Peter the Great Founds St. Petersburg
May 27, 1703
On a swampy Neva delta claimed from Sweden weeks earlier, Peter drove the first stake into a mud island and declared a city. Thousands of conscripted peasants would die digging its canals. From this unlikely marsh rose a granite capital designed to face Europe and turn its back on old Muscovy.
In context
Also in 1703 (5 other events on record)
- Great Kantō Earthquake and Tsunami · East Asia · Disaster
- Chikamatsu Dramatizes the Ronin · East Asia · Culture
- The Great Storm of 1703 · Europe · Exploration
- Genroku Earthquake Levels Edo · East Asia · Exploration
- Camargo Scandalizes the Paris Opera · Europe · Culture
Before and after in Europe
Before and after in Politics
Era
Enlightenment (1651–1800), one of 696 events from that era on Saeculum.
Sources