Oranienbaum
Palace and gardens: 41km west of St Petersburg.
While Peter the Great was building his villa 'Monplaisir' at Peterhof, his best friend Prince Menshikov began construction of his own ornate palace at Oranienbaum. This grand enterprise eventually bankrupted Menshikov, though the architectural legacy remained.
During WWII the building escaped Nazi occupation, however, the restoration of the palace and its numerous rooms has not been matched, to date, with the activities undertaken at nearby Peterhof. Lachlan Macquarie arrived in the village of Oranienbaum on 11 September prior to his departure for Kronstadt.
