Michael Manege (, ''Mikhailovsky manezh'') is the Neoclassical building of an early 19th-century

riding academy An equestrian facility is created and maintained for the purpose of accommodating, training or competing equids, especially horses. Based on their use, they may be known as a barn, stables, or riding hall and may include commercial operations de ...

in the historic center of

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. It was converted into an indoor sporting arena in 1949 and was renamed Zimniy Stadion (, lit. "Winter Stadium").

Name

Similar to the neighboring

Mikhailovsky Castle Saint Michael's Castle (, ''Mikhailovsky zamok''), also called the Mikhailovsky Castle or the Engineers' Castle (, ''Inzhenerny zamok''), is a former royal residence in the historic centre of Saint Petersburg, Russia. Saint Michael's Castle wa ...

the name "Mikhailovsky" comes from the

Archangel Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second ...

, a heavenly patron of the

House of Romanov The House of Romanov (also transliterated as Romanoff; , ) was the reigning dynasty, imperial house of Russia from 1613 to 1917. They achieved prominence after Anastasia Romanovna married Ivan the Terrible, the first crowned tsar of all Russi ...

, the ruling

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

in 1613–1917. "Manège" is

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

for "

", since the area was originally used as a

dressage Dressage ( or ; , most commonly translated as "training") is a form of horse riding performed in exhibition and competition, as well as an art sometimes pursued solely for the sake of mastery. As an equestrianism, equestrian sport defined by th ...

area for horses of the imperial cavalry. The square in which the monument sits is called Manezhnaya Square ().

History

The history of Manezhnaya Square and the Mikhailovsky Manège dates to the 1730s, when a

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

, Nader, who signed a treaty with the

Ganja ''Ganja'' (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for cannabis flower, specifically marijuana or hashish. Its usage in English dates to before 1689. Etymology ''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi (, IPA: �aːɲd͡ʒa� ...

in March 1735, sent an

elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...

as a gift to the Russian empress,

Anna of Russia Anna Ioannovna (; ), also russified as Anna Ivanovna and sometimes anglicized as Anne, served as regent of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia from 1711 until 1730 and then ruled as Empress of Russia from 1730 to 1740. Much of her administratio ...

, the niece of

Peter the Great Peter I (, ; – ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...

. To keep that gift alive, an "elephant yard"—actually, the first

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

—was built on what is today Manezhnaya Square. Very soon, a "beast yard" () for other animals was put nearby, along with a

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

to grow plants to feed them. However, the elephant could not bear loneliness and the heavy northern climate of Petersburg. So in 1741, the Persian shah sent a caravan of 14 elephants. A house for them was built where the Manège is now located. From this "stable", elephants were regularly taken for walks across the current Manezhnaya Square. In 1742, the new empress,

Elizabeth of Russia Elizabeth or Elizaveta Petrovna (; ) was Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular List of Russian rulers, Russian monarchs because of her decision not to execute a single person during her reign, ...

, began construction of a new Summer Palace for herself nearby. The zoo was moved away, and on the place of the stables a

labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

garden was built with interlocking lanes and clipped shrubs. The wooden Summer Palace stood for half a century until the reign of

Paul I of Russia Paul I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination in 1801. Paul remained overshadowed by his mother, Catherine the Great, for most of his life. He adopted the Pauline Laws, laws of succession to the Russian throne—rules ...

, when it was dismantled, freeing up space for the stables and manège.

Architecture

The Mikhailovsky Manège is an elegant, spare structure faced in stucco of cream-yellow and white. It was built in 1798–1800 by

Vincenzo Brenna Vincenzo Brenna (August 20, 1747Lanceray, p. 37, states birth year as 1745. Contemporary historians ( Dmitry Shvidkovsky) agree on 1747 (Shvidkovsky, p. 293) – May 17, 1820) was an Italian architect and painter who was the house architect of Pa ...

, an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

architect and painter who was the court architect of Paul I. Brenna is considered a precursor of ''romantic neoclassicism'', when some elements of the late

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

are combined with

romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

and

classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...

. A quarter of a century later, tastes changed, and in 1823–1824 architect Carlo Rossi renovated the facades in classic style upon his joint project with two Russian sculptors, Vasily Demuth-Malinovsky and Stepan Pimenov. The facade of the building, which faces the square with its five doorways, and the

attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a '' loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building. It is also known as a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because they fill the space between the ceiling of a building's t ...

