Peter and Paul Cathedral is the tomb of representatives of the Romanov dynasty. Emperor Peter the Great Tomb of Peter 1 in the Peter and Paul Fortress

During the turbulent history of the Peter and Paul Fortress, not only its external architectural appearance, but also memorial. In fact, today it is a whole necropolis, with facade, half-open and not yet explored sides.

Who is buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress

Official burials appeared on the territory of the fortress even before the completion of the construction of the Peter and Paul Cathedral, which became known as the Peter and Paul Cathedral. In the wooden church in 1708, the first to be buried in infancy was Catherine, the daughter of Peter I. In 1715 - 1717, the graves of three more young children of the sovereign appeared in the unfinished cathedral - daughters Natalya, Margarita and son Paul. At the same time, Tsarina Marfa Matveevna found her last refuge here.

Despite inter-family feuds and accusations of conspiracy, at the behest of Peter the Great, his disgraced eldest son Alexei (died under unclear circumstances in 1718) and sister Maria (March 1723) were laid to rest in the imperial tomb. Their graves are located under the bell tower in the chapel of St. Catherine. In 1725, the body of the deceased Peter I was also transferred to the church.

Peter the First

The last Tsar of All Rus' (from 1682) and the first Emperor of All Russia (from 1721) died at the age of 52 in January 1725 in the Winter Palace. In accordance with the regulations of the ceremony, which he himself developed, the body for farewell was initially exhibited there in the funeral hall. The Emperor was in the coffin in brocade clothes embroidered with lace with a sword and St. Andrew the First-Called on his chest.

After a month, he was embalmed and transferred to a temporary wooden church, specially erected in honor of the sad occasion, installed directly in the unfinished Cathedral of Peter and Paul. And only six years later, in 1731, at the behest of Anna Ioannovna, who reigned at that time, Peter the Great, together with his wife Catherine I, who died two years later than the sovereign, were buried in the imperial tomb of the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

Their crypt tombs, the chambers of which are located under the floor, are located at the southern entrance to the temple. As evidenced by inscriptions and crosses made of pure gold.

Tombs in the Peter and Paul Fortress

The fortress church became the last home for almost all Russian sovereigns including Alexandra III.

Catherine II

The tomb of Catherine the Great located in the Peter and Paul Cathedral is missing the epitaph that the empress personally composed during her lifetime. “Having ascended the Russian throne, she wished well and tried to bring happiness, freedom and property to her subjects,” the empress wrote about herself. Her death was as turbulent and shrouded in gossip as her life.

But the most tragic thing is that his son Paul, who inherited the crown, ordered his mother to be buried next to the body of the murdered Peter III, delivered from the Alexander Nevsky Lavra and personally crowned by him. The crippled former spouses lay side by side in the mourning tent of the Winter Palace for 4 days in early December 1796, and then were moved to the cathedral for burial.

“You’ll think that these spouses spent their entire lives together on the throne, died and were buried on the same day,” Nikolai Grech wrote about this event.

The general list does not include only Peter II, who was laid to rest in the Archangel Cathedral of the Kremlin, as well as John VI Antonovich, who was killed in the Oreshek fortress. After the burial in 1831, at the request of Nicholas I of his brother Konstantin Pavlovich, funeral services for members of the imperial family began on the territory of the temple.

Ekaterina Mikhailovna, Grand Duchess

The granddaughter of Paul I found her last refuge in the cathedral on May 4 (16), 1894, dying after a long illness. The Grand Duchess was known for her charitable work in Russia, her promotion of women's education and her conservative views.

After her death, a funeral litany was held in her home - the Mikhailovsky Palace. Alexander III took part in the burial in the imperial tomb. The name of Ekaterina Mikhailovna went down in history as an example of philanthropy and care for one’s neighbor.

