Imperial train. Refraction on the wheels of the royal train Nicholas 2

The history of the imperial trains of Russia

On the opening day of the Tsarsko Selo railway in October 1837, Nikolai I personally drove in the first railway part of the train, which was from the steam locomotive with a tender and 8 cars. There are different opinions, as the sovereign with the empress and the heir drove in it. Some write that in your own carriage installed on an open platform, but it is unlikely; Other, which is in a separate eight-wing coupe of the 1st grade wagon. In later periodicals, there are allegations that Nikolai I always traveled in such a coupe and in ordinary trains following the schedule. It was possible that it was in the first period after the opening of the road, but it was documented that later the emperor with his family and retinue went only in "emergency trains" (imperial wagons and trains, then was not yet). The Great Princes and their children made trips to "ordinary trains", but in compliance with special precautions.

At the end of the reign of Nicholas I, in 1851 the construction of the railway from St. Petersburg to Moscow was completed.

The train consisted of a steam locomotive, car salon, a wagon-kitchen, wagon-felling, a carpentry, a service car and sweat wagons (giving a prestigious abbreviation of SV). Wagons were connected by indoor transitions. Part of these wagons was built in 1850-1851 at the St. Petersburg Aleksandrovsky factory. The length of the train, including the locomotive with the tender, amounted to about 80 m.

It should be noted that the routing in a luxurious train began slightly earlier - by Early in the morning of August 18, 1851, Nikolai I went on it from St. Petersburg to Moscow to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his coronation.

The length of the "own" imperial car was 25.25 m, it was installed on two four-axle carts, which was new and unusual even for the beginning of the 20th century (after all, then passenger cars of twenty-meter length were launched into railway practice). At the end of the car, there were capacious entrance sites with a fence.

The car was painted outside in a blue color. Above ten windows with large sides, located on the length of the body on each side, were placed golden two-headed eagles.

The ceiling of the tsarist car was covered with white atlas, the walls of a quiet with raspberry color. The same material was used for furniture tightness, for which French decorators from Lyon were invited.

The bronze watches stood on the tables, the interior was also decorated with Vases of the Sevrian porcelain and bronze candelabras. The doors of the mosaic work opened and closed completely silently, and the fresh air was delivered by bronze ventilation pipes, decorated at the top of the floods in the form of an eagles. Heating pipes disguised as bronze lattices, successfully served by spectacular details of the decor.

As part of the imperial train was the Empress Wagon Alexandra Fedorovna, which was "three elegantly cleaned rooms, with a fireplace, with a kitchen, cellar and a glacier."

Subsequently, this train added a few more cars of various functional purposes. During operation, some wagons were modernized and rebuilt in order to improve their internal decoration and technical device. The first royal railway train was used for traveling in Russia until 1888.

During the reign of Alexander II, railway transport is increasingly increasingly in the life of the country, new lines of Petersburg are opening up - Warsaw (1862), Moscow - Ryazan (1864), Rigo-Orlovskaya (1866-1868), Moscow - Kursk ( 1868) and a number of others. The royal journey through railways began to expand, their duration has increased, which required the improvement of comfort. In addition, the role and imitation of Western monarchum, which had their trains.

On April 4, 1866, Alexander II was committed the first attempt, and this may have served to the tightening of the mode of imperial trips. At the same time, the Alexandrovsky plant for movement on Russian railways with a kolay 1524 mm built a fifteenative imperial train. It includes a luggage carrier-power station, workshop, carriages of the Minister of Runs, the Grand Majesta, their imperial Majesty, the Heir to Cesarevich, a car for servants, a kitchen, a buffet and a dining room, in addition, 5 cars for a suite traded in the tail of the train.

Since in the 1870s, the Empress Mary Alexandrovna diagnosed a serious pulmonary disease, in 1872 in France posted an order for the construction of a new railway line for overseas travel of the Empress. France was chosen because the construction of the composition was cheaper there than in other countries. He oversaw completion of the order inspection of the imperial trains.

The railway composition of the empress was formulated gradually. In 1872, in France, they purchased the first seven wagons, they were treated at 121788 rubles. The possibility of their adaptation to the Russian row by the main society of Russian railways cost another 17787 rubles. Cooked separately from this batch, the commodity car was equipped with a glacier and adapted for transportation of provisions (1839 rubles). Somewhat later at the Milton Pay and K 0 factory, four more new cars purchased (51620 rubles). As a result, the royal train was completed with 10 wagons. This railway train began to be intended only for closer travel, because it was built under a narrower railway ross of the European standard.

When developing a train project, much attention was paid to the degree of comfort of the composition and its finishing. Taking into account the disease of the Empress, one of the main requirements was to ensure comfortable temperature and ventilation of the composition. Controlled the quality of these works by the Life Medica Empress Professor S.P. Botkin. So, at a temperature of + 8 ° to -20 ° degrees, a constant temperature of from 13 to 15 ° C, both "on the floor and the ceiling" should be maintained. It also envisaged the possibility of changing the temperature in the coupe, regardless of temperature in the corridor. To do this, installed a signal button in the coupe. In the magnitude of the empress and in the large cabin installed "moisturizing devices" to maintain a certain level of humidity (in winter 48-58%). In four car carriages, air conditioning fans for cooling in the summer of the air entering the air carriages are mounted. With closed doors and windows, the temperature in the wagons had to be lower than the outer air at 5 ° C.

Decoration items for these wagons also ordered in France. In a contract with French plants "Milton Pay and K 0", it was stipulated that "these cars should be equipped with everything necessary furniture and other accessories ... In addition to linen and washbasin, desktop candlesticks and candelabers, ashtons and matchboxes."

The interior was really royal: so, in the magnitude of the Empress installed a washbasin made of silver. Despite the fact that at this time the Watercakes (toilets) in the wagons were already envisaged, according to tradition in the list of ordered items, it is also mentioned about "whites with the gilding of night porcelain vessels".

For the first time, Empress traveled abroad in a new composition in December 1873. During this trip, some disadvantages were revealed in the equipment of several wagons. After all alterations and improvements, the cost of the monarch for foreign journeys was 320905 rubles.

By the 1880s, Russia's railway network expanded significantly. By this time, the imperial family had a carriage fleet, which began to form yet under Nicolae I.

In one of the railway compositions, which consisted of 10 cars, on October 18, 1888, the royal family almost died as a result of a railway catastrophe that occurred near the town of Borka near Kharkov.

After the collapse of the royal train in the boards, the expert commission revealed serious technical shortcomings in the construction of the train and significant violations of the basic rules of its operation. Based on the conclusions of this commission, a decision was made to build a new train for the royal family.

Already on October 28, 1888, the Commission establishes the highest decision to address issues related to the formation of the concept of the future royal train. The main for the commission was the definition of the type of imperial wagons, their comparative analysis with existing analogues operated by the heads of European states.

Thus, in October 1888, it was originally about the construction of two compositions: for the internal and for overseas travel of the royal family.

The compositions were conceived as palaces on wheels. In them, along with luxury and facilities for traveling, a smooth movement must be ensured and due to the level of security. To determine the number of people who accompany the emperor in his foreign trips, the security has made a list of passengers, usually related to the king in his travels. As a result, it was decided that 11-12 wagons will be included in the royal train, about 400 tons.

To build the imperial trains, a special highest established construction committee was formed, with the direct observation of the work of the inspection of the imperial trains.

In November 1889, a fundamental decision was made to place a prestigious order at the Alexander Mechanical Plant of the Nikolaev Railway. On the Alexandrovsky plant, the construction of a seven-dollar composition of the train was completed by February 1896. However, at the very first trips, it turned out that seven cars are not enough. As a result, two cars were built already in the workshops of the St. Petersburg-Warsaw Railway, and the third was restored after the aforementioned crash.

Initially, the shift change occupied on every car to 3 hours. That is, to "rebuild" the whole composition, it took up to three days. In extreme cases, railway workers were placed at 18 o'clock. To accelerate the process at the border station, Verzhbolovo in 1903 installed a special car. He cost the execution of 206 thousand rubles.

Wagons in the composition were supposed to be distributed as follows:

In the first car - Power station with its staff.

Second car - Luggage.

Third car With the coupe of the first and second class was intended for the servant.

In the fourth carin the seven coupe, the first faces of the royal suite were located. Fifth car The Minister of the Imperial Court was held on the 6th coupe, the commander of the main imperial apartment, the head of the guard, Hofamarshal, Life Medic, one compartment compartment.

Sixth carAlso on the 6th coupe, - Dame. Two coupe of grandpars. Two single coupes were intended for Freinin. In the double coupe, the Empress Camerts were driving. The sixth compartment was designed for Freoulin's servants. The level of comfort in this car provided for a special toilet room in each of the Blognya coupe and another shared toilet for Freinin and their servants.

Seventh wagon It was called great. It was designed for 5 coupe. The first of them was intended for Heir-Cesarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich, the future of Emperor Nicholas II. The second double compartment was intended for the young Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich and his governor. In the third coupe there was the second son of the king - the Grand Duke Georgy Alexandrovich. There were two toilets in the car.

The two next cars were called immigrants.

Eighth car - Sleeping. The wrapper of the emperor was inhabit the Safian. Each bedroom had three windows. The emperor's bedroom had a table, a sofa, a small dressing table, double lamps on the walls and a washbasin. Each bedroom equipped separate toilet rooms. The interiors of the Emperor's premises and empress differed in the style of design. In the same car, a wardrobe was arranged, and there were two coupe for the emperor chamener and for the Empress chamber. To heating a car, a steam boiler was placed in it.

In the ninth car The imperial salon and the king's office were located.

In the tenth car There was an imperial dining room, he was divided into three compartments: a dining room, a snack and a buffet. These four of the 10 cars of the train (crowded, salon-dining room, children's and grand permanent), distinguished by the special luxury of the finish, used only members of the royal family.

Two closures of the carriage - economic.

In the eleventh wagon The kitchen was located, which also consisted of three compartments: kitchens, buffet and provisions. In the twelfth car The second class was located compartment for 4 cooks and 4 waiters, as well as 14 beds for servants and 6 seats for the Cossacks of security. Total car was designed for 32 beds with one common toilet.

Later, another car was added, used as a church.

The average weight of the car was about 40 tons, that is, with a pressure of a cart on rails in 20 tons, but there were cars, for example, a fever, in which the trolley pressure reached 23.3 tons.

The length of the wagons between the outer edges of the buffer bars 18 m, the wagons of the flower and children's - 19.6 m, the height of the car inside 2.9 m, the width is 2.94 m. The body is wooden: both a doomlet and frame with chapels.

Trolleys were used with a metal frame; Two-axis, equipped with a triple springs: elliptical carriage type, butter leafy and beams special. Skates reinforced.

The cars were combined with each other with ties of the ulyguty, and for the convenience of passing from one car to another, there were interlessnous transitions with leather mechanics.

