Oreanda Palace. Oreanda Estate (Lower Oreanda), Crimea, Big Yalta. History of the Oreanda estate
Oreanda is an urban-type settlement on the Southern Coast of Crimea, located five kilometers from Yalta on the Black Sea coast. The Oreanda resort in Crimea is part of the conglomerate Big Yalta. The first mention of Oreanda dates back to 1360. The name Oreanda means “rocky” in Greek. Upper Oreanda rises above the Sevastopol highway T 2709 (upper highway). The main part of the Oreanda resort is located on the Black Sea coast and is called Lower Oreanda. You can also get from Livadia to the Oreanda resort along the Yalta-Alupka highway (lower highway).
The sheer walls of Mast Rock and Cross Cliff give Oreanda a bit of a rugged look. The pile of rocks combined with the dense greenery of the Lower Oreanda park, which is a monument of landscape art and occupies 42 hectares, attracts an increasing number of tourists to Oreanda for a romantic holiday on the Southern Coast of Crimea.
The unique natural landscape and man-made beauty in the form of the buildings of the Lower Oreanda sanatorium and the Wisteria boarding house, located on the site of the construction of USSR state dachas from 1956 to 1989, fascinate all guests of the Oreanda resort. The air in Oreanda is filled with the aroma of juniper, sage and pine needles. Oreanda is the most beautiful place of Greater Yalta between Gaspra (Cape Ai-Todor) and Livadia, which has preserved rare silence on Black Sea coast. From Livadia Park through Oreanda you can even get to Gaspra on foot on a relatively flat above sea level " Sunny path", which is used for therapeutic walking. In 1861, the Solar Path connected two residences belonging to the Romanov imperial family, and therefore received another name “Tsarskaya”. The “Sunny Path” passes by the snow-white columns of the rotunda gazebo (1843), offering a panoramic view of the Oreanda resort from the amphitheater Crimean mountains and the endless turquoise distance of the Black Sea. The royal rotunda in Oreanda is a stone arch of eight Doric eight-meter columns. There is another trail in Oreanda - Kurchatovskaya, which starts at the rotunda and goes up the slope of Ai-Nikola. The Mastovaya rock, split into two gray blocks near the sea coast, is a unique grotto where archaeologists discovered a site of primitive people.
History of the Oreanda estate.
Oreanda's history is closely connected with Russia's imperial past and the Romanov dynasty. At the beginning of the 19th century, the lands of Oreanda were acquired for Emperor Alexander I (1825). Tsar Nicholas I gave the Oreanda estate to his wife Alexandra Feodorovna. The luxurious park in Oreanda began to take shape back in the 30s of the 19th century under the leadership of V. Ross in the style of an English garden.
Among the landscape of Oreanda, a sheer natural landmark stands out - the stone mass of Uryanda. In 1837, during the first visit to her Oreanda estate, on the 176-meter top of the rock, Russian Empress Alexandra Feodorovna Romanova ordered the installation of a wooden cross, which was later replaced by a cast iron one. Since then, this rock has been called Krestovaya. In 1843, the royal couple ordered the construction of their palace in Oreanda. It was Oreanda who became the owner of the first royal palace on South Coast Crimea, which was built by 1852 in the style of Roman villas. The Oreanda estate was inherited by Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich Romanov, who owned it for more than 30 years. During a fire on August 8, 1881, the palace burned down. After the fire, the prince moved to the Admiral's house. While living in Oreanda, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich commissioned the architect A.A. Avdeev to develop a project for a Georgian-Byzantine temple. Temple of the Intercession Holy Mother of God was built by 1886 and today is a decoration of the Oreanda resort. In 2002, a new belfry was installed. Only at the end of 1948, on the ruins of the burnt palace of the family of Nicholas I, park area construction of the main building began sanatorium "Nizhnyaya Oreanda" designed by architect M.Ya. Ginsburg. From the imperial Oreanda estate of 50 buildings, nothing remains except the Admiral's House, the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the rotunda of white columns on the Sun Path. The Church of the Intercession near the Admiral's House is unique due to its open external gallery with thin columns and internal frescoes of the cathedral.
Sanatoriums of Oreanda.
The Oreanda resort in Crimea has two of the best accommodation facilities for vacationers: the Lower Oreanda sanatorium and the Wisteria boarding house coastline. The Veteran boarding house has been operating in Oreanda since 1950. Sanatorium "Nizhnyaya Oreanda" is a year-round health resort with a general therapeutic profile. Three buildings of the hospital protrude like white islands at the foot of the Ai-Nikola hills and the Belogolovaya rock. In the Nizhnyaya Oreanda park there are more than 100 species of plants, Libyan cedar, a bamboo grove and a 300-year-old plane tree in the central part of the garden. The sanatorium park is decorated with a spring and a pump room with mineral water.
Sanatorium "Nizhnyaya Oreanda" is an architectural decoration modern resort Oreanda. Along the lower road you can get to the equipped “Golden Beach” - the best 400-meter natural beach of small pebbles polished by the sea near the Oreanda resort.
The attraction of Oreanda is “ Temple by the road" The Church of the Holy Archangel Michael in Upper Oreanda (Temple by the Road) was built in 2006 next to the Yalta-Sevastopol highway at the foot of Mount Ai-Nikola according to the design of the Yalta architect V. Bondarenko. The singing of the church male choir is impressive due to the natural acoustics. The shimmer of the temple belfry in the echoes of the mountains and the road itself lead travelers to the walls beautiful church in Upper Oreanda. The Church of the Holy Archangel Michael on the steep slopes of Mount Ai-Nikola is a five-domed structure with gilded semicircular domes. A round snow-white gazebo, decorated with a gilded dome with a statue of Archangel Michael, became an addition to the landscape near the temple.
In the vicinity of Oreanda, Soviet adventure films “Treasure Island”, “Doctor Aibolit” (1938), “Sea Hunter”, “Children of Captain Grant” were filmed. There are 20 hectares of vineyards in Oreanda. The wine shop of the Massandra association produces Oreanda sherry wine in the village.
A holiday at the Oreanda resort in Crimea will give you the purity of the Black Sea, the freshness of the sea breeze, a boost of vivacity and health, the silence of the park, and will also be remembered for a long time by the impressions of its unique charm mountain landscapes And unique monuments architecture.
Original taken from deadokey in OREANDA Estate (Lower Oreanda), Crimea, Greater Yalta (part 1)
The first was built in Oreanda royal palace on the southern coast of Crimea. After 30 years, the palace burned down. The owner of Oreanda, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, built the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary from the stones remaining after the fire. The appearance of the church is inspired by the architecture of Georgian churches of the 11th-13th centuries; it was built in the Georgian-Byzantine style. The dome of the Church of the Intercession is decorated with a very rare iconographic image of the Savior without a beard (in the title photo). Mosaic icons and ornaments were made by the famous Venetian master Antonio Salviati.
The temple in Oreanda was visited by A.P. Chekhov. The heroes of his story “The Lady with the Dog” - Gurov and Anna Sergeevna - here thought about eternity and life. “In Oreanda they sat on a bench, not far from the church, looked down at the sea and were silent...”
Estate OREANDA (Lower Oreanda, Crimea). Part 1. Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary..
Estate OREANDA (Lower Oreanda, Crimea). Part 2. Sanatorium Nizhnyaya Oreanda.
2. The church is not located on the territory of the Nizhnyaya Oreanda sanatorium, so admission is free.
The history of the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary began long before its appearance. In 1818 and 1825, Russian Emperor Alexander I visited the southern coast of Crimea. He liked the lands of Oreanda, here he wanted to rest from the difficult burden of power and was going to build a palace for his wife Elizaveta Alekseevna, who was often sick and was forced to spend the winter in the south. But, having caught a cold, Alexander I unexpectedly died. Oreanda became the estate of the new Emperor Nicholas I, who presented it to his wife Empress Alexandra Feodorovna.
The royal family first visited Oreanda in September 1837, at which time it was decided to build a palace here in the style of Roman villas. Perhaps the only thing missing here was a temple, so for services we went along the Tsar’s Path to the Livadia Church of the Exaltation of the Cross.
3. In the Oreanda church on October 13, 1894, the holy righteous John of Kronstadt served mass, and on October 17, after serving morning and liturgy, he, in full vestments and with the Holy Gifts, went to the Livadia Palace, where the sick Alexander III was.
4. In the background is the belfry of the temple.
After the death of Emperor Nicholas I, the estate was inherited by his second son, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich (1827-1892), he owned it for more than 30 years. The Grand Duke loved these places very much. “Earthly paradise, whose name is Oreanda,” he said. But participation in state affairs - the Grand Duke managed the Russian maritime department and helped implement liberal reforms - did not allow him to visit the Crimean estate often. His wife and children enjoyed spending the summer months here. The tragic death of Emperor Alexander II in 1881 also affected the career of Konstantin Nikolaevich: having faithfully served two emperors - his father and brother - the Grand Duke found himself out of work under the new monarch. It would seem that great opportunity fulfill a long-standing desire: to settle in Oreanda.