Due to the overcrowding of the Peter and Paul Cathedral, a Grand Ducal Tomb was erected nearby in 1897 - 1908, connected to it by a covered gallery. During the period from 1908 to 1915, the graves of 13 people appeared in it, 8 of whom were reburied from the cathedral. Since 1992, the tradition has been resumed, and to date, 4 burials of members and close associates of the imperial family have been added.

Still buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress

Next to the cathedral there was a commandant's cemetery, where almost all the commanders of the fortress were buried. In addition, from the moment the first prisoners appeared in Petropavlovka in 1717 until the official closure of the Trubetskoy Bastion prison in 1923, cases of suicide and natural death were repeatedly recorded here. Therefore, it is possible that not all the dead were taken outside the citadel for burial.

Periodic random discoveries since the late 80s of the last century of so-called execution pits with the remains of those killed in 1917 - 1921 indicate that these little-studied graves are chronologically the last in the history of the Peter and Paul Fortress.

Emperor Russian Empire Peter 1, died January 28, 1725. This happened within the walls of his family’s Winter Palace. At that time, Peter 1 was 52 years old. The main cause of his sudden death is, by all indications, an inflammatory process of the bladder. This at first mild inflammation was severely neglected and over time developed into gangrene. After the emperor died, his body was exhibited in the Winter Palace in the mourning hall. Everyone who wanted to say goodbye to their emperor could come here to see him off on his last journey. For more than one month, people from different parts of the empire came to bid farewell to him. They put Peter 1 in the coffin wearing a brocade camisole, which was trimmed with lace fabric. On his feet were high boots with spurs on the heels. The Order of St. Andrew the First-Called was pinned on his chest, and next to him lay his faithful sword. As a result of the prolonged wires, the emperor's corpse gradually began to decompose, and an unpleasant smell spread throughout the Winter Palace. It was decided to embalm the body of Peter 1 and move it to the Peter and Paul Cathedral. There it lay for another six whole years, until the decision was made to finally bury it. The burial took place in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, in the Royal Tomb. Until this moment, the coffin with the body of the emperor was located within the walls of the chapel, which was gradually being completed.

Catherine, who was the wife of Peter 1, lived only two years longer than her late husband. This happened as a result of the fact that the empress attended various balls every day and walked almost until the morning, which greatly affected the stability of her health. Therefore, the wife of the late emperor Catherine said goodbye to life in mid-May in 1727. At that time she was 43 years old. Emperor Peter 1 was legally entitled to a place in the Royal Tomb, but his wife could not boast of such an honor. After all, she was not of noble blood. Catherine 1, who was Martha Skavronskaya, was born in the Baltic states into a simple peasant family. During Northern War, she was captured by the Russian army. Peter 1 was simply bewitched by her beauty that he made a hasty decision to marry her and give her the title of empress. Catherine's body was buried in 1731 with the permission of Anna Ioannovna.

Almost all the tsars of the Russian Empire, starting with Peter 1 and ending with Alexander 3, were buried within the walls of the Peter and Paul Cathedral. The grave of Peter 1 was located near the entrance to the cathedral on the south side. His grave is made in the form of a separate crypt, which is located under a floor made of stone. In this crypt there is an ark made of pure metal, in which the coffin with the emperor itself is located. A huge and thick slab carved from marble was installed above the grave. They are decorated with paintings and crosses made of pure gold.

Russian Emperor Peter the Great died in the Winter Palace in January 1725 at the age of 52. The cause of death was said to be inflammation of the bladder, which turned into gangrene. The emperor's body was displayed in the mourning hall of the Winter Palace so that everyone could say goodbye to him. The farewell period lasted for more than a month. Peter lay in a coffin in a brocade camisole with lace, in boots with spurs, with a sword and the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called on his chest. As a result, the corpse began to decompose, and an unpleasant smell began to spread throughout the palace. The emperor's body was embalmed and transferred to the Peter and Paul Cathedral. However, only 6 years later the emperor’s body was buried in the Royal Tomb of the Peter and Paul Cathedral; before that, the coffin with the embalmed body simply stood in the temporary chapel of the cathedral that was still under construction.

