Lesson two exploring the city

I. Read the texts using a dictionary, if necessary.

II. Tell the class about one or two major sights of the city that you like most. Use some additional information of your own.

III. Conduct an exertions in our city. Use photos, pictures, maps, etc.

1. The University Embankment – the Spit of Vasilievsky Island;

2. The Palace Square –the Admiralty - St. Isaac’s Square;

3. Peter and Paul Fortress – the Summer Garden – the Field of Mars;

4. The Griboyedov Channel – the Kazan Cathedral;

5. A Walk Along Nevsky Avenue.

You may also choose the route to your liking.

IV. Write a composition:

1. “I love you, Peter’s creation…”

2. St. Petersburg – One of the Most Beautiful Cities in the World.

3. St. Petersburg – an Open-Air Museum.

Text 1. A Kaleidoscope of Palaces

There is perhaps no other place in the world with as many palaces as St. Petersburg. No one would try to tell the exact number of them. They contribute to a severe, well laid-out urban landscape of St. Petersburg. Their history comprises both the history of the Northern capital and the people who built it.

The Menshikov Palace. Alexander Menshikov was Peter the Great’s closest associate and friend and the first Governor General of St. Petersburg. In 1709 Peter presented Menshikov with Vasilievsky Island and Alexander built his palace their. His first palace was made of wood, and in 1710 a large stone palace with a garden was laid. It was the most luxurious building in St. Petersburg. Its style combined traditional Russian and West European methods and forms of architecture. Lavish festivities, great banquets and official diplomatic receptions were held there. Since 1731 the palace housed a privileged military educational establishment, known later as the first Cadet School.

It was rebuilt several times, and only at the end of the 20^thcentury it was restored to its original appearance. In 1981 it became a branch of State Hermitage.

Commentary: associate –помощник,партнер; banquet –банкет; festivity –празднество,торжество; Governor General –Генерал-губернатор; lavish –расточительный; luxurious –роскошный.

The Mariinsky Palace was built between 1839 and 1844 by Andrey Stakenschneider for Maria, Nicholas I’s daughter. As a wedding present Nicholas commissioned to build a magnificent palace on one of the main squares of St. Petersburg when his daughter married the Duke of Leuchtenberg. In 1884 her descendants sold this palace to the Exchequer. After being rebuilt in 1906 – 1907 it became the seat of the State Council, the highest legislative body of the Russian Empire, and governmental center for St. Petersburg.

The Palace was constructed in a classical style. Fire-resistant materials and the latest architectural technologies were used by the architect. He demonstrated rich fantasy in designing the interiors of the palace.

The Mariinsky Palace was never turned into a museum, unlike many other buildings of the same status.

In 1859 a monument to Nicholas I was erected in front of the palace. The tsar is depicted in cavalry uniform and a helmet decorated with an eagle. The rider is sitting proudly and haughtily. The sculptor conveyed the tsar’s love for military exercise, his vanity, cruelty and arrogance. The most impressive thing about this monument is that it is an example of a statue on two points of support.

Commentary: arrogance –высокомерие; to commission –даватьзаказ(архитектору,художнику); to convey –выражать,передавать; State Council –Гос.Дума; descendant –потомок,наследник; duke –герцог; Exchequer –Казначейство(Министерствофинансов); haughtily ['ho:tili] –надменно,высокомерно; helmet –шлем; vanity –тщеславие.

The Marble Palace is located not far from theField of Mars.After the foundation of St. Petersburg there was the Post Yard with a hostel there.

The palace was erected between 1768 and 1785. It was intended for Catherine II’s favourite Count Grigory Orlov, but he died before the construction ended. After that the palace was the residence of the last Polish King, then it belonged to Tsesarevich Konstantin Pavlovich and Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich.

The palace was given its name because 32 sorts of marble were used in its façade and interior decorations. It is one of the buildings where natural stones of different kinds are used instead of more common plaster. The style of this building represents a transition from Baroque to Classicism.

