Saint Michael's Castle
Mikhailovsky Castle is the royal residence of the monarch Paul I, erected in 1797-1801. The castle is essentially a palace, but after Paul I was erected into the Great Masters of the Order of Malta, he began to call his own palaces castles.
The future ruler conceived the idea of building the residence back in 1784. For 12 years he selected architectural styles and projects, in total there were 13 projects of the future palace. On November 6, 1796, Paul I ascended the throne, 22 days later, he issued an order to build a castle on the site of the old Summer Palace. Huge resources were devoted to the construction of the palace, construction was carried out even in the dark during the day under the light of torches and lanterns, and the total number of builders reached 6,000 people. People and building materials were brought from neighboring buildings: marble was taken from the building of St. Isaac's Cathedral, parquet from the Tauride Palace, for decorative stone and frieze dismantled the pavilions in Tsarskoye Selo. He led the construction of Vasily Bazhenov and Vincenzo Brenna. On the day of St. Archangel Michael, the castle was hastily consecrated, but the interior was maintained until March of the following year.
On February 1, 1801, Paul and his family moved into the castle, on the night of March 11-12, as a result of the conspiracy, he was killed by officers of the Mikhailovsky Castle in his bedroom. After these events, the castle was almost 20 years empty. Only in 1819 it was given to the Main Engineering School, from that moment the castle had a second name - "Engineering". With the arrival of the Cadets, a legend appeared about the ghost of Mikhailovsky Castle, which was frightened by junior courses. In subsequent years, the castle lost its pristine appearance, during the redevelopment of schools for need. During the Great Patriotic War, a hospital for wounded soldiers was located here. Since 1957, the Central Naval Library has been located in part of the premises. In the 60s, the castle was handed over to the Leningrad Council of National Economy, which placed technological institutions here. In the late 1980s, they gradually left their premises, leaving behind you a devastation - everything was disheveled, wall paintings painted over. By 1994, the building, except the library, became the property of the State Russian Museum.
On the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg, Mikhailovsky Castle was restored and he appeared before visitors in almost the same form as Paul I saw him. The cost of a ticket to Mikhailovsky Castle is available to everyone, and tourists who have acquired the "Hotel Map of St. Petersburg" can go free of charge and without queues.