The wife of Peter I, Catherine, survived her husband by only 2 years. The balls, entertainment and revelry that the Dowager Empress indulged in day and night seriously undermined her health. Catherine died in May 1725 at the age of 43. If Peter I, by right of birth, was supposed to rest in the Tsar’s tomb, then his wife could not boast of a noble origin. Catherine I, née Marta Skavronskaya, was born into a Baltic peasant family. She was captured by the Russian army during the Northern War. Peter was so fascinated by the captive peasant woman that he even married her and crowned her empress. The body of the Empress, like her husband, was buried only in 1731 by order of Anna Ioannovna.

Royal tombs

In the pre-Petrine era, all members of the ruling dynasty in Rus' were buried in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. All Moscow princes and kings are buried there, starting with Ivan Kalita. During the reign of Peter I there was no specific burial place for royalty. Members of the imperial family were buried in the Annunciation Church of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. In 1715, the youngest daughter of Peter and Catherine, Natalya, died. The emperor ordered her to be buried in the Cathedral of Peter and Paul, which at that time had not yet been completed. From this year, the Peter and Paul Cathedral became the new royal tomb.

All Russian tsars are buried within the walls of the Peter and Paul Cathedral: from Peter I to Alexander III. The burials of Peter and his wife Catherine are located near the southern entrance to the cathedral. Their graves are small crypts located under a stone floor. These crypts contain metal arks with coffins. Above the graves are marble slabs decorated with inscriptions and golden crosses.

History of the Peter and Paul Cathedral

Construction of the Peter and Paul Cathedral began in 1712, Emperor Peter personally laid the first stone in its foundation. The work was supervised by the Italian architect Domenico Trezzini. The interior decoration of the temple amazed with its luxury and splendor. The vaults were decorated with 18 paintings with scenes from the New Testament. The cathedral had a special royal seat under a canopy, which was occupied by the monarch during services. When the Bolsheviks came to power, the cathedral and tomb were closed and sealed. All church valuables were confiscated to help the starving. In 1998, the remains of Emperor Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra and their daughters Tatiana, Olga and Anastasia were buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral.

They said goodbye to Peter I for a very long time, to such an extent that the body began to smell, the smells filled the entire Winter Palace. A decision was made to embalm the body and place it in the chapel of the Peter and Paul Cathedral under construction, Peter I was there for six years, before the proper decision was made to bury the remains of the emperor, they were buried right in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in the Tsar’s Tomb, before the burial the coffin was in the chapel, at that time it was under construction.

Peter the first was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral of St. Petersburg. This cathedral is the tomb of all subsequent rulers of Russia. No one has ever been baptized or married in this cathedral. It was Peter who first decided to build this temple as the last refuge of royalty.

Peter 1 turned out to be the emperor who, with his own hand, founded not only his own tomb, but also the tomb of the entire imperial family, the House of Romanov. This happened in 1712, when Peter decided to found a huge stone cathedral, called Peter and Paul Cathedral, on the site of a temporary wooden church. The emperor, who had a touching attitude towards all his creations, assigned a great role to the cathedral founded with his own hands - to serve as the final resting place for the Russian rulers. Perhaps Peter was prompted to this decision by the fact that his daughter Catherine, who died at the age of one and a half, was buried in the wooden church that preceded the great cathedral in 1708. Further, already in the cathedral under construction, Peter’s children Natalya, Margarita, Alexei and Pavel, Tsarevich Alexei’s wife Charlotte-Christiana, and also Tsarina Sophia were buried. In 1725, Peter the Great himself was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral. However, the emperor’s body rested in a hearse for 6 years, and was interred only in May 1731.