Commentary:Count –граф; Grand Duke –ВеликийКнязь; hostel –постоялыйдвор(гостиница); marble –мрамор; plaster –штукатурка; Post Yard –ПочтовыйДвор; transition –переход

The Mikhailovsky Palace was built between 1819 and 1825. The palace was erected for the youngest son of Paul I, Grand Duke Michael, Nicholas I’s brother.

The façade overlooks the square and the street leading to Nevsky Avenue. Rossi, the architect, considered it reminiscent of Louvre.

The main staircase and the White Hall have survived to this day in their original appearance.

In 1898 the palace was turned into a Museum of Russian Art. It was Emperor Alexander III’s will. The core of the collection consisted of items that had belonged to members of the Romanov family and of pictures from the Russian Picture Gallery in the Hermitage and the Academy of Arts. The museum had 37 exhibition halls. There were 434 pieces of art in it.

At present the collection including painting, graphic art, sculpture, decorative and folk art amounts to more than 400,000 exhibits representing national art from the 11^thcentury. Particularly rich is the art collection of the 18^thto 20^thcenturies. It is the world’s largest collection.

In front of the palace in the center of the garden there is a monument to the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin unveiled in 1957.

Commentary: exhibit –экспонат; to include –включать; folk –народный; Grand Duke –ВеликийКнязь; to overlook – выходитьна; piece –зд. картинa; reminiscent –напоминание; staircase –лестница; to unveil –торжественнооткрывать; will –завещание.

The Stroganov Palace is a fine monument to the Elizabethan Baroque. By its architecture it is very similar to the Winter Palace though it was erected a bit earlier, in 1753-1754.

The palace belonged to the counts Stroganovs. Alexander Stroganov was President of the Academy of Arts, so the palace was gradually turning into a repository of art collections of Western European and Russian painting.. The palace remained property of the Stroganov family until 1917 and after the revolution it was turned into a historical museum of daily life. In 1988 it became a branch of the State Russian Museum housing an exhibition of decorative and applied arts.

Commentary:applied art –прикладноеискусство; count –граф; repository –хранилище; to turn (into) –превращать

The Sheremetev Palace is also known by the name the “Fountain House” as it overlooks the Fontanka River.

In 1712 Peter the Great presented this plot of land to Field Marshal Boris Sheremetev. But Count Sheremetev had never lived there himself as he had a splendid house not far from Millionnaya Street. The first owner of the house was his son.

It was a wooden building at first but in 1750-1755 a big two-storeyed stone palace was erected. Behind it there was a spacious park, a regular garden with classical sculptures and fountains, a grotto and a Chinese bower.

In front of the palace there is a remarkable railing. The gates are decorated with the Sheremetev’s coat of arms.

This palace was well known among many great people. Michael Glinka often visited it; Orest Kiprensky lived in this house and there he painted his famous portrait of A. Pushkin.

In 1924-1952 a famous poetess Anna Akhmatova, the “Sappho of the 20^thcentury, lived there. Her flat is a memorial museum nowadays.

In 1990 the Museum of Theatre and Music was organized there.

Commentary:bower –беседка; count –граф; fountain ['fauntin] –фонтан; grotto –грот,пещера; to overlook –выходитьна; plot –участокземли; Sappho ['sepfou] –Сапфо(Сафо) –древнегреческаяпоэтесса7-6вв.дон.э.; spacious –просторный; coat of arms -герб

Hidden away on the MoikaRiver is theYusoupov Palace.Its construction dates back to the times of the city’s foundation. The estate originally belonged to Count Petr Shuvalov. In 1830 the palace became the property of one of the Russia’s richest family – the Yusoupovs. The Palace has become part of the Russian history, as this is the place where Grigory Rasputin, the favourite of the last Russian Emperor’s family was murdered. Much of the Palace’s decorations have survived to this day – furniture, chandeliers, and fireplaces. The interiors of the Great Rotunda, the Blue and Red Drawing Rooms with their magnificent ceiling paintings, the Ball Room and the White Column Hall are open to the public.

