St. Sampson Cathedral

In November 1709, Peter the Great ordered the construction of the first wooden St. Sampson church in St. Petersburg to commemorate Russia's victory over Sweden on the 27th June 1709 (St. Sampson's Day) at the Poltava Battle. The church was built between 1715 and 1718 by Domenico Trezzini to the north-west of St. Petersburg, far from the administrative center of the time.

During 1728, permission was granted for the construction of a stone cathedral next to the church. With the move of the Imperial Court from St. Petersburg to Moscow money for the construction was short, resulting in only 2 sides of the cathedral being consecrated in the names of St. John the Baptist and Archangel Michael by 1733. During the reign of Empress Anna Ioannovna the court returned to St. Petersburg permitting the construction to be renewed. In 1740 the construction was completed and the main altar was consecrated in the name of St. Sampson the Hospitable. At this time, the cathedral had only one cupola, but four further cupolas were added in a reconstruction ordered in 1761.

Despite numerous restorations the overall composition of St. Sampson Cathedral's ancient Russian architecture is preserved. The chapel is topped with an onion dome and a small lantern. To the top of the facade is a molded composition in a cloud with crowns on the egg and crown ornament called the 'All-seeing Eye of the Lord'. The square bell-tower is three-storied with an octahedral dome, with an archway and lateral wings at the first level.

During 1737 to 1739, the magnificent wooden carved iconostasis was built and decorated in 56 gilded sculptures of cherubs, garlands of flowers and other decorations. Also 42 gilded craved frames for icons, each of them unique cover the iconostasis. A beautiful hand-carved canopy and throne were also constructed during the 1730's.

Due to the Cathedral's location some distance from St. Petersburg's administrative center, two of the first and most famous cemeteries were opened, one for Orthodox believers and the other for people of other faiths. It became the resting place for Empress Anne and Elizabeth and many great architects including Trezzini, Jan Baptiste Alexander Leblond and Carlo Rastrelli. However, after the revolution in St. Petersburg their tombstones were destroyed. In 1740 the secret wedding ceremony of Catherine the Great and Gigory Potyomkin took place in the Cathedral.

Over the last decade the church has been largely restored since its closure in 1938, but has yet to officially reopen as a church. The park and church are well worth a visit for the ancient Russian Baroque architecture.