Ivanchik Anna 1141 4 Institute of international educational

* Ivanchik Anna 1141/4 Institute of international educational programs St. Petersburg State Polytechnical University 2011

* *This presentation tells about the most famous palaces of St. Petersburg. Here I will show you also the most beautiful palaces and castles of our city. The majority of them were the residence of the Russian monarchs and many officials. They were built by the most talented architects of that time. Each other emperor tried to build much beautiful and expensive palace. As a result, there a lot of palaces of Imperial Russia in our beautiful city.

* Winter palace in St. Petersburg was from 1732 to 1917 the official residence of the Russian monarchs. It was designed by many architects, most notably Bartolomeo Rastrelli, in what came to be known as the Elizabethan Baroque style. The palace was constructed on a monumental scale that was intended to reflect the might and power of Imperial Russia. Nowadays the Winter Palace and Palace Square form the most beautiful architectural ensemble of the modern city and is one of the main objects of domestic and international tourism. Also the restored palace forms part of the complex of buildings housing the Hermitage Museum.

* St. Michael's Castle was built as a residence for Emperor Paul I by architects Vincenzo Brenna and Vasili Bazhenov in 1797 -1801. St. Michael's Castle is situated to the south of the Summer Garden and replaced a small wooden palace of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. After Paul's death, the imperial family returned to the Winter Palace; St. Michael's Castle was abandoned and in 1819 was given to the army's Main Engineering School. In the early 1990 s, St. Michael's Castle became a branch of the Russian Museum and now houses its Portrait Gallery, featuring official portraits of the Russian Emperors and Empresses and various dignitaries and celebrities from the late 17 th to the early 20 th century.

* The Summer Palace is a diminutive residence of Peter the Great that was built in 1710 -14 in his new capital, St. Petersburg, in the Summer Garden. The design was by Domenico Trezzini. This simple mansion contains just 14 main rooms. Peter moved into the partially completed palace in 1712 and spent summers here until his death in 1725. He occupied the lower level while his wife Catherine preferred the upper rooms. This palace is one of the oldest buildings in St. Petersburg. It has stood untenanted since the 1840 s. Its oak interiors were reconstructed in the early 1960 s. The house was open to the public as a branch of the Russian Museum.

* The Menshikov Palace is a Petrine Baroque edifice in Saint Petersburg, situated on Universitetskaya Embankment on Vasilyevsky Island. It was the first stone building in the city. The palace was founded in 1710 as a residence of Saint Petersburg Governor General Alexander Menshikov. At the end of the 19 th century the Menshikov Palace was restored and became the museum of the Cadet Corps. In 1924, its collections were moved to the Hermitage and other museums. From 1956 -1981 the Menshikov Palace was restored again and finally opened to the public as a branch of the Hermitage Museum with a collection of Russian art of the late 17 th-early 18 th century.

* This palace was constructed in the 1780’s for I. P. Elagin, rebuilt in 18181822 for Empress Maria Fedorovna. Up to 1917, it served as a summer residence for the Imperial family. At the beginning of the XX century the Elagin palace became the resting place of Prime Ministers of Russia. After October 1917, Elagin Palace housed the Museum of Culture and Every Day Life, then - the All-Union Institute for the Protection of Plants. Since 1987 it has remained the Elagin Island Palace-Museum of Russian Decorative and Applied Arts and Interiors of the late 18 th to early 20 th centuries.

* Tauride palace is one of the largest and most historic palaces in Saint Petersburg. It was built by architect I. Starov. Tauride Palace was built by order of Catherine II for Grigory Potemkin. There was spent about 400 000 rubles for building. In 1801 this palace was restored as one of the residences of the emperors. Nowadays this palace is the headquarter of states-members of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

* *ru. wikipedia. org *www. encspb. ru *www. saint-petersburg. com *www. elaginpark. spb. ru *www. ilovepetersburg. ru