Aleksandrovskaya: History Across Several Eras

The history of Aleksandrovskaya unfolds in distinct leaps through time: from the village that emerged during the construction of a palace to church buildings, the history of the railway station, and early automobile and motorcycle races. These chapters make the place interesting to travellers who are fascinated by specific historical developments. They are also easy to distinguish: the history of the settlement, religious architecture and transport history each have their own focus.

A village emerges during palace construction

Aleksandrovskaya emerged in the 1780s during the construction of Alexander Palace. The palace was intended as the future residence of Grand Duke Alexander Petrovich, a grandson of Catherine II. The village’s history and the construction of the residence are therefore part of the same historical context. The starting point is not a single attraction, but the creation of the settlement as part of a larger construction project.

Two churches, two building histories

In 1904, a wooden Church of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was built near the cemetery, based on plans by the architect V. D. Nikolya. It remained in use until 1934, later burned down, and its foundations were removed in the 1960s. Its history therefore encompasses the building’s construction, use and loss.

A separate, later chapter is the church in Aleksandrovskaya, also dedicated to the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. It was completed on 26 October 1997 and consecrated by Metropolitan Vladimir (Kotlyarov) of Saint Petersburg and Ladoga. The two sets of dates do not form a single continuous building history; rather, they reveal different episodes in the history of the settlement.

Railway station, the tsar’s family and remembrance

Aleksandrovskaya railway station opened in 1857. The station building’s commemorative significance is connected with the history of the tsar’s family. In 2024, the station complex was added to the list of newly recorded cultural heritage sites. It thus links an early date in railway history with historical remembrance and a more recent cultural heritage designation.

A race on the Volkhonskoye Highway

Transport history extends beyond the railway, too. On 23 October 1898, Russia’s first automobile and motorcycle races took place along the route from Aleksandrovskaya (Pushkin) to Strelna, on what is now the Volkhonskoye Highway. This dated route adds a chapter in early motorisation to the history of the village, its churches and its railway station. For travel planning, this provides a distinct historical focus, separate from the history of the settlement and its buildings.

Saint Petersburg: the wider urban context

The broader destination of Saint Petersburg has its own urban history and landscape on a different scale. Urban planning began in 1703 under Peter the Great; Saint Petersburg has numerous canals and more than 400 bridges. Its urban landscape rises from the mouth of the Neva, where the Neva meets the Gulf of Finland. It is characterised as the greatest urban-planning creation of the 18th century.

Saint Petersburg’s architectural heritage also provides a different thematic context: it brings together Baroque and Neoclassicism, as seen in the Admiralty, Winter Palace, Marble Palace and Hermitage. This urban context belongs to Saint Petersburg; it does not describe Aleksandrovskaya. When planning your trip, you can therefore distinguish between a focus on local history and a broader interest in urban history and architecture.

If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Aleksandrovskaya, the focus you want for your trip can be a good starting point: would you like the history of the settlement to shape your stay, or would you also like to include the wider historical context of Saint Petersburg?

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