Saint Petersburg was founded by Tsar Peter the Great on marshy islands in the delta of the Neva River, at the Baltic Sea, which Russia had seized from Sweden during the Great Northern War. It began with the Peter and Paul Fortress, and Peter intended it to be Russia's modern European capital and a port, a window to the West. Thousands of workers died building the city, which was designed with canals, palaces and broad avenues, and it served as the capital until 1918. It was renamed Petrograd and then Leningrad, and survived a siege of almost nine hundred days in the Second World War. Its historic centre, with the Hermitage Museum, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Before and after
- from 18 January 1701 to 9 November 1918Kingdom of Prussia
- from March 1701 to September 1714War of the Spanish Succession
- 27 November 1701Birth of Anders Celsius
- 1703Founding of Amherst
- 16 May 1703Founding of Saint Petersburg
- 1704Founding of Gibraltar
- 13 August 1704Battle of Blenheim
- 28 October 1704Death of John Locke
- 1706Founding of Albuquerque
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- 11 March 1565Founding of Rio de Janeiro
- from 11 June 1569 to 24 October 1795Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
- from 1603 to 1868Edo period
- 1624Founding of New York City
- from 1 May 1707 to 1 January 1801Kingdom of Great Britain
- 1744Rise of House of Saud
The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 18th century.