The history of the Okhta Gunpowder Plant, founded by Peter the Great in 1715, is not only about labor achievements and victories. It is not only about the constant improvement of production technology and the release of new types of gunpowder. It is also a series of restorations and reconstructions, usually caused by rather tragic events.

During its existence, the enterprise experienced numerous fires and explosions that led to significant casualties and destruction. One of the most terrible explosions occurred at the Okhta Gunpowder Plant on April 15, 1803. Its consequences made even the experienced gunpowder makers shudder with horror, although their work was always extremely dangerous. The explosion claimed the lives of 18 people, and another 6 were seriously injured. The enterprise suffered colossal damage; almost all its buildings were seriously affected. Naturally, civilian buildings in the vicinity also suffered. Residential houses, shops, the stone Church of the Holy Prophet Elijah, and the wooden Church of Saint George the Victorious at the then Powder Cemetery, located near the Okhta dam, were damaged. Outside the plant, the cemetery church suffered the greatest damage; this church, by the way, gave its name to one of the plant’s gates — the Georgievsky Gate. (These wooden gates, built in the 18th century, were located along the axis of the current Kommuny Street, approximately where the Revolution Highway now ends.) After this tragedy, gunpowder production at Okhta was suspended.

Soon the enterprise was visited by Alexander I himself. The Emperor ordered monetary compensation to be paid to the surviving workers and pensions to be granted to the families of the deceased. It was probably Alexander I who decided to radically rebuild the plant. This difficult task was entrusted to the architect Fyodor Ivanovich Demertsov, who brilliantly accomplished it. Under Demertsov’s leadership, the plant was literally raised from the ruins and transformed within a few years. Its territory acquired a regular layout, and new production buildings were arranged perpendicular to the river’s course. By 1805, the plant resumed operations. “For excellent execution of the assignment,” the architect, who came from serf peasants, was awarded the Order of Saint Vladimir, 4th class, which granted hereditary nobility.

Between 1803 and 1805, new stone gates and a guardhouse were built on the northern side of the Okhta, west of the dam. The memorial structure was intended as a monument to the workers who died in the explosion and simultaneously served as a triumphant symbol of the plant’s revival. Functionally, the gates served as an entrance for high-ranking visitors wearing gold epaulettes. In honor of this, the gates were initially called the Gold Epaulette Gates. Researchers believe that the name “Alexandrovsky” was given later and could be associated with visits by both Alexander I and Alexander II. Visually, the gates consisted of an arched span with a semicircular top, supported by two guardhouses. The southwest facade was decorated with paired Tuscan order columns. The second tier was a bell tower. The bell’s tolls announced the beginning and end of work shifts.

After World War II, the canal on whose bank the gates stood was filled in; by 1967, the doors, the bell tower’s roof, and parts of the window fillings and facade decorations had disappeared. Based on an inspection by the Special Scientific and Restoration Production Workshops of the Main Architectural and Planning Directorate of the Leningrad City Executive Committee, a restoration project was created and implemented in 1968–1969. In 1994, another restoration project was prepared as part of adapting the site for the modern needs of the Ilyinskaya Sloboda park, but it was not carried out.

Between 2020 and 2022, the heavily dilapidated gates were reconstructed. Their upper part was rebuilt, restoring the original appearance; the facade also retained its historic look, and the rear part was expanded by adding side rooms.

Sources:

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandrovskie_vorota_(Saint_Petersburg)

https://www.citywalls.ru/house11833.html

http://krasnakarta.ru/spot/id/27/aleksvorota