Mariyinsky Palace

Mariyinsky Palace (Ukrainian: Маріїнський палац, Mariyins'kyi palats; Russian: Мариинский дворец) is the official ceremonial residence of the President of Ukraine in Kyiv and adjoins the neo-classical building of the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) of Ukraine. It is a Baroque palace on the hilly bank of the Dnipro River.

For the eponymous structure in St Petersburg, see Mariinsky Palace.

Maryinsky Palace
Маріїнський палац
Front façade with presidential standard flying
Location within Kiev
Mariyinsky Palace (Ukraine)
General information
Architectural styleBaroque
Town or cityvul. Mykhaila Hrushevskoho 5A
01008 Kyiv
CountryUkraine
Coordinates50°26′54″N 30°32′15″E
Construction started1744
Completed1752
ClientElizabeth of Russia
(House of Romanov)
Design and construction
ArchitectBartolomeo Rastrelli

History
The Maryinsky Palace as it appeared in 1918 whilst serving as the tsar's Kyiv residence

The palace was ordered to be constructed in 1744 by the Russian Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, and was designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the most famous architect working in the Russian Empire at that time. One of the students of Rastrelli, Ivan Michurin, together with a group of other architects, completed the palace in 1752. Empress Elizabeth, however, did not live long enough to see the palace. The first royal figure to stay in the palace was Empress Catherine II, who visited Kyiv in 1787. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries the palace was the main residence of Governors-General.

In the early 19th century, the palace burned down in a series of fires, and was in total disrepair and abandoned for almost half a century. In 1870, Alexander II of Russia had the palace reconstructed by the architect Konstantin Mayevsky, using old drawings and watercolours as guide. It was then renamed after the reigning Empress Maria Alexandrovna. By her wish, a large park was established off the southern side of the palace. The palace was used as a residence for visiting members of the imperial family until 1917.

During the years of the Russian Civil War in 1917-20, the palace was used as the Kyiv revkom headquarters, particularly during the Kyiv Bolshevik Uprising. In the 1920s the building belonged to an agricultural school, soon after which it became a museum. The Mariyinsky was badly damaged in World War II, and restored at the end of the 1940s. Another major restoration was completed in the early 1980s.

Presidential Standard
The presidential standard is flown at the Maryinsky Palace

Whilst the presidential standard was not typically flown above the residence of the Ukrainian president, it has become increasingly common, in recent years, for the standard to be raised above the Maryinsky Palace - particularly when the president is in residence or hosting other heads of state. This change in protocol has brought Ukraine more into line with other European nations, in which it is common practice to fly the head of state's standard as a symbol of the authority of their office.

  • View of the rear of the palace from its gardens
  • Inside. President Kuchma talks with United States President Clinton. June 5, 2000
  • The Official visit of Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein to Kyiv in June 2018.
  • The palace is surrounded by intricate iron railings

See also
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