Vorontsov Palace

 Vorontsov Palace, and now - Alupka Palace and Park State Museum-Reserve - one of the most visited monuments of the Crimea.

Vorontsov Palace was built as a summer residence of the governor-general of the Novorossiysk Territory Mikhail Vorontsov (1782-1856), designed by English architect Edward Blore (1789-1879). Externally, the building resembles the English castles, while maintaining the architectural elements of different eras: the farther from the gate, the style of the buildings later. It is easy to discern the silhouette Alupka Palace and Oriental motifs chimneys resembling minarets of mosques, registration Southern entrance with an inscription in Arabic reading: "There is no God but Allah."
An unforgettable experience for visitors of the Vorontsov Palace reserves walk through a magnificent park equipment and breakdown which led the German Carl Kebah. Park designed as an amphitheater of two parts: the upper and lower, separated by the coastal highway. A distinctive feature of the palace park is its natural, complementary landscapes, not distort them. Stone chaos, Trout, Mirror and Swan Lake, Moonstone and numerous fields with picturesque names are well remembered and remain in the memory of visitors. Are popular elements of the Lower Park, filled with the spirit of the Renaissance: the Fountain of Tears, the sources of "Cat's Eye", "Teahouse" and rock Aivazovsky. Special interest and attention is drawn to the statue of Carrara marble lions, coming out of the workshop of the famous Italian sculptor Giovanni Bonnani.

Family owned Vorontsov Palace in Alupka until the October Revolution, after which the building and the park was nationalized in 1921 to open a museum. During the Second World War, the museum's exhibits were not evacuated, and the building of the palace was almost destroyed. 537 works of art were taken to Germany and most of them have not returned to the museum. At present, the palace has collected more than 11 thousand items, and the most valuable of them are paintings by Russian artists of the XIX century. and Western European artists XVI - XIX centuries., collection of Russian XVIII century engravings., graphic works, performed in English engraver "black manner", sets of furniture, made by the Russian serfs and English masters, porcelain domestic production, clocks, chandeliers, decorative vases French bronze Thomire and Russian firms.

During the Yalta Conference of the heads of the three Allied powers - the USSR, the USA and the UK, from 4 to 11 February 1945, the Vorontsov Palace, is the British delegation, led by Winston Churchill.
In 1956, the government decided in the palace once again began working museum.
Like many other Crimean building, Vorontsov Palace has frequently been the site for the filming of the movie: "Heavenly Swallows", "Crazy Day or The Marriage of Figaro", "Sappho" - is not a complete list of well-known paintings of domestic production, the action of which takes place in the palace - park complex in Alupka.