But in 1882, the palace burned down, as it was established, “due to careless handling of cigarettes by the children of courtyard employees.” The restoration of the palace required a large sum of money, which the Grand Duke did not have at his disposal. The Grand Duke moved to a modest imperial house, which from that time began to be called the admiral's house. His lines emanate sadness: “From Mother I received a beautiful palace, it no longer exists, I will never be able to restore it. Let the temple of God be built from its remains.”
The Grand Duke himself chose the location for the future temple. During the ceremonial laying of the church, a tablet was placed at the base of its foundation with the text: “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit: with the zeal and zeal of the owner of Orianda, His Imperial Highness, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, this temple is being built in memory of the Feast of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. April, 31 days 1884 in the summer of III AD. Amen".
The Grand Duke also chose the name for the future temple himself. At first he wanted to consecrate the temple in honor of the Holy Trinity, but since he rarely visited Crimea at the beginning of summer, when the day of Holy Pentecost is celebrated, he decided to dedicate it to his beloved autumn holiday- Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos. This holiday was established in memory of Saint Andrew's vision of the Mother of God in the Blachernae Church in Constantinople.
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich was a comprehensively educated man, a connoisseur of fine arts, literature, and music. The prince was also well versed in architecture. He planned to build the temple in the Georgian-Byzantine style, which, in his opinion, was most suitable for the harsh, rocky terrain of Oreanda. He invited the best specialists to build the temple. The project was developed by the famous architect A.A. Avdeev (1819-1885).
5. At the time of construction, the dome was crowned with a four-pointed Byzantine bronze-gilded openwork cross.
6. View of Yalta.
7. Livadia Palace.
8. Yalta.
Initially, the temple was supposed to be built on the very rock on which the architect K.F. Schinkel intended to build a palace for Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in 1840, and subsequently there was a house for the manager of the Oreanda estate. The rock was incredibly picturesque and high, and the temple would have dominated the entire Oreanda: it would have been visible from all sides. But I had to abandon this idea. Firstly, the wine cellar and distillery of Konstantin Nikolaevich were nearby, and it was somehow indecent to build a temple next to such establishments; secondly, located so high, the temple would be difficult to access. Therefore, the Grand Duke decided to build a temple not far from his Admiral's house.
This was one of the most beautiful places on an estate with a wonderful view of the sea, Yalta, Ai-Todor. Mighty, stunted, centuries-old oak trees grew here; on the largest of them, on the south-eastern side, it was decided to build an original bell tower. In order to orient the apse of the temple strictly to the east, it was necessary to cut down several trees. But the Grand Duke wanted to preserve the mighty giants, so the altar of the temple in Oreanda was turned slightly to the southeast.
The stones from which the palace was built were used to build the church. On May 2, 1885, by order of Konstantin Nikolaevich, the first photograph of the construction progress was taken, then new photographs were taken every month. By June 8, the walls were raised to the height of the cornices and six external crosses were inserted. By July 14, the arches and vaults of the central part were completed. Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich was pleased with the progress of the work.
9. Mount Ayu-Dag. It is often called Bear Mountain. In its shape, it really resembles a huge bear drinking water from the Black Sea. According to one of the ancient legends, a huge bear, trying to detain the fugitives fleeing on a boat, decided to drink the sea. I drank for a long time until I became petrified...
10. A new bell was cast in Donetsk in 2001.
11. To build the church, they used stones from which the palace in Oreanda was built.
The temple turned out to be small, cruciform, with one dome. The light drum contains narrow arched window openings, in which four round windows are placed. The dome was crowned with a four-pointed Byzantine bronze and gilded openwork cross. The northern, western and southern sides of the temple are framed by an arched gallery. The temple did not have a bell tower; an oak tree growing nearby was used for this purpose. On this unique belfry there was a platform made of two boards; a wooden staircase with railings led to it; all the wooden parts of the staircase were painted. There were five bells, the largest weighed 160 kilograms, and the smallest weighed 3 kilograms. The bells were consecrated on September 21, 1885, on the day of remembrance of St. Demetrius of Rostov. The Grand Duke invited a talented monk-ringer, whose art he was extremely pleased with: “... He has a simple-minded face that always shines with joy when he performs his position as a bell-ringer... And he rang in a truly aristocratic manner. The consonance of these bells is extremely harmonious and produces a wonderful, joyful impression. Our bell-ringer-monk is good nature personified.” Emperors Alexander III and Nicholas II listened with pleasure to the wonderful ringing of the bells.
The Church of the Intercession was distinguished by its rich decoration. The window frames in the drum and the large crosses that decorate the outer walls were made in Livorno from white Carrara marble. Yellow-orange window glass filled the temple with soft sunlight. Master Kubyshko made the carved iconostasis from walnut, oak, cypress and juniper, but over time it was planned to replace it with marble. Part of the temple was painted by famous artists: D.I. Grimm, academician M.V. Vasiliev, vice-president of the Imperial Academy of Arts, Prince G.G. Gagarin.
12. Interior of the temple.
13. Mosaic image of the Savior and the Apostles in the domed part of the temple.
14. Temple interior.
The solemn consecration of the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary took place in 1885. This church became the favorite brainchild of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich; he put a piece of his soul into its creation and was rightfully proud of his creation. “I must confess,” he wrote, “that the church completely admires me for the proportionality of all its forms, its entire ensemble. The style is excellent, and it creates an impression, one might say, archaic - with graceful and noble simplicity... The main beauty of the church, in my opinion, lies in the real harmony and nobility of all lines. I am completely delighted with her, and everyone who has seen her so far shares my opinion...”
The great merit of the Grand Duke is that he once again revived the forgotten art of mosaic in Russia. Mosaic is an image or pattern made of colored stones, pieces of glass alloys (smalt), and ceramic tiles. The art of mosaic reached great heights in Byzantium and from there came to Rus'. It was used to decorate the best Kyiv churches, including the St. Sophia Church. Then the time came when they forgot about mosaics; only in the 18th century did the great Russian scientist M. Lomonosov revive this art. In his laboratories, he conducted many experiments and learned how to obtain smalt of different colors and shades. Lomonosov and his students created wonderful mosaic portraits and a large panel “The Battle of Poltava”.
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich admired this art, because mosaics, unlike painting, retained their colors bright and rich even after hundreds of years. He decided to decorate part of the temple in Oreanda with mosaic images. For this purpose, they turned to the famous Italian master Antonio Salviati (1816-1890). A month after the consecration of the temple in Oreanda, mosaic icons of the Savior and the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos arrived from Venice, made according to the drawings of Prince Gagarin, an expert in Byzantine architecture and church iconography. The image of the Savior was placed above the porch, and the image of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos was decorated high place temple.
15. Mosaic icons of the Nativity and Resurrection of Christ.
16. A significant part of the mosaic has been lost.
Unfortunately, most of the mosaics of the Church of the Intercession in Oreanda have not survived to this day. The image of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary and nine other icons were almost completely destroyed. Miraculously, the image of the Savior, eight apostles, eight angels, four evangelists located in the dome and sails of the temple, the Byzantine ornament and two panels “Nativity” and “Resurrection of Christ” decorating the western wall were preserved.
17. Icons were especially damaged: now it is impossible to identify the faces of Russian saints depicted on the walls of the refectory.
19. Mosaic icon of the Resurrection of Christ.
After the revolution, the temple experienced many difficult days and almost died. Based on Protocol No. 16 of May 8, 1924, by resolution of the Presidium of the Crimean Central Executive Committee, the house church in Oreanda was liquidated. The temple was transferred to the jurisdiction of the OHRIS (Committee for Museums and the Protection of Monuments of Art, Antiquity, Folk Life and Nature), which decided that the church cannot be used as a warehouse, club, or housing “as it has rich mosaic work, which is rare in the USSR,” and it “undoubtedly should come under the jurisdiction of OHRIS in order to demonstrate it to the masses, especially to students.” Excursionists came to see the wonderful mosaic frescoes; admission cost only 10 kopecks. In 1925, the church was transferred to the Administration of the Livadia Palace. However, fighters against religion were looking for an opportunity to finally close the temple.
After the notorious June earthquake of 1927, the crack in the altar part of the temple deepened, and the mosaic partially cracked. This gave rise to the Yalta Executive Committee to send a telegram to the Crimean Central Executive Committee: “The building fell into disrepair after the earthquake. It is in a dilapidated state. It is subject to urgent demolition.” But the Lord did not allow this blasphemy to happen. The atheists tried to throw the cross off the dome of the church, but they could not tear it down - it broke at the base. Part of this cross is now kept in the temple as a precious relic.
Until the end of the Great Patriotic War, the temple remained closed.
In the 50s, the Soviet health resort “Nizhnyaya Oreanda” grew up on the former estate, and new buildings were erected one after another. Obviously, the small church, according to the architects, did not fit into modern look Oreanda. Therefore, in the early 60s they decided to demolish it. The temple, once built and decorated with such love, was on the verge of destruction. Local historians, people who are not indifferent to their land and its history, stepped up. They achieved that the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary was recognized as an architectural monument, as was written in the letter of protection. For more than thirty years, pesticides were stored here, and a car depot was located in the church yard.
