Russia’s early architecture
was mostly constructed with wood. These logs were made into rectangular
homes with steep, chalet style roofs. Following the centuries A.D.,
Russian architects began to construct simple, yet elegant churches with
explicitly detailed wood carvings. Yet simple, these churches had complex
rooftops. The onion shaped domes were important religious symbols, representing
heaven in the Russian Orthodox Church. These extremely detailed and
decorative rooftops were inspired by Byzantine design. Unfortunately,
these wooden churches would catch on fire quickly and excess moisture
over the years would rot the wood platforms, which were the main foundation
of these buildings.
Russia’s architecture began
to thrive throughout the Middle Ages. During this period many of Russia’s
important buildings were erected. Most of the architecture was based
on Byzantine and the eastern Roman Empire’s patterns. Once the
infamous Ivan III began his establishment of his state, he hired Italian
architect Aristotle Fioravanti to design and build a grand cathedral
for the city of Moscow. This cathedral was completed in 1479 and named
Assumption Cathedral.
During Ivan the Terrible’s
reign, Russia saw a dramatic change in its architectural direction.
Ivan IV inspired a renaissance of traditional Russian styles. Ivan was
successful in completing the ever-famous St. Basil Cathedral in Moscow
in 1560, after his victory over the Tatars. St. Basil’s Cathedral
celebrates the styles of both Russian and Byzantine traditions. Even
after the reign of Ivan IV, Russian architectural style imitated European
traditional styles rather than Eastern design.
Beginning in the reign of Peter
the Great, Russian architecture mostly modeled after European design
ideas. The famous Italian architect Rastrelli designed many of St. Petersburg’s
intrinsic buildings. Rastrelli successfully built the famous Smolny
Cathedral, which exhibits the famous French baroque Rococo style. Though
the Smolny Cathedral expresses French style, Russian tradition is again
celebrated only in the onion shaped dome rooftops. The Rococo style
continued to flourish in Russian architecture throughout the 18th century.
One of Rastrelli’s most famous buildings is the Hermitage Winter
Palace built as a winter residence for Peter the Great’s daughter
Elizabeth. Interestingly, this famous palace was built strictly as a
European structure due to the fact that there are no onion shaped domes
anywhere on the building. However, Russian architectural style changed
once Catherine the Great became Empress. Catherine improved Russian
architectural style by introducing neoclassicism to the Russian court.
