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The summer wooden palace of empress Anna Ioannovna

The Summer Wooden Palace of Empress Anna Ioannovna is one of the buildings on the territory of the Summer Garden in St.Petersburg, which have not survived till today. The history of the building is inseparable with the history of the Summer Garden as well as inseparable are the history of all grotes, fountains and statues which once stood there, but, unfortunately, did not survived till nowadays.

Man can scarcely find another building standing on the territory of the Imperial Summer Garden for such a short period of only 15 years, but had such a great impact on its history. In course of a period of eight years, the Anna Ioannovna▓s palace was a summer imperial residence, the place where the pulse of the Empire beat. In this palace, Empress Anna Ioannovna died in 1740, it was at this place, where her last will was announced. There the Biron▓s regency was proclaimed, and the higher dignitaries and regiments of the Guard tendered an oath to an Emperor-child, Ioann Antonovich. One of the most dramatic stories of the Russian history, the arrest of Biron, Duke of Kurland, who was the favourite of late Empress Anna Ioannovna is connected with this place.

N. Mosolov. В. Rastrelli. Engraving. Early 18th century [zoom (98k)]

After these events, the Palace never was turned into an imperial residency again and was subsequently demolished eight years later.

The Summer Palace of Empress Anna Ioannovna was erected in 1732, on the bank of the Neva River on the place previously occupied by ╚The Hall of Glorious Gala Ceremonies╩, and disassembled for this purpose. Francesco Rastrelli assisted by his father, Bartholomeo Rastrelli, executed the design of the building. In a letter to some unknown dignitary-patron of arts, ╚The Relation╩, we can find a detailed report about the history the construction works: ╚This July, Her Imperial Majesty sent me to St.Petersburg, where I constructed a wooden palace on the bank of the Neva River, the one of 28 apartments with a big hall. All was finished by October 1st╩.

This ╚Relation╩, written by Rastrelli in 1764 is a very interesting document, being also of a somewhat mysterious character.

It looks that the letter was written, when the aging architect was looking for a comfortable position at the service of some Western dignitary, who was ignorant about the history of buildings in Russia. This idea is a result of comparing the drawings from the Stockholm collection of Berhgoltz, featuring a building with magnificently decorated facades, and the drawings of the same Summer Palace, being kept in the Hermitage. It looks that the architect lately improved the drawings of a rather simple building, turning it into a beautiful palazzo in the Baroque style.

The progress of the construction was very rapid; it was finished in a six week period. Rastrelli complained about the Russians working with too much haste, which resulted in the deterioration of quality.

According to a Swedish master, Berk, the beams under the palace floor were rotten in three years after Anna▓s moving into it. The reason was may be not enough sand being put under the beams, which was fatal in such a swampy place as the site of the Palace was.

So, what did this product of an Italian genius looked like? It was a one-storey building of a considerable length. Berk walked along the facade and counted ╚not less than 150 steps╩.

The Summer Palace of Anna Ioannovna. Facade drawing and layout of 1730-s [zoom (57k)]

The Summer Wooden Palace stood on the bank of the Neva River forming a facade of the Summer Garden located behind it. Rastrelli decorated the roof of the building with a beautiful balustrade with carved patterns and statues. The columns and closely located windows with architraves considerably enriched the facade of the palace turning it into a stylish Baroque building. In 1741 (after the Anna▓s death), the palace featured following apartments: the Antikamora (the place of reception of foreign envoys and ambassadors); the Comedia; the Ober-Hoffmarshal Rooms; the Empress▓s Bedroom; the big Imperial Hall; the 10 rooms of Duke Biron; the 4 rooms, occupied by his son, Peter; the Maid of Honor Rooms; the Secretary Office; the Storage Rooms and the Armory Rooms.

The drawing from 1732 proves that the building had two chains of rooms (enfilades). The rooms of the Northern Enfilade had the windows overlooking the Neva River, the windows of the Southern Enfilade looked in the garden. The Neva Enfilade was accounted by the bigger size rooms ≈ this was the parade enfilade of the Palace. The symmetry axis of the building crossed the throne chamber. The position of the throne is specified inside the throne chamber at the Palace drawing. Passing three rooms to the west of the throne chamber a gala bedroom was located. Here the parade bed with a canopy is presented in the drawing. The biggest palace hall was located in the Eastern Wing of the building. The descriptions inform us that ╚The Comedia╩ i.e. the hall for theatric performances was also located in the Palace. It looks that this big hall in the Eastern Wing could be ╚The Comedia╩. The Garden Enfilade was accounted by the rooms smaller in size. Possibly, there the living rooms grouped in apartments were located. They were separated by lobbies, and each had a garden entrance. As long as the Gala Bedroom was located in the Neva Enfilade, we can be suppose that the regular bedroom, where Anna died, was located in the Garden Enfilade. Duke Biron▓s apartments also overlooked the Garden and were adjacent to the ones of the Empress. This is specified also in the memoirs by Lieutenant-Colonel Mannstein, who had arrested the Duke.

Empress Anna Ioannovna first came to her summer residence immediately after the wedding of her favorite▓s brother, Gustav Biron, and Princess Menshikova, which was celebrated in the Winter Palace in the first day of the summer of 1732. The report about the gala ceremony of the Empress changing the winter residency for the summer one was, of course, published in the official newspaper of ╚The St.Petersburg Vedomosti╩, the one telling us about the 3 magnificent gilded yachts of the Empress and the cannon fire accompanying the event.

