Carl Rossi is called the main creator of St. Petersburg. Most of the architect's biography is associated with this city, where he embodied many of his creations, which have become the history of the Northern capital, into reality.
Childhood and adolescence
At birth in 1775, the son of the Italian ballerina Gertrude Rossi was named Carlo di Giovanni. But after their stepfather, the famous dancer Charles Le Pic, received an invitation to move to St. Petersburg, they left Naples. Parents continued their creative careers at the Bolshoi Theater, the family settled in one of the houses on Teatralnaya Square.
In 1788, Karl Rossi entered Petrishula, the oldest educational institution in the Russian capital. The school existed at the church of St. Peter, and the instruction in it was in German. This was the best option for Karl, because he only had to learn Russian. Spending the summer at a dacha in Pavlovsk, the Rossi became close to a neighbor, the architect Vincenzo Brenna. The first lessons of the court decorator of Emperor Paul I prompted the young man to decide to become an architect. In addition, from an early age, the young man showed a love for drawing and the exact sciences.
Education
In 1795, Rossi entered the architectural college as a draftsman. It so happened that Brenna's carriage overturned into a ditch; an unsuccessful broken arm did not allow him to continue working on his own. Without the slightest hesitation, the famous architect invited the talented young man to become his assistant in the construction of the Mikhailovsky Castle. After the death of Catherine the Great, Emperor Paul I ascended the throne. Already in the first days of his reign, the Emperor found it necessary to start building his own palace. The name was not chosen by chance - Mikhailovsky, in honor of the Archangel Michael. The territory of the Summer Palace garden was chosen for the construction. Most of the drawings of the Mikhailovsky Castle were made by Karl, this work became his first great architectural practice. In parallel with this project, Karl, together with Brenna, created the interior of the Winter Palace for Paul I, erected buildings on Kamenny Island and in Gatchina, and completed the construction of St. Isaac's Cathedral.
In 1801, Rossi became an architectural assistant to the 10th grade, and a year later, to complete his education, he received a two-year business trip to Italy. Returning from Europe, the ambitious young man proposed a plan for rebuilding the Admiralty embankment. In the drawings, Karl imagined an arcade laid on the embankment along the river bank. It seemed to the commission ridiculous, covering other buildings. The project was considered frivolous, it did not find support in the higher authorities, and Russia did not receive the title of architect.
First works
In 1806, Karl was forced to work as an artist in a porcelain and glass factories. After 2 years, Rossi achieved the title of architect and went to Moscow, on the Expedition of the Kremlin Buildings, which was in charge of the construction of buildings on the territory of the Kremlin and their reconstruction. The organization also carried out development in the city and its environs. Several buildings were built according to Rossi's designs, the most famous of which was the wooden theater. The building burned down during a fire in 1812. Then the architect went to Tver, where the Putilov Palace was erected under his leadership.
Elagin island
Returning to St. Petersburg from Europe, Karl continued his work. He participated in the reconstruction of the Anichkov Palace and pavilions in Pavlovsk. An important stage in his career ladder was his appointment to the Committee for Structures and Hydraulic Works.
By 1818 Rossi had become a court architect. He was entrusted with the construction of a new imperial residence. At that time, the area around the capital was little built up, including Elagin Island. Its architect was chosen for the construction of a new palace. The Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna liked the project. It is surprising that Karl indicated expenses to the penny in the estimate and did not go beyond it. In addition to the main building, made in the classical style, the architect erected an outbuilding, greenhouses and a stable building. Nearby, a park was set up with a music pavilion, where an orchestra played on weekends.
Mikhailovsky Palace
In 1819, the current emperor Alexander I commissioned an architect to build a new palace. The tsar allocated 9 million rubles for its construction. It was assumed that a view of the Embankment would open from the residence, for this a new road was built from the Neva. This was a significant work of the architect, where he got the opportunity to independently shape the urban space. A new street, Inzhenernaya, appeared in the city center. The previously built Mikhailovsky Castle and the erected Mikhailovsky Palace were divided by Sadovaya Street. The work was completed 6 years later, but soon after the opening of Rossi, it was possible to arrange a farewell ceremony for the emperor after the Decembrist uprising.
Correctness
The architectural ensemble of the Palace Square has become a great contribution to the creation of the architectural appearance of the city. The Winter Palace remained the center of the composition, opposite the architect placed the arch of the main headquarters. Its author was conceived in honor of the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812. The total length of the composition of the General Staff Building is 580 meters, its interior decoration is unique.
In 1829, the architect began building the Senate, and a year later the Synod building appeared next to it. The main element of the composition is the Arc de Triomphe. In connection with the death of Alexander I, the project was frozen; only the new emperor Nicholas I was able to restore it. The grand opening of the arch took place in 1828.
Alexandrinsky theater
The theater on Alexandrinskaya Square is considered to be one of the most successful creations of Russia. The quarter from Fontanka to Nevsky Prospekt has changed its appearance and turned into a single ensemble. Next to the light and graceful building of the theater, although it is quite impressive in size, the Public Library and the Teatralnaya street appeared. Years later, it was renamed into the street of the architect of Russia.
Personal life
During his stay on Elagin Island, the 43-year-old architect was accompanied not only by success at work, but also by changes in his personal life. During this period, he met a young lady Sophia Anderson, and soon the girl became his wife. Since the couple had no children, Karl wrote a letter to the emperor asking him to adopt the kids. Alexander I approved the petition, and soon four children received the surname Rossi.
The architect was forced to retire from the conflict with Emperor Nicholas I. His final work was the bell tower of the Novgorod St. George Monastery. Carl Rossi lived to a ripe old age without any titles or awards. And his creations today make the heart sink from their greatness and beauty.
