Catherine Palace (Moscow)
Encyclopedia
The Catherine Palace is a Neoclassical
residence of Catherine II of Russia
on the bank of the Yauza River
in Lefortovo
, Moscow
. It should not be confused with the much more famous Catherine Palace
in Tsarskoye Selo
.
The residence is also known as the Golovin Palace, after its first owner, Count Fyodor Golovin, the first Chancellor of the Russian Empire
. After his death Empress Anna commissioned Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli
to replace the Golovin Palace with a Baroque
residence known as Annenhof. This was Anna's preferred residence. It consisted of two wooden two-storey buildings, the Summer Palace and the Winter Palace.
Annenhof was abandoned after a fire in 1746. Catherine II, who found both edifices rather old-fashioned and dilapidated, ordered their demolition in the 1760s. After 1773 Karl Blank
, Giacomo Quarenghi
and Francesco Camporesi
were the architects employed to supervise the construction of a Neoclassical residence in Lefortovo. Emperor Paul, known for his dislike of his mother's palaces
, converted the residence into barracks
.
After Napoleon's occupation of Moscow in 1812 the Catherine Palace was restored under the supervision of Osip Bove. It has since been occupied by the Moscow Cadet Corps
, Malinovsky Tank Academy and other military institutions and has generally been inaccessible to the public at large. In October 1917 the Moscow cadets mounted a fierce resistance against the Bolsheviks in Lefortovo. What little remained of the Annenhof Park was largely destroyed by the 1904 Moscow tornado
.
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
residence of Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
on the bank of the Yauza River
Yauza River
This article is about a river in Moscow, a tributary of the Moskva River. There are three other Yauza rivers in Central Russia: tributaries of the Lama, Gzhat and Sestra....
in Lefortovo
Lefortovo District
Lefortovo District is a district of South-Eastern Administrative Okrug of Moscow, Russia. Population: It is named after a close associate of Tsar Peter the Great Franz Lefort, whose troops were stationed nearby at the German Quarter. The district is considered to be founded in 1699. In the 18th...
, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. It should not be confused with the much more famous Catherine Palace
Catherine Palace
The Catherine Palace was the Rococo summer residence of the Russian tsars, located in the town of Tsarskoye Selo , 25 km south-east of St. Petersburg, Russia.- History :...
in Tsarskoye Selo
Tsarskoye Selo
Tsarskoye Selo is the town containing a former Russian residence of the imperial family and visiting nobility, located south from the center of St. Petersburg. It is now part of the town of Pushkin and of the World Heritage Site Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments.-History:In...
.
The residence is also known as the Golovin Palace, after its first owner, Count Fyodor Golovin, the first Chancellor of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. After his death Empress Anna commissioned Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli
Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli
Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli was an Italian architect naturalized Russian. He developed an easily recognizable style of Late Baroque, both sumptuous and majestic...
to replace the Golovin Palace with a Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
residence known as Annenhof. This was Anna's preferred residence. It consisted of two wooden two-storey buildings, the Summer Palace and the Winter Palace.
Annenhof was abandoned after a fire in 1746. Catherine II, who found both edifices rather old-fashioned and dilapidated, ordered their demolition in the 1760s. After 1773 Karl Blank
Karl Blank
Karl Blank was a Russian architect, notable as one of the last practitioners of Baroque architecture and the first Moscow architect to build early neoclassical buildings. His surviving, undisputed legacy consists of three baroque churches and Moscow Orphanage...
, Giacomo Quarenghi
Giacomo Quarenghi
Giacomo Quarenghi was the foremost and most prolific practitioner of Palladian architecture in Imperial Russia, particularly in Saint Petersburg.- Career in Italy :...
and Francesco Camporesi
Francesco Camporesi
Francesco Camporesi was an Italian architect, painter, engraver and educator who worked in Moscow in 1780s-1820s. Most of his architectural work perished in the Fire of 1812, was severely altered, demolished or otherwise lost....
were the architects employed to supervise the construction of a Neoclassical residence in Lefortovo. Emperor Paul, known for his dislike of his mother's palaces
Battle of the palaces
The "battle of the palaces" occurred in the Russian Empire in the last decade of the reign of Catherine II and the reign of Paul I , with ripple effects extending into the beginning of the reign of Alexander I...
, converted the residence into barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
.
After Napoleon's occupation of Moscow in 1812 the Catherine Palace was restored under the supervision of Osip Bove. It has since been occupied by the Moscow Cadet Corps
Cadet Corps (Russia)
The Cadet Corps is an admissions-based all boys military academy which prepared boys to become commissioned officers. Boys between the ages of 8 and 15 were enrolled. It was founded in Saint Petersburg, Russian Empire in 1731 by Tsarina Anne. The term of education was seven years...
, Malinovsky Tank Academy and other military institutions and has generally been inaccessible to the public at large. In October 1917 the Moscow cadets mounted a fierce resistance against the Bolsheviks in Lefortovo. What little remained of the Annenhof Park was largely destroyed by the 1904 Moscow tornado
1904 Moscow tornado
The June 29, 1904 Moscow tornado was one of only three disastrous tornadoes that occurred in central Russia in recorded history . The 1904 disaster started as a thunderstorm in Tula region...
.