Intersting information about the Summer Palace and Anna Ioanovna can be found in the memoirs of a captured French officer Aggey de Mion, who came to St.Petersburg in 1734. This memoirs is a very interesting historical source. It bears the name: ╚Historical daybook describing the noteworthy story of the Perigord, Le Marshe and Blezauss regiments, sent by the French King to assist the Polish King; the description of the trip to Muscovy, stay in that country and return back to France after innumerous dangers and exertion from the activities both terrestrial and nautical in course of 1734╩.

The history of the French force besieged by the Russians in the town of Danzig and capturing it by the Russian commander Muennich is scarcely known, so the story of Aggey de Mion, who personally took part in this enterprise, is of particular interest for us. The description of the life of the court of Empress Anna in St. Petersburg, visited by de Mion, is of particular interest for us. On 10 October 1734, before the French being in captivity left for their homeland, Anna let a number of officers including de Mion visit her in her Summer Palace. His impressions are rather valuable for us, for we shall not find such a lively and detailed description of the subject in other sources.

╚┘Although the Palace was made from wood, it was so thoroughly painted that one could think of a stone masonry. Its front facade overlooks the river, while the three other sides are surrounded by gardens with beautiful statues, boskets and fountains┘ First of all, we were taken to the Cabinet, the palace room, where a minister, Count Ostermann, deals with the visitors┘ He himself took us to the Imperial apartments, and we were surprised at all the splendor of the clothes of both the courtiers and the servants┘ We discovered that the Empress has a solemn appearance, beautiful figure and dark complexion. We noticed also her black hair and brows, big bulgy eyes of the same color, and a lot of pockmarks on her face. She had a French hairdress, with many precious stones in her hair. She wore a golden brocade dress of a fiery hued color tailored in according to the French fashion. She wore a diamond brooch in the form of a crown on her gorgeous breast. Several minutes later, the Empress returned to us wearing a silk dress, may be in the result of great heat in the rooms. Furnaces positioned beneath the floor heat the rooms of the Palace. As long as the fragrant herbs are also incinerated in these furnaces, beautiful aroma accesses the rooms together with the heat┘ Particularly, I liked a beautiful and interesting figure made from wood and ivory, depicting the Abraham▓s Sacrifice of Isaac╩.

The words of de Mion about the underfloor furnaces heating is worth our attention. Most probably, he speaks of ╚the pneumatic heating╩. Its characteristic feature was the combination of heating and ventilation. It provided rapid heating of a particularly big room. This feature allowed the Empress to spend a comparatively long period of time in this wooden building.

The Summer Palace of Anna Ioannovna in the Summer Garden. Layout of the 1730-s [zoom (31k)]

The Danish traveler Peder von Hafen, who visited St.Petersburg in 1736, also provided an interesting report about the Palace and the life of the Imperial Court in it. Von Hafen reports: ╚The Summer palace┘ is standing on the bank of the river. It is made of wood, it is a single-storey building and is painted beautifully, through the windows, and one can see a luxurious and most expensive draping hanging on the walls┘╩

Berk informs that by 1735, the general public already had, though limited, access to the Summer Garden behind the Palace in the days of the Comedy, when the fountains operated in the Garden. In the other days, the Empress used to walk in the Garden accompanied only by her ladies-in-waiting.

Anna Ioannovna▓s life in the Summer palace was organized according to a definite order. She stayed there from May till September (excluding several weeks in June and July spent in Peterhof, a sea summer residence of the Emperors). The ceremony of the Imperial Court moving to the Summer Palace was always organized with grandeur. Anna Ioannovna sailed via the Neva River in a beautiful 16-ored golden yacht decorated with green velvet and accompanied by the cannon fire.

Now a few words about the private life that the Empress lived in the Palace in the intervals between gala festivities and receptions of foreign ambassadors and envoys. Anna Ioannovna waked between seven and eight hours in the morning and was visited by M-me Biron, her close friend, whose apartments were adjacent to those of the Empress. They drank coffee together and eat chocolate, served by a chambermaid. At some time between eight and nine, when the Empress was already dressed, a priest entered with a group of choirmen and said a service. Sometimes the Empress entertained by riding in sledges, hunting wolves and bears and shooting birds.

The latter entertainment must be singled out, because this favorite occupation of Anna Ioannovna provided her the reputation of ╚Diana of St. Petersburg╩.

On ordinary days free from receptions of foreign ambassadors and other dignitaries, the Empress loved to dwell in the Biron▓s room or in her own room, accompanied by jesters, whom she collected from the whole country, the main selection criterion being the ability to chatter ceaselessly for hours, no matter what gibberish their words were.

The Empress selected girls with good voices for her chambermaids. They were obliged to seat in the room adjacent to her bedroom and sing while sewing or knitting. She was very strict in relation to these maids, and once, when a pair of them refused to sing, because they were already tired, Anna ordered them to work in a laundry for a whole week as a punishment. Sometimes, she sent for the wives of her guard officers and ordered them to dance folk dances with their husbands to entertain her. Then followed group folk dances, the presenting in the Imperial apartments courtiers being obliged to participate also in these dances.

To be continued