Although St. Petersburg is now a beautiful city, it has had a a very rough and surprisingly brutal history. The city was established in 1611 when Swedish colonists looked to build a city with good river access. The city was named Nyen and was located on the Neva River. This location was a great port and fishing destination, which was very desirable at the time and still is today. In 1703 Peter the Great decided that this desirable place was something that Russia needed at the time, because their other port Arkhangelsk was not functional in all seasons or as easily accessible. Russia evaded and took the town on May 12, 1703. He then began rapidly building some of the city that still stands today but at a cost. The builders that he rounded up were peasants from all over Russia and Swedish prisoners. Under the supervision of Alexander Menshikov tens of thousands of these prisoners and peasants died building this beautiful city. St. Petersburg is now one of Russia's most popular tourist destinations due to the fact that it has 221 museums, 2,000 libraries, more than 80 theaters, 100 concert organizations, 45 galleries and exhibition halls, 62 cinemas and around 80 other cultural establishments all created with great detail and craftsmanship even all the way down to the subway stations seen below. Despite the casualties that this city has experienced it is now one of the most popular tourist destinations in Russia.
Avtovo Subway Station
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