Since the 19th century, scientists have been trying to understand the phenomenon of the appearance of ghosts, but all their theories turned out to be unconvincing, although the topics of psychic energy remaining to live after a person's death were touched upon. We will let them continue their discussions further, while we ourselves will open the doors to another world, where readers are the shadow of the master of St. Petersburg and the retinue of the city's ghosts.
The most famous phantom remains the figure of Peter, who still invisibly dominates his brainchild. Every night, the ghost of the king comes out in his green uniform and dusty boots with a cocked hat on his head from the Peter and Paul Cathedral in order to have time to walk the streets and return to his crypt along with the sun's rays. Numerous stories about dark and cold nights, when people need to stay away from the famous monument, have their real confirmation. Police archives of the 19th century describe cases when daredevils who dared to challenge the Bronze Horseman while drunk were found at the pedestal with their heads broken.
It was not for nothing that Pushkin described it in his poem, and the townspeople do not even doubt the existence of the spirit of the monarch, who was often seen on the Champ de Mars. It is not known what Peter I needed at the Institute of Culture, since the building was built after his death, but the staff told how a ghost led a young lady along the corridor, scolding her with the last words for breaking an oath. Pavel I first saw him when he was walking with Prince Kurakin and his servants. An unknown man in a cloak silently walked next to him, although no one else saw him except the emperor. Then he called him a poor man and showed the way to Senate Square, indicating with his finger the place for the future monument. The monarch saw the face of his predecessor and was terrified, after which he felt sick. He immediately told his mother about such a meeting, and Catherine II erected a monument.
1. Peter and Paul Fortress and the ghost of Princess Tarakanova
The sad fate of the impostor posing as the heiress of Queen Elizabeth is known to all people. She decided to claim her rights to the throne, after which she was kidnapped by Alexei Orlov and taken to the fortress, where she died without admitting her guilt. The burial place of this person remained a secret, although many historians mention an unmarked grave found in the garden of the Alekseevsky Ravelin by prisoners of the Decembrists. But the crying ghost of the princess loves to appear in front of Petersburgers on rainy days near the Trubetskoy bastion and turns to the wall. Witnesses to the appearance of the phantom told how they walked here in late autumn, when dusk hung over the city. Suddenly, the child heard a woman's sobbing and informed the adults about his aunt. In the twilight, they noticed a strange silhouette of a lady in antique clothes, and then thought about filming a movie,but when everyone decided to come closer to the actress, she suddenly disappeared into the wall and only the sounds of groans were heard for a while.
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Sometimes a woman visits the Promenade des Anglais, where the house of the Empress's favorite was located, which he sold during his lifetime, and the new owners rebuilt the building. The ghost cannot find this place and frightens passers-by when he speaks to them in French, holding a bloody handkerchief in his hands. Some sources report that the prisoner gave birth to a son from Orlov, named Alexander Chesmensky, but he, being a young soldier, died in battle.
2. Restless spirits of the executed Decembrists
When the main instigators of the uprising were executed in the fortress, their spirits still cannot find peace in the other world. They roam the territory and behave restlessly, uttering screams and groans at the place of death. Employees often saw the ghostly figures of the Decembrists, which had vague outlines, and the first mentions of them were recorded in the archives of the 19th century, after the policeman Karnaukhov, who dared to denounce them, was fired from his job. Then, in the 1920s, phantoms disturbed the peace of the townspeople, and members of the union of atheists, together with comrade Weinstock, sat in ambush for five days, because, they considered them counter-revolutionaries, only the ghosts did not want to go out to meet them. Now, many townspeople may encounter male silhouettes in overcoats with their heads down, but after such a spectacle they will face difficult life trials.
3. The ghost of the murdered emperor does not want to leave the chambers of the Mikhailovsky Castle
The legendary palace of the 18th century, erected by order of Paul I, was supposed to be his romantic dream, but instead he saw the brutal murder of the owner and since then his ghost rushes through the chambers in the form of a high luminous shadow that visitors often notice in doors or long passages. They hear invisible footsteps behind their backs and the rustle of clothes, and then fearfully turn around to greet the ruler. The most terrible events are connected with the date of death, when at night the lights suddenly come on, flute melodies are heard and the stamping of feet along with loud voices is heard from all directions.
The ghost can be seen in person if you watch the bedroom windows, where a candle light or the transparent spirit of a king may appear. Before his birth, this place was the Summer Palace, erected by Rastrelli for Empress Elizabeth, but after the birth of the heir she rarely visited such a wonderful corner, preferring Tsarskoe Selo. The dilapidated building during the reign of Paul was urgently rebuilt according to his personal sketches, calling the new palace after the saint. The magnificent interiors and other architectural delights only delighted the emperor for 40 days, strangled by the conspirators.
4. The souls of the crowned persons stroll through the halls of the Hermitage at night
The legendary museum complex of the world has witnessed many significant historical events, so the walls keep memories of the life of monarchs and their tragic death. The Winter Palace is visited in the evenings by the souls of the crowned persons and their retinue, and especially often employees see Nicholas II here. The ghost of the emperor walks on the dark parquet floor among the ancient tapestries, and sometimes in the corridor you can see the vague image of Nicholas I, who has retained his stately posture.
He prefers to walk past commoners and looks at them with an icy gaze, shining in the dim light with his golden epaulettes. After him, mysterious phantoms of different eras begin to appear, where ladies with veils on their faces are replaced by silent tall guards. Local cats also see ghosts and begin to stare into the distance or scatter in different directions from the inaudible steps of the spirit in the doorways.
5. The creepy ghost of Sophia Perovskaya scares the townspeople near the Griboyedov Canal
When night falls on the city, the ghosts come out of their hiding places to visit the places of their former lives. But among the line of spirits, the most eerie was the phantom of Sophia Perovskaya, appearing in this place with a blue face and traces of a rope around his neck, holding a white scarf in his hands. In the afternoon of 1881, the emperor's motorcade was returning to the Winter Palace, but a fragile young lady began to wave this object near the Mikhailovsky Garden, giving a signal to her comrades, who were throwing bombs into the carriage in turn. Rysakov was unlucky because of the armored cover, but several people, along with children, became victims of the explosion. Then the police quickly seized the terrorist, who called himself an assumed name, and Alexander II decided to personally inspect the scene, although he was persuaded to continue his journey on a sleigh.
As a result of the second attempt by Ignatius Grinevitsky, who was left without legs, the emperor died, and then all the participants, along with the girl, were arrested. The regicides ended their lives on the parade ground of the Semenovsky regiment, and at the place of the death of the monarch they erected the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood, where his ghost still moans. It was only in the 19th century that people began to notice how badly belated passers-by, who faced a ghostly maiden in a long dress, had on foggy evenings. She waves her handkerchief, and the victim suddenly falls into the water, after which he drowns in the channel. Now no one wants to check the accuracy of the information, but this lady was seen by many witnesses who presented the facts in writing.
Author: Irina Reshetnikova
