Kresty in St. Petersburg is one of the most famous prisons in Russia. By the end of 2021, this grim brick building, dubbed the Russian Bastille, will be transferred to Rosimushchestvo for sale to commercial organizations or for the opening of a large museum.

History of Construction

The construction of Kresty began in 1884 on the site of an old prison. The work was carried out by about four hundred prisoners, who gradually demolished the old buildings and moved into the new ones. The number of cells in Kresty remained the same as in the first building constructed here in 1868, with 960 rooms designed for over a thousand inmates. The complex included hospital buildings, workshops, and a church.

Kresty was originally designed as a prison for solitary confinement. A commission for reconstruction appeared in 1879, and the goal of the construction was to create a European-style correctional institution, more thoughtful and modern than anything built in the Russian Empire before. Rumor has it that this was influenced by Tsar Alexander II's visit to Great Britain, where he was shown local prisons.

Architectural Project

The architect of the new prison was Antoniy Tomishko, a citizen of Austria-Hungary of Czech descent, known for his projects of the "New Dacha" and the Medical School in St. Petersburg. He proposed to build several identical five-story buildings in the shape of a cross, with the administration's office in the center and a large five-domed church on top. The style can be characterized as industrial modern or "brick style" with elements of Romanesque and fortress architecture. The prison was built from high-quality red brick by the Strelin brothers' cooperative on a site of 10,925 square fathoms.

History states that Tomishko studied the structures of European prisons, including Moabit in Berlin, where the buildings are connected by a single tower. Each building had 15 cells on each side, and the corners of the corridors were specially cut for better visibility. The architectural supervision of the construction was carried out by well-known architects. The construction of Kresty cost 1.5 million rubles, attracting funds not only from the state treasury but also from patrons.

Cells for Prisoners

In the small rooms (most of them 8 sq m), a steam heating pipe and ventilation were installed. The rooms were lit by a small electric lamp, which was a novelty even for residential buildings at the end of the 19th century. Unlike the grim dungeons of many Russian casemates, the new prison had light walls, a wooden floor (later replaced with asphalt), and a fairly large window with bars near the ceiling. Prisoners had a table, a bench, and a shelf for storing dishes. Walks took place in a small square courtyard, where up to 30 prisoners could walk at the same time.

Inside the complex were staff houses, a kitchen, a hospital, a bathhouse, a morgue, an ice room, and a forge. Tomishko was inspired by the ideas of the British philanthropist John Howard, a reformer of European prisons, to whom the architect even erected a monument.

Kresty in Tsarist Russia

The prison was solemnly opened on December 1, 1892, and accepted both criminal and political offenders. A printing house operated in the prison, and a magazine was published. It was one of the most progressive correctional institutions in Europe. The prison church accommodated 400 people and was built with columns made of Karelian granite. Before the revolution, prisoners attended church services on holidays together with the authorities.

From 1904, political prisoners began to arrive at the prison, such as Social Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and Bolsheviks. Many of them received sentences for criminal offenses. Political prisoners did not work in the printing house, but their daily lives were little different from those of criminals. By 1912, the prison was overcrowded: it housed up to 2,500 prisoners.

Historical Significance of Kresty

Similar prisons were built in 22 cities of the Russian Empire based on Tomishko's project. For example, a copy of the St. Petersburg complex was erected in Odessa and Samara. Similar prisons appeared in Tsaritsyn, Vyazma, and Vyshegonsk. Everywhere, the cross-shaped buildings, the absence of an inner courtyard, and inter-floor ceilings were preserved. There were only 16 guards for each building, which was enough for security. The first floor was referred to by prisoners as the "Dog House."

The Odessa prison was more advanced than that in St. Petersburg: it had in-cell toilets. In the Odessa Prison Castle, most rooms were single. Many famous individuals, such as Trotsky and the bandit Mishka Yaponchik, were imprisoned there. However, southern prisons were less thought out in case of escape, and prisoners often fled.

The "Samara Cross" had steam heating and sewage. The rooms had copper washbasins and boilers for heating water. Prayer rooms for prisoners were equipped. The Samara castle was designed for a thousand prisoners, a third of whom were in solitary confinement. The revolutionary Inessa Armand spent time in the Samara dungeons. The history of Kresty is closely linked to the history of Russia, as the construction of a new type of prison became a turning point in the humanization of society.

