It’s not long before we embark again on the sensational satire of the life of Catherine the Great, with The Great series. Although the recordings are in Italy, not Russia, much of the plot unfolds in one of the most beautiful places in the country: the Catherine Palace, or, as it is also known, the Great Palace (The Great Palace). In rococo style, it is located in the city of Tsarskoye Selo and was the residence of the Russian monarchy. While there was a…

Although it bears the name of the Great, it was another Catherine – the first – who built the palace. Before the current construction, there was only a one-story wooden house, in a state of total disrepair, next to another two-room wooden house, which, after being restored, served as a temporary residence for Catherine Alekseyevna, second wife of Peter the Great. As she liked the place, the empress had a palace built – made of brick – exactly in the middle of the garden, with two floors, and 16 rooms on each floor. For decoration, she chose to follow the Tsar’s favorite Dutch style. When it was ready on August 9, 1724, they celebrated in style with the entire court.

However, after the death of Catherine I, in 1728, the property fell into disuse until Empress Elizabeth (Peter III’s aunt) decided to recover it, transforming the palace into a reference of opulence. The facade alone has more than 10 kg of gold, to highlight the statue and construction details. The empress wanted to rival Versailles and loved luxury and parties, all too aware of the effect she had on visitors who gawked at so much wealth. Historians point out that while the nobles lived in splendor, the peasants – who supported the economy with forced labor and paying taxes, were neglected.

In the series, Peter III’s reign period is longer than it actually was (only six months after Elizabeth’s death), so he wouldn’t have stayed in the palace as long as it does. Never mind, the show takes “liberties” openly. When she assumed the Crown alone, Catherine II (the Great) had to deal with the heavy bills that she ‘inherited’ from her predecessor, and in the first years of her reign she was more than economical, only when she improved the frame was she able to spend on her residence favorite, expanding gardens and external and internal decorations.

Of all the country residences, the palace was the favorite of Catherine II, who always spent the summer there. She always celebrated her birthday – June 28, 1763 – at the Palace, and lived through almost all of the main events depicted in The Great.

After Catherine’s death, her son Paul (who hated her fiercely) virtually abandoned the palace which only regained its original reputation for beauty and splendor in the reign of her grandson, Tsar Alexander I was crowned. Will we see it in seasons 4 and 5?

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