Installed incandescent lamps for 8, 16 and 25 candles each at a voltage of 50 volts worked from dynamo machine and batteries; In case of damage to the car in the car - the kitchen was the battery, which ensured the lighting of the entire train for 3 hours. In total, the train numbered 200 pieces of electric lamps. In the daytime, except windows, the lights in the wagons fell through the ceiling windows lanterns.

For communication between all the cars mounted a telephone network. All wagons were equipped with Siemens and Galsk's telephone phones with a receiving sink on a common box of the phone, brought to the wall. Later they were replaced by Erikson phones with a spell and auditory sinks on a single portive tripod.

The power station was put at the head of the composition, it made it possible to take water for the electric station boiler directly from the tender of the rear steam locomotive.

Train heating - steam, local, small boilers installed in 7 cars; The car without his own boiler was treated from the boiler of a nearby car.

Brakes - Westinguza, Gardi and manual; Pressing the pads is two-way, and each axis braked.

To supply the signal on the locomotive there was an electrical alarm system, while following the trains on automatic brakes used to control the speed of the train movement, and when using manual brakes, it is the same as the signal rope is the immediate stop of the train.

All train cars had the same outdoor view. The color of the wagons is dark blue with a thin golden gilding of the stroke closing the seams of the seams. The last layer of varnish was slightly stuck to mitigate too strong gloss.

The roof for protection against heating was painted in light gray. Trolleys - black with golden tank over contour lines. Wheels were chosen according to the rules of general agreement.

There were no inscriptions on the wagons, but each carriage had his limier, denoted by the appointment of the car, for example, sl. - Service, D. - Children, etc.

Their imperial majesty occupied the car - fell; It had two cabinets, between them bathroom, and on the sides - branches for the chamener of His Majesty and the chamber Frau of Her Majesty.

The finishing of the car was distinguished by the simplicity and severity of the style of all parts.

Emperor's fever

The walls of the Cabinet of His Majesty were decorated with skin of dark olive color in the screed, and the ceiling - red polished wood boards. The floor on top of the felt in 3 layers was covered with a one-photon velvet carpet of olive color with a pattern in a cage. A large sofa with a removable mattress, serving at night a bed, separated from the door of a glass wide with a curtain; Furnishing consisted of a written table, 3 chairs, cabinet and shelves for papers; The door next to the table led to the restroom, where the washbasin was put; Finishing of the restroom - the Chinese mat. Bronze is gilded.

The office was illuminated with 5 electric light bulbs in 10 candles. Ventilation was carried out by 2 Korshun fans. To stop the train, the head of the sofa had a handle from stop-cranes of automatic brakes. Next to the restroom - the room of the Cameryman, the necessary things were placed there.

The bathroom room was decorated with a water-repellent mat. The bath itself is made in Paris from the bimetal, the outer side has been made of copper sheets, and the other, converted inside of the bath - from silver. A shower was installed above the bathroom.

Her Majesty's apartment was arranged almost as well as the Cabinet of His Majesty, with the only difference that instead of the skin for the walls of the walls and furniture, an English routon pale green was applied.

Empress fever

Behind the foot was the salon-dining room.

On the walls - kayts, clock, barometer and port-bouquets; In addition, above the mirror, between the doors in the dining room, the pressure gauge and the vacuction from the brake cylinders of Westingauz and Gardi are supplied.

Dining room decor elements

A tree for decoration is applied red with an inserts from american walnut. Doors, tables, window curtains are encrushed.

Dining room in the style of English Renaissance; Its character is pretty strict and very simple: the walls are covered with embossed French leather, rollers, brown, panel - shagreen leather, rollers; Doodle furniture is also smooth and shaggy skin; The dining table optionally disassembled on 3 separate lonely tables, from the cabin side there was a baffer wardrobe with a folding board for serving snacks.

Illuminated salon and dining room - every 16-tide lamps

Before completing the children's car.

The main branches of the Vagon were the premises of their imperial highness of the great prinjeon Olga and Tatiana Nikolaevna.

In both of these coupe, the upholstery of the walls is smooth, English kreton - flowers on the white field; Tree - beech.

In the same car were placed 2 frames; The branches of them were arranged by the total type of premises of persons of the Sweet.

There were 3 grandiolent compartments in the grand minedness, one cellular compartment and a coupe for Camera Frau.

The 1st Grand Duty Branch was decorated in the ampir style: polished mahogany furniture with bronze ornaments; walls and furniture covered skin of dark green color in the screed; The ceiling is tightened with greenish, silk matter with a weathered laurel wreath; The same wreaths were repeated in the drawing of the carpet, thick red-brown tone.

In general, the character of the finish was very rich, but calm and strictly exist.

The decoration of the 2nd separation consisting of 2 disconnected folding partition parts was made in brighter colors; Walls are separated by silk matter, with color pattern; Wooden wall decoration was made of red beech and Karelian birch; In the furniture prevailed Maple with inlays from a pear tree.

Optionally, with some trips, this separation of 2 bedrooms was turned into a salon.

The 3rd grand permanent compartment for less humidity was also decorated to the top of the stitch; The total tone of the finish is a lilac connection with pale yellowish; For the panel, a silk lilac sheave was used; For walls - Matter of a brocarte with a yellowish woven pattern on a light-lilac background and, finally, plush for furniture borders; The upholstery of the walls are made by the same matter broker.

The wooden decoration of the walls prevailed the beech and maple, and the maple was also taken for furniture with the inlays of a pear tree.

The bed, as well as in Her Majesty's office in a new car, was arranged in the form of a hammock and separated from the door with a wooden shirma.

The head of the hammock was located a small folding table and a portable electric lamp, which could also be hung on the wall; The window has a toilet table with a mirror; In stocks between the windows - a writing table with a lowered board; Chair, stool and chair complemented to furnishings of this compartment.

The sweat carriage consisted of 4 male and 2 ladies and coupe for women's servants.

The device of these branches is similar to the Freilingic room in a children's car and was different, mainly, only the choice of matter for the upholstery of walls and furniture: in the men's offices, a sofa, a chair and a wall panel of the skin of the skin of dark green, and the upper part of the wall "Kotlin" is grayish - green with a woven pattern of brilliant silk; In the ladies, finishing in the tone of Vieil OR (dim gold), the skin is replaced by atlas.

A service wagon consisted of a salon compartment and six coupe.

The device of these coupe is made according to the sample of male sweat. The salon was intended for the premises of the duty officers from the train administration, as well as the agents of the administration of roads and the ranks of the gendarme administration.

Control devices were placed on the wall: the indicator of the train rate, two pressure gauges from the main air pipe and the brake cylinder of the Westingauus brake, vacuum meters from the same parts of the Garde brake, the clock, a repeate call from the electrical alarm to the locomotive and the button for feeding the signal there; Barometer and thermometers - internal and outdoor - complemented this collection.

On the wall there was a map of Russia railways. There was a telephone for communication with the separation of engineer of cars in the car-workshop and with a luggage car. At the end of the car, a small tea buffet was arranged.

Wagon-workshop was entirely intended for the premises of the train and electric stations for its lighting.

The wagon engineer department was equipped with two sofas, sliding table, telephone and all control devices as in the cabin of the service car with the addition of a voltmeter, as well as two cabinets and shelves for storing train magazines.

For recreation, people who changed from duty, three large branches of six beds were arranged from duty from duty.

The spongas shops were located in three tiers: the lower and the top is fixed motionless, the average is descended on the hinges, which gave the opportunity to freely sit on the day on the bottom shop.

The benches were made of teak polished wood and covered with removable hair mattresses, covered with gray cloth. Top dress and personal luggage craftsmen placed in the corridor. To feed the train brigade, there was a small separate kitchen with a stove, sufficient for cooking for 30-35 people of the lower employees accompanying the train from the expense.

The boiler of the electrical station for the convenience of a set of water from the tentar tank was placed at the end of the car facing the locomotive.

The walls were painted with light oil paint along the cloth previously pasted on them; Paul near the boiler shares iron; The upper windows in the light lamp for better ventilation of the room are made opening.

Coal for heating refer to the stallion from the side of the boiler; Immediately there was a small workbench with a vice for the right repair required.

Dynamo machines were installed on additional liters located across the car, and were fenced with railings.

The floor of the room is linoleum; Walls painted oil paint. On the wall there are two cabinets for storing spare lamps, fuses and other electrical lighting accessories.

Wagon - kitchen.

Almost all wagon was settled under the culinary part, but two compartments were arranged: one - double, Other - in one sofa, for the room of Hurf-Furiera, waiters and cooks with small suburban trips, when the train went in abbreviated composition without a 2nd wave class for palace servants.

In the center of the car, a compartment with a stove, which is located at one of the longitudinal walls. The other wall has a cupcake cabinet. In front of the slab, a long beech table was installed for cooking, under it lay the reserve of firewood. Water was stored in a tank made of copper tinned with zinc, and installed in a wooden container. In the corner of the kitchen there is a sink with water spent on it.

On the walls there are cabinets, shelves and hooks for the premises of the dishes. For ventilation, in addition to the ceiling fans, the windows of the light lamp are made by folding, on the springs. The walls are painted under light oak oil paint; The floor shares the linoleum, and near the foci also iron.

The stove and the cupcake of the cabinet are made of iron and cast iron with the filling of the gaps in the outer skin sand.

At the end of the car, the dining room placed a bof desire for the preparation of snacks and the reserve of the next dishes.

On the other side of the kitchen was the so-called cold compartment; It is fired by all free walls in the form of boxes with covers; All reserves of the Palace Kitchen remained here. The door to the compartment with the stove is equipped with an automatic lock.

In the train of another, the battery of electric lighting batteries in this compartment had to be placed in this compartment.

The luggage wagons and the 2nd class for the Palace servants are also decorated, as well as residential premises in the car kitchen - by type of passenger cars 2 classes: the top of the walls are covered with a glued, and the bottom and seating of the dwelt gray cloth.

In the luggage car stood the Graftio apparatus to record the stroke and downtime.

On the walls of the corridor, hydropult, stretcher and torches in case of any incident on the way are installed.

In a class II car, except for the departments for the palace servants, there was a service room for the paramedic and a foreman train, directly observing the train at the railway serving. One wall of this branch is occupied by a large closet, which stores the stock of bed linen on the whole train; Under the sofa - a box with a full stock of the most common and necessary in the path of medicines.

Nicholas II, until 1905, enjoyed trains built on the orders of his father - Alexander III. But since Nicholas II often traveled around the country, then gradually on each railway began its royal railway train. By 1903, the Park of Imperial Trains was already from five compositions. The first is the imperial train of the Nikolaev railway for traveling by the widowing empress Maria Fedorovna with cars on four-axle trolleys. The composition included 10 cars. The second - "his own imperial Majesty" for long-distance travels in Russia, commissioned in 1897, on four-axle carts. The third is the imperial train "for a foreign track", which was put in operation in 1894, consisted of 11 cars on four-axle carts. The fourth is the "suburban imperial train" with three-axis travel wagons in the vicinity of St. Petersburg, which included 13 wagons. The fifth is the imperial train of the Kursk Railway "for traveling foreign and local nobility" from 16 three-axle cars.

