# Saint Petersburg World Heritage Site

Saint Petersburg was the capital of Imperial Russia for a little more than two centuries. During this time, more or less uninhabited swampland was turned into one of the grandest cities in all Europe. Palaces and monuments, parks and fortifications from this time were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list as "Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments" in 1990. Also some older and newer sights are included.
It's a very spread out world heritage site, made up of 36 components around the city and some in Leningrad Oblast. Moreover some these are divided into subcomponents, and as such there are, depending on how one counts them, more than a hundred individual places to visit.
The names for the attractions follow the spelling used by UNESCO. Icons in blue denote cities, towns or districts, red the forts in the Gulf of Finland, green buildings, parks and other individual attractions, and yellow routes.

## Get in and around

Most of the places on land are accessible by public transport – train, bus or if there's a body of water nearby – sometimes boat. Getting in by driving is also possible, though not necessary.

## Sites
### Central Saint Petersburg

The 59.93730.3061 Historic Centre of Saint Petersburg is the heart of this world heritage site. It covers most of the central parts of the city from Krestovsky Island in the northwest to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in the southeast. The classical landmarks of the city such as the Winter Palace, Peter and Paul Fortress, and Gostiny Dvor shopping arcades are all part of this component.

### Kronstadt and forts

The island of Kotlin is in the middle of the Gulf of Finland outside Saint Petersburg and as such one could hardly think of a better place for forts to defend the city from naval attacks. Kronstadt, the city covering the island, was built simultaneously with Saint Petersburg for defensive purposes, and the world heritage component named 59.99229.7752 The Historical Part of the Town of Kronstadt is all about the sea, with the impressive Naval Cathedral, many museums, the tide gauge, former naval hospitals, admiralty, arsenal, dockyards, foundries, statues of admirals, and the school of marine engineering. Forts are dotted across the bay and on both shores, though some of them have been used for the Saint Petersburg Dam, protecting the city from flooding from the sea and doubling as the western part of the city's ring road.

#### Forts of the Island Kotlin

* 60.026229.67461 The Coastal fort “Shanetz” (“Alexander and Nikolai Shanetz”)
* 60.032529.6362 The Coastal Fort «Reef» - at the island's western tip, where the Swedish actually landed, and were repelled, in 1704. It was constantly upgraded throughout the years. The remains seen nowadays are mostly from the Soviet era.
* 59.995329.70163 Fort Konstantin - nowadays, home to a museum of lighthouses. The remaining granite structures are picturesque.

#### Forts of the Gulf of Finland

* 60.059529.72054 Fort «Obrutchev» («Krasnoarmeysky»)
* 60.085729.84695 Fort «Totleben» («Pervomaysky»)
* 60.029629.75576 Northern battery No. 1
* 60.028429.79127 Northern battery No. 2
* 60.023329.82148 Northern battery No. 3
* 60.021729.84819 Northern battery No. 4 («Zverev»)
* 60.022129.872810 Northern battery No. 5
* 60.027329.895511 Northern battery No. 6
* 60.031729.918112 Northern battery No. 7
* 59.974329.71713 Fort «Paul I» («Riesbank») - the site of a mysterious explosion during the Russian Revolution, is nowadays very derelict, with only a staircase still standing.
* 59.979629.746114 Fort «Kronshlot» - the "Crown Lock", Peter The Great's brainchild, guarding the main fairway's southern flank, was reputedly built in record time, during the winter, and caught the Swedish by surprise in the 1704 spring. Peter's building was swept by the 1824 flood, but it was reconstructed and modernized by orders of Nikolai I, a military engineer by heart, in the 1830s. It's well worth the visit.
* 59.989529.717815 Fort «Alexander I» - a "concrete battleship" type of sea fort at the fairway's entrance, it became famous as "Plague Island", when a vaccination lab worked in isolation at the beginning of the 20th century.
* 59.989829.733116 Fort «Peter I» - as of 2020, still an active military installation, with restricted access.
* 59.949629.703317 Southern battery No. 1
* 59.957529.704318 Southern battery No 2 («Dzichkanets»)
* 59.972429.695619 Southern battery No 3 («Milyutin»)
* 60.042429.542120 Tolbukhin Lighthouse on Tolbukhin Island

#### Forts of the Coast of the Gulf of Finland

* 60.168129.376421 Fort «Ino»
* 59.990929.214522 Fort «Seraya Loshad»
* 59.97329.31923 Krasnaya Gorka - a coastal artillery fortress, decommissioned in 1960 and partially demolished. Now a World War II informal memorial site, full of vintage military hardware, a must-see for aficionados. The local authorities of Leningrad Oblast are discussing whether to convert the site into a military museum.

