Petrovsky Palace

[1] In the 1770s Catherine the Great decided to build a new palace to be used for short stopovers en route from St Petersburg to Moscow.

Apart from being of practical use, the erection of the Petrovsky Palace also had a symbolical nature and was connected with Russia's victory in the Russian-Turkish War and with the signing of the Treaty of Kucuk-Kainarji.

The speed of construction was also evidenced by the architect's project drawings, which depict the palace in the process of an erection and which differ in many details from the actual building.

[1] In July 1920, at the insistence of the People's Commissar of Education Anatoly Lunacharsky, the complex was transferred to the Soviet Air Forces: Taking into account the vast future that awaits aviation, I consider it highly expedient to transfer the Petrovsky Palace to the control of the air fleet, especially since, according to my information, this palace has been brought almost completely unfit for habitation and is hardly rational is now in use.

Because of the numerous transformations, only a few historical fragments have survived: the decoration of the Round Hall and the four vestibules, the main staircase, and some furniture.