Plan of the Petrodvorets parks 1. Fountains of the GREAT CASCADE and the sculptural group SAMSON, Tearing the Lion's Mouth 2. FANS OF THE BOWL 3. BIG PALACE 4. Upper Garden 5. Pavilion ORANGE and the fountain TRITON 6. Fountains ROMAN 7. CASCADE CHESS MOUNTAIN 8. The Fountain of Pyramid 9. Monument to Peter I 10. Fountain SUN 11. Western Aviary 12. MONPLESIR Palace 13. EKATERININSKAYA CASE of the Monplaisir Palace 14. ADAM Fountain 15. EVA Fountain 16. The Hermitage Pavilion 17. MARLEY PALACE 18. Cascade GOLDEN MOUNTAIN 19. FARMING PALACE 20. Palace COTTAGE

The cabinet of Alexandra Fedorovna /The Study of Alexandra Fyodorovna

Large living room / The Grand Drawing Room

3 Library

Dining Room / The Dining Room

The Staircase Staircase

X Cabinet of Nicholas I  / The Study of Nicholas 1

Small Reception Room

Dressing / The Dressing Room

Living room of Maria Fyodorovna / The Drawing Room of Maria Fyodorovna

The Room before the Classroom Balcony

Children's / The Nursery

Cabinet of Maria Fyodorovna / The Study of Maria Fyodorovna

Marine Cabinet / The Naval Study

Palace Cottage   - The main architectural structure of Alexandria Park in Petrodvorets.

The palace is located on the upper terrace, in the southeastern part of the park, from where a panorama of the Gulf of Finland opens with the outlines of Leningrad and Kronstadt visible in the distance. On all sides, the Cottage is surrounded by a landscape park with shady alleys, winding paths, lawns, curtains of trees and shrubs.

The cottage was built in 1826-1829. according to the project of architect A. Melas in the so-called “Gothic” style, which was widely used in Russian architecture at the end of the 18th – first third of the 19th centuries. A small two-story building with an attic is decorated with acute-angle pediments, lancet arcades, bay windows, rosettes, arched belts , crucifixes. trefoils.

Academician of painting D.-B. took part in the construction and decoration of the interiors of the palace. Scotty, the carver V. Zakharov, the sculptor M. Sokolov, many talented Russian craftsmen - SUVs, joiners, plasterers, masons and other craftsmen.

Cottage is characterized by the unity of decorative decoration and interior decoration, which is achieved by applying Gothic motifs in the molding, painting, carving and ornamentation of objects of applied art. Openwork molding of ceilings in the form of Gothic lattices, arches, brackets is combined with ornamental painting, complementing the design of interiors. An important element of the architectural and artistic decor of the rooms is the virtuoso carving of the window and door slopes, a strict geometric pattern of the parquet. Gothic ornament repeats in handmade carpets, decorstoves, marble fireplaces, furniture. Watches, candelabra, chandeliers are also made in the Gothic style.

A significant role in interior design is played by paintings that adorn the walls and ceilings of many rooms. The staircase walls were painted according to the sketches of D.-B. Scotty refers to the period of the highest flowering of the artist. Made using the grisaille technique, it reproduces the interior of a medieval castle. About victories in the Russian-Turkish war of 1828-1829 It resembles a stone mounted in the lobby wall, taken by Russian troops during the assault on Varna fortress. In the artistic decoration of the palace, paintings, prints, miniature portraits, bronze and marble sculptures by Russian and Western European masters occupy a large place. The premises of the palace are a typical example of the Russian residential interior of the Romantic era.

The cottage was the summer residence of Nicholas I and his wife Alexandra Fedorovna.

The ground floor houses the most interesting interiors for artistic decoration. Here are the cabinet of Alexandra Fedorovna, the Large lounge, as well as the Library, the Big and Small reception rooms.

In 1842-1843 the project architect A. Shtackenschneider attached to the cottage is a dining room with a marble terrace. In the external niche of the wall of the northern facade of the building, the architect placed the sculpture group “Madonna and Child” by I. Vitali.

In addition to the Cabinet of Nicholas I, which repeats the large living room of the first floor in size and some elements of decoration, the rooms of the second floor are small and their decoration is more restrained. Several rooms were designedstarted for children. Adjoining the tent-shaped Learning Balcony adjoins them. In the 90s. XIX century The study on the second floor was designed by architect R. Melzer in modern style for the widow of Alexander III, Maria Fedorovna.

