The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, designed by Domenico Trezzini and founded in 1703. The fortress contains a number of buildings including the Peter and Paul Cathedral, where all Russian tsars from Peter I to Alexander III are interred.
The fortress was established by Peter the Great on May 16 1703 on a small island, Zayachii Ostrov, on the Neva River. Built during the Northern War, the fort was never actually needed. The fort was completed with six bastions in earth and timber within a year, it was rebuilt with stone from 1706 to 1740. From around 1720 the fort served as a base for the city garrison and also as a prison for high ranking or political prisoners. The Trubetskoy bastion, built in the 1870s, became the main prison block. The Cathedral was built from 1712 to 1733, and has a 123.2 m bell-tower and a gilded angel-topped cupola.
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