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The
Mikhailovsky
Palace
is
a
grand
ducal
palace
in
Saint
Petersburg,
Russia.
It
is
located
on
Arts
Square
and
is
an
example
of
Empire
style
neoclassicism.
The
palace
currently
houses
the
main
building
of
the
Russian
Museum
and
displays
its
collections
of
early,
folk,
eighteenth,
and
nineteenth
century
art.
It
was
originally
planned
as
the
residence
of
Grand
Duke
Michael
Pavlovich,
the
youngest
son
of
Emperor
Paul
I.
Work
had
not
yet
begun
on
the
Mikhailovsky
Palace,
when
Paul
was
overthrown
and
killed
in
a
palace
coup
that
brought
Michael's
elder
brother
to
the
throne
as
Alexander
I.
The
new
emperor
resurrected
the
idea
for
a
new
palace
by
the
time
Michael
was
22,
and
plans
were
drawn
up
by
Carlo
Rossi
to
develop
a
new
site
in
Saint
Petersburg.
The
palace,
built
in
the
neoclassic
style,
became
the
centrepiece
of
an
ensemble
that
took
in
new
streets
and
squares.
It
was
lavishly
decorated,
with
the
interiors
costing
more
than
the
main
construction
work.
It
was
gifted
to
Grand
Duke
Michael
and
his
new
wife,
Grand
Duchess
Elena
Pavlovna,
by
the
Emperor
in
1825.
The
grand
ducal
family
had
comfortable
apartments
furnished
to
their
individual
tastes.
Grand
Duke
Michael
carried
out
some
of
his
military
duties
there,
while
his
wife
hosted
salons
that
brought
together
many
of
the
leading
members
of
Saint
Petersburg
society
and
culture.
The
Grand
Duchess
continued
this
lifestyle
after
her
husband's
death
in
1849,
until
her
own
death
in
1873.
The
palace
was
passed
on
to
the
couple's
daughter,
Grand
Duchess
Catherine
Mikhailovna.
Over
the
years
of
their
residency,
the
family
renovated
and
refurbished
the
palace's
rooms
in
keeping
with
contemporary
tastes.
By
the
time
of
Grand
Duchess
Catherine's
death
in
1894,
the
staterooms
were
no
longer
in
regular
use—the
family
resided
for
the
most
part
in
the
palace's
wings.
With
the
death
of
the
Grand
Duchess,
the
palace
was
inherited
by
her
children,
who
were
members
of
the
family
of
the
Dukes
of
Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
Concerned
about
the
palace
passing
out
of
the
Romanov
family,
Emperor
Alexander
III
decided
to
buy
it
back
for
the
state.
He
died
before
this
could
be
arranged,
but
the
negotiations
were
carried
out
on
behalf
of
his
son
Emperor
Nicholas
II,
by
Minister
of
Finance
Sergei
Witte.
Nicholas
gave
it
to
the
newly
established
Russian
Museum,
in
honour
of
his
father,
with
the
remit
that
it
collect
and
display
domestic
art.
The
palace
was
extensively
renovated
to
fit
its
new
role,
with
some
of
the
interiors
retained.
One
wing
was
demolished
and
rebuilt,
later
becoming
the
Russian
Museum
of
Ethnography,
while
a
new
extension,
the
Benois
wing,
was
added
in
the
1910s.
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