Culture: Was the Northern Capital of Russia built on a swamp? Myths associated with the city on the Neva River
St Petersburg is surrounded by numerous legends. One of the most popular ones is that the Northern Capital of Russia was built on a swamp. Yet scientists have debunked this myth once again.
Our scientist is holding a brick of the Menshikov Bastion at the Peter and Paul Fortress, from which the history of the Northern Capital of Russia began. For St Petersburg University experts, a plain-looking bar is like an ancient manuscript. By reading it, you can find out the secrets that were underground just a while ago.
’This part of the Bastion and the upper part of the cladding of the three-metre embankment were covered with soils. This gives us the richest information on the history of the formation of the initial soil cover in this area,’ said Professor Aleksey Rusakov, Head of the Department of Soil Science and Soil Ecology at St Petersburg University.
In 1703, against the backdrop of the ongoing Great Northern War, it was crucial for Peter the Great to gain a foothold on what is now St Petersburg and repulse the enemy. The Menshikov Bastion was built in the shortest possible time using what was at hand, namely wood and earth.
’In 1703, we had just driven the Swedes out of here. We needed to gain a foothold on these shores quickly. There was neither stone, nor an opportunity to bring it quickly here. We had several summer months, from May to October, when it was possible to build a fortress without being bothered by the weather and the climate,’ said Anastasiia fon Shtakelberg, a historian and a tour guide.
A little later, in 1706, the fortress was rebuilt in stone. The earth-and-timber shelter was buried under a layer of soil. Six years ago, during the waterproofing of the Menshikov Bastion, fragments of the old building were found. Together with soil samples, they ended up in the laboratory of St Petersburg University experts.
A radiocarbon analysis showed that the discovered wood was about 500 years old. The scientists have also found out what kind of vegetation there was in the historical centre of the future capital of the Russian Empire.
Our soil scientists have once again debunked the myth that the city was built exclusively on uninhabited swamps. According to them, it is most likely that there were frequently flooded meadows on the site of Zayachy Island.