Consulate-General of France in Saint Petersburg
Encyclopedia
The Consulate-General of France in Saint Petersburg
is the diplomatic mission
of France
in Saint Petersburg
, Russian Federation. It is located at 15 Moika River Embankment in the Tsentralny District
in Saint Petersburg.
A.C. Kolb to reconstruct the existing structure and add an additional floor. The symmetrical facade
with the balcony
on the second floor and pediment
were kept in the redesign, although a portico
in classical Corinthian order
style was removed. The facade was redesigned to match the architectural style
of the 18th century.
In the 1860s, poet
of the Golden Age
Prince Pyotr Andreyevich Vyazemsky
lived in the house, and in the 1890s, painter
Arkady Alexandrovich Rylov
was reported to have called the house home. French
novelist and playwright
Honoré de Balzac
also lived in the house for a period. (Archived at WebCite
In 1911 Countess Fekla Pavlovna Stackelberg purchased the house and kept the design unchanged, and rented out the apartments.
In 1970 the building underwent extensive renovation
s which saw a one-storey building in the north-west quadrant being built and yard constructions being dismantled. In 1972 the consulate-general of France occupied the building and has been located in it since.
and services the Northwest consular district
, which includes Saint Petersburg, Leningrad Oblast
, Republic of Karelia
, Murmansk Oblast
, Arkhangelsk Oblast
, Pskov Oblast
, Kaliningrad Oblast
, Vologda Oblast
and Novgorod Oblast
. The consulate-general offers consular assistance
to citizens of France
, whilst promoting trade and cultural ties between the French people
and businesses and their counterparts in Saint Petersburg.
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
is the diplomatic mission
Diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russian Federation. It is located at 15 Moika River Embankment in the Tsentralny District
Tsentralny District, Saint Petersburg
Tsentralny District is a district of the federal city of Saint Petersburg, Russia. It borders the Neva River in the north and in the east, Obvodny Canal in the south, and areas around the Gorokhovaya Street in the west...
in Saint Petersburg.
History of the building
The first references to 15 Moika River Embankment in the Central State Historical Archives of Saint Petersburg indicate that a neo-classicism three-story stone house was on the site, when in 1858 the owner, Major-General Seyffarth, commissioned architectArchitect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
A.C. Kolb to reconstruct the existing structure and add an additional floor. The symmetrical facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
with the balcony
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
on the second floor and pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
were kept in the redesign, although a portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
in classical Corinthian order
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
style was removed. The facade was redesigned to match the architectural style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
of the 18th century.
In the 1860s, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
of the Golden Age
Golden Age of Russian Poetry
Golden Age of Russian Poetry is the name traditionally applied by Russian philologists to the first half of the 19th century. It is also called the Age of Pushkin, after its most significant poet...
Prince Pyotr Andreyevich Vyazemsky
Pyotr Vyazemsky
Prince Pyotr Andreyevich Vyazemsky or Petr Andreevich Viazemsky was a leading personality of the Golden Age of Russian poetry.- Biography :...
lived in the house, and in the 1890s, painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
Arkady Alexandrovich Rylov
Arkady Rylov
Arkady Alexandrovich Rylov was a Russian and Soviet Symbolist painter.-Biography:Rylov was born in the village Istobenskoye, Vyatka gubernia. He was brought in the family of his stepfather, a notary...
was reported to have called the house home. French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
novelist and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
Honoré de Balzac
Honoré de Balzac
Honoré de Balzac was a French novelist and playwright. His magnum opus was a sequence of short stories and novels collectively entitled La Comédie humaine, which presents a panorama of French life in the years after the 1815 fall of Napoleon....
also lived in the house for a period. (Archived at WebCite
WebCite
WebCite is a service that archives web pages on demand. Authors can subsequently cite the archived web pages through WebCite, in addition to citing the original URL of the web page. Readers are able to retrieve the archived web pages indefinitely, without regard to whether the original web page is...
In 1911 Countess Fekla Pavlovna Stackelberg purchased the house and kept the design unchanged, and rented out the apartments.
In 1970 the building underwent extensive renovation
Renovation
Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...
s which saw a one-storey building in the north-west quadrant being built and yard constructions being dismantled. In 1972 the consulate-general of France occupied the building and has been located in it since.
Role of the consulate-general
The consulate-general is attached to the Embassy of France in MoscowEmbassy of France in Moscow
Igumnov House is a historic house in Moscow and is today the residence of the French Ambassador to Russia. The house is located at 43 Bolshaya Yakimanka Street in the Yakimanka District of Moscow.- The building :...
and services the Northwest consular district
District
Districts are a type of administrative division, in some countries managed by a local government. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions or counties, several municipalities, or subdivisions of municipalities.-Austria:...
, which includes Saint Petersburg, Leningrad Oblast
Leningrad Oblast
Leningrad Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . It was established on August 1, 1927, although it was not until 1946 that the oblast's borders had been mostly settled in their present position...
, Republic of Karelia
Republic of Karelia
The Republic of Karelia is a federal subject of Russia .-Geography:The republic is located in the northwestern part of Russia, taking intervening position between the basins of White and Baltic seas...
, Murmansk Oblast
Murmansk Oblast
Murmansk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located in the northwestern part of Russia. Its administrative center is the city of Murmansk.-Geography:...
, Arkhangelsk Oblast
Arkhangelsk Oblast
Arkhangelsk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . It includes the Arctic archipelagos of Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya, as well as the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea....
, Pskov Oblast
Pskov Oblast
Pskov Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Pskov Oblast borders the countries of Estonia and Latvia, as well as Belarus. It is the westernmost federal subject of contiguous Russia . Its major cities are the administrative center Pskov and Velikiye Luki . Area: 55,300 km²...
, Kaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast is a federal subject of Russia situated on the Baltic coast. It has a population of The oblast forms the westernmost part of the Russian Federation, but it has no land connection to the rest of Russia. Since its creation it has been an exclave of the Russian SFSR and then the...
, Vologda Oblast
Vologda Oblast
Vologda Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is Vologda. The largest city is Cherepovets.Vologda Oblast is rich in historic monuments, such as the magnificent Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, Ferapontov Convent , medieval towns of Velikiy Ustyug and Belozersk, baroque...
and Novgorod Oblast
Novgorod Oblast
Novgorod Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located between Moscow and Saint Petersburg. Its administrative center is the city of Veliky Novgorod. Some of the oldest Russian cities, including Veliky Novgorod and Staraya Russa, are located there...
. The consulate-general offers consular assistance
Consular assistance
Consular assistance is help and advice provided by the diplomatic agents of a country to citizens of that country who are living or traveling overseas.Such assistance may take the form of:* provision of replacement travel documents...
to citizens of France
French nationality law
French nationality law is historically based on the principles of jus soli , according to Ernest Renan's definition, in opposition to the German's definition of nationality, Jus sanguinis , formalized by Fichte.The 1993 Méhaignerie Law required children born in France of foreign parents to request...
, whilst promoting trade and cultural ties between the French people
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
and businesses and their counterparts in Saint Petersburg.