The splendor of Peterhof, Peter the Great's summer royal castle on the Baltic Sea's Gulf of Finland, is reminiscent of Versailles in Paris. The original palace was built between 1705 and 1723 by Peter I to provide a residence for his growing family while he ruled as king of Russia. After his death in 1725, the palace was continued by his son Paul I who died in 1727, then by his daughter Catherine I who became empress in 1729. She married Frederick IV of Denmark, whose mother would not let him marry Catherine because she was a Russian, so they married instead in a French ceremony in which both were declared free to marry whoever they wanted. Catherine made Peterhof her main residence and brought in many architects and artists from all over Europe to decorate it. The most famous artist was Gian Lorenzo Bernini who designed several buildings at Peterhof. In 1755, Catherine had her first child by her husband: a son whom she named Alexander II. Her husband did not like the name and tried to change it, but she would not allow it so he had no choice but to accept it. He was also angry that she had another man write letters as if they were from him when she told him about their son, so he had all of Catherine's friends banished from court.