhenov and Brenn, the emperor himself took part in the creation of the project, having composed several drawings for him ^[6] . Brenn's assistants also included Fedor Svinin and Karl Rossi . Paul I accelerated the construction, Vincenzo Brenna received the rank of state adviser, Charles Cameron and Giacomo Quarenghi were sent to help him. In addition, E. Sokolov, I. Girsh and G. Pilnikov worked with Brenna, and even at the stage of creating the project, Pavel A.-F.-G. Violier . To speed up the work, construction materials were transferred from other construction sites: decorative stone, columns, friezes and sculptures from Tsarskoye Selo and the Academy of Arts (several pavilions in Tsarskoye Selo and the palace in Pella were dismantled); from the construction of St. Isaac’s Cathedral designed by Rinaldi - marble, including a frieze with an inscription placed over the main gate; from the Tauride Palace - typeset parquet ^[8] .

By order of the emperor, construction was carried out day and night (by the light of lanterns and torches), since he demanded to rebuild the castle on the same year. The number of workers working at a construction site reached 6 thousand people at a time ^[2]

On November 8 (20), 1800 , on the day of St. Michael the Archangel , the castle was solemnly consecrated, but work on its interior decoration continued until March 1801 .

After the murder of the emperor, 40 days after the housewarming, the Mikhailovsky Castle was abandoned by the Romanovs and fell into disrepair for two decades. When Alexander I needed silver for a luxurious service - a wedding gift to his sister Anna Pavlovna , the Queen of the Netherlands, silver gates from the palace church went for remelting. Nicholas I ordered the architects to “mine” marble in the palace for the construction of the New Hermitage ^[9] .

In 1819, the castle was occupied by the Main Engineering School , from which came its second name - "Engineering". In the premises of the imperial bedroom, where Paul I was killed, in 1858, at the direction of Emperor Alexander II, the church of St. supreme apostles Peter and Paul ^[10] .

In 1820, Carl Rossi re-planned the area around the castle. Drawbridges have been removed and channels filled up. In subsequent years, the castle gradually lost its pristine appearance. Supervised the construction then Tommaso (Thomas Leontievich) Adamini . In 1829 - 1835, the interior was rebuilt and redesigned for the needs of an engineering school (architect A. Ya. Andreev ). In 1893 - 1894, the castle was rebuilt by the architect N. L. Shevyakov .

From 1918 to 1941 and from 1945, the castle houses the military engineering school ( Leningrad Military Engineering School ). During the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), the hospital was located in Mikhailovsky Castle. In 1951, the shipbuilding and special departments of the Naval Engineering School named after A.M. Dzerzhinsky . From 1957 to the present, the castle houses the Central Naval Library . In 1960, the military department released (with the exception of the TsVMB) a castle, which was transferred to the Leningrad Soviet of National Economy to accommodate technological institutes. The main tenant was the Central Bureau of Technical Information of Leningrad (CBTI) ^[11] . In the 1980s, the castle housed the Leningrad Center for Scientific and Technical Information (LenCSTI), the Leningrad branch of the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of Technical Aesthetics (VNIITE), the All-Union Design Institute "GiproNIImetallorud", the Leningrad State Institute for the Design of Power Engineering Engineering Plants "Lengiproenergomash" computer engineering and informatics, SKB "Indicator" ^[12] .

In 1988, tenants began to gradually vacate the castle. Due to the use by various institutions of various departments for a long time, the state of the castle left much to be desired: the palace halls were fenced up and down, the ceiling and wall paintings were roughly painted ^[9] .

In 1991, a third of the castle’s premises were transferred to the State Russian Museum , and the entire building (except the premises of the Navy’s library) was transferred to the museum in 1994. By the 300th anniversary of the city, the castle was restored, many interiors were restored in the form in which they were under Paul, as well as an inscription on the facade (previously covered with sheet metal) and statues from the side of the Summer Garden. Fragments of the Voskresensky Canal and the Three-Span Bridge, which were preserved underground, were reconstructed and discovered, part of the engineering and fortification structures surrounding the castle. The grand opening of the Mikhailovsky Castle took place on May 27, 2003.

