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Location: 26, Dvortsovaya Naberezhnaya
Subway: Gostiny
Dvor/Nevsky Prospekt
Tel. +7 (812) 315-8814
Grand Duke
Vladimir Alexandrovich
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The Palace of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich (aka Vladimir
Palace) or the Gorky house of scientists of the Russian Academy of
Sciences was built between 1867 and 1872 for Grand Duke Vladimir
Alexandrovich, the third son of Emperor Alexander II. It was
designed by the architect Vasily Kenel. The simple, somewhat austere
facade of the Palace contrasts sharply with the well-preserved
interiors, where architects used an extremely wide range of styles
and periods from neo-Gothic to Rococo to Oriental.
Fortunately, soon after the October revolution, the Vladimir Palace
was designated the Gorky house of scientists, a social and cultural
club for scientific intellectuals. For this reason, it is probably
the most authentic and best preserved interior of any of the
Imperial residences in Saint Petersburg. While most of Vladimir
Alexandrovich's art collection ended up in the collections of the
Hermitage and other museums in the city, his impressive collection
of fine porcelain is still preserved in the Palace.
Grand
Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich was an ardent collector and patron of
the arts, and his wife, Maria Pavlovna, spent evenings inviting
Rachmaninoff, Rimsky-Korsakov, Chaliapin, and many others. This
tradition continues to this day. It regularly hosts concerts, as
well as lectures and screenings.
Traditions in general, and even more so if they have a
dynastic origin, help to better understand the Russian reality of the
19th century. Even Nicholas I introduced an unspoken rule to build grand
ducal residences in St. Petersburg in the form of luxurious palaces for
imperial descendants when they reached the age of 20. They did not
ignore Vladimir, the youngest son of Emperor Alexander II.
Since
at that time there was no unoccupied land left on the Palace Embankment
for the construction of a mansion befitting the dignity of the Grand
Duke, it was decided to build it on a historical site. Even under Peter
the Great, the rear admiral of the rowing fleet Botsis was considered
the first officially recognized owner of this allotment. In the first
quarter of the 18th century, the house of Musin-Pushkin was located
here, but later, after a succession of "temporaries" changed, the
territory passed into the possession of Prince Volkonsky. The
quartermaster general started building a new house, but soon after his
resignation he was forced to move to the Mikhailovsky Palace.
In
1807, at the request of Alexander I, the building was transferred to the
French embassy, which was located there until 1839. During the war with
Napoleon, this place became popular with Russian cavalry guards, who
made a bet and, at a gallop, with a well-aimed throw of a stone at the
window of the first floor, tried to break the bust of the French emperor
standing on the windowsill.
In 1839-1862, the building belonged
to the Gofintendant office under the Ministry of the Imperial Court and
appanages. After the repair, it was briefly used as a reserve palace for
receiving imperial guests. Then there was a company of palace
grenadiers.
Construction and appearance
Initially, Alexander
II planned to build palaces on one land plot for both sons - the heir of
Vladimir and Alexander. But circumstances developed in such a way that
the entire area was given for the construction of a mansion for the
Grand Duke. The work on the project was led by Alexander Rezanov, whose
authorship belongs to the Moscow Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
In 1867, they began to dismantle the walls of the former building, but
subsequently the foundation and some structural elements were partially
preserved and used in the construction of a new palace. As the architect
Schroeter later recalled, "cheaper, stronger and more honest ... rarely
built in Russia." The main work was completed by the summer of 1873, but
the consecration of the building itself took place only on August 10,
1874. The date was not chosen by chance: just six days later, the Grand
Duke married the Princess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
Outwardly, the
mansion resembles the St. Petersburg Marble Palace: it has the same
eclectic style, the aura of a Florentine Renaissance palazzo. One of the
architectural accents that enhance this perception are the arched
Venetian windows.
A distinctive feature of the palace façade is the
protruding entrance group and the abundance of coats of arms. Here are
the coats of arms:
the kingdom of Kazan;
kingdom of Poland;
the
kingdom of Tauric Chersonesos;
the Grand Duchy of Kyiv;
the Grand
Duchy of Vladimir;
Grand Duchy of Finland;
the Grand Duchy of
Georgia;
the kingdom of Siberia and the kingdom of Astrakhan;
family coat of arms of Vladimir Alexandrovich;
family coat of arms
and monogram of Maria Pavlovna.
It was opened on January 31, 1920 by the decision
of the Petrograd Soviet on the initiative of the Petrograd
Commission for improving the life of scientists (Chairman Maxim
Gorky) in the former Palace of Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich.
In may 1917, the Palace housed the
red cross Commission for prisoners of war, from October 1917-the
Board of the Union of international trade associations, from October
1918-the theater Department of the people's Commissariat of
education, and in 1919 — the publishing house "world literature".
In the 1920s and 1930s, the house of scientists held weekly
scientific reports on Saturdays, public lectures on Thursdays,
debates and concerts. In October 1920, H. G. wells visited the house
of scientists (and later noted this in the book "Russia in the
dark"). In the early 1930s, the first public Council Of the house of
scientists was elected (Chairman-N. I. Vavilov), and the first
scientific sections were organized. In 1932, the house of scientists
was named after M. Gorky.
During the great Patriotic war, the
house of scientists continued to work, remaining one of the social
and cultural centers of Leningrad. At the beginning of 1942, a
50-bed hospital was set up in the house of scientists for those
suffering from dystrophy. Under the house of scientists there was a
Bureau of scientific and technical assistance to the city and the
front (many of its developments were carried out on the instructions
of the headquarters of the Leningrad front). Scientists gave
lectures and reports in military units, on ships, in hospitals.
The luxurious furnishings of the palace consisted of
almost 350 rooms, decorated in different styles, and a stable for 36
horses. The first floor was occupied by the prince, from there, along
the main staircase, access was opened to the second floor in the
possession of Princess Maria Pavlovna. The crimson living room, which
had the largest area, contrasted with its Italian decoration with the
neighboring living room, furnished in the style of the Louis XVI era.
The small dining room complemented the variety of interior solutions
with strict English Gothic decoration. On the third floor there were
rooms for children, as well as for servants. Above them was the house
church of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos.
The
mansion was equipped with all the technical innovations of the time. It
had a telephone, an elevator, ventilation with heating and air
humidification, electricity and water heating.
The Grand Duke was
considered a passionate admirer of painting, so the house housed more
than 60 paintings by great Russian artists: Repin, Surikov, Aivazovsky,
Kramskoy and others. They coexisted with decorative elements in bronze
and exquisite furniture purchased in France and Germany through the
efforts of Academicians Kitner and Schroeter.
In 1920, the
building housed the Petrograd Commission for the Improvement of Life of
Representatives of Science, headed by Maxim Gorky. Since then, the
mansion has housed the House of Scientists.