Soviet Period

After the October Revolution, much changed. In the midst of the uprising, all prisoners were released, including criminals. The prison church was destroyed, icons were painted over, and the premises were turned into a club. However, over time, new prisoners appeared in the cells, victims of the new regime. Notable individuals, including Leon Trotsky, Anatoly Lunacharsky, Konstantin Rokossovsky, Nikolai Zabolotsky, and Joseph Brodsky, were held here. The Provisional Government also passed through the prison. The fate of Anna Akhmatova is linked to Kresty, as she described the queues in her poem "Requiem."

During the Soviet period, Kresty was referred to as the correctional facility of the Cheka OGPU, then as an investigative isolator. From 1939, the complex became Prison No. 1 of the UVD of Leningrad Oblast Executive Committees. During the Great Terror, small cells housed 15-17 people. Previously, a maximum of 4-6 people could fit in a "single cell." Instead of "tsarist beds" with metal nets, two- and three-tiered wooden bunks appeared. The previous conditions became a thing of the past. It was physically difficult to stay in the cells due to the terrible conditions.

Executions were carried out in the building. Those sentenced to death were kept in a separate room and then taken to a cell without a number, resembling a staircase with a fire exit, where they were killed. Photos of this place can now be easily found on the Internet, but once this information was hidden.

Prison Life

Many cell windows were covered with glass bricks, and prisoners hardly saw the light. In a small room, dozens of people ate, slept, smoked, and went to the toilet around the clock. The only time they left the cell was for walks, baths, work, interrogations, and visits with relatives.

If the window was open, prisoners on the upper tiers could see the Neva and the embankment. According to prisoners' memories, with 12-13 people in a cell and 6 multi-tiered bunks, they slept alternately. Only prisoners with special status slept at night, while the others stayed awake.

They bathed once a week in a communal bath. The room was dark and cramped, but hot water always flowed from the taps. Clothes were washed in the laundry or bath. They ate black bread baked in the kitchen and prison gruel. Over time, a psychiatric dispensary appeared.

The complex also housed a "sharashka," a design bureau where prisoners developed weapons and systems for the defense industry. Political prisoners convicted for anti-Soviet propaganda ended up in such organizations.

Branches of the bureau were located throughout the Soviet Union. The "sharashka" was separate from the other prisoners. Scientists were given access to a library and provided with more comfortable living conditions. Everyone who worked in the defense industry could dress normally, smoke, and listen to music. Their work was paid almost as well as in freedom. The "sharashkas" in Kresty existed until Lavrentiy Beria's arrest.

In the two hundred years of the complex's existence, only a few escapes occurred; Tomishko's well-thought-out security system proved to be very effective.

In the late 1950s, a cardboard production was launched, an adult school was opened, and large-scale landscaping work was carried out. Beds were changed, two-tiered bunks were reintroduced, an automatic telephone exchange was installed, a laundry was launched, and sewage was repaired.

Decline of Kresty

In the mid-1960s, Kresty changed its name again and became an investigative isolator for the temporary detention of defendants and other categories of individuals. A new building for women was then constructed, which was later replaced by tuberculosis-infected prisoners.

During the Soviet period, the isolator's buildings could house from 3,000 to 11,000 inmates, meaning 10-12 in one room. The prison was designed for a maximum of 2,000, considering multi-tiered beds.

Prisoners worked in workshops, engaging in cardboard and bookbinding. Gradually, the number of prisoners decreased, but it still exceeded the norm.

In the 1990s, the isolator actively traded clothing, crafts, and food. Drugs, cigarettes, and phones were easily obtained. However, the church was restored, and a museum opened, popular among tourists.

By the early 2000s, the isolator had become outdated, and it became dangerous to stay there. Cells were overcrowded, and prisoners suffered from the heat. Brick walls were crumbling, and rats crawled out of the toilet drain pipes. Unsanitary conditions prevailed in the isolator.

Since 2017, the institution has been virtually unused, as new "Kresty" facilities have appeared in Kolpino. By the end of 2021, the buildings of the pre-trial detention center, which are a federal architectural monument, are planned to be transferred to Rosimushchestvo.

The future fate of the complex is undecided. There were plans to open a hotel or museum there. It was suggested to exchange it for a new pre-trial detention center in the city center. Investors were required not to destroy the complex and to preserve its unique history.