Livadia Palace

Livadia Palace is a former southern residence of Russian emperors, located on the Black Sea coast in the village of Livadia in the Yalta region of Crimea, 3 km from Yalta.

The palace in the light “Italian” style was built in the late XIX centuries under the leadership of I. Monighetti and N. P. Krasnov. It competes with Vorontsov Palace for the title of the most luxurious residence of the Crimea. The venue of the Yalta Conference of the Allies, which defined the contours of the post-war world order. In 1834, Livadia (Livadia from Greek – a clearing, a lawn) was bought from the commander of the Greek Balaklava battalion Theodosius Reveliotti Count Lev Severinovich Pototsky. In the estate of Pototsky, according to the project of F. F. Elson, a lord's house, greenhouses were built, and a landscape park was laid. Since 1861, the Livadia estate became the summer residence of Emperor Alexander II and the imperial family. According to the Monighetti project, Potocki’s house was rebuilt (the Grand Palace), the Heir’s Palace (the Small Palace), the Svitsky House and the kitchen were built. Also during this period the Church of the Cross was built. The architect of the Livadia residence since 1871 was the architect A.G. Vincent, who built the dacha “Ereklik”, the belfry of the Exaltation of the Cross Church (projected by D.I. Grima), the Ruschuk column, the Ascension Church in Livadia and other buildings. In 1894 Alexander III died in Livadia. In 1911, according to the project of Yalta architect Nikolai Petrovich Krasnov, a new White Palace was built for Emperor Nicholas II.

According to some reports, Emperor Nicholas II spent about 4 million gold rubles on the palace.[4] One of the assistants of N. P. Krasnov was a young man named Alexander Rotach, who later became a famous artist and restorer[5].

The Little Livadia Palace before Destruction

Between 1902 and 1916, the Palace of the Minister of the Court of Baron Fredericks, the Svitsky (Page) building and a number of other buildings were built in Livadia. The Grand Palace was dismantled in 1910 (the White Palace was built in its place), and the Small Palace was destroyed during World War II. In accordance with Article 412 (continuation) of Volume X of Part 1 of the Code of Laws of the Russian Empire, Livadia was the palace property of the Imperial House, was the personal property of persons of the Imperial House and could be bequeathed and divided in parts. After the overthrow of the Provisional Government by the Bolsheviks, the organs of the Ministry of Agriculture were located on the territory of the Livadia Palace. On April 30, 1918, German troops entered Livadia, immediately proceeding to plunder the palace. In November of the same year, with the support of the allies, it was occupied by the White Guards. In 1925, a sanatorium for peasants was opened in the former royal palace, in 1931 it was transformed into a climatic treatment plant. In 1927, the palace was visited by V. V. Mayakovsky, in 1928 – by M. Gorky.

White room. Place of the plenary sessions of the Crimean Conference.

Vladimir Putin and Silvio Berlusconi inspect the palace in September 2015.

From February 4 to February 11, 1945, the Yalta Conference of the leaders of the three allied powers - the USSR, the USA and Great Britain (I. V. Stalin, F. D. Roosevelt, W. Churchill) was held in the Livadia Palace, as well as the American delegation headed by President F. D. Roosevelt lived. In 1953, the sanatorium was reopened. On July 16, 1974, by the decision of the Supreme Council of Trade Unions and the Central Council for the Management of Trade Union Resorts, the Livadia Palace was opened to visitors with 2 departments - historical and memorial (located in the main halls of the palace, where the exposition "Crimean (Yalta) Conference of 1945" was opened) and exhibition.

In 1993, the Livadia Palace received the status of a museum. July 16, 1994 in the former private rooms of the royal family on the second floor of the palace was placed the exposition "Romanovs in Livadia", telling about the stay in the Livadia estate of three generations of Russian emperors.
Currently, visitors to the palace-museum can get acquainted with two expositions. On the ground floor, in the main halls of the palace, there is an exposition telling about the progress of the Yalta Conference in 1945, and about the stay of the American delegation led by President F. D. Roosevelt in the Livadia Palace. On the second floor of the palace - in the personal rooms of the family of Nicholas II, the exposition tells about the life and rest in Livadia of Russian tsars and their families. In the White Hall of the Palace (the place where the historical meetings of the Yalta Conference of 1945 took place) summits of the heads of state are regularly held. Since 2004, the Yalta European Strategy (YES) annual meetings have been held in Livadia Palace. Since 2014, the Yalta European Strategy has been held in Kyiv. On February 5, 2015, a monument to J. V. Stalin, F. D. Roosevelt and W. Churchill was opened on the territory of the palace and park ensemble. The author of the composition is the Russian sculptor Zurab Tsereteli. On May 19, 2015, a bust monument to Emperor Nicholas II was opened at the main entrance to the Livadia Palace. It is made according to the model of the sculptor A. A. Appolonov from artificial stone and bronze. A marble pedestal. The Livadia Palace and Park Ensemble, in addition to the Grand Palace, includes: Svitsky (Page) Corps, the Palace of the Minister of the Court of Baron Fredericks, the Palace Cross-Exaltation Church, a picturesque park with preserved structures (gazebos, fountains) of the royal estate period. Currently, in Livadia there are cardiological sanatorium "Livadia" and one of the parks of the southern coast of Crimea - Livadia Park (40 hectares), founded almost 160 years ago.

In 1955, on the territory of the Livadia Palace, one of the scenes of the film "Othello", as well as "Gadden" (in the Italian courtyard) and the Twelfth Night (the Italian courtyard, the bell tower of the Holy Cross Church, Livadia Park), in 1967 - "Anna Karenina"[8] were filmed.

In 1968, the Odessa film studio shot the film “One Chance in a Thousand”. The film takes place in 1942 in Crimea. Many scenes of the film were shot in the Livadia Palace. In 1977, the Livadia Palace and Park were the location of the filming of the musical comedy “Dog in the Manger” (Lenfilm film studio). In 1982, the courtyard of the Livadia Palace was the place of filming a fragment of the film “Return of the Resident” (Gorky Film Studio)