Increased infrared events have significantly influence the increase in the Park of Imperial Train. It was necessary to strengthen measures to ensure the safety of the emperor in the conditions of the brewing revolutionary explosion. Therefore, at the beginning of the 1900s, the construction of the second "copy" of the Russian Imperial Train began. The construction of this composition was completed by 1905.

It was the twins that ensured the "cover" of the king, constantly changing the places on the road track. A similar practice in the protection of the king was still in the late 1870s under Alexander II. A special personnel from among the room chelladi was appointed in the train-trojler with a task constantly fade into the windows of cars, giving them a residential look. The inner decoration of the train-Dubler was somewhat more modest, but externally they looked almost the same.

The wagons of the imperial trains tried to keep at each of the king rail routes. Therefore, the imperial composition could be quickly equipped with the necessary number of cars.

Especially often the imperial composition was used by the king during the First World War. For maneuverability and secrecy of movements, the royal train was recalled by incomplete. The imperial train was small. He consisted in the center of the wagon of His Majesty, where the bedroom was located and the Cabinet of the Soviet; Nearby, on the one hand, Khitsky, and on the other - the car dining room. Next, they walked the kitchen with a buffet, a car with a military-acquired office and the last car, where railway engineers were placed and the head of the road, which was followed by a train. Arriving to the front at the rate, the sovereign remained to live in his train. When, in the summer of 1915, Nicholas II accepted the duties of the Supreme Commander and most of the time began to spend in Mogilev, where his rate was located, then Empress came there with daughters.

In fact, in 1915-1917, the imperial train became one of the permanent residences of the last Russian emperor. This train included a salon car, in which on March 2, 1917, Nicholas II signed his renunciation.

After the renunciation of Nicholas II in March 1917, his trains were used by the Ministers of the Provisional Government for six months. After coming to power, the Bolsheviks from the imperial wagons were formed the famous train of the chairman of the revinitioner L.Dtretsky. He enjoyed the amenities of the Imperial Train, including a garage-wagon, built in 1915 for the composition of Nicholas II.

The fate of all luxurious royal cars turned out to be sad. Most of them was lost in the fire of the Civil War. The surviving wagons died in 1941, and today in the territory of Russia, not one of the genuine imperial trains has been preserved.

According to the materials of publications: Zimin I. Adult World of Imperial Residences. The second quarter of the XIX - the beginning of the XX century; J.-D. TransP. - 2000. - № 8. - P. 68-73: Il. Imperial trains.B.V. Yanush, an employee of the Central MPS; Tsarskostskaya newspaper , November 9, 2002 № 87 (9409) Y. Novoselsky;Transport information bulletin. - 2009. - № 1. - p.27-29. K. I. Plugs Imperial train; Imperial wide-resistant train for traveling in Russia Construction 1896-1897. : [album] / MPS; Cost. P. Malevinsky. - St. Petersburg. ; M.: Typio-lit. Kouchner, 1900. - 220, 19 s. : il., photo, plans, l. heck.

The car No 1 of the Russian Empire is the so-called train, on which King Nikolai second together with the headquarters of the management and retinue moved around the country, making inspection trips, official visits or just traveling with his family. The composition was a genuine palace on railway wheels, inside which Nikolai Alexandrovich had the opportunity to live and work in the usual conditions for the monarch. When the First World War began, the imperial tuple turned into a permanent residence of Nicholas II. Here on March 2, 1917 signed a renunciation of the throne.

Characteristics of the royal train

The construction of the main locomotive of the Great Power began according to the personal order of Tsar Alexander the Third, which decided that the Russian monarch had to have individual means of movement during the internal inspections and foreign trips by rail routes of the message. Already after the death of Alexander Alexandrovich, the Imperial Train (1896) was built for his heir in the workshops of Nikolaev railway railway, which was changing the composition and number of cars according to the growing state requirements and the number of Romanov-Junior.

For example, in 1902 Personal w / d-echelon Tsar consisted of ten wagons: a bedroom emperor and empress, salon for receptions, a working office, a kitchen, dining room, children's, departments for servants, railway workers, suits, family members, a baggage department, as well as a specially equipped chapel. All finishing from the best materials and the latest artistic fashion is a red polished tree, French bimetall, silver, leather and other materials that allowed decorators to turn the royal tuple on the rails in the perfect combination of comfortable movement and operating functions.

Photos of the imperial train

Interesting articles

After renounce the emperor, a luxurious w / d-tuple was left without a host, after which a series of transitions from hand to hand began. From the king to the temporary government, from Kerensky to Trotsky, after which the famous echelon finally fell victim to the Civil War. The last remains of royal w / d luxury were destroyed in 1941 and only photographs of the imperial train and his decorative situation came to this day.

Walls and furniture were covered with an inhuman in an English style with vegetable ornaments.

View of the dining room

Female coupe.

Female coupe.

The inner view of one of the cars.

Women's coupe, perhaps for princesses.

Walls, ceilings and furniture from polished oak, walnut, white and gray beech, maple and Karelian birch were covered with linoleum and carpets.

Interior of one of the cars.

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The salon was upholstered furniture made of mahogany. Walls, sofas, chairs and chairs were laid out in striped pistachio curtains; Teddy carpet on the floor had a proven design.

Dining wagon.

Interior of one of the cars.

Coupe for Freilina (Junior Court).

Bathroom.

Dining room.

Car reception car.

Coupe Nicholas II.

Interior of one of the cars.

Restroom.

Interior of one of the cars.

Walls painted in blue and decorated with gilding, looked beautiful.

Interior of one of the cars.

Dining room in the restaurant.

Dining room in the restaurant.

Great Princess Anastasia in the Imperial train in 1916.

Empress Alexander, King Nicholas II and Tsarevich Alexey.

Tsar Nicholas II in the train window.

Tsar with generals during dinner.

The train was built between 1894-96 in the Nikolaev railway company.

One of the cars.

The train was built in 1894-96. The composition of the wagons has repeatedly changed, the old cars changed to new, underwent changes and interior.

The length of the imperial car was 25.247 m, and he rested on two four-axle carts. It was painted outside in a blue color, and the windows located on both sides were crowned with gilded double-headed eagles. The ceiling was covered with a white atlas, the walls - quilted raspberry ton. Bronze watches stood on the tables, the interior was decorated with vases of the Sevrian porcelain and bronze candelabras. The doors of the mosaic work opened and closed completely silently, and fresh air was delivered by bronze ventilation pipes.
For the first time, these cars were used in 1851. When preparing for the anniversary - the 25th anniversary of the coronation of Nikolai I. Then the court ministers involved the capacity of the new road to translate various goods to Moscow.

In 1902, the train consisted of ten wagons. Some of them were intended for the imperial family and the sweets of the emperor.
In the imperial car. Nicholas II, Empress Alexander Fedorovna and Zesarevich Alexey (spring 1916).

Other cars occupied baggage, employees and a kitchen. Later was added the eleventh wagon used as a church.
Alexey Cesarevich at the Imperial Train, photo 1916

Train wagons were painted in blue, the seams are decorated with gilding. All the wooden parts were made from Indian tick.

Panels, ceilings, and furniture were made of polished oak, nut, white and gray beech, maple and Karelian birch.

The floors were covered with linoleum and carpets. The most comfortable were, naturally, the wagons of the family of the emperor.

There was everything for a pleasant pastime and fruitful work.

Between the emperor coupe and the empress was a bimetallic bath (outside copper, inside silver).

Furniture in the coupe of Nicholas II, made from Karelian birch and beech, was a brown skin.

On the table stood a bronze gold-plated set of written accessories, consisting of 12 items.

Illuminated by a compartment gilded sconce, on the floor lay a soft carpet of cherry blossom.
Nicholas II.

Excerpts from the "Route following its imperial Majesty of the Sovereign of the Emperor in the cities of Central and Southern Russia, in the Caucasus and in the Army Activant (November-December 1914)

August 23, 1915. The emperor arrived with a retinue. Imperial trains are located in the forest north of the station. An order was signed on the army on the adoption of the king of the High Command from August 23. When the king moved to the bet he took the mansion of the former governor.
Cabinet king at the rate

Hall of receptions

Dining room

Bedroom Nicholas

Beds Nikolai and Alexey

Rate in Mogilev. Small room for snacks.

Inner view of the cathedral in Mogilev

Emperor Nicholas II with General Alexeyev in August 1915

Emperor Nicholas II, Great Prince Nikolai Nikolayevich, in the group of officers headquarters pass through the territory of the rate. Baranovichi, 1915

August 25.Veliki Prince Nikolai Nikolayevich departed with a retinue from Mogilev.
In the bet. Mogilev. August 1915.

The left-Major-General Peppermaster, the Staff-General General Staff. Right-Chief of Staff, General from the infanteria Alekseev. Royal rate. 1915

September 22nd. The king departed in the royal village. October 3. The sir arrived from the royal village along with the son of Alexei.

The royal composition was especially actively used after Nicholas II in August 1915 accepted the duties of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army. In the same train, in the salon car, he signed his renunciation on March 2, 1917
After the renunciation of the Nicholas of his train for six months was used by the temporary ministers
Governments. Shortly after the arrival of the Bolsheviks from the imperial wagons, the famous train of the chairman of the revinitioner L. D. Trotsky was formed, who fully took advantage of the royal amenities.
Cesarevich Alexey near the Imperial Train

Nicholas II and Tsearevich Alexey with a group of officers in the rate

October 11. The village was departed for the southwest front. October 15. The sir returned from the trip to the front. Empress with daughters.
Imperial family at the rate, October 1915

Empress Alexander with daughters in the rate

February 1, 1916. The king returned from the royal village
In the bet. 1916.

May 5. Empress with children.
Emperor Nicholas II with family at the district station during arrival at the rate. Mogilev. May, 1916.

With the imperial courtyard, the means of movement always paid attention, they traditionally occupied an important place in the daily life of the yard. Since the Russian kings of the centuries were riding, in caters and sleighs, then for their service, at the courtyard there was a court stable office.

It is necessary to emphasize that Russian monarchs were pretty mobile. The Russian history includes the famous trip to Empress Ekaterina II to Crimea. The empress was accompanied by a huge staff of servants and courtiers. In addition, in this "action", it was accompanied by the diplomatic corps, the years calmly lived in St. Petersburg. Of course, such a large-scale trip demanded the enormous effort of the court stable. While traveling to the Crimea in 1787, the Empress Catherine II consignment consisted of 14 carriers and 124 sleds, 560 horses were expected at each station for the substitution. Catherine II carriage, according to eyewitnesses, was a whole car, consisted of several compartments (cabinet, a living room for eight people, a gambling hall, a small library) and was equipped with all possible comforts at that time. In motion, this mobile "manor" was brought by thirty horses and had an enviable smoothness of the stroke. By the end of the XVIII century. The crews used representatives of all layers of a privileged society, and, in the opinion of Catherine II itself, "Exception in the crews exceeded the limits of moderation." Therefore, in 1779 a special decree is published, strictly regulated the type of crew and the form of departure for various classes of the population.

