About The Squares Of Saint-Petersburg

The Decembrist's square

This square was given its present name in 1925 in honour of the Russian revolutionary gentry who in December 1825 rose up in arms against autocracy for the first time in russian history.

The Palace Square

The square is the center of the city. The oldest building here is the Winter Palace, a grandiouse edifice in the style of Russian Baroque. A variety of the facades is typical of this style. The Winter Palace was built by the architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli. Almost 200m long, 160m wide and 22m high, this was the biggest and most elegant building in St.Petersburg. Today the rooms in the Winter Palace house the collections of the Hermitage.

To complete the architectural planning of the city's central square the government bought up all the private houses lining the square and in 1819 commissioned Carlo Rossi to rebuilt them for General Staff of Russian Army. The buildings were joined up by a majestic triumhal arch, an original monument to Russia's victory over Napoleon in the war of 1812.

The Art Square

In the houses lining the square there are three museaums and three thatres, including the well-known State Russian Museum, the State Academic Maly Opera House, and the Saint-Petersburb State Philharfmonia.