Alexey Danilovich Menshikov (who would know better!) wrote that the Summer House was "built in the year 703." Nienenschanz capitulated on May 1, and the very next day Peter again sailed up the Neva to the very seashore, pondering where to lay the fortress, the shipyard, and where to settle himself. The tsar needed harbors on both banks of the river. The Swedish estate attracted attention primarily because of its unique location on a cape formed by the Neva and its branch. On the opposite bank of the Neva, on May 13 (24)–15 (26), the wooden tsar’s house — the "Red Chambers" — was built, which still survives today. However, the sovereign did not immediately settle there. "Throughout May and June 1703," writes Sharymov, "Peter I all this time signed letters and decrees 'from the camp near Schlotburg,' as the location of the regiments on both Okhtas, near Nienenschanz, was called." It is unknown exactly when in 1703 the tsar’s chambers were built in the former Konau estate, but certainly it was no coincidence that both tsar’s houses on the banks of the Neva ended up facing each other. According to legend, Menshikov suggested to the tsar to move the Swedish house from among those that survived in Nienenschanz to Gorodovoy Island. Undoubtedly, this would have been natural. However, Peter did not follow his advice. The small cape that caught Peter’s eye at the source of the Fontanka was formed by nature itself, and therefore the choice of location for the house on Gorodovoy Island was predetermined. If the tsar deliberately placed his two houses facing each other, then one can logically conclude that the chambers on the Vyborg side appeared only after Peter chose the site for his residence on the opposite bank of the Neva. Menshikov placed his chambers on the banks of the Neva in exactly the same manner: one on Vasilyevsky Island, the other directly opposite on the Admiralty side.

In the Novgorod scribal and tax books of the late 15th – early 16th centuries, a Russian village called Usadishche is mentioned on the site of the Summer Garden. It was probably a notable settlement, as the name passed on to the estate of the Swedish subject, German merchant Bernhard Steen von Steenhausen. In 1638, Swedish Queen Christina gifted him extensive lands in the lower reaches of the Neva, on its left bank. Swedish researchers established that after Bernhard’s death in 1648 or 1649, the estate passed to his daughter Maria-Elisabeth, who married Joachim von Konau, a German immigrant. In 1662, their son Erich-Berndt von Konau inherited the estate. At 20 years old, he left service in the Swedish navy and settled on his estate, where, according to researchers, he created a garden "in the Dutch style." On the Swedish map of the Neva banks by Karl Eldberg (1701), the estate "Konos hoff" is shown on the site of the future Summer Garden. The local name "Konova myza" sounds quite Russian; there was even a legend that a certain Swedish major Konau was actually a Russian nobleman Konov who entered Swedish service, which was allowed under the 1613 peace treaty concluded in the village of Stolbovo between Russia and Sweden. When Russian troops approached Nienenschanz, Erich-Berndt von Konau fled to Sweden and settled in Stockholm. His grandchildren, having received Swedish nobility, were registered in the House of Knights under the surname "Konov." Surnames ending with "ov" are not uncommon among Germans: Rakov, Bryulov, Belov, Treskov… The fate of the Konau estate house is not precisely known. It is possible that Peter I ordered the chambers left by the owners to be moved to the very bank of the Neva, to the place where the Summer Palace was later built.

Next to the Konau estate was a Dutch garden, which formed the basis of the future Summer Garden. The tsar invited the Swedish gardener Schröder to realize his idea, who created tall trellises from lindens, maples, acacias, and decorated the alleys with beautiful benches for visitors to rest.

About the appearance of moralizing sculpture-fountains in the Summer Garden in 1735, Jakob Stelin wrote: "The Swedish gardener Schröder, while decorating the beautiful garden at the Summer Palace, among other things, made two curtains or small parks surrounded by tall trellises with places to sit. The sovereign often came to see his work and, seeing these parks, immediately decided to make something instructive in this place of amusement. He ordered the gardener to be called and said to him: 'I am very pleased with your work and the fine decorations. However, do not be angry that I will order you to redo the side curtains. I would like the people who will walk here in the garden to find something instructive in it. How can we do this?' — 'I do not know how else to do it,' the gardener replied, 'unless Your Majesty orders books to be placed in the spots, protected from rain, so that visitors sitting could read them.' The sovereign laughed at this suggestion and said: 'You almost guessed; however, reading books in a public garden is awkward. My idea is better. I think to place here images of Aesop’s fables.'"

