Legend of the Bronze Horseman
Bronze Horseman
One of the brightest symbols of St. Petersburg - the Bronze Horseman - according to numerous legends, is called upon to protect the city from evil forces and enemy invasions.
They say that as long as the rider stands on his monument and proudly looks into the distance, the city on the Neva is under reliable protection and will never be touched by evil fate. Like the figure of Peter the Great, the monument in his honor, erected by the sculptor Etienne Falconet, is surrounded by a dense veil of secrets, legends and urban beliefs.
Literally from the first days, as soon as the monument was erected on Senate Square, the Bronze Horseman became the object of gossip between city gossips and even representatives of the upper class. Thus, the emperor’s ill-wishers said that Falcone created the “horseman of the Apocalypse,” who would bring countless troubles not only to St. Petersburg, but also to all of Russia. Supporters of Peter's reforms assured that the monument is a symbol of the greatness of the Russian Empire, and Russia is destined to remain so as long as the horseman remains in his place. The belief in the latter was so strong that during the Great Patriotic War of 1812, when it was believed that St. Petersburg was in danger of a Napoleonic invasion, Emperor Alexander I ordered the statue to be taken to the Vologda province for safekeeping.
As soon as the order was pronounced out loud, a certain Major Baturin began to be haunted for several nights in a row by the same obsessive dream, in which he dreamed of the statue of Peter coming to life, coming off the pedestal, heading towards the Kamennoostrovsky Palace, where Alexander I lived at that time, knocks on his door, and when the emperor comes out, he says: “Young man, what have you brought my Russia to? But while I’m there, nothing threatens my city!” Baturin, who woke up in a cold sweat, managed to get an audience with the emperor, and when he told him about his dream, the king immediately canceled the decision to evacuate the statue. Whether it was or not is not for us to decide, but Napoleon never set foot on the soil of St. Petersburg. It must be said that popular rumor, accustomed to endowing monuments with magical properties, also affected the monuments of Suvorov, Kutuzov and Barclay de Tolly, which stand opposite the Kazan Cathedral.
During the Great Patriotic War of 1941, a belief arose that as long as the monuments stood in their places, the Germans would not be able to enter the city. For 900 days, the city suffocated in the ring of the blockade, but enemy troops never entered Leningrad, and neither a bomb fragment nor a shell touched the monuments... Returning to the conversation about the Bronze Horseman, it is worth noting that even the pedestal under him became the object of urban legends. According to Falconet's idea, it was supposed to be made in the shape of a wave; a suitable stone was found near the village of Lakhta. According to legend, the stone was pointed out by a local holy fool who knew how to heal and perform magic. Some historians believe that it was this stone that Peter climbed in the heat of the Northern War in order to better see the location of his military troops.
They say that as long as the rider stands on his monument and proudly looks into the distance, the city on the Neva is under reliable protection and will never be touched by evil fate. Like the figure of Peter the Great, the monument in his honor, erected by the sculptor Etienne Falconet, is surrounded by a dense veil of secrets, legends and urban beliefs.
Literally from the first days, as soon as the monument was erected on Senate Square, the Bronze Horseman became the object of gossip between city gossips and even representatives of the upper class. Thus, the emperor’s ill-wishers said that Falcone created the “horseman of the Apocalypse,” who would bring countless troubles not only to St. Petersburg, but also to all of Russia. Supporters of Peter's reforms assured that the monument is a symbol of the greatness of the Russian Empire, and Russia is destined to remain so as long as the horseman remains in his place. The belief in the latter was so strong that during the Great Patriotic War of 1812, when it was believed that St. Petersburg was in danger of a Napoleonic invasion, Emperor Alexander I ordered the statue to be taken to the Vologda province for safekeeping.
As soon as the order was pronounced out loud, a certain Major Baturin began to be haunted for several nights in a row by the same obsessive dream, in which he dreamed of the statue of Peter coming to life, coming off the pedestal, heading towards the Kamennoostrovsky Palace, where Alexander I lived at that time, knocks on his door, and when the emperor comes out, he says: “Young man, what have you brought my Russia to? But while I’m there, nothing threatens my city!” Baturin, who woke up in a cold sweat, managed to get an audience with the emperor, and when he told him about his dream, the king immediately canceled the decision to evacuate the statue. Whether it was or not is not for us to decide, but Napoleon never set foot on the soil of St. Petersburg. It must be said that popular rumor, accustomed to endowing monuments with magical properties, also affected the monuments of Suvorov, Kutuzov and Barclay de Tolly, which stand opposite the Kazan Cathedral.
During the Great Patriotic War of 1941, a belief arose that as long as the monuments stood in their places, the Germans would not be able to enter the city. For 900 days, the city suffocated in the ring of the blockade, but enemy troops never entered Leningrad, and neither a bomb fragment nor a shell touched the monuments... Returning to the conversation about the Bronze Horseman, it is worth noting that even the pedestal under him became the object of urban legends. According to Falconet's idea, it was supposed to be made in the shape of a wave; a suitable stone was found near the village of Lakhta. According to legend, the stone was pointed out by a local holy fool who knew how to heal and perform magic. Some historians believe that it was this stone that Peter climbed in the heat of the Northern War in order to better see the location of his military troops.