Pavlosk: A study in classical design and elegant living. This beautiful horse shoe design reflects the refined taste of one of Russia’s most tragic and perhaps misunderstood Tsars, Paul (Pavel) I. Paul was the somewhat neglected son of Catherine the Great. Upon the death of his father, Peter III, Paul expected to ascend to the throne. Instead, his mother with help of the Army, assumed that position and Paul resented this until the day of his death.
Neglected as a child and shunted aside by Catherine in favor of Paul’s son, Alexander I, Paul was very anxious to assume the title of Tsar. Finally in his forties Catherine died and he became Tsar. As a result of having waited so long, Paul was in a hurry to make up for lost time and made many mistakes while trying to reshape Russia more in his own image. As a result Paul I only lasted three years before he was assassinated to make room for Alexander I to become Tsar.
Pavlosk was built for Paul I and his consort Maria Fiordorovna. It was started in 1780 by the famous architect Charles Cameron. He worked on the central building until 1785. The final improvements were made by other noted builders to include Voronikhin, Quarenghi, and Thomas de Thomon.
From the onset the building was a marvelous example of classical style architecture which constituted a departure from the Russian Baroque or Rococo style of Tarskoye Selo and Peterhof. The interior was filled with art that Paul and his beautiful wife had purchased while on a trip to Paris where Paul was known simply as the Russian Count of the North. Without question Paul was one of the highest educated Tsars and his tastes were very refined. If I were to become the next Tsar of Russia, Pavlosk is the place where I would find myself the most comfortable. It is elegant, beautiful, and extravagant beyond words, but somehow still livable.
The grounds are simply marvelous. If you go in the winter you can ride in the snow in a troika for only twenty American dollars. In the fall, spring, or summer, you can walk the approximately six hundred acres and spend an idyllic day surrounded by the colors of the season. Pavlosk Park is marked by a series of pavilions bridges, and outlying buildings which are almost too much to describe. Sculptor lovers will find so many treasures that they will want to cover all the grounds so as not to miss a thing. The sculptural decorations are tied into a thematic plan with the Twelve Walks area with its bronze muses and the statue of Apollo serving as the centerpiece of the grounds. There are several wonderful bridges where time appears to have stood still over the centuries, and if you close your eyes you hear the clop of horses and sounds of laughter echoing through the woods.