Caterpatch Caterina II. 1793-1795

There were very rarely cases when palace crews were used to save the lives of the members of the imperial family. So, on December 14, 1825, after the first unsuccessful attack of the horse guard on the Kare of the rebels, lined up on the Senate Square, Nikolai I sent his personal friend Colonel V.F. Adlerberg to Shamaleister V.V. Dolgoruky to "prepare country crews for Mother and Wife" to "in extremes to pay them under the guise of gentlemen in the royal village" 296.

Examples of "transport" mobility of Russian monarchs set. So, Nicholas I, distinguished by extraordinary endurance, kept long-lasting horses. From the Krasnoshel camps, he rode went to Alexandria to dine for 12 miles and then returned back to the camp. His successors were also distinguished by high mobility.

For servicing the needs of monarchs and their numerous surroundings by means of movement in the second quarter of the XVIII century. The court stable office 297 was formed, by the beginning of the XX century. It was called the "court stable".

The shopping of horses in Russia and abroad, the treatment of horses in the treated horse-in climb, was carried out. cases about horses, summarized or presented to the emperor with noble foreign specials; cases of fallen horses and laying on them of monuments; providing horses fodder; sale of various kinds of crews, carriage, wheelchairs, phaetons, landscape, flies, sharabs, etc.; Manufacturing harness for crews; Purchase in Russia and abroad crews and harness; Management of state equestrian plants; Head of the stable hospital; Konsky Lazaret and the stable church. In other words, by the end of the XIX century. The Ministry of Imperial Court acted a powerful structure, whose leaders were firmly sitting in their places and were very jealous to the possibility of appearing at the imperial courtyard of "alternative" modes of transport.

Each of the Russian emperors had "their" Liebe Kucera, and Nicholas II also appeared "his" chauffeur. They all lived at the imperial residence, since their services were required by monarchum almost daily.

The nuances associated with the personal features of Russian self-containers appeared. So, Nicholas I, following the Testaments of the Father, practically did not use closed regions. He loved both an ambulance, a driving ride, driving a tremendous number of the verst with inspection checks throughout the country. On trips, his stroller or Sanya managed his personal catcher. However, after in 1836 (on the road from Penza in Tambov, at 14 versts from a small town of Chebar on the descent from the mountain against the village of Schaleolets), the rocket did not restrain the horses and twisted the king from the stroller, Nikolai I began to use local yambs when driving unfamiliar road.

It is noteworthy that in the spiritual will, drawn up in 1844, Nikolai Pavlovich considered it necessary to remember and Kucher Yakov, although he served on another department and the king did not relate to the room: "Art. 12. I wish that all my room service, right and diligently served to me, were drawn to their contents in guest houses. By the same servant, I hide the leiba rainknecht and Kucher of My Yakov "298.

Emperor Nicholas I in Sanya. NOT. Cherchkov

Alexander II, throughout his reign, Life Kucher served Frol Sergeev. Since revolutionary terrorism forced Alexander II to move around St. Petersburg in a closed crew, then a traditional communication system "King - Kucher" was operating. The cord was tied to the right hand of Coucher, for which the king pulled, if he was required to stop the carriage at his request. When March 1, 1881, the first bomb, thrown by a terrorist, destroyed the back wall of the king's carriage, "chassis" was not damaged. Therefore, a complete opportunity to immediately take the king from the place of the attempt, which was going to make a kucher. However, Alexander II ordered the Kumor to stop, and when he felt that he was not going to fulfill his order, "the cord pulled with the hand, tied to the hand of Kucher, and did not let him go until the carriage stopped" 299.

Coach with a dilapidated back wall has been preserved until today. It is exhibited in the Cameron Gallery of the Tsarist village. According to a sustainable legend, Napoleon III presented this carriage, with whom they have experienced the attempt of the Berezovsky Pole in Paris in 1867. This coach, allegedly, was covered with metal sheets - "blond". But this carriage was used only since 1879, and produced her Russian masters in the workshop I. Breiting, and, as you know, Napoleon III lost power in 1870. In fact, the blinking was absent, and in order to protect the emperor the wheels of all winter crews The king was covered with a "thick layer of Guttaperchi". This was done in the assumption that "the soft part of the wheel is partly paralyzing the effect of explosives."

Emperor Alexander II in Sanya Random "Vanki"

Dilapidated bomb explosion Alexander II bomb

As a result of the explosion, the back wall of the carriage, although he got damage, but neither the body and from the sides adjacent to the goats, nor the goats, nor the roof of the body, nor the wheels, no axis, nor the springs - four longitudinal and one transverse, is neither drawn Did not suffer at all. Pillows in the carriage remained integer. According to the competent persons, despite damage, the carriage stayed on the go and was able to immediately take the emperor from the place of the explosion.

Alexander III also had "his" coofer and "his" communication system with them. When he was required to call the carriage, he approached the desk in his office and "touched the call to the stable, for which the crew was served him, depending on how he pressed the button" 300.

It is noteworthy that the rigid standards of etiquette regulated and the order of travel of the first persons of the empire. So, the Russian empress was not allowed to travel alone in open crews outside the royal residences, except Peterhof. This precedent is prisoner and persisted until 1917. 301

However, it should be noted that with all the traditionalism of the imperial courtyard, the comfort of the comfort of the first persons has always been given close attention. In addition, a very important factor is speed. In other words, the main criteria of the means of movement under the imperial yard were speed, comfort and representativeness. Therefore, technical innovations in the field of movement watched very carefully.

Traveling in the imperial family, as a rule, was contacted either with business trips or with trips to rest. Travel routes were determined by the capabilities and features of the means of transport.

One of the main routes - the rides of Russian monarchs and their families to Europe. These trips with official and informal visits to the numerous European family were performed almost annually. Especially close ties existed with German dwarf courtyards, since almost all Russian emperts are German chiefs.

Emperor Alexander II with Empress Maria Alexandrovna

The retinue of Russian emperors was huge for dwarf European courtyards, who considered each penny. As one of the contemporaries wrote, describing the visit of Empress Maria Aleksandrovna to a small homeland in 1864: "All Darmstadt kishel Russian military and civilian ranks in the diverse uniforms, who made up a numerous imperial retinue, Feldhegerers and court ministers, and in appearance performed at St. Petersburg "302.

It is noteworthy that all Russian empertresses financed their European relatives in one form or another. So, Maria Alexandrovna expelled in Darmstadt on 20 ookhl. "On the famous Empress needs." Contained the yard of his parents and the empress Maria Fedorovna 303.

We went to the resorts - "on the water". This tradition, the Russian aristocracy inherited from the times of Peter I. Up to the 1860s. Trips to Europe took place in caters on horseback. It was hard physically and long by the standards gradually accelerated the pace of life. However, gradually in Russia developed its own railway network, which in the 1860s. Connected with European railway lines.

Railway

In the second quarter of the XIX century. In the development of transport facilities, fundamental changes occurred. At first in October 1837, opened the Tsarskoil Railway. On the opening day, Nicholas I personally drove in the first railway part of the steam locomotive with a tender and 8 cars. All the way from the capital to the royal village took 35 minutes. The king was in his crew installed on an open cargo platform.

Train of the Tsarskosiel Railway. 1837

It can be said that this crew set on the railway platform became a symbol of the Nikolaev era, since most of the reign of Nicholas I fell during the formation of steam vehicles. Only at the end of the reign of Nicholas I, in 1851, the construction of the railway from St. Petersburg to Moscow was completed. For the new railway, locomotives and wagons were purchased. By order of Nicholas I, in England, the first 42 passenger and 120 commodity locomotives were purchased. Later, another 72 passenger and 580 commercial English wagons were additionally acquired. Such large-scale procurement indicate that the development of railway transport was among the main tasks for the country's leadership.

Since the king paid a lot of attention to the congestion under construction, he became the first passenger, driving from Moscow to Bologoy. For this journey prepared a special railway train. It consisted of a locomotive of overseas construction, a wagon-saloon, a car kitchen, a wagon, a wagon-dining room, a service car and sweat wagons (giving a prestigious abbreviation of SV). Wagons were connected by indoor transitions. Some of these wagons were already Russian production, they were built in 1850-1851. At the St. Petersburg Aleksandrovsky Plant 304.

The length of the "own" imperial car was 25.25 m, and he rested on two four-axle carts, which is new and unusually even for the beginning of the XX century. (After all, then the passenger cars of twenty-meter-meter length began to enter the railway practice). The car was painted outside in the blue color, and the windows located on both sides were crowned from the top with gilded two-headed eagles. The ceiling of the tsarist car was covered with white atlas, the walls of a quiet with raspberry color. The same material was used for furniture tightness, for which French decorators from Lyon were invited. The bronze watches stood on the tables, the interior was also decorated with Vases of the Sevrian porcelain and bronze candelabras. The doors of the mosaic work opened and closed completely silently, and the fresh air was delivered by bronze ventilation pipes, decorated at the top of the floods in the form of an eagles. The heating pipes disguised as bronze lattices, successfully served by the spectacular details of the decor 305.

Imperial train. Grandnyary branch

Imperial train. Emperor's fever

Imperial train. Empress fever

These wagons were applied for the first time for the surname passengers in 1851 when preparing for the anniversary - the 25th anniversary of the coronation of Nikolai I. The court minions used the power of the new road to translate various goods to Moscow. So, one of the platforms were immersed by two horses of the emperor and 8 urban crews. On other platforms - crews of suite. The imperial staff was serving from St. Petersburg on August 19, 1851 in half the fourth in the morning. Since the royal composition was driving Empress Alexander Fedorovna, then the main guidelines of the message Count P.A. drove along the highway Kleinmichel, Ober-GoFamarshal A.P. Shuvalov and Life Medic M. Mandt, "to make sure everyone will be fought for the empress" 306. The wagon of the empress was "three elegantly cleaned rooms, with a fireplace, with a kitchen, cellar and a glacier" 307. It was planned that the time of the way would be 18 hours, but the imperial composition arrived in Moscow only after 23 hours.

Under Alexandra II in the 1860s. In Russia, the rapid development of the railway network began. For an imperial family, this is important, because for Empress Mary Alexandrovna in Crimea, Livadia's estate was acquired in Crimea, where the imperial family began to travel every year.

It should be recalled that the first trip to the Crimea has taken another Catherine II. And in 1837, Nikolai I family left in Crimea. It was then that Empress Alexander Fedorovna received from Nicholas I as a gift to the Manor of Oreanda "With one condition that Dad will not take care of him and that she will build a house there. Write "308. Subsequently, architect A.I. Shockenshneider built a palace there, who was departed after the death of Alexandra Fedorovna in the ownership of her second son of the Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich.

