The Home of the Last Tsar - Romanov and Russian History

Restoration of the Palace - 2012 Update Facade Looks Fantastic!

Alexander Palace is Looking GREAT! Huge Improvements

There is great news on the state of the exterior of the palace.  About ten years ago the left wing - where Nicholas and Alexandra had their personal apartments - was repainted, but the rest of the building looked horrible.  Nothing had been done since the early fifties and it showed.  The palace looked like a disaster zone with parts of the balustrade fallen out, extreme water damage to the stucco and everything in a deplorable condition. The palace looked like it was in a war zone!   Now, the facade looks better than it has since 1912.  It's beautiful and here are some pictures to show it.

Front of the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoe Selo 2012Above: Front Facade of the Alexander Palace designed by Quarenghi for Catherine the Great and presented to her grandson on the occasion of his marriage in June 1796.

Here's a close-up view of the the left center entrance - this is where you would enter the palace if you were meeting the Tsar or his family during the reign of Nicholas and Alexandra.  For example, this is where an American Ambassador who was visiting Nicholas would arrive in a formal state carriage from the train station.  Here a carriage could come right up to the door without a flight of stairs, out of the weather.

The left entrance to the Alexander Palace in 2012

What a wonderful restoration.  below is a picture of the right central entrance.  During the reign of the last Tsar this is where you would have entered if you were visiting the Commadant of the Palace or had official court business that did not involve the Imperial family.  During the while he was Tsarevich and then reign of Alexander III the personal rooms of the Tsar and his family were on this side and this entrance served as their official entrance.

Alexander Palace in Tsarskoe Selo - right entranceThis area of the palace was heavily damaged in the last few months of the WWII German occupation of Tsarskoe Selo and this portico was almost entirely destroyed by shells.  It ws rebuilt after the war. In the 1990s this section showed serious damage from water seepage and cracks throughout the stucco.  It looks fanastic now.  The museum authorities deserve great praise for their work on the palace these days.  Things could not be looking better for the future of the Alexander Palace!

Bob Atchison

Palace Tour

Gala Parade Halls
Restoration of the Palace
Rooms of Alexandra
Rooms of Nicholas II
The Children's Floor
Rooms of the Right Wing
Palace Park
The Imperial Garage
Imperial Dining
Plans, Maps and Churches
Imperial Yacht Standardt

The Image of Christ in Hagia Sophia - Sources

This page from my Hagia Sophia website shows the sources that were used in the creation of the website.

Seraphim Mosaic in Hagia Sophia

This page from the Hagia Sophia website is about the famous 15th century image of angel on the left side of the apse whose face was recently uncovered

Charles Cameron - Imperial Architect
Memories of Aleksei Volkov
Alexander Palace Discussion Forums