Izmailovsky Island is an artificially created piece of land that is rich in historical events of the past. Here was a country residence and a family estate of the famous Russian dynasty of the Romanovs. According to the decree of Alexei Mikhailovich, two ponds Serebryany and Vinogradny were connected on the territory of the village of Izmailovo, eventually a small island of land was obtained, which in the future was called Izmailovsky Island.
Story
In the 16th century, as king, Ivan the Terrible presented a small village called Izmailovo as a gift to his governor and distinguished diplomat, a relative of his ex-wife Nikita Romanovich Zakharyin-Yuriev, who was her brother. Later, the family estate is inherited by the youngest son of the owner. But under him, the estate falls into decay. After his death, the estate again returns to the royal hands, but another dynasty already owns it.
Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich decided to build a country residence here, connects two local ponds, and builds a grand estate on the resulting land plot. To get to the territory of the residence, he builds a large stone bridge. Which ends with a travel Bridge Tower, which has three tiers. On the second, meetings of the Boyar Duma often took place. Alexei Mikhailovich dreamed of organizing his own agricultural project on these lands. Here he was engaged in the cultivation of agricultural crops, such as:
A menagerie was set up on the islet, where lynxes, lions, tigers, leopards, elk, deer, porcupines, and birds lived. The center of the entire famous family estate was the Sovereign's Court. It was surrounded by a wooden fence, where there were seven gates. The yard was subdivided into a front and an economic part. In the very heart of the front part of the courtyard, a royal palace was built of wood, and outbuildings and premises for household needs were built in the economic part. Later, chambers of archers appeared on the territory of the courtyard, the place of a small wooden church was built of stone, the Pokrovsky Cathedral.
Alexei Romanov built a home cinema on Izmailovsky Island. He opened here a factory for the production of glass, the products of which were subsequently used in royal feasts. The tsar attracted various foreign specialists to his estate to work on his projects. Here, the future sovereign Peter I spent his childhood years, in these parts he dreamed of creating a Russian fleet and played games here, imagining himself as a regiment commander.
Rumor has it that even during his fun, he accidentally burned down an outbuilding located nearby. The widow of Ivan V Praskovya Fedorovna and her three daughters lived on these lands for a long time. A new stone palace was specially built for her, on the site of a wooden one that burned down. During the stay of Praskovya Fyodorovna, various fruit trees were planted, and sterlet was launched into the ponds. They built greenhouses for growing tropical and exotic plants. She brought a lot of servants with her. She invited jesters, soothsayers and holy fools to the island.
During the reign of Catherine II, the manor became very dilapidated and fell into disrepair, the palace, according to her decree, was dismantled. The estate also suffered greatly from the attack of the Napoleonic army. After that, a military almshouse is opened in these parts. After the October Revolution at the beginning of the 20th century, the almshouse was closed, and the cathedral was robbed. The Moscow Regiment of Engineer Units is settled in these parts. In the building of the almshouse, classrooms, a kindergarten and a library are opened. Its residential buildings were given over to communal settlement. A working settlement named after Bauman is founded. This is where they start working:
Soon, the inhabitants of the island are allocated separate apartments and many organizations begin to work here.
Izmailovsky Island today
In 2007, Izmailovsky Island became part of the Moscow State Museum-Reserve. From the former estate in its original form, only the bridge tower, the front and rear gates of the entrance to the Sovereign's Court and the Pokrovsky Cathedral remained. Excursions are organized to these places from the capital. Local guides meet the group in Russian national costumes. The banks of the ponds were reinforced with reinforced concrete slabs, and three so-called Bauman bridges were built across it. There is a boat station on the pond. Not far from the pond there is a large urban forest park area.
sights
In 1998, a decision was made to recreate the royal estate. And in 2003, a beautiful architectural ensemble received its first visitors, where you can admire the white-stone palace and wooden houses-towers. All compositions were restored according to how they looked in tsarist times. All this recreated miracle was called the Izmailovsky Kremlin. In the center of it is a wooden temple, which is the highest wooden church in the capital.
An observation deck has been set up on its bell tower, where you can climb up and admire the gorgeous natural landscapes of the surrounding places. There are a lot of museums on the territory of the complex. A registry office was built here and given the romantic name “Palace of Happiness”, next to its entrance there is a horseshoe, where young couples make a wish every time and take pictures at random and happiness. A large shopping and entertainment center has also been built here. The island often hosts various exhibitions and sales of decorative items, antiques, paintings and souvenirs. All products are handmade and with love. The fair is called “Vernissage in Izmailovo”.
How to get there
You need to get to the Partizanskaya metro station, leaving the metro, you should walk along the Izmailovskaya highway until you reach the Blagusha cafe. From the cafe, turn left along the road and go straight along it until you get across the bridge to the island.