In the halls of the castle are open permanent exhibits - "Antique subjects in Russian art", "The Renaissance era in the works of Russian artists", "History of the castle and its inhabitants" and "Open sculpture fund" ^[13] .

In plan view, the castle represents a square with rounded corners, inside of which is inscribed the central octagonal front courtyard. The main entrance to the castle is from the south. Three angled bridges connected the building with the square in front of it. A wooden drawbridge with cannons on both sides of the bridge was thrown over a water ditch that surrounded Connetable Square with a monument to Peter I in the center. Behind the monument there is a moat and three bridges, with the middle bridge intended only for the imperial family and foreign ambassadors and led to the main entrance. “The Russian emperor, planning his construction, was guided by the scheme of building a castle rectangular in plan with a rectangular courtyard and round corner towers, widespread in European capitals” ^[2] .

The building is located at the source of the Moika River from Fontanka . Initially, it was surrounded on all sides by water: from the north and east of the Moika and Fontanka rivers, and from the south and west, the Church and Ascension channels (now filled up) separated the castle from the rest of the city, turning the castle into an artificial island. It was possible to get into it only through bridges guarded by sentries.

The approach to the building began from Italyanskaya Street through triple semicircular gates, the average passage of which was intended only for members of the imperial family. Behind them was a wide straight avenue along which the buildings of the stables and the arena (exercirgauz) were built. It ended at the three-story pardons of the guardrooms, after which the pre-castle fortifications began ^[8] .

The castle complex included:

• Palace
• Voskresensky Canal (filled up, part restored under the Three-Part Bridge)
• Three-part bridge
• Gornverk , on which a monument to Peter I was erected (modern Peter the Great Square, formerly Connetable Square)
• Maple street
• Two pavilions of Kordegardiy Mikhailovsky Castle

The architecture of the palace is uncharacteristic for St. Petersburg of the 18th century . With the strict grace of its style, the castle is more like a medieval fortress; it is the only palace building in Russia “ castle on the water ” in the style of romantic classicism ^[13] . “The peculiar appearance of this building, combining conflicting architectural trends and stylistic devices, makes it special in the general line of development of Russian classicism. However, it is Mikhailovsky Castle that is perceived as the most expressive symbol of the Pavlovian era. In his appearance, artistic tastes and the originality of the personality of the owner and main creator - Emperor Paul I were clearly embodied ” ^[1]

To emphasize that Russia is a great sea power, the castle was surrounded on all sides by moats with water, drawbridges, parapets, and cast-iron grates. The Resurrection Canal, which got its name from the main castle gate, passed in the immediate vicinity of the main facade. Thanks to this, it seemed as if the castle was rising from the water. Near the castle was erected consecrated simultaneously with the castle monument to Peter I - the creator of the sea power of the empire . From the south, on the sides of the Resurrection Gate, high granite obelisks decorated with military armor are placed. In the niches near the obelisks there were once statues of Apollo Belvedere and Diana (now they are in the Summer Garden ). Through the Resurrection Gate, a drawbridge made it possible to get to the front yard. But only the emperor, his family members, and foreign ambassadors were allowed to enter through the Ascension Gate. Contrary to rumors about the mania of persecuting the emperor, free access to the residence through other gates was free for all his subjects - residents of St. Petersburg, so that they could get acquainted with works of art, style, fashion, copy.

The western (church) facade of the castle looked the most elegant. It was decorated with decorative stucco moldings and allegorical sculptures of Faith and Hope. In place of the windows of the third floor, which were not here under Paul, there were medallions made of white Carrara marble with images of four evangelists (John, Luke, Matthew and Mark). Now these images are on the inner walls of the temple.

