Oranienbaum (translated from German as “wild orange tree”) is an original name of the town of Lomonosov. One of the most picturesque suburbs of St.Petersburg, lying just 44 km away from the city on the southern shore of Finsky Bay, the town of Lomonosov was founded by Alexander Menshikov only in the beginning of 18^th century. This area was meant to be even more ambitious and developed, than the Peterhof with its Grand palace and Fountain Park. Menshikovsky Palace in Oranienbaum was designed by the architect J. Mario Fontana and G. Schedel in the classical baroque style. The construction of the Palace, consisting of central part and two side wings, ended with the impressive pavilions, took 17 years and was finished in 1727. By that time Alexander Menshikov fell from grace and the estate went to the state treasury. The original large-scaled plan of the developing of the vicinity failed.

From 1730s the Oranienbaum, as a state property, was the summer residence of the emperor Peter III. Being fond of war games with his soldiers, Peter III designed the park in Oranienbaum according to his needs: the parade ground and a diminutive fortress with a small lake for his navy were placed next to the Grand Palace. His own palace was built near the Lower Pond by the architect Antonio Rinaldi in 1760. The ground floor of the palace has almost no decorations, as it was intended for servants, but the top floor with lacquer paintings, composed parquet floors and carvings features a rich collection of West European paintings of the 17-18 centuries.

In front of the Palace of Peter III the garden was decorated with ornamental flowerbeds, ponds and meadows. The famous Rowan alley runs from the palace through the Upper Park to its central part with the fabulous Chinese Palace and unique pavilion Katalnaya Gorka (the Sliding Hill). The Chinese palace is the only one palace in Russia, built completely in Rococo style in 1760s. The palace is richly decorated with paintings, sculptures and other works of arts: gilded moldings and covered with silk walls, the greatest collection of Chinese and Japanese applied art, rich collections of Venetian canvases and Russian and European porcelain. Walking from the Chinese palace through the small green corridor Pergola and along English Alley with granite benches, you will get to the most unique construction in Oranienbaum – the Katalnaya Gorka Pavilion (the Sliding Hill Pavilion), adjusted for Catherine the Great by Antonio Rinaldi.

The area with picturesque park and palace ensemble of Oranienbaum turned out to be the only one suburb that was not destroyed by Germans during the World War II, so nowadays you can enjoy the original country residence of 18^th century.