Nicholas Palace

The palace of Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaievich of Russia forms part of a sprawling complex incorporating a palatial church, a manege, and several outbuildings separated from Labour Square by a cast-iron fence.

It was described by E. M. Almedingen in her memoirs:At certain functions in the great paneled white hall it was easy to imagine yourself plunged into the court life of the late eighteenth century.

We played in halls, their high ceilings supported by Corinthian pillars, their walls covered with most exquisite paneling.

The exquisite staircase... swept down to a hall where a gigantic Cerberus of a porter, magnificent in scarlet and gold, stood on duty.

In the centre of the west façade was the Rose Drawing Room, the ceiling of which was decorated with the painting "The Judgement of Paris".