Gay tours in St. Petersburg Russia. The history of St. Petersburg.

in Saint-Petersburg

The history of St. Petersburg

Although just 300 years old, St. Petersburg has a rich and exciting history, full of dramatic events and major historical figures. Founded in 1703 by Emperor Peter the Great as his "window on the West", St. Petersburg enjoys a vibrant, cosmopolitan atmosphere and some of the most beautiful architecture in Europe. For those interested in culture and history, St. Petersburg is the perfect holiday destination.

Introduction and pre-history of St. Petersburg
When and how was St. Petersburg founded?
The St. Petersburg of Peter the Great
Elizabethan St. Petersburg: a city of Baroque grandeur
The "Grand City" of Catherine the Great
The "City of Order" (1800-1855)
St. Petersburg on the way to capitalism (1840s -1895)
The "Silver Age" city (turn-of-the-century St. Petersburg)
Petrograd during WWI and the Revolution (1914-1924)
Leningrad (1924-1941)
The 900-day Siege of Leningrad (Blokada)
Post-war reconstruction
St. Petersburg today

Gay life in Saint-Petersburg

In the Soviet times Russia's gay scene was completely underground. After perestroyka attitudes towards and in 1993 laws about homosexuality was decriminalised. In a lot of ways, Russia remains more conservative than most European countries, which may be why the gay scene in St. Petersburg is smaller and more hidden than you would expect for a city of almost five million.
More about gay-life in St. Petersburg