“Halt! Who goes there?” Imagine those words echoing through the Smolensky Cemetery centuries ago. Today we are standing at the heart of the oldest continuously operating cemetery in Saint Petersburg. This is the Staroe kladbishe derevni Smolnaya. It is steeped in history and divided into Orthodox Lutheran and Armenian sections.
The Smolensky Cemetery dates back to at least 1738. It gained official recognition in 1758. Its location far from the city center made it a practical choice. However the damp conditions required drainage canals.
The Orthodox cemetery boasts two prominent churches. The older one is dedicated to the Theotokos of Smolensk built between 1786 and 1790 in a Neoclassical style. The Bolsheviks closed it between 1940 and 1946. The newer one is the Smolensky Cemetery Resurrection Church built in 1904. It is dedicated to the Resurrection of Christ and is a unique example of Naryshkin Baroque in Saint Petersburg.
The cemetery became the traditional burial ground. Professors from the Imperial Academy of Arts founded in 1757 were buried here. Professors of St. Petersburg University founded in 1724 also found their final resting place here. Before the Russian Revolution in 1917 it is estimated that about 800000 people were buried here. This makes it the largest 19th-century cemetery in Saint Petersburg.
Many famous figures were interred here. Xenia of Saint Petersburg a patron saint is honored with a chapel at her tomb. Vasily Trediakovsky Mikhail Kozlovsky and Andreyan Zakharov also rest here. Taras Shevchenko was initially buried here before being reburied in Chernecha Hora. Other notable figures include Ivan Kramskoi Ivan Shishkin and Alexander Blok.
After the Russian Revolution the local authorities planned to demolish the cemetery by 1937. It would be replaced by a public garden. Tombs and sculptures were moved to museums. The remains of several figures including Kozlovsky Zakharov and Shishkin were moved to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. World War II put the plans on hold. The cemetery reopened for select burials in the early 1980s.
More recently in August 2023 Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin was buried here in secrecy. This reflects the Smolensky Cemetery’s long and complex history. From its origins as a practical burial ground to its current status as a historical landmark it has been a silent witness to the city’s evolution. Its monuments and tombs tell stories of faith art and revolution leaving a lasting impression on all who visit the Staroe kladbishe derevni Smolnaya.