page_title: Strelna
section_title: Palace of Peter the Great
hierarchical_section_title: Strelna / Palace of Peter the Great
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Empfang der Leib-Guard vor dem Konstantinpalast in Strelna, zu St. Petersburg, Gemälde aus dem IXX. Jahrhundert. English: Leib-Guards Reception at the Constantine Palace in Strelna, St. Petersburg. A 19th-century painting. Русский: Приём лейб-гвардии в Константиновском дворце в Стрельне, Санкт-Петербург. Картина XIX века.
context_page_description: Strelna is a municipal settlement in Petrodvortsovy District of the federal city of Saint Petersburg, Russia, about halfway between Saint Petersburg proper and Petergof, and overlooking the shore of the Gulf of Finland. Population: 12,452; 12,751.
context_section_description: Formerly a Swedish chancellor's estate, Strelna was chosen by Peter the Great as a place for his future summer house in 1714. Jean Baptiste Le Blond, famous for his work with André Le Nôtre at Versailles, was commissioned to prepare designs for a palace and park. Le Blond envisaged the palace as a Château d'Eau, situated on a round island. The gardens were laid out to Le Blond's design, but the master's death prevented him from completing a more elaborate project for the palace.
  In 1718, a temporary wooden palace was constructed in Strelna. It had been used by the Russian royalty as a sort of hunting lodge, and has been faithfully preserved to this day. After Le Blond's death, the commission to build the grand palace passed to Niccolo Michetti, a disciple of the Roman Carlo Fontana. A cornerstone was laid in June 1720, but next year it became apparent that the place was ill-adapted for installation of fountains, thus Peter decided to concentrate his attention on the nearby Peterhof. Disappointed, Michetti left Russia, and all works in Strelna were suspended.
  On ascending the throne in 1741, Peter's daughter Elizabeth intended to complete her father's project. Her favourite architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli was asked to expand and aggrandize Michetti's design. But Rastrelli's attention was soon diverted to other palaces, in Peterhof and Tsarskoye Selo, so the Strelna palace stood unfinished until the end of the century.
caption: Leib Guard reception at the Konstantin Palace. A 19th-century painting.
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