The building was heavily damaged by landslides and required restoration. It began after the return of the temple to the Orthodox Church. This happened in 1992 on the feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The parishioners put the church in order, and for the feast of the Holy Trinity, for the first time in 70 years, the Divine Liturgy was served there. Archpriest Nikolai Donenko was appointed rector of the temple.
20. Mosaic icon of the Nativity of Christ.
21. Fragment of a mosaic image under the dome.
22. A bell used to hang on this tree.
And in 2001, a belfry was built next to the church. In Donetsk, a beautiful bell weighing 603 kilograms was cast using traditional technology. Specialists had to work hard to make it. To make the voice of the bell sound beautiful, we remembered the old, ancient methods; for this we used a stove, the fire in which was maintained with wood. On the top of the bell it is written: “This bell was brought as a gift by the servants of God Alexander and Anatoly in the summer of 2001 from the Nativity of Christ to the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God in Oreanda.” The bell is decorated with four stamps, which depict the Lord Pantocrator, the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos, Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker and the great martyr healer Panteleimon.
On the day of memory of the Great Martyr Catherine, December 7, the bell was mounted on the belfry. And on January 4, 2002, Archpriest Father Nikolai Donenko consecrated the bell and belfry. A few days later, a beautiful openwork cross made by Kyiv artist Oleg Radzevich was installed on its roof. The Yalta charitable foundation “Nadezhda” provided great assistance in this matter.
23. Chekhov's benches.
24. View of Yalta.
Old photos
April 1885 Foundation of the temple. April 1885 Photo by F.P. Orlova.
April 1885 Construction of the temple walls. Photo by F.P. Orlova.
June 1885 Construction of arches and vaults of the temple. Photo by F.P. Orlova.
September 1885. External decoration of the temple dome. Photo by F.P. Orlova.
1886 Intercession Church in Oreanda.
Church plan
Church plan. Lengthwise cut
End of the 19th century Interior of the altar part of the temple.<
Orig. rice. (Niva's own) academician. Benois, engrav. M. Rashevsky
End of the 19th century Old belfry with bells.
Beginning of the 20th century.
Beginning of the 20th century.
Beginning of the 20th century.
Beginning of the 20th century.
Beginning of the 20th century.
The old house of the priest of the Intercession Church (not preserved).
1990s. Photo by V. Evdokimov.
Continuation of the story about the burnt palace in Oreanda in the second part...
Links:
poluostrov-krym.com
photo.qip.ru
Palace and temple in Nizhnyaya Oreanda. Filatova G.G. 2nd ed., 2013
The Romanovs and Crimea. Kalinin N., Zemlyanichenko M., 2013
Crimea: Orthodox shrines: a guide. - Comp. EAT. Litvinova. - Simferopol: "Rubin", 2003.
Lozben N., Palchikova A. Livadia. Essay-guide. - Simferopol: SONAT, 2007.
Palaces. Estates. Estates. Guide. - Simferopol: Business-Inform, 2008.
Tarasenko D. N. Southern coast of Crimea. - Simferopol: Business-Inform, 2008.
Oreanda is a small village 5 km from Yalta, right on the Yalta-Alupka highway. This place is perfect for a calm and unclouded holiday: it’s not for nothing that Russian emperors once chose it. Since tsarist times, an amazing park has remained in Oreanda, where you can walk every day - and everything will be enough. In addition, there are two wonderful temples in the town, and around, in the rocks, there are many interesting places for history and archeology lovers. If we add here the wonderful views that open from the cliffs and the proximity to busy tourist centers, it is easy to understand why, out of all the variety of holiday options on the southern coast of Crimea, it is worth choosing Oreanda.
Oreanda has a nice pebble beach almost half a kilometer long. It is one of the best in this part of the peninsula, and therefore even Crimean residents from neighboring cities come here.
Since tsarist times, an amazing park has remained in Oreanda, where you can walk every day - and everything will be enough.
A little history
The first mention of Oreanda in written sources occurs at the end of the 18th century. There is an assumption that the name of the village came from the Greek language (originally the town was called “Urgenda”). One way or another, in the 1820s. the land on which Oreanda was located was acquired from the Crimean Tatars by the Russian military commander F. Reveliotti, who almost immediately resold it to A. Kushelev-Bezborodko. Already from the latter, a year later, Oreanda was bought by Emperor Alexander I. It turns out that it was Oreanda that became the first imperial possession in the south of the peninsula.
Soon after the revolution, Oreanda found itself abandoned and forgotten, but in the mid-20th century it experienced a rebirth when the Lower Oreanda sanatorium was built here. The sanatorium, turned into a wellness center, is still in operation and occupies a rather noticeable building. Then a second sanatorium, “Wisteria”, appeared, and important figures began to come to the village to rest.
How to get there
Oreanda is located just 7 km from Yalta. By bus, taking into account the circles it makes along the road, you will get there in about 40 minutes. And by car you will probably need a little more than a quarter of an hour.
Search for air tickets to Simferopol (the nearest airport to Oreanda)
Entertainment and attractions of Oreanda
After the acquisition of Oreanda by the royal family, Emperor Nicholas I presented it to his wife, Alexandra Feodorovna, for whom it was decided to build a palace here. The project was created in 1840 by the famous metropolitan architect Stackenschneider. First of all, they began to build a snow-white semi-rotunda, which can still be seen today on one of the rocky slopes above the village. The building is a stone arch on eight Doric columns 8 m high, which is clearly visible from the sea and beyond. This is a very recognizable symbol of Oreanda.
Unfortunately, nothing else remains of the royal palace, which was built after all, except the admiral’s house and a fairly remodeled park.
The Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Oreanda was built by order of Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich, who himself chose the place for it, as well as the holiday in honor of which the temple was consecrated. This is a beautiful Russian-Byzantine building near the admiral's house, made of the same stone as the imperial palace. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the church was one of the most revered and most beautiful in this part of Crimea; John of Kronstadt himself served in it. Today it has been restored and tourists can admire the beautiful open gallery with thin columns and wonderful interior paintings.
One of Massandra’s workshops is located in Oreanda: it produces sherry.
Another remarkable temple of Oreanda is much younger: it was built only in 2006. Nevertheless, built above the village, on one of the steep slopes near Ai-Nikola, the temple of St. Archangel Michael rightfully occupies an honorable place among the local attractions. This is a very impressive and decorative five-domed structure with golden semicircular domes. The temple has one special feature: the mountains surrounding it provide unique acoustics. When a male choir sings in church, the sound is amazing.
Natural beauty
The natural attractions of Oreanda are also worth getting to know these places better. It all starts right from the beach, from which you can clearly see the Mastovaya rock, broken into two parts, with a natural grotto below. There are versions according to which prehistoric people once lived in this grotto.
The second amazing attraction cannot definitely be called natural: after all, man had a hand in its creation. This is a wonderful park in the place where the Nizhnyaya Oreanda sanatorium is now located. The territory of the park, which was once created for the imperial family, covers more than 40 hectares. At one time, Zhukovsky and Nekrasov, Tolstoy and Aivazovsky vacationed here. A gardener from Britain worked on the creation of the park, and therefore in pre-revolutionary times it was called English. The natural beauty of the rocky landscape was carefully preserved and used to create perfect harmony in the park with many secluded corners, flower beds, and shady alleys. One of the most striking attractions of the park is a century-old plane tree over 30 m high with an almost seven-meter trunk diameter.
Even Mark Twain visited the former imperial park (then not yet “former”).
The famous Royal Path leads to Oreanda, which goes from Livadia Park to Gaspra and passes right next to the rotunda. Along this path you can, passing the sanatorium and the vineyard, walk to the Kurchatov trail. Or all the way to Livadia, if there is such a desire. Once upon a time, members of the royal family walked along this path, and it is not surprising: the path is surrounded by shady trees, benches are placed along the sides, surrounded by rare species of flowering shrubs, and wonderful views open from the observation platforms.
Above the royal rotunda you can see the steep slopes of the White Head Rock and Mount Ai-Nikola. You can climb to the top of the latter along a walking path laid by the famous physicist Kurchatov during his vacation in “Lower Oreanda”. The Kurchatov trail begins near the rotunda. At the top you can see an ancient iron cross, placed here by the Cossacks in the 17th century. There are also many interesting places from an archaeological point of view: for example, two burial grounds with stone sarcophagi, the Oreanda fortress on the Cross Rock or the remains of the ancient Khachla-Kayasy monastery on the same rock.
- Where to stay: Big Yalta- a treasure trove of resorts beloved since Soviet times: vacationers are welcome to the sanatoriums of cozy Alupka and ancient Gurzuf, picturesque Koreiz and bohemian Livadia, charming Miskhor and pompous Foros, as well as the beautiful Yalta, glorified by poets and artists. For fans of silence, it makes sense to stay in the intimate Gaspra, Katsiveli, Nikita or Polyana. Swallow's Nest will enchant you with its delightful views, Massandra with its “fun component”, and Simeiz with its quaint rocks. You can look for something special among others
“Earthly paradise, whose name is Oreanda...”
