at the Gulf of Finland
the german army left the place in ruins
there are dozens of fountains in the Grand Cascade
a view to the West
the Grand Cascade with the Morskoi Canal. Samson spouts the highest fountain
this is the Chess Cascade
Peter the Great loved to surprise his visitors. The system still works
in front of the Bolshaya Oranzhereya a triton fights a seamonster while turtles do their own thing
the Bolshaya Oranzhereya is now in use as restaurant
the Lower Gardens to the East with the Imperial Chapel in the background
Peterhof is a set of splendid Palaces and gardens at the Gulf of Finland.
In 1714 Peter the Great started the
construction of a summerpalace near the seaport of Kronstadt. His successors kept adding splendor to the place and
it is sometimes called the Russian Versailles.
The Grand Palace is build on a natural ridge and is connected to the sea by the
Morskoi Kanal which cuts through the Lower Gardens. The less visited Upper Gardens are on the other side of the ridge.
Apart
from the Grand Palace the main features are Grand Cascade with the Samson Fountain, the Monplaisir palace, the many fountains and
the garden itself.
The water for the fountains comes from natural springs some 4 km landinwards.
The German Army occupied
the place from 1941 to 44 and left it looted and destroyed.
Restoration started after the war.
In 2003 when St Petersburg celebrated
its 300th anniversary the sculptures and structures got a new gilt skin so now they glow and glitter like new.
We visited Peterhof
in August 2016.
the Imperial Chapel on the eastside features 5 goldplated domes
from the ridge you get a first view of the lower gardens
the Grand Cascade in front of the Grand Palace
this is how it looks now
long lines for a Grand Palace tour. Sorry, no pictures inside
Monplaisir was Peter's first palace here