Commentary:estate –поместье; favourite –фаворит; chandelier –люстра

Text 2.The Spit of Vasilevsky Island and the University Embankment

Vasilevsky Island, the largest of the islands in the Neva Delta, was developed according to a strict building plan. In 1710 Peter decided to make it the center of his newly built capital as he had envisioned that the center of St. Petersburg would eventually move to this area, and he wanted it to be both orderly and aesthetically pleasing. The first center of the city onBerezovy (now Petrogradsky) Island was anything but orderly, built to accommodate the workers. Most of the houses were made of timber; the crooked streets were lined with houses covered with clay and daub.

Having decided to move the center of the city to Vasilevsky Island, Peter wanted to create beautiful quays that would impress everyone arriving by boat. His idea was to build a new harbor on the cape of Vasilevsky Island from which visitors could view both Peter and Paul Fortress and the palaces on the opposite bank of the Neva. His plan included straight streets and prospects that would form wide squares and a network of canals. It was a tremendous plan for an “ideal” city-fortress, but it did not take into account the meanderings of the Neva River nor did it make allowances that the General Architect’s ideas were ahead of their time.

The dominant structure, the Stock Exchange, was the first building erected here. It reminds an ancient Greek temple installed on a high pedestal. Gently sloping ramps led down to the Neva, and huge stone balls were installed very close to the water. At both sides of the Stock Exchange building there werewarehousesand theCustoms House. The warehouses accommodate the Zoological Museum now, the Stock Exchange houses the Naval Museum and the former Customs House is occupied by the Institute of Russian Literature, the Pushkin House.

The twin Rostral Columnsstanding out against the Stock Exchange were installed between 1805 and 1810. These enormous columns once served as lighthouses; directing the ships entering the Neva. Until 1837 there was a port there and for a long time this was one of the busiest parts of the city. In the second half of the 19^thcentury the commercial port moved closer to the Gulf of Finland, and the Rostral Columns lost their utility.

During the reign of Alexander I the eastern end of Vasilevsky Island was greatly changed. The idea to turn the Spit into the main square of Petersburg belonged to Peter, but it was only at the beginning of the 18^thcentury that a unique architectural ensemble was created there.

In 1722 the first architectural competition was announced inviting to submit plans for the newly established “Petrine Colleges”. The Colleges were the twelve administrative departments that formed the state organization established by Peter. They were reorganized into ministries at the beginning of the 19^thcentury. In 1819 St. Petersburg University took control of the buildings, and many Russians have made this educational institution famous.

The construction of Kunstkamera(the Curiosity Chamber) started in 1718 and was over in 1734. First, the private collections of Peter the Great were exhibited in this building – rare stones, stuffed exotic animals and anatomical preparations. Until the late 18^thcentury this building was the seat of the Academy of Sciences, and Mikhail Lomonosov, the founder of the Academy, worked there from 1741 to 1765.

The main façade of the Academy of Artsoverlooks the Neva embankment. The idea of establishing a Russian artistic school belonged to Peter the Great but it was realized only partly at his time. After Peter’s death it became the first institution in Russia where architects, painters, and sculptors could study fine arts. This huge, imposing building was erected near the palace of the first Governor General of St. Petersburg. Striking in its size, the building stands out among other palaces that line the embankments of the Neva. Features of “Russian classicism” were used here for the first time.

The graduates of the Academy of Arts deserved the world-wide recognition: Oleg Kiprensky, Karl Bryullov, Ivan Ayvazovsky, Ilya Repin, Valentin Serov, Andrey Voronikhin and many others were among them.

A “temple”of sciencewas also erected on the University Embankment near the Kunstkamera. Many gifted and faithful associates helped to raise Catherine II’s ideas to turn Russia into a powerful European country. In 1783 Catherine appointed Catherine Dashkova Director of the Academy of Sciences. With the Empress’s support Dashkova did much for the development of Russian science. She increased the book collection of the Academy’s library, sponsored scientific expeditions to all parts of Russia, and it was on her initiative that a new Russian Academy was created.