Until 1917, Alexandria Park and the palaces located on its territory were the personal property of the Russian emperors, vigilantly guarded by Cossacks and police. Access to the park was strictly limited.

After the Great October Socialist Revolution, the Cottage Palace was turned into a historical and art museum, the doors of which were widely opened for workers. The materials of the exposition, created on a scientific basis, made it possible to conduct a large number of excursions introducing visitors to Russian and Western European art in the second quarter of the 19th century.

At the beginning of World War II, most of the museum exhibits were evacuated (out of 2500 objects that were on display, 1980 was saved). During the years of the occupation of Peterhof, the fascist invaders damaged the decoration of the interiors of the palace, the stucco decoration, many carved oak panels, and wall paintings suffered greatly; the remaining furniture is almost completely dead.

In the postwar years, great work was done to restore the palace and park ensemble of Petrodvorets. One of the architectural monuments, where a complex restoration began after the conservation of the building, was the Cottage Palace.

In 1978, painters, sculptors, marble workers, masters of many specialties of the Leningrad Scientific and Production Association Restorer under the direction of architect I. Benoit completed the restorationthe palace. As close as possible to the historical appearance, the decorative design and interior decoration were restored. Thanks to the great gathering activity that made up for the loss of the collection, and the study of archival and iconographic materials, the historically reliable museum exposition has been recreated.

Landscapes by I. Aivazovsky, O. Kiprensky, S. Shchedrin, S. and M. Vorobyev in the Large Living Room, Dining Room, Large Reception and other interiors of the palace took their former places. The Cabinet of Nicholas I presents the famous marinas of the Dutch masters of the XVII-XVIII centuries. I. Porsellis, JI. Bakgeisen, S. de Vliger, J. van Goyen and others. In total, the picturesque collection of the Cottage has more than 200 paintings. Among the most significant sculptural works, it is necessary to note the works of such famous masters as I.-G. Shadov, X. Rauch, I. Vitali.

Museum visitors can also get acquainted with interesting works of decorative and applied art - art furniture, bronze and iron castings, a collection of stained glass, Russian and West European porcelain of the 19th century.

Opening hours: 11.00-18.00.

From November 1 to May 1: the day off is Monday, the sanitary day is the last Tuesday of the month.

From May 1 to November 1: the day off is Friday, the sanitary day is the last Thursday of the month.

Electric trains - from the Baltic station.

I floor:

1,2 - lobby; 3 - introductory exposition (former bedroom); 4 - The cabinet of Alexandra Fedorovna; 5 - Large living room; 6 - library; 7 - Large reception; 8, 9 - Dining room; 10 - Small reception; 11 - staircase; 12-Marble Terrace

II floor:

I - room in front of the Round balcony; 2 - Bathroom; 3 - a room in front of the Training balcony; 4 - Training balcony; 5 - Training room; 6 - Dressing room; 7 - Dressing; 8 - Cabinet of Nicholas I; 9, 10 - Living Room and Study of Maria Fedorovna;

II Children's; 12 - Round balcony

Palace plan

G state Museum-Reserve in Petrodvorets

The Gothic motif is repeated throughout the palace: handmade carpets, stoves, marble fireplaces, clocks, candelabra, chandeliers. In the Gothic style was executed in the court workshop of G. Gams and furniture, - according to the sketches of the same A.A. Menelas. According to the decree of Emperor Nicholas I, a new palace was erected on the site of the former estate "Monkurazh", owned by associate of Peter the Great A.D. Menshikov, as the summer residence of the imperial family.

The prototype of the Palace was the widespread in Europe English country houses - compact two-story buildings with attics. The cottage was also built on two floors, all of its facades were decorated with cast iron decor, cast at the St. Petersburg Foundry according to the models of Sokolov and Zakulapin.

The interior painting was commissioned by D.-B. Scotty and V. Dodonov. An important element of the decor is also the wooden carving by V. Zakharov, the marble decoration of the sculptor P. Tricorni, the parquet A. Tarasov and M. Znamensky. Services were made especially for the palace at the Imperial Glass and Porcelain Factory.

