Location: 20 km (12 mi) West of Moscow Map
Tel. (495) 363 1375
Open: 9am- 6pm Mon- Fri
9am- 7pm Sat- Sun
Closed: last Wed of the month
Arkhangelskoe or Arkhangelskoye Estate (Архангельское) is situated in the Moscow
suburb Krasnogorsk, 20 km (12 mi) West of Moscow in Russia. It is
one of the most splendid residences constructed in the 18th century.
Arkhangelskoe Estate was originally found in the 1660's when it was
owned by a nobleman Y.N. Odoevsky. From 1681 to 1703 the estate
belonged to M.Y. Cherkassky. It was later sold to the Gallitzin
family who owned it between 1703 and 1810. It was during their rule
Arkhangelskoe Estate got its main Grand Palace along with numerous
smaller buildings. The current palace was constructed in 1784 by the
orders of Nikolay Alekseevich Gallitzin. In 1810 the estate was sold
to Yusupov family. Prince Nikoli Yusupov was an avid art collector
who gathered a large collection of art from all over Europe and
Asia. After the Soviet Revolution of 1917 the palace was
nationalized by the government and turned into a museum.
The
Grand Palace of Arkhangelskoe Estate was constructed in the 1780s
under the supervision of the French architect Charles de Gurney. in
the 1790s another foreign architect, this time an Italian D.
Trombaro added three terraces with marble balustrades in front of
the palace. The terraces were decorated with flowerbeds, balustrades
were decorated with vases, statues, busts of ancient Greek and Roman
gods, philosophers and various heroes from the ancient mythology.
Large park that surrounded Arkhangelskoe Estate gave it fame of a
Moscow Versailles.
Stone Church of the Archangel Michael was
built in the 1660s on the site of the wooden church that dates back
to the XVIth century. Arkhangelskoe Estate theater was built in
1817-1818 under the supervision of architect P. Gonzaga. The scenery
and the curtain of the famous Italian artist somehow survived to
this day. Temple-tomb "Colonnade" was constructed by the Yusupov
nobleman clan. It was intended for the elaborate burial of one of
the Yusupov princes who was killed in the duel. However, a breakout
of World War I and subsequent Russian Revolution of 1917 prevented
it being used for the intended purpose.
In 1919 Arkhangelskoe
Estate was converted into a Historical and Art Museum-Reserve. A
unique part of the museum fund is a collection of Western European
(France, Italy, the Netherlands and many others) paintings XVII-XIX
centuries that were collected by the Yusupov family. The art
collection of the Russian art is relatively small and consists
mainly of works by serf masters. Additionally there several items of
historic furniture dating with XVIII-XIX centuries. A large
collection of books represented almost all existing branches of
knowledge (18 sections) in the early 20th century. Most of the books
were published in French.
The estate has been known since 1584 - at that
time it was in the joint possession of the estate owner Alexei
Ivanovich Upolotsky and the groom Osip Matveyev, Ryazantsev's son.
By the name of Upolotskiy, the estate was called Upoloza. She was
listed in the Goretovsky camp of the Moscow district.
In
1646, here in the possession of Fyodor Ivanovich Sheremetev there
was an estate and a wooden church in it. In the 17th century, the
Odoevsky princes became its owners. From 1681 to 1703, the patrimony
belonged to Prince M. Ya. Cherkassky. From 1703 to 1810 the estate
remained in the Golitsyn family. Since 1703, the estate passed to
Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn, who, under the Empress Anna
Ioannovna, was accused of "criminal intent" to deprive the empress
of power. Exiled to Moscow, he mostly lived in Arkhangelskoye -
until 1736, when he was arrested. However, in 1741 the estate was
returned to his son, Alexei Dmitrievich, after which it passed to
Nikolai Alekseevich Golitsyn. The latter, during a visit to Paris in
1780, for 1200 livres, ordered the project of a new palace to the
local architect Jacques-Jaco Guern. Construction began in 1784,
presumably, the author of the project did not even come to Russia,
and the work was carried out under the guidance of another
architect. This is indicated, in particular, by the rejection of the
basement depicted in Herne's project and the circular cylindrical
vault around the central pillar under the ceremonial circular hall.
In the 1790s, according to the design of the Italian Giacomo
Trombara (Italian: Giacomo Trombara), two terraces with marble
balustrades were arranged in front of the palace. There are flower
beds on the terraces, balustrades are decorated with vases, statues,
busts of ancient gods, heroes and philosophers. The highlight of the
park that was being created was a small ensemble of buildings called
Caprice. It was built by a little-known Italian architect Giovanni
Petondi. The complex had a library building and a riding hall with
extremely interesting interiors. The arena had an iron fence with
stone pillars decorated with vases. A small garden with a sculpture
of Cupid was planned in front of the arena.
After the death
in 1809 of Prince N.A. Golitsyna, his wife Maria Adamovna, inherited
the Arkhangelskoye estate.
In 1810, the estate was purchased
by Prince N. B. Yusupov for 245 thousand rubles. The sold property
also included a glass manufacturing plant. Mainly, Yusupov needed
the estate to maintain his image, which by that time was gradually
fading away.
Valuable collections were housed in the estate
(among the sculptures was Canova's Kiss). But the war with Napoleon
began, and the collection had to be hastily evacuated to distant
Astrakhan. The estate was plundered. Moreover, in 1820 the estate
was damaged by fire. The best Moscow architects II Zhukov, O. Bove,
ED Tyurin were invited for the restoration; Giuseppe Artari
re-painted the walls of the dining room (Egyptian hall), ceremonial
and other rooms.
The park has become a worthy setting for the
palace complex, thanks to which the estate is called “Versailles
near Moscow”.