The attic ended with marble sculptures of the holy apostles Peter and Paul by P. Triscorni, now installed in front of the main facade of the Lutheran church of the holy apostles Peter and Paul on Nevsky Prospect, and a gilded cross. ^[fourteen]

“The central part of the southern facade is contrastingly highlighted by a portico raised from a four ionic columns of red marble with a richly decorated sculptural pediment and attic above it, raised to a high basement” ^[7] . It was decorated with a bas-relief “History brings glory of Russia to its tablets” by sculptor P. Stadzhi . Also on this facade was a modified biblical quote (originally attributed to God, and not to the monarch) - the Holy Place of the Lord befits your house for the longitude of days (see the legend about it below). “The highlighted is monumental, representative of the main southern facade. The ceremonial structure of its columns and giant obelisks resemble the colonnade of the Louvre and the gates of Saint-Denis in Paris. " ^[fifteen]

“The northern facade opposite the main one, facing the Summer Garden , is designed as a park. At its center is a wide staircase adorned with sculpture, leading to the loggia of the entrance with a pair of marble Tuscan order colonnade supporting the terrace. The facade is completed with a richly decorated attic ” ^[7] . The open terrace of this facade is supported by a marble colonnade, and a wide staircase decorated with statues of Hercules and Flora was used .

“The western and eastern facades, according to Bazhenov’s project, were treated the same way as subordinates” ^[7] . In the direction of Sadovaya Street stands the facade of the palace church, which is crowned with a typically St. Petersburg spire.

Art historians note the success of an architect who managed to cope with a difficult task ^{[7] [16]} .

Castle Premises

• The General Dining Hall was part of the suite of ceremonial chambers of Empress Maria Fyodorovna. Its decoration was carried out by the architect Vincenzo Brenna in 1799-1801. с использованием 2 люстр на пятьдесят свечей, исполненные по рисункам Дж. Кваренги и предназначавшиеся первоначально для Георгиевского зала Зимнего дворца и двух каминов из сибирского порфира. В середине XIX века Общий Столовый Зал разделен на три самостоятельных помещения, в которых располагались классы Главного Инженерного училища. В процессе проведения реставрационных работ 2002—2003 годов восстановлен первоначальный объём этого зала ^[17] .
• Тронная императрицы Марии Федоровны была исполнена по проекту Винченцо Бренны в 1799—1801 гг. Стены помещения, в котором стоял трон, были затянуты малиновым бархатом. В центре потолка в окружении частично вызолоченной и раскрашенной лепки помещался плафон « Суд Париса » работы художника Я. Меттенлейтера , в аллегорической форме прославлявший красоту хозяйки замка. В 1859 году по проекту К. А. Ухтомского в восточной стене зала (возле которой прежде размещался трон), была устроена полуциркульная арка, объединившая бывшие тронная и Предтронная комнаты императрицы, в которых устроили Модельный зал Главного Инженерного училища. Реставрация Тронной Марии Федоровны произведена в 2002—2003 гг. ^[17] .
  • Всего в Михайловском замке тронных зал было пять: две — самого государя-императора, потом государыни, великого князя и наследника Александра Павловича и его брата Константина, имевшего титул цесаревича.
• The St. George Hall adjoined the Emperor's Round Throne Hall and served as the guard guard for the Knights of Malta. The hall was rebuilt several times in the 19th – 20th centuries, while the original appearance of the hall was lost. The most significant changes occurred in 1843. In 1953 - 1954, restoration work was carried out in the hall, its original appearance was partially reconstructed, while recreating many elements of historical decoration. In 2007, builders completely reconstructed the attic floor. The work carried out under the project “Economic Development of St. Petersburg” was funded by the Ministry of Culture with the participation of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. ^[18] .
• Marble Gallery - a room intended for the solemn assembly of the Knights of the Order of Malta.

Fearing palace coups, Paul did not want to stay in the Winter Palace, deciding to build himself a new residence. There is a legend that a soldier who stood at night on the clock in the Summer Palace, a young man appeared, surrounded by radiance, who said: "Go to the emperor and convey my will - so that in this place a temple and a house will be erected in the name of Archangel Michael." The soldier, having replaced his post, reported the incident to his superiors, then to the emperor. So supposedly a decision was made to build a new palace, so it was given his name - Mikhailovsky ^[8] .

It is curious that, according to one of the family legends, the state adviser Danilevsky, admiring the beauty of the newly built Mikhailovsky Castle in St. Petersburg, petitioned Pavel to add “Mikhailovsky” to his surname. His son, Alexander Ivanovich Mikhailovsky-Danilevsky , became a famous military historian.