According to the architect’s idea, the cast-iron staircase became the center of the Cottage’s planning. The walls of the stairwell itself were painted under a medieval castle, and a part of the fortress wall of Varna, which was taken by the Russians during the Russian-Turkish war, is mounted in the lobby.

The most beautiful interiors of the palace are located on its first floor: the Cabinet of the Empress Alexandra Fedorovna, Large living room, Library, Big and Small reception rooms. The cabinet of Nicholas I was located on the second floor and was made in a style similar to the Large Living Room, the rest of the premises on the second floor were much more modest. Some of the rooms and the adjacent study balcony in the form of a tent were intended for children of the imperial couple. Also on the second floor there was a bathroom and a second balcony. In the attic there was a Marine office with a balcony, staff rooms and dressing rooms.

In 1842-1843 the architect A. Stackenschneider completes the completion of the Cottage: a dining room with a marble terrace is attached to its eastern facade, which is connected to the rest of the house by a pointed arcade. Its interior decoration is also in the Neo-Gothic style, and the walls are decorated with paintings by I. Aivazovsky, T. Neff, P. Orlov, T. Guden, S. Vorobyov. The real gem of the palace is the sculpture of I. Vitali “Madonna and Child”, installed in 1844 in the niche of its northern facade.

After the revolution, the cottage was converted into a historical and art museum. During the Great Patriotic War, most of the museum's collection was evacuated, thanks to which 1980 was rescued from 2500 museum exhibits. For some time, the German hospital was located in the palace building itself, most of the furniture, carved oak decor died forever, and the building itself was damaged.

Only in 1979, the Cottage Palace was completely restored and reopened to visitors. Today, in the premises of the palace you can see works of decorative art, a collection of Russian and West European porcelain and colored glass of the 19th century, engravings, sculptures. The museum has an excellent collection of valuable paintings: miniature portraits, landscapes of Aivazovsky and Kiprensky, paintings of the Dutch of the 17th-18th centuries. Van Goisn, Vliger, Bakgeisen and others - more than two hundred works of art.

The schedule of the palace cottage:
  on weekdays 10.30 - 18.00, day off - Monday.

The cost of visiting the palace:
  . adults (RF) - 300 rubles.,
  . students (RF) - 200 rubles.,
  . adults (foreign citizens) - 500 rubles.,
  . students (foreign citizens) - 300 rubles.

Stage 1 of construction: 1826-1829, architect A.A. Menelas (1753-1831)

Stage 2 of construction: 1841-1842, architect A.I. Shtakenschneider (1802-1865)

In the middle of the XVIII century, the fascination with the Middle Ages, associated with the beginning of the romantic movement in England, quickly spread throughout the world and gave life to a new style - neo-Gothic. The cottage - the main building of the Alexandria Park - is made in this style.

Having ascended the throne, Emperor Nicholas I instructed the Scottish architect A. Menelas to build a “rural house” in the spirit of English country villas near Peterhof’s front door. It was created for Alexandra Fedorovna, Tsar’s beloved wife, who could not stand grandiose ceremonial interiors, and became a personal, intimate space of the imperial family, whose gates were closed to outsiders.

The building turned out to be unusual for its time. On all sides it is surrounded by balconies, terraces with openwork cast-iron arcade, entwined with greenery. Beyond the plane of the walls are bay windows with binding in the form of lancet arches. In front of the picturesque house is a charming garden.

In 1829, the emperor gave the estate to Alexandra Fyodorovna, and in her honor called the estate "Alexandria". The white rose was the Empress’s favorite flower, so the roses in Alexandria were represented by an innumerable variety of shapes, varieties and shades. Even the coat of arms of “Alexandria”, invented at the request of Nicholas I by the poet V. A. Zhukovsky, depicted a blue heraldic shield with a knight's sword passed through a wreath of white roses. Zhukovsky also came up with the motto: "For faith, the king and the fatherland." This coat of arms is depicted on the facades of the palace, in the interiors and on many things that are still kept in the Cottage.

In the early forties of the XIX century, the architect A.I. Shtakenschneider attached a dining room to the Cottage with an open terrace, decorated with an elegant marble fountain made by Felicia de Fovo. In the niche of the northern wall of the palace is a sculpture "Madonna and Child" by I.P. Vitali.

