Tauride Gardens
The Tauride Garden was laid out in 1783 - 1789. Architect I. Starov and English gardener V. Gould
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Tauride Gardens
The Tauride Garden was laid out in the country estates of Prince Grigory Potemkin-Tauride, who received this title for the development of Tauride from the hands of Catherine II.
The garden was created simultaneously with the construction of the Tauride Palace. Along its borders, oaks, larches and lindens, planted a long time ago, are still preserved. Despite the fact that in the 20th century the appearance of the garden underwent many changes, the presence of a long-ago era can still be perceived. Nowadays, the Tauride Garden encourages leisurely walks along well-groomed paths, restored cast-iron bridges and puts you in a romantic mood. The Tauride Garden, which has become for us a monument of landscape gardening art of the 18th century, arose as part of the country estate of Count G. A. Potemkin.
The territory of the garden is located between Shpalernaya, Potemkinskaya, Tavricheskaya and Kirochnaya streets. The foundation stone for the Tauride Palace, designed by architect I. Starov, was completed in 1873. At the same time, the design of the park began, which was carried out by gardener V. Gould. Construction of the palace and park was completed in 1789, and already in 1790, victories over Turkey were celebrated in the park with a grandiose feast with illumination. This was the first landscape park in the city. For a long time he was considered the best in St. Petersburg. In the picturesque garden created by garden master V. Gould, ponds were dug and canals were dug. Both of them were lined with stone. Hills covered with turf were also raised. There was even a small waterfall built. Winding paths were laid throughout the garden. To decorate the garden, trees and shrubs were imported from England. In the middle of the garden, in a special rotunda, a statue of “Catherine the Lawgiver” by sculptor F. Shubin was installed. Water into the ponds and canals of the Tauride Garden came from the Ligovsky Canal. A sterlet released into them walked, swans swam, and peacocks grazed on the lawns. In 1829, even a harbor seal, donated by the Persian prince Khosrow-Mirza, appeared in the Great Pond of the Tauride Garden. In addition, two artificial islands were created in the Big Pond. One of them was planted with trees, on the other there was a high hill, from which a magnificent view of the palace opened. The island was connected to the shore by two bridges. One of them was a miniature model, 1/10 the size, of a wooden bridge across the Neva (never built), designed by Ivan Kulibin. A ditch was dug around the garden, with bridges across it. Since 1791, after the death of Count Potemkin-Tauride, Empress Catherine II bought the estate from his heirs. During her reign, the estate was kept in perfect order. In 1792-1793, the architect F.I. Volkov built a fence along Shpalernaya Street. On a low plinth stood pillars made of pink granite, connected to each other by a cast iron lattice with a pattern of intersecting circles. Beautiful oval-shaped cast iron vases were installed on the pillars. The fence, designed in a strict classical style, along Potemkinskaya, Kirochnaya and Tavricheskaya streets appeared much later in 1896. Volkov, in 1794, built service buildings in the Tauride Garden, including the Gardener's House, and also erected a stone access bridge and small garden bridges.
There were elegant benches scattered throughout the garden. Greenhouses and greenhouses were also erected in which pineapples, apricots, melons and watermelons were grown. At the same time, a gazebo was built, called the “Admiralty” - boats were stored in it for walks on the ponds. After the death of Catherine in 1800, Emperor Paul I stationed the Horse Guards Regiment in the Tauride Palace. Under Alexander I, the Potemkin estate became part of the city. The palace was redecorated and painted. Now this may seem surprising to us, but in 1815, the first steamship in Russia, the Elizaveta, was tested in the Tauride Garden.
The design of the steamship was very simple: a steam engine was installed on an ordinary boat. The bridge, built according to Kulibin's design, was dismantled in 1816. In 1822, a fence with stone gates appeared along Tavricheskaya Street. The fence was built according to the design of the architect L. Charlemagne. The garden was closed to the public until 1861.
In 1861, the garden was opened for public celebrations. Charity concerts and art exhibitions were held in the garden. In winter, “Tauride Skating” was held on the ponds of the garden. Here, students from city gymnasiums, the Alexander Lyceum, and the Corps of Pages honed their skates. The ice slides that were built on the mounds of the garden were also popular. A small restaurant was opened in the Admiralty gazebo for the public, who had worked up an appetite on the skating rinks and garden paths. The restaurant was a success, and in 1875, a two-story pavilion was built on the site of the burnt gazebo. Various public organizations have found a place in the Tauride Garden.
The Cavalry School, the Ladies' Benevolent Society, the Society for the Physical Development of Children, the Society for the Guardianship of People's Temperance, and the Gardening Society settled here. Alas, no matter how noble the activity of all these Societies, it did not benefit the garden. In one of the issues of the newspaper “Narodnoye Vremya” for 1914, indignation was expressed at the fact that old shady trees were being cut down in the garden and ridiculous platforms and buildings were being erected. After the revolution in the early 1920s, the Tauride Garden under the leadership of the architect I. Fomin was redesigned, and in the 1930s a Culture and Recreation Park was built there, which in 1932 became known as the First Five-Year Plan Park of Culture and Recreation.