The emperor planned to hold meetings and ceremonies of the Maltese knights in the castle, which was reflected in the decoration of his ceremonial apartments. The only gala reception was an audience with the Danish Minister Earl Levendahl, given on February 24 in the Throne Hall of Malta.

On February 1 ( 13 ), 1801 , Pavel and his family moved to the new palace. On the day of St. Michael the Archangel, at 9 hours 45 minutes in the morning, Paul I, along with his family and his retinue, began a ceremonial procession from the Winter Palace towards the castle. Guards regiments were placed along its route. The solemn procession was accompanied by a cannon fire and the music of regimental orchestras. In the castle of the sovereign, persons of the first five classes, high military leaders, as well as foreign ambassadors and ministers were already awaiting ^[19] . Paul I moved to Mikhailovsky Castle, when the walls of the new building had not even had time to dry out, and, according to eyewitnesses, the premises “had such a dense fog that despite thousands of wax candles flickering through the mist, darkness reigned everywhere” ^[2] , “Everywhere there were traces of dampness and in the hall in which large historical paintings hung, I saw with my own eyes, despite the constant fire in two fireplaces, ice strips an inch thick and several palms wide, stretching from top to bottom in the corners” ^[5] . The day after the ceremonial move, a masquerade took place in the castle.

The last concert in the General Dining Hall took place on March 10, 1801, at which, in particular, Madame Chevalier performed (who once managed to hurt the emperor’s heart by singing in a dress the color of the walls of Mikhailovsky Castle). And on the night of March 11 to 12 ( 24 ), 1801 , Paul was killed in his own bedroom . After the death of Paul, the imperial family returned to the Winter Palace , the castle lost the importance of the main residence, passed into the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Imperial court and gradually became desolate.

There are legends associated with the murder of Paul in the castle: they say that a few months before the death of the emperor, a holy fool appeared in St. Petersburg (according to some versions - Ksenia of Petersburg ), who predicted that he would live as many years as the letters in the inscription above the Voskresensky gate of the new palace . There are forty-seven characters in the biblical aphorism, “THERE IS THE HOUSE OF YOURSELF TO LET YOUR HOUSE IN THE LAST OF DAYS”. Forty-seventh year went to Paul when he was killed ^[6] . In 1901, V. M. Sukhodrev, in essays published on the 200th anniversary of St. Petersburg, mentions this text as existing, and V. Ya. Kurbatov repeats the same in 1913. In the future, the inscription is no longer mentioned, it disappeared, leaving black dots on the frieze field above the Voskresensky gate of the castle (the place of attachment of letters) ^[20] . Currently, with the last reconstruction, the inscription is restored.

The text, “THERE IS LIVING THE HOUSE OF YOURSELF FOR THE LONG LAST OF DAYS,” is a modified quote from 92 Psalms of David: “It is fitting for your house, Lord, a shrine in the longitude of days.” Copper letters were made for the Resurrection Cathedral of the Smolny Monastery , then transferred to the construction site of St. Isaac's Cathedral, and under Paul moved to its residence. ^{[21] The} mysterious inscription really had symbolic meaning in the plans of the emperor regarding his new home, but which one - while it is impossible to reliably answer. The coincidence of the number of letters and years lived by the emperor, most likely, retrospective observation, we have no reliable data on the prediction. ^[22]

The Phantom of the Mikhailovsky Castle

Another, more well-known legend says that the ghost of the emperor killed by the conspirators could not leave the place of his death. The ghost of the tsar began to be seen by a platoon of soldiers from the capital's garrison transporting military equipment, the new inhabitants of the palace — the reincorporating corporal Lyamin ^[20] , and passersby who noticed a luminous figure in the windows ^[6] .

Legend elevates the appearance of the ghost of Mikhailovsky Castle to the time immediately following the death of Emperor Paul I here. However, rumors of the ghost appear no earlier than the end of the 1840s ^[23] .

The image of a ghost was actively used, if not created, by the senior cadets of the Nikolaev Engineering School , who settled in Mikhailovsky Castle, to intimidate the younger ones ^[24] .