Opposite the Academy of Arts there is a granite pier. On the upper terrace there are bronze lamps, the lower terrace is decorated with two Egyptian sphinxeson high pedestals. The sphinxes are a thousand years older than the Neva. They were found in ancient Thebes, the ancient capital of Egypt. They were bought by Russia in 1831, and since that time the mysterious mythological creatures have become a notable symbol of the Northern capital.

Commentary: to envision –предвидеть; eventually –современем; orderly and aesthetically –привлекательныйсэстетическойtточкизренияисточкизренияпланировки; timber –лес(строительный); clay –глина; daub [do:b] –штукатуркаизстроительногораствораисоломы; quay [ki:]–причал; meandering [mi' nd ri ]–извилистый,извивающийся; to make allowances –приниматьвовнимание; warehouse –торговыйсклад,пакгауз; Customs House –зданиетаможни; lighthouse –маяк; stuffed animals –чучелаживотных; fine arts –изобразительныеискусства; imposing –производящийсильноевпечатление;импозантный; Thebes [] –г. Фивы; granite pier –гранитнаяпристань; ancient –древний,античный

Text 3. St. Petersburg’s Bridges

In Peter’s reign there were no bridges over the rivers of St. Petersburg. Some historians assume that Peter wanted to accustom Russians to navigation and made them use boats. Others think that bridges prevented from navigating. Anyhow, a special decree ordered every owner of a house and even a lodger to have a boat for transportation across the river, as they had a carriage on the land.

The first bridge was erected over the KronverkskyChannel. It connectedZayachy Island, where the construction of Peter and Paul Fortress was taking place, andBeryozovyIsland, the first city center. It wasPetrovsky(Ioannovsky) Bridge.

The first bridge over the Neva was erected in 1850 during the reign of Nicholas I. Its construction presented many difficult engineering problems to its builders, and necessitated the first use of air-bells (воздушныепузыри) so that piles could be driven into the rapid, strong waters of the Neva. Originally this bridge was namedBlagoveshchensky (Annunciation) Bridge, but after the death of the Emperor in 1855 it became theNikolaevsky Bridge. It isLieutenant SchmidtBridge now. Constructed without a single rivet (заклепка) it was also the first welded (сварной) iron bridge.

The city’s first permanent stone bridges and piers, as well as its gorgeous wrought-iron railings, were created during Catherine II’s reign.

A paradoxical situation occurred at the turn of the 20^thcentury. A large tract of land near Peter and Paul Fortress where the first governmental offices and stone buildings had been constructed remained undeveloped and uninhabited. Originally the area around the fortress had been left this way on purpose, as it made it impossible for enemies to approach its walls unnoticed. Then, in the middle of the 19^thcentury, a park was laid out there, but the authorities of the city still considered this area undesirable. The situation changed radically when the newTroitsky Bridge was built to commemorate the 200^thanniversary of the city. A long steel bridge (the longest one until the 1960s) terminated theField of MarsandPetersburgIsland, and the wealthy began to buy land there for their homes.

All in all, there are eight bridges across the Neva now. Together with the bridges over the MoikaandFontankarivers andGriboyedovChannel they became masterpieces in the world’s art.

One of the symbols of St. Petersburg is the AnichkovBridge with expressive sculptural ensembles on it. TheAnichkovBridge is situated where Nevsky Prospect and theFontankaRiver intersect. It was rebuilt three times, but its name has never been changed. It was named after the Admiralty engineer Major Mikhail Anichkov.

The first wooden bridge was built in this place in 1715. The present bridge was built between 1839 and 1841. It is 54 meters long and 37 meters wide. Its main decorations are four “tamed horses”. These sculptures won Pyotr Klodt the world fame.

One group depicts a young man leading a horse; another depicts a youth trying to control a mettlesome horse.

Klodt finished working on the first two sculptures in 1841. He cast them in bronze. Each sculpture was repeated and the two pairs were to be placed symmetrically on the bridge corners. However, Nicholas I ordered to send two of the statues to Berlin as a present to the Prussian King. They were installed in front of the Grand Palace. The remaining two sculptures were presented to the King of Naples and placed in the San Carlo Theatre Garden in Naples.