The neo-Gothic style was manifested not only in architecture, but also in the decoration of the interiors. The characteristic Gothic ornament in the form of lancet arches, rosettes, shamrocks and cruciferous flowers is used in stucco decoration, murals, in the design of furniture and objects of decorative art. The palace painting collection includes works by prominent domestic artists: I.K. Aivazovsky, O. A. Kiprensky, S. F. Shchedrin, M. N. Vorobyov, T. A. Neff, F. A. Moller.

The cottage is also interesting for its many family heirlooms, which preserve the memory of their owners and historical events of the era. A stone with the monogram of the Turkish Sultan, brought by Nicholas I from Varna, was mounted in the lobby wall, in the storm of which he took part. The silver chandelier in the Grand Reception was a gift for the silver wedding of the spouses from the German Empress relatives. The chandelier is an openwork basket twined with a garland of 25 roses, according to the number of happy years lived together. The fact that the family occupied an important place in the life of the emperor is reminiscent of the sculptural portraits of his wife and children in his Cabinet.

The cottage is a unique monument of the era of romanticism, which has survived to this day without perestroika and later layers. The interiors of the palace, filled with genuine things, revive the atmosphere of family comfort and warmth. In the words of Nicholas I, he wanted to be here not the emperor, but "the husband of the Peterhof landowner," and his wife Alexandra Fedorovna admitted that she "was happy here like nowhere else."

Palace "Cottage"

Palace "Cottage"

The Cottage Palace is the main architectural structure of Alexandria Park and is located in its southeastern part, on the terrace, which offers a magnificent panorama of the Gulf of Finland with the outlines of Petersburg and Kronstadt that can be seen in the distance. The Cottage Palace is surrounded by a landscape park, with many shady alleys, lawns and winding paths.

The Cottage Palace was erected in 1826-1829, the architect of the palace is the architect A. Menelas. The palace was built in the Gothic style, it is a small building only two floors high, with an attic, which is decorated with acute-angle pediments, lancet arcades, bay windows, sockets, arched belts, crucifixes and trefoils.

   The interiors of the Cottage Palace correspond to its appearance. Gothic motifs are also used in the modeling, painting, carving and ornamentation of objects of applied art that adorn the palace. The ceilings are decorated with openwork molding in the form of Gothic lattices, brackets and arches, the window and door slopes are covered with virtuoso carvings, the parquet pattern is geometric and strict. Gothic ornamentation covers all the elements that make up the interiors of the Cottage - handmade carpets, stoves, marble fireplaces, furniture. Even the clocks, candelabra and chandeliers in the palace are created in the Gothic style.

The walls and ceilings of many rooms in the palace are decorated with paintings. For example, the walls of the stairwell are painted under a medieval castle. A stone is mounted in the lobby wall, part of the Varna fortress, taken by Russian troops during the Russo-Turkish war of 1828-1829.

The Cottage Palace was the summer residence of Emperor Nicholas I and his wife Alexandra Fedorovna. The most interesting and beautiful interiors of the palace are located on the ground floor. These include the Cabinet of Alexandra Fedorovna, the Large living room, the Library, as well as the Large and Small reception rooms. In the years 1842-1843, the Dining Room and the Marble Terrace were added to the palace. On the second floor of the Cottage is the Cabinet of Nicholas I, some of whose decoration elements make it look like a large living room. All other rooms located on the second floor are small and decorated much more restrained. Some of the rooms in the palace were intended for imperial children. These rooms adjoin the Study Balcony, which is designed as a tent.

After 1917, a historical and art museum was organized in the Cottage Palace. Most of the exhibits that were stored in the palace successfully survived the Great Patriotic War - even at its beginning they were evacuated. However, the palace itself during the occupation of Peterhof by fascist invaders was badly damaged, its interiors were most affected. The restoration of the palace began in the post-war years and was finally completed in 1978.

Now in the premises of the Cottage Palace you can see more than two hundred paintings, including miniature portraits, landscapes of Kiprensky and Aivazovsky, paintings by Dutch artists of the XVII-XVIII centuries Van Goisn, Bakgeisen, Vliger and many others. In addition, you can admire the curious works of decorative art, art furniture, cast iron and bronze castings, collections of 19th-century West European and Russian porcelain and colored glass, marble sculptures, prints and much more.

my photos, except for the photo of Emperor Nicholas I

The Cottage Palace in the Alexandria landscape park () is a monument of the Romantic era, preserved to our time in its original form. Genuine things recreate the cozy atmosphere of the family of Nicholas I and Alexandra Fedorovna in the interior of the palace. It was here that the emperor "felt like a husband", and his wife said that "here is happy, like nowhere else."