#### Civil Engineering

* 59.9729.70824 The Barrier of Cribwork
* 60.01929.66225 The Barrier of Pile
* 60.02429.88326 The Barrier of Stone

### East

* 59.942631.03483 Schlisselburg. Old Ladoga and New Ladoga canals - Shlisselburg (German: "Key Castle") is where the Neva flows out of Lake Ladoga, and has a considerably older history than Saint Petersburg. The Oreshek (Russian: "Little Nut") fortress was built here in 1323, and in the same year a peace was made between Novgorod and Sweden at this fortress. Peter The Great conquered and renamed it, and later on used it as a prison. Along the southern shore of the lake, from here up to Svir river goes two canals; the Old Ladoga canal which was opened in 1731, and a bigger New Ladoga canal opened in 1866. The reason was to provide a safe shipping route for boats and log driving between Svir and Neva also during bad weather which meant rough seas on Lake Ladoga.
* 59.953731.03881 The ensemble of the Oreshek (Shlisselburgskaya) fortress
* 59.942530.64982 Koltushskaya Elevation
* 59.937530.6543 Scientific Town-Institution of Physiologist I. P. Pavlov - In the settlement of Pavlovo is the laboratory of 1904 winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, Ivan Pavlov. He conducted research on dogs to learn about their reflexes. It's set in the "Koltushi Elevation" one of the landforms around Saint Petersburg listed.
* 59.831230.57464 The Ensemble of the Zinoviev's Dacha (Estate «Bogoslovka»)
* 59.95430.4035 The Neva River with Banks - Rivers tend to be important to cities next to them, even more so back in the day when water transport was the fastest way for long distance travel, and Neva is no exception.

### South

* 59.72230.4174 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Town of Pushkin (Tsarskoye Selo) - Pushkin was known as Tsarskoye Selo, the "village of the czar", until the Russian Revolution. There are several palaces here, complete with parks, and the country's first railway connected the "village" to the capital in 1837.
** 59.716130.39566 Historical Centre of the Town of Pushkin, including the Catherine Palace -the Catherine Palace, named after Catherine I, Peter the Great's wife, is the location of the infamous "Amber Room", stolen during the war, and later restored.
** 59.721430.38017 Alexander Palace and park, including the Park of Farm - the main residence of the last tsar Nikolai II and his family, heavily damaged during World War II, and still undergoing restoration. Parts of it have been reopened to the public.
** 59.71630.3598 The Babolovsky Park
** 59.70630.42879 The Otdelny Park
* 59.68430.4355 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Town of Pavlovsk and its historical centre - Pavlovsk is right south of Pushkin, and famously associated with tsar Paul I, with one imperial palace and several parks.
** 59.689230.434810 Historical Centre of the Town of Pavlovsk, including the Pavlovsky Palace and Park
** 59.679730.425611 The Park «Alexandrova Datchs»
** 59.653930.406912 Yu. P. Samoilova's Villa
** 59.678530.461713 «The Menagerie»
** 59.682130.44814 The Park «Mariental»
* 59.771730.326115 Pulkovskaya Observatory - the Russian Imperial equivalent to Greenwich Observatory.
* 59.726329.863416 The Palace and Park Ensemble of the Village of Ropsha - reputedly, here took place the murder of emperor Peter III by accomplices of his wife Catherine (the Great). During the World War II siege, a German command post was set up here and the area was heavily mined. As of 2020, it's still off-limits to visitation.
* 59.751229.618517 The Palace and Park Ensemble of the Village of Gostilitsy
* 59.655230.155518 The Palace and Park Ensemble of the Village of Taytsy. The Waterline Taytsky (system and equipment)
* 59.564830.13056 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Town of Gatchina and its historical centre - Gatchina is known for its palace, famous as the main residence for tsar Alexander III and later his widow.
** 59.568230.103419 Historical Centre of the Town of Gatchina, including Gatchinsky Palace
** 59.585630.094620 Park «The Menagerie»
** 59.553530.120421 Prioratsky Park
* 59.73229.90922 Izhorsky Bench (Glint)

#### Dudergofskie Heights

* 59.69430.17123 Dudergofskaya Elevation
* 59.73330.08924 Krasnoe Selo
* 59.70130.12525 Dudergof (Mohzaisky)

