Makarovskaya St., 71, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 197762
Provincial Houses are a complex of historic buildings in Kronstadt. Built between 1717 and 1725. A cultural heritage site of federal significance. They are located between Petrovskaya and Makarovskaya streets. The houses were named provincial because they were constructed, by order of Peter I, with the forces and funds of the province, and the construction was entrusted to the governor. The order for their construction was issued on March 10, 1714. Their erection was intended to be completed in the shortest possible time. They were built according to a standard design, three stories high, with tall basements. However, the work was delayed; the first houses began to be erected only in 1717, and the work was completed only in 1725, after the death of Peter I. The architect and probable author of the project was Johann Friedrich Braunstein, assisted by H. Konrad.
The houses were supposed to form a line along the modern Makarovskaya Street on both sides of the canal and docks, as well as surround the canal itself. To this day, with modifications, 11 houses have been preserved, all on the eastern side of the canal. Instead of some houses on the western side, the Italian Palace or the Ninth Provincial House was built, rebuilt for the Governor-General of Karelia, Ingria, and Finland, Count Burkhard Christoph von Münnich. Since the 19th century, it has sometimes been referred to in literature as Menshikov's Palace. In 1832, the building became the residence of the Chief Commander of the Kronstadt port. It is symmetrically located relative to the axis of the Petrovsky Canal and faces the harbor. In 1728, it was rebuilt for Count Münnich, a favorite of Empress Anna Ioannovna. The architecture of Münnich’s house, in the Russian Baroque style, was close to the architecture of the Italian Palace, from which its name originated. The earliest known image of Münnich’s house dates back to 1829.
Later, outstanding figures of the Russian Navy lived in this building, in particular Admiral Bellingshausen, who lived here for 12 years and died here. When Admiral Bellingshausen passed away, it turned out that there was nothing to bury him with, as he had donated all his savings to the improvement of Kronstadt.
Admiral Lisovsky also lived here — a major military leader of the second half of the 19th century. And Admiral Makarov, who departed from here to the Far East, where he died commanding the 1st Pacific Squadron.
Admiral Litke, a navigator who made a circumnavigation, a great scientist, one of the founders of the Imperial Geographical Society, author of many works dedicated to the science of land and sea. During the Crimean War (1853-1856), he led the defense of Kronstadt, and one of the fortifications on the southern shore of Kotlin Island was named after him. The fate of the last Chief Commander of the Kronstadt military port, Vice Admiral Viren, was tragic. He took office in 1909 and was executed by rebellious sailors on March 1, 1917. He is buried in the German Cemetery.
In Soviet times, the building became known as Viren’s House, where representatives of the Naval Command lived: future admirals Tributs, Viktorov, Galler, Isakov, Golovko, Zozulya, Panteleev, and other prominent figures of the Soviet Navy. In the pre-war years, the family of submariner Marinesko lived in apartment No. 7.
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