Alexandria Park borders the Upper Garden and the Lower Park of Peterhof. Therefore, to get to the Cottage Palace, you need to get to Peterhof. How to do it, . If you are coming by car from St. Petersburg, then the stop is a little earlier than the stop of the Fountains. Warn the driver that you need to get off at Alexandria Park.

Here is the entrance to the park.

Alexandria Park has several museums: the Gothic Chapel, the Palace Telegraph Station, the Courier's House, the Palace Cottage, the Farm Palace.

Until 17:00, an entrance ticket to the park costs 200 rubles for adults, children under 16 years pass for free (you need to show a document), prices in 2016.

At the entrance, a schematic map of the Alexandria landscape park. Palace Cottage is closest to the entrance to the park (red arrows indicate how to get there).

To the right of the cottage is the ticket office where you can buy a ticket.

Palace Cottage: a bit of history

One hundred years before the Cottage Palace appeared in Alexandria, these lands were bought by the best friend of Peter the Great. He paid for the construction of the palace “My Courage” (My courage), but after the death of the first emperor of Russia, Menshikov lost his power, and then was completely exiled. The palace was not completed, and after Anna Ioannovna began to own the land, the unfinished palace began to decay and collapse.

Empress Anna, on the site of the future Alexandria, arranged huge hunting estates. Tigers (!), Roe deer, buffalo, hares, foxes, wild boars, deer and other animals were brought here by her order. Anna Ioannovna paid little attention to state affairs, but she was a professional hunter. She galloped astride, very accurately shot. Her pack of dogs drove the released animals along the coastal lands of the Gulf of Finland, while she also enjoyed the hunting process.

When Catherine forgot about this place, all the royal entertainment takes place in the main Peterhof. The villages with serfs that served the hunting grounds, the hunting economy fell into decay. The animals scatter through the neighboring forests.

But there remains a lot of tame deer, which sometimes run into Peterhof and scare the court ladies. The area at the end of the 18th century is called the “Deer menagerie” because of the many freely grazing deer.

Alexandria

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, these lands went to Nicholas the First. And immediately after the accession to the throne and the punishment of the Decembrists, the emperor gives this place to his wife Alexandra Fedorovna. From this moment on, the lands are called "Her Imperial Majesty the Cottage of Alexandria."

In 1826, Nicholas I gave the order and allocated money for the construction of the "English rural house" on the site of the ruins of the Alexander Danilovich Menshikov Palace.

Construction is led by the English architect Adam Menelas, who calls his creation in the English manner "Palace Cottage."

In 1828, the magnificent White Rose festival was held in Berlin, in honor of the thirty years of the wife of the Russian emperor Alexandra Fedorovna (German born Princess Frederika-Louise-Charlotte-Wilhelmina was the 3rd child in the family of the Prussian King Frederick William the Third Queen and his wife, ) But the festival was not attended by her husband Nicholas I, who, for an important reason, left for St. Petersburg. An important reason was the Cottage Palace, which the emperor personally received and prepared, as the main one for his beloved wife for the anniversary.

Palace Cottage - a favorite place of Alexandra Fedorovna

The emperor, knowing the preferences of his wife, tried his best. The Palace Cottage in Peterhof itself, its decoration, decoration, furniture, paintings, dishes of the Imperial Porcelain Factory, carpets, garden - all this was incredibly liked by Alexandra Fedorovna and became her favorite place for life. "Small, cute, cozy and very comfortable," Empress Alexandra spoke of her gift for her thirtieth birthday.

Artist Alexander Bryullov. Alexandra Fedorovna in the office of the Cottage Palace.

Nicholas I himself was pleased with his gift and described it with the following words: “May our family weekdays be held serene here.”
  It was the Cottage Palace that became the annual summer residence of the crowned spouses and their children.

Cottage Palace in the 19th century

A few years later, when the landscape work was completed and a luxurious garden turned green around the Cottage, the empress began to call herself "landowner".
  “I am so burdened by the gilding of Peterhof, I always with all my soul rush to my sweet Palace Cottage. Nowhere have I been so happy as here, ”the empress Marquis de Custine quotes.