Stages, attractions, a cinema, and a club appeared in the park. The park's alleys began to be called the alleys of Shock Workers, Youth, and so on. But that was the official name. The townspeople still called it the Tauride Garden. In 1954, the Tauride Garden came under the jurisdiction of the City Department of Public Education and became a City children's park with attractions and a sports ground. A figure skating school and a club for young cosmonauts were opened in the City Children's Park. In the summer there was a pioneer camp. During the war and the siege of Leningrad, the Tauride Garden, like many other gardens and parks of the city, turned into a vegetable garden where vegetables were grown for the city residents.
Vehicles transporting food along the “Road of Life” were also repaired in the garden. For some time after the siege of Leningrad was lifted, the Tauride Garden continued to be used as a vegetable garden, from which vegetables were supplied to children's hospitals in the Smolninsky district of the city. After the end of the war, restoration work on the garden began under the leadership of architect D. S. Goldgor, which was completed in 1958. In the 1950s, the two-story garage into which the exhibition hall was converted was rebuilt. On November 7, 1958, the first panoramic cinema in Leningrad was opened there. At first the cinema was called "Leningrad Panorama", then - "Leningrad". In 1957, a monument to Lenin was erected in the Tauride Garden.
In 1962 - a monument to the “Young Heroes of the Defense of Leningrad”, the authors of which were a group of sculptors and architects: A. I. Alymov, F. A. Gepner, I. N. Kostyukhina and V. S. Novikova. In 1985, restoration work was supposed to begin in the Tauride Garden.
It was transferred to the City Trust for the Exploitation of Green Spaces, the historical name was returned, but the matter did not go further due to problems with financing the work. Restoration work began only in 1997 and was completed by the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg. Severely clogged ponds were cleaned out, bridges and dams were repaired, new trees were planted, lawns and garden paths were put in order. Among the old trees, preserved mainly along the borders of the garden, there are oaks, larches, and lindens. Even before the start of the last restoration work in the garden in 1990, a bust of the composer P. I. Tchaikovsky was installed here, which was completed by the sculptor B. A. Plenkin and the architect Zh. M. Vrzhbitsky. In 1995, a monument was erected to the poet S. A. Yesenin, the sculptor A. S. Charkin and the architects F. K. Romanovsky and S. L. Mikhailov. In May 2003, the ceremony of laying the “first stone” of a children’s skating rink with artificial ice, the construction of which is financed by Gazprom, took place in the Tavrichesky Garden. In June 2003, the Interparliamentary Alley of the CIS member countries was opened in the Tauride Garden.
The garden was created simultaneously with the construction of the Tauride Palace. Along its borders, oaks, larches and lindens, planted a long time ago, are still preserved. Despite the fact that in the 20th century the appearance of the garden underwent many changes, the presence of a long-ago era can still be perceived. Nowadays, the Tauride Garden encourages leisurely walks along well-groomed paths, restored cast-iron bridges and puts you in a romantic mood. The Tauride Garden, which has become for us a monument of landscape gardening art of the 18th century, arose as part of the country estate of Count G. A. Potemkin.
The territory of the garden is located between Shpalernaya, Potemkinskaya, Tavricheskaya and Kirochnaya streets. The foundation stone for the Tauride Palace, designed by architect I. Starov, was completed in 1873. At the same time, the design of the park began, which was carried out by gardener V. Gould. Construction of the palace and park was completed in 1789, and already in 1790, victories over Turkey were celebrated in the park with a grandiose feast with illumination. This was the first landscape park in the city. For a long time he was considered the best in St. Petersburg. In the picturesque garden created by garden master V. Gould, ponds were dug and canals were dug. Both of them were lined with stone. Hills covered with turf were also raised. There was even a small waterfall built. Winding paths were laid throughout the garden. To decorate the garden, trees and shrubs were imported from England. In the middle of the garden, in a special rotunda, a statue of “Catherine the Lawgiver” by sculptor F. Shubin was installed. Water into the ponds and canals of the Tauride Garden came from the Ligovsky Canal. A sterlet released into them walked, swans swam, and peacocks grazed on the lawns. In 1829, even a harbor seal, donated by the Persian prince Khosrow-Mirza, appeared in the Great Pond of the Tauride Garden. In addition, two artificial islands were created in the Big Pond. One of them was planted with trees, on the other there was a high hill, from which a magnificent view of the palace opened. The island was connected to the shore by two bridges. One of them was a miniature model, 1/10 the size, of a wooden bridge across the Neva (never built), designed by Ivan Kulibin. A ditch was dug around the garden, with bridges across it. Since 1791, after the death of Count Potemkin-Tauride, Empress Catherine II bought the estate from his heirs. During her reign, the estate was kept in perfect order. In 1792-1793, the architect F.I. Volkov built a fence along Shpalernaya Street. On a low plinth stood pillars made of pink granite, connected to each other by a cast iron lattice with a pattern of intersecting circles. Beautiful oval-shaped cast iron vases were installed on the pillars. The fence, designed in a strict classical style, along Potemkinskaya, Kirochnaya and Tavricheskaya streets appeared much later in 1896. Volkov, in 1794, built service buildings in the Tauride Garden, including the Gardener's House, and also erected a stone access bridge and small garden bridges.
