As a feast for the eyes - they don't come any more opulent than this. After a drive through the scenery of suburban St.Petersburg to the town of Pushkin you arrive at this...The Catherine Palace (Екатерининский дворец).
This aerial view shows the full extent of the palace.
Pushkin (Пу́шкин) was founded in 1710 as an imperial residence named Tsarskoye Selo (Ца́рское Село́) (Tsar's Village) and received status of a town in 1808. After the October Revolution, the town was renamed to Detskoye Selo (meaning Children’s Village). Its name was further changed in 1937 to Pushkin to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. Tsarskoye Selo was one of the most developed cities of Russia. In 1887 it became the first fully electrified town in Europe.
Above is a picture of the centre front elevation - in the picture below it's the bit in the middle at the top.
Pushkin (Пу́шкин) was founded in 1710 as an imperial residence named Tsarskoye Selo (Ца́рское Село́) (Tsar's Village) and received status of a town in 1808. After the October Revolution, the town was renamed to Detskoye Selo (meaning Children’s Village). Its name was further changed in 1937 to Pushkin to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. Tsarskoye Selo was one of the most developed cities of Russia. In 1887 it became the first fully electrified town in Europe.
It doesn't take a genius to work out that when the elite were living like this and the ordinary people were dying of starvation on the streets, there was a Russian revolution.
In 1905, the Alexander Palace became the main
residence of Tsar Nicholas
II and his family. It was here they were held under house arrest
after the February Revolution.
When walking round the palace the guide pointed to some decorations in the rooms and announced; "These are 24 carat gold." "Gold leaf?" asked a fellow tourist, "No, No - solid gold" was the reply!
Below is the Wedgewood Room.
One of the summer houses!
The palace is also home to the famous Amber Room (Янтарная комната).
It originally covered more than 55 square meters and contained over six tons of amber. It was looted during World War II by The Nazis and brought to Königsberg. Knowledge of its whereabouts was lost in the chaos at the end of the war.
In 1979 efforts began to rebuild the Amber room at Tsarskoye Selo. In 2003, after decades of work by Russian craftsmen, financed by donations from Germany, the reconstructed Amber Room was inaugurated in the palace.
