There are many interesting and unusual buildings, museum-reserves in Moscow. These include Tsaritsyno - one of the most famous museum-reserves of the city. It includes a unique architectural complex and beautiful nature that is not typical for Moscow.
Tsaritsyno is a unique and very beautiful place in Moscow, on the one hand it is a historical place with unusual architecture, on the other - picturesque nature (an area of more than 100 hectares). For three centuries in a row, residents of the city have been walking in Tsaritsyno, enjoying the clean air and extraordinary landscapes. The reserve museum is very popular with tourists, they often visit it.
Opened in 1984, but few people know the history of this unique place. It has been known since the 16th century and belonged to Tsarina Irina, the sister of Boris Godunov. The famous Tsaritsyn ponds have been preserved since the 16th century and are considered the oldest "monument" of the museum-reserve.
In 1598, a wasteland was formed on the site of the possession of Queen Irina, which did not have an owner. In 1633, the land was acquired by the Streshnev boyars, 51 years later the property passed to A. V. Golitsyn (the son of Vasily Golitsyn, the favorite of Princess Sophia).
Peter I confiscated the lands of the Golitsyn family, in 1712 the future "Tsaritsyno" granted the Moldavian prince Dmitry Cantemir (for Russia's help in the confrontation with Turkey). The prince erected a stone one-domed church in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "Life-giving source" (in 1722), the temple has been preserved and can be visited.
Next to the possessions of Prince Cantemir, a road passed, Empress Catherine II drove along it returning from Kolomenskoye and drew attention to the prince's estate, she was impressed by the beauty of nature. On the recommendation of Prince Grigory Potemkin, the Empress acquired the estate from the son of Prince Kantemir Sergei, the deal took place in May 1775. The cost of ownership was 20,000 rubles, but Catherine II paid 5000 more for it.
Black mud (the name of the estate) became the property of the queen and received the corresponding name. There is a version that the name Tsaritsyno was invented by Prince Potemkin.
At the end of the 19th century, summer cottages were built in Tsaritsyno, and the former possession of Catherine II turned into a favorite place for Moscow residents to walk. Some of the buildings that were erected in the empress's residence have survived, some buildings have been restored.
Tourists and visitors are attracted by the unique architecture of the museum-reserve; in summer, wedding photo sessions are held against the backdrop of the palace. The architectural complex Tsaritsyno is considered the largest building in Europe in the pseudo-Gothic style of the 18th century
The most famous building in Tsaritsyno is considered to be the Grand Palace, its construction was carried out for ten years and was repeatedly suspended (from 1786 to 1796). The author of the project is V. I. Bazhenov, he was the court architect of Catherine II.
The palace was not completed due to the death of the empress; it was restored from ruins in 2005-2007.
In addition to the Bolshoi, two more palaces were erected (medium and small), several buildings and the Bread House, bridges. The buildings were not completely preserved (some were restored, some were restored, some were completely preserved), because Catherine II did not like the architecture of her residence and she ordered them to be dismantled and rebuilt (with the participation of the architect Matvey Kazakov).
There are several versions of the empress's indignation, according to one of them, Catherine II simply lost interest in her estate. She lived in Tsaritsyno with her secret spouse (in a wooden palace) Grigory Potemkin (it was he who offered to buy out the Kantemirov estate), after his death, Catherine II disliked her residence.
It is still not known why it was Catherine II who ordered the rebuilding of the palaces and buildings.
Some of the buildings designed by V. I. Bazhenov have survived; during the Soviet era, they housed local authorities and a music school.
Some of the pavilions were modified during the Soviet era, recently they were given their original appearance.
The Milovida Pavilion (originally a tea house) and the ruin tower appeared in Tsaritsyno in the 19th century.
In addition to architecture, in the museum-reserve you can see the "Mermaid Island" with a gate on it, greenhouses, statues and feed the squirrels.
It is easy to get to the museum-reserve: the MCD-2 station or the Tsaritsyno metro station, 3-5 minutes walk (the MCD station is closer to the reserve), the Orekhovo station (the entrance to the park is not far away, but it takes a long time to get to the palace).