Thus the two pairs of the alabaster copies were placed on the bridge. It took Klodt several years to sculpture and cast new sculptures that appeared to be even more impressive. They were mounted on the granite pediments in 1850.

The struggle of a man and a willful rebellious horse is the theme of the sculptures. The sculptor demonstrated brilliant knowledge of the human and horse anatomy; he managed to reproduce the strain of the struggle between man and animal very convincingly.

Commentary: reign –царствование,правление; to accustom –приучать; lodger –жилец; pile –свая,столб; gorgeous –великолепный,пышный; wrought-iron railings –решетки,изготовленныеизковкоймягкойстали; tract –полосапространства(земли, леса, воды); to commemorate –праздновать(годовщину);воознаменование; the wealthy –богачи,знать; ensemble –архитектурныйпамятник; to intersect –пересекаться; major –майор; sculpture –скульптура;ваять,высекать,лепить; tamed –укрощенный; mettlesome –смелый,рьяный; to mount –устанавливать;поднимать; alabaster –алебастр,гипс; pediment –(архитект.) фронтон; willful –своенравный; rebellious –непокорный; strain –напряжение

Text 4. The Squares of St. Petersburg

Life, or perhaps death had frustrated Peter the Great’s plans to move the center of St. Petersburg to VasilevskyIsland. Instead, the center had developed spontaneously on the left bank of the Neva. In the early 1730s royal residences and mansions of the nobility were built along the left embankment. The steeple of the Admiralty and St. Isaac’s Cathedral also rose above the northern area of the city, while Nevsky Prospect stretched southeastwards to Alexander Nevsky Monastery.

Historians credit Peter Eropkin, a brilliant architect and builder, with the design of the central part of the city, the famous “Neva Trident”. This “Trident “ consists of three avenues forking out from the tower of the Admiralty like three rays. It was Eropkin’s idea that one should be able to see the gilded steeple of the Admiralty, crowned with the gilded ship, from any of these three prospects. The most important among them is Nevsky Prospect, the busiest avenue in the capital.

The Admiralty was founded by Peter the Great in 1704 and at first it was an earthen fortress. Then it had been reconstructed several times. It took seventeen years from 1806 to 1823 to construct the modern building of the Admiralty symbolizing Russia’s access to sea, and numerous sculptures are dedicated to the glory of the Russian Navy. In front of the Admiralty there once was a large square from which the “Neva Trident” forked out. Today this square is the Alexander Garden.

Walking down Nevsky Prospect from the Admiralty one can’t help admiring the main square of the city – Palace Square. During many years it was a miserable place, for there was neither time nor money for the Russian monarchs to rebuild the area around their chief residence. In the middle of the 18^thcentury cows grazed in the meadow there. Only in the spring of 1819 Rossi was commissioned to make a splendid and solemn square to glorify the leading country in Europe. The gigantic double arch of the General Staff Headquarters and a magnificent bow-shaped building emphasize the harmony and efficiency of the architectural ensemble that surround the Winter Palace.

To make it possible to see the Palace Square from the Neva Nicholas I ordered to pave a wide passage between the eastern wing of the Admiralty and the Winter Palace and to build a pier on the embankment. Rossi created a wide granite slope to the river and decorated it with iron cast lions. When the Palace Bridge was built over the Neva this pier was moved down the Neva current.

On August 30, 1834 Palace Square was crowded with people to unveil the Alexander Column. Two years had passed since the monolith was installed there, and now its granite base, bronze decorations and the statue on its top were finally being revealed to the public. The Alexander Column was not placed at the geometrical center of Palace Square; it was installed on the same axis with the grandiose Arch of the General Staff so that it appeared framed by the Triumphal Arch and can be seen from Bolshaya Morskaya Street.

Rossi demonstrated his unusual abilities creating the architectural ensembles of St. Petersburg. He laid out the whole area from Nevsky Prospect to the Field of Mars. One of his masterpieces is the Square of Artswhere a splendid edifice of the Russian Museum is located.

