Aleksandrovskaya

• The village was founded in the 1780s during the construction of the Alexander Palace.
• Aleksandrovskaya railway station opened in 1857.
• The Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was completed and consecrated on October 26, 1997.
• Russia’s first automobile and motorcycle races ran from Aleksandrovskaya (Pushkin) to Strelna in 1898.

Aleksandrovskaya was founded in the 1780s during the construction of the Alexander Palace. It was intended as the future residence of Grand Duke Alexander Petrovich, a grandson of Catherine II. The founding of the village and construction of the palace thus took place during the same historical period; the palace’s intended function is also specifically identified.

The churches are another strand of the village’s history. A wooden Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was built near the cemetery in 1904 to plans by architect V. D. Nikolya. It remained in use until 1934, later burned down, and its foundations were removed in the 1960s. This sequence covers the building’s construction, period of use, and eventual end.

The Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Aleksandrovskaya was completed on October 26, 1997, and consecrated by Metropolitan Vladimir (Kotlyarov) of Saint Petersburg and Ladoga; it should be distinguished from the wooden church built in 1904, which later burned down. The dates 1904 and 1997 mark different points in the local history of the church.

Aleksandrovskaya railway station opened in 1857. The station building’s commemorative significance is linked to the history of the tsar’s family. In 2024, the station complex was added to the list of newly recorded cultural heritage sites. The opening, commemorative significance, and heritage status provide different points of reference for understanding its history.

An early road race is also part of the village’s history: on October 23, 1898, Russia’s first automobile and motorcycle races ran along what is now Volkhonskoye Highway from Aleksandrovskaya (Pushkin) to Strelna. The station’s opening and the races were 41 years apart and represent different aspects of transport history. The racecourse can be understood as a historic route.

The wider destination of Saint Petersburg offers an urban perspective on city planning and architecture. The cityscape rises from the Neva Estuary, where the Neva meets the Gulf of Finland. Saint Petersburg is considered the greatest urban-planning creation of the 18th century; city planning began in 1703 under Peter the Great. Numerous canals and more than 400 bridges are part of the cityscape.

Saint Petersburg’s architectural heritage brings together Baroque and Neoclassicism, as seen in the Admiralty, Winter Palace, Marble Palace, and Hermitage. Another historical focal point is the Peter and Paul Fortress: Peter I founded it in 1703, and it is a monument to fortification architecture from the 18th to the 20th century. The Commandant’s House contains a museum dedicated to the city’s history in the 18th and 19th centuries; the Trubetskoy Bastion houses an exhibition about the prison for political inmates.

The topics emphasize different aspects: Aleksandrovskaya focuses on the history of the village, its churches, and railway station; Saint Petersburg broadens the perspective to include city planning, architecture, and the history of the fortress.

Discover more destinations: Pontonnyy, Komarovo, Sestroretsk, Molodyozhnoye, Solnechnoye, Pargolovo, Pesochny, Lakhta.

When was Aleksandrovskaya founded?

The village was founded in the 1780s during the construction of the Alexander Palace, which was intended as the future residence of Grand Duke Alexander Petrovich.

What happened to the wooden church?

The church, built near the cemetery in 1904, remained in use until 1934. It later burned down; its foundations were removed in the 1960s.

When was the station complex added to the cultural heritage list?

The addition of the Aleksandrovskaya railway station complex to the list of newly recorded cultural heritage sites was recorded in 2024. The station itself opened in 1857.

For the broader travel guide: Saint Petersburg.