The garden contains objects symbolizing the numerous wars between Russia and Sweden. The garden houses sculptures related to Sweden, one of which is dedicated to the Nystad Peace Treaty signed on September 10. On the same date, September 10, but already in the 19th century, the Elfdalen Vase was installed in the Summer Garden — a gift from Swedish King Charles XIV to Emperor Nicholas I.

Among the collection of garden sculptures is presumably a bust of Swedish Queen Christina, who granted the estate to the German merchant Steenhausen.

The sculptural group "Nystad Peace" ("Peace and Abundance," "Peace and Victory") was installed in the Summer Garden in 1726, after the death of Peter I. The group is an allegory of the Nystad Peace, which confirmed Russia’s military successes in the struggle against Sweden during the Great Northern War of 1700–1721, signed on September 10, 1721, in the city of Nystad. The lion at the feet symbolizes Sweden.

Another Swedish lion, more precisely, a lion symbolizing Sweden, was located in the grotto, which unfortunately was destroyed during the flood of 1777. Now a coffee house stands on the site of the grotto.

The statue of Venus Taurica, according to legend, was brought to Petersburg in exchange for the relics of Bridget of Sweden found during the capture of Reval. It was installed in the Summer Garden in 1720 and became the first antique statue in Petersburg, but is currently held in the collection of the State Hermitage. If the legend is true, one can say that Venus has a certain Swedish "shade."

The only structure from the early 18th century that has survived in the Summer Garden to this day is Peter’s Summer Palace. On its roof is a weather vane in the form of the figure of Saint George the Victorious on horseback, and on the corners — downspouts shaped like dragons. The bas-reliefs on the facades allegorically glorify Russia’s victory over the Swedes.

The fence on the Neva side was created according to the project of Yuri Felten (who also contributed to another important building for Swedish history in Petersburg — he was the architect of the first Swedish church, built in the 1760s in what is now Swedish Lane) at the end of the 18th century.

An interesting fact about Felten — his father was a third cousin of Johann Felten, Ober-Küchmeister of Peter I; and Peter, knowing how much Johann hated the Swedes, being Danish, deliberately called him a Swede: "What a noble Russian baker you are — you are an ordinary Swede!"

The Elfdalen Vase, installed in the Summer Garden near Karpiev Pond on the Moika River side, was a gift from Swedish King Charles XIV to Emperor Nicholas I as a sign of goodwill after numerous wars between Sweden and Russia. The vase was made in the town of Elfdalen (Älvdalen) at the Royal Manufactory. In the winter of 1839, it was dragged on sleds to the port of Gävle to be then shipped by sea to Saint Petersburg. The vase was installed on September 10, 1839.

In the winter of 2008, the vase cracked, which led to the publication of a fully mystical article in Komsomolskaya Pravda titled "The Cracked Vase Warns of Calamities," which said: "...the incident is a sign from above, supposedly warning of great trouble. According to ancient Slavic omens, a broken vessel (especially if it happened near New Year) means misfortune. Someone even announced a precise term — 7 years of suffering and misfortune."

Swedish expert Ellis Eriksson (a direct sixth-generation descendant of the craftsman who made the vase) participated in the restoration of the vase.

In 2012, the vase was restored and returned to its former place.

The Summer Garden is a unique place in itself. The presence of various Swedish traces, objects, and sculptures makes it even more unique for those interested in the connections between Sweden and Petersburg.

Sources:

https://vk.com/@svenskpetersburg-svenska-spar-sommartradgard

Korentzvit Viktor Abramovich: Peter the Great’s Summer Garden. A Story of Past and Present