Mikhailovsky Garden is one of the most famous and well-maintained parks in St. Petersburg. Located in the very center of the city. On the south side, the Mikhailovsky Garden adjoins the Mikhailovsky Palace (the main building of the Russian Museum), the buildings of the Ethnographic Museum and the Benois Wing. On the eastern side, the territory of the park is bounded by Sadovaya Street, on the northern side by the Moika River, and on the western side by the Griboyedov Canal. Near the northwestern part of the Mikhailovsky Garden is the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood. Mikhailovsky Garden is under the control of the State Russian Museum.
At a time when all the Neva land belonged to the Swedes, this
territory was called Peruzina. The recreational status of this site was
determined by Peter I himself. Mikhailovsky Garden arose at the same
time as the Summer Garden and at the beginning of the 18th century was
called the Third Summer Garden; thus it was distinguished from the first
two gardens, which belonged to the king. Since 1712, they began to build
a residence for the wife of Peter - Catherine I.
Initially, the
site stretched much further than the modern borders: from the Moika to
Nevsky Prospekt and from the Fontanka to the Griboyedov Canal. Before
any construction, it was necessary to drain the area. To this end, they
connected the deaf Mew with Krivusha by a narrow canal, thereby
simultaneously separating Catherine's residence from the First and
Second Summer Gardens. Along the banks of the Moika and Fontanka there
was a "promenade", in other words, a road for walking. It ended with a
floating bridge across the Moika to the First and Second Summer Gardens.
On the site of the current Rossi pavilion, a small Catherine Palace
was built. The building with a golden spire with a lantern appears in
historical chronicles under the name "Golden Choir". The architectural
solution was typical for all the first buildings in St. Petersburg, but
the name of the architect has not been preserved. The interiors were
distinguished by luxury, contrasting with the simple garden layout
typical of Moscow estates with their gardens and orchards. There were
apple and other fruit trees, greenhouses and greenhouses where the
gardener Ekliben grew bananas and pineapples. Alleys in the form of
green corridors led to the outbuildings - barns, stables, houses for
gardeners, wine cellars.
The chamber junker Berchholtz from the
retinue of the Duke of Holstein who arrived in St. Petersburg wrote on
July 11, 1721 in his diary:
The garden is recently planted, and
therefore there is nothing in it, except for rather large fruit trees.
Five nearby ponds were dug here to keep live fish brought to the royal
court.
With the accession of Anna Ivanovna, the Third Summer
Garden underwent a radical restructuring. First, a “vegetable garden”
was moved to the site of the current Mariinsky hospital, and on the
freed up large areas for the empress who passionately loves hunting, a
“jagd-garten” was laid out - a garden for chasing and shooting deer,
wild boars, hares, as well as galleries for hunters and stone walls for
warning the flight of bullets and shots.
The rest was arranged
according to the then fashion in a regular style. Works on the
"Empress's Garden" were carried out by Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli.
Cross-shaped alleys, flower beds, flower beds, marble statues and cut
trees turned the estate into an Italian or French park. The space was
enlivened with decorative pavilions and pavilions with marble floors. In
the very center of the garden, swings and slides were placed for skiing
in any season. In addition, revolving benches were placed around one of
the trees, and a gazebo was built in its crown for a panoramic view of
the garden, where they climbed a spiral staircase.
At the same
time, along with the entertainment character, the garden also retained a
practical orientation. So, in 1745, an imperial bath was built in it,
or, as it was then called, a soap room. A tangled green alley-maze led
to it from the “jagd-garten”. Rastrelli wrote about his creation:
On
the banks of the Moika, in a new garden, I built a large building of
baths with a round salon and a fountain with several jets, with front
rooms for relaxation.
Anna Ioannovna ordered Rastrelli for
herself the Summer Palace and ordered to build "with extreme haste."
However, it was laid only on July 24, 1741, already under the ruler Anna
Leopoldovna. The wooden Baroque palace, richly decorated with carvings
and sculptures, stood exactly on the site of the current Engineer's
Castle. The main alley from the Nevsky prospect to the palace ended at
the gate with a gilded forged lattice, behind which there was a square
formed by the palace buildings. There were miniature gardens in the
courtyards. The main façade overlooked Petrovsky's Summer Garden. The
square in front of it was decorated with a large fountain with gilded
bas-reliefs and vases, and a marble sculpture stood around the pool. The
signing of peace with Prussia after the Seven Years' War was celebrated
in this palace, and here Catherine II was welcomed after her accession
to the throne.
In February 1796, the new Emperor Paul I ordered
to demolish the old palace "because of dilapidation" and to build a new
one in its place. The project of the palace was developed by the
architect V.I. Bazhenov on behalf of Emperor Paul I, who wanted to make
it his main residence. It was founded on February 26 (March 9), 1797.
The construction was led by the architect V. Brenna. On November 8 (21),
1800, the day of St. Michael the Archangel, the Mikhailovsky Castle was
solemnly consecrated, but work on its interior decoration still
continued until March 1801.
The landscape of the garden has
changed significantly. Two artificial canals - Voskresensky and Church
(now covered) - connected with the Moika and Fontanka, making the castle
impregnable. It could only be reached through three drawbridges. The
constable appeared in front of the main facade - a square for high
dignitaries - which served as a parade ground for parades. A monument to
Peter I by Bartolomeo Carlo Rastrelli was erected right there. Under
Paul I, the Third Summer Garden served as a place for the royal family
to walk. The emperor had a habit of riding through the park every
morning, admiring its symmetry. However, shortly after the murder of
Paul on March 11 (March 23), 1801, the royal family left the castle. In
1823 it was transferred to the Main Engineering School.
In 1907,
a part of the Mikhailovsky Garden was built up with the Savior on Blood
and the new route of the Griboedov Canal embankment, which went around
it. The garden in this place received a fence by the architect A. A.
Parland, who designed the cathedral itself. The fence became part of the
ensemble of the temple.
In the 1920s, during the construction of
tram tracks through the garden (now this cut is called Tsaritsynsky
passage), sections of the fence were rearranged - wrapped along the
rails.
Presumably in the 1990s, two sections southeast of the
Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood disappeared. Instead, a temporary
grid was installed. The start of restoration work on their restoration
may take place in 2024.
In 2000, a complete inventory of the garden was carried out, which
showed that it was in critical condition. In this regard, in 2001, a
complete reconstruction of the Mikhailovsky Garden began.
After
the reconstruction, the garden became the venue for the annual summer
festivals "Imperial Gardens of Russia", where original ideas in the
field of landscape design and related fields are presented. Not only the
festival of 2014, thematically focused on England, but also the previous
ones (since the garden is of an English, landscape type) were held with
the participation of members of the British royal family, related to the
Russian imperial house of the Romanovs, Prince Michael of Kent and his
wife. In 2014, the festival presented works by professionals in
landscape design, landscaping and arts and crafts, as well as amateur
gardeners, as well as disabled children from boarding school No. 4 in
Pavlovsk, who, under the guidance of a teacher, painted works on
porcelain maritime themes and visually impaired children from the St.
Petersburg school named after K.K. Grot, who created decorative relief
textile compositions with floral motifs.