Rossi’s first town-planning work in St. Petersburg was to reconstruct the Anichkov Palace and to create a harmonious square that faced Nevsky Prospect. He dreamed to design a square comparable with the square in front of the KazanCathedral. This square was planned to connect the first public library and the garden of the Anichkov Palace. The solution of the problem were pavilions, small in size but imposing and elegant, which connected the two ensembles. It isOstrovsky Square now.

Carlo Rossi designed the building of the theatre which was called Alexandrinsky after Alexandra, the wife of Nicholas I. Alexandra played an outstanding part in the country’s public life. The most famous actors performed on its stage, such as Komissarzhevskaya, Savvina, Strepetova, Davydov. Pushkin, Gogol, Nekrasov and Belinsky attended its performances.

In the center of OstrovskySquare, in front of theAlexandrinskyTheatre, there is a monument to Catherine II. It took twelve years to design and construct the monument, and it was finally unveiled in 1873. The sculptor managed to visually convey why Catherine was called the “Great”. The Empress is depicted in an ermine mantle, holding a scepter and a laurel wreath. The Emperor and members of the city government insisted on depicting her with her close associates, but choosing those who would be immortalized was not easy. Catherine was energetic, strong-willed, strong-minded, and diligent, and she chose gifted people for the realization of her plans. Around the pedestal there are figures of nine statesmen and military leaders of her time.

Another masterpiece of Carlo Rossi is Decembrist’s Square (originallySenateSquare). It was called Senate because the buildings of Senate and Synod were constructed opposite the Admiralty. On August 18, 1782, the centenary of Peter the Great’s accession to the throne, the monument was unveiled before a huge crowd. The “Bronze Horseman” has immortalized the names of its creators ever since.

There is one more square in St. Petersburg which is worth mentioning. It’s St.Isaac’s Square. The greatest architectural ensembles here include the monument to Nicholas I, the focal point of the square, the Mariinsky Palace and St. Isaac’s Cathedral. Built to glorify the victory of the Russian Empire over Napoleon, the Cathedral with its gilded dome has also become one of the symbols of St. Petersburg. It is the third largest cathedral in the world with astonishingly beautiful interiors, 112 columns of varying sizes, and the bells cast from old Siberian five-kopeck coins. The dome of St. Isaac’s can be seen from practically any point in the city.

Commentary:to frustrate –расстраивать,срывать; steeple -шпиль; to credit –приписывать; trident –трезубец; to fork out –ответвляться,отходить; to graze –пастись,щипатьтраву; meadow –луг; be commissioned –получитьзаказ; to unveil –торжественнооткрывать; edifice –здание,сооружение; ermine mantle –горностаеваямантия; scepter -скипетр; laurel wreath –лавровыйвенок; to immortalize –увековечить,обессмертить; centenary -столетие; accession to the throne –восхождениенатрон; focal –центральный; gilded –позолоченный; dome –купол

Text 5. A Pearl Necklace of Suburbs

Almost immediately after St. Petersburg’s foundation numerous out-of-town residences began to spring up around the city. Now they encircle the Northern Capital like a pearl necklace adding to its charm and beauty.

The Exquisite Delight of Oranienbaum.The town ofLomonosov(originallyOranienbaum) is 40 km from St. Petersburg on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland. The origin of it name is connected with an episode in the Northern war: a small orangery with Seville orange trees was found on the site for the future manor house. And on each tree there was an inscription “Oranienbaum”. In 1948 the estate was named after M. Lomonosov.

The ensemble includes the Grand (Menshikov) Palace, an amusing “fortress” named Peterstadt, and the personal Dacha with the Chinese Palace and the Sliding Hill Pavilion. This summer residence had once belonged to A. Menshikov. Then it was presented to Grand Duke Pert Fedorovich after announcing him heir to the throne.

Oranienbaumis the only suburb which was not occupied during the WWII.