There were elegant benches scattered throughout the garden. Greenhouses and greenhouses were also erected in which pineapples, apricots, melons and watermelons were grown. At the same time, a gazebo was built, called the “Admiralty” - boats were stored in it for walks on the ponds. After the death of Catherine in 1800, Emperor Paul I stationed the Horse Guards Regiment in the Tauride Palace. Under Alexander I, the Potemkin estate became part of the city. The palace was redecorated and painted. Now this may seem surprising to us, but in 1815, the first steamship in Russia, the Elizaveta, was tested in the Tauride Garden.
The design of the steamship was very simple: a steam engine was installed on an ordinary boat. The bridge, built according to Kulibin's design, was dismantled in 1816. In 1822, a fence with stone gates appeared along Tavricheskaya Street. The fence was built according to the design of the architect L. Charlemagne. The garden was closed to the public until 1861.
In 1861, the garden was opened for public celebrations. Charity concerts and art exhibitions were held in the garden. In winter, “Tauride Skating” was held on the ponds of the garden. Here, students from city gymnasiums, the Alexander Lyceum, and the Corps of Pages honed their skates. The ice slides that were built on the mounds of the garden were also popular. A small restaurant was opened in the Admiralty gazebo for the public, who had worked up an appetite on the skating rinks and garden paths. The restaurant was a success, and in 1875, a two-story pavilion was built on the site of the burnt gazebo. Various public organizations have found a place in the Tauride Garden.
The Cavalry School, the Ladies' Benevolent Society, the Society for the Physical Development of Children, the Society for the Guardianship of People's Temperance, and the Gardening Society settled here. Alas, no matter how noble the activity of all these Societies, it did not benefit the garden. In one of the issues of the newspaper “Narodnoye Vremya” for 1914, indignation was expressed at the fact that old shady trees were being cut down in the garden and ridiculous platforms and buildings were being erected. After the revolution in the early 1920s, the Tauride Garden under the leadership of the architect I. Fomin was redesigned, and in the 1930s a Culture and Recreation Park was built there, which in 1932 became known as the First Five-Year Plan Park of Culture and Recreation.
Stages, attractions, a cinema, and a club appeared in the park. The park's alleys began to be called the alleys of Shock Workers, Youth, and so on. But that was the official name. The townspeople still called it the Tauride Garden. In 1954, the Tauride Garden came under the jurisdiction of the City Department of Public Education and became a City children's park with attractions and a sports ground. A figure skating school and a club for young cosmonauts were opened in the City Children's Park. In the summer there was a pioneer camp. During the war and the siege of Leningrad, the Tauride Garden, like many other gardens and parks of the city, turned into a vegetable garden where vegetables were grown for the city residents.
Vehicles transporting food along the “Road of Life” were also repaired in the garden. For some time after the siege of Leningrad was lifted, the Tauride Garden continued to be used as a vegetable garden, from which vegetables were supplied to children's hospitals in the Smolninsky district of the city. After the end of the war, restoration work on the garden began under the leadership of architect D. S. Goldgor, which was completed in 1958. In the 1950s, the two-story garage into which the exhibition hall was converted was rebuilt. On November 7, 1958, the first panoramic cinema in Leningrad was opened there. At first the cinema was called "Leningrad Panorama", then - "Leningrad". In 1957, a monument to Lenin was erected in the Tauride Garden.
In 1962 - a monument to the “Young Heroes of the Defense of Leningrad”, the authors of which were a group of sculptors and architects: A. I. Alymov, F. A. Gepner, I. N. Kostyukhina and V. S. Novikova. In 1985, restoration work was supposed to begin in the Tauride Garden.
It was transferred to the City Trust for the Exploitation of Green Spaces, the historical name was returned, but the matter did not go further due to problems with financing the work. Restoration work began only in 1997 and was completed by the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg. Severely clogged ponds were cleaned out, bridges and dams were repaired, new trees were planted, lawns and garden paths were put in order. Among the old trees, preserved mainly along the borders of the garden, there are oaks, larches, and lindens. Even before the start of the last restoration work in the garden in 1990, a bust of the composer P. I. Tchaikovsky was installed here, which was completed by the sculptor B. A. Plenkin and the architect Zh. M. Vrzhbitsky. In 1995, a monument was erected to the poet S. A. Yesenin, the sculptor A. S. Charkin and the architects F. K. Romanovsky and S. L. Mikhailov. In May 2003, the ceremony of laying the “first stone” of a children’s skating rink with artificial ice, the construction of which is financed by Gazprom, took place in the Tavrichesky Garden. In June 2003, the Interparliamentary Alley of the CIS member countries was opened in the Tauride Garden.
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