There are so many reasons to visit St Petersburg. Some people come in search of culture, others seek inspiration from its literary associations. For some, it’s the architecture that’s top of their list, while others simply come to experience a different way of life.

One thing that’s certainly not in short supply in St Petersburg is history. The city may only have been founded in 1703, but the last 300 or so years provide a fascinating insight into the changes which have shaped this incredible city.

Here, we look at the legacy left behind by Nicholas I (1825-1855) and Alexander II (1855-1881)…

Many grandiose architectural ensembles appeared in the city during the era of Nicholas I. The Alexander Column, the completion of the General Staff Building, and the construction of the Guards Corps headquarters made Palace Square the breathtaking sight we see today. And the Senate and Synod Building on Senatskaya Ploshchad provided a suitably awe-inspiring backdrop for the Bronze Horseman. At the same time, the magnificent neo-classical ensemble of the Alexander Theatre, the Imperial Public Library and Ulitsa Zodchevo Rossi (called Teatralnaya Ulitsa at the time) was built.

As strict classicism faded from fashion, a new generation of architects began to adapt classical forms, using decorative elements from previous eras while employing the most innovative materials. The Mariinsky and Nikolaevsky Palaces were built for the children of Nicholas I, while on Znamenaya Ploshchad (now Ploshchad Vosstania), the Moskovsky Railway Station took shape.

On Millionnaya Ulitsa, German architect Leo von Klenze designed the New Hermitage building, in which for the first time, the Hermitage’s collections were made accessible to the general public. Nicholas himself helped organise the exhibits. Anichkov Bridge, with its four impressive Horse Tamer sculptures, was unveiled. And throughout Nicholas’s reign, work continued on St Isaac’s Cathedral, which was still only nearing completion when the Tsar died in 1855.

Nicholas’s reign also witnessed the height of the ‘Golden Age’ of Russian literature and culture in general – the poetry of Alexander Pushkin and dark comic tales of Nikolay Gogol, while Mikhail Glinka became the first prominent Russian composer.

When the Industrial Revolution finally came to Russia, the country’s first railroad was built in 1837 between St Petersburg and the Imperial residence in Tsarskoe Selo. By 1851, the strategically important Nikolaevsky Railway, connecting St Petersburg with Moscow, was finished. And the first permanent bridge across the Neva was constructed, today known as the Annunciation Bridge (until then, only pontoon bridges had been used).

Today, you’ll find a statue of Nicholas I on St Isaac’s Square in the heart of the city.

His successor, Alexander II, did much to modernise St Petersburg, with new technologies including a centralised water system and water treatment plant, a network of horse-drawn trams, and the partial electrification of the city.

St Isaac’s Cathedral was finally finished and ceremonially consecrated in 1858, after some forty years of construction. The new Mariinsky Theatre, which boasted the largest stage in the world at the time, opened with a performance of Mikhail Glinka’s A Life for the Tsar in 1860. Other outstanding structures from this period are the Kushelev-Bezborodko Mansion (the Small Marble Palace) on Ulitsa Gagarina, the splendid Circus Ciniselli on the Fontanka River, and spectacular monuments to Catherine the Great and Nicholas I. On Palace Embankment, the Emperor’s son, Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich, had a magnificent palace built (today known as the House of Scientists). In 1879, Liteiny Bridge, the second bridge spanning the Neva, was opened, connecting the city centre to the industrial districts on the Vyborg Side.

Today, Alexander II is honoured with a copy of a sculpture by Mikhail Antokolsky, which stands in the courtyard of the building that formerly housed the General Staff Academy on Suvorovsky Prospekt. You’ll find a small bust of Alexander on Ulitsa Lomonosova, near the local offices of the Russian Central Bank. A memorial plaque was placed in the room in the Winter Palace where Alexander was assassinated, and the iconic Memorial Church of the Resurrection of Christ (also known as the Church of Our Saviour on Spilled Blood) was erected near the Catherine Canal (now the Griboedov Canal).