Inspired by victories in the Northern War Peter I decided to construct a new summer residence named Peterhofthough he had such a residence inStrelna. Peter’s dream was to build his own “Versailles on the Sea”, so he himself designed an ensemble including palaces, pavilions and parks and his famous fountains and cascades. In 1723 the opening of the new residence was celebrated. Peter himself led a small fleet along the canal, and more than one hundred boats were tied up along its walls. Unfortunately, Peter did not live to see his dreams put into practice, and his daughter Elizabeth did her best to emulate her father in every possible way. The Peterhof Palace was extended, its interior decorations considerably changed, galleries, wings a church and a pavilion were added, and finally the statue of Samson tearing apart the jaws of a lion was placed in the center of a huge basin. Sicne the middle of the 18^thcentury Peterhof has become the favourite retreat for the Tsar’s family. State receptions and celebrations were held there until the October revolt of 1917.

The town of Pushkin (the formerTsar’s Village) occupies a special place among the suburbs of St. Petersburg not only because of its magnificent Catherine Palace with a legendary Amber Room and splendid parks with romantic sculptures, mirror-like ponds, and elegant pavilions, but also because it is connected with the youth of the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin.

Another place of interest in Pushkin is the Alexander Park and theAlexander Palace. The Palace is associated with the last page in the history of the Russian Empire: it was from here that Nicholas II and his family set of to meet their cruel death inEkaterinburg.

Pavlovsk is also a unique ensemble that continues to impress visitors with its natural and man-made beauty and its collections of Russian and European art. A tract on the banks of a beautifulSlavyanka River was presented by Catherine II to her son Paul and his wife Maria on the birth of their fist son – the future Alexander I. Two modest two-storey palaces soon went up –Paullust (Paul’s Pleasure) andMarienthal (Maria’s Valley). Charles. Cameron designed the Grand Palace, the Temple of Friendship, the Apollo Colonnade, the Cold Baths, a hanging garden, and the gallery that bears his name.

For many years Pavlovsk witnessed the growth and domestic life of Paul’s family for Paul had never really felt his mother’s love or affection and he had never trusted Catherine.

After Paul’s accession to the throne Pavlovsk became an official Imperial residence. The Grand Palace and the park were significantly reconstructed by such outstanding architects as Vincenzio Brenna and Andrei Voronikhin. Maria bequeathed Pavlovsk to her youngest son Michael because she believed that he would never become Emperor and would never remodel or change it. This was indeed the case. Her descendants carefully preserved Pavlovsk, and despite revolutions and wars its priceless collections survived almost intact.. Today the museum in Pavlovsk remains a wonderful tribute to Paul and Maria’s epoch.

Gatchinais one of the most picturesque places in the North-West of Russia. The abundance of water and vegetation, the severity of northern nature and magnificent ensembles of the 18^thand 19^thcenturies give the town its specific charm.

Catherine II gave Gatchina to her favourite, Count Grigory Orlov; it was for him that architect Antonio Rinaldi built a majestic and mysterious Palace with romantically styled towers and a huge park on the shore of the White Lake. This building is reminiscent of a medieval English castle surrounded by the waters of the Silver Lake. Its massive proportions make it quite different from other suburban residences.

Later Gatchina became Paul I’s possession, and on his request it was redesigned by Vincenzio Brenna who added it the romanticism of English and Italian castles. There appeared gardens on specially built terraces, the Silvia Park, the artificial Island of Love, the water labyrinth and the Botanical Gardens.

Today Gatchina is a museum of palace decorations; it conducts concerts of ancient music and bell-ringing performances, military parades and fireworks. Many presentations and festivals are also held here.

Commentary:orangery –апельсиновыйсад; manor –помещичийдом,поместье; Sliding Hill –катальнаягорка; heir to the throne –наследникпрестола; estate –поместье; favourite –фаворит; chandelier –люстра; to emulate –стремитьсяпревзойти; retreat –убежище,приют; affection –привязанность,любовь; to bequeath –завещать,передаватьпотомкам; a descendant –потомок; intact –нетронутый,целый; tribute –дань,должное