Anichkov Palace Fontanka Embankment

Designed for the Empress Elizabeth of Russia in a dazzling Baroque style, the palace came to be known as the most imposing private residence of the Elizabethan era. Some suggest architects Bartolomeo Rastrelli and Mikhail Zemtsov were responsible for the design.

Construction works continued for thirteen years and, when finally finished in 1754, the palace was presented by the Empress to her favourite and likely spouse, Count Aleksey Razumovsky. After his death, the palace reverted to the crown, only to be donated by Catherine the Great of Russia to her own favourite, Prince Potemkin, in 1776. The architect Ivan Starov was charged with extensive renovations of the palace in the newly-fashionable Neoclassical style. Upon Potemkin's demise, the palace was restored to the crown.

Tsar Alexander III and his wife, Maria Feodorovna, made it their St. Petersburg residence, ensuring its refacing in a variety of historic styles. It was there that their children, including the last Russian tsar, Nicholas II, spent his childhood years.

Following the October Revolution, the Anichkov Palace was nationalized. In 1934 it was converted into the Young Pioneer Palace.