H43C+F4 Gatchina, Leningrad Oblast, Russia
Prioratsky Park is a landscape park located in the southern part of the city. To the north, it borders the Palace Park; on the eastern and southern sides, the park is bordered by Soytu Street, which runs along the railway tracks. To the southeast, it is limited by Parkovaya Street, which also runs along the railway line. The eastern boundary of the park is Chkalov Street.
The main area of the park is occupied by a forested massif. Within its territory are three lakes — Black, Pike, and Filkino. The only large structure in the park is the Prioratsky Palace.
Until the end of the 18th century, the territory now occupied by Prioratsky Park was known as the Small Menagerie. The park received its current name after the construction of the Prioratsky Palace on the shore of Black Lake between 1797 and 1799, designed by the architect Lvov. At the same time (in 1798), major landscaping work began on the future park. The redesign was overseen by the garden master James Hacket. Black Lake was deepened and cleaned, and the shores were reshaped. The earth excavated during these works was used to create several artificial islets and to fill the western shore. The first walking paths were laid around the lake.
The next phase of the park’s creation took place in the 1840s–1850s. In 1845–1846, the park was enclosed by a rampart with a moat on both sides, and walking paths were laid, which have survived to this day (their total length is over 16 km). In 1854–1856, measures were taken to reinforce the shores of Black Lake, and large tree plantings were carried out. In 1857, drainage work was conducted in the park.
In the 1880s, five gates were erected at the entrances to Prioratsky Park; none of them have survived to the present day. In 1881, “park booths” — single-story houses made of red brick — were built near four of the gates.
During the Great Patriotic War, the park suffered significant damage: a large number of trees were cut down, and the area was covered with explosion craters. The cast-iron fence of the park was dismantled and taken to Germany. Reconstruction work on the park began in the 1970s.
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