On October 4, 1723 (old style), on his way to the island of Kotlin, Peter I "made a drawing of the Kotlin fortress", and after lunch on the island "outlined the site of the fortification with small ditches". On October 6, a strong wind blew and the tide flooded the site of the new fortress.
On October 7, despite the rain, the solemn laying took place: “the first was a moleben with consecration of water and Kronstadt was named at the moleben, and according to the moleben, E. V. himself deigned to put three sods, then Her Majesty the Empress the Empress deigned to put three sods. After that, the others all on the same sod, and as they laid everything down, EV cut off the corner, how to be a bollover, and from Kronshlot they fired from cannons; then soldiers and sailors began to carry and lay sod; and as they laid it in length to the indicated place, and in width by 8 sods, then on that the soldiers and sailors laid a cellar, and the noble gentlemen were offered a glass of good Burgundy"
On November 3, 1724, Vice-Admiral P. I. Sivers was appointed chief commander of Kronstadt. Under his leadership, they began to build a new fortress.
The plan of the fortress involved the creation of bastions, interconnected by curtains. In the south of the island, the fortress walls were enclosed by the harbor walls under construction. The western front of the fortress consisted of six bastions named after the regiments that built them: Preobrazhensky, Semyonovsky, Ingermanlandsky, Lefortovsky, Butyrsky, Morskoy, and a ditch that crosses the entire island and is separated from the bay by dams (botardo). It was planned to build the northern front with a four-bastion one, and the eastern one with a two-bastion one.
During the life of Peter I, the fortifications of the western front of the fortress were mainly built. Peter II in 1727 ordered to draw up a new project for the construction of the fortress. The project involved the construction of fronts using a simple bastion system. In 1729, the construction of the northern structures of the fortress began. The construction was supervised by the engineer Colonel de Coulon. In 1732, a storm washed away the dams connecting the western moat with the bay, and the gushing water washed away many of the western front fortifications, which had been rebuilt for several years. In 1734, the construction of the northern part of the fortress was completed.
Empress Elizaveta Petrovna: “The Kronstadt fortresses and Alexander Shantsa, the damaged places this summer will of course be repaired and again, as much as possible, to strengthen their structure to produce with all possible haste, and in what state these fortresses and what repairs and directions require and what else again, for a better fortification it is necessary to build, and how many materials for the work of people and for all that money is required, after writing about the repairs and about the new building … submit a detailed and concise statement."
Lieutenant-General IL Lyuberas was appointed to supervise the construction work in Kronstadt. In July 1739, the flank profiles were changed, and the construction of the eastern part of the fortress fence was completed.
The war declared by Sweden in 1741 forced the fortress to be kept in full combat readiness, but everything turned out well. Until 1790 the fortress
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In 1788, the threat of an attack by the Swedes on St. Petersburg arose again. The Kronstadt fortress was brought into battle formation. Weapons and ammunition were urgently delivered from the capital. The victory over the Swedes at Krasnaya Gorka and Gogland Island removed the threat of attack. Under the leadership of Admiral S. K. Greig, they began to equip the harbors and build the Admiralty.
By the beginning of the 19th century, the range of the guns had increased, which made it necessary to move the defensive fortifications further from the harbors of Kronstadt. They began to build northern naval batteries. The outbreak of war with France in 1805 and with Turkey in 1806 forced the authorities to pay attention to the state of the Kronstadt fortress. And in 1806 it was decided that the walls of the Kronstadt fortress should provide protection only from an open attack by the enemy, and not a long siege, so they began to strengthen the inert towers and build new naval batteries. After the victory in 1812, the Kronstadt fortress passed to a peaceful life.
Throughout the entire existence of the fortress, the struggle against the elements did not stop. Wooden fortifications covered with earth and sod had to be constantly replaced, frequent floods and storms caused serious damage to the fortress. The question of building the Kronstadt fortress in stone was repeatedly raised. But due to the constant lack of funds, projects to improve the fortress were relegated to the background.
