The Peter and Paul Fortress (Russian: Петропа́вловская кре́пость, also Fortress of SS Peter and Paul) was founded by Peter the Great in 1703, but the building of it didn't finish until 1740. Protected within the complex are the Peter and Paul Cathedral, burial place of much of the Imperial family, the Grand Ducal Mausoleum, a working mint, and restored historic bastions and the prison cells within them – now open as a museum.

It was planned to serve as a fortress during a war that was raging at the time of its founding it didn't actually serve that purpose, even though the timber version of the citadel and six bastions was completed within the year.

After failing to serve the purpose it was originally intended for the fortress was used as a prison for high ranking political prisoners from the 1720s until the Russian Revolution, when it was attacked and all the prisoners were freed – which is why it's often referred to as the Russian Bastille. The Revolutionaries turned the tide on the Tzar's officials by keeping them in the same cells they'd kept their political prisoners in. Since the 30s it's been a museum.

Written by  World Reviewer Staff.

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