Russian Versailles: The Presidential Library marking the founding of Tsarskoye Selo

July 5, 2019 marks the 309th anniversary of the founding of Tsarskoye Selo, now the city of Pushkin. Varied electronic collections of the Presidential Library illustrate how summer residence of Russian emperors was built and developed. Most of the rare materials are presented on the institution's portal.

The guidebook of S. N. Vilchkovsky, which was published in 1910, reflects the bases of the name Tsarskoye Selo.

The history of Tsarskoye Selo as the residence of monarchs began on July 5 (June 24, old style) in 1710, when Peter I presented this land to his bride, the future Russian autocrat, Ekaterina Alekseevna. It was she who began to create that unique look of the city, the features of which are available now. In the then Sarskaya manor, the empress founded the famous palace and park ensemble. An even more significant contribution to the development of Tsarskoye Selo was made by Peter’s daughter, Elizabeth. This is reflected in the book by the historian Alexander Uspensky “The historical panorama of St. Petersburg and its environs. Tsarskoye Selo” (1912), a digital copy of which is available on the Presidential Library’s portal.

It was under Elizabeth in 1755 that the legendary Amber Room, or, as it was then called, the Amber Chamber, appeared in the Tsarskoye Selo Palace. By order of the autocrat, the gift of the Prussian king to her father Peter the Great was transported from Petersburg and improved under the guidance of architect B. F. Rastrelli. He added wooden gilded carvings, mirrors and mosaic pictures of agate and jasper to the decoration of amber panels. In the course of the Great Patriotic War, the precious cabinet was stolen, and then disappeared. Scientists are still searching for it. In 2003, the Amber Room was recreated in full, which is now housed in the Catherine Palace.

Over time, Tsarskoye Selo became more and more important for the rulers of the Russian Empire. The aforementioned book of Uspensky describes the preparation for the arrival of Peter III. The scope of the festival was amazing.

A significant contribution to the multiplication of the splendor of the residence was made by Catherine the Great. A new Alexander Palace, the Cold Bath, is being built, the country's first landscape park is being created. Many skillful craftsmen and artists came from abroad.

Tsarskoye Selo is not only a symbol of imperial grandeur, but also salutary soil, which nurtured and presented to the world those who, without exaggeration, can be called "worthy sons of fatherland". Philologist Yakov Grott reports in his book Pushkin, his lyceum comrades and mentors (1887), available on Presidential Library’s portal, that the atmosphere of the famous educational institution contributed to creativity.

Unique publications and documents illustrate the history of the Tsarskoye Selo Lyceum, digital copies of which are also available on the Presidential Library’s portal. For example, the Ordinance on Lyceum (1810), by which Emperor Alexander I established the future alma mater of Pushkin, defines a list of requirements for applicants: “To join the Lyceum, the following knowledge is required from pupils.

a) Some grammatical knowledge of Russian and French or German.

b) Knowledge of Arithmetic, at least up to three rules.

c) Concepts about the general properties of things.

d) The initial foundation of Geography.

f) The division of ancient history according to the main epochs and periods, and some information about the most noble nations of antiquity.

October 1837 in Tsarskoye Selo became the starting point for technical progress: at the behest of the sovereign, Nicholas I, the first public railway in Russia linked St. Petersburg with the residence. The cars went through it both with the help of steam traction and manpower which is reflected in Historical sketch of the development of railways in Russia from their foundation to 1897 inclusive by V. M. Verkhovsky.

Tsarskoye Selo in the 20th century is vividly illustrated by a selection of postcards with photographs of the city’s attractions from the beginning of the century, which can be looked through on the Presidential Library’s portal.

Sarskaya manor, Tsarskoye Selo, Detskoye Selo, Pushkin... For more than three centuries of its existence, the city has changed several names. But one of the first guides to Tsarskoye Selo in 1830 describes "the magnificence of its buildings, the vastness and beautiful views of its gardens, the space of ponds and cascades between them, the simplicity and beauty of different monuments dedicated to great men... one imagination already admires” that is relevant nowadays.