Exterior view
by QUARENGHI, Giacomo, Photo
The Alexander Palace was constructed in the Imperial retreat of Tsarskoe Selo. It was commissioned by Catherine the Great for her favourite grandson, Grand Duke Alexander Pavlovich, the future emperor Alexander I of Russia on the occasion of his marriage to Grand Duchess Elizaveeta Alexeevna, born Princess Luise Marie Augusta of Baden.
The Neoclassical edifice was planned by Giacomo Quarenghi and built between 1792 and 1796. It was agreed that the architect had excelled himself in creating a masterpiece. Alexander used the palace as a summer residence through the remainder of his grandmother’s and his father, Paul’s, reign. When he became emperor, however, he chose to reside in the much larger nearby Catherine Palace.
Quarenghi’s buildings in Tsarskoe Selo are frank geometrical constructions, and their exteriors display a monumental unity with sparing use of ornamentation.