On the count’s initiative, extensive work began to be done here to create plantations of the best European grape varieties, and in the royal domain, a magnificent park, which received the status of “Imperial Garden on the Oreanda estate.”
The foundation of this beautiful garden is associated with the names of the then famous gardeners and botanists K. Kebakh, V. Ross and N. Gartvis, who was at that time the director of the Nikitsky Garden. In 1838, G. Regner became the head gardener of the Oreanda estate, and he did a lot to decorate the park: seeds and seedlings of various exotic plants were purchased from Europe on his orders, and Regner himself made a special trip to the Caucasus to collect beautiful flowering and ornamental plants.
It is interesting that the first manager of the estate was the chemist F.A. Desser, a student of the famous Lavoisier, who fled to Russia during the French Revolution.
From August to October 1837, Nicholas I undertook a large inspection tour of the western and southern provinces of Russia and Transcaucasia, and at the invitation of Count M.S. Vorontsov’s itinerary also included a visit to the South Coast.
He decided to go to Crimea with Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and Tsarevich Alexander Nikolaevich. We all met at the end of August in Voznesensk, a small marina town on the Southern Bug. Alexandra Feodorovna arrived here from Moscow with her daughter, Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, and the 19-year-old heir to the throne from Kharkov, one of the many cities he met during his trip to Russia. From Voznesensk they arrived by ship to Sevastopol, and then in carriages and on horseback traveled through Bakhchisarai and Simferopol to the Vorontsov estate “Massandra”.
For the history of Yalta, September 17 became a significant date: on this day, Nicholas I with Empress Alexandra Feodorovna and children, having spent the night in “Massandra”, went on horseback to the consecration ceremony of the Church of St. John Chrysostom, which had just been built according to the design of the architect G. Toricelli. Immediately after this event, the emperor ordered the status of a district town to be granted to the southern coastal village that had begun to grow and gave instructions to Count M.S. Vorontsov and architect K.I. Ashliman to draw up a city plan.
Then, on September 17, after examining Yalta and visiting the estate of Count L.S. Pototsky "Livadia" Their Imperial Majesties headed to Oreanda. This is how an eyewitness describes the arrival of the royal family there: “Arriving at the gate leading to Oreanda Park, the emperor stopped his horse and approached the empress and announced that he was giving her Oreanda. The Empress, the Grand Dukes and the ladies of the court immediately went on horseback to the beautiful park. Upon entering the estate, the manager of the estate, Mr. Asher, and the gardener, the Englishman Ross, had the good fortune to be introduced to the imperial family. “Here is your manager,” said the sovereign, turning to the empress.”
On the same day, we inspected the buildings erected according to the designs of the architect F. Elson: a “house with a tower” for guests, a greenhouse, the houses of the estate manager, gardener and winemaker. For the Imperial visit, the small “royal” house, where Alexander I stayed in 1825 and dined with friends, was also carefully renovated: the roof was covered with tiles, the ceiling was changed, and a gallery was added to the façade.
Alexandra Fedorovna was delighted with Oreanda, and Nicholas immediately decided to build a palace here for her.
The luxurious estate became one of the countless precious gifts with which Nikolai Pavlovich showered his wife. In the memoirs of people who closely observed the life of the royal family, we find evidence that the stern autocrat, despite the amorous adventures attributed to him, tenderly loved Alexandra Fedorovna.
“Emperor Nicholas,” wrote the maid of honor A.F. Tyutchev, - had for his wife, this fragile, irresponsible and graceful creature, a passionate and despotic adoration of a strong nature for a weak being, whose only ruler and legislator he feels. To him it was a lovely bird, which he kept locked up in a golden and jeweled cage.<...>, but whose wings he would cut off without regret if she wanted to break out of the gilded bars of her cage. But in her magical prison the bird did not even remember its wings. For the empress, the fantastic world that surrounded her with the worship of her omnipotent husband, the world of magnificent palaces, luxurious gardens, cheerful villas, the world of spectacles and enchanting balls filled the entire horizon, and she did not suspect that beyond this horizon, beyond the phantasmagoria of diamonds and pearls, jewelry, flowers, silk, lace and shiny trinkets there is a real world, there is a poor, ignorant, half-barbaric Russia, which would demand from its sovereign the heart, activity and stern energy of a sister of mercy, ready to come to the aid of her many needs.”
The famous French traveler and writer Marquis A. de Custine derived the same opinion from his observations: “Her sovereign (i.e., the empress. - N.K., M.Z.) loves whether she has a fever, whether she is bedridden by illness - he himself takes care of her, spends the night at her bedside, prepares her drink as a nurse. But as soon as she recovers slightly, he again kills her with excitement, celebrations, and travel. And only when the danger to life again appears, he abandons his intentions. The emperor does not allow precautions that could prevent danger: wife, children, servants, relatives, favorites - everyone in Russia must swirl in the imperial whirlwind, with a smile on their lips, until death, everyone must obey the slightest thought to the last drop of blood the ruler, he alone decides the fate of everyone.”
Often and for long periods of time being ill, the empress traveled abroad to improve her health, mainly to Palermo in Sicily. And when the royal couple became convinced that the climate of the South Coast and its nature were in no way inferior to the famous European resorts of the Mediterranean, they decided not to delay the construction of a palace in Crimea for the summer holidays and treatment of Alexandra Fedorovna.
After visiting Oreanda, Nikolai Pavlovich and his family traveled further to the so-called “Oreanda Witt” where they spent the night, and then stayed with M.S. until the end of September. and E.K. Vorontsov in the Alupka Palace. From Alupka, Alexandra Fedorovna came to Oreanda twice more: she chose, together with the South Coast architect K.I. Eshliman a place to build a future palace and took long horseback rides around her new estate.
A small accidental event of that time was forever imprinted in the name of the most majestic rock in Oreanda. On September 30, the Empress, together with the Vorontsovs, climbed the gentle northern slope to the top of Mount Uryanda, installed a wooden cross there and planted a laurel bush with her own hands. Subsequently, this cross was replaced with a cast iron one with special holes for installing illuminations. The cross is long gone, but the name of the mountain - Krestovaya - has survived to this day.
Upon returning to St. Petersburg, Alexandra Feodorovna turned through her brother, Prussian Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm, with an order for the design of a palace in Oreanda to the famous K.F. Schinkel. The Empress envisioned having a house similar to the Charlottenhof Palace, built by the architect in Potsdam in 1825-27. in the style of a “Roman villa”, known from the description of Pliny the Younger.
Soon after Schinkel received a plan of the area in Berlin, he became acquainted with a description of its climatic features and, in all likelihood, with watercolors by N.G. Chernetsov, he proposed a project in the “neo-Greek” style he created, according to which the empress’s house would no longer be a cozy “Roman villa,” but a grandiose structure located on the top of a cliff, reigning over the surrounding area. Its eastern and western facades with buttresses and rock fortifications had the appearance of harsh fortress walls. But the layout of a huge courtyard with a swimming pool, fountains, a garden of subtropical plants, surrounded by galleries with a colonnade, decorated with mosaics of colored stones, was striking in its luxurious design.
At the end of 1839, the project was already in St. Petersburg and aroused the admiration of the royal family. But after a detailed discussion, they politely refused to implement it due to the enormous cost of construction (more than a million silver rubles) and the complexity of its implementation in such an underdeveloped region at that time as South Coast. Schinkel was paid for all his expenses and generously thanked: on behalf of the Empress, he was presented with a diamond ring with her monogram.
The reworking of the palace plan created by the German architect was entrusted in 1840 to the favorite of Nicholas I, the famous St. Petersburg architect Andrei Ivanovich Stackenschneider, who, leaving the style proposed by his predecessor, first of all took into account the empress’s wish to have a small, cozy villa: he reduced the area of the building by almost 4.5 times according to Schinkel's design.
In the autumn of 1841, Stackenschneider, together with assistant architect A. Lange, arrived at the estate to get acquainted with the area. In the first version of his project, he makes a number of design changes, but most importantly, he decides to locate the building not on a cliff, but not far from its foot, in a park, which made it possible to harmoniously combine its eastern and western facades with the surrounding landscape with porticos, pavilions and pergolas. A year later, the new project was approved and a construction commission was appointed.
The construction of the palace took 10 years; there was even a long break in construction work from 1847 to 1850 due to “lack of money,” as explained in the commission reports.
The construction was supervised by the famous “stone mason” Englishman V. Gunt, who had previously built the palace of Count M.S. in Alupka. Vorontsov, and for some time the Odessa architect Cambiaggio. At the beginning of 1850, the architect K.I. was appointed head of the Oreanda buildings. Ashliman. Under him, work on completing the palace, decorating its interiors and erecting service buildings noticeably accelerated and, finally, in the fall of 1852, in time for the Imperial visit to Crimea, it was completely completed.
