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The Park and Palace ensemble of Tsarskoe Selo (Tsar's Village) is an exquisite monument of Russian art and culture with a world-wide reputation. In the course of two centuries Tsarskoe Selo became the summer residence of Russian Tsars. During this period the most famous architects, painters, and craftsmen of the time created that fantastic world whose splendour equals the most magnificent and richest residences of Europe.
On three grounds covering a general area of about 1482.6 acres more than one hundred buildings, from majestic palaces and historical monuments to pavilions and small bridges are situated. The oldest structure in Tsarskoe Selo, which forms the centre of the whole ensemble, is the Catherine Palace. The architectural history of the Catherine Palace, indeed of the architectural ensemble of Tsarskoe Selo in its entirety, began in the early 18th century when estates along the Baltic coast were being developed. At that time there was a small estate with the Finnish name "Saari Mojs" (Dairy Farm on the Hill) situated on a high hill 26 km from St. Petersburg, precisely on the site of today's Catherine Palace and the grounds immediately surrounding it.
In order to develop these estates near the new capital, St. Petersburg, Peter I donated a number of properties to his confidants. Several country houses were then built on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. Some of them were of short existence, while others served as the foundations for summer residences that were built in the 18th century, such as Tsarskoe Selo, Peter's Court, and Oranienbaum. In the year 1708 Peter I gave the estate "Saari Mojs" to his wife Catherine Alekseyevna. It was soon renamed "Saarskoje Selo" and later "Tsarskoe Selo". From 1717 to 1723 architect J.Braunstein constructed a smaller house, the Palace of the 16 Rich Rooms, for Catherine Alekseyevna. A garden was laid out in front of the house, greenhouses and orangeries were erected in the back. Major construction work was done during the reign of Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter I. Tsarskoye Selo was modernised and enlarged.
The most famous Russian architects of the time, M.T. Zemtsov, A.W. Kvasov, S. I. Chevakinski, F. B. Rastrelli and others, participated in the construction of the Palace, which began in 1744 and lasted up to 1756. The great Palace, later named, after its first owner, Catherine Alekseyevna, Catherine Palace, was not even completed, when Tsarskoye Selo became summer residence. Several pavilions such as the "Hermitage", the "Grotto" and "Monbijou" were erected. Tsarskoe Selo was transformed into a majestic architectural ensemble that surpassed all other residences in Russia in size and splendour. Foreign ambassadors were received there, treaties signed, and court festivities celebrated.
In the second half of the 18th century, a new era in the history of Tsarskoe Selo began, as it was the favourite domicile of Catherine II. A number of rooms in the Great Palace were refurbished, and the grounds were enlarged. The residence thus came close to its present form. The architects C. Cameron, G. Quarenghi, A. Rinaldi, J. Felten, W. I. Nejolov and I. W. Nilov contributed to the construction of the Palace. They also erected several buildings around the Catherine Palace: the northern wing and the southern complex including the Cold Bathhouse with its agate rooms, the Promenade Gallery (Cameron Gallery), surrounded by a Colonnade, the Roof Garden connecting both buildings with the Palace on the second floor, and the gentle slope from the garden to the park (drive). The entire complex was built in the style of ancient Roman thermal baths.
Simultaneously, south of the enlarged old park, new grounds were laid out with monuments dedicated to the glorious Russian victories during the Russo-Turkish War from 1768 to 1774, as well as numerous smaller buildings influenced by various styles of European and Eastern art (Concert Hall, Creaky or Chinese Summer House, Great Caprice etc.). The large lake with its islands forms the compositional centre of the grounds. The Court Architect Quarenghi designed the plans for Alexander Palace that was begun in 1792 for Catherine's grandson, the later Emperor Alexander I. The Park in which the Palace is located was named Alexander Park.
By the middle of the 19th century the Park and Palace ensemble of Tsarskoe Selo took on its present appearance. Up to 1917 Tsarskoe Selo served as the summer residence of the Russian Emperors. The last Russian Emperor, Nicholas II, lived there until his death. After the fall of the Monarchy the Tsar's residences were nationalised. The Palaces and grounds of Tsarskoe Selo became art historical museums. In line with revolutionary furore of the times the names of the Park and Palace ensemble and of the adjoining town were changed. Homes and sanatoriums for children were opened in the palaces of the Tsars and nobility, so some months after the Bolshevik take-over, in 1918, the town was renamed Detskoje Selo (Children's Town). This effort to convert the artistic and historical monuments of the Tsarskoe Selo to revolutionary purposes was more political than practical in nature and was soon abandoned. In the ensuing period the town gained importance not only as an art historical centre, but also as a literary landmark. The great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin had lived and studied in Tsarskoe Selo. In 1937, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Pushkin's death, the poet's name was conferred on the town of Detskoye Selo and the name was exchanged for its second time in the Soviet period. Finally, in the 1990s the town's historic name was restored as Tsarskoe Selo.
The art collection of the Catherine Palace includes more than 20,000 objects, many of them extraordinary. Among the most precious items in the Palace we find Russian and Western European paintings from the 17th to 19th centuries, furniture designed by master craftsmen such as Chippendale, Georges Jacob, Roentgen, Russian and French bronzes from the 18th and 19th centuries as well as sculptures and Russian and Western European porcelain.
In addition to their extraordinary artistic value, the exhibits' historical importance should not be overlooked. Just as the reigns of Tsarinas like Elizabeth I and Catherine II and that of Tsar Alexander I represent stages in the history of Tsarskoe Selo, their portraits can reflect the past of the Tsar's Village as well as watercolours, gouaches, and engravings of different periods depict palaces, parks, and pavilions in Tsarskoe Selo (some of which have yet been restored from the damage of the Second World War, and may only be seen in these old illustrations shown in the exhibition), and objects of applied art are able to illustrate the eqipment of palace interiors, or costumes help imagine the Tsar's wardrobes.
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