The history of the Constantine Palace and the palace and park ensemble of the town of Strelna, from its construction to present time, was full of difficulties and tragic events. The construction of the palace and park ensemble of Strelna began in 1715. Emperor Peter the Great wanted to make Strelna his official residence capable of competing with the famous Versailles. Yet Peter the Great did not like the design prepared in 1716 by Carlo Bartolomeo Rastrelli. The second design prepared by the French architect Jean-Baptiste Leblond was never implemented because of the sudden death of the architect. Finally, the Czar's residence was designed by the Italian architect Niccolo Michetti.

According to his design, the construction works began in 1720. The palace was being constructed very quickly, but, in a year, the monarch began to pay much greater attention to the neighboring Peterhof because the geographic location of Peterhof was much more favorable. Michetti left Russia and his work was continued by the Russian architects Mikhail Zemtsov and Pyotr Yeropkin. After the death of Peter the Great, the construction works became slower and, by 1730, completely stopped.

The revival of the half-forgotten country residence of Strelna began in the reign of Elisabeth, the daughter of Peter the Great. To implement the plans of her father, the Empress ordered to continue the construction works in the 1750s and appointed the architect Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli to be in charge of the construction works.

Yet the lack of time and money did not allow to finish the construction. Forty years more, the palace, big enough to accommodate all the courtiers of the Czar, was deserted and empty.

In 1797, Emperor Paul I gave the deserted palace as a present to his son, Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich. The palace was given a new life and a new name.

The new owner began the reconstruction of the palace. By order of the Czar's son, the architect Andrei Voronikhin left the palace facades without any changes but changed the interior design of the palace, built the staircases leading from the Grand Terrace to the Lower Park and offered his own variant of the decoration of the grottos. The works in the palace were almost completed when a terrible fire destroyed the decorations of most rooms on December 28, 1803. In 1804, Voronikhin's work was continued by the architect Luigi Rusca. The construction of the palace was finally completed.

After the 1917 revolution, the personal belongings of the Czars and members of their families, books, documents, an excellent collection of pictures and ceramics were sent to various museums. Some of these things were lost for ever.

After the revolution, the former residence of the Grand Duke housed a school for juvenile delinquents and then a sanatorium for patients with diseases of the nervous system. Then, just before World War II, the palace housed courses of in-service training for Naval officers.

During World War II, Nazi used the Constantine Palace as an observation post. The building was seriously damaged by artillery and by fire, so, in fact, nothing but brick walls remained of the building.

In the 1950s, Soviet architects transformed the palace into offices and lecture rooms of the Leningrad School of Arctic Exploration. Complete reconstruction of the palace would have been too expensive, so only parts of decorations of the Marble Room and the Blue Room were restored.

In 1990, the UNESCO included the palace into the list of world famous architectural landmarks threatened by complete destruction.

In 2001, by order of President Vladimir Putin, the former residence of the Czars acquired a new status and became the State Complex of the Palace of Congresses combining the function of a residence of State authorities, a museum and a business center.

The reconstruction began in November 2001, and, within a very short period of time, considerable work was done. The construction zone with the total area of 30 hectares was raised 2 meters higher than before. Two dozens of bridges were constructed, including three drawbridges connecting the Lower Park and Czar Peter's Island where the Pavillion for Negotiations is located. Four fountains, previously existing only on the drawings by Niccolo Michetti, appeared. The stone pavement in front of the palace was reconstructed. It was here that Grand Dukes held military parades. After the reconstruction, a statue of the founder of St. Petersburg and the Constantine Palace, Emperor Peter the Great, was unveiled in the center of the pavement. This is a copy of the statue cast by the best German foundry workers by order of citizens of Riga in 1910.

Not far from the palace, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, there is the so called "Consular Village" consisting of 20 two-storied cottages. Each cottage is named after a Russian city. ***** Baltic Star Hotel was also constructed here. It resembles a traditional Russian mansion. The building of the former yacht club was reconstructed to house a press center, and the latest communications equipment was installed there. The former Czar's stables house the administrative building of the Palace of Congresses.

The idea of Peter the Great to make "the Russian Versailles" the center of diplomatic relations with Europe was implemented in the 21 st century. The first serious event held at the State Complex of the Palace of Congresses was the celebration of the 300 th anniversary of St. Petersburg. It was here that the principal parts of the celebration were held, including the Russia-EU summit and the summit of the heads of the C.I.S. countries.

Starting with the Constantine Palace , all the town of Strelna began to flourish. At present, the name of the town, hardly known before, is pronounced in all languages of the world, and one more excellent gem was returned to the treasure of palaces and parks located in the environs of St. Petersburg.

Assembly.M Tour Company

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