The most devastating flood in Kronstadt occurred on November 7, 1824, when the water rose by 11.5 feet (4 m 10 cm) and flooded almost the entire island of Kotlin, causing tremendous destruction to the fortress. Eroded soil, washed breastworks, damaged guns, carried away wooden buildings, demolished roofs … In just a day, the elements did what no enemy army could do in a hundred years of Kronstadt's existence.
First of all, they began to restore the harbors and sea structures, then - to restore the fortress itself. Emperor Nikolai Pavlovich personally supervised its construction.
During 1825-1840 the fortress fence was completely restored and rebuilt. It was now the powerful fortification that its founder had dreamed of.
On the western front, two defensive barracks with stone semi-towers were built, the thickness of the escarp walls at the base reached 2.5 meters, and the height - 7 meters. The moat and dams were restored.
The northern front has completely changed: from the rear of the fortress wall, the height of which reached 6 meters, three one-tier half-towers and four two-story defensive barracks were built, a 4-meter earthen rampart was erected separating the fortress wall from the bay.
On the eastern front, a fortress wall with a two-storey defensive barracks, the Petersburg Gate and an earthen rampart were built. The northern and eastern fronts were connected by a defensive tower.
From the south, the harbor walls closed the line of defense. They built southern forts: "Emperor Peter I", "Emperor Alexander I", reconstructed the Double South Battery and "Risbank".
Armament of the fortress after reconstruction:
- Western front of the fortress:
- 10 guns in 2 semi-towers;
- 14 guns in three batteries on the shafts;
- 12 guns on 4 steps;
- 6 guns on 6 flashes.
- Northern front of the fortress:
- 13 guns in 3 semi-towers;
- 75 guns on the shaft;
- 4 guns in the Northeast Tower.
- Eastern front of the fortress:
11 guns in casemates
But even this weapon did not make the fortress invulnerable. During the Crimean War, ships with screw propellers were feared, which could come close to the fortress and, maneuvering, subject it to destructive bombardment. Therefore, from the northern side of Kronstadt in the bay, they began to erect underwater crib barriers.
At the end of the 20s of the XIX century, the garrison of the Kronstadt fortress numbered more than 17 thousand people, while the population of Kronstadt was just over 7 thousand people. After the reconstruction of the fortress, the barracks fund reached 30,000 places! But even this fund was not enough in the XX century - they built the western barracks, and then the 3rd and 5th northern ones. The area around the defensive barracks turned into a huge parade ground.
The Ground Forces Manege was built near the 1st northern defensive barracks. In it, in addition to its direct purpose, Christmas trees were arranged, performances were staged, lectures were given and "foggy pictures" were shown, and with the advent of cinema, films were shown. The altar of the Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir was placed in the arena extension. A garden was laid out near the building. In 1920, the Ground Forces Manege was renamed the Club "In Memory of Three Destroyers" in honor of the destroyers who died on a combat mission on October 20, 1919, who were mining the Kaporsky Bay.
In 1922, baths were opened in the 5th northern barracks. About 2,000 servicemen washed in them daily. The baths were in operation for only two years. Today, only the tiles on the walls of the abandoned barracks remind of this.
During the Great Patriotic War, behind the fifth northern defensive barracks, the ice path began - the Small Road of Life (Gorskaya - Kronstadt - Oranienbaum bridgehead). Here, on the rampart by the bay, are the remains of the fortifications from the war. Monument "Small road of life" on the street. The uprising reminds of those days in the life of Kronstadt.
In 1960, a naval naval school was housed in the 2nd western defensive barracks, which is still operating. In 1996, the Naval Cadet Corps was located in the 1st western defensive barracks. The rest of the barracks are used as hostels or to house naval services, and are a wretched sight.
The six-meter walls of the majestic fortress nowadays rise, at most, by three meters, and are used for parking, workshops, warehouses, or are not used in any way. Always, over its almost 300-year history, the Kronstadt fortress fell into disrepair in peacetime, and for the same reasons …