Stucco decoration with Catherine's initials in the great hall of the palace
After the successful 1710 siege of Reval (Tallinn) during the Great Northern War, Czar Peter the Great of Russia bought a small manor house at Laksberg (Lasnamäe) for his wife Catherine. Plans for a larger palace in the area were developed soon afterwards and construction of a new palace, in what is now Kadriorg, was started on 25 July 1718. The construction of the main building of the palace was completed by 1725. Peter the Great and Catherine visited the unfinished residence on several occasions, but after his death in 1725 Catherine showed no interest in the seaside property. The great hall with Catherine's initials and profuse stucco decor (attributed to Heinrich von Bergen) survives, while many other interiors have been altered.
The gardener Ilya Surmin was responsible for the flower garden with two fountains and the so-called mirage garden on several levels. The layout of the park shares similarities with that of the palace of Peter the Great in Strelna.[3]
After the death of Peter the Great, the palace received little attention from the Russian royal family. It was sporadically visited, by the Empress Elisabeth and Catherine the Great. In 1828-1830 extensive restoration works of the palace and grounds took place. Between 1741 and 1917, the palace also housed the civilian governor of the Governorate of Estonia.[4]
After Estonia became an independent country in 1918, the palace became state property. For a time, one of the wings housed the studio of sculptor August Weizenberg while the palace was used for art exhibitions. Between 1921 and 1928 the palace housed what would eventually develop into the Art Museum of Estonia. In 1929, in connection with a state visit by King Gustaf V of Sweden, the palace was turned into a summer residence for the head of state of Estonia.[4] In 1934, the palace became the official residence of the then head of state, Konstantin Päts who embarked on extensive and controversial restoration works with the aim of transforming the park and the palace into his private domain. From this era, the library in elaborate "Danzig-baroque" style, completed by architect Olev Siinmaa in 1939 is worth mentioning.[5] A purpose-built presidential palace on the grounds (1938) was designed by Alar Kotli.
In 1921, the palace became the main site for the Art Museum of Estonia. The museum was rehoused in temporary locations from 1929 while the palace was being converted into the Estonian head of state's official residence. During the German occupation of Estonia during World War II, the palace was the residence of the civilian governor of occupied Estonia, Karl-Siegmund Litzmann. After 1944, during the Soviet occupation of Estonia, the palace once again became the main venue for the Art Museum of Estonia, although the buildings were neglected and by the time of the restoration of Estonia's independence in 1991, completely run down. Restoration works, supported by the government of Sweden, began in 1991, and the palace was reopened to the public in 2000.[4] It was also decided that a new building would be established nearby for the section of the museum devoted to Estonian art.
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