Distribution of places in the imperial train during the highest travel from Copenhagen to Livadia 1891

Traveling to the Crimea for weak health Empress Mary Alexandrovna was very tedious. For her, they tried to plan as much as possible the "calm" route, so that most of it passed through the railway and water. So, in 1863, Maria Alexandrovna went to the Crimea from the Tsarsky village on September 11. The route passed as follows: on horseback from the royal village to Sablino station and further on the railway to Moscow. Then on horseback to Nikolaev, through Tula, Eagle and Poltava. From Nikolaev in the Dnieper and the Black Sea to Yalta. From her highway to Livadia. The entire route with a length of 2328 versts took seven days 309.

Since in the 1870s. The Empress Maria Alexandrovna diagnosed a serious pulmonary disease, and she, as a rule, conducted in the winter, in 1872, in France posted an order for the construction of a new railway line for foreign trips of the Empress. France was chosen because the construction of the composition was cheaper there than in other countries 310. He oversaw completion of the order inspection of the imperial trains.

The railway composition of the empress was formulated gradually. In 1872, in France, they purchased the first seven wagons, they were treated at 121,788 rubles. 311 The possibility of their adaptation to the Russian row by the main society of Russian railways cost another 17,787 rubles. Cooked separately from this batch, the commodity car was equipped with a glacier and adapted for transportation of provisions (1839 rubles). Somewhat later at the Milton Pay and K 0 factory, four more new cars were purchased (51,620 rubles.) 312. As a result, the royal train has completed 10 cars 313. This railway train began to be intended only for closer travel, because it was built under a narrower railway ross of the European standard.

When developing a train project, much attention was paid to the degree of comfort of the composition and its finishing. Taking into account the disease of the Empress, one of the main requirements was to ensure comfortable temperature and ventilation of the composition 314. Controlled the quality of these works by the Life Medica Empress Professor S.P. Botkin. So, at a temperature of from + 8 ° to 20 ° degrees, a constant temperature of from 13 to 15 ° C should be maintained, both "on the floor and the ceiling." It also envisaged the possibility of changing the temperature in the coupe, regardless of temperature in the corridor. To do this, installed a signal button in the coupe. In the magnitude of the empress and in the large cabin installed "moisturizing devices" to maintain a certain level of humidity (in winter 48-58%). In four car carriages, air conditioning fans for cooling in the summer of arriving air carriages are mounted. With closed doors and windows, the temperature in the wagons had to be lower than the outer air at 5 ° C. 315.

Decoration items for these wagons also ordered in France. In a contract with the French plants "Milton Pay and K 0", it was stipulated that "these cars should be equipped with everything necessary furniture and other accessories ... In addition to linen and washbasin, desktop candlesticks and candelabers, ashtons and matches" 316.

The interior is really royal, so, in the carriage of the Empress installed a washbasin made of silver 317. It is curious that although at this time the Watercases (toilet) in the wagons were already envisaged, according to tradition in the list of ordered items, it is also mentioned about "white with the gilding of night porcelain vessels" 318.

For the first time, Empress traveled abroad in a new composition in December 1873. During this trip, some disadvantages were revealed in the equipment of several cars. These were the little things (many water tanks were given to flow, the water pipes that were held under the bottom of the wagons were frozen, the dishes thundered on the go, they stunned, it turned out that the seats on the sofa were uncomfortable), but they were immediately eliminated 319. After all alterations and improvements, the cost of the monarch train for foreign travel was 320 905 rubles.

By the 1880s. Russia's railway network expanded significantly. For Emperor Alexander III, railways became an integral and usual part of everyday life. By the end of the 1880s. The imperial family has placed the carriage fleet, which began to form yet under Nicolas I.

In one of the railway groups, which consisted of 10 cars, on October 18, 1888, the Tsarist family almost died as a result of a railway catastrophe that occurred near the play of Borki near Kharkov. As established a consequence, the cause of the catastrophe was a significant excess of the speed of heavy tsariyopi and admitted defects in the construction of the railway. This tragic event has become an important milestone in the family calendar of the recent Romanovs. At the time of the catastrophe, the entire royal family (6 people), with the exception of a little Olga, was in the car-dining room. The fact that the whole family survived under the wreckage of the car, and Lackey, which poured cream to Tea Alexander III, was perceived, perceived as divine providence. Naturally, many myths arose around this event, the most common of them is described by S.Yu. Witte. According to him, "the entire roof of the table car fell on the emperor, and he only drove this roof through his gigantic power on his back, and she did not crush anyone." 320 In fact, at the time of the crash of the train, the Wagon Walls moved and detained the fall of the roof 321. According to the materials of the investigation, it was established that during the disaster 21 and wounded 24 people were injured. Later from among the wounded died two more.

In April 1888, a decision was made to create the Imperial Russian Historical Museum. In December 1888, the highest decision was ordered to storing a silver glass into the museum, which was in the car-dining room of the Imperial train on October 17, 1888 and damaged during the collapse near the Borka Station. What managed to survive during the railway catastrophe, the family perceived as a miracle. Nicholas II recorded annually this day in the diary as a highly used day. On October 17, 1913, he recorded: "For now a quarter of a century, the Lord saved our family from death when crashing a train!"

On October 28, 1888, the Commission is established by the highest decision to address issues related to the formation of the concept of the future royal train. The main for the commission was the definition of the type of imperial wagons, their comparative analysis with existing analogues operated by the heads of European states.

On June 28, 1889, a report was held by Alexander III Minister of Payments by A.Ya. Gubbenet about the preparatory work. During the report, the need for the construction of a new train for foreign journeys of the emperor and his family was discussed, since the special train in operation was dilapidated and did not meet the safety requirements. Thus, in October 1888, it was originally about the construction of two compositions: for the internal and for foreign trips of the royal family.

The compositions were conceived as palaces on wheels. In them, along with luxury and facilities for traveling, a smooth movement should be ensured and a proper level of security. To determine the number of people who accompany the emperor in his foreign trips, the security has made a list of passengers, usually related to the king in his travels. As a result, it was decided that 11-12 wagons will be included in the royal train, about 400 tons.

The royal train in Denmark (Streb). Photo 1887

In order to determine the standards for cars of this class, one of the railway engineers were sent abroad for inspecting the corresponding railway compositions and visits to plants capable of performing such an order. Naturally, the news of the major potential order quickly spread among stakeholders. Numerous appeals to the Commission with proposals from foreign firms wishing to make cars of this class. They were taken to prepare the desired composition for one or two years. After careful consideration of all applicants rejected. In November 1889, a fundamental decision was made to place a prestigious order at the Alexander Mechanical Plant of the Nikolaev Railway.

Wagons in the composition were supposed to be distributed as follows: in the first car - a power plant with its staff. The second car is luggage. The third wagon with the first and second class coupe was intended for service. In the fourth car in the seven coupe, the first persons of the royal suite were located. The fifth wagon on the 6th coupe was held by the Minister of the Imperial Court, the commander of the main imperial apartment, the head of the guard, Hofamarshal, Life Medic, one compartment compartment.

The sixth car, also on the 6th coupe, is the ladiesky. It was located the little great Princess Olga Alexandrovna and her Bonna. A separate coupe was scheduled for the Great Princess Ksenia Alexandrovna. Two single coupes were intended for Freinin. In the double coupe, the Empress Camerts were driving. The sixth compartment was designed for Freoulin's servants. The level of comfort in this car provided for a special toilet room in each of the two cereal coupes and another shared toilet for Freinin and their maids. The seventh car was called great. It was designed for 5 coupe. The first of them was intended for Heir-Cesarevich Nikolay Alexandrovich, the future of Emperor Nicholas II. The second double compartment was intended for the young Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich and his governor. In the third coupe there was the second son of the king - the Grand Duke Georgy Alexandrovich. There were two toilets in the car.

The two next cars were called immigrants. The eighth wagon is sleeping. Two separate felling fees for Alexander III and Empress Maria Fedorovna were observed. The wrapper of the emperor was inhabit the Safian. Each bedroom had three windows. The emperor's bedroom had a table, a sofa, a small dressing table, double lamps on the walls and a washbasin. Each bedroom equipped separate toilet rooms. The interiors of the Emperor's premises and empress differed in the style of design. In the same car, the wardrobe was arranged, there were two coupe for the emperor chamberrine and for Empress Chamerau. For the heating of the car, it has placed a steam boiler.

In the ninth car there were an imperial salon and the king's office. In the tenth carriage there was an imperial dining room, he was divided into three compartments: a dining room, a snack and a buffet. These four of the 10 cars of the train (crowded, salon-dining room, children's and grand permanent), distinguished by the special luxury of the finish, used only members of the royal family.

Two closures of the carriage - economic. In the eleventh wagon there was a kitchen, which also consisted of three branches: kitchens, buffet and provisions. In the twelfth second-class car, a compartment for 4 chefs and 4 waiters were located, as well as 14 beds for servants and 6 seats for the Cossacks of security. Total car was designed for 32 beds with one common toilet.

Initially, to save place, it was supposed to cover the composition only with candles and do without electrical lighting. Then the version of gas lighting was considered, but after some oscillations, electric lighting arranged in the train. Each of the coupe was equipped with 1-2 lamp in modern style. Installed incandescent lamps for 8, 16 and 25 candles each at a voltage of 50 volts were powered by a dynamo machine and batteries. In total, the train numbered 200 pieces of electric lamps. For the first time, electric lighting was tested in the royal train in the fall of 1902 during the traditional trip of Nicholas II family in Crimea. In the daytime, except windows, the lights in the wagons fell through the ceiling windows lanterns. For communication between all the cars mounted a telephone network.

Heating of wagons - steam. For cooling cars in the summer, special "windy refrigerators", prototype of future air conditioners, were presented. The air fell across special air intakes in elegantly decorated boxes with channels, closed ice with salt, and, cooling, got into the car. All water supply pipes were made of copper. The width of the corridors in the imperial cars was 72 cm, in the rest - 70 cm. The floors covered the linoleum and carpets. The thickness of the partitions between the coupe to facilitate the total weight of the wagons did not exceed 3 cm.

For the manufacture of carcasses of cars other than metal, a variety of types of wood were required, they were purchased in London. During construction and finishing, tick, ash, red tree and oak were used. The car body carefully in several layers were painted in blue. Outside over the top of the windows attached bronze, gilded artistic forging state emblems. The roof was made of red copper painted in light gray color. The "harmonica" transitions between the cars were sewn from black leather. Since it was necessary to reduce the weight of the composition, then no armor on the wagons was established.

