Winter Palace

Why go

Winter Palace rewards attention to scale, orientation, and setting. The Winter Palace (Зимний дворец) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian Tsars. Before leaving, compare one close detail of Winter Palace with its broadest public view.

What to look for

• Winter Palace: Notice the first profile that appears on arrival.
• Winter Palace: Study the junctions between structure, sculpture, and decoration.
• Winter Palace: Turn toward the neighboring monuments to read the full ensemble.

The full story

The Winter Palace (Зимний дворец) in Saint Petersburg, Russia, was, from 1732 to 1917, the official residence of the Russian Tsars. Situated between the Palace Embankment and the Palace Square, adjacent to the site of Peter the Great's original Winter Palace, the present and fourth Winter Palace was built and altered almost continuously between the late 1730s and 1837, when it was severely damaged by fire and immediately rebuilt. The storming of the palace in 1917 became an iconic symbol of the Russian Revolution. The palace was constructed on a monumental scale that was intended to reflect the might and power of Imperial Russia. From the palace, the Tsar and autocrat of all the Russias ruled over 22,400,000 square kilometres (8,600,000 sq mi) (almost 1/6 of the Earth's landmass) and 176.4 million subjects. It was designed by many architects, most notably Bartolomeo Rastrelli, in what came to be known as the Elizabethan Baroque style; the green-and-white palace has the shape of an elongated rectangle.

Useful to know

• Check the current admission calendar for Winter Palace before building an interior visit around it.

Your next visit

Estimated · Declared scenario and planning estimates; no live opening, weather, queue or booking service.