Monument to Paul I
Description:
The sculpture of Paul I is installed on a four-sided polished figure pedestal made of Finnish granite. In Gatchina, the statue is mounted on a parade ground in front of the Grand Gatchina Palace, near the parapet, facing the palace and parade ground, as if the emperor were hosting a parade. The model of the statue was made by the famous Russian sculptor Ivan Petrovich Vitali.
In honor of the opening of the Gatchina monument on August 1, 1851, a parade was arranged in front of the Gatchina Palace, in which Pavlovsky, Yegersky, Cavalergard and Hussar regiments took part. The parade was attended by Emperor Nicholas I. This event was captured – the court “painter of His Majesty” Adolf Sharleman captured the future heir to the Russian throne Grand Duke Alexander Nikolaevich at the moment when he stood at the sentry near the monument in the uniform of the Life Guards of the Pavlovsky regiment, the artist G. Schwartz wrote the painting “The Discovery of the Monument to Emperor Paul I” (1851).
In 1919, the monument was threatened with demolition - the city authorities decided to get rid of the figure of the monarch. But the monument managed to defend, largely thanks to the curator of the museum Vladimir Kuzmich Makarov.
After the war, the Higher Naval Radio Engineering School was located in the palace and its cadets had a custom - every year on the graduation day the monument to the emperor was dressed in a specially sewn veal.
The monument to Paul I in Gatchina is one of the unofficial symbols of the city - its image can often be found on souvenirs, on the covers of books dedicated to the city.