The magazine “Architectural Bulletin” responded this way about the new creation of A.I. Stackenschneider: “...The palace on the southern coast of the Crimean Peninsula is known to everyone for its splendor, described by many in various newspapers and publications. It was built in the Greek, Schinkel style. The building in reality presents a majestic appearance, reminiscent of ancient Taurida with its rich buildings of the Greek colonies.”
The sight of the palace surrounded by the exotic vegetation of the park delighted the royal family who arrived in Oreanda. After its consecration, all builders were adequately rewarded. This time the rest lasted more than a month and a half.
Oreanda Park was then an example of the brilliant creative imagination of architects and gardeners. Imagine, reader, numerous, originally designed pools, charming small waterfalls hidden in dense greenery, or a fountain flowing directly from the hollow of a huge oak tree - the water was brought to it so imperceptibly that a complete illusion of a natural spring was created; Finally, imagine small fallow deer - “danielek” and red deer, freely grazing on the lawns of the park. The vegetation was selected so that individual corners of the park represented different subtropical areas of the entire globe. And high above the park and the palace, on the edge of a steep cliff, hovered the crown of a snow-white Greek rotunda, built in 1842 - the same time the construction of the palace began.
The simple lifestyle of the royal family in Oreanda, walks in the surrounding area and the park, swimming in the sea, hunting in the mountain forest were occasionally interrupted by visits to the Vorontsov Palace, visits to Yalta, Livadia. The estate did not have its own church, so on the Orthodox holidays of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and on Intercession Day we went to the St. John Chrysostom Cathedral in Yalta. The then few nobles of Yalta and deputations of local residents - Greeks, Tatars, Karaites - paid visits to the tsar. A frequent guest of the imperial couple was the Tauride governor, Count A.V. Adlerberg.
Before leaving, Alexandra Fedorovna, as if foreseeing the near future, said: “...This palace will be my widow’s home.” Her premonition did not deceive her. Soon the Crimean War began, which ended so sadly for Russia. On February 18, 1855, Nicholas I died. After the death of her husband, Alexandra Fedorovna’s health deteriorated sharply, and she no longer came to her southern estate.
After her death on October 20, 1860, according to her will, “Oreanda” passed into the possession of the second son of Nicholas I. book Konstantin Nikolaevich and until 1894 remained in the status of grand ducal, not royal estates.
The bright personality of the new owner of Oreanda deserves to dwell at least briefly on some moments of his life, so little is still known to a wide circle of readers.
Admiral General V. book From childhood, Konstantin Nikolaevich was intended by his parents for naval service. The upbringing of the little “admiral” was entrusted to the outstanding Russian navigator and geographer F.P. Litke, who later became president of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences and vice-chairman of the Russian Geographical Society. The young Grand Duke showed extraordinary abilities in learning.
In 1855, during the Crimean War, which virtually destroyed the Black Sea Fleet for many years, Alexander II, who had just ascended the throne, entrusted his brother with the leadership of the Russian fleet as Minister of Navy.
Outstanding lawyer, academician A.F. Horses, giving an assessment of the activities in. book Konstantin Nikolaevich for the good of the Fatherland, noted the main properties of his nature: a clear and perspicacious mind, a thirst for knowledge and an inclination to figure out everything on his own - properties that protected him from the danger of confining himself only within the framework of a major military specialist. “He was not capable of playing the role of an indifferent contemplator, and his lively sensitivity, sometimes even turning into nervous impressionability, made him, earlier than many, understand the needs of the time and the immediate tasks of Russia after the Sevastopol pogrom. Not only did he surrender his soul to the transformative aspirations of his reigning brother, but<...>in word and deed, advice and personal participation, he contributed to the successful transition of generous assumptions into practical implementation.<...>The ability to quickly grasp the essential in every new phenomenon, matter or issue and clearly imagine its scope and significance greatly helped him in this regard.”
During the most difficult period of the struggle to implement historical reforms in the 60s and 70s, Alexander II relied primarily on a small but close-knit group of like-minded people from among liberal-minded close relatives, ministers and members of the State Council. Konstantin Nikolaevich headed this group: the emperor called his brother “his first assistant in the peasant business,” whom he put at the head of the “Permanent Committee on the Rural Condition.”
It is difficult to overestimate everything that this committee did for the great day of February 19, 1861, when Alexander II signed the Manifesto on the abolition of serfdom. But in Konstantin Nikolaevich’s diary there are only a few lines about this event: “We gathered for mass in the Winter Palace, after which there was a prayer service with wonderful prayers on the occasion of the day of accession to the throne. After breakfast, everyone left, but I stayed to watch Sasha sign the Manifesto, and asked him to invite Nixa to join in. Maria was also there. First, he read it loudly and, crossing himself, signed it, and I covered it with sand. Then, during the day, he signed all the “Regulations” and gave the pen he used as a souvenir to Nixa. From today, therefore, a new history, a new era of Russia begins. God grant that this will be to her greater greatness.”
The magazine “Morskoy Sbornik”, published under the patronage of the Grand Duke, had the honor of pioneering publicity in the domestic press: it boldly exposed all the ills and abuses with which the life of the country was full, lying “wordlessly, motionless” at the feet of a limited and self-interested military and civil bureaucracy.” And in his naval department, Admiral General Konstantin Nikolaevich took a number of extremely important measures in which what was theoretically developed in the pages of the “Naval Collection” was practically implemented.
This is far from a complete description of the activities of the Grand Duke, who for a number of years headed the liberal movement in Russia, an active promoter of the “revolution from above.”
Lively receptivity, sometimes turning into nervous impressionability, which was noted in Grand Duke A.F. Horses are qualities characteristic of artistic natures. And indeed, Konstantin Nikolaevich was known as a subtle connoisseur of fine arts, architecture, literature, theater, music, and he himself was fluent in several musical instruments - cello, piano, organ. Playing music with outstanding virtuosos and composers of that time - K.B. Schubert, A.G. Rubinstein, G. Wieniawski gave him “inexpressible pleasure,” and the most complex works of Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Mozart, and Schubert were performed.
Konstantin Nikolaevich’s wife was also a talented pianist. book Alexandra Iosifovna, nee Princess of Saxe-Altenburg.
In August 1861, after an inspection trip to Nikolaev and Sevastopol, Konstantin Nikolaevich was finally able to come to Oreanda, which now became his own name, for a few days.
"August 7. <...>At the gate at the pass (Baidary. - N.K., M.Z.) a wonderful sight of the sea. We had breakfast there. Continue along the South Bank along the lovely post road. Sometimes it rains. We arrived at the wonderful Oreanda. We entered from the gate on foot, past the rotunda. Miracle, beauty. Having examined the house, he swam in the sea. Then lunch and smoked on the terrace and walked in the moonlight.
8 August. In the morning I wrote a letter to Zhinka. Then we swam. At noon - through our lovely park to Livadia for breakfast. Nice, but can't compare to Oreanda. From there in carriages through Yalta, Massandra, Magarach, Aidanil to Yurzuf. They relaxed in the house and drank wonderful wine. From there, take the lower roads on horseback. We stopped a bit in Nikitsky Garden. In Massandra we boarded the carriages and headed home by moonlight. We had dinner and sat on the terrace in the evening. Lovely.
August 9. In the morning I was woken up with the news of the arrival of the courier. Lying in bed, I began to read Zhinka’s letters, and what letters, I simply melted! I spent the whole morning sorting out the papers I had brought. Then we swam. Small surf. I lay down on the shore, so the surf went through me. After breakfast I examined the palace with all its charming economic devices. Then they rode around the garden on horseback, climbed the rock where the cross was, and examined all the economic conditions and structures. You can make a wonderful profitable estate out of this. In the evening we swam again.
10th of August. <...>At 3 o'clock we set off in a carriage along the post road to Miskhor station. There they sat on horseback, and through the Miskhor estate along the seashore to Alupka. We toured the palace and swam. Alupka is good, but it doesn’t hold a candle to Oreanda...
11th August. <...>With Glazenap and Eschliman we looked at the financial side of Oreanda. Savings are already possible, and over time, when we develop winemaking, even more so. At 3 o'clock we traveled on horseback throughout Oreanda and the park, and part of Livadia, and Oreanda of Dibich, and the mountainous part, where we found the most beautiful plains. After this visit, I fell in love with this wonderful Oreanda even more.
12th of August. It completely died down, only a fair swell remained and it was a delight to swim. At 9 o’clock we sadly said goodbye to Oreanda and set off on our return journey...”
The intense work of managing the Russian fleet and leading committees to implement the reforms of his reigning brother did not allow Konstantin Nikolaevich to visit Oreanda often, and every visit to the South Coast became a joyful event for him. The owner of several magnificent estates, the Grand Duke chose the name of the most beloved of them for the surname under which he often traveled around Europe incognito: “von Oreandsky, landowner from Crimea, Russia,” he introduced himself on such occasions in hotels.
