Peter the Great built this fort in 1703 to protect the area from possible attack by the Swedes.



In the middle of the complex is Peter and Paul Cathedral. Its spire is the highest
point in the city. The design is very unusual for a Russian Orthodox church.



The cathedral is the burial place of all the Russian Emperors and Empresses from Peter
the Great to Alexander III. (The others are in the Kremlin.) Here are some of their tombs.



The cathedral is also the final resting place of the murdered Romanovs, who joined
the other tsars at last after 80 years of being buried in an unmarked pit.
The Romanovs are saints in the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.



This bizarre and controversial statue of Peter the Great was unveiled in 1990.
It plays up his elongated fingers and his small head in order to say something
about the harsh side of his character. It's a stark contrast to image of Peter depicted
almost everywhere else, including The Bronze Horseman.



Every day at noon they fire off a canon from the side of the fortress.
Even though I knew it was coming, the immense blast made me jump straight up in the air and scream.



The Swedes were defeated before the fortress was even completed, so its purpose
changed to housing a high security political jail. The list of famous residents
included Dostoyevsky, Gorky, Trotsky and Lenin's older brother.


Around St. Petersburg / Around St. Petersburg (II) / Around Moscow / Church on Spilled Blood / Dostoevsky in St. Petersburg /
The Kremlin and Red Square / Moscow Churches / Night Train to Moscow / On the Neva / Palace Square / Peterhof / Peter and Paul Fortress /