Bakhchisaray Palace
In Bakhchisaray, on the banks of the Churuk-Su River, the last residence of the Crimean rulers is located - Bakhchisarai Palace. The architects of the palace ensemble embodied in the buildings the idea of a paradise garden on earth.
Previously, the palace of the Crimean khans was in Ashlama-Der, but there it became cramped for the khan and his entourage. Khan Sahib I Gerey ordered the palace to be founded elsewhere and almost immediately the city of Bakhchisaray began to be built around the Khan's palace. The name of the city from the Crimean Tatar sounds like "Garden Palace". The oldest structures of the palace complex are the Sary-Guzel baths and the Khan's mosque, erected in 1532. Each khan erected additional buildings in the palace and improved the old ones. Devlet I Gerey erected a Khan's dyurbe, Bahadir I Gerey ordered the construction of an additional building for receptions of high guests and ambassadors, subsequent khans erected the Golden Fountain, madrassas, summer gazebo, "fountain of tears" and under the guidance of the architect from Iran, the interior was dustyly separated.
During one of the Russian-Turkish wars in 1736, Bakhchisaray was captured by Field Marshal Christoph Minich. He ordered a detailed description of the decoration of the palace and burn the palace with the city. Almost all of the buildings of the tree were destroyed in the fire, the current Bolshaya and Malaya Mosque, Suda, Aleviz Portal and Council Hall were not affected by the palace complex. Selamet and Krym Gerey had to restore the Bakhchisaray Palace, building materials were brought from Istanbul, and builders arrived from there, who embodied the decoration of Istanbul palaces in the palace. The restored beauty palace was overshadowed by the old. After the territory of the Crimean Khanate became part of the Russian Empire in the Bakhchisarai Palace, the interior was almost unchanged.
In 1787, before the arrival of Empress Catherine II, the palace was restored. Prince Potemkin believed that traditional Ottoman decoration was not too luxurious for Europeans and reconstructed in some houses, mixing eastern and European interiors. They also moved the Fontan of Tears from the dybre to the fountain courtyard and set the Catherine mile by the bridge over the river. The empress stayed in the palace for 3 days, and her trip was accompanied by foreign ambassadors and Austrian Emperor Joseph II. Of the Russian rulers, there were Alexander I, Alexander II, Nicholas II. After the civil war, a museum was opened in the palace complex. Under the USSR, large-scale restoration was carried out to restore the original appearance.
The center of the Bakhchisarai Palace is considered to be a palace square, powerful in stone, but before there was only sand. The army gathered at it before the offensive company, held official events. The Great Khan's Mosque is located on the square, which is one of the largest mosques in Crimea. A vast bath complex, built on the principle of Turkish baths, where air heated in the basement warms floor plates located on small columns, is also worthy of attention. Not far from the mosque is the old Khan cemetery, where the graves of the khans, their family members and the high nobility are located.
Since 2003, the museum’s management has been actively involved in the inclusion of UNESCO’s cultural heritage lists, believing that the Ukrainian government will better finance the museum. Since 2015, he ceased to conduct such work, since he is fully financed from the budget of the Russian Federation.