Already during the construction of the train for foreign travel, the emperor decided to use it for internal travel of the royal family. To do this, have developed a procedure for changing the hits of a foreign rut in 1435 mm on a Russian rut in 1524 mm. In addition, the design of the composition envisaged the possibility of crossing it to ferries through the straits of large and small loft, since Alexander III often stayed by his wife's relatives in Denmark. Initially, the shift change occupied on every car to 3 hours. That is, to "rebuild" the whole composition, it took up to three days. In extreme cases, railway workers were placed at 18 o'clock. Since it was uncomfortable for high-ranking passengers, to accelerate the process at the border station Verzhbolovo in 1903, a special vago-lover was established. He cost the execution of 206 thousand rubles.

The first trial trip of the royal train (for foreign journeys) took place on January 20, 1893, the Sweet car was held from St. Petersburg to the station Tosno and back. The first was the first train of the newlyweds - the Grand Duchess of Ksenia Alexandrovna and the Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich. They went from the new Peterhof to Sevastopol in early August 1894. After this trial run, on August 24, 1894, the royal staff was officially commissioned. The composition of 10 wagons for traveling in Russia was commissioned by 1897.

However, Emperor Alexander III did not have to take advantage of new trains. By this time, he was fatally sick. At one time the composition still wanted to use, as the doctors assumed the king's trip to the climatic resort on Corfu Island. But the pace of the development of deadly disease dictated a completely different course of events, and the emperor, having learned about disappointing forecasts, refused to leave the territory of the country, moving to the Livadia near him. Therefore, Nicholas II became the real owner of the new train. He traveled quite a lot in the country, and abroad, and his fleeting remarks led to the further improvement of the material part of the royal composition. So, in January 1902, Nicholas II dropped that the train of the French president had more smooth. As a result of comparative running tests, the carts change. Since the purpose of the king's trips was different, then the composition of the compositions in the royal train was constantly changing, and the individual cars had different mileage. So, as of January 1, 1907, the mileage of the Imperial Wagon-completion on the territory of Russia amounted to 28,003 versts, a high-rise Vagon - 44,876 miles. Abroad, the wagon car "Ried" 72,957 a mile, and a grand-road - 71,816 miles.

Nicholas II in the Own Train window. Photo 1917

The royal composition of how Nicholas II in August 1915 was especially actively used by the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian army. In the same train in the salon wagon, he signed his renunciation on March 2, 1917.

Nicholas II until 1905 enjoyed trains built on the orders of his father - Alexander III. But since Nicholas II often traveled around the country, then gradually on each railway began its royal railway train. By 1903, the fleet of imperial trains was already from five compositions. The first is the imperial train of the Nikolaev railway for traveling by the widowing empress Maria Fedorovna with cars on four-axle trolleys. The composition included 10 cars. The second - "his own imperial Majesty" for long-range travel in Russia, commissioned in 1897, on four-axle carts. The third is the imperial train "for a foreign track", which was commissioned in 1894, consisted of 11 cars on four-axle trolleys. The fourth is the "suburban imperial train" with three-axis travel wagons in the vicinity of St. Petersburg, which included 13 wagons. Fifth - the imperial train of the Kursk Railway "For traveling for foreign and local nobility" with three-axis cars of 16 322.

Increased infrared events have significantly influence the increase in the Park of Imperial Train. It was necessary to strengthen measures to ensure the safety of the emperor in the conditions of the brewing revolutionary explosion. Therefore, at the beginning of the 1900s. The construction of the second "copy" of the Russian Imperial Train began. The construction of this composition was completed by 1905. 323

It was the twins that ensured the "cover" of the king, constantly changing the places on the road track. Such practice in the protection of the king was still in the late 1870s. Under Alexandra II. A special personnel from among the room chelladi was appointed in the train-trojler with a task constantly fade into the windows of cars, giving them a residential look.

We have reached the description of the imperial train memoirs. Head of the Office of the Ministry of Court A.A. Mosolov recalled: "In the first carriage there were a convoy and servants. As soon as the train stopped, the clocks ran their places from the wagons of their majesty. In the second car there were a kitchen and indoors for the metallone and chefs. The third car was a red-tree dining room; The third of this car was allocated to the living room with heavy drapes and furniture, a velvet shtof; There was a piano. The fourth car crossed the entire width of the corridor and was intended for their majesty. The first coupe was a sides of the sovereign of gray-lilac tones. If the empress was not on the train, the coupe was closed on the key. In the fifth car was a children's: drapery were from light kreton, and the furniture was white. Freillins were placed in the same car. The sixth wagon was given a retinue. It was divided into 9 coupes, of which one - the double in the middle of the car, was intended for the Minister of the courtyard. Our coupe was much more spacious than in international sleeping cars. Comfort was provided, of course, completely. On each door there was a frame for placing a business card. One compartment has always been free: it was placed in him who were presented to their majesty on the road and for some reason left in the train. The seventh car was intended for baggage, and in the eighth there were inspector of the highest trains, a commandant train, servants of Sweets, Dr. and Pharmacy. Wagons covered with electricity, heated with steam heating, there was a telephone in each coupe. The head of the sofa had a stop crane handle. In Tambur, the Vagon was on a round the clock a conductor. Interior trim of cars was carried out by leading specialists from firms. BUCHTGER, N.F. Svirky and others. "

The wagons of the imperial trains tried to keep at each of the king rail routes. Therefore, the imperial composition could be quickly equipped with the necessary number of cars. These routes, as a rule, were permanent, since the trips of the king on suburban palaces, in Belovezh, Livadia and Spalu were carried out from year to year.

Especially often the imperial composition was used by the king during the First World War. For maneuverability and secrecy of movements, the royal train was recalled by incomplete. Flegene Adjutant Colonel A.A. Mordvinov recalled that the imperial train was small. He consisted in the center of the wagon of His Majesty, where the bedroom was located and the Cabinet of the Soviet; Nearby - Svitsky, on the one hand, and on the other - the car dining room. Next, they walked the kitchen with a buffet, a car with a military-acquired office and the last car, where railway engineers were placed and the head of the road, which was followed by a train. When the king came to the front at the rate, he remained to live in his train. When, in the summer of 1915, Nicholas II assumed the duties of the Supreme Commander and began to spend most of the time in Mogilev, where his rate was located there, Empress with daughters often came there. In fact in 1915-1917. The imperial train has become one of the permanent residences of the last Russian emperor.

The royal train, in which Nicholas II signed a renunciation of the throne. Exposition of the Peterhof Museum of the 1930s.

After the renunciation of Nicholas II in March 1917, his trains were used by the Ministers of the Provisional Government for six months. After coming to power, the Bolsheviks from the imperial cars have formed a famous train of the chairman of the Revoensovet L.D. Trotsky. He used the amenities of the Imperial Train, including a garage-wagon built in 1915 for the composition of Nicholas II.

From the late 1920s. And before the second half of the 1930s. In Peterhof in Alexandria Park, within the framework of the exhibition dedicated to the everyday of the Imperial Family, 2 wagon with an exposition telling about the renunciation of Nicholas II. This couple included a salon car, in which on March 2, 1917, Nicholas II signed his renunciation.

The fate of all luxurious royal cars turned out to be sad. Most of them are lost in the fire of the Civil War.

The surviving cars were killed in 1941, and today in the territory of the Russian Federation has not survived a single of the genuine imperial trains. However, in our neighbors, in the Museum of Rail Transport Suomi, three cars from one imperial composition are exhibited. Some memorial belongings in the royal cars are preserved in the Foundations of the Peterhof Museum-Reserve 324.

"His own imperial majesty garage" 1905-1918

Cars appeared in the daily life of the royal family thanks to the prince of Vladimir Nikolayevich Orlov 325, that in 1903 he was for the first time driving his car to the Alexander Palace. For the king, the first acquaintance with such technical innovations began in the summer of 1895, when the "steam bike" was shown in Peterhof - the French steam motorcycle of Millet, released in 1893

Car system "SERPOLL". 1888

Crimea. Hunting house.

Right of Emperor V.N. Orlov - the first chauffeur Nicholas II

At the beginning of the XX century. Cars quickly entered the daily life of wealthy people in Russia. So, Nicholas II recorded in the diary on May 12, 1904: "On Wednesday, Misha 326 came to the tsarist village 326 from Camp 327 by car." In this phrase, the king first used the term "car", before that, as a rule, he used the term "motor". In the diaries of Nicholas II, another term is encountered - "Pitor". From the environment of Nicholas II first in 1901-1902. Probed cars Minister of the Imperial Court Baron V.B. Frederica and Grand Duke Dmitry Konstantinovich. These were French cars of the SERPOLL system. During the journey of the royal family to Germany, regular walks on the suburbs of Naughim on the brother of the Empress of Hessian Duke Ernesta began.

Russian monarchs began to perform regular trips on cars. Only since 1905, Nicholas II initially perceived a new technique, but after a trial trip, he sat in the car and Empress Alexander Fedorovna. The novelty liked the king so much that he drove on the car almost every day. Prince Orlov, fearing to expose the life of the king of danger, actually turned into his chauffeur. He recorded in the spring of 1905: "The sovereign loved the car and decided to acquire a few more pieces" 328. The aristocratic bomb of St. Petersburg immediately responded to this news with rumors. So, close to the court A.V. Bogdanovich recorded in the diary on August 16, 1906: "Favorite is now kN. Orlov, who daily rolls royal couple in his car. This is the only now their passion and entertainment "329.

This is really a great passion even become the object of family jokes. In the toilet (WC) Nikolai II in the Alexander Palace of the Tsarist village on the wall hung a caricature on the king, on which he is depicted sitting in the car "Bianco T" 330.

The issue of purchasing cars was agreed with the Minister of Imperial Court V.B. Frederix. He answered for the purchase of cars for the royal garage Flegel Adjutant, Prince Vladimir Nikolaevich Orlov, from 1906 to 1915 he was the head of the military-acquisition of the Emperor Nicholas II.

The first cars purchased by Orlov, appeared in the Alexander Palace of the Tsarist village at the end of 1905, were French and German cars. France acquired a representative limousine (phaeton) of the company DELAUNNAY-Belleville. It was used for short trips on the suburbs and St. Petersburg. For long journeys, there were several Mercedes high-speed cars modifications "16-40". If the car "Delaunnay-Belleville" hit the luxury, then Mercedes cars were already considered one of the fastest. In 1904, the tourist modification "Mercedes" could keep the speed of 85 miles per hour. It was these cars that put the beginning of the AMPERTOR Garage Automobile Park.

After the first cars appeared, the park of which was constantly increased, there was a need to solve personnel problems. Prince V.N. Orlov initiated the opening of the imperial school of the chauffeurs. He picked up a personal chart of Nikolai II. They became a Frenchman with impeccable recommendations - 25-year-old Adolf Kegress. Some time V.N. Orlov was constantly traveled with a new driver checking it.

