The Rumyantsev Mansion is one of the most beautiful palaces on the English Embankment. It belonged to the famous statesman Nikolai Rumyantsev and is now managed by the Museum of St. Petersburg.

The English Embankment, stretching 1260 meters, began to be developed in 1710 when Alexander Menshikov, a favorite of Peter I, decided to build a house near the Admiralty. Plots here were allocated only to wealthy individuals, and the appearance of the buildings had to comply with strict legislative requirements. For example, houses were built along the red line without gaps and entrance arches from the Neva.

Originally, the embankment was called the Anglin Line, as it was mainly settled by the English. Before that, the street was named Galernaya. In the 19th century, it was officially renamed the English Embankment.

By the mid-19th century, the entire street was lined with luxurious mansions. House No. 4, the Laval Mansion, is considered a monument of Russian classicism. House No. 10 belonged to the Osterman-Tolstoy family, and House No. 32 housed the Collegium of Foreign Affairs.

On the site of House No. 44, a stone building appeared in the 1740s, commissioned by Prince Mikhail Golitsyn. It was a two-story building, not particularly distinguished from other houses on the embankment. In the 1770s, the house was reconstructed according to the design of architect Jean-Baptiste-Michel Valen Delamont, and its appearance began to resemble the modern one.

After several changes of ownership, in 1802 the mansion passed to Count Nikolai Rumyantsev. This period became the most significant in the history of the building. Nikolai Rumyantsev, the grandson of a companion of Peter I and the son of Field Marshal Peter Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky, made the mansion the center of scientific and cultural life.

Rumyantsev collected a vast library, collections of minerals and numismatics, and financed expeditions and scientific research. By 1826, his collection had grown so large that the house was reconstructed into a museum according to the design of Vasily Glinka. The mansion was adorned with a 12-column portico of the Corinthian order and a bas-relief "Apollo on Parnassus."

After Rumyantsev's death, the house was transferred to the Ministry of Public Education, and in 1828, Nicholas I established the Rumyantsev Museum, the first major museum-library in Russia. In 1861, the museum was moved to Moscow, becoming the foundation for the A.S. Pushkin Museum and the Russian State Library.

In 1863, the mansion was purchased by journalist Albert Starchevsky, who partially reconstructed it. Subsequently, the building belonged to the Dukes of Leuchtenberg and then passed to the Commodity Warehouses Society. After the revolution, the building was used by various organizations, and in 1938 it became part of the Museum of the History and Development of the City.

In 1991, the Rumyantsev Mansion became a museum of the city's history, and for the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg, grand halls of the Leuchtenberg era were opened within it. Inside, elements of 19th-century interior have been preserved, such as stucco, a marble staircase, and a statue of Venus. The grand halls on the second floor were carefully restored, including a huge mirror made at the Imperial Glass Factory.

The mansion also includes an oak study and a music hall decorated in the spirit of historicism. The building houses the Marble and Portrait Halls, as well as the Moorish Smoking Room. Unfortunately, many interior elements were lost during the Soviet era. Interestingly, the cruiser "Aurora" stopped near the mansion on the night of the revolution, and a commemorative stele has been installed at this site.