### South coast

* 59.853530.090126 The Monastery Troitse-Sergieva Pustin
* 59.85230.0587 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Village of Strelna and its Historical Centre - The settlement of Strelna is famous for the Konstantin palace. Created as a smaller summer place for Peter the Great, halfway between capital and Peterhof, it's nowadays the presidential Saint Petersburg residence.
** 59.856130.058827 Historical Centre of the Village of Strelna, including Strelninsky Palace
** 59.850530.039128 A.F.Orlov's Datcha
** 59.85430.033129 P.K.Alexandrov's Datcha (Lvovsky Palace)
* 59.863429.99130 The Palace and Park of the Mikhailovskaya Datcha («Mikhailovka»)
* 59.875529.957231 The Palace and Park of the Znamenskaya Datcha («Znamenka»)
* 59.8829.9088 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Town of Peterhof - Home to probably the grandest and most famous of the palaces in the region (aside from the Winter Palace), Peterhof Palace, also known as the Russian Versailles. There are multiple palaces and pavilions, lined by impressive parks and fountains. The complex served as the main summer palace for czars until the revolution.
** 59.884329.908732 Historical Centre of the Town of Peterhof, including the Palace and Park
** 59.87729.908533 The Colonizer's Park
** 59.85929.890934 The Lugovoy (Ozerkovy) Park
** 59.879529.878835 The English Park
** 59.880529.93936 The Park «Alexandria»
** 59.871629.93137 The Alexandriysky Park
** 59.894629.872638 The Park of the Farm of Prince of Oldenburg
** 59.849629.890239 The Water-bringing system of Peterhof
* 59.897329.851540 The Palace and Park Ensemble «Sobstvennaya Datcha»
* 59.895329.838941 The Palace and Park Ensemble «Sergievka»
* 59.90929.7759 The Palace and Park Ensembles of the Town of Lomonosov - Known as Oranienbaum until 1948, and the palace still retains the name. The name means orange tree in 18th century German, and back in the day it had greenhouses where orange and other exotic trees were grown. It wasn't a one of the czar's palaces, but was built for his right hand man Alexander Menshikov, and afterwards other high nobility resided here.
** 59.913129.747342 Historical Centre of the Town of Lomonosov (Oranienbaum), including the Palace and Park Ensemble of the Upper Park and Lower Garden
** 59.900729.830543 The Mordvinov's Estate
** 59.918129.733244 The Maximov's Datcha
** 59.921629.719645 The Zubov's Estate «Otrada»
** 59.924529.698846 The Ratkov-Rozhnov'a Estate «Dubki»
** 59.924929.67647 S.K.Grieg's Estate «Sans Ennui»
** 59.925429.663348 The Datcha of the Hospital

### North

* 60.076530.304549 The Shuvalov's (E. A. Vorontsova-Dashkova) Estate «Pargolovo»
* 60.115930.25350 The E. I. Lopukhina's (Levashov's, Viazemsky's) «Osinovaya Roshcha»
* 60.155929.896651 The I. Repin Estate «The Penates» - residence of master Russian painter Ilya Repin.
* 60.204529.799952 The Cemetery of the Village of Komarovo
* 60.23429.53153 Lindulovskaya Roshcha
* 60.106330.258454 Yukkovskaya Elevation

#### The Northern Coast

* 59.990130.131155 The Steinbok-Fermor's Estate
* 59.995630.132556 The Village of Olgino
* 6030.03357 The Park «Nearest Dubki»
* 60.090229.9358 The Park «Dubki»
* 60.084629.998459 Sestroretsky Razliv
* 60.190129.701560 Terioki (Zelenogorsk)

### Roads and fairways
#### The Roads

* 59.8630.3221 Moskovskaya Road (Highway)
* 59.71630.282 Kievskoe Highway
* 59.78430.43 Railway Saint Petersburg - Pavlovsk
* 59.64830.2684 Highway Pushkin - Gatchina
* 59.77130.2375 Volkhonskoe Highway
* 59.811830.1716 Tallinskoe Highway
* 59.846230.1847 Peterhofskaya Road (Highway)
* 59.841829.94378 Ropshinskoe Highway
* 59.855529.79229 Gostilitskoe Highway
* 60.196329.611410 Primorskoe Highway
* 60.06230.30411 Vyborgskaya Road (Highway)
* 59.943630.604912 Koltushskoe Highway
* 59.908130.346313 Ligovsky prospect (former Ligovsky canal)
* 60.010229.729314 Kronstadtskoe Highway

#### The Fairways

* 60.00229.63415 The Maritime Channel
* 59.93530.06816 Petrovsky
* 59.96829.99217 Kronstadtsky
* 60.0829.80218 Zelenogorsky

#### The Memorial in memory of the defense of the city in 1941-1944 «the Green Belt of Glory of Leningrad»

* 59.81630.85519 The Blocade Ring
* 60.08531.07120 The Road of Life
* 59.81229.71121 Oranienbaumsky Springboard

## See also

* Russian Empire
* Soviet Union