"Delaunnay-Belleville". On the radiator - the swastika, the symbol of the empress Alexandra Fedorovna. Photo 1915

"In the form of experience", the imperial garages created in the royal village and Peterhof in 1905. In 1906, he acquired official status. By the end of 1906, there were already six cars in the garages, which cost the execution of 100,000 rubles. Since that time, the cost of equipment garages and the purchase of cars constantly grew. In 1906, the king spent 77,277 rubles on the garages, in 1908 - 69,700 rubles, in 1909 - 65,000 rubles, in 1910 - 33,000 rubles. The most significant costs came in 1911 when I spent 96,681 rubles. By 1911-1912 The cost of costs stabilized at 58,600 rubles. Thus, according to the most modest estimates, from 1905 to 1912, the Ministry of Imperial Court spent about 550 rubles to purchase cars and equipment of the imperial garages. Not only cars were purchased for these funds, but also built new premises for the imperial garage. The garages appeared not only in the royal village and Peterhof, but also in other royal residences - in the winter and anichkov palaces in St. Petersburg, in Gatchina, in Livadia.

By 1910, 21 cars of various modifications were in the imperial garages. Among them are five open cars-Lando, intended personally for Nicholas II and his family 331. It is worth paying attention to that Nicholas II preferred open cars. This decision was dictated by a political choice. Nicholas II believed that the king should be visible to the people. And although the security has repeatedly convinced the king to move around the city in a closed car, Nicholas II, as a rule, traveled in open limousines.

Nicholas II preferred luxurious French cars from Delaunnay-Belleville. The French firm "Delaunnay-Belleville" during the XIX century was engaged in the manufacture of steam boilers and locomotives. In 1904, she made her first car. In the photos that have come down to this day, a peculiar cylindrical shape of a car hood is clearly visible. This constructive solution resembled the roots of the company.

By 1907, the quality, power and reliability of DELAUNNAY-Belleville limousines made them popular in the aristocratic environment of European monarchical courtyards. In 1909, according to the order of the Russian Imperial Yard, the company manufactured a special version of the car. It was indicated as "delaunnay-belleville - 70 s.m.t.". Reduction "S.M.T." ("SA Majesti Le Tsar"), from French - "His Imperial Majesty". It was a powerful and reliable car weighing 4 tons with an engine capacity of 70 liters. from. (engine volume - 11.5 liters, 6 cylinders), capable of developing speeds up to 100 km per hour.

Family near the garage. Left "Delaunnay-Belleville", right "Mercedes" Livadia. Photo 1914

Looking by Emperor Nikolai II military cars after a run of 3000 km. Peterhof. Alexandria. Photo 1912

Controlling the car was then quite complicated. Instead of the usual three pedals in the royal car - nine pedals. Two pedals for the left and right brakes, "Mountain brake, or emphasis", accelerator, pedal for enhanced oil supply to the engine, pneumatic whistle. In addition, there were trigger levers, pneumocrat, tire paging. All this system worked on the compressed air received from special cylinders. The car was launched also with compressed air. The car could silently touch the place and drive only on the reserve of compressed air a few kilometers. Compared with the samples of the same company purchased in 1906, it was a more advanced model. So, it used not a chain transmission from the engine to the wheels, but a cardan.

Naturally, orders of the Russian imperial yard were extremely prestigious for "delaunnay-belleville", so the car "S.M.T." Made very carefully and with maximum luxury. This car up to the First World War remained one of the most luxurious machines of the world. His reputation was survived by two world wars. The last "Delaunnay-Belleville" produced in 1948, but the "golden age" of the company fell precisely for the period from 1907 to 1914, when she supplied her cars for the Russian Imperial Court.

In the Tsarsko Selo garage, in addition to the personal cars of the emperor, there were still ten cars, which were used mainly by Nicholas II. Among them were 3 German cars "Mercedes" (Modification "16-40") 332, 3 French cars "Delaunnay-Belleville" 333, "Panhard-Levassor" 334, "Serex" 335 and one English car 336. In addition to them, in the garage there were also domestic cars in LESSNER 337 and "Rousse-Balt" 338. Cars "Rousse-Balta" were luxurious domestic cars themselves. On the tube of the radiator of these cars, the plant had the right to install a two-headed eagle figure - the symbol of the Russian Empire.

Since over time, the trips began to be taken over long distances, and the emperor according to the protocol accompanied many people, along with ordinary cars purchased four trailer trucks with beds 339. For the treasury account, cars were purchased for officials. So, at the disposal of the Palace Commandant there were two cars "Mercedes" 340. In 1910, the annual content of the imperial garage was accounted for by the Ministry of Imperial Yard in 126, OOO rub.

For the maintenance of equipment in the garage, 21 Drivers worked, at the rate of one driver for each car. By 1910, cars were firmly entered into the daily life of the imperial family. They were rapidly accustomed to them, although at first, with their use, there was a mass of misunderstandings. Basically, they are associated with car "catastrophes" of that time. The type of mechanical "monsters" led horses and cows on the roads that became uncontrollable. Sometimes the emperor personally compensated for the injured lost goods or managed to send to the hospital of the victims 341.

The garage continued to evolve. In 1911-1912 For him, another 14 modern cars of various class are purchased. Among them are four open cars-Lando 342, five phaetons 343 and two buses 344. Palace Commander also received two new powerful open cars 345. It is noteworthy that the body for all royal cars has been manufactured from 1909. Only one French company Keller, although cars bought on different chassis ("Rolls-Royce", "Renault", "Peugeot", "Mercedes"). In addition, the garage appeared racing, four-cylinder "Mercedes" for 40 liters. E., acquired in 1910, most likely, they bought it for the needs of the personal guard of the king, who accompanied him in all trips.

Since the garage of the emperor rapidly growed up, and the palace elite has transplanted from the carriage in comfortable, luxurious cars, then an acute need for an expansion of the garage arose. In August 1910, the Minister of Imperial Court V.B. Frederick wrote the king that due to the growth of the number of cars of the imperial garage, there was a need for the construction of a second stone building for him in the royal village, new buildings in Peterhof and St. Petersburg. The most important position of this document was that V.B. Frederic offered to build a new building in the royal village of "total" on 35 cars (30 cars, 2 cargo cars and 3 cars for the palace state).

Symbol "Rolls-Royce"

Probably in 1910-1911. Built building in a black courtyard of the Winter Palace, in the area of \u200b\u200bthe location of Palace Kitchens. This garage has been preserved to this day. In 1911, during the construction of a new palace in Livadia, a garage was also built for which two "timeless" Rolls-Royce purchased - "Silver Ghost", these cars were used until 1917.

Document prepared by VB Frederix, has its own story. By 1910, apparently, serious friction arose between the unofficial "master" of the Garage - Knyazh, V.N. Orlov and Minister of the courtyard VB Frederix. These misunderstandings were mainly related to the financial situation around the garage and with its uncertain position in the structures of the Ministry of the Imperial Court. Financial problems were determined with the uncontrolled spending of significant funds for the purchase of all new and new cars and the high-cost content of the garage 346.

Since the garage construction was assumed to spend significant amounts from the budget of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, it is decided to develop a special "position" about the imperial garage. Since his Majesty's personal garage is intended solely for servicing the needs of the royal family, its functions were determined after personal coordination with Nikolai II.

VB Frederick, who had a serious influence on the king, apparently decided to take advantage of the situation and legislatively limit the "spreading" of the garage of Sshir. Therefore, the minister offered to stop the unfounded acquisition of new cars in large quantities. He believed that 30 available cars are quite enough, given the fact that only once a year, in addition to the permanent service of the emperor and his environment, the garage uses all its vehicles during the annual maneuvers in the Red Selo, lasting 5-6 days. According to VB Frederix, in 1910, the garage is sufficiently equipped with modern cars, and this year he rented only 4 cars, and even then only because 4 of the imperial car were sent abroad. The minister paid attention to Nicholas II to the fact that the costs of the garage are prescribed in the budget of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, but at the same time real costs exceed the funds established by the budget. Therefore, an increase in the number of cars and the construction of new buildings for which the additional staff will need, will make the content of the imperial garage overhead for the budget of the Ministry of the Imperial Court.

Formally VB Frederick, of course, right, but he did not take into account the peculiarities of the human psyche. Good cars for the man who loves them does not happen much. Especially when there are financial opportunities. Therefore, the garage continued to grow. Nicholas II ordered to approve the expected significant costs. Apparently, this decision was influenced by the passion for the king by cars, and the influence of Prince V.N. Orlova, and the fact that cars have become an important part of the daily life of the highest light. Prince V.N. Orlov strongly supported the hobby of the royal family by cars. So, in 1913, Nine-year-old Zesarevich Alexei presented a tiny double car "Bebe Peugeot" with a 10 liter engine. from. 347.

The only thing that managed to make the minister is to subordinate in June 1912. "Own Its Imperial Majesty Garage" by the Greenwald Stable Stranded Part of AA Greenwald 348. It was a compromise with V.N. Orlov. On the one hand, Greenwald's "Horcer" did not interfere in the affairs of Garage and V.N. Orlov continued to remain his informal leader, on the other - the formal submission of the garage of the stable part gave the right to financial control over his activities by the Ministry of the Imperial Court.

The daily life of the imperial garage spawned many problems that had to be promptly deciding. And above all, these are personnel problems associated with the search for qualified drivers and competent technicians for car maintenance. Since at the time the service of the automotive service has not yet appeared, then not only the skill was needed from the drivers, be able to determine the nature and place of malfunction, but also to eliminate it. These tasks solved the imperial school of the chauffeurs.

Services engaged in ensuring the personal security of the emperor demanded from drivers when transporting members of the imperial name of maximum attention. As the king preferred open limousines, the drivers were obliged to be ready for decisive actions to save passengers and with a possible attempt on Nicholas II. The possibility of such an attempt after the events of the first Russian revolution 1905-1907. It was real. One day Cesarevich Alexey and his French language teacher P. Zhilir fell into one of the first traffic jams in St. Petersburg. Since they were driving in an open car, passersby, learning Cesarevich, instantly surrounded the car, the crowd gathered, from which they hardly got out.

The chauffeur in Russia at that time was a bit. A qualified driver from the Tsarsko Selo garage could easily settle down to any titled host on a big salary, so they were trying to keep them in the ministry of the courtyard. All of them received a fairly high salary, which included the so-called canteens and apartment money, but the ever-growing demand for drivers forced them to quickly raise the content. So, in May 1914, Prince V.N. Orlov In his note, Nikolai II pointed out: "The salary of the workers of the garage is now the following: Drivers of imperial cars receive 90-100 rubles, other workers - 50-80 rubles per month. But Your Majesty should know the fact that even in private houses pay much more than this complaint "349. He emphasized that work in the garage is not easy. Many employees worked without vacation and sometimes at night in order to finish the repair of the royal car. He argued that the level of complaining of workers from drivers to washers (the latter received 25 rubles. Per month) not at all. And there is no opportunity to increase the opportunities with a stricter "budget" framework.