, were decorated with

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s of military armor and bas-relief shields with swords and oak branches. This design reflects the use of the Manège by the War Ministry as a

spot for the horses of imperial cavalry. For the same reason, the building was sometimes called by a Russian name of German origin, "экзерциргауз" (, lit. "house for exercises").

Exhibition area

In the years of economic expansion following the

Emancipation reform of 1861 The emancipation reform of 1861 in Russia, also known as the Edict of Emancipation of Russia, ( – "peasants' reform of 1861") was the first and most important of the liberal reforms enacted during the reign of Emperor Alexander II of Russia. T ...

, the Mikhailovsky Manège became one of the city spots for agricultural and industrial exhibitions. The Imperial Gardeners' Society was among the most regular tenants of this hall. In 1893, the First All-Russian

Hygiene Hygiene is a set of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...

Exhibition took place here; in 1909, the International Exhibition of the Latest

Innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or service (economics), services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a n ...

s, at which the All-Russian Aero Club formed the core of the national exhibition stand. In 1902, the Imperial Russian Automobile Society was created. In 1907 it leased the Manège for the international All-Russian Automobile Exposition for the first time. The second exhibition took place in 1908 in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. In 1910, exhibitors returned to Petersburg, where on the III International Automobile Exposition was opened, again in Mikhailovsky Manège. The following day, on , the international rally "Petersburg—Kiev" for the prize of

Nicholas II Nicholas II (Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov; 186817 July 1918) or Nikolai II was the last reigning Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 1 November 1894 until his abdication on 15 March 1917. He married ...

started. Forty-eight cars set out from Mikhailovsky Manège for the starting line of this

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event Sport ...

Tsarskoye Selo Tsarskoye Selo (, , ) was the town containing a former residence of the Russian House of Romanov, imperial family and visiting nobility, located south from the center of Saint Petersburg. The residence now forms part of the Pushkin, Saint Peter ...

. Russia was represented with national brand ''Russo-Balt''; among the other participating brands were Adler, Mercedes,

Delaunay-Belleville Automobiles Delaunay-Belleville () was a French luxury automobile manufacturer at Saint-Denis, France, north of Paris. At the beginning of the 20th century they were among the most prestigious cars produced in the world, and perhaps the mos ...

Mors Mors may refer to: *Mors (mythology), the personification of death in Roman mythology *Mors, Latin for death *Mors (automobile), a French car manufacturer from 1895 to 1925 :* American Mors, Mors vehicles produced under licence in America by the S ...

(

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

), Benz & Cie.,

Itala Itala may refer to: * Itala (company), an Italian car manufacturer ** Itala Special, a special custom-built Grand Prix race car * Itala (given name), an Italian given name * Itala, Sicily, a municipality in Sicily * Itala Film, an Italian film com ...

, and many others. Atomexpo was held there in June 2013.

Political events

The

October Manifesto The October Manifesto (), officially "The Manifesto on the Improvement of the State Order" (), is a document that served as a precursor to the Russian Empire's first Constitution, which was adopted the following year in 1906. The Manifesto was is ...

issued on , allowing the formation of political parties in Russia, brought the demand for facilities for public gatherings. In harsh climatic conditions (long winters, flanked on both sides with the long months of bad weather, slush and mud), the need for indoor facilities was especially urgent. Mikhailovsky Manège, located about north from

Nevsky Prospekt Nevsky Prospect ( rus, Не́вский проспе́кт, r=Nevsky Prospekt, p=ˈnʲɛfskʲɪj prɐˈspʲɛkt) is a main street ( high street) located in the federal city of St. Petersburg in Russia. Its name comes from the Alexander Nevs ...

,Google maps
link to Manezhnaya square. was selected. The

Union of the Russian People The Union of the Russian People (URP) (; СРН/SRN) was a royalist, loyalist Far-right politics, far-right Nationalism, nationalist political party, the most important among Black Hundreds, Black-Hundredist Monarchism, monarchist political organ ...