The ghost became famous for the entertaining, but fully demystifying story of N. S. Leskov “Ghost in the Engineering Castle”, the purpose of which was to draw attention to hazing that reigned in the school ^[25] .

In the 1980s, members of the Commission on Anomalous Phenomena at the Russian Geographical Society of the Russian Academy of Sciences conducted a limited and unofficial study of the alleged anomalous activity in the building. The study consisted of a survey of individual employees of the Patent Library (located at the Mikhailovsky Castle at that time), shooting rooms on a film camera and measuring the magnetic field. A method known as dowsing was also used ^[26] .

The color of the walls of the Mikhailovsky Castle

One of the legends of the Mikhailovsky Castle is associated with the color of its walls: according to one version, it was chosen in honor of the gloves of the favorite of the emperor Anna Gagarina (Lopukhina) . On the other - it was the traditional color of the Order of Malta ^[2] . Following the choice of the king, the color became fashionable, and for some time the facades of some Petersburg palaces were repainted in the same color.

According to legend, when the construction of the Mikhailovsky Castle, named after St. Archangel Michael, the heavenly patron of the Romanov dynasty, was nearing completion, at one of the palace balls, Anna Lopukhina, excited by dancing, suddenly dropped her glove. Pavel I, who appeared nearby, demonstrating knightly courtesy, was the first of the men present to pick it up and was about to return it to the owner, but he suddenly drew attention to the strange, unusual, yellow-orange color of the glove. Thinking for a moment, the emperor immediately sent it to the architect Brenna as a model for compiling the color of the palace ^[20] .

When the Russian Museum was engaged in the restoration of the palace, the walls of the castle were brick red, which the townspeople had long been accustomed to, considering it to be its original, especially since it coincided with the colors of the Order of Malta. But the restorers found the remains of the original paint under the plaster of the palace facade, and this hard-to-determine color (pinkish-orange-yellow) was very different from the usual colors, confirming the story of the glove ^[9] .

Before the 1917 Revolution

Use of the castle by the Ministry of the Imperial Court

Accommodation at the castle of the Engineering College

Soviet time. Organizations in the building

Transfer to the Russian Museum and work in its composition

The transfer process to the Russian Museum. Restoration and discovery

Work in the Russian Museum

Permanent exhibition plans and temporary exhibitions

Lecture Hall of the Russian Museum

Copying and preserving in the castle the originals of ancient sculptures of the Summer Garden

Tickets

For adults - 350 rubles, for children and students - 150 rubles. Preferential rates for citizens of the Russian Federation: for adults - 150 rubles, preferential - 30 rubles, family ticket (up to 4 people) - 250 rubles, entrance ticket for 6 visits per year - 500 rubles. Photography - 200 rubles. A free line-up entry is available for tourists who have purchased the St. Petersburg Guest Card .

Monuments to two Russian emperors were erected in the courtyard of the castle and in front of its main facade with an interval of 203.

• In 1800, a monument to Peter I was erected on the square in front of the castle with the inscription "Great-grandfather's great-grandson" , cast in 1745-1747 according to the model of the sculptor B. K. Rastrelli , made during the life of Peter I. The pedestal lined with marble was carved by the architect F. I. Volkov . The bronze bas-reliefs “Poltava Battle” and “The Battle of Gangut”, created by young sculptors V. I. Demut-Malinovsky , I. I. Terebenev and I. E. Moiseev under the leadership of M. I. Kozlovsky, are strengthened on it.
• In 2003, a monument to Paul I by the sculptor V.E. Gorevoy , architect V.I. Nalivaiko was erected in the courtyard of the castle.

On July 5, 2017, the Bank of Russia issued commemorative silver coins with a face value of 25 rubles “Vincenzo Brenna” in the series “Architectural Masterpieces of Russia”. The coin contains relief images of the portrait of the architect Vincenzo Brenna and Mikhailovsky Castle in St. Petersburg ^[27] .

• История Михайловского замка на сайте Русского Музея
• Виртуальный тур по Михайловскому замку
• Официальная информация о филиале Русского музея
• Exhibitions and expositions in Mikhailovsky Castle