Emperor Peter I is buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, which is located in one of the most visited places by tourists in the city on the Neva - the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

This cathedral contains the royal family tomb. Peter the Great died in January 1725 at the age of 52. His wife Catherine I outlived her husband by two years and died in May 1727 at the age of 43. She was buried next to Peter. The graves of the emperor and empress, as well as other representatives of the royal family, are located under a stone floor, with marble tombs with inscriptions on the slabs on top.

Construction of the temple began on June 29, 1703, literally a few months after Peter I founded a fortress on the small island of Zayachiy in the Neva delta, which gave rise to the new capital of Russia.

Its official name is the Cathedral in the name of the supreme apostles Peter and Paul. The construction of the cathedral was led by the architect Domenico Trezzini. Until 2012 this was the most high building St. Petersburg, since its height was 122 meters.

The main construction work was carried out over 8 years. A chiming clock was installed on the cathedral, purchased in Holland for a lot of money.

An interesting fact is that, by order of Peter, captured banners and standards taken in battle were displayed in the cathedral. This tradition continued after the death of Peter I.

The flag from the admiral's Turkish ship, captured in the Battle of Chesme, Catherine II in 1772 solemnly laid on the tomb of the creator of the Russian navy.

Over time, a large number of banners accumulated in the cathedral, and the architect Montferrand created special gilded cabinets in which captured standards were stored.

The first funeral took place long before Peter’s death. In 1708, still in the old wooden church, the one and a half year old daughter of Peter I, Catherine, found eternal peace. In 1715, four more were added to it. First they buried Peter's daughters Natalya and Margarita, then Queen Martha, the widow of Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich. And later, in the cathedral under construction, Princess Charlotte-Christiana Sophia, the wife of Tsarevich Alexei, was buried. So the Peter and Paul Cathedral turned into the tomb of the Romanovs.

The Peter and Paul Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress of St. Petersburg is traditionally the tomb of the Russian Sovereigns of the Romanov dynasty.

It is in this cathedral that Peter the Great rests in a white marble sarcophagus.

There is a legend that during the October Revolution, vandals tried to open the sarcophagus of the late Emperor, but, being afraid, abandoned this idea.

In July 1998, in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, the remains of the last Emperor of the Romanov family, Nicholas II, his family and the servants who died with them were interred.





Peter l died on February 8 (January 28), 1725 in the Winter Palace. He was buried in the Peter and Paul Cathedral, which is located in the Peter and Paul Fortress (St. Petersburg (Hare Island)). It is noteworthy that Peter himself founded this cathedral.

In addition to Peter I, all subsequent Russian emperors and empresses of the Romanov family who came after him (except Peter II and Ivan Vl) are buried there.

It is worth noting that due to the fact that at the time of the Emperor’s death the Cathedral had not yet been built, the burial did not take place immediately, but only on May 29, 1731. Before this, the coffin with Peter's body was in a temporary chapel outside the cathedral under construction.



Peter the Great, who was Emperor Russian state, died of illness in the winter of 1725. He was such a great man and founder of the city of St. Petersburg that his funeral coffin was exhibited in the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg and everyone could say goodbye to him by visiting the funeral hall of the Winter Palace.

After this, Peter the Great was buried in the Royal Tomb of the Peter and Paul Cathedral, which is located in the city of St. Petersburg. In general, many other members of the royal dynasty are buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress.

Ptr I - great emperor, thanks to which the city of St. Petersburg appeared. Ptr was the first to do a lot for his people, although perhaps somewhere he was strict and rude. Thanks to him, much was discovered at that time. Ptr was the first to die of illness in 1725. The farewell to the emperor was very long, since there were very many people who wanted to. The grave of Peter I is located in St. Petersburg in the Peter and Paul Fortress. Many other personalities of this dynasty are also buried there.

It is in the Peter and Paul Cathedral of the Peter and Paul Fortress in the city on the Neva that the grave of Peter the Great is located. This is what it looks like now.



This seems strange, but the revolution and wars did not destroy the memory of Peter 1.