Alexandra Iosifovna came to Crimea more often with her children and Konstantin Nikolaevich’s younger brothers - Grand Dukes Nikolai and Mikhail Nikolaevich. During the Highest visits to Livadia, while the latter was being improved, the retinue of Empress Maria Alexandrovna was housed in the Oreanda Palace.
Of the six children of Konstantin Nikolaevich and Alexandra Iosifovna, their second son, Konstantin, who inherited the artistic abilities of his parents, was marked with the stamp of bright talent. In his childhood and youth, he often came to Oreanda, and it was the beautiful nature of the Southern Coast that gave the opportunity to reveal the Grand Duke’s extraordinary poetic gift.
His poems, published under the pseudonym “K. R.”, invariably attracted the attention of the reading public with its subtle lyricism. Contemporaries saw in this new rising star of Russian literature the direct successor of F.I. Tyutcheva, A.A. Fet and A.N. Maykova.
Biographers K.R. The poem written in Oreanda in May 1879 was considered the first test of his poetic talent. Therefore, it was with him that the cycle of beautiful lyrical poems “By the Shores” usually began in all collections of his works:
The waves fell asleep
The vault of the sky is clear;
The full moon is shining
Above the azure waters.The sea is silvering,
It burns quiveringly...
So the joy of grief will brightly illuminate.
However, a careful study of the Grand Duke’s diary for 1879 gave us the right to confidently assert that not this, but a completely different poem was the first composition of the twenty-year-old adjutant Konstantin Romanov. The records of April-May provide a rare opportunity for world memoir literature to trace the emergence of a special state of the soul, embracing its delight, awe - what in the old days was figuratively called “languor of the soul” - which precede a wonderful moment: the hand of the future poet takes a pen and imprints on paper, the first lines of poetry in my life.
So, let's turn to May 12, 1879: “After breakfast<...>went to Alupka. It's a wonderful day. All kinds of roses are there in full bloom, the garden is suffocating there from their intoxicating beauty. It was so good and wonderful that I began to pray to God, and then sat down under the arch of the Great Arch of the castle and began to look at the silent, boundless sea.<...>And I wanted to write poetry myself... After lunch, I went out onto the covered terrace. The evening was quiet and warm; It was already getting dark. I continued my poetry.
Here's the finished start:
When you watch a purple ray of sunset,
When the evening sky is cloudless
In the depths of the sea - transparent and azure -
As reflected in smooth, boundless mirrors...”
K.R. carried the memory of the happiness of poetic inspiration he experienced in Alupka and Oreanda, sent down to him by the beauty of the southern coastal nature, throughout his life. Many years later, having again visited Oreanda, from which fate had separated him for a long time and in which so much had already changed, the poet returned to the unforgettable moments of May 1879:
I visited my native ashes -
Destroyed parental hearth,
The home of my past youth,
Where every step reminds me
About the days when the soul is brighter and purer,
Having tasted the highest of blessings for the first time,
Poetry of holy inspiration
I experienced blissful moments.
But let’s return to the owner of the estate, Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich. The year 1881 turned out to be fatal for him. On March 1, in St. Petersburg, Emperor Alexander II was killed by a bomb from terrorist Grinevitsky. With him ended the era of liberal reforms that led the country to a constitutional monarchy. Under the new emperor, the Grand Duke found himself out of work and was removed from almost all his positions; He retained only the honorary position of member of the State Council, which did not give real power.
And in the summer of the same year, a dramatic event occurred in Oreanda: due to an absurd accident, the palace burned down on the night of August 7-8. The fire started in the attic and then, despite the desperate efforts of firefighters, engulfed the entire building. For more than a year, the burnt walls of the palace stood undisassembled: the Grand Duke intended to first restore it, for which he requested A.I.’s drawings from St. Petersburg. Stackenschneider. However, he soon abandoned this idea, as he himself explained, due to lack of funds. The parts of the burnt palace that were threatening to collapse were, on his instructions, dismantled for construction work on the estate, and what remained was so reminiscent of ancient ruins that for many years it was a kind of decoration of the park.
Konstantin Nikolaevich decided to settle in the “imperial house”, in which he lived during his now frequent and long visits to the southern estate (hence the renaming of the house to “admiral’s” - according to the rank of its high-born owner).
The Grand Duke spent the entire cool summer of 1884 in Oreanda. In a letter to his close friend A.V. He wrote bitterly to Golovnin: “I am now so unaccustomed to politics, from government affairs, that it seems to me that I never took part in them, and that Konstantin Nikolaevich, about whom we are talking, about whom it is told, that he did this and that, a completely different person, and not me at all...”
However, the memory of the merits of Alexander II’s closest associate was still fresh among his contemporaries. On his birthday, September 13, a squadron from Sevastopol led by the cruiser “Memory of Azov” came to greet the Admiral General; his close friend, former Minister of War Count D.A. Milyutin, Yalta mayor Baron A.L. Wrangel and many others, whose kind words deeply touched the owner of Oreanda: “So all the people had gathered simply to please me and show their kindness towards me, and I admit that the consciousness of this was especially pleasant to me.”
The Grand Duke now mainly devotes the energy of his active nature to charity, to the improvement of Oreanda, and to increasing its profitability.
The small Oreanda wine cellar, although it produced high-quality wines, was in small quantities (about 500 buckets per year). They were, as a rule, sold in Richter's store in St. Petersburg. The acquisition of Upper Oreanda with its beautiful vineyards made it possible to put winemaking on a broader footing. The area occupied by vine plantations now amounted to more than 22 acres, and in 1888, by order of Konstantin Nikolaevich, a new large wine cellar was built with various technical improvements.
Since the organization of the winery at the Oreanda estate, several chief winemakers have changed. These were mostly foreigners - French and Germans. However, the greatest successes were achieved under the talented graduate of the Magarach School, the remarkable practical scientist I.T. Slive. The wines created under his leadership in the Oreanda wine cellar won the highest awards at the All-Russian Agricultural Exhibition in Kharkov in 1887.
... “An earthly paradise, whose name is Oreanda,” Konstantin Nikolaevich proudly called his estate. There was only one thing missing in this paradise - a house church: the Crimean War, and then sudden death, prevented Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich from constructing it.
In 1884, the Grand Duke decided to realize his long-standing dream of having his own small church: “I received a lovely palace from Mother, it no longer exists. I will never be able to restore it. Let the Temple of God be built from its remains. It seems to me that this thought is very decent, sweet and worthy of Mother’s memory.”
Konstantin Nikolaevich himself chose the place to build the church: “The Lord God vouchsafed me to begin a good, holy work,” he wrote to A.V. Golovnin, reporting the laying of the first stone in the foundation of the church on October 1, 1884.
Two other important issues were quickly resolved - about the name of the temple and its architectural style. The Grand Duke wished that the church be built in the traditions of Caucasian-Byzantine architecture: in his opinion, this style was most suitable for small churches on the South Bank. One of the best experts in the Byzantine style in Russia, Academician A.A., undertook to draw up a project for the building. Avdeev. They decided to dedicate the future church to Konstantin Nikolaevich’s favorite Orthodox holiday - the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, celebrated on October 1.
Exactly a year after its foundation, the temple was solemnly consecrated in the presence of the owner of the estate and his close friends.
The ceremony of consecration of the Orthodox Church, which the Grand Duke observed for the first time, struck him with the beauty and wisdom of ancient traditions. He describes with delight the smallest details of the more than two-hour service and the celebration that began after this. A common great good deed united Grand Duke Romanov and ordinary workers: “Straight from the church I came to a tent that was pitched a few steps away in an oak grove. Here a treat was prepared for all our workers, more than 80 people. They were all already standing at three long tables. I approached them, drank to their health and thanked them for their hard work. They answered me with loud cheers. Immediately I kissed our excellent foreman Yegor Medvedev, especially thanked him and pinned on his chest in his buttonhole a silver medal for diligence on the Stanislav ribbon, which I managed to get for him. In the morning I gave the same medal, but on the neck, to our main contractor Ducrot. They were very pleased."
Admittedly, the Church of the Intercession has become one of the decorations of the South Bank. Konstantin Nikolaevich wrote about it this way: “I must admit that the church completely delights me with the grace and proportionality of all its forms, its entire ensemble. The style is excellent, and it gives an impression, one might say, archaic, with its graceful and noble simplicity.<...>The main beauty of the church, in my opinion, lies in the true harmony and nobility of all lines<...>. I am completely delighted with her, and everyone who has seen her so far shares my opinion.”
The bell tower of the Intercession Church was designed in an original way. Just as with the small Church of the Beheading of John the Baptist, built in 1832 on the Vorontsovs’ Massandra estate, an old spreading oak tree was adapted for the belfry here.
Outstanding architects and painters took part in decorating the church: academicians D.I. Grimm, M.V. Vasiliev, Vice-President of the Imperial Academy of Arts, Prince G.G. Gagarin. The latter not only readily responded to Konstantin Nikolaevich’s request to complete the church project in connection with Avdeev’s sudden death, but he himself volunteered to paint icons and make drawings for utensils.
