Palace of Soviets - unfinished project of the times of the USSR

One of the most grandiose construction projects of the USSR is the unfinished Palace of Soviets, which tried to erect in the 30s and 50s. The purpose of its construction was to demonstrate the power and greatness of socialism.

Beginning of work

For the first time the idea of building a similar scale appeared in 1922 during the First Congress of Soviets. The purpose of the construction was to show the greatness of the city, to point out that it is the center of the world, to create a single composition of high-rise buildings in the center of the capital. The Palace of Soviets was never built, but thanks to this plan, domestic architecture began to develop actively, a new direction appeared, which was called "Stalinist classicism."

1931 was marked by a large-scale international competition, the purpose of which was to identify the best architect and the project of the building itself, which would become the center of the city of Moscow. The Palace of Soviets assumed not only the erection of a monument on the roof of the largest building in the city, but also the surrounding of its majestic buildings, which were supposed to point to the greatness of the state and to amaze the imagination of ordinary citizens of the country.

In addition to professionals, participation in the competition was accepted by ordinary citizens, as well as by architects from other countries. However, most of the projects did not meet the requirements or did not meet the ideology of the country, so the contest was continued among real contenders from five groups, including BM Iofan. Over two years of the contest, participants created more than 20 projects. The results of the competition were announced on May 10, 1933, when the commission decided to adopt the BM Iofan project, as well as to use the best techniques and parts of the projects of other architects, drawing them to work on the building project.

Construction and War

1939 was the beginning of construction. The next congress of the party decided to finish it in 1942, but this was not to be accomplished.

Of course, the plan was grandiose. In addition to the fact that the Palace of Soviets of the USSR was to rise by 420 meters in height, the height of its ceilings inside was supposed to be about 100 meters. The hall where the sessions of the Supreme Council planned to be held accommodated (according to the draft) 21,000 people, but a small hall could host 6,000 guests. Chief architect was not happy with the fact that the building will have to install a statue of Lenin, as the architecture of the building would immediately fade next to the majesty of the leader. However, under the pressure of the co-authors of the project, he had to give in.

The construction began without any problems, however, with the beginning of the war all works were suspended. Over time, the Palace of Soviets was left without a metal frame. It was confiscated for the needs of the industry, which at that time was in dire need of metal.

After the end of the war, all the resources left for the construction of the building were used for the reconstruction of the country, so the construction did not begin.

After Stalin's death, his regime was severely criticized, in fact, as the construction project itself. Therefore, Khrushchev decided to hold a competition for a new project and an architect. However, there was nothing interesting and a new contest, so the construction was not continued.

To date, from the grandiose construction of all times, only the foundation has remained, on which today is the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. The bunker of the building The Palace of Soviets, which is under the temple, contains many turns and secrets, but it is not so easy to get there as we would like.