Peter I Monument in Taganrog
Encyclopedia
History of the monument
The idea to open a memorial to Peter I of Russia, who founded Taganrog in 1698, came to Achilles AlferakiAchilles Alferaki
Alferaki, Achilles Nikolayevich ; , was a Russian composer and statesman of Greek descent, brother to Sergei Alphéraky. He was born in Kharkov . He spent all of his childhood in the city of Taganrog in the magnificent palace on Catholic Street...
, Mayor of Taganrog 1880–1887. The Russian Emperor Alexander III of Russia
Alexander III of Russia
Alexander Alexandrovich Romanov , historically remembered as Alexander III or Alexander the Peacemaker reigned as Emperor of Russia from until his death on .-Disposition:...
gave his permission on June 5, 1893.
In 1897, Taganrog City Council (Duma) issued a resolution to request the sculptor Mark Antokolski
Mark Antokolski
Mark Matveyevich Antokolski was a Russian sculptor who was admired for psychological complexity of his historical images and panned for occasional lapses into sentimentalism.-Biography:...
to produce a memorial to Peter I The Great
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
. In April 1898, Anton Chekhov
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian physician, dramatist and author who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short stories in history. His career as a dramatist produced four classics and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics...
met with Mark Antokolski
Mark Antokolski
Mark Matveyevich Antokolski was a Russian sculptor who was admired for psychological complexity of his historical images and panned for occasional lapses into sentimentalism.-Biography:...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to arrange the production of a bronze statue. The statue was molded in the atelier of Thibaut Brothers in Paris. The pedestal for the monument was made in 1901 by the artist Eduards, owner of an atelier in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
. The monument was delivered from Marseilles to Taganrog on July 27, 1901 by the steamboat Despino.
Petrovskaya Street near the central gates to the Municipal Park
Gorky Park (Taganrog)
-History:June 30, 1806 the first trees were planted for the Taganrog’s "Chemist’s garden" and "botanical garden" by the order of Taganrog’s governor baron Balthasar von Campenhausen. In 1825, Russian Emperor Alexander I and the Empress Consort Elizabeth Alexeievna often went for a walk in the...
was selected as the site for the monument. The memorial to Peter I The Great was solemnly inaugurated on May 13, 1903 on Petrovskaya Street at the crossing with Campehnausen Street. The inscription on the pedestal reads: To the Emperor Peter I, Taganrog 1698-1898.
January 25, 1924 the monument was dismantled and placed in the Chekhov Museum, which was at that time located at Chekhov Library
Chekhov Library
Chekhov Library in Taganrog is the oldest library in the South of Russia.-Foundation history:...
.
In 1933 the monument was enclosed into a wooden box in the court of Chekhov Museum.
In 1940, the Rostov Oblast government decided to re-inaugurate the monument, though not at its historical location on Petrovskaya street, but on Komsomolsky Blvd near the Taganrog
Taganrog
Taganrog is a seaport city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located on the north shore of Taganrog Bay , several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: -History of Taganrog:...
seaport. The preparations began, but the start of the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
prevented these plans from realization.
July 18, 1943 during Occupation of Taganrog
Taganrog during World War II
The Soviet city of Taganrog, now part of the Rostov Oblast of the Russian Federation, had an eventful history during World War II, from 1941 to 1945.-Defense of Taganrog:...
, it was re-inaugurated by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
authorities in front of the central entrance to the Gorky Park
Gorky Park (Taganrog)
-History:June 30, 1806 the first trees were planted for the Taganrog’s "Chemist’s garden" and "botanical garden" by the order of Taganrog’s governor baron Balthasar von Campenhausen. In 1825, Russian Emperor Alexander I and the Empress Consort Elizabeth Alexeievna often went for a walk in the...
.
In September 1948, during the celebrations of the city's 250th foundation, the monument was placed on Komsomolsky Blvd.
Old and modern views of the Peter the Great Monument in Taganrog
External links and references
- Энциклопедия Таганрога. — Ростов-на-Дону: Ростиздат, 2003