Few people know that masquerade balls were introduced into secular entertainment by Nicholas I for his wife Alexandra Fedorovna. Four sons and three daughters were born in an imperial family. Frequent childbirth greatly undermined the empress's physical and moral health. Doctors advised Alexandra Fedorovna to arrange more holidays. Nicholas the First, knowing the hobbies of his wife, introduces fashion at the Palace for fun masquerade holidays. Just about this time, the famous work of Lermontov's "Masquerade".

Palace Cottage today

During the Great Patriotic War, the palace was occupied by Nazi troops and set up a hospital in it. Before their arrival, they managed to evacuate about two thousand exhibits of the Palace to Leningrad. After the war, the Cottage Palace was long restored and only at the end of the last century was opened to visitors.

Museum Cottage Palace Schedule:

Before entering, go around the Palace. Even outside it is cozy and pretty.

Arriving here for the first time, you will realize that this, the western part of the Cottage has already been seen.

These are shots from the famous series about Sherlock Homs and Dr. Watson. 1980 film “King of Blackmail”.

The main characters in masks go to the robbery of the house of the blackmailer Milverton. They pass along the arch of the Cottage Palace and go inside.

Premises of the Cottage Palace

The rooms on the ground floor are more luxurious than the rooms on the second and third floors; there is a large living room, two reception rooms, the empress’s office and a library.

Gothic motifs, fashionable at that time, can be seen in everything: in the interior, hand-moldings of the ceiling, wall paintings, virtuoso carvings, the shape of fireplaces, and furniture. And the clock, and candelabra, and chandeliers were matched to the Gothic interior of the Cottage.

In the Large Living Room, the imperial family spent evenings and received guests.

When decorating the interior, a wall painting technique was used, in which volumetric objects depicted on the plane were performed using gradations of tones from light to dark.

The creator of Russian romanticism Vasily Andreyevich Zhukovsky invented his own coat of arms for Alexandria. Knight's sword in a circle of white openwork roses. Empress Alexandra Fedorovna considered this emblem her own and was very proud of him. This coat of arms is found everywhere: on the facade, on the walls, on the dishes, in the paintings of the Cottage Palace.

Below in the photo is a real military relic of the royal family. Nicholas I personally took part in the assault on the city of Varna. And this monogram turned upside down of the Turkish sultan adorns the wall of the Palace.

In the early forties of the nineteenth century, a dining room for 24 people was added to the Palace. Dinnerware was ordered at the Imperial Porcelain Factory. At first, about 600 service items were made. Subsequently, over 90 years, many dishes were broken and about 5 thousand items for the dining room of the Cottage Palace were released under imperial orders.

Prior to the discovery of the radioactive elements, cookware manufacturers used uranium salts. This gave the vases and salad bowls an incredibly beautiful yellow-green hue that looked great against the background of a white tablecloth. And even the royal family used this dangerous dishes during gala dinners. In the museum you can see several such exhibits.

Second floor

A staircase leads to the second floor. It is decorated with delicate flowers, among which you can see white roses. All this splendor is made of cast iron.

Marble bath with English faucet. Hot water was heated in the next room in a specially designed stove.

This is a training room for royal children. A modest and rather strict atmosphere reigns here.

Sculpture of Emperor Nicholas I.

In the bedroom of Alexandra Fedorovna. Dressing table and porcelain tableware for nineteenth-century cosmetics.

On the walls are landscapes of Aivazovsky I., Kiprensky O., Shchedrin S., Vorobyov M.

This is the room of the last owner of the Cottage Palace - Maria Fedorovna, mother of the last Russian emperor Nicholas II.

One of the last photos of imperial persons at the Cottage Palace

On the third floor there is the Marine Office of Emperor Nicholas the First.

Undoubtedly, it is worth visiting this “cute and cozy” Cottage Palace in order to feel the warmth and love of the happy family life of the imperial family.

Palace Cottage, ticket price for 2016:

For citizens of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus:

• 300 rubles an adult ticket,
• 200 rubles preferential.

For foreign citizens:

• 500 rubles adult ticket
• 250 rubles preferential.

Excursion service is included in the ticket price if a group of 15-20 people has gathered.