The ensemble of the Smolny Convent
The ensemble of the Smolny Convent is situated in Rastrelli Square. The name Smolny comes from “Smolyanoi Dvor”, meaning a tar yard.
The construction of the Cathedral
The tar yard was built on this site soon after the construction of St. Petersburg was begun. Here tar was prepared and stored for the ships built at the St. Petersburg shipyards.
In 1723 the tar yard was moved to another place in the city, and on its site Peter’s daughter, the Tsarina Elisabeth, decided to establish a convent in 1744. In 1748 Bartolomeo Rastrelli launched the construction of the cathedral. The main works were completed in 1764. Besides the cathedral, the architect built a quadrangle incorporating the refectory and other premises, creating a magnificently picturesque and imposing ensemble but the works were not finished.
Institute for noble maidens
When Catherine the Great ascended the throne, she gave instructions that the Institute for Noble Young Ladies should be set up in the Smolny Convent, which hadn’t been completed even at that time. The institute was the first state establishment of education in Russia for the daughters of the nobility. The building of the institute, that was subsequently named Smolny, was designed in classical style by architect Giacomo Quarenghi in 1806-1808.
The headquarters of the October revolution
In August 1917 the Institute for Noble Young Ladies was closed. The Smolny buildings were taken over by the Petrograd Soviet of Workers’s and Soldiers’ Deputies, which moved there from the Taurida Palace, and the Central Executive Committee and, later on, the Central and Petrograd Committees of the Bolshevik Party. The building also housed the Revolutionary Military Committee, and Smolny became the headquarters of the October Revolution.
The residence of the Governor of St. Petersburg
Today it is the seat of the Governor of St. Petersburg and the former convent is occupied by various institutions, while the Smolny cathedral is used for church and secular music concerts.
