Lomonosov, town

Categories / City Topography/Historical Geography/Towns within Greater St. Petersburg
LOMONOSOV (until 1948 Oranienbaum), a town and municipal unit within Saint Petersburg, the centre of Lomonosovsky District of the Leningrad Region, located 32 kilometres southwest of the city centre on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland across Kotlin Island; also a railway station along the Saint Petersburg - Sosnovy Bor line. As of 2002, the population count came to over 40.000 inhabitants. The town was renamed in M. V. Lomonosov's honour. From 1710, it was A. D. Menshikov's State Residence, which in 1727 became property of the Crown after he had fallen into disgrace. M. V. Lomonosov opened a stained glass melting manufacture on the neighbouring Ust-Ruditsa Estate. In 1743-61, it was Grand Prince Peter Fedorovich's (future Emperor Peter III) residence. In the 1740-70s, a palace and park were built there (see Oranienbaum). In 1780-96, and in 1802-48, Lomonosov (Oranienbaum) became a town district (uezd). In 1831-1917, the Oranienbaum palaces belonged to Grand Prince Mikhail Pavlovich and his descendants. In the late 19th - early 20th centuries, the Officers' Shooting School and the Armourers' School (where armourers V. A. Degtyarev and F. V. Tokarev worked) were located there. In 1919, the town accommodated the Staff of the Soviet Troops, which coordinated military operations stifling the anti-Bolshevik Revolt at the Krasnaya Gorka (Red Hill) and Seraya Loshad (Grey Horse) forts. In the Fall of 1941, the Soviet troops, supported by the Kronstadt Fortress artillery and ships of the Baltic Fleet, stopped the German Army's advance on the surroundings of Oranienbaum (see Oranienbaumsky Bridgehead), and in January 1944 launched a counteroffensive. Landmarks suffering severe damage during the siege were mostly restored within the first post-war years. In the 1960-80s, Lomonosov saw intense residential development. The town also accommodates a number of industrial military complexes, as well as factories from the light and food industries. In addition to the palace and park, a number of other architectural landmarks survived the devastation, including the St. Michael the Archangel Church (1914, 61 Dvortsovy Avenue), and the St. Spiridon's Church (1896, 1 Ilikovsky Avenue).

References: Раскин А. Г. Город Ломоносов: Дворцово-парковые ансамбли XVIII в. 2-е изд. Л., 1981; Памятники архитектуры пригородов Ленинграда / А. Н. Петров и др. Л., 1983.

Е. А. Bondarchuk, P. Y. Yudin. Degtyarev Vasily Alexeevich
Lomonosov Mikhail Vasilievich
Menshikov Alexander Danilovich, Gracious Prince
Mikhail Pavlovich, Grand Prince
Peter III, Emperor
Tokarev Egor Vasilievich
Dvortsovy Avenue/Lomonosov, town, house 61
Ilikovsky Avenue/Lomonosov, town, house 1
Lomonosov, town
Памятники архитектуры пригородов Ленинграда / А. Н. Петров и др. Л., 1983
Раскин А. Г. Город Ломоносов: Дворцово-парковые ансамбли XVIII в. 2-е изд. Л., 1981 Kronstadt Fortress
Kronstadt Fortress
Kronstadt Fortress
Baltic Fleet
Oranienbaum Bridgehead