Alexey Cesarevich in the car. Livadia. Photo 1913

At the same time, Prince V.N. Orlov reproached the control of palace administration in endless financial "soldiers", which, in his opinion, distracted by the head of the mechanical department of Garage A. Kegrass and his assistant from their immediate duties. V.N. Orlov, achieving the regime of financial favors for the garage, put forward the main argument - he told the king that numerous reprimands and demands from the Palace Administration and Control forced A. Kegrass several times to ask V.N. Orlova about dismissal. Prince V.N. Orlov declared that he believes A. Kegrax "an indispensable worker, and I am afraid that his dismissal will be a big loss for the garage" 350. Next, Prince V.N. Orlov asked the king to Minister of the Imperial Court V.B. Frederick was ordered by palace financial management not to interfere with the problem of determining the level of wages to work. This is a very characteristic note showing that Prince V.N. Orlov continued to remain the actual "master" of the imperial garage, solving all the controversial issues directly through the emperor. And the requirement does not interfere in the financial affairs of the garage, which included in the structure of the Ministry of the Imperial Court, unprecedented.

However, life constantly threw new problems. Since cars had to carry after the emperor and by rail, then the usual open platforms were used first for this. In February 1914, a decision was made to build a special cargo-garage for transporting imperial cars. Initially it was assumed that these will be two cars, interconnected with metal beats with a length of about 18 meters. However, in the construction process, the sizes have changed somewhat. As a result, there were two four-axle cars, each of which was 20 meters long. This closed garage accompanied five cars, utility rooms for repair, spare parts and fuel. The car car-garage was adapted to the tart of the royal composition. Cars went out of it on special metal congresses in the end of the car.

Emperor Nicholas II for a walk in the Crimea. Photo 1914

Work on this order sharply accelerated after Russia in August 1914 entered the First World War. Since September 1914, Nicholas II began to regularly travel to the front. The garage car was overtaken in the royal village in March 1915, and in August 1915, an act of acceptance of the railway garage was signed. It was very important, since it was in August 1915 Nicholas II accepted the duties of the Supreme Commander. He continued to regularly ride the fronts. At this time, the imperial garage was headed by V. Shoffer 351. The personal driver of the emperor still remained A. Kegrah is really a big master. According to the last palace commandant V.N. Waikova, he even on the Crimean roads near Livadia traveled at the speed of "60-70 miles per hour" 352.

The garage of the emperor continued to increase during the war years. But it increased not at the expense of luxury cars, but at the expense of cars that could be needed in the conditions of war. So, in the winter of 1915/16, a car-sleigh (2 copies) was developed for the king. One of the two manufactured machines was transferred to the service of the Chief of Personal Protection of the King Colonel A. I. Spiridovich. By the beginning of 1916, 56 cars were in the imperial garage. Among them are 9 personal cars Nikolai II, 19 cars for suites, 3 Feldoteger cars, 15 household and 10 cars for the court 353.

After the February Revolution of 1917 and the decline of the monarchy, the entire auto park of the imperial garage was requisitioned. On March 9, 1917, all the material part of the "his own imperial majesty of the garage" was submitted to the disposal of the Provisional Government 354. After the October Revolution of 1917 and came to power the Bolsheviks, the former imperial garage moved to new owners. On January 26, 1918, the property of the former court stable part and the former garage of his imperial Majesty was transferred to the autocondumed base of the workers' and peasant government. On the royal cars, V.I. Lenin and L.D. Trotsky. Russia began to dive into the bunch of civil war, destroyed all the royal cars. So far, not a single car has been preserved.

The concept of museum work in the early Soviet period was the concept of the museum "cars of the former royal train" in Peterhof. By the end of the 1920s, the formation of the Peterhof museum complex was mainly completed. In particular, in the Primorsky Landscape Park Alexandria, exposures opened in the cottage, the farm palace, Gothic Chapel. In the summer of 1927, the extensive thematic exposition turned in the lower palace of Nicholas of the second. All of them illustrated the crisis of autocracy in Russia from the standpoint of a new revolutionary ideology.

The historical monuments of Peterhof XVIII - the beginning of the 20th centuries allowed to keep a story about the originality of the historical eras and the lifestyle of the royal family from the first victories in the Northern War until the renunciation of the throne of the last Russian emperor. Peterhof turned into a grand textbook of the history of the Russian Empire. However, even the last time of creating an architectural monument, the Lower Palace of Nikolai second in Alexandria Park, was not a direct witness to the "crash of autocracy". After all, the royal family left Peterhof on August 3, 1914. The history of tsarism in Peterhof interpretation was turned out to be unfinished.

Peterhof. Alexandria. Cars of the royal train. 1920-1930. Photos from the archive of the GMZ "Peterhof"

Therefore, researchers of the Museum of A. V. Shemansky and S. S. Geichenko accepted the original decision. The final section of the museum exposition, telling about the crash of autocracy in Russia during the First World War, is located in two cars of the former imperial train, especially for this moved to Alexandria. According to the plans of the authors, here, in a true interior, the story of the political situation of 1914-1917 and the circumstances, at which on March 2, 1917, Nicholas second from the throne was renounced, it was necessary to sound more impressive and convincing.

The interest of visitors was not only a new museum exposition, but also the design and appearance of the wagons, whose stories were devoted to part of the excursion - however, quite minor. The construction of the sevenvagon composition of the royal train was launched in 1894 on the Alexander Mechanical Plant of the Nikolaev Railway and ended in February 1896. At the very first trips, it turned out that seven cars are not enough: two additional were built already in the workshops of the C.-Petersburg-Warsaw Railway, the third additional car was restored after the collapse of the royal train in the collapse of October 18, 1888. In 1902, the royal train consisted of ten cars - later two more were added to him. The train included a car-power plant, a luggage car, wagons for royal suite and servants, a grand-road car. The eighth and ninth train cars, which were a sleeping car and a salon car with the working office of the king, were called immigrants. The tenth was, speaking in modern tongue, the car-restaurant, separated by three rooms: the imperial dining room, a snack and a buffet.

The wagons of the imperial train (from top to bottom): the Boudois of the Empress. Salon. Dining room. The Cabinet of the Emperor. Photos 1900-1910 from the archive of GMZ Peterhof

According to the testimony of contemporaries, the imperial train was "rather to a cozy house than on the vehicle." The wagons were painted in blue, the seams are decorated with gilding. Panels, ceilings and furniture were made of polished oak, walnut, white and gray beech, cock and Karelian birch. The ceiling of the royal wagon was covered with white atlas, the walls are covered with a raspberry raspberry. The same material was used for furniture tightness. Bronze watches were stood on the tables, family photos, the interior was decorated with Vases of the Sevrian porcelain and bronze candelabras. The floors were covered with linoleum and carpets.

With the beginning of the First World War, only three cars were left as part of the train: the Tsarsky, where the bedroom and the office, the sweat of eight branches and the car dining room were located. The latter was used during the war for headquarters with the participation of the emperor, it was in him that Nicholas the second was signed a renunciation. This car, as well as the wagon with the work offender of the emperor and entered the composition of the Museum "Wagons" in Peterhof.

Run into the park "Alexandria" of two cars of the royal train, 1929

Secretary of the City Council Peterhof Kozlovsky with a group of sailors of the Baltic Fleet in the wagons of Nikolai second, July 1931

Peterhof. Women Nikolai second in Alexandria, 1950s (?)

Washers of Nicholas second in Alexandria. Russia, Leningrad. 1950s (?)

In May 1917, the train was sealed and translated into Moscow, where he was on the spare paths. In 1929, two wagon were transferred to the People's Commissariat of the Directorate of Peterhof Palace Museums. Initially, the wagons were moved to the station Station station New Peterhof. From there they were transported through Alexandrinsky, at that time, called the proletarian, the Park on the Lined Rails and installed near the entrance to Alexandria, more precisely - the development of Alley near the Gothic Karaulka.

After the restoration repair and construction of a special perrone in 1930, the Museum of "Nikolai Second Wagers" received the first visitors. Near the cars, the pavilion is located with an additional introductory exposition "Imperialist war and the fall of autocracy". The interior decoration, the situation and the exposition of the museum has varied in many ways, and in many essential features even repeated the exposition of the lower palace. Two museums dedicated to the era of the board of Nikolai second, began to be perceived as a thematically holistic exposition, visitors were recommended to make their integrated inspection within a single visit. The closure of the museum in the Lower Palace in 1936 led to the fact that this methodically thoughtful excursion route in the park Alexandria broke up and largely lost its logic.

Boudoir empress in the royal train car. 1900-1910 years. Photos from the archive of the GMZ "Peterhof"

Peterhof. Alexandria. Museum "Cars of the former royal train." Platform and the appearance of the wagons, 1932. Photographer Yu. F. Nikolsky. Photos from the archive of the GMZ "Peterhof"

The expositions of the Museum "Washers of the former Tsarskoy train", the last time of creating in a pre-war Peterhof, was taken by a short century - it existed for about ten years. During the Great Patriotic War, the exhibition complex located in the wagons was actually destroyed: the platform was destroyed, the cozov remained from the cars themselves. In the first decade after the end of the Great Patriotic War, the question of the possibility of restoring the wagons remained open. Nevertheless, the revival of the museum turned out to be unreal: On February 18, 1954, the Special Commission of the October Railway decided that due to damage caused during the war years, the cars came to the state of complete technical unsuitability and were not subject to recovery. In the summer of 1954, on the order of the management of the culture of the executive committee of the Lengorsovet, the cars were disassembled. By the 1960s, the "Last Romanovs in Peterhof", created by the Museum's Researchers in the 1930s, was reminded only by the ruins of the lower giving in the north-east of Alexandria Park. From almost thousands of vehicles and memorial things that made up the internal decoration of the wagons, 55 subjects were preserved in the Foundations of the Peterhof Museum, including writing, furniture, furnishings.

À Propos.

Maria Andreevna Kattsova - Specialist of the Museum Research Department of the State Museum-Reserve "Peterhof".

Literature:

1. A. Shemansky, S. Heichenko. Last Romanovs in Peterhof. Guide at the bottom cottage and cars. L., 1932.

2. Shemansky A. Cars of the former royal train in Alexandria: Guide. Peterhof: Edition of Peterhof Museums, 1935.

3. Nicholas II. Reference: [Exhibition Materials / Auto. Art.: S. V. Mironenko, V. M. Tenichene]. St. Petersburg: Abris, 1998.

4. Shank FB Train to modernity. Mobility and social space of Russia in the age of railways. M.: New Literary Review, 2016.

Documentation:

Archive GMZ Peterhof. PDMP 7357-AP. Inventory museum property in wagons b. royal train.

Archive GMZ Peterhof. PDMP 6193-AP. Inventory museum property in wagons b. royal train.

Archive GMZ Peterhof. PDMP 7358-AP. Inventory additional exposure in wagons b. royal train.

Imperial train. Refraction on the wheels of the royal train Nicholas 2

Characteristics of the royal train

Photos of the imperial train

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