Large crosses inserted into the outer walls and window frames in the drum of the dome made of white Carrara marble were ordered by Konstantin Nikolaevich in Livorno.
But, perhaps, the most spectacular decoration of the temple were the mosaic icons and ornaments made by the famous Antonio Salviati.
A month after the consecration of the church, mosaic icons of the Savior and the Blessed Virgin Mary, based on the originals of the book, arrived from his workshops in Venice. Gagarin. They were intended for external decoration of the walls of the temple. The mosaics delighted the owner of Oreanda; he saw in them the height of perfection of this beautiful form of art.
And soon A. Salviati received a personal invitation from Konstantin Nikolaevich to come to him in Oreanda to discuss orders for decorating the interior of the Intercession Church. The invitation was accepted with satisfaction, and in the spring of 1886 the famous Italian arrived in Russia for the first time.
“Salviati arrived on the evening of May 6,” the Grand Duke wrote about this event. - It was a very happy circumstance for me. All my free time was spent talking with him.<...>I hope that the results of these conversations with Salviati will be useful not only for me and for my Oreanda Church, but also for all of Russia and will form a starting point in the history of its artistic development.”
In Oreanda, Salviati not only received a large order for further work in the Church of the Intercession, but also enlisted the full support of the Grand Duke, one of the most influential persons in the empire, to promote in Russia the beautiful and accessible art of the ancient Byzantine “mussia” he had revived.
Oreanda was admired by everyone who visited it. Poets P.A. Vyazemsky and I.F. Annensky sang it in wonderful poems, and N.A. Nekrasov wrote from Yalta in 1876: “The sea and the local nature conquer and touch me. Now I travel every day, most often to Oreanda; This is the best thing I’ve seen here so far...”
The church in Oreanda was subsequently mentioned by A.P. Chekhov in the story “The Lady with the Dog.” The great writer chose this particular place near Yalta, where his heroes - Gurov and Anna Sergeevna acutely felt the fabulousness of the nature around them, remembered the joy and highest goals of human existence...
In 1889, Konstantin Nikolaevich became seriously ill, and his visits to Crimea stopped. After his death on January 13, 1892, Oreanda passed into the possession of his youngest son, V. book Dmitry Konstantinovich. In the absence of the new owner, supervision of the estate was carried out by the Livadia Department.
In August 1894, shortly before his death in Livadia, Emperor Alexander III wished to acquire Oreanda for the heir to the throne - V. book Nikolai Alexandrovich. More than 300 acres of Oreanda lands with a park, forest, church, and all residential and outbuildings were then valued by the Main Administration of Estates at 1 million 300 thousand rubles.
And although the estate became part of the Livadia-Massandra Appanage Administration, it no longer received further development. On its outskirts they built barracks and stables for the Vilna Infantry, the 16th Infantry. Emperor Alexander II and the Kabardian regiments and the Crimean Tatar squadron, residential buildings for employees.
On autumn church holidays, the entire royal family came to pray at the Church of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, and on these days the standard of Tsarevich Alexei was raised on the Mast Rock of Oreanda. The emperor himself loved to spend many hours alone near the rocks of Oreanda, especially on stormy days, contemplating the elements of the sea...
Notes
Oreanda appeared under this name until 1836, even in official documents.
Famous Soviet archaeologist, geologist and historian L.V. Firsov, in his fundamental study of the isars - medieval fortresses of the southern coastal zone of the mountainous Crimea - gives two probable interpretations of this mysterious word. One of them, associated with the Greek name for mountain nymphs-oreads, seems most suitable for this romantic area. “The mountainous terrain surrounding the Oreanda Basin,” writes the author, “the abundance of rocks and stone chaos, watershed ridges and deep gullies between them - isn’t this enough to christen this place in this way?<... >Why not assume that in the imagination of the inhabitants of the fertile basin, the benevolent Oreads should have become its guardians?
Significant in this regard is the confession made by Alexander a year before his death: “Glory is enough for Russia; do not need anymore; whoever wants to make more mistakes will make mistakes. But when I think how little has yet been done within the state, this thought falls on my heart like a ten-pound weight. I’m getting tired of this.”
The deed of sale for the estate was finally formalized only in 1826 and already in the name of Emperor Nicholas I. For Oreanda, which then, according to its plan, had only 95 acres 271 fathoms, Count Kushelev-Bezborodko was paid 50 thousand rubles in banknotes.
The Upper Oreanda estate occupied a large plot of land at the foot of Mount Ai-Nikola and bordered the royal Oreanda. It was purchased in 1825 from F. Revelioti by Alexander I and presented to his friend, Chief of the General Staff of His Imperial Majesty Count I.I. Dibich-Zabalkansky.
Mikhail Semenovich Vorontsov performed these duties until his appointment in 1844 as Commander-in-Chief of the troops and governor in the Caucasus, after which control over the activities of the managers of the imperial “Oreanda” was entrusted to the Tauride civil governor.
. The poet V.A., the mentor of Tsarevich Alexander Nikolaevich, called “a wedding with Russia.” Zhukovsky was a unique journey in terms of distance (20 thousand versts) and duration (from May 2 to December 12, 1837), the like of which none of the Russian tsars and grand dukes had undertaken before that time. In the “Instructions” - a manual compiled for his son by Nikolai Pavlovich himself, the emperor simply defined the main goal of the busy travel program: “... to become thoroughly familiar with the state over which sooner or later you will definitely reign.” Before Crimea, the heir to the throne had already visited many cities in northern and central Russia, the Urals, and even reached Tobolsk.
In March 1838, the Governing Senate approved the emperor's decision, and this year is considered the date of birth of Yalta as a city.
In it, in particular, in 1833-36. During a creative trip to the southern coast of Crimea, the talented painter N. G. Chernetsov lived, who captured the unique nature of Oreanda in beautiful watercolors kept in the collections of the Hermitage.
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (1798-1860), daughter of the Prussian king Frederick William. Married to V. book Nikolai Pavlovich, later Emperor Nicholas I, from July 1 (13), 1817.
The estate of Count I.O. Witt, general of the infantry, inspector of the southern military cavalry settlements, fancied the “Oreanda” of Count Dibich-Zabalkansky and was located near one of the wonderful places in the wild beauty of the Crimea - the steep cliff of Khachla-Kayasy.
After resting a little with the hospitable Vorontsovs, Nicholas I went further to the Caucasus. The Tsarevich accompanied him to Gelendzhik, after which he returned to Crimea and continued his acquaintance with the Tauride province, telling about his impressions in letters to his father.
Later, already in 1879, several reservoirs were added to them, repeating the outlines of the southern seas of Russia.24. G.A. Glazenap, vice admiral, personal friend of Konstantin Nikolaevich.
V. book. Konstantin Konstantinovich, adjutant general, in 1900-10. - Chief, and from 1910 - Inspector General of military educational institutions. Since 1889 he headed the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. A man of diverse interests and high morality, a gifted poet, playwright, translator, musician, scientist, teacher, military man, the Grand Duke saw the meaning of his life, first of all, in serving the Motherland. For his services to belles-lettres, in 1900 he was elected one of the first nine honorary academicians from representatives of literature and criticism.
But it was precisely the fact that “royal blood flowed in this outstanding son of Russia” that became the reason for the complete oblivion of his name for many decades. Several generations of Soviet people, listening to the masterpieces of world vocal culture - the romances of Tchaikovsky and Glazunov “I opened the window”, “Lilac”, “The breath of bird cherry”, “O child, under your window”, did not know that great composers composed music for them in poems by K.R., and his poem “Poor Man” formed the basis of a folk song of the same name, the popularity of which could only be compared with “The Death of the Varyag”; reading the best translations into Russian of Shakespeare and Goethe, published in Soviet times, we did not see the name of their author; They didn’t know that the majestic cantata, which was performed by the choir in Moscow to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pushkin’s birth, was composed by Grand Duke Konstantin Romanov...
Young Konstantin began a diary in 1870 and then filled its pages almost without interruption until November 1913. Shortly before the death of K.R. handed over notebooks with notes to the Academy of Sciences with a ban on viewing them for 90 years. Violating this will, the government commission that purged the Academy of Sciences in 1929 made the diary available to the proletarian public, and the magazine “Red Archive” published several excerpts from it in 1931, accompanied by a preface in the spirit of class consciousness: “The diary of Konstantin Romanov is being published in extracts, since most of it consists of records of various little things.” The publication of K.R.’s diary, undertaken several years ago by GARF staff, is, unfortunately, also selective and started only with entries from 1888.
The full text of this poem is unknown, since K.R. himself subsequently he never included it in his collections.
Golovnin A.V. (1821-1886), biographer of V. book Konstantin Nikolaevich. He began his career with a number of responsible positions in the Ministry of Internal Affairs; from 1848 he went to serve in the Naval Ministry and in 1859 became Secretary of State under His Imperial Highness. book Konstantin Nikolaevich. From 1862 to 1866 - Minister of Public Education, then member of the State Council. The Grand Duke’s letters, carefully preserved by him, now make it possible to have an idea of the latter’s views on art, literature, architecture, social life in Russia, etc.
