Catherine's Palace

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Catherine Palace in St. Petersburg

One of the most prominent palaces in Tsarskoe Selo is Catherine's Palace, also known as the Summer Palace, which was a gift from Peter the Great. It is home to the unique Amber Room, the walls of which were looted by Germans and later recovered by American troops. This palace was destroyed six times and rebuilt again as its various owners developed their own visions for its style. Its present style came from Elizabeth, who was one of the most spendthrift monarchs in the world. The palace follows a baroque style with disproportional shapes and long and heavy architecture. The abundance of art pieces, columns, and gilding could be considered tasteless by modern-day standards, but it speaks to the wealth of the Russian Tsars.

Tsarskoe Selo is also called Pushkin after the famous Russian writer and poet who is considered to the father of modern Russian language. It was in Pushkin that Russia's last emperor, Nicholas II, was held under arrest by the Bolsheviks before they murdered him and his family.