The first monument to Suvorov was opened 215 years ago
Today, few people remember one of the very first military posters - it appeared in June 1941 - "Suvorovtsy - Chapaevtsy":
We are fighting great
Colem desperately -
Suvorov's grandchildren, Chapaev's children.
The verse is simple and easy to understand. The then new combination of the names of Suvorov and Chapaev linked the traditions of military glory. Samuil Marshak managed to put a lot of patriotic content into the sparse energetic lines, which we so lack today.
Monuments, like literature, foster patriotic feelings. A reason to talk about this is the monument to Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov, which has been standing in St. Petersburg for 215 years as a symbol of the inviolability of our Fatherland.
In Russia and other countries, there are many monuments and museums dedicated to the great commander. In his honor, settlements, space objects, ships are named. In 2014, the newest submarine Generalissimo Suvorov was laid down. But the monument to Suvorov on the eponymous square opposite the Trinity Bridge in St. Petersburg was the first. True, it opened elsewhere.
Paul I decided to erect the monument in 1799, after the return of the commander from the Swiss-Italian campaign, in which the monarch's son Konstantin and 15-year-old Arkady Suvorov with the rank of adjutant general took part. By the way, for that campaign, the tsar granted Constantine, who was not a direct heir, the title of Tsarevich.
Paul I understood the significance of Suvorov's victories and, although he kept him in disgrace, he commanded "to erect in Gatchina, on the square opposite the palace, a statue of Prince of Italy, Count Suvorov-Rymniksky." In Russian history, it has never happened that a monument was erected during life, and even not to a royal person. Before this happened only in ancient Rome.
The work was entrusted to the famous Russian architect - sculptor M. I. Kozlovsky and architect A. N. Voronikhin. But no matter how hurried Pavel, the monument did not become in his lifetime. Suvorov died a year before its opening. And the rare highest rank of the Russian army - the generalissimo, granted to the commander on October 28, 1799, could no longer add anything to his worldwide fame. In March 1801, Paul I passed away, but the work continued.
The unveiling of the monument on May 5 (17) was attended by the new emperor Alexander I and the generals. The figure of Suvorov was presented allegorically, and not everyone understood this, even in the highest circles of the Petersburg world. The statue has nothing to do with the general's appearance, but the inscription explains: “Prince of Italy, Count Suvorov-Rymniksky. 1801.
Initially, the monument was erected at the Mikhailovsky Castle on the Field of Mars. But in 1818, at the suggestion of K. I. Rossi, it was moved to the place where it stands to this day. In 1834, the cherry marble plinth deteriorated from frost and was replaced with pink granite.
Today it is difficult to imagine a monument to Suvorov standing opposite the Mikhailovsky Castle. But then the Field of Mars also looked completely different. In 1818, the redevelopment around the Mikhailovsky Castle was completed. This entailed the transfer of the monument to the newly created square overlooking the Neva at the Trinity Bridge. And it turned out: it is ideally proportional to the wonderful creation of MI Kozlovsky.
During the Great Patriotic War, the monument was not damaged. They did not have time to cover it, but only sheathed it with boards. Fascist bombs and shells fell near the pedestal, but Suvorov stood unharmed. How can one not believe in mysticism after that ?!