(URP), a close-to-

extremist Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered (by the speaker or by some implied shar ...

nationalistic Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, Id ...

movement formed with substantial overt and covert support from the Russian authorities, was among the first to use this government-owned building for their political gathering. Nine days after the Manifest was proclaimed, on , the URP announced its founding; and in less than a

fortnight A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days", since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights). Astronomy and tides In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is hal ...

, on the crowd of about 2000 people gathered under the roof of Mikhailovsky Manège. Orchestral music was playing, the church choir sang ''Praise God'' and ''Tzar Divine'', and the leaders of URP addressed the mob from a

rostrum Rostrum may refer to: * Any kind of a platform for a speaker: **dais **pulpit ** podium * Rostrum (anatomy), a beak, or anatomical structure resembling a beak, as in the mouthparts of many sucking insects * Rostrum (ship), a form of bow on naval ...

erected in the centre of the arena. In 1913, when the 300th anniversary of the

s was celebrated throughout Russia, Mikhailovsky Manège was the site for different public venues associated with this occasion, which included several exhibitions. Lenin Petrograd Manezhnaya

The most turbulent time in the political life of Petersburg (renamed Petrograd between 1914 and 1924) came after the abdication of Nicholas II in March 1917. Rarely did a day between the

February Revolution The February Revolution (), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and sometimes as the March Revolution or February Coup was the first of Russian Revolution, two revolutions which took place in Russia ...

and the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

pass without rallies and meetings, both spontaneous and organized, taking place all over the city. The

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...

political forces intensified their activities in Petrograd in April, when

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

and the other leaders of the

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

section of the

Russian Social Democratic Labour Party The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP), also known as the Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party (RSDWP) or the Russian Social Democratic Party (RSDP), was a socialist political party founded in 1898 in Minsk, Russian Empire. The ...

returned to democratic Russia from emigration. On April 15, 1917 Lenin came to the rally at Mikhailovsky Manège and delivered a speech to the soldiers of the Armored Car division. The second and last time that Lenin spoke at the Manège was on January 1, 1918, when he addressed the regiment of soldiers about to set out to the Western Front. A plaque of white marble, mounted on the wall of Manège, commemorates these two events in the political history of the city and country. That speech of Lenin on the first day of 1918 at Mikhailovsky Manège marked a turn in the policy of the new

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

government regarding war and peace. The slogan "Peace to the people", under which the October Revolution gained mass support, lost its relevance due to the resumption of German attacks on Russia, so Lenin had to explain to the soldiers why they should resume fighting. A special guest at this rally was

Albert Rhys Williams Albert Rhys Williams (September 28, 1883 – February 27, 1962), commonly known by his middle name, pronounced "Reece," was an American journalist, labor organizer, and publicist. He is most famous for writing memoirs in favor of the 1917 Oct ...

from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. As soon as Lenin stepped down from the top of an armored car from which he spoke,

Nikolai Podvoisky Nikolai Ilyich Podvoisky (; ; 16 February Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>O.S. 4 February1880 – 28 July 1948) was a Russian Bolsheviks">Bolshevik revolutionary, Soviet Union">Soviet statesman and the first People's Co ...

, a Soviet defence minister and the organizer of the event, gave the floor to an American speaker. Shortly after this rally, the first attempt was made on Lenin's life. As his car drove away from Mikhailovsky Manège, a group of terrorists— among them the best

sharpshooter A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with " marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" ...

s in the Russian Army—who were hiding in ambush in the next lane began shooting, shattering the windshield. Lenin was sitting in the back seat with

Fritz Platten Fritz Platten (8 July 1883 – 22 April 1942) was a Swiss communist politician and one of the founders of the Communist International. Early life Platten was born in the village of Tablat, now part of St. Gallen, on 8 July 1883, to an Old Catho ...

. When the shooting started, "Platten grabbed Lenin by the head and pushed him down. ... Platten’s hand was covered in blood, having been grazed by a bullet as he was shielding Lenin." Volkogonov, Dmitri ''Lenin: A New Biography'', 1994, p. 229. Lenin was not hurt.

Literature

* *
Technical data on exhibition capacities
— an official portal of the Government of St.Petersburg

References

{{Carlo Rossi (architect) Tourist attractions in Saint Petersburg Carlo Rossi buildings and structures Sports venues in Saint Petersburg