The estate has constantly attracted the
attention of contemporaries. At various times, it was visited by
such outstanding figures of Russian culture as the historian and
writer N.M. Karamzin, poets A.S. Pushkin and P.A.Vyazemsky, writers
A.I. Herzen and N.P. Ogarev, artists V. A. Serov, A. N. Benois, K.
E. Makovsky, K. A. Korovin, musicians K. N. Igumnov and I. F.
Stravinsky.
The members of the Russian imperial family also
paid attention to Arkhangelskoye. Alexander I and Nicholas I,
Alexander II and Alexander III, as well as Nicholas II visited it.
In 1901, the architect P.V. Kharko carried out repairs and
restoration of individual premises of the main manor house. In 1910
the artist I. I. Nivinsky carried out the restoration of the murals
and grisailles of the main house. In 1913-1914, restoration work in
the palace was carried out by II Nivinsky and the architect RI
Klein.
After the revolution, the estate was requisitioned, in
1919 the estate was turned into a history and art museum. Later, in
1934-1937, on the site of the former greenhouses over the Moskva
River, the buildings of the Arkhangelskoe Central Military Clinical
Sanatorium (architect VP Apyshkov) appeared, which changed the view
of the Moskva River valley.
From 1945 to the mid-1990s, the
base of the CSKA sports club, in particular, the football and hockey
teams, was located on the estate.
The architectural ensemble of the estate
Grand
Palace (1784-1820s)
Tomb-temple of the Yusupovs ("Colonnade")
(1909-1916, architect R. I. Klein, with the participation of A. D.
Chichagov, G. B. Barkhin; interiors decorated by artist I. I.
Nivinsky)
Temple of the Archangel Michael (1660s)
Holy Gate
(1824)
Earthen Fence (1826)
Pantry above the ravine (end of
the 18th century, rebuilt by O.I. Bove 1816, in 2006 the pantry
conference room was equipped with presentation equipment)
Office
wing (late 18th century, rebuilt in 1822-1823 by architect E.D.
Tyurin)
Small Palace "Caprice" (late 18th century, rebuilt in
1817-1818 according to the project of the architect E.D. Tyurin)
Tea house (after a fire in 1820; before that, from the end of the
18th century - a library)
Theater Gonzago (1817-1818, architects
E. D. Tyurin, V. Ya. Strizhakov and S. P. Melnikov, designed by O.
I. Bove)
Temple-monument to Catherine II (after the model of M.
I. Kozlovsky, Moscow, 1819)
Pink Fountain (1850s)
Monument to
Alexander Pushkin (workshop of Kutyrin, Moscow, 1903)
Imperial
column in honor of the visit to the estate by the Russian emperor
Alexander I (1816).
Homestead in modern culture and art
Homestead in cinema and television
In 1983, in the Arkhangelskoye
estate, the shooting of the musical film "The Merry Widow", an
operetta by the Hungarian composer Franz Lehar, took place. In the
frames of the film, the interiors of the estate are clearly visible.
For example, the view of the lawn in front of the Tomb of the
Yusupovs.
Numismatics
In 2009, the Bank of Russia, as part
of the series "Architectural Monuments of Russia", issued a 25-ruble
silver coin depicting elements of the manor's architectural
ensemble: the Grand Palace with a terrace and a fountain, the tomb
temple (Colonnade) and a statue of a reclining lion. In honor of the
100th anniversary of the founding of the State Museum-Estate
"Arkhangelskoye", the Bank of Russia on April 1, 2019, issued two
commemorative silver coins in denominations of 3 rubles and 25
rubles.
The manor today
Currently, the estate is divided
into two parts, one of which, including the palace, is fenced,
guarded and access to its territory is paid, the second, where the
Gonzago Theater and Apollo Grove are located, is not guarded and is
open to the public. Ilyinskoe highway passes between the
territories.
Restoration work is underway at the Grand Palace
and the Gonzago Theater. The restored state rooms of the palace
(Lobby, Entrance Hall, Oval Hall) were opened for guided visits on
April 30, 2009, and the Gonzago Theater from June 10, 2009. The
architectural and park ensemble of the estate, an exposition of
paintings by West European artists of the 18th century are also open
for inspection. in the "Colonnade", in the "Office Wing", an
exhibition dedicated to Yusupov porcelain is being prepared for
opening, which will feature exhibits from 11 leading museums in
Russia (opening April 30, 2009), exhibitions of contemporary artists
in the "Storeroom over the ravine" and the Lower Hall "Colonnades".
The manor periodically hosts concerts, the jazz festival
“Usadba. Jazz".
Not far from the estate is the Vadim
Zadorozhny Museum of Technology. In 2005, it was announced about the
construction of the first "city for millionaires" in Russia near the
estate - an autonomous urban settlement of Rublevo-Arkhangelskoye,
designed for 30,000 residents with high and ultra-high incomes.
By the Decree of the President of Russia dated October 18, 2017
No. 493, the state budgetary cultural institution "The State
Museum-Estate" Arkhangelskoye "" "is classified as a particularly
valuable cultural heritage site of the peoples of the Russian
Federation.
At the beginning of 2020, the media began to
disseminate information that according to the new project,
commercial development is planned on the territory of 300 hectares
of the Arkhangelskoye Museum-Estate. This caused a public outcry,
and required clarifications on the project. According to the
director of "Arkhangelskoye" Vadim Zadorozhny, the project developed
by the Institute of the General Plan of Moscow on the order of the
museum-estate "Arkhangelskoye" passed the historical and cultural
expertise, coordination in the government and the prosecutor's
office of the Moscow region, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian
Federation, as well as the procedure for public discussions and was
approved on May 26 2020 According to the document, the historical
landscape of the estate and the area around it will be preserved and
even expanded by 105 hectares.
Director of the State
Museum-Estate "Arkhangelskoye" - Vadim Zadorozhny.