Oreanda of the late gr. I.I. Dibicha was acquired in 1863 as a result of a complex exchange for the Vasakara estate near St. Petersburg. Later, Oreanda gr. also became part of the grand ducal kingdom. AND ABOUT. Witta, previously rented by Konstantin Nikolaevich from the count's heiress - V. book Elena Pavlovna. Comparing the Oreanda boundary maps of 1830 with the later one, one can notice that in addition to these acquisitions, the estate expanded due to the purchase of a vast plot of land located above the Sevastopol highway by the Gasprin Tatar Mulla-Ali.
The basement has been preserved and is now part of the Massandra association.
Plum Ivan Trofimovich (1856-19..?), from the peasants of the Poltava province, was brought up as a government scholarship holder at the Uman School of Agriculture and Horticulture. By order of the Minister of State Property, in 1876 he was sent to study winemaking on the southern coast of Crimea at the Magarach School, from where, on the recommendation of the director of the Nikitsky Garden, in 1879 he entered the estate of His Imperial Highness as a winemaker. book Konstantin Nikolaevich.
The validity of this assessment, given by a subtle connoisseur and connoisseur of art, can be seen by looking at what now remains of the Church of the Intercession. Surrounded closely by the outbuildings of the elite sanatorium “Nizhnyaya Oreanda”, disfigured by barbaric use for warehouse space, it, despite this, still attracts attention with the elegance of its forms.
Salviati Antonio (1816-1890), Italian mosaic artist. He received a law degree from the Universities of Padua and Vienna and worked as a lawyer. Having become acquainted with ancient mosaics in Rome, I decided to resurrect this art, which once flourished in Venice, then fell into decline and, finally, completely forgotten. In 1860 he discovered on the island. Murano, near Venice, a mosaic factory that carried out large-scale work for churches and public buildings using the techniques of the ancient mosaicists, only simplified and improved by the latest discoveries of chemistry and physics. The Salviati factory soon became famous throughout Europe for its excellent and relatively cheap work.<...>Subsequently, Salviati expanded the original task of the factory and founded in it, along with the production of smalt, the production of art glass in imitation of the products for which Venice was famous in the 16th-17th centuries.
Contemporaries are no longer able to admire the main picture of the temple - the image of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary: most of it is broken and destroyed, and many other icons are in the same condition. Previously, the church was decorated with 8 large panels, 45 icons and ornamentation of the dome, drum, sails, arched vaults, made by mosaicists from the Salviati company. In the dome and sails, images of the Savior (her rarest image, the so-called “Savior without a beard”), eight apostles, four evangelists, eight angels and a beautiful Byzantine ornament were miraculously preserved; and on the western wall of the temple two panels partially survived - “The Nativity” and “The Resurrection of Christ”, which can give an idea of the art of the masters who worked under the direction of Antonio Salviati.
The Main Directorate of Estates was until 1917 one of the main departments of the Ministry of the Imperial Court and Estates. He was in charge of the property of the imperial family (land holdings, estates, forests, mines, factories, etc.), from which maintenance was paid to all its members. Initially, under the name “Department of Lots”, it was an independent institution, organized by decree of Paul I in 1797. Then, in 1852, the Department of Appanages, together with the Cabinet of His Imperial Majesty, was transformed into the Ministry of Appanages, and four years later finally became subordinate to the Ministry of the Imperial Court and Appanages. In 1893, the department was renamed the Main Administration of Udels. Therefore, the reader will encounter in the text exactly the name of this institution, which corresponds to a specific period in the history of the southern coastal Romanov estates.
The question of restoring the palace in Oreanda, built according to the design of A.I. Stackenschneider was apparently discussed in the royal family in 1909, before making the final decision on new construction in Livadia. This is evidenced by the fact that Nicholas II asked the head of the chancellery of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, General A.A. Mosolov to provide him with a certificate on the history of construction in Oreanda, on the location of the drawings of Schinkel and Stackenschneider, etc. Such a certificate (albeit with a number of inaccuracies) was then compiled for him by the famous Crimean local historian and historian, civil engineer, General A.L. Berthier-Delagarde. But for some reason they refused to restore the palace.
In 1852, construction of the palace was completed. It cost half a million rubles and became one of the best creations of A. I. Stackenschneider. From the road above the estate, it seemed like a “magic castle,” as contemporaries perceived it. Against the backdrop of harsh rocks and dark vegetation, it really looked light and airy thanks to the whiteness of the Inkerman stone, open galleries and balconies, and the picturesque finish of the roof. Designed in the style of the Italian Renaissance, it was distinguished by strict proportions, a clear rhythm of columns, pilasters, window openings, and floor divisions. Porticoes decorated with caryatids, a large number of acroteries, decorative vases, magnificent capitals of the Corinthian order and cornices “of the best decoration with cast decorations” gave the palace elegance and festivity. All this ended with the solemn sound of white marble stairs leading to the facades of the palace. Each palace always had its own special artistically decorated interiors, which constituted the “attraction of the building.” So in Oreanda, the inner courtyard became the center of both compositional planning and artistic and decorative purposes. Judging by the descriptions preserved in archival documents, it was beautifully designed in color: its walls and ceiling “were painted in Pompeian taste.” One can imagine how 12 columns of reddish Crimean marble harmonized with this beautiful painting. In the middle there was a fountain with a pool and a vase of dark gray Oreanda marble on a pedestal of the same, but yellow marble. The floor was paved with white and gray slabs of Italian marble, 4 dark marble paths led to the fountain. The so-called grape garden, which adjoined the eastern facade of the palace and the pergola, was originally designed. It was all decorated with marble: a fountain made of white Carrara marble with a pool and bowls in the style of the Bakhchisarai fountain (one of the earliest replicas of this fountain on the South Bank) was built into the wall. The columns surrounding this garden were carved from Oreanda light marble, and five polished vases, two round tables and a double bench were distinguished by their whiteness.
The state rooms of the first floor were magnificently decorated: the large hall (in old documents it is called the Salo) was decorated in the style of Louis XVI (classicism). A coffered ceiling with gilding, two fireplaces of red Crimean marble, a strict design of the walls. Later, 50 pieces of furniture, also in the style of Louis XVI, will be ordered for this hall from the St. Petersburg furniture manufacturer A. Wasmut, who made furniture for the Orenade Palace. In contrast to this austere room, the boudoir was decorated in a light, playful Pampadour (Rococo) style. Here the fireplace was carved in white Carrara marble. The walls, covered with white silk standard fabric, were set off by gilded baguette. Other large rooms on the first floor - the entrance hall, study, living room, dining room, bedroom - were also distinguished by their beautiful decorative design: there were fireplaces of white Italian and red Crimean marble, walnut panels, Swedish marble stoves, gilding in the decoration, inlaid oak floors , walnut, maple, door handles - “bronze gilded with crystal colored balls” and other decorative elements.
In addition to the main ceremonial rooms, on the ground floor there were also two chamberungfer rooms, 3 rooms for the retinue, a duty room, a footman's room, and a servant's room. On the second floor there were two offices, a living room, 15 small rooms, two valets, bathrooms; on the mezzanine there is Her Majesty’s wardrobe and a “department for living room girls.”
In the rooms of the palace, 8 large and 12 medium-sized fireplaces made of white Carrara marble and “Crimean porphyry” were installed; the floors of the balconies and galleries were lined with colored slabs.
This was the first royal palace on the South Bank. Both in its beautiful architectural forms and in the superbly executed decorative design of the interiors, it was truly royal - everything was at the highest artistic level. In one of the guidebooks of the 1870s. one could read: “As you explore the palace, pay attention to the courtyard and pavilion in Pompeian style with excellent columns made of Crimean marble, to the beautiful caryatids supporting the balconies facing the sea, to the marble staircase leading to the second floor... In Oreanda everything deserves attention and detailed review."
The RGIA stores a number of projects for Oreanda, from which you can learn about some of the buildings on the estate. Almost all projects are copies from Stackenschneider's drawings; the signatures of Aeschliman and the “architectural assistant” Werth confirm fidelity to the originals. Looking at these drawings, you are convinced that there was no large economic activity planned in Oreanda. All buildings were designed only to ensure the daily work of maintaining the estate in proper order.
In September 1850, the palace, where the last finishing work was going on, was visited by the heir to the throne, Alexander Nikolaevich. His Imperial Highness went down past the greenhouse along the newly constructed road to the palace buildings, where he first examined the plans approved by the Highest, and then deigned to inspect the upper and mezzanine of the palace, the kitchen with an underground passage and the construction of a stable with an outbuilding that had begun. Moreover, the Grand Duke Tsesarevich drew attention to the difficulty of the work and to the painful faces of most of the workers who were gathered near the buildings.
From the palace buildings, His Imperial Highness deigned to drive past the cascade to the imperial house, and from there through the menagerie and the estate of Count Pototsky Livadia to Yalta, declaring his pleasure to the chief caretaker of the Oreanda estate for the order and cleanliness with which the garden and roads in Oreanda are maintained."
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