Little Britain on the Neva

The founder of St Petersburg, Peter I, brought British sailors, engineers, mathematicians and doctors to the new Russian capital. Some of them stayed for many years and helped the city grow and prosper. The emperor trusted British specialists and appointed them to some of the highest posts in the government. Peter's closest associates, the brothers Roman and Yakov Bruce, descended from the Scottish royal family. Roman was appointed St Petersburg's first governor; his brother, Field Marshal Yakov Bruce commanded Russian artillery in the victorious Battle of Poltava. The English shipbuilder Richard Brown single-handedly supervised the building of Russia's Baltic Fleet. The British formed one of St Petersburg's first expatriate communities, which continued to grow after Peter's death.

The 1734 trade agreement between Russia and Britain designated the latter Russia's preferred trade partner. From then on, British merchants retained pre-eminence in Russia's international trade for two centuries. An Anglican Church was built in St Petersburg in 1753. An English Club and an English Theatre were opened in 1770.

Russo-British ties flourished under Catherine II. Russia applauded and eagerly absorbed British cultural and technological achievements. A great number of British doctors, engineers, shipbuilders, architects and artists came to Russia during Catherine's reign.

The great Scottish architect Charles Cameron came to St Petersburg at the personal invitation of Empress

Catherine II to build in her treasured country residence, Tsarskoe Selo. He created majestic interiors for Catherine's Palace and built a whole complex next to the palace. One of the buildings is named Cameron Gallery after him. Landscape designer James Madders created an English landscaped park in Peterhof. His colleague William Gould created the splendid Tavrichesky Garden in the city centre. The Scottish architect William Hastie designed some unique bridges in St Petersburg.

In St Petersburg's industrial community, no name had more clout than that of Scotsman Charles Byrd, whose factory manufactured Russia's first steamboat. The British also gave the city its first steam engine and tram. British entrepreneurs founded St Petersburg's largest paper mills: Russkaya, Nevskaya, Okhtinskaya, as well as many other major industrial enterprises. In addition to numerous British-managed factories and shops, there was a branch of Britain's Bowlton & Co. Bank at 6 Admiralty Embankment.

The Severnaya Pchela newspaper reported in 1851: "Now that we have a yacht club and horse racing we can honestly say English sport is here." 'Sport' was then a new English word imported by the Russian language along with St Petersburg's new fads: yachting and horse racing. St Petersburg's British expatriates set the trends in the Russian capital's athletic life, founding its first sporting clubs for rowing, biking, track and field, tennis and football.

St Petersburg's British community numbered more than 2,000 in the 19th century, and this number remained steady until WWI broke out. As the community grew so did diverse British institutions and organizations. The Watkins & Co. British bookshop and reading room at 36 Bolshaya Morskaya were a great success with St Petersburgers. The city's first English-language newspaper was named Friendship. The English-Russian Pedagogical Society was established in 1813, soon after the St Petersburg Biblical Society was founded. There were a number of British charities and hospitals in the city. The more affluent British expatriates frequently gave to charity and sponsored the arts in St Petersburg. The English merchant G. Wenning, who lived in St Petersburg from 1797 until 1830, established a charity to reform and upgrade Russian prisons, and founded a few shelters and schools according to British standards.

Blood ties between the English and Russian royal houses also strengthened. Alice, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, became the last Russian empress Alexandra Fyodorovna.

Some spots and landmarks in St Petersburg are named after England. In the late 20th century, historical names were restored to English Prospect and the English Embankment, one of St Petersburg's finest.

Anglo-Russian Relations during the Reign of Catherine the Great