Great Kremlin Palace
크렘린 대궁전
A palace building inside the Moscow Kremlin, built in 1838–1849 to the design of Konstantin Thon under Nicholas I. Originally the Moscow residence of the Russian emperor, it became the seat of the Soviet government in 1918, and in the 1930s its Andreyevsky and Aleksandrovsky halls were combined into a meeting chamber for the Supreme Soviet. The 20th Party Congress convened in this building in 1956, and the closed session on the final day took place in the same hall: a familiar setting made strange as the stage for a shock.
In depth
The Grand Kremlin Palace stands within the Moscow Kremlin. For much of the nineteenth century it was the Russian emperor’s official Moscow residence. Its architects worked under Konstantin Thon.
The palace incorporates the older Terem Palace and several churches and contains more than 700 rooms. Its buildings surround an inner courtyard. Although the exterior appears to have three storeys, it has two, with high ceilings and two rows of windows on the upper floor.
After the revolution, Comintern congresses and other meetings took place in the Andreyevsky Hall. In 1933–1934 it was combined with the Aleksandrovsky Hall and rebuilt for meetings of the USSR Supreme Soviet.
The five reception halls were named after orders of the Russian Empire. The Andreyevsky and Aleksandrovsky halls were restored according to Thon’s designs in the 1990s.
Related people
Related historical events
Sources
- Wikipedia (RU) construction history, architect Thon, imperial residence, Soviet government seat from 1918, Andreyevsky/Aleksandrovsky halls combined in the 1930s for Supreme Soviet meetings
- Wikipedia (EN) dimensions, layout, post-Revolution use for Comintern and Supreme Soviet, current status as Russian presidential residence
- prlib.ru Presidential Library: explicitly confirms that the 20th Party Congress opened on 14 February 1956 'в Москве в Большом Кремлёвском дворце'
- Wikipedia (EN)