Massandra or Masandra (; ; ) is an

urban-type settlement Urban-type settlement, abbreviated: ; , abbreviated: ; ; ; ; . is an official designation for lesser urbanized settlements, used in several Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern European countries. The term was primarily used in the So ...

in the Yalta Municipality in

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

. Occupying the spot of an ancient Greek settlement (Tavrida-Ταυρίδα), Masandra was acquired by Counts Potocki in 1783. In the mid-19th century, it passed to Prince Vorontsov Jr, whose father was the governor of New Russia. Enraptured by a picturesque setting, Vorontsov in 1881 engaged a team of French architects to design for him a

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking re ...

in the Louis XIII style. He died the following year and construction work was suspended until 1889, when the messuage was purchased by

Alexander III of Russia Alexander III (; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894. He was highly reactionary in domestic affairs and reversed some of the libera ...

. The tsar asked architect Maximilian Messmacher to finish the palace for his own use but he did not live to see it completed in 1900. During the Soviet years, the palace was employed by

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

as his

dacha A dacha (Belarusian, Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and rus, дача, p=ˈdatɕə, a=ru-dacha.ogg) is a seasonal or year-round second home, often located in the exurbs of former Soviet Union, post-Soviet countries, including Russia. A cottage (, ...

. Today, Masandra is known for its viniculture and production of dessert and fortified wines. The Massandra Winery was founded by Prince Lev Golitsyn in 1894. The enoteca of the winery contains about one million bottles of wine.Визитка. Кратко о Массандре
. Торговый дом Массандра (''Business Card. A brief information about Massandra''. Massandra trading company) A minor planet, 3298 Massandra, discovered in 1979 by N. Chernykh at Nauchnyj, is named after the settlement. File:Crimea South Coast 04-14 img02 Massandra Palace.jpg, Massandra Palace File:Massandra Back.JPG, Another side of the palace File:Masandra subterejo1.jpg, Main cellar of Massandra Winery

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* {{Authority control Urban-type settlements in Crimea Official residences in Russia Official residences in Ukraine Seaside resorts in Russia Seaside resorts in Ukraine Yalta Municipality Wine regions of Russia Wine regions of Ukraine Presidential residences Official residences Rural settlements in Crimea

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