GATCHINA PALACE

The palace, which resembles an English castle of the Middle Ages, was built by Antonio Rinaldi in 1766-1781. Its sober exterior contrasts with the decorative refinement of the interiors. Visible in front of the palace, the statue of Paul I was made by Vitali in 1851. It originally comprised more than 500 rooms! Only about ten of them can be visited today. You will notice in particular the majestic marble hall, decorated with columns in Carrara marble, once used for balls.

Paul I's throne room is decorated with tapestries of the Goblins, which were given to Paul I by Louis XVI in 1782. You will admire in this room the imperial throne, but also the precious wood flooring.

Maria Fyodorovna's ceremonial bedroom is also spectacular, with its blue silk drapes and pilasters painted with arabesques.

The White Hall is the largest in the palace and was used for great celebrations. Decorated by Rinaldi in a Baroque style, it has an abundance of carved decoration, not forgetting the Corinthian pilasters and the marquetry floor.

On the ground floor, a room displays the imperial collection of edged weapons and firearms.

You can also visit the palace church, where several members of the imperial family were married. It used to be sumptuous, with kilos of gold, silver, and hundreds of icons, but all these treasures were confiscated by the Bolsheviks.

In the Dvortsovi park, where an underground passage called "Echo" leads from the palace to the park. If the tsar took his guests there to entertain them, he was well aware of the potential usefulness of this underground passage in case of disgrace! You can take a look at it, even if you access the park in a more natural way. There is mainly a pavilion called the Birch House. It hides, behind a more than rustic appearance, an interior with an elaborate decor, with painted ceilings, mirrors and tapestries. Still in the park, the small palace on the shores of the Black Lake, called the Hospitaller Priory of Gatchina and built by the architect Lvov in 1798, was inhabited by the Prior of the Knights of Malta, whose Grand Master was Paul I.